Fort Point Museum - 1-902-688-1632

Fort Point Museum

Fort Point Museum is maintained and operated by the Lunenburg County Historical Society, whose mission is to conduct research into the history of Lunenburg County with special emphasis on the LaHave River Valley estuaries and its hinterland; to gather, compile and preserve written and printed documents of historic value; to gather, preserve and display artifacts of historic value and interest.

Welcome to Historic
Fort Point

By Rob Sangster

Before beginning your walk on beautiful Fort Point, imagine that today's date is May 8, 1604. Look southwest across Dublin Bay toward the Atlantic Ocean. Beyond the islands you may see the good ship Le Don de Dieu as it drops anchor for the first time in the New World. Samuel de Champlain, the man who would change Europe's understanding of this vast continent, stands on the foredeck sketching the first of his famous maps. Do you see him waving to you?

His mission soon took him onward but he was so impressed with the LaHave area that he was instrumental in it being chosen by King Louis XIII to be the site of the First Capital of New France.

In 1632, Isaac de Razilly, French General and Viceroy, landed at Fort Point on the beautiful LaHave, the largest river in Nova Scotia, and carried out the command of his king.

The view. To the east, across the river, you see Ritcey Bay and the lovely village of Riverport. Farther south along the far shore are Oxners Beach and a grassy saltmarsh. This area served as a meadow for Razilly's cattle.

To the south, across Dublin Bay, are East and West Spectacle islands. Behind them is the much larger Mosher Island with its pleasant beach and ever-vigilant lighthouse. Farther away, a little to the west, are the LaHave Islands, part of the cluster of islands that shelter the mouth of the LaHave River from the pounding force of the Atlantic Ocean.

Fort Ste. Marie de Grace. To see the fort, you must rely more on your imagination than your eyesight. As you stand on the bluff on the southern edge of the property, you are near the northern wall of the fort. At low tide, look for a rocky triangle extending into Dublin Bay that may have been part of the old fort's foundation.

Inside the sturdy brick, timber and stone walls that protected Razilly and his garrison were a well, a powder magazine, and various residential, storage and administrative buildings. A wooden cross rose high above the walls.

The fort was destroyed by fire in 1654 and lay in ruins for many generations. Over time, its fine stones were probably carted away to become part of the foundations of various structures built on Fort Point and the west bank of the river.

More devastating was the slow grip of the sea relentlessly eroding the point itself, drawing the remnants of the fort to its sandy bottom. Some of the old bricks found on the shore are on display in the museum. Finally, in 1991, the great boulders you see were put in place as a sea wall to stabilize the site.

Now it's time to walk toward

The lighthouse. For many years, a working lighthouse stood on this site to guide great four-masted sailing ships in and out of the LaHave River. Loaded with lumber, fish, and other goods, they delivered their cargoes to merchants in New England, the West Indies, Europe, even as far away as New Zealand. The building housing the museum is an expanded version of the last lighthouse keeper's home.

In the 1950s, the original traditional lighthouse was removed and replaced by a modern automatic light built on a steel skeleton frame. In 1990, the present structure was built as a reminder of the original.

Let's walk over to

The Cairn. Erected by the National Historic Sites and Monuments Board, it commemorates the establishment of Fort Sainte-Marie-de-Grâce by Isaac de Razilly on this site in 1632.

Cannon. Razilly tells us that he had 25 cannon in place to defend his settlement. The cannon you see, although not originals, are a reminder of the realities of life in the 1630s. .

Now let's turn our attention to the north and walk a few steps to the

French Garden. Entered through a white trellis near the northern edge of the property, this formal garden is typical of the seventeenth century flower and herb gardens favored in French settlements such as this one.

Apple Trees. Scattered around the site are apple trees representing those planted by Razilly's followers. The small ones have been newly grafted from the larger ones nearer the beach. These older trees are probably offshoots of some of the original trees brought by Razilly from France. In 1701, Simon Denys de Bonnaventure wrote that he had drunk cider made from the fruit of these apple trees.

Champlain roses. This beautiful family of roses was named for Samuel de Champlain who, with Pierre Dugua de Monts, anchored in Green Bay in 1604. He gave the name le Heve (now LaHave) to a cape on the island at the mouth of the river. That name, chosen in honour of Cap de la Hève in Normandy, has now become attached to the river, the islands and several communities in the area.

Acadian oven. A few steps to the west, you will see a reconstruction of an authentic oven of the type used by the Acadians. It is made of "bousillage", or cob, a mixture of clay, straw and gravel or coarse sand.

Palisade. This palisade, which now forms a boundary between the museum property and Fort Point Cemetery, is similar to a palisade, or piquet fence, that once formed part of the defences of the fort.

Fort Point Cemetery. The centre of the cemetery is the location of the chapel established for the Capuchin fathers who arrived with Razilly in 1632. Beyond tending to their own flock, they worked hard to establish good relationships with the two groups of Mi'gmaq already living in the LaHave area.

It is likely that a number of the first French settlers were buried in the vicinity of this chapel, making this one of the oldest cemeteries in Canada. Isaac de Razilly, almost certainly buried here in 1636, may have been interred directly under the chapel. A memorial to Razilly was placed on this spot in 1982, the 350th anniversary of his arrival. Many of the names on the tombstones you see today are those of families who were part of the major resettlement of the LaHave area after the time of Joseph Pernette subsequent to 1765.

The mysterious pond. This lovely lily pond, in existence long before Razilly's arrival, is now home to ducks, geese, and the occasional beaver. Legend says that when the settlement was expecting an imminent attack from British ships, the Capuchin fathers lowered the most prized contents of the chapel, including its bell, into the pond for safekeeping. None of these treasures has yet been recovered.

We hope you have enjoyed the treasures of Fort Point

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