Village of Thirty Centuries

Metepenagiag is an ancient place, and we the Mi’kmaq at Metepenagiag are an ancient people.

Patricia Allen, in her book Metepenagaig- New Brunswick’s Oldest Village presents the discovery of the Oxbow National Historic Site, as “the largest and deepest prehistoric village ever found in the Maritimes…” presenting undisturbed layers of Mi’kmaq artifacts and rendering proof of our oral history.

What has been presented through archeological findings is that Oxbow was vibrant and thriving fishing community for over 2500 years, with villages, food storage cellars, almost 100 ancient camp sites and several cemeteries being located in Metepenagiag. It has also proven to be a significant cultural and social center for our ancient people, where trading and ceremonies were a way of life.

The extensive travel and trading and possibly local exchange might explain the introduction of finely decorated pottery that was introduced to the Mi’kmaq at Metepenagaiag and became common production at 3,000 years ago.

The sites scientifically prove what we have always known from our oral history handed down from generations: that our people have lived a productive, meaningful, social and spiritual life, have travelled far and welcomed many to our ancestral home, where we were continue to live over 3,000 years later.