Timeline
Website Design and Content
© by Eric Krause, Krause House
Info-Research Solutions (© 1996)
Concept: Margaret Carter, Heritage Research Associates Inc.
All Images ©
Parks Canada Unless Otherwise Designated
Researching
the Fortress of Louisbourg National Historic Site of Canada
Recherche sur la Forteresse-de-Louisbourg Lieu historique national du Canada
Fortress of Louisbourg Timeline Site
Louisbourg Souvenir Edition - Booklet
2030
SURVIVAL
OR DESTRUCTION?
The vast size and
far-reaching significance of historic Louisbourg astonish tourists today, just
as they have impressed visitors for over two centuries.
The notion that
Louisbourg is a giant eighteenth century time capsule that survives on a remote
Cape Breton coast is perhaps an exaggeration.
The site has lived through time and experienced change, some of it quite
drastic.
Man has wrought some of
this change -- in construction and adaptation of the fortified city, in its
destruction and disembowlement. Most
recently, we have destroyed part of Louisbourg in reconstituting a portion of
its grandeur. Our quest has been to
understand how and why it came to be.
We have disturbed the past to learn about our roots, about life in a
time that no living person can remember.
Louisbourg is a site of
epic proportion in North America, a New World site comparable to "the
splendid cities of the ancient world".[1] In accordance with the acknowledgement of
generations, Canadians have drawn attention to its presence and commemorated
its significance. The result has been
an enriching, shared perception of our heritage.
Will our children
continue to benefit from this rare glimpse into the past? The property is in
public custodianship. Preservation has recorded many of its insights and
ensured evidence remains in the ground to respond to the questions of future
generations. This is the best we can
do.
But is it enough? Nature has played a critical role in shaping
and preserving this site, and it is active still. Erosion is a major concern.
Aerial photographs show the fortification walls that have tumbled as
their base receded. Today, 50 foot
storm waves threaten to destroy a vital barrier beach. Once it is gone, 3/4 of Louisbourg's
historic townsite will flood and
disappear into the sea.
Are we among the few
privileged to experience this rare link to the past?
Illustrations
Quote
"The ruins of Louisbourg repose on a point of land projecting from the western coast; against one side of which the roaring surges of the ocean roll and foam, while the other is laved by the calm waters of the harbour ..." John MacGregor, British America(1832), p.390.
Photo, 1908
Photo, ?
Time Line