Annotated editon of Rev. Dr. Andrew Brown's manuscript: "Removal of the French inhabitants of Nova Scotia by Lieut. Governor Lawrence & His Majesty's Council in October 1755"

Abstract

This study concerns one of the earliest known historical accounts of the Acadian Deportation, written by the Reverend Doctor Andrew Brown in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Based on primary documents, eye-witness accounts and Acadian oral tradition, the manuscript entitled "Removal of the French inhabitants of Nova Scotia by Lieut. Governor Lawrence & His Majesty's Council in October 1755" offers a unique and valuable perspective on the events surrounding the removal of the Acadian population from Nova Scotia in 1755 and a vivid portrayal of Acadian life before and after the Deportation. Although the primary purpose of this thesis is to provide an annotated edition of the manuscript in an effort to determine the authenticity of the information therein, a broader look at Brown, as an individual, as a man of his times and as an historian, is presented for a more holistic interpretation of the document.