The Acadian Village in Van Buren, Maine, is the largest Acadian Village in the United States outside of Louisiana. It commemorates the culture, language and heritage of the Acadians in seventeen buildings, seven of which are historic. The buildings depict traditional Acadian construction techniques and contain a variety of artifacts. The oldest log building dates to the late 1700s.

The Acadian Village in Van Buren is open to visitors daily from mid-June to mid-September, noon to 5 pm. During the season visitors can call (207)868-5042 during operating hours. Visit the website for detailed information about what to see and planning a visit. Guided or self-guided tours are offered. Admission fees are charged.

Acadia was the name France gave to northeastern North America (modern day Maritime Provinces of Canada and State of Maine) from the time of the first settlements in the early 1600s. By the mid-1700s, France and Great Britain were fighting for control of the area. During the French and Indian War (1754-1763, part of the Seven Years’ War) over 10,000 Acadians were deported by the British from their homes and farms during LeGrand Derangement (Expulsion). Loaded onto ships, most of them never saw their homes again. Many died at sea. Some settled along the Eastern seaboard, returned to Europe, or found new homes in Louisiana where they became the Cajuns. The poet Longfellow immortalized the plight of the Acadians in his epic poem “Evangeline”.

When hostilities between France and Great Britain ceased, many Acadians settled in the Lower St. John Valley, near Fredericton, N.B. That area grew crowded. When land for settlement in the Upper St. John Valley, upstream of Grand Falls, N.B., became available in the late 1700s, the ancestors of the modern day Acadian population relocated. They made new homes and farms on both sides of the River, well before 1842 when the River became the international boundary.

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