Portage Paths: The Keys of the ContinentHulbert, Archer Butler
History
Portage Paths: The Keys of the Continent
Hulbert, Archer Butler
Portages -- North America
"This portage is marked on Bouchette, 1815, Bonner, 1820, Lockwood,
1826, Wilkinson, 1859, and the Geological Survey Map. On Van Velden's
original survey map of the Restigouche, 1786, a 'Carrying-place across
the highlands' about nine miles is given, doubtless a portage directly
from Wagan to Grand River. This route was taken by Plessis in 1812,
(Journal, 267), by Gordon (p. 23), who fully describes it, and by many
others. It is said in McGregor's British America, 1833 (II., 66), that
the courier then travelled up this river with mails for New Brunswick
and Canada, evidently by this route. Formerly the alders which blocked
the Wagan and Wagansis were cut out by travellers, and even by workmen
paid by the Provincial Government (as I have been told), but since a
road has been cut within a few years from the St. John directly through
to the Restigouche at the mouth of the Wagan, this route is no longer
used, and probably is now practically impassable."
Of the St. John--St. Lawrence system Dr. Ganong describes seven routes;
we use his own words:
TOULADI--TROIS PISTOLES PORTAGE
This was one of the principal routes from the St. John to Quebec. It led
through Lake Temiscouata by the Touladi River to Lac des Aigles, thence
to Lac des Islets, thence by a short portage path to the Bois-bouscache
River and down the Trois Pistoles. This route is described in Bailey and
McInnes' Geological Report of 1888, M, pages 26, 28, 29, where it is
called "one of the main highways ... between the St. John River and the
St. Lawrence."
ASHBERISH--TROIS PISTOLES PORTAGE
Another route from Temiscouata to Trois Pistoles was by way of the
Ashberish River. This portage is marked on Bouchette, 1831, and is
mentioned by him in his Topographical Dictionary, and by Bailey in his
'St. John River' (page 48). It was by either this or the last-mentioned
route that Captain Pote was taken to Quebec in 1745, as he describes in
his Journal, but the description is not clear as to which route was
followed. The compass directions and the portages and lakes mentioned by
him would rather indicate the Ashberish route, though the editor of the
Journal sends him by the Lac des Aigles. This route is shown on the
Franquelin-DeMeulles Map of 1686, with the continuous line used on that
map for portage routes, and it is probably this route that is marked on
Bellin of 1744, and on many following him.
TEMISCOUTA--RIVIÈRE DU LOUP PORTAGE
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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