The erosion of a dune at the mouth of the Natashquan River, on the Lower North Shore, has uncovered an indigenous cemetery contemporary with the travels of explorer Jacques Cartier. The reports from the firm Archéo-Mamu obtained by The duty evoke a “tangible and unrivaled heritage” for the First Nations. However, the site is threatened with “imminent destruction” by winds and mountain bikes.
Each year, a new row of graves is exposed to snow and rain through erosion. The heaviest bones, like the shins, quietly slide down the dune while the lighter ones are carried by the winds for nearly 200 meters, starting with those of the children. The bones sometimes end up in a pond, where they are trapped in ice.
The natural erosion of the site is aggravated by mountain bike enthusiasts who crisscross this isolated area bordering the Gulf of St. Lawrence. “They are going to play in the dunes,” laments the general director of the Archéo-Mamu firm, Vanessa Morin. The ground, which is already very loose, becomes even more so. When all four wheels pass [dans les dunes], they also pass over the bones. »
The oldest bone samples found on the site belong to individuals who died somewhere between 1522 and 1575, i.e. the margin of error of the carbon-14 analysis. This approximate dating takes us to the heart of the 16the century, at the time of the explorations of Jacques Cartier and the whaling expeditions led by the Basques.
The cemetery at Pointe du Vieux-Poste remained in operation until it silted up at the beginning of the 20th century.e century. It is a mixed burial site since it also contains remains of European origin.
The discovery of the first bones on the side of the dune in the summer of 2016 surprised the Innu community of Nutashkuan located less than a kilometer away. The Sûreté du Québec had also been called to the scene to elucidate a possible crime or a drowning. “It’s a cemetery that doesn’t appear in any register,” explains Vanessa Morin, “that’s why no one knew it was there. »
The coordinator of Nutashkuan territorial negotiations, Roberto Wapistan, regularly makes rounds to recover bones which he then gives to archaeologists. “I pick them up quite often,” he said in an interview with Duty. There are always little bones.” His tours also allowed him to observe the accelerated deterioration of the site.
New France
The mouth of the Natashquan River would have hosted a trading post from the beginning of the 18th centurye century according to documentary research carried out by Archéo-Mamu. A second post was in operation on the site intermittently between 1824 and the beginning of the 20th century.e century. This late period is associated with the most tangible objects found in the dune, namely a glass rosary made of red heart-shaped beads, a crucifix made in Italy and a mysterious brass padlock from the 1840s.
Archaeologists also collected textiles from the surface of the ground. The ribcage of one of the skeletons still wore its shirt and jacket, which date from the 19th century.e century. A small wooden cross, sixteen centimeters high, was found a few meters from the grave of this man who died in his forties.
Around fifteen skeletons were reconstructed, including those of five children. This bone heritage will make it possible to document the state of health and diet of the inhabitants of the Natashquan River over nearly four centuries. “We can get a lot of information from it,” emphasizes Vanessa Morin.
Archaeologists carried out two excavation campaigns at the tip of Vieux-Poste in 2021 and 2022. “The bodies continue to tumble from the dune,” recalls Mme Morin.
However, the carrying out of in-depth analyzes is suspended due to the financial difficulties of Archéo-Mamu, a non-profit organization co-managed by Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people. “We could not measure the extent of the discoveries that were going to be made,” explains Vanessa Morin, referring to the thousands of dollars sunk into DNA, carbon 14 and textile analyses. A $30,000 crowdfunding campaign was launched by the organization in mid-December.
The cemetery at Pointe du Vieux-Poste has raised more questions than it has resolved so far, hence the importance of continuing the excavations, underlines the archaeologist. Time is running out before the site is completely blown away by the winds. “It’s going to have to be extremely quick,” said M.me Morin. We are talking in numbers of years and not decades. »