No one knows how their lives will take shape over the years. Little did my fourth great-grandfather, Joseph Antoine Gauthier dit Landreville know the path that lay before him. Joseph Antoine was one of 9 children, born in the midst of winter, February 20, 1731 to Jean Gauthier dit Landreville and Therese Moreau dite Latopine in Varennes, a village west of Ville Marie ( Montreal) on the banks of the St. Lawrence River
Baptism of Joseph Antoine Gauthier
Map of the area including Varennes and L’Assomption
“In 1647, the L’Assomption Seignory was granted to Pierre Legardeur de Repentigny, named after the river, already named such since the seventeenth century. Between 1640 and 1700, a settlement formed inside a large horseshoe-shaped meander of the L’Assomption River. Amerindians had already been visiting this site since ancient times and called it Outaragasipi meaning widening river, in reference to the river’s course. They would drag their canoes across the peninsula as a short-cut for the meander, and therefore the settlement was first called Le Portage.
In 1717, the parish was formed, known thereafter as Saint-Pierre-du-Portage-de-l’Assomption and also as Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul-du-Portage. In 1766, the village saw an influx of Acadian settlers. Between 1774 and 1888, L’Assomption was the most prosperous and important town between Montreal and Trois-Rivieres. 3.”
When Joseph Antoine was almost 25 years old on the 12th of January 1756, in L’Assomption he married a young 23-year-old widow, Agathe Laperche dit Saint Jean, along with her young daughter, Marie. The young couple had 2 sons, Joseph, and Pierre.
Almost 4 years into their marriage tragedy struck with no mention as to the cause, Agathe died leaving Joseph Antoine with three young children. Guardianship was arranged for the children.
Below is a translation of the first several lines of the above burial record for Agathe Laperche dite St Jean 4.
In the year seventeen hundred and fifty-nine, the 25th of November by the undersigned priest Vicar of this parish inhumed in this cemetery the body of Agathe Laperche dit St Jean spouse of Joseph Gautier Landreville at the age of twenty three who died yesterday…..
Three long years passed.
In February of 1762 Joseph Antoine married his second wife, 19-year-old, Louise Gregoire. Within three months tragedy struck and she, along with 9 other young women perished while crossing the Assomption River.
Marriage record of Louise Gregoire and Joseph Antoine Gauthier dit Landreville 5.
Below are the first two and half lines translated from the above Marriage record of Joseph Antoine to Louise Gregoire.
Joseph Gauthier dit Landreville widower of Agathe Laperche from this parish on one part and Louise Gregoire daughter of defunct Basil Gregoire and Marie Clemence Proulx, mother from this same parish declare no impeachment to this marriage.
Three months after their wedding tragedy struck and Louise, along with 9 other young women perished while crossing the Assomption River on the 20th of May 1762. They ranged in age from single girls 16 -17 years old and young wives who were around 19 or 20. Were they returning home to their farms across the river from the village?
The Assomption River meanders forming a peninsula around the village.6.
The above is the burial record of Louise and the other young ladies who drowned in the Assomption River. 7.
A year and half after Louise’s drowning Joseph Antoine married for the third time in October 1763. Both he and his new bride, Francoise Loiselle, were born in the same year, 1731, and were now 32 years old.
Marriage of Francoise Loiselle and Joseph Antoine 8.
On August 15, 1764, Francoise gave birth to a daughter Marie Francoise, however, the baby’s stay on earth was very brief and she died two weeks later. Another year went by and on August 31, 1765, Louis Stanislas was born. He had a long life and died at the age of eighty-three. Francoise on the other hand was not as fortunate. Her life was cut short. After less than three years of marriage to Joseph Antoine, she died in January 1767.
At this point in his life, Joseph Antoine at age thirty-six had been married three times, lost a daughter, buried three wives, and now had five children between 2 and 14 years of age in his care, no doubt a daunting task. How would he cope? Where would he find the courage and strength to continue? His life thus far adhered to the saying “Things come in 3s” or “Jamais deux sans trois”.
When were the tragedies going to end? He had experienced more upheavals in his short life than the average person. Would there be a brighter future in store for him?
Not letting the grass grow under his feet and with firm determination, within a year and a half on August 22, 1768, he married an Acadian, Marie Leblanc. He was thirty-seven and she was in her mid-twenties. She too had endured hardships in her life. Her family had been deported along with many other Acadians who made their way to Massachusetts, then eventually settled in L’Assomption, Quebec and surrounding area.
The marriage record for Joseph Antoine and Marie Leblanc 9.
Translation of the first few lines:
In the year seventeen hundred and sixty-eight on the 22 of August, after publishing the bans at Mass for three consecutive Sundays……. Joseph Gauthier dit Landreville widower of Marie Francoise Loiselle from this parish on the one hand between Marie Leblanc, daughter of Francois Leblanc and Elizabeth Dugas the father and mother from the same parish….
“In Québec, the Acadians settled in every corner of the province starting in the late 1760s. Mostly concentrated along the St. Lawrence River, they progressively settled in other areas where agriculture was predominant. The province of Québec is where the largest Acadian population was living by the end of the 18th century. Because of the similarities in religion, language, and social status with the Canadiens (French Canadians, today’s Québecois), the Acadians easily integrated into mainstream society. The Acadians who lived in the province embraced the struggle for the rights of French speakers that drove politics and social discourse in Québec throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. Despite their integration, these communities maintained an awareness of their ancestry and contact with the Acadian communities of eastern Canada. In the late 19th century. 10.
In May of 1769 Marie gave birth to Marie Josephe. Alas, their joys were dashed. The little girl did not survive her first winter and died the following February. One more heartache.
Their lives took a positive turn and in March of 1771 Alexis was born. Between 1771 and 1778 three more sons and a daughter rounded out the family. At long last stability had become a part of their lives. There was joy in the Gauthier household.
Alas! At the age of forty-eight and in the prime of life Joseph Antoine’s life abruptly came to an end. He had experienced more than his fair share of trials and tribulations during his short life. He had endured many heartaches and misery beyond belief. Despite all all the turbulence in his life, in the end he finally found companionship, joy, and happiness. Joseph Antoine died of unknown causes on the 8th of July 1779. He was buried in L’ Assomption the following day.
Burial Record of Joseph Antoine Gauthier dit Landreville
Translation of the burial record for Joseph Antoine Gauthier dit Landreville
In the year seventeen hundred and seventy-nine…….in the cemetery of this parish the body of Joseph Landreville…..
Marie Leblanc married a second time in the fall of 1780 and had several more children. She lived to the age of 82 and died in 1824 in the neighbouring community of St. Joseph de l’Achigan.
Note:
In the scope of this research there was no mention of Joseph Antoine’s occupation, however, given the fertile land around the Assomption River one could surmise that he was a farmer…. un “cultivateur’…
In this research I have maintained the French spelling that is used in the province of Quebec for the name of the town and river. The spelling in English is ‘Assumption’.
Sources:
2.Ibid
4.https://famille-arbour.com/2012/04/14/gauthier-joseph-1731-laperche-agathe-1736/
5.https://www.myheritage.com/names/joseph_gauthier%20dit%20landreville
8. https://www.myheritage.com/names/joseph_gauthier%20dit%20landreville
9. https://www.genealogiequebec.com/en/
https://www.myheritage.com/names/joseph_gauthier%20dit%20landreville
10. http://www.landscapeofgrandpre.ca/deportation-and-new-settlement-1755ndash1810.html
11. familysearch.org
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Genealogy Ensemble 