SATURDAY NIGHT GENEALOGY FUN

This is my first foray into Saturday Night Genealogy Fun hosted by Randy Seaver @ Genea-Musings .
I often see the topics and don't have anything to add to them but this Saturday night is different. Here is the topic for this week. 

What is the Nicest Thing another genealogist did for you, or to you, in the last week or so? (If you have no examples for this past week, go back in time - surely someone has done a nice thing for you in recent years!).

I don't have anything recent but several years ago I was contacted by my second cousin, Maureen. I didn't even know she existed as I was very early into my research. We agreed that the connection was there in the family tree and exchanged notes and details. I thought I had won the lottery because she had so much more information than I did. 

Then it came. It came in the mail. A large manila envelope heavy with family photographs. Photographs of people who I had never seen before. My family. Aunts, uncles, cousins, great grandparents. Oh my, the photos it contained. 

You can get information and details, dates and places and names but when you see a photo of your blood family from a time long before you were even born it changes you. It connects you to a whole world of people. It grounds you and it is the nicest thing anyone has done for me in the genealogy world. 

Thank you Maureen. 

I was so lucky to meet Maureen in person for a lovely lunch. She lives about 5 hours away from me. When I look at her I see my mother and my aunts faces too.  

MARIN BOUCHER- 8TH GREAT GRANDFATHER

Genealogy is synonymous with sharing I think. How lucky for me to find the site of a generous  researcher, Michel Robert. 
Michel has done a great deal of research that includes one set of my 8th. great grandparents. He was even in France and has photographed the original home of theirs from the 1500's. 
His web site is full of interesting genealogy research, photos and facts. I really had little on my relative other then an approximate birth date in France and the names of both his wives and 8 of his children. He generously allowed me to use his photographs in this post.

La Barre home of Julienne Baril and Marin Boucher. Handed down in her family.
 

Marin Boucher was born around 1589 in Mortagne, France. He married his first wife Julienne Baril in February of 1611. Their son Francois married Florence Gareman in 1641 making them 7th great grandparents. I don't have the names yet of any more of their children but Michel says there were

After the death of Julienne in 1627 Marin still lived in the house in France that had been handed down through the Baril family. I don't  have any records of the other children from his first marriage but Michel states there were 7 in all baptized in St. Langis all said to be from La Barre which is how the family house was referred to noting the great grandfather of Julienne whose surname was Barr.

Being left with young children it was imperative Marin marry again and he chose Perrine Malet. With her he had 7 children one of which became one of my 7th great grandmothers, Madeleine Boucher.

St. Langis, church where Marin Boucher's children were baptized. 

I have had this happen several times in my tree where I am connected not only through a married couple but also through more than one of their children who end up connected to me down the line. Inbreeding at it's best. 
There is much more I could add but I don't want to simply post a copy of Michel's own research. He has worked very hard on gathering so much personal information. You should have a look at his site, Genealogy of New France in North America. It is bursting with information, maps, passenger lists.

KREATIVE BLOGGER AWARD

Linda @ Flipside is a sneaky one for sure. Yesterday I awarded her blog the Kreative Blogger award in recognition of her many interesting and creative posts on her site. She has done amazing research on her family trees and posts such interesting things. 
Now Linda knows I have two blogs and she turned around and gave the award right back to me for this blog. Ha, sneaky I told ya! 

Well thank you Linda. It is appreciated. I will list the 7 things asked for but I will not select 7 more recipients as it was hard enough the last time. Not that there aren't many who deserve it but there are many who have award and tag free blogs. 

7 Things About Me

1. I am so into genealogy that I will look for stuff for anyone. 
2. I often solve  brick wall in my research in the middle of the night when I roll over in bed.
3. I had an uncle who did nothing but research every day in the archives in Ottawa and never shared a word of it with any of the family. (okay not really about me I know)
   
4. I have to use a calculator to work out dates and ages because I can't do math in my head. Even simple ones. 
5. I proved we were Metis when I did my mother's side of the family. It was not something they were proud of in the past but my sisters and I are very proud. 
6. I have developed an interest in history since starting genealogy because now I can relate it to real people. I think this is something the schools could use to their advantage. 
7. I think people who do genealogy are always the most generous, kind people out there. They share such fabulous information and photos with complete strangers. I like to think I am the same.
   

METIS VETERANS MEMORIAL

 I post this with the permission of the Metis National Council. I think it is an important honour for our Metis veterans who have served our country. Lest we forget.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Métis Veterans to be Honoured at Juno Beach
Ottawa, ON -- Métis Nation veterans, youth and dignitaries will travel to the Juno Beach Centre in Courseulles-sur-Mer, France next week to dedicate a memorial to Métis who served in the World Wars.
“We all owe a debt to the Métis Nation citizens who fought, who were wounded and who died defending their people, their country and world freedom,” said Métis National Council President Clément Chartier. “This memorial will help ensure their service and sacrifice will not be forgotten.”
The memorial will include an exhibit highlighting Métis culture, the contributions of Métis soldiers, aircrew and sailors during the World Wars and will feature a Red River Cart, one of the most widely recognized symbols of the Métis Nation.

A STORY OF MY MOM

This is a story about my mom. Although parts of this story may seem sad it is actually isn't. I learned a lot from my mom. She died when I was 25, before my kids were born. She had always had a pretty rough life and seemed beaten down a good portion of the time. We will go back to the year 1969, Christmas time. I was 13.


One of my sisters and my brother chipped in their money to send my mom and me from British Columbia back to Ontario to visit our eldest sister who lived there with her husband and kids. They didn't have enough money for a plane so we were traveling by train. They also didn't have enough money for a berth so we were going to sleep in our seats. For 3 nights. 
The food at the diner counter was pretty rough looking. The only thing they had that seemed decent was some pea soup. Breakfast, pea soup. Lunch, pea soup. Dinner, pea soup. My mother finally had enough of this but had such a tight budget I didn't know what she could do. 

image courtesy of J E Matheson

She brought me through the train cars, past the luncheon counter further and further until we got to the dining car. Train travel back in those days, when you had the money was very elegant. The tables were set in a fashion that would give Bill or Susan a run for their money on Tablescape Thursday for sure. 
She hustled me over to one of the beautifully set tables. The table was set with icy cold water filled crystal glasses, crystal dishes filled with olives and celery and other tidbits to nibble on. White linen napkins starched into perfect folds.  A silver basket lined with a white napkin held some yeasty warm breads and the butter pats were close by molded into shells on their silver plates.


"Quickly" she said. "have some bread and butter" She tore some bread and managed to get the crumbs on the tablecloth. On purpose. 
"Have some olives and celery" she said while drinking from the crystal glass. 
Slowly down the aisle way came the conductor. He was chatting with the patrons. I ate some olives. Closer he comes, I drink some water. Finally he reaches our table. He asks my mother to see her ticket expecting (or not) to see a first class ticket which would entitle us to be in the elegant dining car. 
She hands him our tickets and he says, of course, that we are not supposed to be in the dining car.
 
Really? she asks. Oh my I didn't realize that. The conductor eyes the table in front of us. They would have to completely redo the table if we left. He decided that we could stay and we ordered our dinner. I think the only thing I recognized on the menu was a steak so that is what I had. I don't remember what my mother had but she enjoyed every bite of it.


Well this story almost has a happy ending. Remember this was the first solid food I had eaten in a couple of days. The train was shaking back and forth. I could feel it slowly coming back up and I excused myself quickly from the table. I raced out of the dining car and into the first bathroom I could find. I threw up my entire dinner as the train jolted me from side to side. It was a colossal mess and I took off back to our car as fast as I could. I was so embarrassed. 
The next morning I went to get some pea soup from the luncheonette and they were all out.

(I have also posted this on my other site:Family Trees May Contain Nuts)

MY GRANDPARENTS

I have always said it is easier to get information on my family members back in the 1700's than it has been for the 1900's.

My grandfather, Ziphirin Champagne was born July 28, 1876 in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He married Octavie Carriere on May 21, 1907. He was 30 years old and she was 18, having been born February 12, 1889 in DeSalaberry, Manitoba. I have his date of death as September 11, 1944 in Ontario. This was before I was born. I cannot find a death date for her.

I have no recollection of my grandmother but I have a vague recollection of my mom and my aunt cleaning out her suite in an old house. I could be mistaken about that. I would have been about 4 or 5 years old. I recall hardwood floors and a bunch of 78 rpm records in an empty closet.

I have few stories about them. My grandfather worked on the railway for a time. He was known for his big hands and was a bit of a security guard on the trains tossing people off. Though not an educated man Ziphirin could speak English, French and Cree being of Metis heritage. My grandmother was apparently a rather unhappy woman but with 12 children that lived, at least for a while, and many more who didn't I think I would be miserable too. Too many mouths and too little food. It was a very hard life. One that was shared with many others.

My grandparents family lines crossed in many areas. They were first cousins once removed through Emmanuel Beaugrand dit Champagne, grandfather to Ziphirin and great grandfather to Octavie. They were also second cousins through two different lines. In total they are related 16 different ways that I won't go into here. It is a wonder that my entire family doesn't have two heads or something. 

A NOTE FOR SANDY

Hi out there to Sandy who has left a couple of comments on my Picasa web album in reference to Alida Pickle. I can't leave a reply comment for some reason so how about you email me directly and we can see if I can come up with some info for you. I don't have your email address either.