Volume I1 Number 2 1979 - American-French Genealogical ...the courthouses, wanted to stop all genealogical research covering the last 100 years, on the grounds that a livfng person's

Volume I1 * Number 2 September * 1979

The American French Genealogical Society will be happy to exchange publication6 with any bona-fide genealogical or h is tor ica l society i n the United States, Canada or abroad. A t present we are exchanging with the following genealogical and h is tor ica l societies:

Maryland Historical Society

F l in t (Michigan) Genealogical Society

Fort Worth Genealogical Society

Grange County California Genealogical Society

Orange County California Genealogical Society

Missisquoi Historical Society

Milwaukee County Genealogical Society

Canadian American Query Exchange

Florida State Genealogists Society

MASSOG

Acadian Genealogy Exchange

American-Canadian Genealogical Society of New Hampshire

Indiana Historical Society

Le Canado Americain

Vermont Historical Society

West Central Missouri Genealogical Society

Quebec Family History Society

Bri t ish Columbia Genealogist

Racoma Genealogical Society

Saskatchewan Genealogical Society

Genealogical Society of Vermont

Ontario Genealogical Society

Cercle ~Qnealogique e t HQraldique de LeAuvergne

Ia Revue F'rantaiee de GQnealogie

Any Society wishing t o e f fec t an exchange program with the Society is advised t o contact the Society a t t h e following address: Box 2113, Pawtucket, Rhode Island 02861

AMERICAN-FRENCH GENEAIXX~ICAL S O C I ~ Y BOX 2113

PAWTUCKEL', RHODE I SUND 02861

A L a n r r K.AUBIN ( 103 ) ................................................ Editor DAVID P, BASSETT ( 177 ). ........................................ .Necrologist .............. LUCILLE F. ROCK ( 65 1, PAULINE E. LEMERE (98) s t a f f Researchers RONBT J. Q U I t f l I N (4), M A ROCHEWU (101) ........... ..Resource Development ROBERT P. GUUDREAU (44) ............................................. H i 6 t o r i a .............................................. ROBnZT J. QUINTIN (4). President LUCILLE F. ROCK (65). ......................................... .Vice-President ........................................... ROBERT P. COUDREAU (441.. Secretary LEO LEBEUF (54). ................................................... .Treasurer ............................................. ALBERT K. AUBIN (103)... Director ALF'RED E. GABOURY (5 ) . .............................................. .Mrec t o r .......................................... PAULINE E. LEMERE (98)..... ~ i r e c t o r J?UNNE!M'X MENARD (18). .............................................. .Director ROBETIT W. 1.IICHAUD (x)........... .................................... Director *************C*****************=***********************************~*******a*

Table of Contents

President's Message............................................,............3

Genealogy i n the Province of Quebec by Roland J. Auger (358) ............... 4

The ~ c a d i a n s i n New England by Reverend Clarence Muis D 'Entremont (224). .. -10

The History of the Franco-Americans i n Rhode Island by Robert P. Gout@?u 19 Jean De Brdbeuf by Robert P. Goudreau (a). .............................. 30

......... Other Wars, Other Valois; The War of 1812 by Jack Valois (129). 35

Le Coin de Nos ~ n c s t r e s by Lucille F. Rock (65) . .......................... .41

Library by Robert J. Quintin (4). ......................................... .43

The Library is located at Le Foyer, A51 Fountain S t r ee t , Pawtucket, %ode Island. The l ib ra ry is open every Tuesday evening at 7:00PM. tlembership dues a re b10.00 per annum. Application is available upon request: A.F.G.S., Box 2113, Pawtucket Rhode Island, 02861.

The American French Genealogical Society does not take responsibi l i ty f o r the historical and genealogical content of "Je Me Souviensw. Submit all a r t i c l e s fo r publication t o Albert K. Aubin, 191 Gladstone S t ree t , Cranston, BI 02920. Art ic les submitted become the property of the A.F.G.S. and cannot be returned.

PRESIDENT 'S MESSAGE

Growth is the essence of development and life. Without these revitalizing

accumulations, advancement and maturity cannot be reached. So too, with our Society.

It has grown rapidly and substantially in the short time that it has been in existence.

With the continued support of its members and the encouraging admission of new enroll-

ments, together with the positive inclusions of new research data to its resource library,

the Society can be proud of its accomplishments.

One of our major projects over the next few years is the acquisition of new

genealogical data. This material is generally found in the form of repertoires. In

order to develop greater density and dimension of resources, continued effort must be

utilized to record the births, marriages and deaths of all F'rench-Canadians and Americans.

Of particular interest are the parishes, city halls, and funeral homes throughout New

England, the Mid-West, and the western provinces of Canada itself.

If anyone wishes to participate in this most purposeful and challenging

endeavor, please contact the Society for assistance and guidance. We especially

look forward to receiving repertoires from the Worcester area, as well as Springfield,

Lowell, Fitchburg and Taunton. The states of Connecticut and New York are also fertile

areas for research.

In closing, let us not forget the enjoyment and the companionship which we

derive from our interesting activities and stimulating discussions. Every gathering

on Tuesday evening is both a source of achievement and a funfilled adventure. Our

Society is a vibrant and exciting place to meet and share our interests and experiences.

Robert J. Quintin President

GENEAIXX;Y IN TiB PROVINCE OF QUEBEC By Roland J. Auger

(given at the First Annual Conference of the American-French Genealogical Society, April 1979, at Le Foyer, Pawtucket, Rhode Island

INTRODUCTION

Modem Caaada, or the Canadian Confederation as we know it today, has only been in existence since 1867.. If we go back yet further in history to the 17th century in order to get our proper geographical bearings, all of what we know of as Canada, aa well as the Mississippi Valley and the western outposts, belonged to France and wae known as New France.

A8 early as 1604, Henry N of France authorized Pierre Du Gua, sieur de Monts, and his associate, Samuel de Champlain, to found a permanent settlement at Port Royal, in Acadia (now Annapolis Royal in Nova Soctia), and, in 1608, Champlain mailed up the St, Lawrence River and founded Quebec City, capital of New France,

SElTLING AND POPULATING THE LAND

Although the city was founded in 1608, Champlain and his men did not spend the winter in Quebec until 1611 or 1612. In 1615, missionaries sent by the King began arriving in the French Catholic colony. The first family, whose head was Lnuis HBbert, an apothecary from Paris, arrived in 1617, and, from then on, the various Companies saw t h ~ t the growing colony was settled.

Historians eatimate that some 10,000 Frenchmen came to New France between 1608, the year ~ugbec City was founded, and 1759, the year Canada was won by England. The French Canadians of today, however, all descend from only about 3,000 ancestors.

It was a very homogenous population with the exception of some dozen marriages with Huron squaws, less than 50 captives from the English colonies who married F'renchwomen and were soon totally integrated, and a very small number of foreigners (British, Dutch and ~panish).

Not all the French Canadians stayed in Qu6bec after the British victory. Thousands lived as voyageurs and coureurs de bois and most of these settled in the United Statee. In 1775, hundred more left to support the Continentala and take part in the Revolutionary War. After the War of Independence, they brought their families to settle in northern New York on land the young American government gave them, During the rebellions of 1837 and 1838 in Canada, Quebecers once again emigrated to the United States by the thousan&, with their friends and relatives. m e most notable flow across the border, however, came between the yeare 1840 and 1900 when over one million of our compatriote sought asylum, mainly in New England, such that, today, it is estimated that there are at least 10 million descendants of French Canadians in the United States, while there are only eix million inhabitants in ~uebec today. These observations explain the large number of letters we receive at the Quebec National Archives from Americans in search of their

- ancestry.

ARCHIVES AND CIVIL STA'l!US A

Although the Province of Qu6bec has preserved all it6 civil status records since 1621, the only general index in existence is the marriage index. Since the records of marriage elways give the names of both the husband's and the wife's parents, French Canadian genealogists trace a family back through the marriages and, when possible, complete their work by looking up the baptisms and burfale.

- 5 - Qu&bec 's greates t genealogie t was without a doubt Father Cyprien Tanguay , who,

between 1871 and 189, published the genealogy, i n seven volumes, of a l l the F'rench Canadian families under the French Regime, recording the baptisms, marriages, and burials. He grouped together a l l the families with the same name, c lass i fying them by marriage dates and l inking them tu t he i r common ancestor. I n s p i t e of its imper- fections, oversights, omissions, errors , and the criticism his work has generated, it nonetheless remains the b a s i s of a l l our genealogical research* Tanguay was a great French Canadian genealogist and, regardless of claims to the contrary, he has yet t o be surpassed*

From an a rch iv i s t ' s point of view, the French Canadians are a privileged and highly favored people; t h i s f a c t can never be overemphasized. French Canada has only three and a half centuries of history, and fo r tha t reason may well be the only nation i n the world t o have a f u l l s e t of archives almost completely in tac t .

The Province of Quebec is divided i n t o 34 c i v i l d i s t r i c t s , and each courthouse keeps most of the records of c i v i l s t a t u s for its d i s t r i c t . Each courthouse has a prothonotary attached t o it ae chief di rector and administrator of the d i s t r i c t . Un- fortunately, the prothonotaries do not have personnel available fo r research. I n order t o obtain an o f f i c i a l copy of a record of c i v i l s t a tu s , the applicant must provide the name of the parish and the date of the document. There a r e 108 counties i n ~udbec and each d i s t r i c t may have from three t o eight counties.

A recent change i n the l a w has seriously hampered the work of researchers i n c i v i l archives. The ministere de l a Jus t ice ( j u s t i ce department), which has jur isdic t ion over the courthouses, wanted t o s top a l l genealogical research covering the l a s t 100 years, on the grounds tha t a l ivfng person's c i v i l s t a t u s is confidential. 3e a r e now f ight ing t h i s r e s t r i c t i v e decision.

But the new l a w is not a l l bad, The ministBre de la Jus t ice is gradually trans- fe r r ing a l l records over 100 years old t o our National Archives. We already have a11 the records fo r the d i s t r i c t s of Qubbec, Trois-Riviires, and Montreal. Within f ive years a l l the manuscript sources over LOO years old w i l l have been transferred t o our National Archives. QU8Bl?& NATIONAL A R C H I V G , GENEAUIGY SECTION

So many genealogical requests were addressed t o the Quebec National Archives tha t , i n 1962, the record keeper decided to hire a professional genealogist. I was appointed t o this post with ins t ruct ions t o create a genealogy section. I n 16 years we have helped over 8000 genealogists who came t o our o f f ice from all over the world, and have answered over 50,000 requests and l e t t e r s , mainly from Canada and the United S ta tes ,

m e following a r e the sources t o be found i n the genealogical sect ion of our National Archives:

The Parish Registers, prepared i n duplicate since 1621. ( the or ig ina l remains i n the parish and the copy is f i l e d with the courthouse a t the end of each year), are based on the French model created by the royal ordinance of Villers-Cotterets issued i n 1539. T h i s fa obviously the most important source i n genealogy. Except i n very ra re cases, the names of the parents are entered on baptismal and marriage records and the name of the spouse on bur ia l records, a s well a s the place of residence.

In our genealogy section, we have a l l the parish r eg i s t e r s for the districts of ~uQbec, Montmagny, Riviere-du-Loup, and La Malbaie from the founding of each parish u n t i l 1.875~ They t o t a l 3,990 for 94 different parishes. Although there is no genealogy

- section i n !L'rois-~ivi&res or Montreal, we have a l l the r eg i s t e r s a t the l oca l National Archives offices.

The Genealogical Collections, i n tmnuscript form, were prepared oy great genealogists l i k e Father Archage Godbout, L6on Roy, and GQrard Malchelosse, t o name only three. These collections, almost all indexed, represent about 3,240 l i nea r f ee t of paper.

Tbe Master Mar r i a~e Index was s t a r t ed by Rev. Loiselle. It contains nearly two million 3x5 cards. There is a card for each groom and each bride. Each card is class i - fied f i r s t by family group, then by alphabetical order based on f i r s t m e s , and then c h r o n o l o ~ c a l l y . We eas i l y f ind seven marriages out of ten using the master index.

- 6 - The Bibliographical Index contains about 25,000 genealogical references wWcb

ident i fy printed material that r e f e r s t o a given family name, a s well as unpublished genealogical f i l e s i n our National Archives, By checking t h i s bibliography, a genealogist knows at once what can be found i n the genealogy section and what we have a t h i s disposal i n the archives.

I n our Bibliographical Index, we have about 10,000 d i rec t references t o printed biog~aphiee of notable people and, very often, of our Canadian ancestors.

The Index by Place Name r e fe r s t o manucrtpt documents as well a s printed material on a parish or local i ty , This index contains over 5,000 cards.

The Index by Subject contains about 20,000 carde on old houses, churches, manors, cemeteries, s t r ee t s , bridges, t radi t ions , etc.

We a l so have about 1,000 l inear f ee t of information, by parish and by county, i n our Marriage Repertory. About ten years ago, several genealogists began publishing parish marriage indexes i n alphabetical or chronological order, or both. They have already completed work on about 80 of the 108 counties. These guides, or tables, are a great help t o researchers and complement, t o a cer ta in extent, our master marriage index.

Finally, we have over 1,000 Publications on the genealogy of French Canadian and Acadian families. W e buy every genealogical book on French Canada tha t comes out, whether it was published i n French or i n English or uas printed i n Ceaada, France or the United States. Printed material a l so includes genealogical journals and family histories.

PRINCIPAL ARCHIVES 110 CONSULT The wt dependable eources~ t o - when -prepwing a genealogy in' QuCbec are the' . '

reg is te rs of c i v i l status. Under the French Regi~ne, C;atholicisrn wak the ohly of?icia l re l igiog, and tbe parishes fa i th fu l ly a$clellec? their reg ie te rs of c i v i l &tbs on -those , of France. _ .

After the &n&i6h victory i n 1760,. ~ t e a t m t s were granted equal rights. ~hfbr-. - tunately, ministers were'not o b l i g e d ~ t o keap-thesSam type of records. ~ e c o r h $ of ' ' Pratestant marriages do not give. tbe:.mmes of the pamnks of the people and of ten k e , ' ~. records of bur ia l do not fu l ly ident i fy the deceased. ,I . .

- L . , - . . .

NOTARIAL DEEDS i .

Notaries i n France and i n the Province of ~ u ~ b e k 'do not practlce t he i r profession :' i n qui te the stun* way,- i n EngUdh-8peaking.Canada and the United States. -

It w a s Herre-Oeorgea Roy, the firs* arcMvf.st of the Protince of ~uBbec, who " ''

s ta r ted the ,publication of the oldest reper tor ies of no ta r ia l deeds; I n -1940, faced ' with man;r thousands of documente,.he,dae5ded to d t e an separate inventory of them;'

- . I >

Notarial deeds a re extremely important i n Qudbec genealogy. To begin with, i t might be -13. t=o explain the difference betlieen a e l io ta ry .

and a seigporial notary* Tbe royal ndary held ms appointmerrt from the Uqg. himeelf A ' .

or, in Casada, from the King's representaWe,- the governer w r the intendant. ' He F&d '

the r igh t t o practice throughout the area under the jurisdiction of the gove'mmeht.to "

which he was appointed. A 8 for the,m$epor&al notary, appowted by t h e seigniux-, lie could no6 perform any professionaL.act6 o u t e i d e . a e donrain a-f the person from whom he - ' - held h is comission. . .'

, .. We have s ta ted that notar ia l deede a re very important i n genealogy. Actually, . * by the i r diversity, they const i tute the- r iahes t archival source of documents. - - It was the l a t e G r a r d Morisset+who best described these oftentTmes puzzl*

'

scrawls, and- here i;& what @ said: This mass of doywnts was general ly ,vel l writ ten and kept with great care-&% neatness. The scr ibe wrote bis proae on good-qualLty,lrid papu,. .yellouish and supple, witya '

carefully sharpened qu i l l ; he often spelled phonetically, because few works then exi6ted ; which served the purpose 00 our modern dictionarlee;.but he wrote a nicely flowlng'language, a r e a l i s t i c language, the syntax.of which was~accwate and the expression well-shaded;.. and when he made out a form, the sentences had that elegant and f lexible construction, that balance and tha t touch of the picturesque i n expression which came down from ime- morial usage and was the contrftubion of the most g i f ted scribes.

- 7 - Notarial deeds a r e a precious and abundant source of in formt ion for anyone

who wants t o study the c iv i l i za t ion of New France, the f a t e of its inhabitants and the material trace8 of the i r wealth or t he i r poverty; indeed, they mention domestic economy over more than two centuries 80 frequently tha t they become, a s i t were, one of the essen t ia l bases of any concrete, objective and h i s to r i ca l study.

It would be impossible t o describe here a l l the types of no ta r ia l documents. We s h a l l attempt t o ident i fy only a few of them. A young couple, fo r instance, would f i r s t sign a marriage contract and then possibly make a mutual g i f t or a g i f t i n t e r vivos and prepare deeds of g i f t 8 of property o r a w i l l . Later, an inventory a f t e r death would be made and closed, papera for the dis t r ibut ion of property or s a l e of property prepared, etc. A s t o r e a l es ta te , a grant of land, a purchase of land, the s a l e of land, the exchange or retrocession of land, taking of possession of land, cancellation of sale , report of sa le , abandonment of land, a g i f t o r division of land, a farming lease, etc. a l l required no ta r ia l deeds; fo r the individual, indentures, apprenticeship ce r t i f i ca t e s , g i f t s i n contemplation of death, wills, etc. were prepared by a notary.

Obviously, besides the reg is te rs of c i v i l s ta tus , the ~ u e b e c genealogist w i l l f ind i t useful t o consult the old minutes of the notaries. He w i l l f ind there a thousand and one d e t a i l s on each and every one of the French Canadians i n whose family his tory he is interested. MARRIAGE CONTRACTS

A reeearcher may not f ind the desired record of marriage i n the parish registers. The Qu6bec genealogist may then re fe r t o another important source: the marriage contract signed before a notary.

The marriage contract before a notary o r by private agreement is, t o a cer ta in extent , the c i v i l contract complementing the re l ig ious marriage celebrated at the church. Inasmuch as a number of marriage records are not t o be found i n the reg is te rs , we can always resor t t o the marriage contract t o discover the parents of the bride and bridegroom, and from where the family or iginal ly came, Hence the extreme importance of the marriage contract i n ~ u g b e c genealogy.

Marriages and marriage contracts under the fiench Regime i n New France were occasions f o r great rejoicing and fes t ivi ty . Guests sometimes rode f i f t een or twenty miles, over roads which were often i n poor repair , t o be present a t the signing of the marriage contract and the wedding i t s e l f . Generally, the contract w a s signed the day before the wedding, so t h a t the re la t ives could attend both events. It w i l l likewise be noted tha t the nuptials most often took place in the autumn a f t e r the harvest, or i n the winter, during the pre-Lenten season, so a s not t o lose any time be t te r spent i n the f i e l d s .

A l l marriage contracts during the French Regime established co-ownership between the husband and the wife, i n keeping with the Coutume de Paris. ~ c q u s t s (acquests) and conqu3ts (acquisit ions) were involved, as well as mutual g i f t s , dowries, jointures and preference legacies.

It was obviously very important, from a lega l point of view, t o have a carefully drawn up marriage contract. A genealogist 's work is clear ly much easier when he can find a contract signed by the people i n whom he is interested. WILIS

A w i l l is the authentic, or iginal a c t by which a person solemnly makes known his l a s t wishes and decides how his property w i l l be disposed of a f t e r h i s death.

There is the holographic w i l l , written ent i re ly in the hand of the tes ta tor and dated and signed by h i m , the no ta r ia l w i l l , made before a notary and witnesses, and the mystic w i l l which, according to Webster's, was sealed i n an envelope and executed before a notary.

The forms of the old w i l l s do not vary much, but i t appears, at l e a s t under the French Regime, that the t e s t a to r had the choice of the introduction, and cer ta in samples r e f l e c t profound rel igious sentiment and bel ief i n e te rna l l i f e .

- 8 - GIrnS A g i f t i e a voluntary tranefer of property. I n New France there were varioue

kinds of g i f t s : g i f t e in contemplation of death, mutual g i f t s i n t e r vivos, g i f t s of land -- t o build a church, for example--and g i f t s a fa ther might make under cer ta in conditions t o one of hie children. Documents re la t ing t o such g i f t s are important i n genealogy, fo r they depict many of the habits, customs and practices of our ancestors, who gave proof of considerable foresight.

A g i f t i n contemplation of death was made before leaving on a long t r i p , a mili tary o r fur-trading expedition o r the l ike , and it w a s specified tha t the property was t o be given only i f the donor did not return. By a special clause, the document l o s t a l l its val idi ty on the re turn of the donor.

Mutual g i f t s i n t e r vfvos were made between spouses who had no heirs. The survivor inherited the estate. "'The most c r i t i c a l age i n the l i f e of an habitant", wrote Robert

- Cliche, w a s the f i f t i e s , when he retired. He turned everything over t o one of his 60116, the one who w a s t o i nhe r i t the land. The most memorable contract i n the l i f e of the habitant w a s the one i n which he made t h i s g i f t . It is worth our while and within the context of our subject t o comment on one of these contracts. Even though the contract was made before a notary, a l l the commitments it involved derived from common law. It included, among other items, the obligations of the he i r toward the brothers and s i s t e r s who remained at home. The he i r had t o take the bad with the good, tha t is, a l l the con- di t ions he inherited with the land. !Phis record of donation gives an eloquent picture of l i f e on a farm prior t o the First World War." INVENTORIES OF PROPERTY AFTE;R DEATII

This type of document is unique.. When a co-ownerehip of property was dissolved by the demise of a spouse, i t w a s neceseary t o draw up a complete inventory i n order t o protect the property of minor children. Inventories a f t e r death a r e a precious and abundant source of information fo r anyone wiehing t o make a thorough study of the c iv i l i - zation of New France and the Province of Qu€bec, the f a t e of the inhabftants and the ma- t e r i a l signs of t he i r poverty of wealth.

"What is more," wrote Mrard Morisset, "like the parish account books and ledgers, they contain so many part iculars concerning the domestic economy over a period of more than two centuries, on the important fur-trading industry and even on the l inguis t ics and phonetics of the past , tha t they form, as it were, one of the essen t ia l bases of any concrete, objective and h i s to r i ca l study.

"The oldest of these inventories go back t o the middle of the 17th century. With r a r e exceptions, they bear witness t o the extreme poverty of our ancestors i n the heroic age of New France. But, as the country was peopled by new ar r iva ls , a s the merchants made the i r fortunes i n trade and shipping, as the a r t i sans gained admittance t o the middle class, through the merit of t he i r works, as the coureura de bois, t i r e l e s s and cunning, returned from the west laden with fu r s of a l l sor t s , as the peasant, hard-working and l i t t le- taxed, brought i n his harvest and sold his produce i n town, prosperity appeared in the colony, timidly a t f i r s t under FFonteaacts second term, and then i n f u l l bloom under Beauharnois, be tween 1730 and l 740. Public prosperf ty.. . that is what the "inventories a f t e r death" fo r this peaceful period indicate, provided, of course, tha t ' a proper sampling is made.

The property inventoriee contain important and precise de t a i l s on the private l i v e s of our ancestors. They often mention the date and circumstances of death and give the names of the heirs , t h e i r age and t he i r c i v i l statw. They also enumerate a l l the goods and property and give the values s e t by the appraisers.

"Of all no ta r ia l documents," a r a r d Morisset further wrote, "it is the property inventories which best stock the arsenal of history. They a r e generally well-written, descriptive and detailed t o a f au l t ; they a r e perhaps, of a l l the old documents, the most revealing and the most indiscreet; they provide an unheard-of abundance of precise de t a i l s on the deceaeed person's family, h i s nome (even t o the number of rooms), his clothes, his furniture, his silverware and crockery, his works of art and paintings, his foodstuffs and fue l supplies, the tools and Instruments of h i s profession, h i s property, his as se t s and l i a b i l i t i e s , hence his debtors and credi tors and, f ina l ly , M s personal papers, memoirs and le t te rs . I wonder whether it is possible t o find an h is tor ica l document more uaeful than an inventory a f t e r death.**

- 9 - To sum up, records of w i l l s , g i f t s and i n v e n t o r i e ~ a re perhaps the r icheet

source of information a genealogist can f ind and the moat important; they provide a peep-hole i n t o the private l i ves of our ancestors.

I have outlined the main sources available to a genealogist in Quebec. In conclusion I w i l l simply repeat tha t , thanks t o these old archives, pariah regis- t e r ~ and notar ia l deeds, i t is re la t ive ly simple to t race your ancestry i n French Canada.

NOTES

Section de ~dnBalogie, Archives Nationalea, 1180 Rue Berthelot, ~uebec , Qu6.. a13 363.

Hr, Auger is i n charge of genealogical publications of the Quebec National Archives. This paper m e preeented at the NGS Jubi lee Conference on 16 August 1978. This paper w a s a l so delivered t o the F i r s t Annual Conference of the American-French Genealogical Society, April 29, 1979, at Le Foyer, Pawtucket, Rhode Island

LE SAVIEZVOUS?

1. Pope Clement IV, born i n France, was elected Pope i n 12651

2. George Washington was the descendant of Nicholas Marteau, born i n France i n 15911

3. That i n O l d Norwich, Connecticut there is a memorial honoring 20 French Canadians

who died f ight ing f o r American Independence?

4. Rochambeau, coming t o the a id of Washington, came ashore with his 8000 French

so ld ie rs i n Newport, R. I. i n 1780?

5. Samuel de Champlain was the f i r s t white man t o venture i n to Vermont?

THE ACADIANS IN NEW ENOLAND (Given a t the First Annual Conference of the American French Genealogical -

Society, April 29, 1979, at LE FOYER, Pawtucket, Rhode Island) by Reverend Clarence DnEntremont

It is a great pleasure for me t o be here today t o take an act ive part in t h i s Mrst Annual Conference of the American French Genealogical Society. This is the second time tha t I have the honor and privilege t o speak t o you. The f i r s t time was when the Society was established two years ago.

It was the second time that I was involved in the foundation of a Franco-American genealogical society in New England, Already i n 1973, when Professor Roger Lawrence, of Mer- rimack, N. H., w a s making plan6 f o r the establishment of such a genealogical society in New Hampshire, he contacted me. We met one day a t Harvard University, Cambridge, amd discussed the matter thoroughly. We even contacted by telephone, i n Quebec, the one who, of

. a l l people, knows best what it takes t o organize a genealogical society, my dear friend here present, M r . Roland Auger. I n the l ail of tha t ye=,-1973, ~ e ~ t e m b e r 28, the - Amer- ican-Canadian Genealogical Society of New Hampshire was founded, under the plans fomu- la ted by M r . Lawrence and Mrs. Lucille La~aese. of Manche~rter.

I had suggested then, t o the organisers of the New Hampshire genealogical society, t o make i t a genealogical society fo r all the Franco-Americans of New England. I see now tha t I was wrong, because otherwise we might not have had a similar genealogical society for Rhode IsLand.

About three years and a half a f t e r , Mr. Henri Leblond invited Mrs. Lucille Lagas86 t o give here, at LE FOYER, a talk on genealogy, when she outlined the Quebec ancestry of the Franco-Americans of New England. So when Mr. bhlond, who was t o become the Presi- dent-Founder of the Society, asked me t o speak, I thought I would give the Acadian aspect of the genealogy of the F'rancophones of New Egland. The t i t l e of my talk w a s The Acadians and the i r ~enealoay, when I outlined the ava i lab i l i ty of the records dealing with the v i t a l s t a t i s t i c s of the Acadians, wherever they may be,

It was at this meeting, Hay 25th. 1977, t h a t the Society was founded, t o which near- l y one hundred people gave t h e i r name, among whom 93 became charter members. And from then on, membership has been progressing from leaps and bounds, l i k e a torrent, by which I, myself, w a s swept along, when I became last year a l i f e member of the Society.

Then, last October, in Montreal, a t the Congress of the 35th Anniversary of La Socig- t& Okn&alogisue Canadienne-Francaise, I had the honor, through the benevolence of our President, M r . Robert Quintin, 50 t e l l the 620 genealogists, who attended the Congrese, of the v i t a l i t y of the newly baby born genealogical society of the Banco-Americans of Rhode Island. In reading the paper that Hr. Quintin had given me, I told them tha t jus t a s La Societ6 G&n&alo~ique Canadienne-Francaiee had chosen fo r its publication the t i t l e LES mOIRES, likewise t h e bnerican h.enchrGenealogical Society of Rhode Island had chosen the t i t l e JE ME SOWIEZS. Both t i t l e s have the same meaning.

The choice of this t i t l e could not have been more f i t t i nn . as M r . Leblond s t a t e s i n h i s message published i n the f i r e t i ssue of this review. He s a t e : "The motto, Je He Sou- viene is most appropriate for genealogy, not t o mention the f ac t t ha t it is the motto of -* the Province of QuGbec, home of most of our anceatorsn. Very well said! But we have a l so

: i n Rhode Island, jus t as i n the r e s t of New -land, many Franco-Americans whose ancee- t o r s were Acadians, who cannot be neglected. I n fac t , I take it for granted tha t the star i n the logo of the Society, between the two fleurs-de-lis , represents not only the - American Star, but a l so the Acadian Star. Since Roland Auger, to-day, is dealing ra ther with the Franco-Americans whose ancestors came from Qu&bec, I thought it would be proper for me t o t e l l you about the Franco-Americans whose ancestors came or iginal ly from Aca- dia. I have given t o my conference the t i t l e fie Acadictns i n New England.

*en &he ycmd - Acadia o r Acadians is m e n t i t y turn their mind towards the Maritime Provinces and its French epeaking population. Very seldom w i l l they think of New England, much l e s s of the United States , except maybe of Louisiana. I f ever they hear of those of Acadian or ig in who l i y e i n the New England States , immediately

they think of renegades who do not deserve the enchanting mame of Acadiaas.

No doubt they forget, or do not real ize , o r do not know tha t the very word ACADIA takes its or igin i n the United States , After the long and strenuous s tudies of Profes- so r W i l l i a m Francis Ganong, it is now a h i s to r i ca l f ac t well established tha t the word ACADIA comes from the name ARCADIA tha t Giovanni Verrazano gave to a region on the 36th o r 37th pa ra l l e l at the time of the year when now i n Washington takes place the National Cherry Blossom Festival. This region reminded h i m of the Arcadia of ancient Greece, where beauty, simplicity and happiness prevailed. That was in 1-us 455 years ago, when he gave t o the whole region the name of ERANCESCA, which would be the f i r s t name ever given t o the United S ta tes ; from i t was derived our own name of Nouvelle-France, (New Rance) . Both names sh i f ted north, Nova Francia toward Qu&bec, and ARCADIA toward Nova Scotia. The explorers i n f ac t mistook the peninsula of Nova Scotia fo r tha t t o which Verrazano had given the name ARCADIA, now the peninsula of DeZmarva, which share joint ly the S t a t e s of DELaware, of MARyland and of V i r g i n i A . There is in f a c t s imi la r i ty between both peninsulas. I n 1603, Champlain still c a l l s ARCADIA what is now Nova Scotia, But the year a f t e r , i n 1604, he writes ACADIA, which form stuck up t o this day, 375 years l a t e r .

This year, i n fac t , 1979, marks the 375th anniversary of the founding of Acadia, on the Island of Saint Croix, i n the American te r r i to ry , more precisely i n New England, more precisely yet i n Maine, being located i n the Saint Croix River, between Maine and New Brunswick, emptying in to the Passamaquoddy Bay, When the Treaty of Par i s of 1783, which formally ended the American Revolution, was signed, i t s ta ted tha t the channel of the Saint Croix River would be the boundary l i n e between the United S ta tes and Canada. It so happens that the channel is eas t of Saint Croix Island, thus putt ing Saint Croix Island i n the S ta te of Maine, Thus Acadia was born i n what is now the United States. more precisely i n New England, when Saint Croix Island became La Cellule Rubryonnaire de LtAcadie, (The Embryonic Cell of ~cadia) . The Acadians a r e get t ing ready t o celebrate i n grand s t y l e this d v e r s a r y . The main celebrations will- take place the t w o Sundays of June 24th i n Moncton, and of July 1st with an excursion on s a i n t - ~ r o i x Island. You a r e a l l invited, especially t o the excursion which w i l l be without charge, when you w i l l see the s i t e of €he buildings tha t de Monts and Champlain had erected here i n 1604 and the place where were buried 35 or 36 of the group who died of scurvy during the Winter,23 skeletons having been unearthed ten years ago by a team of archeologists from Philadelphia, under the guidance of Dr. Gruber of Temple University.

A s a matter of fac t , up t o the Treaty of Utrecht, i n 1713, which followed the conquest of Acadia made three years before by Nicholson, Acadia comprised a part of Maine, up t o Thomaston, on the St. George River, i n which t e r r i t o r y l ived many Acadians. It would take me too long t o give i n d e t a i l the his tory of the Acadians who l ived i n New &gland during t h i s f i r s t century. May it suf f ice t o s t a t e that in 1613 an establishment w a s founded a t Saint-Sauveur on the mainland, behind Mount Desert Island, when Argyle came from Virginia and devastated the settlement. Shortly a f t e r , Claude de La Tour, fa ther of Charles, the future Governor of Acadia, my ancestors, erected a f o r t a t PentagoSt, now Penobscot, which was taken by the Kirkes in 1628. Thomas Temple, who became Governor of Acadia i n 1657, resided here for a time, and i n 1670, Governor Cham- bly made of Pentagaet the capital of Acadia,

It would be beyond the scope of thAs t a l k t o i n s i s t on the prominent Acadians, most - of them coming from Quebec, who l ived i n that par t of New England up t o the def ini te conquest of Acadia by the English i n 1710, with names l i k e Bergeron d i t d'Amboise, Chartier, Chateauneuf, Gourdeau, Jean d i t I)enys, Lefebvre, Martel, Meunier, Moyse dit La W e i l l e , Serreau de St-Aubin, and many other famous Acadians, aa St-Caetin, La Motte-Cadillac, Le 3orgne and DVAmours.

During this f i r s t century of his tory of Acadia, we f ind a cer ta in number of Acadians reskdiqg: also Wuth of St. George River, awinly i n Boston and vicinity. It is t rue t h a t thex.w&re,+few and that thg i r s t a y here was only of short duration, some of them being here even a6 captives. But, on the other hand, the involvement of the Acadiaas i n general with Boston and even with Rhode Island, during the f i r s t century, is surprising. Unfortunately

t h i s has hardly been explored oy historians. Only i n the Archives of the Supreme Court of Suffolk County, Boston, I have copied 235 documents concerning the re la t ions of the Acadians with the people of New England. For a period of 35 years, from 1663 t o 1698, I have well over 200 hand-written pagee of documents which I copied involving such dea- lings, And that is not the only ource. You w i l l f ind other or iginal documents concerning such re la t ions at that time a t the following placed: The Middlesex County Superior Court, (East Cambridge) ; The Essex County Superior Court ; the Massachusetts Archives, TBoston); the Boston Publlc Libraxj ; The Library of the Massachusetts Historical Society

( ~ o s t o n ) ; the Archives Section of the New York S ta t e Librarx, ( ~ l b a n y ) ; the Public Record Office, ondo don). Even i n the Bibliotheque Nationale de Par is we find accounts of the re la t ions that the Acadians had during this f i r s t century with what i e now the New England States. Unfortunately time does not permit me t o insist any fur ther on, this matter. After the conquest of Acadia by the English, those re la t ions ceased about entirely,

I am omitting here the years tha t the Acadians spent i n ex i le i n New Englande It is not because the documents are lacking. I n the k c h i v e s of Massachusetts alone there a re over 1000 documents concerninn them. It is estimated tha t there were 1100 Acadians i n ex i le i n bfassachusetts, which then coniprised a par t of Maine, and 700 in Connecticut. New Hampshire and Vermont did not get any, one of the reasons given w a s tha t these two provinces were too close t o the R-ench of Canada. No mention is made of Rhode Island, probably because of i ts size.

The French Neutrals, a s they were called, s ta r ted t o leave for the Maritime Provin- ces and for Qu&bec a year or two a f t e r the meaty of Par i s of 1763, but more noticeably i n 1766, and the emigration kept on till the eve of the Revolutionary War. Some even fought i n the War of Independence, even here i n Rhode Island. We even have an Acadian Peter Robichaud, who a s one of the MINUTEMEN, took par t i n the Batt le of Lexington and Concord, April 19, 1775, when was "fired the shot heard round the world", The records t e l l us tha t h i s brother, Joseph Robichaud, fought r i gh t here i n Rhode Island, more pre- c i se ly i n Warwick. I have outlined all this with many d e t a i l s i n an a r t i c l e en t i t l ed The Acadian Participation in the American Independence, which was published i n the 9- hiers of La Societ6 Historique Acadienne, during the bicentennial year of the Declara- - t ion of Independence. May I add, with some pride, tha t I have found some so ld ie rs with the name of H i u s d8Entremont. I do not think tha t I could qualify as a Son of the Amer- ican Revolution, but there a re actual ly Acadians who belong t o the Society of the Sons or Daughters of the American Revolution.

After the Revolution, some Acadiarm stayed in New England. Among them, we have this Joseph Robichaud, j u s t mentioned, who had fought i n Warwick. Jus t a few years a f te r - wards, June 11, 1'779, he married i n Wrentham, Massachusetts, Mary Ware, of the same place, born September 23, 1750, (0.6.), daughter of Daniel Ware and Mary Hewes Ware. She died i n April 1806, at the age of 56 years. A s t o her husband, we read tha t "Joseph Robichaud . . . w a s cast on Lovell9s I s l e , Boston Harbour, and perished December 10, 1787, aged 31". !The remains of both l i e in the cemetery of Wrentham Center, They had one daughter, Mary, born i n Foxboro, Massachusetts, on November 20, 1787, thus only three weeks before her fa ther drowned. She became a school-teacher. She died on March 31, 1873, i n Walpole, "from old age", it is said, being 85 years old.

With regard t o those who had gone back "home1*, maay of t he i r descendants were t o come back t o New England t o l ive , s t a r t i ng about a hundred years la te r . Even long before then, there was an Acadian, Louie-Benjamb Peti tpas, of Chezzetcook, which is just north of Halifax, Nova Scotia, who applied i n 1781 t o become an American cit izen. I n volume 538, f o l i o 3, of the Archives of the Supreme Court of Suffolk County, there is a document dated May 7, 1781, with the legendary ei-ture of the Governor, John Hancack, making h i m the f i r s t Acadian, if not the f i i s t person, t o become a naturalized American Citizen.

We w i l l have t o w a i t 60 more years before finding another Acadian of note i n New

- 13 - England. This was Louis A. Sure t t e , of Saiate-Anne-du-Ruiseeau, Yarmouth County, Nova Scot ia , whose mother by t h e way w a s a d0Entremont. H e a r r ived i n Boston f o r the f i r s t time i n March of 1841, where he w a s t o make a fortune. He had been brought up by Father Sigogne, t h e f i r s t permanent p r i e s t i n southern Nova Scotia. He eays somewhere t h a t Fa- t h e r Sigogne would have l iked him t o become a p r i e s t , but ins tead he became a Free Mason, even Master of t h e Corinthian Lodge of Concord, Mass., f o r which he wrote the by-laws. He married a daughter of Hon. Daniel Shat;tuck, a prosperous banker and well known Legis- l a t o r , of Concord. He was involved i n shipping. For a time he owned i n whole o r i n p a r t over 30 ships. He had a la rge family, H e is buried with his wife and a c e r t a i n number of h i s chi ldren i n the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, i n Concord. H i s last grandchild, Krs. Dorothy Clay, with whom I have long been i n correspondence, died i n Pennsylvania j u s t a few years ago, being c lose t o her 100 years of age.

With regard t o the Acadians who followed, I may say that personally, about twenty years ago, I spent during a couple of years about a l l my weekly days-off i n the Office of the Redstrar of V i t a l S t a t i s t i c s of Massachusetts, at the S t a t e House, i n Boston, where i t w a s then located, copying t h e records of b i r t h s , marriages and deaths of the

- - -

Acadians, mostly of those who came from the southern p a r t of Nova Scotia. S t a r t i n g with the year 1840, I completed the records up t o 1880 inclus ive , a l s o went p a r t i a l l y as far as 1895, and even gathered a c e r t a i n amount of s t a t i s t i c s up t o 1900, when I had t o quit t o en te r , of a l l places, the hospital... Of course, you know t h a t Dr. Ulysse Forget, of Warren, d i d t h e same with regard t o t h e French Canadians of Rhode Island and with regard t o some s t a t i s t i c s of those of Massachusetts. Let us hope t h a t Dr . Forget w i l l ~ g e n e r o ~ s l ~ give o r will his co l l ec t ion t o the American ~ r e n c h Genealogical Society of Rhode Is land, where they would most f i t t i n g l y belong.

It is a f a c t t h a t the Acadians migrated mostly t o Boston and v i c i n i t y , a t l e a s t till about t h e beginning of t h i s century. $kine, Rhode- Is land, even ~ o n n e c t i c i t received some of them, but the flow of Acadians t o these other S t a t e s s t a r t e d t o have some momentum only years a f t e r . That is why I w i l l dea l here mainly with Massachusetts, who got t h e l i o n ' s share.

From t h e s t a t i s t i c s jus t mentioned, we l ea rn t h a t while the flow of migration of t h e French Canadians s t a r t e d i n the late 1840*s, t h a t of the Acadians from the Maritime Provinces s t a r t e d i n the e a r l y 1870's; and t h a t while the French Canadians who migrated were mostly farmers, the Acadians f o r t h e i r p a r t were mostly fishermen; and that while the French Canadians immigrated on account of t h e economic d i f f i c u l t i e s t h a t exis ted at the time i n Canada, a l s o because they could not e a s i l y subdivide t h e i r farms any more f o r each of t h e i r numerous children, the Acadians immigrated on account of the Treaty of Washington between the united S t a t e s and Canada, signed i n 1871, declar ing that, f o r the twelve succeeding years, f i sh ing would be f r e e on the shores of both countries. A l - ready i n 1854, the t r e a t y of r ec ip roc i ty had been put i n force which allowed f r e e t r ade each s i d e of the border, i n products of the sea , among o the r things. A s most of the Acadians, p a r t i c u l a r l y i n Nova Scot ia , were fishermen, t h i s t r e a t y was t o be f o r them a bonanza, which developed i n t o a crescendo t o a t t a i n its climax around 1868, the year t h a t followed the Confederation, ca l led i n Nova Scot ia the boom period. It is t r u e t h a t i n 1866, the Americans had no t i f i ed Canada that t h e t r e a t y of r ec ip roc i ty was ended, but its eupression did not have much effect with regard t o the fishery question, which gave r i s e t o some d i f f i c u l t i e s t h a t were submitted t o a r b i t r a t i o n , while the Nova Scotiana i n p a r t i c u l a r kept on f i sh ing off t h e New England coas t and s e l l i n g t h e i r f i s h t o the Americans. It is not a simple coincidence t h a t one of the first Acadian names t h a t is t o be found i n the Boston V i t a l S t a t i s t i c s , apa r t from those of the family of Louis A. Suret te , 28 t h a t of a Melanson, mariner, who d r o n e d i n Boston i n 1855, the year a f t e r the s ignature of the t r e a t y of rec iproci ty .

A s t h e Treaty of Washington w a s giving t o the Americans all r i g h t s t o f i s h on t h e shores of Nova Sco t i a without granting anything p r a c t i c a l l y t o the Canadians, i t s e e m t h a t t h e Acadians s a i d t o themselves: Since we can't l i c k them, l e t us jo in them. A l - though the ~ e c o r d s t h a t precede the 1870's show t h a t few Acadians l i v e d i n Massachusetts

- 14 - we find just the same a cer ta in number of marriages of Acadisns, more par t icular ly mound Gloucester, that took place even i n the 1850.6, even with Americans. During the second par t of the decade which followed, marriages of Acadians i n Masaachusette w i l l increase, although they were yet few i n number, being more par t icular ly of Acadians from Cape Bre- ton, mostly from Arichat, ra ther than of those o r southern Nova Scotia. We may note here tha t at t h i s time most of the Acadian fishermen came especially from the Arichat region and from southern Nova Scotia. The fishermen from southern Nova Scotia could eaai ly get back home a t the end of every fishing seaaon, but not so for those from Cape Breton, the distance for them, t o and from Boston or Qlouceater, being twice as long as fo r these others. Of the Acadians of southern Nova Scotia, there were about 20 marriages performed i n Massachusetts i n the 1860*s, nearly a l l fn Boston and i n the Gloucester region. Then i n 1870 and especially from 1871, the march is on, with an ever increasing number of marriages, b i r ths and deaths.

I have prepared a list of the marriages that took place i n Massachusetts from 1854 t o 1880 of the Acadians of southern Nova Scotia, nearly a l l of them, up t o this time, being of Acadians from Digby County, t o which a re added a few from I s l e Madame, exclu- s ive of the family of Louis A. Surette. Note tha t the partners who a r e sa id not t o be Acadians a r e e i ther English speaking, (even from Nova ~ c o t i a ) , or F'rench speaking, (from the Province of Quebec). The chart with the dotted l i n e gives you a t a glance a general idea of the number of marriages that -book place throughout these 27 years, when 127 were performed, of which only 35, tha t i s 2 7 . s were with Acad iw . Of the 92 "strangersqv tha t these Acadians married, one is said t o be colored, born i n Africa, and the "Acadiann g i r l that he married is a l so said t o be colored, but born i n Nova Scotia; and since her name is given a s Hue , it could very well be that she was of the Micmac nation, a descendant of one of the Acadians Hius d'Entremont.

I have prepared also a list and a chart of the deaths which took place during the same time, at the same places, of the same people, i n which is t o be found a t o t a l of 74 deaths. These i n the graphic a r e given i n a continuous l ine. V e a r e not interested here t o know of what sickness or disease they died, although t o give you an idea tha t these Acadians might not have been different than any other human beings, even of to-day, I find this g i r l , from Yarmouth, with a very well known and respectful Acadian name, who, as ear ly as 1866, w a s taken t o Deer Island, vicinf t y of Boston, (and you know what that means - maybe Framingham w a s not yet i n operation at the time); here she died a f t e r ele- ven days from small pox and abortion: she was 22 years of age and single. "Lthistoire se rhpBteW!!

With regard t o t h e i r occupations, I have taken a rapid look at them. Out of 92 men, 41, (exactly half), a r e l i s t e d as fishermen o r mariners; 21 o r a quarter as laborers o r farmers ; 13 carpenters; 5 shoemakers; 4 teameters, and then one for each of the following: a shipwright, a stone-cutter, a painter, a sail-maker, an i c e c a r t driver, an amalgamator and a holster, whatever those were, and even a male-nurse, the c losest I could get t o any profession, although it could stand fo r what we c a l l now an orderly. It is too bad tha t the occupations of the girls and women were not recorded i n those days.

And these people from southern Nova Scotia kept on coming and coming. They were condng t o La Marique, which meant, from the beginning till about the f i r s t quarter of this century, Boston and vicinity. The flow was qui te regular till the first World War, when the migration came way down, t o start anew and with more vigor than ever during the f i ve or s i x years tha t followed the w a r , even up to the depression, when it seems tha t nearly

- everybody who had $9 took the Prince ~ e o r g b o r the Prince Arthur on one of t he i r dai ly - t r i p s from Yarmouth t o Boeton, the only other requirement being t o be able t o read. It circulated i n my home-town at the time that a person who never had gone t o school to ld the immigration of f icers tha t he could only read French; they gave h i m a French l i ne ; he looked at it, and, having no idea what it was, mid: "Si je passe, je paseerai; si je ne passe pas, je ne passerd pas", and with that he made the grade.

Before this crowd came over, Lynn and Salem, apart from Gloucester, had been favo- rable spots t o s e t t l e in, but a f t e r the F i r s t World War, the new immigrants, especially

those from Yarmouth County, s h i f t e d r a t h e r t o East Boston and north of Boston; name a l l these towns and you w i l l still f ind them there , i f not themselves, a t l e a s t t h e i r ch i l - dren and now even the chi ldren of t h e i r children, as Chelsea, Everet t , Malden, Melrose, Saugus, Stoneham, Wakefield and Reading especia l ly , Wilmington, Andover, etc., etc . One of t h e reasons why they were i n t h i s region is t h a t most of the boys worked at the rat- t a n fac to ry i n Wakefield; and i t w a s not too far f o r t h e g i r l s t o t r a v e l t o the neckt ie fac tory i n Boston. Those from Digby County chose r a t h e r south of Boston, as Dorchester, Milton, Quincy, Braintree, Weymouth. We m u e t say though that even i f rclassachusetts go t the great percentage of them, espec ia l ly some 20 o r 25 miles from Boston, the o the r S t a t e s were g e t t i n g t h e i r share at this time, Rhode Is land included, exclusively though of Ver- mont, which was too f a r out of t h e way fo r them. Some ship-builders came t o Connecticut, e spec ia l ly t o t h e Groton d i s t r i c t , where they s e t t l e d . A l l t h i s l a s t e d up t o the depression. Don't ask me where they a r e now; ask me r a t h e r where they a r e not. Their descendants a r e now spread a l l over.

With regard t o the Acadians of Inverness County, on Cape Breton Island, who were on the s i d e of t h e Gulf of S t . Lawrence, t h e i r migration t o the United S t a t e s s t a r t e d - a l i t t l e later, although Father Anselme Chiasson, i n his ~h6cicamp: His to i re e t Tradi- t i o a s Acadiennes, t e l l s us t h a t by 1879 migration had become f o r these Acadians l i k e an endemic o r permanent disease, which w i l l be f e l t i n the region more espec ia l ly so, around the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the present , s c a t t e r i n ~ these Acadians i n the New England S t a t e s , from Bangor t o Hartford, although Massachusetts got most of the downpour, For these Acadians, t h e migration l a s t e d a l s o up t o about 1930, the time of t h e depression.

For the Acadians from New Brunswick and from Prince Edward Is land, t h e i r immigra- t i o n t o New England s t a r t e d a t about t h e same t i m e as that of t h e Acadians of Inverness County. It w a s still easy enough f o r the Acadians from the mainland of Nova Scot ia , e spec ia l ly f o r those of the southern sect ion, t o c ross by water t o t h e United S ta tes ; already i n 1855, t h e steamship Eastern S t a t e had a regular se rv ice between Yarmouth and Boston. But it w a s not s o easy f o r the Acadians of the two neighboring provinces. It w a s only i n 1860 that the r a i l r o a d was opened i n New Brunswick, from Moncton to S t . John, and in 1871 from S t . John t o t h e border of Maine, up t o Bangor, where it joined the Amer- i can system of ra i l roads . Let us say, though, that i n 1864 the Boston and Colonial Steamship Line es tabl ished a d i r e c t service between Charlottetown, P.E.I., and Boston, carrying f re igh t , m a i l and passengers, and c a l l i n g at intermediate p o r t s along the way. Even as e a r l y as 1839, and thus w e l l before the migration s t a r t e d , the S.S. North A m e r - i c a r a n between St . John, Eastport and Boston, cabin fare being advert ised at 912. But - such plying between the Maritimes and New England can hardly be c a l l e d pleasure t r i p s , not more than the ships themselves can be c a l l e d passenger boats. We may add here t h a t Portland was f o r a long time, up t o 1897, t h e terminus of the Canadian Mail boats; i t w a s then only t h a t St. John became the Winter Por t of Canada.

With regard t o t h e Acadians from the northeastern p a r t of New Brunswfck who came t o New England during the migration period, they were r a t h e r few i n comparison with the o ther sec t ions of the Maritimes, although w e f ind some from t h e Chaleur Bay region i n the Upper S t a t e of Massachusetts. While those along the St . John River, i n the Counties of Mada- waska and Victoria, some have crossed the border q u i t e ea r ly t o jo in t h e i r Acadian re- l a t i v e s ~f the Aroostook d i s t r i c t , which, i n 1842, by the Treaty of Ashburton, became American t e r r i t o r y , when t h e people, some two thousand of them, we a r e t o l d , became American c i t i zens . But already i n t h e 40'8 a flow of Madawaska Acadians, along with t h e French Canadians of La Beauce region, was pouring i n t o Maine, i n some of its timber-lands, ("les chan t i e r sw) , as i n Skowhegan, Waterville, Augusta and Belfast . Others l a t e r chose Lewiston, Portland and Biddeford,

A l l i n all, how many Acadians came t o New England? It is qu i te impossible t o say o r even t o give an approximate f igure, that which s tands a l s o t h e f o r Franco-Americans who came from Quebec. In a l l t h i s , authors vary widely. How many people now l i v i n g i n New England can claim as ancestor an Acadian who migrated from the Maritimes during

the years tha t w e have mentioned? Your guess is as good aa mine. It was said for a time tha t Boston was the th i rd largest Canadian city. Of course these l'Canadianst' were f a r from being a l l Acadians, o r even Franco-Americane. It has been said a lso that the people of Acadian extraction l iv ing now i n New England a r e a s numerous as and even more numerous than the Acadians l iv ing i n the Maritime Rovinces. I have no trouble believing it.

A ce r ta in number of these a re not known to-day by the i r Acadian names, although a l l those who changed the i r names did not do so t o get r i d of t h e i r Acadiaa identity. For example, we a re told of t h i s Acadian by the name of Thibodeau who always had trouble spel l ing hie name, aa he thought i t was too long. So one day someone told h i m : "Why don't you make it short?". And since then, he, himself, U s children and grandchildren have gone by the name of Short. But i t was not always by such necessity t ha t the Acadiane - changed the i r names, tha t which happened a l so t o French Canadians, when Tfreodore Roose- - ve l t was writing that "we must be Americans; and nothing else", adding that we must not Itbecome merely a huge polyglot boarding-houseN; at a time a l so when Acadiane and Franco- Americans looking fo r a job i n t h i s foreign land, would see each s ide of the s t r e e t s - signs l i k e this: "Help wanted. Catholics or a l i ens need not applyv. That is when Aucoin became Wedge; Chiasson, Chisolm; Doiron, Durant; FougPre, Fkazier; Girouard, G i l l w a r ; LeBlanc, White; P i t r e , Peters; Poir ier , Perry; Roy, King. I have chosen purposely name8 from the I s l e Madame region and from Prince Edward Island, a s more of these Acadians have changed the i r names than the others.

Let us add tha t we can be and should always s tay pure blooded Acadlans and F'ranco- Americans from the bottom of our heart , while being a t the same time r e a l Americans. A few years ago, I was l i s ten ing on the radio t o the very sympathetic Bishop of Providence, who had just k e n appointed a t the head of the diocese; it was during one of those "open lines1'. k woman of the diocese called t o say how happy she was that the diocese of Prov- idence had a t its head a French Canadian Bishop. The Bishop answered: "1 am not a French Canadian Bishop; I am an American Bishop, of French Canadian extractionttr

I could get i n to the f i e ld of culture, ident i ty , language, t radi t ions , with regard t o the Acadians who migrated t o New England. Such questions though do not i n t e r e s t genealo- g i s t s as such. Nevertheless, genealogy is one of the best means, t o my point of view, t o preserve our culture, our ident i ty , our language, our t radi t ions , because genealogy draws us closer t o our forebears and t o t he i r ways of l i f e . Genealogy a l so takes us back t o the land our ancestors have l e f t and gives us the longing t o v i s i t those places where a r e our roots. For tha t reason, I dare conclude with t h i s paradox, which applies t o a l l of us: If we are kept interested i n our past , we w i l l s t ay loving sons and daughters of the land which our forefathers came from, by the very f ac t tha t we a re f a r away, i f we can believe i n any way the poet who said: "Absence makes the hear t grow fonderN.

Rev. Clarence J. d'ENTREMONT.

Marriages of Acadians in Nassachueetts, mostly from southern Nova Scotia, to which are added a few from Isle Madame, (exclueive of the family of h u t s A. ~urette) , from the beginning to 1880. - Note that the partners said not to be Acadians are either English speaking (even from Nova Scotia) or French speaking from the Province of Quebec.

Each Total Each Total Town per TOM per

Year Year 1854 Boston 1 1 1 1

"----'--"""-"-----------------------r-------------------------------------------- YEAR CITY or TOWN Number of Partners not YEAR CITY or TOWN Number of Partners not

Each Town

Marriages Acadian

Total Each Total per Town per

year 2 Year

3 1 1 0 3

1 1

14 0 9

Marriagee Acadian

1873 Boston 5 Roc kport 3 Fall River 1 Haverhill 1 Marblehead 1 Waltham 1 Weymouth 1 Wilmington 1

1855 Boston 1 1 1 1 1856 Danvers 1 1 1 1

1859 Boston 1 1 Glouc & Rock 2 3 2 3

1860 Gloucester 1 1 1 1

1863 Salem 1874 Glouc & Rock Bos t.on Read & Wakef. Burlington Haverhilf Sandwich

1864 Boston Glouces ter

1865 Boston Gloucester Lynn

1875 Gloucester Boston Salem

1866 Boston Rockport

1868 Boston 1876 Concord Boston Gloucester Lynn Lowell We ymouth

1869 Gloucester Rockpor t

1870 Boston Gloucester

1871 Boston Glouc & Rock Haverhill Lowell Lynn Wilmington

1872 Boston Glouc & Rock Haverhill Needham Salem Weymouth

1877 Glouc & Rock 4 Andover 1 Boston 1 Lynn 1 Wakef ield 1 Wilolington 1

1878 ~louc & ~ o c k 4 Boston 1 Peabody 1

1879 Glouces t er 5 Haverhill 2 Lowell 1

1880 ~louc & ~ o c k 3 2 Boston 1 1 Eiaverhill 1 1 Salem 1 1 Wakef ield 1 0 7 - 5

Deaths of Acadians in Massachusetts, mostly from southern Nova Scotia, to which are added a few from Isle Madame, exclusive of the family of Louis A. Surette), from the beginning to 1880.

CITY and TOWN Per town Total per year CITY and TOWN Per town Total per year I Boston 1

Gloucester 1

Salem 1

Gloucester 1

Boston 1 Rockport 1

1875 Gloucester 2 Haverhill 1 3

1876 Gloucest fi Rock 6 Boston 2 Woburn 2 10

1877 Boston 3 Gloucester 1 Haverhill 1 5

Boston 1 1878 Gloucest & Rock 3 Wake f ield 1

Salem 1 1879 Gloucest & Rock 4

Boston 1 Reading 1 Somerville 1

Boston 1 Marblehead 1

Gloucest & Rock 2 Salem 1 1880 Reading & Wakef 5

Gloucester 3 Haverhill 2 Malden 2 hston 1 S toneham 1 Wilmington 1 Woburn 1

Boston 2 Reading 1 Wilmington 1

Gloucester 3 Boston 2 Salem 1

TOTAL : 74 - Boston 3 Gloucest. & Rock 2 Everett 1

THE HISTORY OF THE FRANCO-AMERICANS I N RHODE ISLAND

by Robert P. Ooudreau

PREFACE

! M s study is primarily concerned with the French Canadian movement i n t o Rhode Island, and the p o l i t i c a l and soc ia l development of tha t group within this s t a t e from 1865 t o the present time.

Unt i l the e ra of the Civ i l War the French influence i n Rhode Island was primarily scat tered o r on an individual basis. The most notable e f fo r t s being those of the French Huguenots i n the East Greenwich area during the colonial period, the French mili tary influence i n Newport of the Revolutionary era, and some individual e f fo r t s as ref lected by the ear ly French Canadian s e t t l e r s of the Wooneocket area.

Following the Civ i l War i t would require the vast economic development and growth of New England i n general, and the flourishing t e x t i l e milla of Rhode Island i n particular, t o d r a w a large number of the French Canadians south of the forty-ninth paral le l . The insa t iab le appet i te f o r labor i n these new fac tor ies along with the developments i n ra i l road transportation culminated i n the a r r i v a l of t ens of thousands of French Canadians i n t o Rhode Island during the period from 1865 t o 1910.

The ear ly e f fo r t s t o es tabl ish themselves, e i t he r temporarily o r permanently, were accomplished by overcoming all kinds of adversity. Fearing assimilation i n t o the general population, the French Canadians successfully established t h e i r own institutions--- such a s churches, schools, newspapers, and various soc i a l and mutual societies.

Their hard-working e f f o r t s and perseverance have been rewarded i n many areas and over a long period of time. For many, many years the Franco-American influence in socie ty and p o l i t i c s has flourished. The language, t rad i t ions , and heri tage has been preserved through two, three and even four generations f n this country.

The question which remains t o be answered, is whether o r not the Franco-American of today is will ing t o meet the challenge by picking-up the torch which has been so capably carr ied by our forefathers. I f we can stimulate t h i s desi re t o preserve our ethnic heri tage, then we have succeeded i n our current endeavor.

INTRODUCTION

The population of Rhode Island is a composite of various nationalities which

immigrated into the state primarily during the period from 1840 to 1914. Beginning

with the large influx of Irish in the 1840's and 1850'8, the characteristics of the

population began to change. From this point on, the native-born "Yankees" were soon

on the defensive as they attempted to maintain the economic, social and political

dominence they once solely enjoyed.

It is with this background in mind that we begin our story of the arrival and

establishment of the French Canadian influence on the history of Rhode Island.

PART ONE - - - THE ARRIVAL

Before the Civil War, the French Canadians had been on the verge of crossing the border into New England but their initial contact8 with the "Yankees" and Irish had not been very As a result Weir migration was often only of a seasonal nature. They would go south for a few months to work on the farms in Vermont and upper New York State, or in the lumber camps of Maine and New Hampshire. This pattern of earning some needed money and then returning to Quebec was often repeated in the early nineteenth century.

A few French Canadians did travel as far south as the budding industrtal centers of Massachusetts and Rhode Island during this period, Among this early group, we do note the arrival and settlement of Francia Pro& and his family in the Woonsocket area of Rhode Island by 1815. In the following years other French Canadian families would settle in the Blackstone Valley. By 1846 Woonsocket axid the mill villages along the river to the south would include 332 French Canadians among their population, and of this number 77 were American citizens, while some 225 retained their Canadian citizenship. 2

THE TEXTILE LABOR SHORTAGX

During and immediately after the Civil War, the textile industry's rapid growth would provide the impetus for a tremendous influx of French Canadian immigration into &ode Island.

The Civil War itself, the low status associated with mill work, and the westward migration of the native population, would each contribute to the development of an acute labor shortage. The mill owners were therefore desirous of solving this problem by ob- taining a work force which was readily available, docile, easily controlled and low-salaried, The French Canadians, at this point in their history, appeared to meet all of these so- called "ideal pre-requisites," The mill owners therefore sent agents to he Province of Quebec to engage workers and bring them into Rhode Island under contract. f

LIFE IN RURAL QUEBEC

These overtures were also being made at a time when the "habitant1' was extremely susceptible to the idea of emigrating for a better life. After having resisted for over one hundred years any and all efforts to infiltrate the established society of the extended family and the Catholic parish, the normally traditional-minded "habitant" experienced little hesitation over leaving. The motive for migrating was economic, for in Canada the 'thabitant'sl' traditional values and mores kept them out of commercial and industrial activities, and at the same time, their own economic system of farming, lum- bering, and trapping began to decline. 4

Wthermore, by 1870 hardly any land was available in Quebec to accomodate the expansion as a result of the growin number of French Canadians, It was not uncommon, for instance, to find families of 12, 17 or even 20 children. This high birth rate would force many to migrate from the Province of ~uebec.5 "La Belle Province" was simply unable to.support her growing population. Farming, which was the real basis or the French Canadian economy, was less profitable and held little inducement for them to stay. Work in the fields was very hard, yet the harvest scanty from an exhausted soil.

Since the farm demanded very long hours from the entire family, it usually left very little time for the children's intellectual development. Few would be able to attend more than three or four years of school, if at all, The children were needed on the farm to assist in the preservation of the family economy. The need to survive would pre-empt the lfluxury" of an education. As a result, many "habitantsn would remain illiterate throughout their entire lifetime, as their economic status did not allow thera the leisure time to learn to read and write.

Unable to read a newspaper and too poor to travel, many of these people knew little of what went on in the world beyonc) the boundaries of their own village. Only those

for tunate enough t o come from a f a i r l y prosperous family received the chance t o fu r the r t h e i r education i n the c i t y ; where the g i r l s attended a "convent" run by the nuns, and the boys a "s6minairen run by the p r i e s t s o r brothers. Graduates of such schools usually had the opportunity t o enter i n t o a profession o r perhaps the r e l i g i o u s l i f e . Religion a l s o played an important r o l e i n the da i ly l i f e of everyone, r i c h o r poor, "habitant" o r professional. The church was general ly located i n the cen- t e r of the v i l l age and was the focal point of a l l a c t i v i t y , with the "cur6" a s the guardian of his flock. The "habitants" f e l t secure knowing t h a t t h e i r r e l i g i o n kept them un i t d and this i n t u r n helped t o preserve t h e i r unique French Canadian ethnic ident i ty . %

When we take i n t o account the "habitant 's" hard work with l i t t l e reward, the poor l i v i n g conditions, the l ack of educational opportunit ies , a s well as the inade- quate representa t ion i n government, and the general d i s l i k e of the English speaking Canadians; we can begin t o understand why these people were a t t r a c t e d t o "the land of opportunity1' which l a y south of the forty-ninth pa ra l l e l .

"YANKEE" RESENTMENT

The recept ion of these f i r s t Rench Canadians who migrated i n t o Rhode Is land was not too cordial . The es tabl ished res iden t s of English ancestry ( ~ a n k e e s ) d i s l iked these newly ar r ived people because of t h e i r r e l ig ion , customs, and language. Much af this resentment o r ig ina l ly stemmed from a phenomenon of an ea r ly nineteenth century native- American movement known as the Know-Nothing Society. This group was comprised of Protes tants who both hated and feared the Catholics i n t h e United States. They believed t h a t the I r i s h , F'rench Canadians, and other Catholic groups would one day u n i t e and even- t u a l l y turn t h i s na t ion i n t o a Papist-controlled s t a t e . Eventually they formed t h e i r own party, enabling t h e i r candidates t o secure key pos i t ions i n the federa l , state and l o c a l governments. By t h e 1870's the p o l i t i c a l movement had died out , but the philosophy of hate and prejudice would l i n g e r well i n t o the twentieth century. 7

As a r e s u l t of these fee l ings , the e a r l y Wench Canadian a r r i v a l s i n Rhode Is land were under a tremendous pressure t o change each of t h e i r d i s t i n c t i v e t r a i t s . Nany did angl ic ize t h e i r names and changed t h e i r r e l ig ion , f o r p r i o r t o the 1870's there was no s ign i f i can t number of French Canadian p r i e s t s o r professional people t o assume a leader- sh ip r o l e f o r the protect ion of t h e i r ident i ty . Once changed, the names were eventually retained and passed on from generation t o generation. 8

THE LURE OF NEW ENGLAND

Regardless of t h i s ini t ial wave of resentment, the f i r s t French Canadian immigrants saw f o r themselves t h a t t h e s tardard of l i v i n g i n New &gland w a s beyond expectations. These few became t h e prime i n s t i g a t o r s of the g rea t movement of French Canadian people across the border. Le t t e r s such as the following a r e typ ica l examples of the kind of correspondence newcomers t o Rhode Is land s e n t t o t h e i r r e l a t i v e s i n the Province of Quebec :

"The pay is good, Basile. We work from sunr i se t o sunset, but on Sunday t h e m i l l s a r e closed and i t is l i k e a church holy day. The work i s not hard. I am i n the cot ton m i l l . Some of the children a r e working and we make more money than we can spend. Let me know what you decide and i f you want t o come I w i l l speak t o the foreman."g

The t a l e s of prosper i ty spread l i k e wild f i r e , and thousands were soon emigrating from Quebec i n t o Rhode Island. Between, 1860 and 1910 some 31,257 French Canadians entered the s t a t e . The majority were a t t r a c t e d to the Blackstone Valley a r e a where the t e x t i l e m i l l s were f lour ishing and the opportunity t o work was plentiful.10

- 23 - NEW SOURCZS O F CONFLICT

The m i l l owners of Rhode Is land were extremely pleabed with the French Canadian as a source of labor. The hard-working llhabitant" was not only a t i r e l e s s and dedicated worker, but the owners soon discovered t h a t he would frequently work fo r l e s s money than other workers and a l s o s t ruck l e s s often. They were not prone to s t r i k e because tne leaders of t h e i r l o c a l communities, most notably t h e i r p r i e s t s , had advised them t o be law-abiding. So t h e i r f a i l u r e t o join i n labor d isputes increased the antagonieh between them and t h e i r fellow "Yankee" and I r i s h workers, who d i d pa r t i c ipa te i n s t r i k e s . This h o s t i l i t y w a s o f t en heightened by the f a c t t h a t the French Canadians would unknowingly accept lower wages fo r t h e i r labor.

One of the most scathing a t t a c k s upon the French Canadians would generate from t h e pen of the S t a t e Labor Commissioner of Massachusetts, Car ro l l D. Wright. I n h i s r epor t of 1880 he s t a ted :

"With some exceptions the Canadian French a r e the Chinese of the Eastern States. They a r e a horde of i n d u s t r i a l invaders, not a stream of s t a b l e s e t t l e r s . These people have one good trait. They are indefa t igable workers and docile. To earn a l l they can by no matter how many hours of to i l . . . and t o take out of the country what they can save: t h i s is the aim of the Canadian French i n our fac tory d i s t r i c t s . ' * m

M r . Wright's prejudiced view of t h e French Canadians put i n t o words the fee l ings of many I r i s h and "Yankees1' about these new immigrants from the north.

Several reasons l a y behind the mutual d i s t r u s t between the French-Canadians and t h e I r i sh . F i r s t and foremost came the language barr ier . Since many French Canadians had come t o Rhode Is land only f o r f i n a n c i a l purposes, with the i n t e n t i o n of re turning home i n the near fu ture , most never bothered t o l ea rn the English language. The I r i s h , who came from a background which w a s as poor and as i n t e l l e c t u a l l y deprived as t h a t of the "habitant1', c e r t a i n l y had no knowledge of the French language.

Another way i n which t h e two groups d i f fe red w a s i n the domain of r e l i g i o u s author- i t y and par ish finances. Under the French Canadian system, the l1cur8" and an appointed par ish council had control of a l l finances. Parishioners regarded t h e i r cur6 as t h e i r f a the r and guardian who always had t h e i r bes t i n t e r e s t s a t heart . As a r e s u l t , church matters i n Qu8bec were run local ly . Accustomed t o dealing d i r e c t l y with t h e i r pastor who could be approached at any given time, the French Canadians did not agree with the I r i s h power s t r u c t u r e i n which the major emphasis was laced on the bishop's author i ty , and very l i t t l e control ex i s t ing at the parish level . 19

These i n i t i a l d i f ferences were magnified t o the point where almost a l l of the re la - t i o n s and contacts between these two Catholic immigrant groups would de te r io ra te i n t o some form of conf l ic t . Generations of French Canadians and Irish would battle each other i n all f i e l d s of socie ty , industry, p o l i t i c s and re l ig ion.

PART TWO - - - THZ ESTABLISHNLNT

The h o s t i l i t y and prejudice which the French Canadian immigrants encountered only served t o strengthen t h e i r determination t o maintain t h e i r i d e n t i t y and heri tage. Ini- t i a l l y they would lack the time, the finances, and the necessary leadership t o unuertake such a monumental task. This e f f o r t would require the a r r i v a l and establishment of a s ign i f i can t number of 7rench Canadian professional people t o a s s i s t i n overcoming a l l of these obstacles. By the late 1870's a s i g n i f i c a n t number of p r i e s t s , doctors, merchants, businessmen and j o u r n a l i s t s would be ava i l ab le t o provide the necessary leader- s h i p t o develop a French Canadian sense of unity, d i rec t ion , and purpose.

To accomplish t h i s preservation of i den t i t y and heri tage, a s e r i e s of soc ia l organizations were formed during the period from 1870 t o 1900 i n Rhode Island. Among these organizations we include the French Canadian parish church, the parish school, newspapers, and a multitude of various f ra te rna l , mutual, and re l ig ious associations. Each could and would play a major ro l e in s t ab i l i z ing the French Canadian's l i f e during t h i s period of ear ly establishment i n Rhode Island.

By 1895 def in i te centers of French Canadian influence were established and eas i ly iden t i f i ab le i n Rhode Island. The la rges t concentrations of French Canadian population were i n the following c i t i e s and toms----Woonsocket (12,000), Central Fa l l s (60001, Centerville (6,000---present day West Warwick) Manville (3,5001, Providence (3,0751, Pawtucket (3,0001, Xarr isvi l le (1,800)' Warren (1,725), Natick (1,700). S l a t e r sv i l l e (1,3001, Georgiaville (1,2891, Pascoag (925), and Albion (500). I n jus t these 13 c i t i e s and towns we can account fo r over 42,000 of the 6,000 French Canadians estimated t o be l iv ing i n Rhode Island by 1895.13

The French Canadian immigrant i n mode Island vould further show a penchant for s e t t l i n g i n small factory towns and vi l lages or i n the so-called "French Canadian" section of the larger c i t i e s . The initial reasons fo r the concentration was the booming t e x t i l e industry i n the area which employed not only s ingle young men, but whole families, including even the children. Neither age nor sex w a s a fundamental consideration i n the m i l l s ; there w a s work tha t even a child could do and no laws were available t o bar even the youngest from working i n the factories. The French Canadians further tended t o form such compact groups and t o re-create the l i f e they once experienced i n Qu&bec, tha t these centers of settlement soon became known a s "Li t t l e Canadas."

A stranger could eas i ly recognize these neighborhoods by t h e i r d i s t i nc t inward cha- rac te r i s t i cs . The church, usually the nucleus of the area, re f lec ted the geographical s t ructure of Qukbec's rural villages. In the immediate v ic in i ty of the church one would find the school, the rectory, and the convent. Not too far away, there might be a grocery s tore , a drugstore, and perhaps a hardware s to r e , a l l owned and operated by French Canadians. These businesses, whose customers a l l knew one another, often served as soc ia l gathering places. There, men and women could chat about the dai ly occurrences i n the neighborhood. Also i n this area, one would f ind the French Canadian club, which offered a variety of diversions. walking a few blocks far ther away from the center, one would find the res i - den t ia l section, with its three and four-story appment houses, where the majority of the French Canadian factory workers lived. Parents of ten occupied the ground f loor while t h e i r married children boarded upsta i rs with t h e i r families. L i t t l e children played i n . the yards, on the sidewalk, o r i n the s t r e e t , always speaking French amongst themselves. Since the "Li t t l e Canadas" were generally located near the t e x t i l e factor ies , this meant t ha t for a l l p rac t ica l purposes onescould go t o work, t o school, t o church, Co buy pro- visions, and to socia l ize , a l l a t h l n walking distance of the home.14

THE FRENCH CANADXAN PARISH

A s previously s ta ted , the French Canadian parish church was l i t e r a l l y and - f iguratively the center of a l l the "Li t t le Canadas." To properly gage its importance one must r e c a l l the r o l l it played i n the %abitantVs" l i f e back i n Quebec.

In Qudbec the vhabi tantgst t l i f e w a s primarily rural . As such the church and the family were the two most powerful forces molding h i s l i f e . The small vi l lages amid a vast wilderness had made them frugal and di l igent , parochial and isolated. The most important persons to exert influence in this type of situation would be the male head of the family and the loca l "cur&."

Once the "habitant" migrated t o Rhode Island this s i tua t ion would change. The French Canadian leaders were quick t o r ea l i ze t ha t the association with the English Protestants and the mater ia l i s t i c way of l i f e found in the urban areas would cause the i r revers ib le l o s s of ethnic identi ty. As such, they were soon hard a t work i n

attempting t o preserve the iden t i ty and heritage ("la survivance") through the formation of ryench Canadian parishes.

A l l of the important facets which constituted the rFrench Canadian were vul- nerable i n t h i s period---the religion, the language, the culture, and ultimately the family i t s e l f . I f they were to survive i n this new atmosphere, it would require the strength which could only be generated from the close association and mutual support which existed between the parish church and the family.

By 1895 Rhode Island would have eight d i s t inc t ive French Canadian parishes already establish@d.& These churches played an extremely important ro l e i n the l i ves of these early immigrants:

"To immigrants of the f i r s t generation the church meant home, the vi l lage i n the Province of QuGbec, French Canadian patois, French Canadian customs, re la t ives , fr iends; the church gave vent t o a l l tha t complex of feeling6 t i ed up intimate13 with hone."16

The most notable example of the t rad i t iona l '1cur6-fondateur" and a l l tha t he would represent during t h i s period, is best exemplified by the l i f e of Monsignor Charles Dauray. H i s career is actual ly representative of the his tory of the French-speaking population of Rhoae Island from 1870 t o 1930. Monsignor Dauray was not only the moving force i n the establishment of two French Canadian parishes, b97

he w a s a lso the "sp i r i tua l leader" and spokesman of a l l French Canadians i n Rhode Island.

THE PARISH SCHOOL

Once the French Canadian parishes were established, a second major objective was t o secure the continuance of the French f a i t h , language, and customs through a parish 8~h001.

Before the existence of French Canadian parochial schools, parents had t o send the i r children e i ther t o public schools or t o I r i s h Catholic schools. Because of a language barr ier and cul tura l differences, many French Canadian students found it d i f f i cu l t t o keep up with the r e s t or the c lass , mot t o mention the prejudice which the other children f e l t toward them. A s a r e su l t , a number of these children l e f t school at an ear ly age t o help out t he i r parents by working i n the m i l l s .

The pastors of the ear ly French Canadian parishes were quick to see the dangers. Unless the parochial school w a s established the en t i re fabr ic of the French Canadian ident i ty cou d come apart. Soon the adage was heard "He who loses h i s language, loses his faith."l8 With t h i s as a battle-cry. the parishioners gave the i r whole-hearted support t o the establishment of the French Canadian parochial school. These schools, where both French and English were taught, were one of the most important means of ins t ruct ing future generations about the religion, language, and heritage necessary t o preserve and perpetuate the French Canadian identi ty.

THE FRENCH CANADIAN PRESS

The French Canadian press played a large r o l l i n the struggle t o maintain the iden t i ty of the French Canadians i n the United States. The dominant i n t e r e s t s and mast widely discussed items i n these papers were the preservation of t h e i r language, re l igion, and ident i ty a s a group. From the beginning the French Canadian press realized tha t its primary purpose was t o preserve the language, and t o serve as an educational medium explaining the American governmental system and customs to a people who were new t o the United States.

The establishment of French Canadian newspapers i n Rhode Island was e r r a t i c t o say the least . The f i r s t publication was l l E t o i l e founded i n 1873 by M. Desmarais. However, its f i r s t number was a lso its las t . A whole se r i e s of newspapers attempted to survive, but each would f a i l . It remained for the founding of La Tribune by Adelard Lafond i n -

1895 i n Woonsocket t o give Rhode Island a t ru ly representative French Canadian newspaper, Tribune was so the f i r s t French Canadian newspaper i n the United S ta tes t o start a s a daily. ?a

PART THREE - - - THE FRANCO-APZRICAN

During the decades from 1900 t o 1930 the economic, p o l i t i c a l and soc i a l gains made by e a r l i e r French Canadian immigrants were consolidated. A s a group, the French Canadian and t h e i r descendants i n Iihoae Island had grown beyond the bounds of the "Li t t l e Canadas" established e a r l i e r i n the nineteenth century, t o make the i r presence f e l t i n the larger community.

By this time, many French Canadians had learned t o apeak English, others had become American c i t izens , and an en t i r e generation w a s soon t o develop which had been born and had l ived its en t i r e l i f e i n the S t a t e of Rhode Island, The French Canadians had firmly established the i r families and t h e i r i n s t i t u t i ons i n t h i s s t a t e . They owed the i r allegiance t o one country, the United S ta tes of America, while still reta ining the love, the language, the re l igion, and the t rad i t ions of t h e i r mother country, They were t ru ly bil ingual and bicultural .

Eventually, the combined elcposure t o a new economic l i f e s t y l e , t o other types of soc ia l ins t i tu t ions , and t o a r e l a t i ve ly higher standard of l iving, a l t e red the French Canadian's t rad i t iona l soc i a l system t o the point t ha t by the ear ly twentieth century we see the emergence of a d i s t i n c t Fkmco-American subculture.20

THE FAMILY

In the ear ly Franco-American family, French w a s still the primary language, but contrary t o the Canadian s i tua t ion , English was often learned a s a second language. This represented jus t one aspect of the en t i r e soc i a l character which w a s slowly but surely being influenced by the world which surrounded the Franco-American. Other soc i a l character is t ics t o be influenced would include the family s t ructure , education, occupation, soc ia l and physical mobility, and community organization.

The majority of the Franco-Americans still labored a s semi-skilled workers i n manufacturing, primarily as weavers and spinners i n the cotton and woolen mills. How- ever, an increasing percentage of Franco-Americans were drawn in to other occupational spec ia l t i es ranging from small-business proprietors t o professional occupations. Each Franco-American community soon developed the i r own small ethnic businesses: Clothing, and shoe s tores , small grocery and variety s tores , plus an array of other small community enterprises. Eventually a whole generation of professional persons of Franco-American heritage were found i n al l f i e l d s of medical, dental, and l ega l services f o r the community.

THE POLITICAL ARENA

The Franco-American not only gained soc i a l acceptance, but gained po l i t i c a l l y once they organized properly. A s ear ly a s i n the 18801s Ferdinand Gagnon i n h i s paper Le Travailleur wrote t h a t the French Canadians would be protected a s a group i f they

'-

sent representatives t o the leg i s la ture o r t o p o l i t i c a l o f f ices on the municipal level. ; H e encouraged them to seek naturalization and then votC f o r the French Canadian candidates. 21

The rank and f i l e of the French Canadians i n the l a t e nineteenth century had not yet developed a keen in t e r e s t i n po l i t i c s ; ra ther it w a s t h e i r leaders who, convinced t h a t they were here t o s tay, sought for t h e i r countrymen the r i gh t s and privi leges of American c i t izenship as quickly as possible. Yet we must remember t ha t during t h i s period, natu- ra l iza t ion in *ode Island required that the foreign-born be a property owner i n order t o vote, whereas the native-born was exempt from t h i s rule.

The po l i t i c a l a f f i l i a t i o n s of the ear ly French Canadians were usually the same a s t h e i r employers, the i ndus t r i a l i s t 8 of Rhode Island. Since most of the employers were Republicans, the French Canadian voted Republican. The I r i s h at t h i s time were Democrats

- 27 - and controlled that party in Rhode Island. The resentment between these two groups naturally assisted in keeping them apart politically, es ecially when the Republicans began to give French Canadians a place on their ticket. 23

The evidence of their growing political strengths were numerous at the turn of the century. From 1894 until 1920, the office of Mayor in Woonsocket was retained at different times by five Franco-Americans for a total of fourteen years. However, the greatest achievement in politics occurred when Aram J. Pothier became Governor of Rhode Island in 1908. Between 1908 and 1914 he would have the distinction of being elected Governor for five consecutive terms. Pothierts story is that of the young and ambitious immigrant who overcame all forms of obstacles to become an American success story. 23

During the 1930's the Franco-Americans would change their political affiliation as most Rhode Islanders would, and soon a new era of hmocratic Franco-American political leaders would emerge. On the state level (through such leaders as Armand H. Cot&, August P. LaFrance, and Philip Noel) and the national level (Felix Hebert, Aim6 J. Forand, and Fernand J. St Germain) the Franco-Americans have been well represented.

FRATERNAL ASSOCIATIONS

As early as 1869 a local chapter of the St. John the Baptist Society was incor- porated in Woonsocket, Rhode Island. Its purpose was to reunite the "habitants" on June 24 of every year, and to form a fraternal as well as a beneficent society. In case of death of a member, each member would be assessed one dollar, and the receipts would be given to the widow and her faaily. Seven other chapters were established in other commuoities 3~ 1895. The use of the French language, particularly in the home, was also stressed.

To c'ornbat the trend of French-speaking peoples joining non-French groups, a movement for unification of all the local societies was begin in Holyoke, Massachusetts in 1889. The result was a national society, known as the 1'Union Saint-Jean Baptiste, headquartered then and now in Woonsocket, R e I.

L'Union offers a national organization to safeguard and aid in the survival of the important aspects of French culture. The Society also constituted a "tiavings bank" for workers and middle-class persons, who made up the bulk or the membership. The organization was successful from the start. By 191.8, L'Union had over 32,000 members and funds in excess of one million d0llars.~5

L'Union Saint-Jean Baptiste is today the nation's largest mutual benefit society for Americans of French descent. The insurance benefits that are available to its members represents only one part of its entire commitment, The society is actively engaged in many different endeavors that seek to promot and develop the French culture and heritage in today's rapidly changing world, 36

PART FOUR - - - - THE F U T U Z

The fear of assimilation forced the Franco-Americans into the establishment of their own institutions to protect and preserve their culture and idendity. A s a result we have wienessed, that from generation to generation this ethnic group has been able to consistently make worthy contributions to the composite culture of their adopted homeland. As a matter of fact, because of their history and background, they are in many ways more "Americanu than most other groups. The question before us at this time, is whether this heritage can be maintained, or will the Franco-American eventually be absorbed into the mainstream of American life.

The facts suggest that the Franco-Americans may have peaked as a racial group in the 1950's and 1960's. The evidence at times appears to be incontrovertible---the language is dying-out in many families, the F'ranch parochial schools are disappearing, the newspapers are gone, the unifying influence of the Catholic religion may be waning, the extended family unit suffers from economic mobility and inter-marriage, and the ethnic communities are dispersing,

Yet all is not lost. We do have evidence of a re-awakening of the same desire and spirit that was once 80 prevalent in the earlier YLittle Canadas". The F'ranco- Americans must commit themselves, individually and collectively, to participate in the various opportunities still available. If we wish to preserve the proud and capable heritage which has been passed on to us, we must act now. If we desire to maintain our "rootsw then we must live in consonence with the motto of ~uibec, which is "JE ME SOUVIENS."

NOTES - lMarcus Lee Hansen, - The Iamimant in American Histor (Cambridge, lhss.

Harvard ~ n i v e r s z ~ Press, 19 p. 170. - --

T+ '~arie Louise Bonier, Dgbute de la Bd%nie Franco-Am6ricaine - de Woonsocket, -, (Framingham : Lakeview Press, 1920) pp, 79-80 '~lexandre Belisle, Bistoire de la press= ~ranco~imericaine

(Worcester, Mass : Ateliers Typographique de 1 *Opinion Publique, 1911) P. 11 'Lawrence French. "The Franco American Working Class Family," Chap. X N of Ethnic

Families in America, edited by Charles Mindel and Robert Habenstein - (New York: Elsevier Scientif i~ Publishinn Co. Inc. . 1976) P. 327 3~harles Wagley and Marvin Harris, Minorities in the-~ew world- fl (New Y,rk: Columbia University Press, 1958) p. 182. ?Robert B. Perreault, One Piece on the rea at American ~osaic: The Franco-Americans of New E ~ l a n d ( ~ e p o r t , N,H, : An&& Paquette Associate 1976)p,10.

7Gustavus Myers, History of Bigotry in the United States (~ew York: Capricorn Books, --- 1960 edition)~, 131. For more specific information on nativism and the immigrant in Rhode Island see Peter Coleman (The Transformation of RI, 1790-1860 - -- (Pro~. : Brown Univ. Press, 1969) pp 242-248.

8examples are plentiful: Dubois ---Wood Paquin ---Perkins Bodanger---Baker Boisvert---Greenwood Bienvenue---Welcome Lapierre---Rock La Roche--- Stone Phaneuf ---Farnun

%acques Ducharme, - The Shadows --- of the Trees (New York: Harper and Bros. Publishers,lf@) a"~erald Doiron, - The French Canadian Migration into RI, MA dissertation, P

- - univ. of RI, 1959, p. 27. rin field's Ethnic Heritaae: - The French and French Canadian Community

- - -ield, Mass : Bicentennial Committee, 1nc . m p 9-10. - -

lL~erreault, - The fiancp-Americans of New En~land, P. 14. -- 8 His toire & Canadians-Francais du Rhode Island, Souvenjr d *une f s te nationale, -- -. 1. le 24 juin, Woonsocket, -R. I. Eugene Breault, Qditeur, 1895 p. 119. A-Perreault, The Franco-Americans of New England, p, 20. -rr

A7~istoire - des Canadiena-Francais du RI, p, 119. These parishes were located in Warren, Centerville, Providence, Pawtucket, Central Falls, Manville, and two separate

-a L ones in Woonsocket. iO~prin~field '6 Ethnic IIeritage, p. 11. ." or a detailed history on Monsignor Dauray and the early history of the French

Canadian parishes in Rhode Island see Ambrose Kennedy, Quebec to Hew Zn lwd, ,,The Life of lbnsignor Charles Dauray, (Boston: Bruce Bumphries, --* inc., LO 2ober t Rmilly, Ifistoire des F'ranco-~mericains (~ontreal : Robert Rumilly , 1958) p. 33. -

"Celui...qui perd sa langue, perd sa foi." lg~elisle, Histoire -- de la Presse Franco-America5 ne , P, 198 20~ench, Ethnic Families in America, P. 331 --.

nus avez des representants Canadiens au Conseil nunicipal ou B la Chambre de L'Etat, vous serez protCg6s. Pour cela, prenez vos lettres de naturalisation, et votez pour les Canadiens quand ils seront sur lee rangs. Remilly , Histoire & Franco-Americains , p. 96.

NOTES

22~umilly, His toire des Franco-Americaim , p. 85.

a~othier was born in Yamachiche, P.Q. in 1854 and received his early education in Canada. In 1870 when he was 16 his family moved to Woonsocket. The Woonsocket Savings Institution, where he later becarne a vice-president, employed him as a teller. In the 1880's he served in various elected offices which culminated in his election as mayor in 1894. He was eventually elected Lieutenant-Governor of RI in 1897. and in 1908 was elected Governor with a - . . majority of 1,200 votes over his ~emocratic-opponent. Bonier, &but de la --- Colonic Franco-Americaine , pp. 292-93, 296-98.

24 "Au dehors, i'anglais pour les affaires, mais i la maison, rien que de frantais. +' Rumilly , Histoire des Franco-Americains , pp. 43-44.

25~pringfisld's Ethnic Heritage, p. 27.

26~'~nion is duet one of the many Fhnco-American organizations which continue to flourish in mode Island in the 1970's. Among the most active groups in our state today are: the Le Foyer Club of Pawtucket, the American-French Genealogical Society of Pawtucket, la F'gdgration Francaiae au RI, and numerous other societies which belong to the Alliance des Organisations Franco-Amgricaine du Rhode Island.

JEAN DE BREBEUF 1593-1649 by Robert P. Gqudreau

INTRODUCTION

Of a l l t h e J e s u i t martyrs i n la Nouvelle-France during the seventeenth century, the name of Pare Jean de 3r6beuf s tands out above the r e s t .

A man of excessive humility, he devoted h i s e n t i r e l i f e t o the strenuous t a sk of missionary work among the Huron Nation. H i s prayers were t h a t God might chose him, t o spend h i s s t rength and t o give h i s l i f e f o r t h e sa lvat ion of t h e i r souls. H e worked and t o i l e d under painful burdens, y e t never showed s ign of r e g r e t o r disappointment H i s ex ternal ac t ions re f l ec ted h i s i n t e r n a l be l i e f s , f ee l ings , and thoughts.

How he a r r ived a t these coqvict ioas and f u l f i l l e d h i s goals, represents the theme of t h i s work.

Jean de Erebeuf was born i a the northern Trench province of Normandy on March 25, 1593. About his childhood and young manhood, he l e f t us no reminiscence, and no one e l s e has wr i t t en any recollect ions. It is known t h a t he was born i n t o a manorial family of landowners and farmers, enriched with Norman heritage.

During t h i s period France labored under a constant s t ruggle between the Huguenot Condes and the Catholic G u i s e s . Despite the rampant Calvinism of t h e i r p a r t of Normandy, the Eirebeuf family de f ian t ly remained Catholic. To Jean de Ekebeuf, h i s family ts r a c i a l her i tage and t h e i r undeviating devotion t o t h e i r f a i t h , always remained a source of great p i d e .l

I n accordance with t h e s t a t u s of h i s family and because of his own inc l ina t ions t o become e i t h e r a lawyer o r a p r i e s t , he sought a higher education by a t tending the University of Caen. Here he became attra ted t o t h e Society of Jesus. The Jesuits € were, i n t h i s period, the most explosive/o?P@bate. They were hated, feared, and at tacked by the Huguenots while a t the same time, were loved, lauded, and patronized by the t r a d i t i o n a l Catholics. Emotions r i s e quickly i n a r e l i g i o u s c o n f l i c t and t h i s may have influenced his crusading s p i r i t e a r l y i n l i f e . I n the end, what compulsive ambition l ed him on, is a matter of speculation. The only ce r t a in ty remains the f a c t , t h a t at the age of twenty-four he applied f o r qdmission t o the Society of Jesus.

Exceptionally ta l l , somewhat lean, but broad-shouldered and well-built , Brgbeuf of ten became too conscious of his bulk and s t rength and would pun of being "un vrai boeuf," a r e a l ox. Yet he became emotionally, i n t e l l e c t u a l l y and s p i r i t u a l l y aroused. He developed an excessive humility, which he f e l t t o be a t r u e sense of h i s u t t e r unworthiness.

I n the course of his s tud ies he contacted pneumonia and l a t e r tuberculosis. During the sickness the PGre Re t o r deemed i t advisable t h a t he should be conse- cra ted a p r i e s t before he died.' Almost miraculously, he recuperated. During his recovery he became the t r easure r of the College of Rouen i n 1623. Due t o h i s pos i t ion he became not only cognizant o f , but involved i n the whole business and f i n a n c i a l l i f e of the c i ty . It a l s o enabled him t o become acquainted with two Recollet missionaries, who jus t returned from la Nouvelle-France. PQre Irenee P i a t (two years a t Qugbec) and PBre Gabriel Sagard-Th6odat (One year with the Hurons) t o l d him of the desparate needs of the Recollets. They could not carry on the labor of converting the savages and b a t t l e agains t the mercenary t rading companies. P8re frdn6e fur ther carr ied a s e c r e t

repor t t o the Recollet Provincial i n P a r i s i n v i t i n g the J e s u i t s t o join them i n the missionary f ie ld .3

Pere Gabriel 's experiences with the Hurons g r e a t l y irispired Br6beuf. They were a t o t a l l y d i s t i n c t r a c i a l s tock from the other savages i n the area. A sedentary people who cu l t iva ted corn and l i v e d i n permanent houses i n palisaded toms. They could be the key t o saving thousands of s o u l s i n the New World.

Therefore i n h i s next interview with Pkre Coton, t h e P6re Provincial , ~ r e b e u f volunteered t o go as a missionary t o t h e Hurons. A s a boy, the sagas of Iiorman fishermen i n t h e New World probably encouraged h i m ; and as a novice thoughts of s e l f - immolation i n some dangerous mission a l s o a t t r a c t e d him. Yet, h i s chances of a c c e p t a c e were s l i m . A J e s u i t f o r only seven years, and a p r i e s t only three , and t h a t by accident, Jean de Brebeuf w a s astonished when h i s request had been granted.

I n his personal d ia ry PBre Coton provided an ins igh t as t o why he unexpectedly chose the young Norman,

"For so high an en te rp r i se was required an accomplished man, and especia l ly one of eminent holiness. This is what he d id not s e e i n himself, but what a l l who have known him have always admired i n him. A v i r t u e which seemed na tu ra l t o him, 114

Along with the F&es Charles Lalemant and Ennemond Massk, they represented the f i r s t s o l i d t h r u s t made by the J e s u i t s t o s p i r i t u a l l y conquer N e w France. After a long journey of some three months the weary J e s u i t s f i n a l l y reached QuCbec on June 15, 1625.

The Recollet Superior , PSre Joseph Le Caron, aided the J e s u i t s i n es tab l i sh ing themselves i n New France. A t t he same time he had discouraging news f o r Bribeuf. The Hurons were r e l u c t a n t t o take such a b i g man as PQre Jean i n t h e i r small canoes. But they did promise t o take 3chon5with them the following year.

Despite t h e keen disappointment, ~ r g b e u f decided t o a t t ach himself t o a family of Montagnais f o r the winter, a s the i n t e r p r e t e r s had done. Living with them, a s they l ived , he would gain a c l e a r e r i n s i g h t i n t o t h e i r minds. Therefore the winter of 1625-26 was spent i n the l o f t y f o o t h i l l s above the St. Lawrence, searching along uncharted streams f o r beaver skins. Within t h e cabins the sickening stench of d i r t y bodies, s t a l e food, excrement, freshly-skinned fu r s , dogs, and the smoke from the f i r e of wet wood, were more nauseating than the f r e s h air was cruel. Despite the ordeal he f e l t a s t ronger determination t o do a l l f o r God, t o give of himself.

I n t h e spring of 1626 he was ab le t o f i n a l l y s e t out f o r Huronia. H i s companion, Pike de Noue, provided a very s u i t a b l e account of Brkbeuf's nature:

His humility caused him t o embrace with more love, more joy and more na tu ra l i n c l i a t ion , t h e humblest and most pa in fu l duties. 2

Despite the discomforts, Brebeuf was overjoyed t o begin h i s apostolate. I I i s f i r s t and most important s t e p i n t h e i r evangelization w a s t h a t of mastering the Ouendat language. Secondly, he must f ami l i a r i ze himself with the customs of the savages, t h e i r b e l i e f s , and understand t h e i r myriad forms of supers t i t ion .

With p e r s i s t e n t , inexorable enthusiasm he labored through h i s second winter t o master the language. In his s t u d i e s he w a s puszled as t o how he could express a b s t r a c t and s p i r i t u a l concepts. Their vocabulary w a s l imi ted t o specia l ized, concrete, mater ia l th ings that they knew through t h e i r sensee.

Beginning h i s t h i r d year (1628) Echon was the only p r i e s t i n the area. He had l i t t l e companionship but many contentions with Etienne Brule and t h e French agents who w e d h is

cabin as t h e i r headquarters. H i s consolation however was with the Hurons. He had progressed as f a r i n the language t h a t he could converse with them, and he intended, during tlre coming year t o press forward more vigorously i n ins t ruc t ing them. The hardships and strenuous work did not crush him, only h i s own personal f a i l u r e bothered him.

During the summer a severe drought plagued the area near ~ognche , where he w a s residing. The wrath of the people turned on the so rce re r s and they begged Echon t o make rain. After t e l l i n g them what the c ross meant, he inv i t ed a l l t o venerate it. The llurons i n tu rn kissed the c r u c i f i x and he r e l a t e d t h a t "they did so w e l l t h a t , on the very same day, God gave r a i n and i n t h e end a p l e n t i f u l harvest , a s well a s a profound admiration f o r the Divine ~ower."7 To the Hurons t h i s marked the beginning of a profound admiration f o r Echon,

I n the end of May, 1629, he received a l e t t e r from Quebec ordering him t o f ind means of re turning a t the e a r l f e s t moment possible, H i s dreams were t a t t e red . Instead of new missionaries coming, he m u s t abandon h i s Hurons j u s t a t the time when they were prepared t o accept the word of God,

The temporary r u l e of the English i n New France brought t o an end the f i r s t labor of Jean de ~ 6 b e u f among his Hurons, The next th ree years he spent i n France, under- going pr ivate s p i r i t u a l d i rec t ions fo r h i s f i n a l vows. Some of h i s s p i r i t u a l notes reveal the int imate fee l ings which motivated h i s act ions,

I f e e l within myself an overpowering d e s i r e of su f fe r ing something f o r Christ...do with m e harshly, Lord, according t o m y heart...that I might be t h e fu tu re pos t l e of Canada, i f I should respond t o you, 8

Once again the pe r s i s t en t sense of self-abasement is re f l ec ted upon.

Not till March, 1633, did Echon r e t u r n t o h i s mission. His reputa t ion forced him t o s e t t l e a t Ihona t i r i a , i n order t o be e a s i l y access ib le to the growing number of followers. Central ly located between the Cord and Rock Nations, Ihona t i r i a proved t o be dangerously near the menacing Iroquois Nation.

The t o i l , v i g i l , sorrow and patience experienced by BrBbeuf, soon gathered i n a small harvest. Even those who did not embrace the f a i t h acknowledged the s t rength of h i s preachings. He had won the respect of t h e s t rongest warriors by h i s own great height, s trength, and endurance, as well a s by h i s wisdom, courage and determination. Zventually Echon was ra i sed t o a posi t ion of Chief of Council f o r the Rock Nation. A s consultor of the Huron &!ission, Pare Jean was ab le t o send an extremely opt imis t ic repor t t o Home i n June, 1648.

Chr i s t i an i ty makes very s a t i s f a c t o r y progress, the Chr is t ians increasing more and more not only i n number but a l s o i n virtue.9

I n r e a l i t y t h i s proved t o be t h e culminating point of J e s u i t success i n Huronia. - Too many obstac les were placed i n the path t o success, The depopulation of the region, the hatred expressed by the i n f i d e l Hurons, and f i n a l l y the t r a d i t i o n a l enemy, the Iroquois; each played a r o l e i n the eventual doom of the mission,

The end came in March of 1649 when the v i l l a g e of St-Ignace f e l l t o the invading Iroquois. Captured along with some sixty Christian Hurons was PBre UTean. The triumph of the f iendish and impious Iroquois agonized h i s sou l more than t h e i r c rue l ty could a f f l i c t h i s body, He knew the code, what they expected of him, what he might expect from them. On t h e i r pa r t , they must burn and s l ash him and otherwise torment him, till they beat down h i s courage. On h i s p a r t , he resolved t o beg God t o convert them from t h e i r savagery and t o forgive them f o r t h e i r sa tan ic c rue l t i e s .

Echon continued to exalt his fellow captives while being tortured, Angered to insanity by his defiance, the Iroquois became frantic because they could not find a weakness in him. The hideous tortures and torments inflicted on his body were too numerous to mention. After some thirty hours of torture Pkre Jean died on Tuesday March 16, 1649.

It appeared also as if God had determined to put an end to the mission of the Hurons at the same time that he put an end to the life of its founder. At his death began the irreparable ruin of the Huron Nation. Within ten years, the once mighty confederacy of the Ouendats was obliterated from the area.

No greater tribute to PBre Jean can be given than that expressed by his contempo- rary missioners, They revered him as a saint, and they molded themselves according to his spirit. They were daily witnesses of his austerities and self-chastisement and his trust in God regarding all happenings. PBre Fran$ois Bressani'8 Relation of 1653 indicated the true worth of an individual such as Brgbeuf.

PBre Jean de Brebeuf was the first who carried the Gospel to those regions, and having found on his arrival not one Christian, at his death left more than seven or eight thousands.1o

PSre Jean believed and practiced his faith to such an extent, that his whole life reflected its greatest merito,

NOTES 1. ~ Q o n Foullot, S.J., Etude sur les Relations des JBsuites de la Nouvelle- ---

France (Montreal : Collgge Sainte-Marie , lgw,- - - 2. Rapport llArchiviste de la Province de ~ukbec, (~oll&ge de Sainte-Harie, --

Montreal: Collection Studia, March 1 9 ~ , Vol. V, p. 74.

3. T. J. Campbell, S. J, , Pioneer Priests of North America, 1642-1710 (New York: American Press, 1910), p. 75.

4. Pouliot, Etudes sur les Relations, p. 37. -- 5. A corruption of the word Jean by the Hurons, according to Joseph Donnelly,

in Twaites' Jesuit Belations, errata and addenda (Chicago: Univ. of - Chicago ~res-7-

6. Translated from: llSon humilite lui donna cause d'embrasser avec plus d'amour, plus de joie, et plus dtinclinations naturelle, les plus rnodeste et plus douloureux devoirs,11 kuguste Carayon, S.J., PremiGre Plission des JQsuites au Canada, Lettres - et ~ o c u m ~ d ~ a r i s : L ~ E C W ~ U X ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ) , ~ ~ . 297.

7. Reuben G. Thwaites, ed., The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents -- levelan and: Burrows Brothers, 18- X, p. 72. 8. Philip Child, "The Noble Army of Martyrs in Huronia," University of Toronto -

Quarterly, Spring i 9 3 p . 49. 9 Translated from: ''Le Christianisme fait du progr6s satisfaisant, les Chretiens

augmentent de plus en plus, non seulernent en hombre mais aussi en vertu." S o n Pouliot, S.J., Les Saints Mart Canadiens (~ontrkal: Editions Bellarmin, -mP T?? 1 3,

10, Thwaites, The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. XXXIX, p. 259. - -

OTHER WARS, OTHER VAIDIS:

WAR F O X AIGRICAN INDEPEBDE~VGE, 1775 - 1783 by John Valois (129)

(continued from Page 30, January 1979, Vol. I, No. 2.

blanifest destiny, a concept dear to the hearts of territorial expansionists throughout U.S. history, was a factor behind the decision of America's fourth president to involve this country in war. The chief executive, Virginia aristocrat James Madison (1751-1836). was influenced by wealthy planter types wh fostered the War Hawks--a congressional lobby not averse to conflict with Zngland. 96

These politicos represented frontier states adjoining coveted Spanish land in the South plus English (read: Canadian) and Indian lands in the Middle West. Southern members of the 'vuashington clique, led by House Speaker Henry Clay and Congressman john 0. Calhoun (both destined for prominence in the coming fraticidal schism over slavery), convinced themselves that ar with Britain offered an excuse to seize Spanish territories in East and West Flori . Clay boldly went on record to declare it "absurd to suppose we shall not succeed." $8 5'

One Shawnee chief proved an irritant to the Midwest branch of the War i-Iawks. Long ago forced out of their original holdings in warm, coastal Florida by whites, the tribe was now making its stand in Ohio. Tired of quasi-legal, land-stealing forays by settlers, Tecumseh (1768?-1813) ruled that their acreage was the common property of all ribes and couldn't be ceded by, or bought from, an individual red man or Indian nation. 56

In his 1810 rebuke to William H. Harrison, then governor of Indiana Territory, the fluently bylingual Shawnee expressed himself: "'Sell a country?' Why not sell the air, the clouds, the great sea, as well as the earth? Did not the Great Spirit make them all for the use of his children?...No tribe has the right to seli land, 6- even to each other, much less to strangers, who demand all and will take no less."

The United States wasn't keen about accepting that disturbing, socialistic judg- ment. So with weapons and backing from English sources in Canada, Tecumseh set out to organize nearly fifty tribes of the Middle West, South, and eastern Mississippi valley into a single, powerful coalition to protect their reriining lands and way of life.

His plan misfired in 1811 at the indecisive battle of Tippecanoe in Indiana Ter- ritory where troops under Harrison--who would be heard from again--repelled a foolh

%fY attack by a half-armed band of Shawnees in the absence of Tecumseh and his warriors.

The strong-minded yet oddly compassionate (Tecumseh abolished the barbaric Shawnee custom of torturing captives at the stake) champion of red man rights continued the

- struggle by actively.allying himself with the British. They reciprocated with a brigadier's rank--an achievement equalled by few chiefs--for his stinging June, 1812, defeat of a 600-man American detachment, n e E the Raisin River below Detroit, with only seventy Shawnees and forty British soldiers. Thereafter his fierce warriors were utilized

.63 with considerable effect as guerrillas and scouts.

England, France, and Spain by then were up to their armpits in the Napoleonic Wars that raced intermittently across Europe from 1803 to 1815. With the Indian coalition weakened by Tippecanoe, America's War Hawks concluded that inasmuch as Britain was busy on the continent the mid-western peninsula of U er Canada, a Great Lakes area rich in furs and waterways, was ripe for the taking.

Problems at Sea

For public consumption, other reasons were found to stir up anti-English feeling. Among these was the treatment accorded U.S. soiling vessels in foreign war zones. East coast shipowners and merchants discovered early on that substantial profits went to neutrals carrying needed materials and supplies between Frhnce and Spain and from France to its Caribbean colonies in the South Atlantic, American presence in those seas helped fill a supply demand createtlby the Royal Navy's clean sweep of French and Spanish shipping from the same regions.

Disturbed about neutral countries getting rich at her expense through trade with the enemy, Brittania in 1806 clamped a naval blockade on the Xnglish Channel, North Sea coast of France, and European satellite nations of Napoleon. Elsewhere, the&ar- ibbean in particular, American ships remained free to trade with England's foes,

In November of that year, Bonaparte pulled a shrewd one. He proclaimed the British Isles under blockade and threatened seizure of any neutral or English shipping caught in the area. The Corsican knew the embargo was cnenforceable, French navymen being no match for the British in numbers or seamanship. He wadtdd 87 goad Britain into countermeasures that would further alienate neutrals such as the U.S.

Sure enough, early in 1807 the Royal Navy blockade expanded to include all French harbors and possessions. Moreover, neutral ships found trafficking with the enemy were liable to capture %$ forfeiture as prizes of war unless a cargo tax was paid beI'orehand at an English port.

President Jefferson protested that a blockade must be effective before being judged binding under international law. Since France couldn't enforce its blockade, he contended (possibly with tongue in @eek) that fiench - and &glish embargoes were therefore "paper" blockades, hence illegal.

Another sore point was the British practice of stopping neutral vessels on the high seas and forcibly inpressing into naval service any sailors with English or Irish accents. British law regarded such individuals as subjects of the king. Sin~7~i2oyal Navy deserters comprised a significant proportion of seamen on U.S. merchant ships, there was extra incentive skippers of English men-of-war, with crews perpetually understrength,-to board the nearest American merchantman.

Uncle Sam Declares -- President Madison sent Congress a message on June 1, 1812 asking that it seriously

consider declaring war on Zngland based on three grievances: 1) refusal to discontinue - imprensment of seamen, 2 ) willful interference with trading shi~)? in international waters, and 3) anti-American intrigue with mid-western Indians.

The request squeaked through Congress on June 18 despite divided opinions among capitol politicians. A surprising number of House members disapproved th measure: sixty-two nays opposed a slim majority of ninety-eight affirmative votes. 72

Though hardly admirers of John Bull, New hglanders were so incensed by War Hawk tactics that they refused to support the unpopular war and merchants in that section defiantly traded with the enemy. Massachusetts, joined by one political party in Vermont, actually negotiated with England for a separate peace an alliance. On several occasions, New York troops wouldn't fight outside the state. 43

Britain revoked her naval blockade of neutral shipping two days before the declaration of war. Attempts to patch up differences were stymied by American interests still determined to risk battle over impressment of seamen, Mid-Westerner grudges against Indians, and those tempting Canadian and Spanish lands. As it turned out, northern opposition in Congress neatly sabotqqed immediate War Hawk hopes for territorial conquest in the Middle West or South.

The government belatedly learned that it wasn't prepared for war. Congress called for a volunteer army of 35,000 but settled for fewer than 10,000. State militias were untrained, undisciplined and, consequently, untrustworthy in battle. Some governors followed New York's example, declining to allow their militia outside state borders. The country's navy strength was also inferior, consisting of sixteen fri,gates and sloops-of-war. No plans were de to ensure naval control of the Great Lakes, essential to any invasion of Canada. 73

The administration abruptly found itself unable to finance the struggle. Com- pelled to enact war taxes, it sought loans in New England banking circles as well. But east coast Yankees from Connecticut to Maine tayed resolutely anti-war; only a fraction of the necessary funds was ever raised.7g And the region kept its romise to remain neutral, taking no part whatsoever in the subsequent hostilities. 79

Canada Invaded Again

U.S. military strategy began disastrously enough. Devised by the commander-in- chief, Major General Henry Dearborn (1751-1829), a physician turned soldier in the Revolutionary War, the plan proposed an attack on Canada at two widely distant points: across the Detroit River at the western end of Lake Erie and across the Niagara River from New York state. When the British supposedly fell back along e Lake Cntario shore, a third operation would begin via Lake Champlain against )lontreal. %

The Detroit campaign got underway first. Brigadier General William Hull (1753-18251, Connecticut native and Yale graduate, emerged from the revolution as a Lieutenant Colonel with a creditable record. An attorney, former judge, and ex-Massachusetts state senator, Hull had himself appointed governor of Michigan Territory in 1805. rior to the outbreak of war, he took over the already formed northwestern invasion army.' General Hull arrivegoin Detroit in midJune of 1812 with 2,500 men; on July 11, he marched into Canada and occupied the village of Sandwich (presently Windsor, Ontario).

Until 1791, the area invaded by Hull formed the western portion of Quebec. In that year, it became Upper Canada--now Ontario. Not including Indians, four-fifths of the province's 1812 population comprised American immigrants. Only one in four could be termed loyal to the crown. With war declared, some American sympathizers returned to the states, others were expelled by provinci~l authorities, and a few of those remaining became openly pro-Yankee when Hull arrived.

In 1812, English forces in Upper (Ontario) and Lower (~uebec) Canada totaled24,450 regulars in addition to 2,500 militia in Lower. Canada and 1,800 in Upper Canada. In July of 1812, the U.S. regular army totaled 6,686 officers and men plus 5,00C non- regular recruits enlisted after January of 1812 by special authorization of Congress. 83 The settler pOpUla@On of BritlSh North Amerfca at the time was 5OO,OOO; against six million Americans.

Bad news always travels fast. Hull quickly learned of the :~ar's first disaster-- Hichilimackinac, later shortened to Mackinac. This strategic American fort, controlling the northwest fur trade from the junction of Lakes Michigan and iiuron, was captured July 17 by a motley group of forty-five troopers from the Tenth Royal Veterans regiment and 180 French-Canadian voyageurs. Three hundred as yet uncommitted Indians went along to watch. Unaware there was even a war on, the garrison of fifty-nine Americans woke one morning to fA5d enemy field artillery menaci& their flimsy kooden stockade and called it quits.

horse happenings were ahead. Fearful of an Indian uprising following Kichili- mackinac, Hull aborted the Canadian adventure on August 7, 1812 and headed for the safety of Detroit. In his own words, "...after the surrender of Hichilimackinac, almost every tribe and nation of Indians...joined in open hostility, under the British standard against the Army I commanded...The surrender of Mi~hilfmackina~~opened the northern hive of Indians, and they were swarming down in every direction."

Enroute to Detroit, Hull sent an urgent dispatch to Captain Heald at Fort Dearborn, 215 miles west of Detroit, instructing him to abandon the post (site of downtown Chicago today). In the midst of evacuation, Heald and his small detachment of regulars and militia--accompanied by male civilians, women, and children--were attacked on August 15 by a horde o Potawatonies, Foxes, Sacs, and Winnebagoes. )lany of the whites ended up slaughtered. 67

At this point, the beleagured U.S. commander's main adversary approached Detroit. Major General Isaac Brock ( 1769-1812) --who masterminded the Fackinac takeover--spent years on active duty in the Netherlands, Denmark, and Yest Indies before assuming control in 1806 of Upper and Lower Canada defenses. The immediate task: defending nearly 1,000 miles of frontier. His exploits during 1812 brought a kn&hthood, the nickname "hero of Upper Canada," and death in combat at age forty-three.

Surrounded by enemy troops and Indians, all means of communication sealed off, General Hull reacted to Brock's presence (at the head of 1,300 effectives: NO British soldiers, 400 Canadian militia, and 600 Indian auxiliaries under T umseh) by surren- dering without a fight the fort at Detroit and his 2,500-man army.84 Rany of the garrison threw down their weapons in rage and wept over the disgrace. 90

Hull was conned by one of the oldest tricks in warfare. The Britisher shrewdly crossed and recrossed the 3etroit River with his smaller army, in full view of the fort, duping his opponent into thinking the Snglish contingent was double its actual size. Tecumseh was singularly impressed with Brock's energy, foresight, and military skills and said so: "This 's a man! Other chiefs would have ordered us to 'Go' into battle; Brock says 'Come 9i

An 1814 court-martial convicted Hull of cowardice and neglect of duty, sentencing him to be shot. President Madison remitted their verdict in onsideration of the general's age, sixty-one, and his Revolutionary Mar service. 95

(To be Continued)

* r * * * z * * r * * * - r * t r r * * w * * *

LZ SAVIEZ-VOUS?

Calixte Lavall&e, composer of "0 Canada", was a member of the military band of 2hode Island uuring the Civil War of 1860;

Chapter Notes (cont Id)

56 - "A Iiistorical Atlas of Canada," ed. by D.G.G. Kerr, pub. by Thomas Nelson & Sons, Ltd., Toronto, 1960.

57 - "Canada1' by J-B. Brebner, pub. by the Univ. of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor, 1970

58 - "The Green Tiger," by E.L. Mallory, pub. by McClelland & Stewart, Toronto, 1976.

- 59 - "The Columbia Encyclopedia," s. $&.

60 - T"e Indian-Lover," by L. Owen, pub. by Bantam Books, Inc., New York, N.Y. 1975.

61 - Mallory, 3. a. 62 - l*T.he F r o n t i e r ~ m e n , ~ ~ by A.W. Zckert, pub. by L i t t l e , Brown & Co., Boston, frLass., 1967

63 - "The Columbia En~yclopedia ,~ ' o& &. 64 - Brebner, 2. G.

65 - flEncyclopedia Americana," 9. - c i t .

67 - Ibid.

68 - Ibid. - 69 - Ibid. - 70 - Ibid. - 71 - Zbid*

72 - Brebner, 2. 9.

73 - l'Zncyclopedia Americana," 2. G.

74 - Ibid.

75 - piJ 76 -. bid

77 - Stanley, =. 78 - @iJ

79 - l%ncyclopedia Americana," 2

80 - Kerr, 2.

Chapter Notes (cont 'dl

81 - "Western Ontario and the American Front ier ," by F. Landon, pub. by Russel l & Russel l , New York, N. Y., 1941.

82 - Kallory, 3. - c i t .

83 - !'The Army Almanac," 2. G.

84 - Mallory, 2.

85 - Stanley, 9. G.

86 - Ibid. - 87 - Eckert, 3.

88 - "Encyclopedia Americana," OJ. G.

89 - Stanley, 2. - c i t .

90 - Eckert, 9. G.

91 - Mallory, 2. - c i t .

92 - "The New Columbia Encyclopedia, l1 ed. by W.H. Har r i s e( J.S. Levey, pub. by Columbia Univ. Press, N.Y. & London, 1975.

William Howard Taf t , twenty-seventh President of t h e United S t a t e s , was a descendant of Guillaurne Cheney, a Frenchman?

The ances tors of John Calvin Coolidge were French? Ile w a s named Coulinge and l ived i n the c i t y of Avranches, Normandy.

Gabriel IIanigault, who l e n t 'dashington more than a million d o l l a r s , never expected payment on t h i s loan?

Prudent Beaudry, who was born i n ~ o n t r k a l and is buried the re , was e lec ted mayor of Los kngeles i n 1874. H i s brother Jean-Louis, during the very sane period, was mayor of l.Iontr6al. Beaudry had vast land holdings i n what is now Beverly H i l l s .

Dulhut of Nontr&al, who explored Minnesota while endeavoring t o reach the Pac i f i c Ocean, gave h i s name - i n modified form - t o Duluth. De Repentigny of Mascouche, QUB., founded Sault Ste. Michigan.

Le Coin De Nos ~ n c g t r e e ~y Lucille F. ~ o c k (65)

RZVARD - On March 9, 1646, i n Tourouvre, Perche, France, Nicolas Rivard signed a contract

t o work i n New Franceafor a period of three years for Pierre Juchereau, s ieur des ~ h e s t e l l & e s , This contract would begin the day the s h i p s e t s a i l i n 1646, Mvard w a s promised f ree passage t o and from France, including meals, a lso 66 pounds "tournoisw a year, and an advancement of 15 p o w f'tournois", deductible from his wages. ("Tour- nois'' was worth 25% more than regular pounds. )

The e a r l i e s t document found i n Canada mentioning hi6 name is dated February 27, 1649, when he w a s godfather a t a chriatening i n Trois-Rivieres.

Nicolas s e t t l ed i n Cap-de-la-Madeleine, where he soon became captain of the mi l i t i a , a post he would maintain u n t i l 1698 i n t h i s area and l a t e r i n Batiscan. This was an honorary posit ion and held without monetary compensation. The captain of the mi l i t i a was, i n fac t , the administrator of the seigneury. He trained the troops, led them in to ba t t le , and a l so executed the orders of the inten-t. H e was the gove rn~r ' s agent. When the seigneur l ived outside of the eeigneury, the captain had the f i r s t pew i n church, on the l e f t s ide of the main a i s le . He was usually referred t o a s "sieur" and most often, at h i s demiee, he w a s buried i n the crypt of the church.

In 1652, Nicolas married Catheriqe St-Pdre, baptized August 26, 1634, i n St-Jean dWAngely, Tourouvre, Perche, h.ance. She was the daughter of Etienne St-Pare and N6omie Coutaud. Nicolas w a s baptized on June 10, 1617, a lso i n Tourouvre. H i s godparents were Nicolas Boucher and Jeanne Pichon, He was the son of Pierre Rivard and Jeanne Mullard. A t the time of t h e i r marriage, Nicolas was 35, and Catherine was 18. The couple s e t t l ed i n Cap-de-la-Madeleine, where they would remain u n t i l a t l e a s t 1666,

Nicolas, l i t e r a t e and well respected, became churchwarden of his parish. I n 1661, he made arrangements t o purchase a chapel from Pierre Boucher, The deed, prepared by notary Claude Herlin, read i n part, "A chapel tha t he (~ouche r ) had bu i l t i n h i s yard, of 20 f ee t long and 20 f ee t wide". This chapel w a s most l i ke ly rebui l t on the exact location where the second church was erected a t Cap-de-la-Madeleine.

On March 23, 1666, Nicolae acquired two concessions i n Batiscan from the Jesui ts , The deeds were drawn up by notary Jacques de La Touche, and give u s a description of the parcels of land, The f i r s t , i n the eeigneury of Batiscan, was a concession of 2 acrea by 40, adjoining on the southwest the land owned by Fran$ois Bibaw and on the northeast, the land owned by Guillaume da la Rue; the second concession a t I l e St-Eloi,

, of 2 acres by 40, adjoined the land of P ie r re Tro t t ie r on the southwest and tha t of k t i n Foisy on the northeast,

A church meeting was held i n the home of Nicolas on June 26, 1670 and he was elected f i r s t churchwarden of the parish of Batiscan. Present a t t h i s election were twenty of the most in f luent ia l people i n the parish.

Because of Nicolas' posit ion i n the community, he was often called upon t o defend the r igh ts of his fellow c i t i zens i n Batiscan. In 1676, he appeared before the Tribunal of Trois-Riviires, representing the colonis ts becauae they were d i ssa t i s f ied wi th the land boundaries made by Jean Guyon, Sieur du Buiseon. On October 13, of the same year, an ordinance, signed by Boyvinet, w a s published i n Trois-RiviBres t o the e f f ec t t ha t the

b d m r i a s would be re-examined by Jean Le Rouge, land surveyor, t o the s a t i s f a c t i o n of a l l In te res ted par t ies . Nicolas was t o examine the deeds of the s e t t l e r s t o s e e t h a t j u s t i c e w a s done.

In 1679, he fought for a c l e a r , precise and uniform manner f o r t h e church t o c o l l e c t the t i t h e . This had been a matter t h a t had brought much bickering between the pas tor and the parishioners. The matter was not s e t t l e d u n t i l i t had reached the Sovereign Council and i n November of 1682, an ordinance was signed by Intendant Duchesneau and Rouer de Vil leray. The t e x t of t h i s ordinance was given t o Nicolas Rivard, Sieur de la Vigne, and a l s o the Sieur Contant, s o t h a t i t could be posted on the door of the par ish church f o r everyone t o see.

The remaining years of Nicolas' l i f e were spent ac t ively . I n f i f t e e n years, he had converted twenty-five ac res of f o r e s t i n t o cu l t iva ted land and by 1681, he owned f i v e head of c a t t l e . He attended numerous s o c i a l functions and he held his post as capta in of the militia u n t i l he w a s 81 years old. On t h e 1st of July , 1701 Nicolas died a t the age of 84. He had been the fa the r of t en chi ldren and the grand- fa the r of eighty-one grandchildren. H i s widow, Catherine S t -Phe , survived him f o r e igh t years. She died on June 28, 1709, i n her 75th year.

Children of Nicolas Rivard and Catherine St-PAre:

Nicolas; b. Trois-Rivi&res (TR) 1 Feb. 1654; rn. 1. 3at iscan (B) 20 Nov. 1678 t o Elisabeth T r o t t i e r , 2. ~ u g b e c 28 June 1709; d. B 2 Dec. 1719.

Jeanne; b. TH 24 Aug. 1656; m. B 22 Apri l 1669 t o Charles Dutaut; d. Champlain ( c ) 25 Nov. 1698.

Ju l i en : b. TR 24 Aug. 1656; rn. C 3 Feb. 1682 t o Elisabeth Thunay; d. B 10 Dec. 1708.

Frantois : b, TR 27 Sept. 1659; m. 1. B 18 Feb. 1697 t o Eiadeleine LepBle; 2. 3 1 April 1717 t o Geneviave Chsne; d. B 1 4 Sept. 1726.

Pier re : b. 1661; m. B 9 Jan. 1685 t o Catherine T r o t t i e r ; d. B 1 Elarch 1724.

Madeleine: b. 1663; m. P i e r r e de Lafond (contrac t *&rot 10 Jan. 1677); d. 11 March 1737

Michel: b, 1665; d. B 17 Aug. 1687.

Jean : b. B 1668; m. B 5 Sept. 1703 t o Genevieve T r o t t i e r ; d. I l e Dupas 30 June 1731

Catherine: b. B 1673; m. B 18 Feb. 1697 t o Alexis Marchand; d. B 15 Feb. 1703

Anthoine: b. B 1675; des t iny unknown a f t e r 1697.

BIBJJCGRAPHY

"Dictionnaire GBnBalogique des Familles Canadiennes" by Tanguay.

"Histoire des Canadiens Franfais" by Benjamin Sulte.

"IiIBmoires de la ~ o c i k t l i ~Qndalogique Canadienne-Fran$aiseVV Volume XI11 No. 10, pages 191 t o 203; Volume X I X No. 2, Pages 97 and 98.

LIBRARIAN 'S 1P;SSAGE By Robert J, Qu$ntin (4)

The l ibrgry b e beeq prqgreesin~ along very we1 sinqe the last edition of "Je Me SouviensTw This yill be evident when one rea i s the qdd$t$onal list of materia$ that ha^ been purchased i n the l a s t qix months.

As always, $he librwy i.6 open every Tuesday evening at 7:00 PM and during the daytime at the convenience of our untiring Mrs. Jeapnetta H6nard who dev~tes many af her Monday6 t g opening the library for members who cannot otherwise avail themselves af the library. A special thanks to ~rs.' MQnard foy this service. If any rnembe~ w$sbes t~ use the l ibrary during the day, please contact, Mrs. Mhnard a t the foliowing nmbe~: ( 401) 726-2004.

WNAZ'IONS TO THG LXBMRY

Leona Patten 10,OQ

Kristine Kurtz 1.00

Q$ivs Reed 6.50

. P u b l i c a t ~ o n s -- of Cur :.;embers

3ober t - J. Guint in, 22 E'eismere Avenue i-awtucket, Iihocie Is;ar,;i ci&bl

Marriages of Prgcieux-Sang , . i4oonsocket ( 1874-1977 1. .............................. $22.50 Franco-American ~ ~ i r i a l s of 2i:ode Island (1?1.3-i578) Coc~ i l ec i b j 1.uc.ilie iiock, Pauli.ne Lernire and Xobert C. i iu in t in , conta ins b u r i a l inforrrat ion of those Franco-Americans who were bur ied i n the c i t y of.;ioonsocket, a l tnouch not neces- s a r i l y dying there. Over 15,COO dea ths most containi.ng t h e town o f o r i i ~ i n i n Guebec, Approximately 550 parres i n .two bound volumes.. ......................... $27.50 Add 1% f o r postace and h a n d l i n ~ , Can~~cii t in pa t rons use I-ostal i:oney order only.

. . Reverend Youville Labontk, 267 i.iinot AVsnue, Auburn, k i n e ;'it210 has t he fol lowing f o r s a l e :

The Necrology of S t . Feter and Faults Cemetery 1870-1976, 30,500 i n s c r i ~ t i o n s g iv ing .................... pa ren t ' s (Spousels) name and age at de3th..............,.... 530.00 Narr iaees : Holy Cross (1923-1977),"Lewiston, i laine, IioLy F x i l y (1923-1977

Lewiston, b:aine .................................................... .Sl>.W The Clement d i t Labontk Family, i200 f a ~ i l i e s ::us 60rX) ia 'uont&s, ............... $20.00 S t . Ann (1885-1977) Lisbon, Kaine, S t . 1:ary 11307-1477) 1-ewiston.. .............. ip15.00 S t . Joseph ( 1858-1976 Lewiston \.sine

Napoleon Sou le t , r u e P r inc ipa l e , :it-Gervais, Comtg Bel iechasse, ~ugbec, Canada GOR 3 CO

"Personnes n6es dans Bel lechasse e t mariGes dans l e s Ztats-I 'nis" 3,500 marriages 15.00 p l u s 3-00 postage.

Genealogical Lndeavors of Our Iiembers

L u c i l l e F. sock, Paul ine Lemire and :iobert Z. {:uintin ar+ con ti nu in^ w o r ~ on Volume 11 of Tranco-C.nerican burials i n Rhode i s l and . The secor,d volune will concent ra te on t h e :ioonsocke t and Planville a reas .

Robert J. Cuin t in is com7iling the > r o t e s t a n t nnci C i v i l Franco nnrriat:as of Centrai Falls i n view of an e a r l y 1980 publ ica t ion .

Alfred Gaboury h a s completed t h e marriages of l:t. i :a thieu1s I n Centra:~ F s l l s and a l s o Notre 2ane i n Cent ra l 2'n:ls. These works w i l l be published as soon as they a r e typed. The Soc ie ty could use accu ra t e t y p i s t s i n t he l o c s i a r e a who a r e f a m i l i a r with French names and who would be w i l l i n g t o type t h e manuscript f o r these r e p e r t o i r e s . P l ease con tac t M r . Gaboury i f anyone can g ive u s a l i t t l e time. H i s address i s 5 River Road, Lincoln, R . I . e l . 722-3973.

Father Denis 9oudreau is making a list of t h e mrriai:es of S t , Joseph's Church i n Woonsocket.

K r s . Cec i le l i a r tens has compiled the baptisms, marriages ana dea ths or' S t . Michel dtYamaska. =

M r . & Mrs. Lionel Lapointe o f F a l l 3 i v e r have undertaken the e x t r a c t i o n of St. Jean- Bapt i s te parish i n F a l l River,

Ue would hope that o t h e r members of t!;is S o c i e t : ~ and other S o c i e t i e s w i l l be encouraged t o fo l low the f o o t s t e p s of the above peogle and at tempt t o e x t r a c t marr iages, baptisms e tc . from t h e i r l o c a l pa r i shes , f u n e r a l hones and c i t y h a l l s .

m Wa~-Q~om''m@hs ' . A ; , . - 2 - :. i l i

LIAcadie des Ancttres, by Bona Arsenault, donated by &p. Cqcile - m t e n s and , . . \ - + , ., , ' : :: ,:< .; -:J. ?hd&iGd " fl%chiud

. , . : -, , , 4 : ;> t -c

"Ikench Canadian and Acadian Genealo i c a l Reviewtt. ,. - - Volume I, #l Spring 196 8 r d 1 ' 5 : - &:;- - ' ' Oblm~ If,.#Q Spring 1969

#Z Summer 1968 #2 Summer 1969 . -' :Q, #3 F ~ L . ~ 9 6 8 #3 Fa12 -1969 -

- - ' #4-"~inter-'1968 '#4 Winter 1969 , - * - . { , " L

Volume I~I; #1 Spring 1970 Volume I V , #1 Spring 1972 , . . ;#?.Swuy&r 1970 ". - -.. *--- - #2 Summer 1972

'$3 Fa l l 1970 . # * 1 . , - . ' " "

$43 Fal l 1972 #4 ' ~ i n t e k 1972

i , , :Q?. A,- ' * ' FA-$;-2$ ; r Li ., , : \ I

- . . Volume V, #1-2 1975 .: , ; - "* t i , > , . > ' -' #%4; 1973' j:' d o n a t e d ~ - ~ ~ b l ( i h d %A&$ # 8 ' _,__-_ __._ -1 -- , - ' * , * : 9 2 s

' -7

MBlanges MnBalogiquea!? .pa5*aaymrid Gingras #359 . , . 8

Volume I$-& =I, J?f 'm, V I I , V I I I , I X donated by the ~ u t h o r , - ,- .- .- -.R:..-.

~,....,7.,...;...... I ' .

: $ . t: , ,., ,L! :. . !i ..; "L~s Familles HI&&&; :I,@$;. : R o ~ T @ &is Francst1 par Antonio H-d , ~ ~ & b = = . 1.966"

"".

donated by Raymond Gingras #359 .&-.- : f .-, ~... .,)-\;.- T- r - . ~ t v v 1 &~,IJQS iii>ra.i ~ ~ ~ ~ , ? ~ ~ ' J ~ ~ . .".._---

"The ~e t ~ e a ~ l F F e n e a r o E , ~ IBM Computer printout donated by Eugeue Ta%.i !I ::,::. i;.;;,: r,: iii3 5j-;s'$ 3LaI -. __".__LC .-..-----.--.*

"Family Heritageft Volume I #6. donated by Paul Deslisle, q:'$s,,,2 x~ a?n:: < , 7 3 ~ ; ; ~ -. YT;39~3 i33~:;13kq-~2

_I&-*-.

"Early Canadian L i m F r i l 1979, May 1979 donated by Paul Delisle #@i::J.:; r..?;;o,i.;j-.i.~iff; - . . r.sT&rv.i$; a ~ o . : ~ ~ - . -_ ._I___ -._.. &--'-----------

.. .- .. . . :;,,.\!::.,;.:.,.:i.sV

"Du P e ~ h e A u Cana$qg[jbg ~ ~ ~ e i i ~ ~ o n ~ ~ donated by P a u l Delisle #39 ------.A. ------ . , -. . . ., . - , . .. ', .", b-.,K< :-.

\ ! , y A < : : , : , J +>,J'~6i;.~,.c '*The D e t r o i ~ & & q ~ ~ ~ J & m e d L a ~ m l Research Magazinett Spring 1979

e j ~ f v n i : s ~ ~ ~ .T4 b a 4 ' ; 3 ~ T . - ~ . ~ ~ -. ..-L-..~~:~ :;rx,;; ;::.*:?: -. .. d ..I I-.- " ~ d d a l o t p e e t Histoire de la Famille Thibaulttt donated by Preci l le mucher MacCay

,,+re #;*7,.-.,7 --.-..,- .. ?..P5~LJ\.I&lL,CL :rr: A, ,,,>, :., :;!.,,,,; . , .. , *>>-.;- A.,di-.k. i&?'"V . " z .',

"Ghnwes Historiques dTSt . Hicolas (IAvis) des Origines 5 nos joustt ~ 3 i 5 ~ - - ' 7 ~ ~ ' J 3 ~ j 1 8 5 0 fh#z&P4,i:W.&ylnond ,3,252 G i n s #2sj 43ni,29 , anckt,:::>;s i.ij .,. - i i . 2 .,,%:-> . .. . - --, .-

,&%on&& q ',""'.-,j 3r;r.e.k.;orr: ,922:: z s i l s ? . 1900 Federal Population Census - .7 '

ilm &pleb of schedules, donated by Raymond Bleau *. .<.;;.A 7 .. . .; ., .,.,... . .. i J.:;...iA,.-:. -, - . T .,; ,.',;- .,--

__,^- -.,.._.,l._I-.-- --I.---

'W6moirestf de la Soci6tg GBni5alogique C a n a d i e l u r s - f i a n ~ a i ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ; -,;: ;+$ , i.b :!ns r.n i:i.-$; -

VOL I, l;a,3,4. VOL XII, 1,2',3;.4,5,6,j,8-,9,lo. VOL 11, 1.2.3- vOL 9 l V 2 9 3 9 4 9 5 * 6:$,4.s9 ,$@B$&<%&,, ' ,..,. ' ,, 7 , . " ; R 3-.-A : .1

VOL 111, 2.3.4. VOL XN 4 6 , 4+:;i v----.z. --m-.-"-,.".i.i.i.i.i.i

* , * , 9 , 0 ,

VOL N, 1,2,3,4. VOL W. 2 ; , : 7:ar~ rzt~ii -- VOL V, 1. VOL XVI, 1, ; . VOL V I , lr2r3r4,5r6,7ra* VOL XXII, 4. yr ,,.. ;;., ;., .""' . - ' - I : . . . ' i s '

i ,k,;, . y , i : . : - , ~ ~ ~>.~;:cifii'i

VOL V I I , 1,2,3*4. VOL XXN, l,2,3. .; -..--: ...- --... ----.'---' VOL V I I I , 1,2,3,4. voL VOL XXV, XKVI, 1,2,3,4, 4:8:, k...,,;" .:., &:;-: LJr!:i . .< . . . . t o . . . ...>

VOL IX, 1.2. V 1 1 .. . :; !-. ' . . .- ..... . . -

VOL X, 1,2,3,4. VoL ~ I I I , 3 + ~ . 2 , 3 , , 4 . i :, I ;.; ..: :: .L;:i;:..::::.i:-..:..; * - vOL XXVLII',' i'" 3 -4; .. . VOL XI, 1,2,3,4. t 9

A l l donated by Jack Valois VOL XXIX, 1,2,3,4.

?'Paroisse St-Georges , Manchester , N. H. 1966-1970 donated by Armand Demers R0 and Leo J. Bernier #55

"Who 's Who in Canada" 1966-1968. donated by Armand Demers R O and Leo J. Bernier #55

NEV ADDITIONS 'Ill THE LIBRARY

ARTHABASKA COUNTY: Entire County 1840-1923

BELUCHASSG COUNTY:

- St- Michel 1693-1974

Entire County

MONTMoRENCY COUNTY #l

- Notre Dame Auxiliatrice de Buckland 1863-1974 Chateau Richer - ~ t r ~ a z a r e 1849-1970 st e-~nne-de-~eaupr6 - Sty Raphael 1851-1974 Marria~es and Deaths - ~ r m g h - 1857-1973 Marriages and Deaths MONTIiloRENCY COUNTY #2 - Stt Gabriel de la Durantaie 1910-1973 - Sty NQree 1883-1971 Ile dvOrleans - St- Damien 1882-1972 - Honfleur 1903-1972 SWXBEC COUNTY

CHAFBLY COUNTY:

RIVIPZE DU IDUP COUNTY

- Isle Verte - Natre Dame de Mont Carmel ST-UURICE COUNTY

- St-Joachin de Chateauguay - Valleyfield

COMPTON COUNTY

- Entire County GASP$-ESST COUNTY

- Trois Rivi6res - S t-Paul-de-GFand-Mare TImRFmMJE COUNTY

- St-Louis-de-Terrebonne - Ste-ThBrCse de Blainville WOLF% COUNTY

- Entire County - Ste-CCcile de Cloridome, Pointe B la FrBgate, Petite Anse, Cloridorne, Pointe ~gche, rand Etang

- St-Vincent de Paul 1868-1977 JACQUZS CARTIZR COUNTY

- Notre Dame des Sept Douleurs KAMOlJiX4SKA COUNTY

- Ste-Anne de la Pocatiere - St-Pascal - st-Paceme, St-Gabriel Lallemand

ONTARIO PROVINCE

GEORGIAN BAY REGION

- S te-Croix-de-Laf ontaine , Ste-~nne-de-P&n&tanguishbne, - St-Patrick-de-Perkinsfield

PRESCOTT COUNTY

- Hawkesbury 1883-1975 - Entire County except Hawkesbury

NEW BRUNSWICK PROVINCE

MADAWASKA COUNTY

- h t i r e County

UNITD STATES

IIIAI hX

- &tire County

NZW HAMPSHIRE

HILLS3oRO COUNTY

- St e-Marie-de-Manchester 1880-1975, births and deaths - Ste Anne-de-Manchester 1848-1974 - Ste-Marie-de-Manchester 188001973, marriages - St. Georges 1890-1975, - S t-Augus tin 1871-1972 R H O X ISLAND

, . Vernutit ;;:st,nricr,i .,c?c: iety , 'Jermoat. l i i s t o r y , V r , ] l+',i, Winter 1079

"Lost. i n Canada'' Voiume I, dl , #2, f-larch and dune 1979

" E ' I P I ~ !!e ;::s" 'Jolume I, t f l t /:'I>, I'hrch s n a Gune l"?'j

Bri t i sli Cc-1 m b i a G e n e a J o e , Volume 7 ,#7.'lrL

"The i r a i r i e S1e;in~r" Volume 1 - dl,@, ilecertber 1978. !<arch 1979

"The 2ese.3rcher", 'iolume 10, p l , ? , j ,4 , Sep'-ember, November, February, ~ p . r i l 1379

"The i-ioosier Genealogisttf Volume 8, $2 A p r i l 1979

e l /q aenealo~y" April 2979

"Cousins and Cousines" VoLume II, $1 February 1973

9 1 ;.6roiresf' Volume X, iX, $1 ;.arch 197:

If,, . .P.~>:;C:G'' % .. Volume 3 , 2.2, i r~r i l 1975,

Zlovis -, Xotal.re iioyai + St-Lphrem d e ?ring, I:ar C y r i l Ijernier 1379 - - t I p ,,or,nc?c t i o n s " , !Jolume I, $3.4 Harch, Gune 1979

''Erqnch liotes" .,aterloo-i:eilinp;ton 8ranch of Ontar io :;enenlogical Secie ty , 'Joitine VII, $1,2,3.

"i:otes and IJews" from Connecticut Hi. t.or5c.L . ~ ~ c i p t y Volume 4, $5 Isiay &Y:I"

Index des Greffes aes Notaires 36ct5dBs by Yecolt l o n t b r i a n a -- -- "A !:oi A~~vercfie", ?:arch 1979

11.- 1 notprintsf', Volume 22 d2, Iaiay 1973

"Grqnge County Gall fornia \ienealociccll ~ o c i e t y \ u a r t e r l y v , Volume X V I , P;ar~h 1970

"~6n6alogie de la f.;lmille dhiibot-Branche St-~6saireI' unpublished manuscript

"Branches and Twigstt Volume 8 #2, Spring 1979

"3rit ish Columbia Genealogistft, Volume 8, #2 Summer 1979

"The National Genealogical Inquirerw, Volume 3, #2

ttConnecticut Historical Society Bulletin", Volume 44, #2, April 1979.

Inventaires des Greffes des Notaires - du R6gime Francais Volume X X V I I 1976 -' Volume XXVI 1975 Volume X X N 1973

E t a t Sommaire des Archives Nationales Du ~u6bec B Montrgal, 1972. - - - - Rapport des Archives Nationales du ~uebec, Volume 53, 1975 - - Pet i te Histoire de Saint Luc, par R 8 a l Fortin

Inventaire des Greffes des Notaires du R6Rirne Francais by Jules Martel (H. P r e s m - r n and ~ . ~ . R i ~ a u d 17-

E s t o i r e - des Familles Paquin en Am6rique 1672-1976 by Pasteur Paquin 1975 - Your Genealoecal Heritage, by Robert Tarte. - L i w i s t i c - and Cultural Affiliations 'of Canadian Indian Bands O t t a w a , 1970.

*Pleaee inform the Society i f you a r e planning t o move and send the new address t o us a s soon a s possible so as t o insure that you receive your i s sue of "Je Me Souviens". The post o f f ice w i l l not forward th i rd class mai l .

*Cold cu t s i n the Woonsocket City Hall??? Robert J. Quintin, while using the marriage records i n the Woonsocket City H a l l discovered a marriage between a Salami (Salom6e) and a Baloney (&lonie). Not everyone had a knowledge of French in those days !

*Keep sending those Franco-American obi tuar ies t o the Society -- we have quite a la rge f i l e of them at present.

*Would l i k e t o see more members send i n t h e i r pedigree charts - especial ly the l oca l membere. We have received many hundreds of them a t present but we have had a very poor response from the l oca l members. Use any type of chart tha t you wish and send them t o the Society.

*Additions t o family associations: Urbain B. Graveline Family Association, Box 191, Palmer, Mass.

Association des Familles Paquin, Inc. Urbain B Graveline Family Association 1400 Route de LqA6roport Box 191 Ancienne Lorette, G2G 16 Palmer, Massachusetts 01069

Bernier Family Association 1205, Cr . Champigny Duvernay, Laval, PQ H 7 E 4M3

*Members who did not receive Vol. 2 of "Je Me Souviens" are advised t o contact the Society

*One of the Society 's members is a stamp col lec tor who has asked tha t you use Commemorative stamps on a l l mail to the Society.

*Any member having reper to i res o r h i s to r i e s f o r s a l e please allow the Society the f i r s t opportunity t o accept o r purchase them.

*The Annual C h r i s t m a s Party w i l l be held a t Le Foyer an Saturday evening December 15th at 7:00 PM. Hot and Cold buffet and entertainment. More d e t a i l s i n the future

*Start ing with the next issue, "Je Me Souviens" w i l l be published i n December, March, June and September.

QUERIES

17. Need the marriage of Norbert W a n d t o Delima LeHerault, c i rca 1883, possibly i n Massachusetts o r Connecticut. (#332)

18. Need the b i r t h , marriage and death dates of David LaReau and Louise Anna McClune. She was possibly born i n Woonsocket, R. I. David's fa ther worked for G.W. Webb Machine Company. i n Pawtucket, R. I. (Andrew F. Boutin (8131). 1 Greenwood Lane Acton, MA 01720)

19. Where w a s Gonzague Guimont born? Her parents were Antoine Guimont and Mary Arvisais, me St. Flore Co. St. Maurice, Que. 9-4-1877. Their children were Gonzague; be- , Sarah, b. 9-4-1885, Manchester, N.H. ( l4NH); Laura, be 22-2-1887, MNH; Florida, b. 19-6-1888, Ste-Flore, Que. (SF); Ulderic, b. 19-6-1890, SF; Rachel, b-16-5-1892 SF; and Thgode, b. 6-10-1894. Antoine was a l so married t o Mathilde ~ a i l l 6 ( ~ l e x i s and Elarie Gagnon), a. st-Lgon-de-llaskinong6, 1-6-1840 and to ~ Q l i c i t 6 Lescadre (widow of Joseph Lincuur t ) , m. s t-L8on de MaskinongB, 17-4-1860. (Mrs. Dora Hoffman, (#384), 1% High St., Watertown, CT 06795)

20. Need b i r t h , marriage and death dates of Oliver Lacourse and h i s wife Josephine Bissonneault . Daughter, (~r th&rnise ( ~ a c o u r s e ) Vivier , born 11-4-1856, S t . ~ r g ~ o i r e , Nicolet, (Doris Lwesque Greer #265)

21. Have 5-volume reper to i re of the marriage of the Diocese of 2imouski (1702-1925). W i l l search fo r members. (Robert C. Lavoie f325)

22, Would l i k e t o locate the marriage and parents of Jean Baptiste Deschenes and Marguerite Blouin. Daughter, ~ u r g l i e , b. 11-3-1891, S t -JQr8me, PQ, rn. 12-10-1914 t o Alphonse Goulet, S te Anne, F a l l River, MA (#325)

23. Vho were the parents of John Henry Blois and Georgians Smith? They married 1869 i n Simcoe County, Ontario, and immigrated t o Lansing, Michigan i n the l a t e 1880%. Believe J.H. Blois may be a descendant of one of several Blois families that l ived i n Toronto, York County, Ontario i n ea r ly 1800's. (6266) Michael LaForest, 604 Ensley Dr. , Rte 29, Knoxville, Tennessee 37920

24. Who were the parents of Joseph Guyon, born 24 October 1827 near Hontrsal, Q U ~ . ? i n 1843-4, Joseph married Sophia Desdell (DCziel? 1, daughter of Michel Desdell. They had a daughter Alice, and the family moved t o Bourbonnais, Ill. i n the 1850's~ #266)

25. Who were the parents of Carolyn Desnoyers, born 4 June 1840 i d n e a r Montrkal? Sometime before 1856 she immigrated t o USA. #266

26, Need the marriage of David Cote and Marie Desrochers, somewhere i n Maine before 1890. (Krist ine Kurtz #333)

27, Need the place and date of the marriage of Charles Chouinard (Pierre and k;arie ~ o s s e l i n ) and Amanda O t i s , possibly i n Matane

28. Need marriage information concerning Jean Baptiste Mondore and bladeleine Dord. Daughter is ~ng6lique who married Jean Baptiste Dralet, 2-2-1828, St-Michel, Yamaska (Pearl n i b e a u l t (#137) 223 Skel l St. , Chicopee , MA 01013. )

29. Need marriage of Besile Morin and Franyoise Bois . Their daughter SBraphine, iasrried Hyaclnzhe hi avert , 14--4-1828, S t-Francois-du-Lac , Yamaska. (#I371

30. Need marriage of August Cot6 and Elizabeth G i l l . Son, Frederic, married J u l i e Nadeail , 12-1-1864, St-Franpois-du-Lac . Yamaska , (lI.37 1

31, Need marriage of Joseph Nadeau and Marie Gingue, Son, Maxime married Awelie Boievert , 10-2-u46, S t-Francois-du-Lac . (#137)

32, Require information on the descendants of Guillaume Charbonneau and Catherine Grignon, m. 20-4-1839, St-Hyacinthe. Guillaume remained i n Canada and did not follow h i s brothers, Jean Baptiste and Antoine, t o Vermnt around 1836. Later

' t h e y migrated t o Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota. The son of Guillaume Charbonneau and Catherine Grignon named Bernard, married Melina Durocher, 8-2-1869, St-Hyacinthe. Some of Bernard's children moved t o Hasmchusetts. They were: Elie, m. Mathilda Thompson (Joaeph and Julia Thompson) 8-9-1889, Lynn; Joseph, m. Marie Henriette co t6 , 28-10-1878, Lawrence ; Neralie , m. Thomas Dubois ( ~ u g m t i n and Rosalie Facteau) 10-11-1880, Methuen. (Leander J. Cole # 338 820-2nd Ave. N.W., Grand Rapids, Minnesota 55744)

33. Need marriage of Eli Helier Trombley - Trembly t o Mary Depuis, ca. 1878 possibly i n Bris tol , R 1 I . Children: George, b, 10-12-1880; Theodore, b. 9-7-1881; Rose, b. 24-8-1887, a l l of Bris tol , R. I, (Earl D, Bel is le (#332), 5604 Upton Ave. S . , Minneapolis , MN. 5 9 1 0 )

34. Did Oliver Xavier Trombley marry Carrie Beauchene i n Warren, R.I. on 8-4-1881? Who were her parents? (#332) '

35. Seeking in fo on Joseph R. and Mary Jacques who emig. Can. t o M I ca 1865, then t o MN by 1900. Joseph d. 1907, Mary d. 1902 both St. Paul. Their children included Joseph Alphonse who m. Marie Exilda Rondeau by 1889; Edward who m. Cisarine Papineau 31-10-1886; Felix Eminuel who m. Marie Rouleau 31-7-1888; Joseph Alexander who m, Elizabeth Bellemeur 25-6-1894; Marie who m. Nick Hansen 8-2-1891; and Florence who m. a M r . Thacker a f t e r 1900. Wish t o corresp. w. descendants of any of the above. (Jeanne Herman Jacques # 385 1300 Branzos, Rosenberg, TX 77471)

36, Marriage of Alfred Bourget (could be Burgess) and M. Louise Beaueoleil, ca, 1898-1901. Could have been a c i v i l or Protestant Marriage i n R.I. o r Mass, (fl15).

37. Marriage of Roch Beausolei1 and M. Lse. Banin (parents of M. Louise i n question #36. (115)

38. Parents of George Nadeau born 23 Aug. 1843 i n Canada. Married Marguerite Lambert (#l;Jl)c

LE SAVIEZ-VOUS?

Undoubtedly the most famous Quebec expatr ia te t o es tab l i sh himself i n California was Explorer Jean-Charles Frgmont, who became an army general, state governor and a U.S. senator before running ~ ~ 6 u c c e s s f u l l ~ as the Republican Party 's candidate fo r the U.S. presidency.

Farnsworth, Harold David Gaboriault,Lauis C. Morin, Paul E., Fournier, Camille, 6.c. Hgbert , Captain Maurice Tablas, Lorraine M., LaGasse, Rudolph Levrault, Estelle, Levrault, Romeo J., Ouellette, Marion, Ouellette, Joseph, Beauchemin, Charlotte, Proulx, George A,, Proulx, Emeline C., Glaude, Roger O., Loring-Lorbach, Jeannette Shane, aita, Soucy, Romeo A., Quintal, Helen, Lamourew, Cora M., Tootell, Lucy RawUngs, Hollister, Calvin Henry Kears, Judy A m , Lamarre, Normand L., Lamarre, Francis, Thomas, Mrs. Mariano Gamache, Sarto R., Duffy, Donald, Bernier, M. Cyril Deragon, Norman T. Rancourt, iiene E. Fournier , Alfred Charrette, Edmond, Sloan (Leveille), Rita J., Mercure, Marie Smith, Geraldine, Iabbe, Corinne A,, Greer, Vivian B., Peterson, Rosemary E., Cadoret, Raymond Thibault, Lea, Duprey, Nora O., Gagnon , 2onald St. Onge, Kenneth Eiarris, Diane R., Collison, Sharon Clermont, Lavoie, Robt. C., Duval, Gertrude R.A., White Cross, Carolya Joubert , Debbie Dowling, Margaret M. Vint , Mrs. Florence W. Belisle, Earl,

- 53 - NEWMPfBERS

549-B Piazza Dr., Mountain View, CA 94043 277 Pike Ave., Attleboro, Mass. 02703 3% Lincoln Ave . , Cranston, H. I. 02920 57 Divieion st . , Hanville, R. I. 02838 3303A Galloway Gate Rd, , Fort McLellan, ALA 36205 249 Lancewood Rd., Columbia, S.C. 29210 26 Norwalk Aye., Whiting, N. J. 08759 169 Oakland St . , Fall River, Masa . 02720 169 Oakland St. , Fall River, Mass. 02720 168 Balch St., Pawtucket , R. I. 02861 168 Balch St. , Pawtucke t , R . I. 02861 96 Earle St., Woonsocket , R. I. 02895 144 Maple St., Attleboro, Mass. 02703 144 Maple St., Attleboro, Mass. 02703 8 9 Mendon Rd., Woonsocket, R, I. 02895 5061 Lamb Dr., Oak Lawn, f 11. 60453 10 Montgomery St., Ghicopee Falls, MA 01020 608 Mendon Rd., N. Smithfield, R. I. 02895 1279 Hunt St., Central Falls, R. I. 02863 Weaver Hill Rd. RR1, W. Greenwich, R.I. 02816 Meadowbrook Rd., Wyoming, R. I. 02898 59 High St., So. Glastonbury, CT. 06073 14540 Baldwin Ave . , Baldwin Park, CA 91706 359 Williston Way, Pawtucket, R. 1. 02861 988 Smith St., Providence, R. I. 02908 83 Wakef ield St. , W. Warwick, R. I. 02893 83 Booth Ave., Pawtucket, R, I. 02861 582 N. Main St., Palmer, Masa. 01069 1205 Cr. Champigny, Duvernay, Lava1 H7E-4MB 4 Taylor Court, Cumberland, R. I. 02864 38 Clark Ave., Pawtucket, R . I. 02860 24 Pine Valley Rd. , Hyannis, MA 02601 5 Clyde Place, Lexington, MA 02173 Sharp St. RFD2, W. Greenwich, R.I. 02816 Ironstone St., Milville, MA 01529 745 Point Judith Rd., Narragansett, R. I. 02882 4 Union Ave., No. Providence, R.I. 02904 m 2 , Box 60E, Foster, R. 1. 02825 956 No. Eastern Ave., Fall 2iver , MA 02720 48 Coyle Ave. , Rumford, R.I. 02916 1172 Smithfield Rd., No. Smithfield, 2.1. 02895 Myricks St., RFD5, Lakeville , MA 02346 Pole #41, Cobble Hill Rd. , Lincoln, R. I. 02865 76 Clay St., Central Falls, R. I. 02863 442 Stone Church Rd., Little Compton, R.I. 02873 2140 N. 93rd St,, inlauwatosa, Wisc. 53226 2803 Lomax C t . , Waldor f , Maryland 20601 62 Ave. B, Woonsocket , R. I. 02895 Pole 6, Ledgernont Dr., Lincoln, R, I. 02865 30 E. Hodges St., Norton, MA 02766 217 Luisita Rd., Thiensville, WI: 5W92 6200 Cumberland Ave . ( ~ p t . 201) Springfield lJ+ 5604 Upton Ave., So. Minneapolis, W I 55416 50

Kurtz, Yxs. Kristine, Lapointe, Lionel Lapointe , Mrs. Madeleine (Gagnon) Raymond, Helene Markielewski, Esther, Cole (~harbonneau) bander, Siebert, David Arthur Cartier, Gerard A,, Pennachi, Jeannette Yvonne, O'Brien, George Bissonnette, Constance Rompre, Francis Emery, Henri ZaFrance, Maurice Haskell, Owen John, Mulcahey, Robt., Loy, Elaine Morrissette, J. Ronald E., Bergeron, Paul E., Boulia, Bernardine Harrington, Loretta (Gosselin) Connelw, Beverly, Guertin, Robert B., Rush, Lillian Dionne, Auger, Roland Ginpas, Raymond Lanthier, Raymond Rocheleau, Jean, Canuel, Juliette, Tondreault, Francis Lebeau, Leo Cyr, Paul Albert Olivieri, Dorothy Lanciaux, Paul Lafrenaye, Lucien Leo Lafrenaye, Yvonne Karmooch, Helen T., Desbiens, George Vieira, Carolyn Gagnon, Louis P. M.D., Theberge, Jeanne F., Theberge, Fleurette G., Theriault, Simonne Greenhalgh. Helen Eienoit , Jeanne MacCay, Prescille B., Bellin, Bobinson Oligny Adams, Marie A. Masse, Brodeur, &nest J., Fonthe, Emery, Hoffman, Dora1 Jacques, Jeane Herman Pion, Russell Johnson, Rosalie Hebard, Mae

7334 S. Losan, Oak Creek, WI 53154 1033 Spencer St., Fall River, MA 02721 1033 Spencer St., Fall River, MA 02721 254 Chapel St. , Lincoln, R. I. 02865 7651 Townline Rd. , West Bend, WX 53095 820-2nd Ave. N. W., Grand Rapids, Minn. 55744 P.O. BOX 60, Colchester, CT 06415 11 hicilla Rd., Woonaocket , R.1. 02895 49 Connection St. , Newport, R. I. 02840 265 Prospect Ave., Middletown, R.I. 02840 58 Annette Ave., Woonsocket, R.I. 02895 196 Alder St., Waterbury, CT 06708 7 Charpenter St., Pawtucket , R.1. 02860 4 Eric Rd., N. Dartmouth, MA 02747 .

1229 Narragansett Blvd., Cranston, R.I. 02905 : 153. Nancy Ct., Woonsocket , R.1. 02895 2922 N, Silver Spur Dr. , Tucson, AR 85705 25 Gough Ave., W. Warwick, R . 1 . 02893 181 Valley St., Central Falls, R.1. 02863 3325 S. 26th St . , (#18) Milwaukee, WI 53215 E. Rd., Hampstead, Westville, N.H. 03892 67 Coggeshall Ave., Newport, R. I. 02840 Lake Washington Dr. , Chepachet , R. I. 02814 658 Public St. , Providence, R. I. 02907 P.O. Box 845, Hauteville, Quebec. Que G1R 457 39 West 39th St. Cyrille, Apt . 5 , Quebec 323 Tiffany St., Attleboro, MA 02703 242 Manton Ave. , Pawtucket, R.I. 02861 165 Trenton St., Pawtucket, H. I. 02860 20 Fletcher St., Central Falls, R.1. 02863 32 W. Hunt St., Central Falls, R.I. 02863 441 Pleasant St . , New Bedf ord, MA 02740 251 Arnold Rd. , Coventry, R. I. 02816 120 Waumeett Ave., Cumberland, R.1. 02864 P.O. Box 227, W. Warwick, R.1, 02893 P.O. Box 227, W. Wewick, R.I..02893 27 Harcourt Ave., Pawtucket, R.I. 02863 30 Washington St., Central Falls, R.1, 02863 10 Carrier Ave., So. Attleboro, MA 12703 465 Read St., Manchester, N.H. 03102 808 Central Ave., Pawtucket , R. I. 02861 808 Central Ave., Pawtucket, R.I. 02861 208 SuffoU Ave., Pawtucket, R.I. 02861

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Mt. Pleasant Rdo, Nasonville, RI, m, 02895 - 27 Coyle Ave., Pawtucket, R . 1 . 02860 - 14707-40th NE, Seattle , Washington 98155 26 Fairview Ave., Cranston, R.I. 02905 RFD3, Box 28a, Gales Ferry, CT 06333 5 Cottage Place, Lowell, MA 01852 17 Gagie St., Penacook, N.H. 03303 150 High St., Watertown, CT 06795 1300 Brazos, Rosenberg, TX 77471 193 Norfolk Ave., Pawtucket, R. I. 02861 229 Park Ave., Cranston, R.I. 02905 7 School St . , Box 581, lkrion, MA 02378

Fournier, Marie Aubin, Robert R., Smith, Hrs. Barbara Leblanc, b80 Gaspard Phaneuf, Denise 'Icremblay, Robt., Ooulet, Robert Lacoste, Louise Pelletier, Raymond, Stwtevant, Alice B., Herow, Yvette Gurney, Doris Levesque Jobin, Florence E.9 Berard, Linda Perron, George W.,

Manchester City Library Wisconsin State Historical Soc., Woonsocket Public Library R.I. Historical Soc., Pawtucket Public Library N.E. Historical Genealogical Soc. N.Y. Public Library, Div. (3 Los Angeles Public Library, Gen. Detroit Public Library Societ6 Hlstorique de la Oasp&eie Musee R6gional de Gaspd

395 S. Main St., Woansocket, R.1. 02895 155 Lawndale Rd. , Mansfield, HA 02048 345 So. Chery, Itasca, Ill. 60143 98 Launsbwy St., Waterbury, CT 06706 52 Grandview Dr., Westfield, HA 01085 47 ~tlantic Blvd., No. Providence, RI 02911 35 Sayles Ave. , Pascoag , R.1 . 02859 212 Providence-St., Woonsocket, RI 02895 CP 813, Nicolet, Qud., JOG 1EO 523 Winchester St., Keene, N.H. 03431 43 Garnet St., W. Warwick, R.I., 02893 42 Oriole St., New Bedford, MA 02745 5 Peach Orchard Dr., Riverside, RI 02915 7 Payan St., W. Warwick, RI 0289) 147 Railroad St., Manville, RI 02838

405 Pine St., Manchester, N O H . 03104 816 State St., Madison, WI 53706 303 Clinton St., Woonsocket, R.1. 02895 121 Hope St., Providence, R. I. 02906 13 Sumner St. , Pawtucket , R .I. 02860 101 Newbury St., Boston, MA 02116 G.C.Sta., P.O. Box 2237, New York 10017 630 W. 5th St., Los Angeles, CA 90071 5201 Woodward Ave. , Detroit, Mich. 48202

44-L Robert P. Goudreau LIFE MEMBERS

46-L Ronald Paque t te 67-L Mrs. Calvin Harlow

' RE-INSTATE 7. Turenne, Leo E. 120 Lillian Blais 21. L'Heurew, Alcide 121. Leona Messier 35. Normand Lapointe 102. Edward Prew 97. Flora Therrien .38. Joseph Blanchard 31. Leda M. Michaud 30. Robert Michaud

CHANGE OF ADDlZESS

Roland laplume Leo Leboeuf Anne Chretien

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John Pereira, Cdr. R.E. Doucet George Gagne Theodore Brassard Elizabeth Schug Jean Tetreault, Cecile Martens

188 Sumter St., Providence, 2.1. 02907 136 John St., Pawtucket, R. I. 02861 -ton st., PO BOX 74, slatersville, RI 02876 1156 Brayton Ave. , Somerset , MA 02706 5228 Guinda Ct., San Diego, CA 92124 P.O. Box 441, Winstead, CT 06098 RF'D3 Box 220, Mountain Grov-. , MOO 65711 P.O. Box 727, Airway Heights, Washington 99001 11831 Lavigne, Montreal, H ~ J 1x7 R F D ~ , Benedict Rd., Woomocket , R. I. 02895

FOR SALE BY THE SOCIETY

Eight generation Fhuiily Trem, Specially deeigned and printed on parchment-We paper of heavy atock, very ornate and su i tab le for framing.. .. (add.%. po~tage) ....... $2.50 ea.

Back issues of "Je Me Souvlene" (specify which volume). ......................... 82.50 ea. bound........... $3.50 ea.

Nve generation charts -- Standard form.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p er 1,000. .... 612.p (sold only by 1,000 in the mail but always available by 100's at the Society)

. (add 82.9 postage for these charts)

IPhirtg-three 7 generation charts (11" x 17" ) containing space for 14 generations.$6.00 set

Specially designed Straight Line Chart for fnscribing the direct ascendance of a family. This chart is printed in blue and gold and contains the eeal of the Society in the Lower left-hand corner. Suitable for framing. (add postage for mail orders) ........... $1.0 ea.

,Kmerlcan-Canadian Geneal ogl cal

Ooctety o(! New HampGhtrc F c ~ ~ ~ l d e d Sspteinhcr 1973

FOR RELEASE IK THE NEXT ISSUE OF YOUR PUBLICATTON:

The American-Canadian Genealogical Socie ty w i l l hold i t ' s

.. " F a l l Conference" on the weekend of October 6 t h , 1979.

Jean L. P e l l e r i n , of Manchester, s o c i e t y P res iden t explained - that the conference w i l l be held i n the P e r i n i Science buil.ding at

S t . Anselm's College, Manchester, N.H.

The program w i l l begin on Saturday October 6 t h a t 9: 00 AX

with r e g i s t r a t i o n followed by the Annual Business meeting and

Elec t ion of Of f i ce r s a t 9:30 AM.

A f t e r the lunch break, the program will c o n s i s t of a multi-

media p resen ta t ion e n t i t l e d "Franco-Americans, t h e i r History,

Culture , Music and Tradi t ions".

A t 4:00 PM the re w i l l be a beginners workshop and running con-

c u r r e n t l y with the day's program w i l l be an expos i t ion of genealo-

g i c a l a i d s and publ ica t ions a v a i l a b l e f o r sale. From 6rOO PM t o

10: 00 PM, Saturday evening the Soc ie ty ' s Library loca ted a t 172

Belmont S t . i n Manchester w i l l be open f o r ind iv idua l research.

Sunday's program w i l l c o n s i s t s o l e l y of research i n t h e Library

from 9:00 AM t o 9:OO PM., due t o the l i m i t e d capaci ty , preference w i l :

be given t o individuals a t t end ing from long d i s t ances .

-- The conference is open t o members and non-members, the r eg i s -

t r a t i o n fee is $2.00 p e r person. For more information c o n b c t the

Socie ty a t 587 Rimmon St., Manchester, N . H . , 03102, T e l . 603-669-