Prior to the arrival of European settlers the Mi'kmaq established summer hunting and fishing camps on the banks of the Gaspereau estuary. Evidence of this era, such as tools and arrowheads can still be found along the beaches of the Gaspereau River.
Called Baie Verte for the bright green saltwater grasses which grow in the bay, the Acadian community, which was established in 1690, soon became a major centre on the overland trade routes between the Bay of Fundy and Quebec City.
In 1751, the French constructed Fort Gaspareaux at the mouth of the Gaspereau River. After the fall of Fort Beausejour in 1755, the British took possession of Fort Gaspareaux, and renamed it Fort Monckton, after their victorious commander.
Tragedy struck in the fall of 1756 when the Fort was burned and abandoned when it proved indefensible against attacks from Indians and Acadian rebels.
Today, the grounds of the "Fort" is a National Historic Site, and home to a marine beacon, known locally as the "Port Elgin lighthouse". The grounds of the Fort contain a small military cemetery, a fieldstone cairn, a reconstructed ditch outlining the basic configuration of the original fort, and the buried ruins of several original French buildings, such as the commandant's residence, a storehouse and the foundation of two blockhouses.