1. b. Pearl ash from the hardwood forests. Beef and dairy products would later become the main agricultural goods produced in the area.
2. b. American squatters. The Abenakis had hunted the land long before but had not settled permanently. Before 1791, the land had not been parcelled out to British or French-Canadian settlers.
3. d. St. Francis River.
4. b. It would remain an empty buffer zone between the United States and Lower Canada.
5. c. Those who owned the land had no interest in settling it.
1. What was the very first form of agricultural produce that the early Townships colonists profited from?
a. Squash fields abandoned by members of the Abenaki nation
b. Pearl ash from the hardwood forests
c. Grains (flax, wheat, barley)
d. Beef and dairy products
2. Which group first permanently settled the Eastern Townships region?
a. Loyalists
b. American squatters
c. The Abenaki nation
d. Retired government officials
The nineteenth and early twentieth centuries saw a huge railway boom across the Eastern Townships. It was driven by the need to access raw materials, a desire for quick transportation, the growth of industry, and a mania to build more and more branch lines. Literally dozens of railway companies competed for territory and markets.
The nineteenth and early twentieth centuries saw a huge railway boom across the Eastern Townships. It was driven by the need to access raw materials, a desire for quick transportation, the growth of industry, and a mania to build more and more branch lines. Literally dozens of railway companies competed for territory and markets.
Before modern roads, traveling by water was often more efficient than traveling by land. Steamers of various sizes and capacities played an important role on a number of lakes in the Eastern Townships. They carried supplies and mail, and hauled logs to local sawmills. They also carried passengers -- more often than not guests at lakeside hotels, cottagers and excursionists.