Who was Mathieu DaCosta?

Centuries later, almost nothing about him is certain.

Mathieu DaCosta (Groupe CNW/Postes Canada)

From The Canadian Encyclopedia: DaCosta is one of the most fascinating and elusive figures in the early history of Canada. Historians consider him the first Black person known to have visited Canada, probably in the company of Pierre Dugua de Mons and Samuel de Champlain. But many aspects of his life remain unclear or unknown.

A plaque at Port-Royal, Nova Scotia commemorates DaCosta's contribution. It is part of the Mathieu DaCosta African Heritage Trail, a series of monuments marking African Nova Scotian history in the Annapolis Valley.

From the Canadian Encyclopedia: Historical records describe Mathieu DaCosta as a Black African who, working as a free man, served as an interpreter for French and Dutch traders in the early 17th century. But it is hard to determine with any accuracy whether DaCosta ever in fact visited the coast of Atlantic Canada and the St. Lawrence River and, if he did so, with whom and exactly when.

An unattributed drawing of Mathieu DaCosta from https://vansda.ca/heritage-trail/mathieu-da-costa/

See more about black history in Annapolis County here.