The Babineau farmhouse represents a typical mid-19th-century Acadian farmhouse in Kent County, New Brunswick. The house was located in a small village called Bedec, near Richibouctou-Village. The ancestor of this Acadian family is Nicolas Babineau dit Deslauriers, who arrived in Acadia in 1671.

Visitors can see a house whose furnishings reflect those of the 1850s. It is part of a transitional period in Acadian furniture, from 1825 to 1875. Pieces of furniture underwent an improvement. While retaining their utilitarian functions, the pieces are a little more decorative and carefully crafted.

The Babineau house features a home-made bread hutch from the first half of the 19th century, a hand-washing basin with a towel rail adorned with a very simple molding, a small chest of drawers with two leaves and a drawer, a rocking chair and woven chairs, a small cast-iron stove from the Saint-Maurice forges in Trois-Rivières, a chest, a cradle, three rope beds, a fireplace (masonry) and a bench-bed. The vast majority of Babineau’s furniture is made from pine.

The banc-lit or banc de quêteux is common in many Acadian regions, as it is in Quebec. Beggar’s benches are said to serve as beds for beggars looking for a place to sleep. Up to four young children can also sleep on these benches.

It’s a farm with a house, a pigsty, a barn, a chicken coop and a few other outbuildings. You’ll see a variety of animals, including sheep and cows. You can also see various farming implements from the period.

As for the family of Jean Babineau, its builder, born in the early 19th century, given that the house is interpreted in 1855, his wife Marie Daigle had already given birth to all ten of their children. However, we do know that the heir to the family property was Luc, who died in 1901, followed by his brother Jean.

• Structure made of vertical timbers fastened with tenons in the joist and runner.
• Solid stone fireplace
• L-shaped staircase
• Interior walls covered with plaster
• Interior partitions
• Symmetrical window and door openings