Canada Guide
Québec City
Cartier-Brébeuf National Historic Site
Address: 175 de l'Espinay, on the banks of the St-Charles River
Opening time: Daily early May to early Sept 10am–5pm; Sept 1–4pm
Telephone: 418/648-4038
Website: www.pc.gc.ca/brebeuf
Price: $4
Northwest of Vieux-Québec, the Cartier-Brébeuf National Historic Site has a double claim to fame. It marks the spot where Jacques Cartier spent the winter of 1535–36 in friendly contact with the people of the surrounding Iroquoian villages – a cordial start to a relationship that Cartier later soured by taking a local chief and nine of his men hostage. It is also where Jean de Brébeuf, with his Jesuit friends, built his first Canadian residence in 1625: Brébeuf is best known for his martyrdom near today's Midland in Ontario. The interpretation centre features an excellent account of Cartier's voyages and of the hardship he and his crew endured during the winter and a backgrounder on the Jesuits' role in New France. The guided tour of the site (included in the entrance fee) leads to a mock-up of an Iroquoian longhouse and sweat lodge set within a palisade, where costumed guides demonstrate daily tasks, mostly to the benefit of the kids. Keep an eye out for the resident muskrat.