Native’s were the first into the bay perhaps 10,000 years ago and are still present to this very day. History tells us they came into the bay each summer for the purpose of fishing, and then went inland for the winters. Shell middens, fishing weirs of tremendous lengths, and stone art work is what remains of their activities.

Portuguese

The 1494 Spanish and Portuguese Treaty of Tordesillas ¹ divided the world from pole to pole between Spain and Portugal for all lands not belonging to a Christian Prince.  Lands to the west of this line were granted to Spain and all lands to the east were granted to Portugal.  This demarcation line was 370 leagues west of Cape Verde Islands.  Due to errors in cartographic and navigational knowledge for this period, the line intersected the coast of North America at some point in Nova Scotia. While history says Spain and Portugal planned a joint venture to actually measure the distance and to mark the shores of North and South America, there are no texts which indicate this trip ever happened. Cartographers of Spain and Portugal were required to place this treaty line on their maps. Depending on the country of origins, this line varies from west to east with Portuguese cartographers moving the line west and Spanish moving the line east. Few maps exist today which clearly identifies the treaty line. The first map thought to show the treaty line is known by Cantino in 1502 ². One map by Spanish cartographer Diego Ribero in 1529 gives Spain more land ³, while the 1554 map by Lopo Homen has the line giving Portugal more of Nova Scotia ⁴.

This treaty was beneficial to both Spain and Portugal, but more so for Spain, as it gave its fleets access to Portuguese ports such as the Azores. Any type of settlement by either country in Nova Scotia would have caused concern due possible infringement into the other country’s lands.  Spain showed very little interest in Atlantic Canada and beyond the 1529 trip of exploration by Esteban Gomez ⁵ , there is no evidence the Spanish Crown ever returned.

Interest in Atlantic Canada was the opposite for Portugal, especially for those folks of the Azores Islands. The settlement attempts by the families of Fagundes ⁶ and Barcelos are recorded, but were not well known. The Barcelos attempt was not even brought into light until the 1950s by the Azores Chief Archivist, Dr. da Lima Ref:

     Boletim do Instituto Historico Vol. XVIII (1963). Originally discovered by Dr. de Lima, Chief Archivist. Translated by L.A. Vigneras, published as “The Voyages of Diogo and Manoel de Barcelos to Canada in the Sixteenth Century”. Terrae Incognitae Vol. 5 ⁷.

Due to the concerns of infringement, this author thinks both settlements were kept quiet outside of the Azores.

By 1508, the Azorean family of Pinheiro de Barcelos was granted/claimed part of the Nova Scotia. We can tell through period maps ⁸ (HM44 f.3v, f.4, f4v) and court documents illuminated at Ref ⁷, of two big double bays given the designate ‘Gulfo’ and drawn at 44.5 degrees North latitude. This latitude precisely intersects Mahone Bay; with the Mahone/St. Margaret’s Bay combination being the only two bays of close proximity to be representative of this cartography.
 

Ref ⁷ documents dating to 1568 still shows the family is associated to the area. They were raising livestock for trade with whalers off Labrador and they were mining lime for use as lime mortar back in the Azores. Most likely this family remained associated to the area until 1588, when records show the Portuguese withdrew from Atlantic Canada as they could no longer protect their activities. In 1580, the King of Spain claimed the crown of Portugal, with the defeat of his armada in 1588, the crown could no longer offer protection in Atlantic Canada and thus wisely chose to focus its remaining warships to protect more lucrative trading routes.



The last attempt by Portugal to maintain its claim to Nova Scotia (via cartography) can be seen in the 1583 map by Sebastiao Lopes ⁹.

In a later article, I will present much more information on the Portuguese and how they connect to Oak Island.

French Activity

French presence along this section of the coast seems very quiet while Portugal still attempted to maintain claim. After 1588, French texts start to hint of the general area; however, no text directly speaks to this specific area. We can start with Champlain’s narrative of 1604 ¹ to show French activity/interest in the area of Mahone Bay. This 1604 was not Champlain’s first trip to the New World and it was not his first trip to Canada, but it was his first trip to this area of Nova Scotia.

Champlain is well aware of Portuguese activities in Atlantic Canada; however, he is most reluctant to directly mention them being connected to anything else other than Sable Island. This author thinks Portuguese claims may have still been a concern to the crown of France. 

On this trip was Mathieu DaCosta ² who was a person of African-Portuguese heritage.  Mathieu was contracted to act as an interpreter with the Indians. One must naturally wonder how and where he learned this skill. you can read a great deal more about Mathieu Da Costa at the following:

http://www.iocp.info/articles/dacosta.pdf

Champlain says they initially departed France for Canso; however, de Monts changed his mind and set course for a place they would later call Port Mouton. Navigational errors cause them to site Sable Island, and then on 8 May 1604, they arrived at 44.5’ and named the place La Have.

Champlain scholars have thought missing narrative regarding La Have to Port Rossignol were omissions from his original journals 3 and  4. Given the prolific writings, drawings, and details; Champlain spent three days at La Have but does not write about it. Others have concluded that Champlain may have kept a parallel narrative for another patron. This author thinks the suspicious omissions were for the purpose of not mentioning Portuguese activities, as this was the exact place on the coast which the Barcelos family claimed and attempted to settle.  

Champlain also mentions the discovery in another part of NS, of a wooden crosses which he attributes to previous Christians being there 5. Knowing of the Portuguese Padrao , the cross found by Champlain is consistent with a Portuguese presence. He ought to have reasonably known of the Padrao cross as the French adopted this cross raising practice from the Portuguese.

Champlain next mentions the Mahone Bay area as he is sailing north along the coast to Canso.  He names a series of large islands at the entrance to Mahone/St. Margarets Bay as “the Martyrs, because some Frenchmen had once been killed there by the Indians.”  6

While we don’t know who these supposed Frenchmen were, a martyr in the Catholic sense to warrant such a place name should be after someone who died for religious beliefs. Does Champlain place some religious context to the death of these Frenchmen? This author thinks the name Martyr was given due to the two bays named by the Portuguese as Gulf of St. Bernard and Gulf of St. Anthony. While these men were not Martyrs, the name is consistent with keeping a religious association to the bays, perhaps for good luck. Regardless, Champlain is either familiar with, or gives name to the river at the head of St Margarets Bay, which he identifies as Ste Marguerite.

After this mention by Champlain, French texts regarding this area go quiet until 1632.

From 1632 to 1635 - Knight Commander Razilly 8  established his capital at La Have.

Logging efforts and exploration as told through Nicholas Deny 9 during this 1632-1635 period. The text starts on page 146 and goes to page 154.

An incredible story is told by Deny on page 153 of an island “when a man set foot upon this island instantly a fire would seize upon his privy parts, and they would burn up, so the Indians said”.

There is no geological feature in this area that could explain fire coming from the ground.  Did the Indians observe an underground mining chimney which crudely provided ventilation?  

The remaining information is provided to show the French maintained a presence in the area. It may not have been a very large presence, but it was still a presence.

1658 - Le Borgne rebuilds the fort at La Have in 1658 with 58 men.

1664 - France grants Emmanuael Le Borgne (Bourge) Du Coudray a seigneury at La Have.

French Census identifying folks in the area.

1686 - National Archives of Canada MG1, Series G1, Vol. 466, No. 10 Microfilm No. C-2572

1698 - National Archives of Canada MG1, Series G1, Vol. 466, Nos. 18-20 Microfilm No. C-2572

1703 - National Archives of Canada MG1, Series G1, Vol. 466, No. 25 Microfilm No. C-2572

On 5 September 1726, Jean Baptiste Guidry, Philippe Mius d’Entremont Jr, and Jacques d’Entremont Jr, seized at Merliguesh (Lunenburg), the ship of Captain Samuel Daly of Plymouth, Massachusetts. On October 15th, 1726 the men were tried in Boston and hung for piracy on November 13, 1726.

All of this shows a French presence in the area starting in 1632. It may have not been a large population; however, they were there.

The below map dating to 1734 shows French Inhabitants in the area.

The New England coasting pilot from Sandy Point of New York, unto Cape Canso in Nova Scotia and part of Island Breton by Southack, Cyprian, 1662-1745.  CREATED/PUBLISHED [London : s.n., 1734]

English Settlement