Forillon National Park / Gaspe & Historic Sites
Day 2 in Forillon National Park | Birthplace of Canada | Peninsula Fort | Gaspe, QC | June 2024
On our second day in Forillon National Park, we decided to visit some of the nearby historic sites in both the park and the nearby town of Gaspe. We started the morning by driving into town to visit the Birthplace of Canada historic site. We parked across the street in the Maxi grocery store parking lot, then crossed the street and began our walk along the water.
Gaspe earns the name ‘Birthplace of Canada’ because it was near here in 1534 that Jaques Cartier claimed the land in the name of Francois I of France before returning across the Atlantic. On subsequent voyages he explored more of the St. Lawrence Bay, Estuary and River and even made a short lived colony at Quebec. But it wasn’t until 1604 that a more permanent settlement was established at St. Croix Island on the border between present Maine and New Brunswick.
Somewhat ironically, the region around Gaspe wasn’t settled by Europeans until over 200 years after Cartier’s visit when, after the French and Indian War, English colonists settled the area. They were joined 20 years later by English Loyalists from the American colonies – mostly for access to the North Atlantic Cod Fisheries. Most of the historic structure and signs around the waterfront focused on this history more than anything.
Because of the depth of the Bay, Gaspe became a convenient port town for merchants and, during the 20th century, a staging location for naval actions, especially troop convoys destined for Europe. During the second World War, the Battle of the Atlantic and the very real threat of German U-Boats extended into the Bay of St. Lawrence and up both sides of the Gaspe Peninsula. All told, German submarines sunk over 20 merchant and military vessels around the Canadian Atlantic. In response, home defense battalions were built up, including a naval base built near Gaspe, and anti-submarine countermeasures were employed across the region. Including among these was Fort Peninsula, a bunker style watch post overlooking the bay and very similar to American defenses employed on the West Coast. However, while most of the men and material never saw combat (though a German Spy was caught on the South Side of the peninsula after having been dropped off by U-Boat), the whole operation was very encouraging to Canada naval and military prowess.
We went for a walk along the waterfront, stopping to read signs and take in the views. While there is a lot to see here on the waterfront, the historic sites related to and monuments for the Birthplace of Canada are spread throughout the town of Gaspe — you can find a full map of them here. After walking on the waterfront, we stocked up on some groceries from the Maxi, then grabbed some seafood and poutine from Casse-Coute Jo-Ann, a local restaurant.
After lunch, we started heading back towards the national park, stopping to see some more monuments on our way. As we were re-entering the park, we made one more stop to walk through the Peninsula Fort. We enjoyed walking through the cool halls and reading the signs on the self-guided tour, and also enjoyed the views of the peninsula across the bay. Overall it was a relaxing way to spend the day, and Charlotte probably enjoyed taking a break from the hiking we had been making her do. We also enjoyed learning more of Canada’s history with it being Canada day weekend, even though these events weren’t necessarily related to Canada day.
