There is a close connection between the story which supplied the basis
of the poem, Evangeline, and the Acadian people. In 1838, Hawthorne
entered in his Note-Books the following:
"H. L. C.--Heard from a French-Canadian a story of a young couple in
Acadie. On their marriage day all the men of the Province were
summoned to assemble in the church to hear a proclamation. When
assembled, they were seized and shipped off to be distributed
through New England, among them the new bridegroom. His bride set
off in search of him, wandered about New England all her lifetime,
and at last found her bridegroom on his deathbed. The shock was so
great it killed her likewise."
Longfellow's final decision to adopt the name Evangeline for his poem,
rather than Gabrielle (which was the name of the heroine of Mrs.
Williams' story of "The Acadian Exile") has given existence to a
character that will live for all time.