Archaeology, you say?

Raiders of a fascinating park

Southwestern Québec is rich in all kinds of artifacts. We can trace close to five centuries of European settlement and nearly a hundred more centuries of Amerindian presence. Sliced by two major rivers, the St. Lawrence and the Ottawa, the Suroît was naturally an important transit point.

Three sites in this part of the Montérégie have just thrust the archaeologist’s job into the spotlight, putting into context the three phases of archaeology: the actual dig, the interpretation of the artifacts and the piecing together of history. In just one day, you can trace history’s footsteps and waken the “Indy” that sleeps inside you.

Prehistoric reconstruction

In Saint-Anicet, Michel Cadieux has recreated the largest Iroquoian village ever uncovered in Québec: the Droulers/Tsiionhiakwatha Archaeological Site. Standing in the immense Droulers field are palisade fortifications and longhouses typical of the 15th-century Iroquois. “This camp must have smelled for miles around,” is Michel’s conversation opener. “You’d be aware of it long before you saw it,” he adds. It seems the Iroquois maintained a sort of public dump where all of the community’s waste was heaped. “Above ground!”

A community of 500 Iroquois lived in the fortified enclosure. They were corn people, and big farmers. During your visit to the site, interpreters and archaeologists will tell you all about the daily life of this great people, which mysteriously vanished some time between Jacques Cartier’s last visit (1542) and Samuel de Champlain’s first (1603).

European ruins… the historic period

Coteau-du-Lac. On the banks of the St. Lawrence, a fortified point juts out into the river where the rapids are at their most violent. These roaring waters made travelling between lakes Saint Louis and Saint-François by canoe impossible. For the nomadic Amerindian peoples, this spot was a significant portage site and rest stop for over 4,000 years.

It was the French who would first develop the site, both for its military potential and for commercial purposes. They erected a small fort here and built a “rigolet” canal, undoubtedly the first type of canalization on the St. Lawrence. In 1779, the British, having taken the reins of power in New France, constructed the first lock canal in North America. Today, thanks to the archaeological digs, both developments can be seen during a visit to the Coteau-du-Lac National Historic Site of Canada.

Prehistory: digging in with both hands!

Is your inner “Indy” awake? Good! Because the third step in our archaeological adventure will allow you to put him to work on a dig! Welcome to Melocheville and its point, Buisson. The basement at Pointe-du-Buisson Archaeological Park holds an astonishing number of artifacts dating back to the prehistoric period (before the arrival of the Europeans in the 16th century) and the historic period, or the French and British regimes.

Buisson point, located at the confluence of the St. Lawrence and Ottawa rivers, is a natural harbour bordered by seething rapids, where it was easy to berth a ship way back when. This strip of land was a favourite fishing spot from the prehistoric period right up to the beginning of the 1960s.

For 5,000 years, families portaged and set up their camps here, leaving behind physical signs of their presence in many forms. It’s up to you to find them! Armed with your patience, trowel, brush and pail—and under the supervision of a real live archaeologist—you will get a lesson in excavation techniques

You don’t need to crack a whip or wear a broad-brimmed hat to dig in the ground. Archaeology is a science that’s open to all those who are keen on history and mystery!

August is Archaeo Month … can you dig it?

Since 2005, the Archéo-Québec Network has been inviting you to take part in Archaeo Month. An entire month to dress in your Indy gear and experience archaeology—hands on—throughout Québec! You can check out the 2007 program right here and set off on an archaeological adventure at a site near you or in a region you plan to visit.

André Quenneville
Photos: André Quenneville, Ministère du Tourisme
2008-04-09