François Amirault was born in France and was the first Amirault to arrive in Acadie. He lived at Port-Royal for a time and then moved to the Cap-Sable area where he was a navigator and fisher. Some of his sons were deported from Port-Royal in 1755, others from Cap-Sable in 1756, and two daughters were likely deported back to France in 1759. Some of his children escaped the expulsions by moving to New Brunswick. After the Treaty of Paris was signed, 1763, one branch of the family settled in Québec, while my ancestors returned to Cap-Sable. My five times great grandfather, Basile Amirault, became one of the pioneers of the new Acadian community at la Baie Sainte Marie, Nova Scotia. This is where my family still calls home.

When searching for information on the Amirault family name, different name variations are often seen: Amirau, Amiraut, Amiraux, Amirand, Amireau, Amireaux, Amiro, Amero, Amirot, Mirau, Miraut, Miraux, Mireau.