Description of Historic Place

The Pox Cemetery is located on Acadie Road in Cap-Pelé. It consists of a field that contains the mortal remains of a third of the roughly 20 victims of a smallpox and chicken pox epidemic that swept the village of Tidiche and the region of Cap-Pelé during the winter and spring of 1859.

Heritage Value

The Pox Cemetery is designated a Local Historic Place for its association with the mortal remains of a third of the roughly 20 victims of a smallpox and chicken pox epidemic.

The Pox Cemetery reflects the Acadians’ religious respect for the 20 or so victims of this epidemic, which ravaged the Cap-Pelé region, especially in the area formerly known as Tidiche. It is thought that the virus was brought back from Cocagne by relatives from Cap-Pelé who went there to attend the funeral of a smallpox victim and after returning home were struck down by the illness. The first victim died on February 6 and the last on June 6, 1859. The deceased were buried off by themselves in landowners’ fields adjacent to the houses affected. The 12-foot-high cross marking the Pox Cemetery disappeared around 1970, and the site was ploughed over.

The 7 victims that were buried in the cemetery are Victor LeBlanc, 70, and Isabelle Léger, 72, his wife; their sons Hypolite, 46, and Fidèle, 44; Rémi Thériault, 40, and Pélagie Thériault, 29, brother and sister, relatives of the LeBlancs; and Aimé Brun, 36. They all died in the house of Victor LeBlanc, where the victims had sought refuge to avoid contaminating their families. Today, as the 150th anniversary draws near, historical awareness of this epidemic that spread fear among the population is still present in the region. Part of the population of Cap-Pelé is descended from those victims.

Source : Cap-Pelé Municipal Building - Historic Places Files #22

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements that describe the Pox Cemetery include:
- ongoing historical awareness of the epidemic and the site;
- archaeological remnants;
- undeveloped field landscape.