The Simple Life: Exploring Village Historique Acadien in New Brunswick

Posted byAbPosted inADHD, adoption, Family, FASD, New Brunswick, Parenting, summer, travelTags:, , ,

Less is more. Tight knit community connections. Want not, waste not.

These were thoughts that came to mind when we stepped back in time during a visit to the Acadian Village in New Brunswick in August.

Le Village Historique Acadien is an historical reconstruction that portrays the way of life of Acadians between 1770 and 1949.

Our immersive experience through over 40 buildings was enhanced by great weather, although it was quite buggy at times.

Our leisurely walk started with the oldest simplest homes.

It was remarkable to see the living and dining quarters all in one tiny room, often for large families, many of whom slept on the floor.

Later homes had separate bedrooms, but often shared by multiple family members.

I noted to T how lucky he was to have his own room and a comfortable bed to sleep on.

I noted other things we take for granted today, such as not needing to chop and store firewood to warm the home – nor needing outdoor cooling rooms, as we have appliances.

Having said that, if there was a zombie apocalypse, this village is where we’d hide out!

I recalled with a chuckle the last time the hubby and I visited the similar Black Creek Pioneer Village in Toronto.

We walked into an old mill and a young staff member, dressed in period millworker clothing, was browsing the Internet on his phone. 😂

“We have a time traveler in our midst,” I mused.

What made the Acadian Village experience so fun was all the staff were fully engaged in their roles.

From the school teacher who ran the single classroom for all grade levels…

… to the man who worked at the newspaper…

… to the general store owner.

Not surprisingly, T enjoyed seeing and interacting with the farm animals most. 💕

I enjoyed seeing the village crops that grew and were used for the homes and onsite restaurant.

Check out this old-fashioned outdoor oven. I’d love one of these!

Around lunchtime, the home owners prepared and ate lunch, and visitors could watch them do so the old fashioned way using beautiful cast iron.

Our stomachs started grumbling, so we enjoyed lunch at the onsite restaurant, with simple meals prepared to mimic the past.

The more modern homes in the latter part of the walk were beautiful, such as this stone manor with its dreamy kitchen and dining room. Love it!

As we crossed the charming covered bridge that served as a transition from past to present, I was moved by the simplicity of life back then.

Despite the lack of modern luxuries we enjoy such as digital technology, there was value placed on hard work, using up and not wasting limited resources and the importance of family and community to thrive together.

There were important lessons to be learned here for T and it’ll be interesting to see what he thinks of this daytrip one day.

43 thoughts on “The Simple Life: Exploring Village Historique Acadien in New Brunswick”

  1. Pingback: The Simple Life: Exploring Village Historique Acadien in New Brunswick – Adventures exploring and travel tips

  3. What a great experience. For some reason, I’m so taken by that rooster picture! Love the whole immersive experience and the way they bring the Village to life. Yes, it’d be so interesting to see if this was memorable for T in a few years!

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    1. Thanks Wynne. It was a lovely visit and the farm animals were the highlight for T for sure. I often wonder about life for him growing up on a farm but it sounds like too much work!

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  6. This look like a wonderful walking and learning experience. It truly does put things into perspective. There is so much we take for granted and so much we can learn from the histories of ourselves and those around us.

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    1. Yes, he loves his Messi shirt! 😊 Yes, I agree the charm of it may wear off without longterm power and internet. Especially for the little one. 😆

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    1. Thanks Margie! It was so much fun. I really love how the staff get into the character and depending on when you visit, you also get to see them cook and eat. Such a fun way to learn about a time gone by.

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  12. What a fun and lovely place! It’s great that they reconstructed this village so that people today can get a glimpse of how life was like back then. Visiting such places can help us re-evaluate our lifestyle today. Of course, a lot of things we have now are better than what the people in the past had. But it’s not uncommon to find out that there are aspects of their life that we can apply to our daily routines which will benefit us. I love to see T’s interactions with the farm animals.

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    1. Thanks Bama! It’s kind of like the ancient temples you visit but of course more recent. The added roleplay of the staff in period pieces really brings history to life too. History serves as a good teacher for what can do and avoid doing too!

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  13. Insightful look at the Acadian Village! Your observations on community and resourcefulness highlight important sociological principles. It’s fascinating to see how these historical lessons can inform our modern lives. Thanks for sharing! read more

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  14. I love places like this one Ab. I like that it was interactive like the animals and food too, especially the food! 🤣 Life was so simple and the physical labor, like chopping wood, kept everyone so fit. I doubt there was much obesity back then.

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    1. Thanks Diane! I agree there is something about the hard labour and everyone chipping in that makes it seem so charming in a simple way. Yes, definitely healthier and less processed foods too!

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  16. This looks like a fun place to visit to step back in time and see how much housing and our way of life has changed. While it’s nice to have modern day comforts like heating and electricity, there’s a few things we’ve lost or need to work a bit harder at, such as belonging to a community. Seems like T enjoyed the experience and seeing all the farm animals! I wouldn’t mind getting one of those old-fashioned outdoor ovens too!

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    1. Thanks Linda. It was a lot of fun and yes, seeing the evolution of homes from single rooms to more complex layouts and with more amenities was so interesting. We’ve gained so much but there are also traditions we’ve lost for sure. The farm animals were the fun parts for T and I’m so glad he had fun. And yes, those outdoor ovens would be so nice to have!!!

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  17. I love places like this Ab- too bad I don’t live closer. In Colorado recently with my girls and we toured a local museum with a small farm set up depicting life in early CO. It must have been depicting a rather rich farmer- as the home was large and leaning to the fancy side. I think our farmer must have been one of the lucky ones to find a gold deposit up in the mines of the Rockies 🙂

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    1. Thanks Deb! That Colorado museum sounded like a fun outing. It’s really one of these ways to learn about history, by immersing ourselves right in it. And your farmer did sound like he struck it rich! Even back then, it’s interesting to see the differences in life experiences.

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  18. what an amazing immersive experience. I don’t know much about the acadian culture, but I love their approach to the things that are important in life, in spite of life being so much more challenging back then. we definitely could learn some good lessons about life from them and how they lived, and you clearly had gratitude the things that make our life easier in today’s world. I’m glad that you took t to learn about this and it may help him to also feel that gratitude.

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    1. Thanks Beth! Life back then seemed like hard work, but it involved the whole family and community and people seemed to work together. We’ve gained so much today but also lost a lot of good traditions. I agree that one of the feelings I left with was indeed gratitude. 🙏

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  20. What a marvellous tour of Le Village Historique Acadien, Ab. It sounds like the historic village near Caraquet has been able to maintain more staffing of people in character in the houses, school, etc than has been the case at the similar historic village at King’s Landing outside of Fredericton. Our kids and then grandkids really enjoyed similar experiences, but the last time we went, with our youngest grandchildren, maybe in 2021, it was disappointing how the management there had scaled back the authentic reenactments throughout the settlement. I’m glad you didn’t find that to be the case at the Acadian version.

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    1. Thanks Jane. I think the people who work there in the summer include those who travel from other parts of the world. In the past, I’ve seen entire families work there together including the kids, which was so charming.

      I’ve been to King’s Landing about 20 years ago during one of my first visits to Fredericton. I don’t have clear memories of my visit but remember that I felt the staff at Acadian Village seemed more immersed in the roles.

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    1. Hahaha, I hear you Brian on the groans. These villages (and museums) weren’t the places I enjoyed as a kid but interestingly, I enjoy them now. A different phase of life I guess. 😆 Thankfully there were plenty of farm animals to engage T who had fun most of the time.

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