First let us take a look at how the counties were seperated
between the years 1786 and now.
It is important for you to know
what parish to look into if you are looking
for information and you know about what year
you are looking for

So click here, follow me and see what I mean

The parish then the Village of Beresford
got their name from Lord
William Carr Beresford, English general, born 1768

The Micmacs called it "P'tit Pijighui "

The names Pokemouche (Pakmouch), Shippegan (...),
Caraquet (....), Tracadie (....), Lameque (Elmugwadasik)
Beresford (P'tit Pijighui), Bathurst (Nipisighuit)
Nigadoo (Ligatog), Grant's Brook (Oinpegitjoitjitjg)
Peter's River (Atoiganitjg), Tetagouche (Totogotjg)
and many other names of Gloucester County originated
from the Micmacs (or the Maliseets) who were there first

Follow me and find out who first came to
PETIT ROCHER 1797 first settlers

Follow me to Bathurst
TIDBITS ON THE VILLAGE AND TOWN OF BATHURST

Follow this link to get a bit of history on
LAMEQUE ISLAND AND VILLAGE

Follow this link and get a bit of history on
THE VILLAGE OF INKERMAN

Follow this link to
FERGUSON'S POINT OR THE VILLAGE OF SHEILA

The Micmacs were of sorts the first settlers
of this area of Gloucester. I say of sort because it is beleived
they lived deep in the woods and only came to the area near the
water in summer time to fish and would return to the woods
in winter time where it was probably warmer

Acadians had taken refuge on Miscou Island
Shippegan and Caraquet until they were driven off the land
by the British in 1761.

A few years later, a retired millitary officer
by name of Walker, took their place.
He himself had to leave in 1775
at the time of the American Revolution.

The first Acadians to return to Caraquet
were Alexis Landry, then came the Doucet,
Daigle, Arsenault, Hache and Boudreau and more..

Having been evacuated, one way or the other, many times
these Acadians had learnt not to work on large pieces of land
but to set up a home as fast and as easy as they could.
They settled on the banks of the river, had good land for gardens,
marshes for the cows and the sea to fish in.

The land was very productive for them
Specially after having built the "aboiteaux"
which we still see here and there today
The "Aboiteau", a sort of underground dam
was built by the Acadians
to bring water from the sea, bay, to the fields
It is a long wooden underground cave-like, square, box,
maybe 3 foot square, with a sliding upward door at the end
when water was needed for the fields, the door was slid open
the water was let in and then the door was closed

A river which is often mentionned in many history books
of the area was a river in Nipisiguit (Bathurst)
called Pierreau's River or "Atoiganitjg" in Micmac
named after the first settler to establish himself permanently
Pierre (Pierrot) Doucet

Mark Scully around 1825, while measuring the land plots
on "La Pointe Alston" or today Youghal
states "there are several clearings on Peters Rv.
and the remains of a grist mill, now gone to decay
It was settled by a number of frenchmen in 1798 or thereabout"

As mentionned in some Petit Rocher history
Riviere Pierrot was used often as a landmark
to describe where something started or finished
or where someone was established
For example, in 1812, land was granted to some of the following people
starting at Riviere Pierrot ending around North Petit Rocher

Simon Arseneau, Joseph Arseneau, Michael Daigle, Michel Hache
John Grant, Raymond Doucet, Francis Boudreau, Charles Doucet
Francis and Michael Fernin, Joseph Boudreau, Pierre Laplante
Antoine Degrace Jr., Michel Boucher, Pierre Roy, Alexis Pitre
Michael Boucher Remi Godin (or Gaudin)
John Baptiste Gaudin (Godin) and many others..
Later came the Frenettes, Aubes, Morrisons, Duguays, Landrys, Comeaus
Blanchards and many others..