Portage Island National Wildlife Area Management Plan: appendix 1

Appendix I: History of Portage Island National Wildlife Area

The Portage Island region has been the home of the Mi’kmaq people for generations. The nearby First Nation community of Esgenoôpetitj (Burnt Church) has a long settlement history. Metepenagiag (formerly Red Bank First Nation) on the Miramichi River has over 3000 years of continuous settlement, making it the oldest village in New Brunswick ( Allen 1994 ).

When French fishermen first arrived at the mouth of the Miramichi River, the Mi’kmaq called the largest island in the Miramichi Bay "Molaweeswayadik" (meaning the place of occurrence of Brant Geese) ( Mitcham 1986 ). It is assumed that the present name of Portage Island refers to the fact that Aboriginal people and early French settlers often stopped at the island when crossing the bay ( Smethurst 1774 ). According to Perley (1852), Portage Island was the site of the first year-round trading and fishing settlement to be established on Miramichi Bay. From 1643 to 1647, Jean Jacques Enaud, a native of the Basque provinces of France, had an establishment on this island for taking the "Morse" or Walrus (Odobenus rosmarus), and for exploiting the fur trade and fisheries. The Walrus was annihilated on Portage Island partly due to Enaud’s efforts.

Throughout the early 1800s, lobster fishing quickly developed as a supplement to the local economy. A small lobster processing facility was established on Portage Island, although the actual location of this facility is unknown, and the site may have since eroded away. Perley, writing on the state of the New Brunswick fishery in 1852, provides the following details:

And further,

In 1867, the island was divided into 31 "meadow lots" set aside primarily for harvesting native dune grasses for livestock forage to be used by farmers and fishermen on the mainland (Figure 12). In that year, the proprietors harvested a total of 8.8 tons of hay at an annual rent to the Crown of £5. 10. 0. Of botanical interest, the island was described as being mainly "course grass very thin," with a narrow band of "woods" along the southern border of Gammon Cove and a "strip of small white birch" along the eastern side of this same cove. Two small areas are delineated as "Sand Hill" and "Wet Bog." There are also three narrow, ribbon-shaped ponds, with the southernmost referred to as "Horn’s Brook."

With all this activity in Miramichi Bay, it is no surprise that shipping interests wanted to take measures to ensure the safe movement of goods. In 1869, a lighthouse was established on Portage Island to mark the northern half of the main entrance to Miramichi Bay (Figure 13). At least eight lighthouse keepers, often with families, were resident on the island from 1869 to 1960 (Table 9). The lighthouse was eventually decommissioned and moved to the New Brunswick Aquarium and Marine Centre in Shippegan for preservation (Figure 14). Range lights are still maintained by the Canadian Coast Guard (Figure 15).

Where Portage Island provided close access to fishing grounds, it was also remote from the coastal communities and isolated in winter months. The island’s dunes were never suitable for farming, and no permanent settlements were ever established. It is uncertain when the fishery outlined by Perley ended operations. However, similar enterprises along the coast terminated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

In 1970, the Canadian Coast Guard automated the lighthouse, and keepers were no longer required. The island was declared surplus by the federal Department of Transport, and the Canadian Wildlife Service applied for transfer of the lands. Portage Island was formally transferred on November 3, 1970, by Order in Council P.C. 1970-1932.

A formal archaeological survey of Portage Island has not been conducted, but areas that require further investigation have been identified. Significant but as yet unidentified sites may exist on Portage Island in light of the area’s history, although the shifting sands and constant erosion on the island make the survival of very early archaeological resources difficult. Locations of sites worthy of further investigation are identified in Figure 11 ( MacKinnon 1991 ). These are:

1. Excavations or basements - a series of pits of unknown purpose, averaging 3 m by 3 m in size. These may be related to the fishing activities outlined by Perley (1852).
2. Excavation - a pit 4 m by 4 m in size, located approximately 50 m from the beach. A Jack Pine growing out of the pit was aged to 53 years. Erosion has now destroyed this site.
3. Dyke - a low ridge, 40-50 m long with a break in the middle, connects two of the vegetated dunes along the northwest coast of the island at Gammon Bay. The break in the dyke may have been the location of an aboiteau. The dyke connects with the old foot trail that crosses the island. This feature is associated with Lot 14 assigned to Samuel Breau, as marked on the map of "Meadow Lots" dated 19 September 1867 (Figure 12).
4. Shallow depression (1 m by 2 m) situated on a ridge east of the dyke, of unknown purpose.
5. Ancient "foot trail" leading from Gammon Cove to the east side of Portage Island (Figure 16).
6. Lighthouse dwelling - basement and foundation remnants (Figures 13 and 14).

Other sites of significance will be documented on future trips, and these finds will be reported to the Provincial Archaeologist, Archaeological Services, Fredericton, New Brunswick.