CHRONOLOGY OF EVENTS

   quick jump link      1604  /  1904  /  1995  /  2000  /  2001  /  2002  /  2003  /  2004

Pre-1604 - 2005 Native Americans used St. 1604 Croix Island as a stop over and place to cache provisions.

1604 A French expedition under the leadership of Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Mons, along with cartographer Samuel Champlain arrived and established a settlement on St. Croix Island in June 1604. They built buildings and planted gardens, spending a very harsh winter that depleted their numbers.

1605 In late August 1605, they dismantled the settlement and moved to Port Royal, Nova Scotia. St. Croix Island continued to be used by the Native Americans and was visited often during the first part of the seventeenth century by various French expeditions and fishermen.

1783 Treaty of Paris ended the American War of Independence establishing the St. Croix River as an international boundary.

1794 A Boundary Commission was established to determine which river was the St. Croix.

1797 Robert Pagan determined that Douchet's Island was indeed St. Croix Island and that the boundary did follow the main river channel, east of the island, giving the United States sovereignty over the island.

1904 On June 25, 1904, the 300 th anniversary of the settlement at St. Croix was celebrated with ceremonies on the island. Three flagged ships, representing the United States, Great Britain and France, were anchored north of the island while ceremonies were held in a large tent on the island and on the mainland at Bayside and Red Beach with several thousand in attendance. A commemorative plaque was unveiled marking the occasion. Commemorative ceremonies were also held in Saint John NB, Port Royal NS, and in Calais ME.

1949 June 8, 1949 the United States Congress established St. Croix Island as a National Monument.

1968 June 30, 1968 St. Croix Island was redesignated as a National Monument. At the same time, the Historic Sites and Monument Board of Canada recommended that Parks Canada cooperate with the U S Parks Service in the development of the island.

1982 A Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Canada and the United Sates for the protection and commemoration of St. Croix Island with interpretation sites to be established by each country by 1992.

1995 July 18 th , a workshop was hosted by the St. Croix International Waterway Commission, resulting in the generation of numerous ideas to celebrate the 400 th anniversary.

1996 An amendment to the 1982 International Memorandum was signed in February and April by Canada and the United States, respectively pledging support for the 400 th anniversary commemoration in 2004. November 7 th , Ste-Croix 2004 was established at a public meeting in Calais ME.

1997 May 3 rd , the first meeting of Ste-Croix 2004 was held.

1998 March 26 th , the second meeting of Ste-Croix 2004 was held with Co-Chairs in place and a newly revamped Committee.

1998 April 24 and 26 a delegation from Ste-Croix 2004 participated in a workshop hosted by the Port Royal 400 th Anniversary Society.

1998 July 17 th , the Town of St. Stephen made a presentation to federal Solicitor General, Andy Scott, seeking help to fund 2004 celebrations.

1998 September 23 rd , a delegation from Royan, France, the birthplace of de Mons, was hosted by Ste-Croix 2004 at the Algonquin hotel in St. Andrews.

1998 September 24 th , a delegation from Ste-Croix 2004 met with Provincial Cabinet Ministers Breault, MacIntyre, Theriault and DeGrace seeking government support for 2004 celebrations. Encouragement was given and a budget requested.

1998 November 24 th , Ste-Croix 2004 Coordinating Committee established the following mission statement: Ste-Croix 2004 will educate people of many backgrounds, plan and encourage events and foster the development of a permanent legacy in commemoration of the 400 th anniversary of the establishment of North America's first permanent French settlement on St. Croix Island by de Mons and Champlain in 1604.

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1998 November, EDM Consulting was chosen as the firm to establish priorities for the Committee, along with a delivery and administrative plan. The Province of New Brunswick through a Community Adjustment grant financed this $ 20,000 study with additional moneys coming from the US Parks Service and Parks Canada. The plan was to be presented in May 1999.

1999 January 26 th, a workshop was conducted by EDM Consultants in Calais ME, which established 6 major themes: 1) Native Heritage 2) French Settlement 3) Mapping and Navigation 4) Housing 5) Plant Science 6) The International Aspect.

1999 April 27 th , a constitution and by-laws for Ste-Croix 2004 were accepted in principle. The next step would be incorporation in both Canada and the United States.

2000 January - Stephanie Walsh was hired as the Executive Director with assistance of a grant from Human Resources Development Canada. She immediately established the Ste-Croix 2004 office and embarked upon an aggressive public relations campaign and funding lobbying efforts.

2000 March - Working with $ 25,000 US allocated from the Maine Office of Tourism budget, Ste-Croix 2004 hired consultants to develop a marketing and promotion plan, an event plan, a fundraising plan and a regional capacity study. All documents were completed and approved by Ste-Croix 2004 by year's end.

2000 April - Ste-Croix 2004 Directors, representatives from the Bayside Local Service District and a landscape architect spent a morning walking the 24 acres of land at Bayside and then spent the afternoon brainstorming potential components for the development of the site in anticipation of 2004. Among the key items identified were the reconstruction of the settlement, an interpretative centre, and a permanent arts venue with an emphasis on maintaining a significant amount of green space.

2000 April - Ste-Croix 2004 Directors conducted town hall meetings in St. Stephen, Calais, St. Andrews and Bayside, offering the residents the opportunity to hear about and contribute to plans for 2004.

2000 April - Ste-Croix 2004 was incorporated as a "not for profit" corporation in Maine and New Brunswick. Subsequently applications for charitable status were made in both countries.

2000 June 25 - The official Ste-Croix 2004 logo was unveiled in St. Andrews by New Brunswick Premier Bernard Lord; Marcia Gartley, representing Congressman Baldacci and the French Counsel, Jacque Gascuel were among the dignitaries. More than 100 people attended the rooftop event and reception at the Algonquin hotel. At the event, Premier Lord announced $45,000 in funding for the Ste-Croix 2004. A major meeting hosted by Canadian Heritage on 2004 matters followed the unveiling of the logo.

2000 June - Wall displays depicting aerial views of St. Croix Island and explaining both the history and the events planned for 2004 were put up in the Calais Visitor Information Centre, the St. Andrews Welcome Centre, the Waweig Tourist Bureau and at the Charlotte County Museum. A bilingual sandwich board was placed outside the St. Stephen Visitor Information Center.

2000 September 11 th , The Daniel Glenn proposal for the development at Bayside was received. A subcommittee was appointed to deal with the proposal.

2000 September 25 th , Ste-Croix 2004 hosted a workshop involving other 400 th anniversary participants such as the South Shore 400 Society, Quebec 2008 and Port Royal 400 (although they were unable to attend). The day featured Jean-Yves Grenon, a Pierre Dugua researcher, Dr. Steve Pendry, a US Parks Service archaeologist, and a keynote address by James Baker of the Plymouth Plantation. The day ended with a dinner cruise from Red Beach around St. Croix Island.

2001 January - Students from the New Brunswick Community College in Dieppe created the first bilingual Ste-Croix 2004 website. The process took about five months to complete. www.stecroix2004.org.

2001 January - Work began with the N.B. Training Group to develop a French service delivery program for local businesses in the region in anticipation of 2004.

2001 February - A master development plan for the Bayside site was completed by Daniel Glenn and approved by Ste-Croix 2004.

2001 February - Ste-Croix 2004 hired a business consultant to help develop a business plan for the operation of the site after it was constructed.

2001February - Work began on interim bilingual brochure for distribution in the region, to take to trade shows, or to mail out.

2001 April - Hopeful of receiving $50,000 in funding from the State of Maine, the CO-Chairs and the Executive Director testified before an appropriations committee in Augusta ME but the request was denied. However, the Maine Office of Tourism stated that funding would be in place for Ste-Croix 2004 in 2002.

2001 May - A day trip to Ottawa, funded by Canadian Heritage, allowed the Canadian Co-Chair and the Executive Director to meet with federal department officials on 2004 matters. Meetings were held with Minister Claudette Bradshaw, Canadian Heritage, ACOA, our local MP and others.

2001 May - After a month at the Centennial Building in Fredericton, NB, the Pierre Dugua Exhibition and model of the St. Croix Island settlement arrived for viewing in St. Stephen. More than 1,000 people, including hundreds of local students, visited the exhibit. The exhibit became a permanent fixture at Ste-Croix 2004 offices in 2002.

2001 June 26 th , To mark the 397 th anniversary of the landing at St. Croix Island, Ste-Croix 2004 organized a boat cruise up the river from St. Andrews to the Island and back.

2001 August - Recognizing the surge of major events in the coming years in Maine, the Maine Office of Tourism started a Festivals Committee that included Ste-Croix 2004, Popham Colony 2007 and the National folk Festival in Bangor (2002-04) to share resources and cooperate in terms of marketing and promotion.

2001 September - A financial boost of $73,500 from the Province of New Brunswick ensured that Ste-Croix 2004 operations would continue and that the office would remain open and staffed full-time.

2001 September - A filmmaker from France, Marie-Claude Boucher, spent a few days in the region shooting for her documentary on the life of Pierre Dugua, the leader of the 1604 expedition.

2001 October - Ste-Croix 2004 took the Lieutenant-Governor of New Brunswick and the French Consul for the Atlantic Region for a trip to the island.

2001 October - Working Sub-Committees were formed to focus on specific areas of planning, such as Marketing, Events, Finances, Bayside Project and Education.

2001 October - A semi-regular contact with the Canadian Embassy and the Cultural Center in Paris was established to keep in touch with events in Europe as well as to update others of our progress.

2001 November - After the Town of St. Stephen passed a municipal resolution in support of 2004 efforts, copies were circulated to all municipalities in New Brunswick, asking for their support and that they forward their resolutions on to their Father Morin, a big partner in preparing the Ecumenical Service for Sunday, June 27, 2004 . By March 2003, more than 20 municipalities from across the province had written back to express their support of the plans for 2004.

2001 December - A very positive meeting with the new Minister of Tourism and Parks and his Deputy Minister solidified continued provincial support and interest in 2004 activities. Plans were made to meet with the Deputy Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs.

2001 December - Ste-Croix 2004 moved into its new downtown St. Stephen office, providing community access for visitors and residents alike. The official opening was planed for National Heritage Day in 2002.

2001 December - A part-time bilingual Administrative Assistant was hired to assist in all aspects of Ste-Croix 2004 operations.

2001 December - At its last meeting of the year, Ste-Croix 2004 Directors sampled the wine produced in France that was chosen as the official Ste-Croix 2004 commemorative wine; the official unveiling was slated for 2002.

2002 February - On February 18 th , during Heritage Week, Ste-Croix 2004 officially opened its new downtown office at 103 Milltown Blvd. in St. Stephen. Her Honour, the Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick, Marilyn Treholm-Counsell was the guest of honour. More than 60 people were present when she officially cut the ribbon, The day included music, story telling and was capped off with a two hour live, on location, CBC Radio broadcast.

2002 March - An exhibit was mounted at the Bangor Mall on March 8 th and 9 th focusing on Ste-Croix Island and the plans for the 400 th anniversary and commemorative events. Several Directors were involved with this two-day event.

2002 March 11 th , Ste-Croix 2004 officially adopted the word mark "It All Started Here - Nos Premiers Debuts".

2002 April - A strategic planning session for Ste-Croix 2004 was held at the Rossmount Inn, facilitated by Bill Yerxa. Directors spent a full day assessing its progress to date and prioritizing activities for the next two years as the planning process became one of action.

2002 May - Ste-Croix 2004 participated in Rendez-Vous Canada on the 19 th and 20 th in Halifax. The exhibition was an opportunity to promote 2004 through the dissemination of information and networking with tour operators and planners from across Canada.

2002 June 26 th - An estimated 150 people gathered at Bayside to commemorate the 398 th anniversary of the arrival of the French on Ste-Croix Island. The Honorary Patron for Canada, Senator Viola Leger, was officially introduced and toasted with our newly introduced commemorative French wines.

2002 July - In partnership with local candy maker, Ganong, Ste-Croix 2004 sponsored two performances of Les Araignee du Boui Boui's production of the play "Evangeline" at the St. Stephen High School.

2002 July - The Ste-Croix 2004 float, depicting Pierre Dugua and one of his ships, participated in the Canada Day Parade in St. Andrews on July 1 st , at July 4 th celebrations in Eastport and in the International Festival in Calais/St. Stephen in August.

2002 August - Ste-Croix 2004 hosted an exhibit in the National Folk Festival in Bangor. October - Ste-Croix 2004 exhibited at the Atlantic Showcase trade show in Halifax.

2002 October - Major funding application to support events, marketing, the legacy project and the hiring of a professional fundraiser were initiated.

2002 November - Jacques Paynter of AMEC was contracted to conduct a feasibility study for the revised Bayside Legacy Project development plan as requested by the Province. The new local CEDA - Enterprise Charlotte would agree to finance the study.

2002 December - Our Executive Director of thee years, Stephanie Walsh, and the Administrative Assistant, Stephanie Avery both left to pursue other career options. Ste-Croix 2004 began the process of re-staffing the agency.

2003 January - A submission was made to ACOA/Canadian Heritage for the funding of the celebration with a separate application to hire a professional fundraiser for the Commemoration and the Bayside Legacy Project.

2003 January - Norma Stewart was hired as the new Executive Director.

2003 February - An Ecumenical Committee was formed to bring together the clergy of St. Croix Valley to plan a religious service for June 27, 2004.