250, 18e Rue,
Centre culturel Marie-Fitzbach niveau 4
Saint-Georges de Beauce (Qc)
G5Y 4S9
418 227-6176
FOREWORD
IN THE HEART OF OUR CHAUDIÈRE RIVER
In the spring of 2014, I presented a canvas of the ACRC project. Successively, I offered Beauce individuals and organizations to join the project as partners and they agreed.
My chosen approach was to offer the voice to citizens to imagine the life and history of the Chaudière River in connection with those of the Beaucerons and the Amerindians.
Since September 24, 2014, we have prepared four achievements to continue, in another way, the historical and environmental valorization of our river. My two goals as a nurse are to strengthen the sense of belonging to our heritage and to promote the environmental health of the Chaudière River.
Our collaborators, the Ambassadors of the Chaudière River, are composed of forty citizens of the twelve municipalities established along the Chaudière River, fifteen organizations , fourteen patrons and fifty authors of photographs and paintings.
I would like to thank all of you warmly because each one of you has been an important link in the achievement of this project of creation. My five anchors are Micheline Frenette, Press Secretary, the team of COBARIC de Sainte-Marie, the team of CogecoTV-Saint-Georges, members of AAB (Artistes et Artisans de Beauce) and of GOBE (Groupe des ornithologues Beauce-Etchemins).
So, the main thread of the project was to approach our river as if it were a character of Heritage Beauce, our ancestor, in fact the great lady of Beauce who brings us together, she who is at least 12,800 years old.
Several authors note that the Amerindians would be the first travelers to have navigated its waterway. The abbot honorius Provost wrote: from 15-5-1629 to 15-7-1629, a scout of Champlain made the return trip Quebec-New England, by taking the river Chaudière (387 years ago). Conversely, in 1640, an Englishman from Plymouth Co. made the same trip.
In 1646, accompanied by a few Native Americans, Jesuit Father Gabriel Druillettes went back for the first time as Ambassador of the New France. Thus in 2016, with our project, we wanted to highlight the 370th anniversary of Father Druillettes' first historic voyage on the Chaudière River.
Here are our four achievements:
Notebook 1, The Chaudière River, a waterway.
Roger Gagné, a retired history and geography teacher, took the time to read many books in order to give us an accessible text, thus giving a summary of the important role of the river since the beginnings of New France until 1907.
Notebook 2, Beaucerons tell about their river Chaudière.
Twenty residents of the river showed us their attachment, facts and anecdotes related to the river and their respective municipalities, from Saint-Gédéon-de-Beauce to Saint-Lambert-de-Lauzon.
3 - Participatory and Traveling Exhibition: ACRV
52 authors of photographs and paintings presented, in pictures, all the attractions of our river since the years 1850 until today. An exhibition was organized by the SHS with the essential contribution of partners such as AAB (Artists and Artisans of Beauce), GOBE (group of ornithologists of Beauce-Etchemins) and the Art Center of Saint-Georges.
4 - Audiovisual documentary
Au fil de la rivière Chaudière... le reflet des couleurs de notre histoire!
Initiated by SHS, produced in close collaboration with CogecoTV-Saint-Georges and directed by Simon Paquet and Jean Maheux, directors, as well as Linda Loignon, musician, and Linda Campagne, SHS.
Beautiful pictures, a theme song and 25 living memory testimonials to give back to the Chaudière river the stripes it deserves. A documentary was presented on the CogecoTVBeauce-Appalaches network in September 2016.
