In researching my ancestry, I am always intrigued by the story of exiled Acadians—French settlers from Nova Scotia tragically deported from their homes by British soldiers in the mid to late 1750s. When dispersed throughout the young colonies of North America, Acadians were met with mistrust, scorn, and downright disdain. They were French Catholics in a very foreign and Protestant land, and the French and Indian War had just begun. They became town ‘charges’ and were discriminated against. Many died of poverty and disease. Children were separated from parents and ‘farmed out’ as slave labor. My 5th great-grandparents had been exiled to Philadelphia. They were among some of the fortunate ones who were helped by Quakers in the “City of Brotherly Love.” Most Acadians were not so lucky.
How many other displaced Acadians were met with kindness and respect? This thought was the seed for my novel, GIFT OF THE BEAR. As I search for an agent or editor, I will visit Nova Scotia this summer to do more research for my next book. It is yet unnamed but is a prequel, of sorts, to GIFT.