This compilation, prepared by Montreal genealogist Jacques Gagné, looks at the churches frequented by Loyalists who settled in three regions of Quebec in the late 18th century: Trois-Rivières (Three Rivers) and Sorel, east of Montreal on the St. Lawrence River, and Saint-Jean (St. Johns) and Chambly, south of Montreal on the Richelieu River. It outlines the histories of these churches and where to find surviving records.
Click on the link: Loyalists Churches Sorel – Three Rivers
Author: Jim Caputo
Photos: Courtesy of Jim Caputo
Located in the very heart of the city of Gaspé lies an ancient burial ground — the O`Hara Cemetery. No one knows for certain how many souls were interred in this place. What is certain is that for many years the site was neglected, left to grow up in brush and weeds. Through the efforts of Heritage Gaspé/Héritage Gaspésie the area was cleaned of debris and brought to its present condition. Take the opportunity to visit the spot and view the graves of some of our early settlers and think back in time to Gaspé of yesteryear.
The O’Haras of Gaspe
The O’Hara’s, one of the earliest settlers of the Gaspé Basin area, arrived in Gaspé in 1765. Felix, his wife Martha and family settled on land long known as O’Hara’s Point. Their other holdings included lands that make up much of the centre of present day Gaspé Village. Felix, as well as being a prosperous land owner, played a prominent role in laying the foundations of the Gaspé communities, being made a Justice of the Peace, becoming the second Collector of Customs for the port of Gaspé, and being appointed Judge of the District of Gaspé in 1777. He also helped protect the coast from attacks during the American Revolution, and at the end of hostilities helped to survey and distribute lands to the United Empire Loyalists who came to Douglastown and New Carlisle.
As well as the efforts of Felix, other members of this family also played an important role in the development of early Gaspé. Of his sons Oliver, became Collector of Customs at Carleton; Edward represented Gaspé in the first legislature of Lower Canada (Quebec), served in the British army, and was appointed the Governor of the Island of St. Lucia in the Caribbean; Henry the youngest son, was Collector of Customs for many years and was also a Justice of the Peace and surveyor; Hugh, Collector of Customs in Gaspé, through his compassionate efforts in helping immigrants sick with fever, caught the fever himself and died as a result. The O’Hara’s also supported the development of education, the establishment of Churches, and served in local militias.
Of the original grave markers only those of Felix O’Hara (the patriarch of the O’Hara family), who died in 1805, Mary Stuart, wife of Henry O’Hara, who died in 1838, and Jane Chevalier, who died in 1848, exist today. It is believed that other members of the O’Hara family may have been buried at this site. It is also believed that others outside of the family were buried here as well.
After the clean up.
Following the War of the American Revolution, those who had remained loyal to the British felt compelled to leave the newly independent United States. While most settled in what is now Ontario, Nova Scotia and Quebec’s Eastern Townships, some moved to the Gaspé Peninsula of eastern Quebec. This is a region of interior forests and mountains and of fishing villages along the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
The newcomers settled in towns and villages such as Matapédia, Bonaventure, Percé, Gaspé and New Carlisle. Their neighbours were of French Canadian, Acadian and Micmac ancestry, and most were Roman Catholic. The newly arrived English-speaking, Protestant Loyalists needed their own places to worship and to record their births, marriages and burials.
At first, these needs were met by Anglican, Presbyterian and Methodist missionaries, but eventually the newcomers built churches of their own. This compilation lists the churches they founded and the ministers who served the English-speaking community. It guides the genealogist to the various places where their records are kept, including government and church archives, and the library of the Quebec Family History Society.
The compilation also mentions the records of the Gaspé residents who came from Jersey and Guernsey, in the Channel Isles, and the early settlers from Scotland. The introduction pays tribute to two individuals who researched and documented the lives of the English-speaking residents of the Gaspé, Kenneth Annett and David J. McDougall, and tells researchers where to find their work.
Click the link to open in a new window:
Their Churches from 1759 onward
Among the Germanic people who emigrated to Québec, we find those who fought with the Imperial Army during the British Conquest of 1759 plus those who fought for the British during the wars of the American Revolution and of 1812. An appreciable number of these Germanic soldiers settled into Québec once their tours of duty were concluded. Other German immigrants who spoke some forms of the German language originated from various principalities, dukedoms, electorates, counties, landgraviates, margraviates of Germany, but also from surrounding kingdoms such as Prussia, Silesia, Bohemia, Hungary, Poland, Austria, United Netherlands, Austrian Netherlands, Switzerland, Palatinate, Strasbourg and Luxembourg.
Click the following link The Germans in Québec
She celebrated the beginning of her 53rd year carefully describing her family to a census taker.Francis McCullough arrived at their farm first thing on Monday, after her birthday the Saturday before. Surely they talked about her birthday as he carefully marked her age and date of birth?
He also marked the date of his visit, April 21, 1901. A major snowstorm that weekend brought bad weather to almost the entire continent, but if Ontario was hit, no mention appears on the census. Nor is there any break between the farms surveyed. The page began with the Taylors on Thursday and continues with the Jons, the Diottes and the Birches prior to the Hurtubises. No break appears in his trip from farm to farm day by day.
At the Hurtubise farm, McCullough took the time necessary to hand-write the dates of births for everyone. Anne Josephe and Damase housed six children then: Gustave, who was 17; Josephine, who was 15; Juliette, 13; Jean Baptiste, 12; Marie-Louise, 10 and François, the youngest at seven years old. [1]
Unfortunately, most of the pieces of paper carefully completed by McCullough were destroyed in 1955 after the Dominion Bureau of Statistics microfilmed them. Only two remain. Sometimes guesses have to be made.
Anne Joseph’s arrival in Canada, for instance, might be 1871, but the “7” isn’t clear.
Luckily, her family shows up on passenger lists for that year. Her name then was Anne Josephe Gourdine. She was 22 years old.
Her journey from Belgium to Canada began in a carriage. A train and boat trip also took place before she and her family caught the Scandinavian, a Montreal Ocean Steamship Company ship.
Anne Josephe was among 318 immigrants described in a Canadian report compiled the following year:
Mr. Berns, Canadian Government Agent, at Antwerp, in Belgium, registered 318 emigrants for Canada during the last year. The Official Reports for the past year only mention 85…Belgium emigration to Canada is by way of Antwerp, Grimsby and Liverpool. The price of passage from Antwerp to Quebec was 160 francs.[2]
There were already passengers from Ireland onboard by the time she got on in Liverpool, England. The ship sailed on August 10, but the journey was quick. It only took two weeks to arrive in Quebec City, Quebec.[3]
Anne Josephe travelled with her family to the Parish of Sainte-Angélique in Papineauville, Quebec. That’s where she met her future husband, Damase Hurtubese. They married on May 3, 1880.[4]
They were still there, in house 229 with their 2-month old daughter Marie-Louise, when the 1881 Census taker arrived.[5]
[1] Data from the Fourth Census of Canada 1901, Cumberland, page 3 from subdistrict d2, Russell, Ontario microfilm T-6494, line 21.
[2] “Immigrants to Canada.” – Report of 1872. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Oct. 2013. http://jubilation.uwaterloo.ca/~marj/genealogy/reports/report1872.html, note: Report begins with statement “this information is taken from the Sessional Papers, 36 Victoria 1873.“
[3] Passenger Lists, 1865-1922, Library and Archives Canada, list number 77.
[4] Plaque from information compiled by Paul-André Langelier in 2000.
[5] Data from the 1881 Census, Province of Quebec, County of Mattawa, p 63.
Introduction
I wrote this article as a self-assigned exercise in applying genealogical proof standards (GPS) to a brick wall.
Following GPS procedures, I did a reasonably exhaustive search of the evidence. For each statement I made, I included a source citation. I tried to resolve conflicts and write a conclusion. I also evaluated the weight of each piece of evidence, depending on whether it was direct or indirect, original or derivative, or primary or secondary. (See an explanation of GPS by Christine Rose, https://familysearch.org/learningcenter/lesson/genealogical-proof-standard/350)
The problem is that there is no birth or baptismal record for my four-times great-grandfather Phineas Bagg (c.1750-1823). I wanted to prove that he was the son of David Bagg and Elizabeth Moseley. In addition, there were several men named David Bagg in western Massachusetts at the time, so I wanted to show which David Bagg was Phineas’ father. It was possible to undertake a research project like this because the Baggs of colonial Massachusetts were limited in numbers and in geographical area. There is a great deal of information about this population, although record-keeping in Pittsfield was poor.
In the end, I decided that I could not make a conclusive statement about Phineas’ parents, but I found nothing to indicate that he was not the son of David and Elizabeth. In fact, circumstantial evidence suggests that he was their son.
As for the GPS exercise, it was a great deal of work. Citing all those sources took almost as long as writing the article. I’m not sure that I would go to such lengths to tackle another brick wall, but evaluating each piece of evidence was extremely helpful.
This article is also posted on my own blog, http://writinguptheancestors.blogspot.ca
Questions: There is no record of the birth or baptism of my 4x great-grandfather Phineas Bagg. When and where was he born? Was he the son of David Bagg and Elizabeth Moseley?
The Baggs were a large extended family in western Massachusetts during the colonial period, approximately 1650 to 1790. The first immigrant, John Bagg, married in Springfield in 16571 and each subsequent generation produced many children. Phineas (c 1751-1823) was part of the fourth generation. By 1790, there were 19 different families headed by a male Bagg in Massachusetts, primarily in the towns of West Springfield, Westfield and Pittsfield.2 Fortunately, there was only one Phineas Bagg3, which makes him easier to track.
There are several possibilities for his identity: he could have been the son of David Bagg of Westfield and later Pittsfield as most researchers suggest; he could have been the son of a related Bagg; or he could have been adopted.
David Bagg was born in Westfield, MA on 19 Feb. 1717, the tenth and youngest child of Daniel Bagg and Hannah Phelps.4 On 12 May 1739, David Bagg and Elizabeth Moseley announced their intention to marry in Westfield.5
Although both West Springfield and Westfield generally kept good birth and baptismal records, there is a minimal possibility that Phineas was born to another Bagg family and slipped under the radar. David’s brother Daniel Bagg and his wife Abigail, of Westfield, had six children: Daniel, 1735, Moses 1737, Abigail 1738, Roger 1740, Ann 1746 and Naomi 1750.6
There were at least five other young Bagg families in the area between 1740 and 1755. In Springfield, David Bagg and his wife Hannah Stockwell had three children: Noah, born in 1740, who died at age six, Mercy born 1746 and Mary in 1748.7
In West Springfield, Ebenezer Bagg and his wife Lois produced five children: Thankfull in 1749, Frederick in 1750, Warham in 1752, Walter in 1754, Ebenezer in 1756 and Judah 1758.8
West Springfield residents Thomas and Margaret Bagg had Thomas in 1749, Israel in 1752 and Oliver in 1754. In addition, their son Ezekiel was born 1755 died at age three and they had another son they called Ezekiel in 1761.9
James and Bathsheba Bagg of West Springfield, had Bathsheba in 1745, James in 1746 and Jonathon in 1748.10
There was another young David Bagg family in West Springfield, however, I have not found a marriage and mother’s name did not appear in the children’s baptism records; they are simply listed as son or daughter of David Bagg. These children were: David bap. Sept 18 1737, Hannah bap. July 15 1739, Aaron bap. Oct 28 1740, Mercy bap. Jan 19 1746 and Mary bap. Jan 19 1748.11
It is unlikely that Phineas was orphaned or given up for adoption and raised by David and Elizabeth. I have so far been unable to find any references to adoption practices in colonial Massachusetts, but there would likely have been a paper trail and I have not run across any legal guardianship documents concerned with Phineas.
Assuming that he was the son of David and Elizabeth, when was Phineas born? Most sources say he was born around 1750 or 1751. The best evidence for his date of birth comes from the record of his burial at Montreal’s Anglican Christ Church. Dated Nov. 3, 1823, it says, “Phineas Bagg esq of Montreal, merchant, died on the 31 day of November [sic] 1823, aged 72 years, and was buried on the 3rd day of November following by me. John Bethune, rector.” 12 (The minister made a mistake on the date of death: it was actually 31 October.) Neither of his sons signed as witnesses, so it is not clear whether any family members were present. Thus, although the source is original, the information is secondary.
David and Elizabeth had seven children baptized in Westfield: Elizabeth baptized 1741, Joseph 1741, Rachel 1742, Martin 1745, Eunice 1746, Abner 1748 and Aaron baptized 11 March 1750.13 If Phineas was born in 1751, this would have fit the pattern of Elizabeth having a baby every year or two.
Where was Phineas born? Probably Westfield, since David Bagg is not listed among the early landowners of Pittsfield.14 Pittsfield was a newly settled town in the Berkshire Hills, on the western frontier of the colony, about 50 miles from Westfield. David Bagg is thought to have moved there not long after 176415 but more research needs to be done on David Bagg’s land records in Westfield and Pittsfield to try to establish a time-line.
Another question arises here: there were several men named David Bagg in this time period. Was Elizabeth Moseley’s husband the same David Bagg who moved to Pittsfield after her death? The answer is probably yes. David Bagg jr., son of David and Hannah of Springfield died in 1756 in his 19th year.16 David Bagg, son of Jonathon Bagg of Springfield, died in 1760 in his 50th year.17 (Perhaps he was the David Bagg who had five children born in West Springfield.)
There was one more David Bagg: David Bagg, born Westfield to Mary Sacket, March 27, 1739.18 I have found no other records concerning him.
Following Elizabeth’s death, David Bagg of Westfield moved to Blandford, Mass,19 where he married Martha Cook, the widow of John Dickinson, on June 25, 1761.20 She died a year later. After he moved to Pittsfield, David married a third time, to Ruth Tupper.21 There is no record of his death.
Because David and his sons seem to be the main Bagg family in the Berkshires, the presence of Phineas in Pittsfield is a circumstantial argument that supports his being one of David’s sons. In the 1790 federal census (the first such census taken), Daniel Bagg, Martin Bagg and Phineas Bagg were counted in Pittsfield while David’s other known son Joseph appeared in nearby Lanesborough.22 However, there two other Baggs for whom there are no baptismal records, but who lived in Pittsfield in the 1770s through 1790s. Elijah Bagg turned up in tax23 and marriage records and Daniel Bagg was listed as a soldier during the Revolution24 and in other records.
During the War of the American Revolution, Phineas, David, Martin and Daniel Bagg all fought with Pittsfield regiments, while Aaron marched from nearby Lanesborough and Joseph was a Lieutenant in a Berkshire company.25 A paper titled “The James Bagg Family of Lanesborough”, written in 1918 by William A. Cooper, husband of Mary Bagg, noted that, in 1776, David Bagg marched to Albany in Capt. William Francis’ company, “and his son Phineas went with him”.26 However, given that this was written more than 100 years later, this statement carries little weight.
The next record of Phineas was his intention to marry Pamela Stanley, dated 21 March 1780 in the vital records of Pittsfield.27 If he was born in 1751 he would have been 29 at the time. I did not find records of the baptisms of their children, nor did I find a mention of Pamela’s death in the church records.28
Times were tough in post-revolutionary Western Massachusetts, and Phineas was caught in a credit crunch. Because of his debts, he lost much of his property to pay off his creditors.29 He headed north with his four children and a new woman. By 1798, Phineas was an innkeeper in La Prairie, Lower Canada, where he and Ruth Langworthy had two children baptized in the local Catholic church.30
Finally, how are the dots between Phineas Bagg of Pittsfield connected to the man who was an innkeeper in La Prairie and died in Montreal? First, a search of databases available on ancestry.com and americanancestors.org indicates there was only one man named Phineas Bagg. Second, there is a record of Ruth Langworthy and her parents in Pittsfield.31 Third, when sons Stanley and Abner Bagg were baptized as Anglicans in Christ Church, Montreal in 1831, they both gave their birthplace as Pittsfield.32 In addition, in her 1856 will, Sophia Bagg Roy mentioned that Abner and Stanley were her brothers and Lucie Bagg was the “natural daughter of my father Phineas Bagg.”33
In conclusion, there is considerable evidence to suggest that Phineas Bagg was born in 1751 in Westfield, the son of David Bagg and Elizabeth Moseley, however, most of this evidence is indirect, from derivative sources and secondary information, so it is inconclusive. I found no evidence that conflicts with this hypothesis. The next step is to do more research on Pittsfield deeds to see whether David transferred any of his property to Phineas, and to see whether there are any other resources I have missed.
Sources
Original data: First Census of the United States, 1790 (NARA microfilm publication M637, 12 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C.
Year: 1790; Census Place: Pittsfield, Berkshire, Massachusetts; Series: M637; Roll: 4; Page: 483; Image: 526; Family History Library Film: 0568144. (accessed Jan. 14, 2013)
23. Massachusetts and Maine 1798 Direct Tax. (Online database. AmericanAncestors.org, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2003.) Original manuscript: Direct tax list of 1798 for Massachusetts and Maine, 1798. R. Stanton Avery Special Collections, New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, MA. (accessed Jan 14, 2013)
24. Ancestry.com. Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors in the War of the Revolution, 17 Vols. [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 1998. Original data: Secretary of the Commonwealth. Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors in the War of the Revolution. Vol. I-XVII. Boston, MA, USA: Wright and Potter Printing Co., 1896. (accessed Jan. 12, 2013)
25. Ibid. (accessed Jan. 12, 2013)
26. William A. Cooper, “The James Bagg Family of Lanesborough, Mass” Conshohooken, Pa.: unpublished, 1918.
27. Jay Mack Holbrook, Massachusetts vital records to 1850: Pittsfield, 1761-1899 [microform]. Oxford, Mass: Holbrook Research Institute, 1983.
28. Records of the First Church, Pittsfield, Mass. Rollin H. Cooke Collection. Berkshire County, Mass. Reel #2, vols 26 and 27.
29. Land records, Middle District, 1761-1925 Berkshire County [microform] Salt Lake City, Utah: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1771, 1991.
30. Ancestry.com. Quebec, Vital and Church Records (Drouin Collection), 1621-1967 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2008. Original data: Gabriel Drouin, comp. Drouin Collection. Montreal, Quebec, Canada: Institut Généalogique Drouin. (accessed Jan. 14 2013)
31. William Franklin Langworthy, compiler, The Langworthy Family. Some descendants of Andrew and Rachel (Hubbard) Langworthy, who were married at Newport, Rhode Island November 3, 1658. Published by William F. and Orthello S. Langworthy, Charles St. Hamilton, N.Y.
32. Ancestry.com. Quebec, Vital and Church Records (Drouin Collection), 1621-1967 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2008. Original data: Gabriel Drouin, comp. Drouin Collection. Montreal, Quebec, Canada: Institut Généalogique Drouin. (accessed Jan. 14, 2013)
33. Labadie, Joseph-Augustin. 14278. 18 Mai 1856. Testament de Dame Sophia Bagg veuve de l’Honorable Gabriel Roy.
Have you ever wondered what mind mapping is all about? Members of the Quebec Family History Society Brick Walls Special Interest Group now know the basics, thanks to a presentation by one of their members, Cindy Kelly, at the SIG’s regular monthly meeting in February.
Cindy described a mind map as a diagram used to visually outline information. To make a mind map, you place a singe word or text in the middle of your page or screen and place associated words and concepts around it. You can link branches representing other words to each main branch. Using a different colour for each main branch will help you organize your thoughts.
SIG member Claire Lindell, a former teacher, commented that organizing material visually helps many people learn effectively. Mind mapping can also be used to help organize any kind of research problem.
Cindy listed a number of different websites that offer mind mapping tools, then went into detail about how to use one such site, www.Popplet.com.
Janice Hamilton showed how she is using Popplet to help with one of her genealogical brick walls. She put a photo of Henry Mulholland (born Ireland, 1809, died Montreal, 1887) at the center of the Popplet screen, then grouped questions she has about various aspects of his life around that photo: his unknown origins in Ireland, his addresses in Montreal over the years, his marriage and children, business ventures in the hardware field and banking, and reminders to look for cemetery records, an obituary and a will. She is using this mind map to generate new questions and ideas, and to keep track of her results.
Following the meeting, member Wendy Doran sent an e-mail to thank Cindy for the presentation. She wrote, “It has motivated me to get going already!”
Indexing is the data entry of human records worldwide in any language you choose. If you can type, then you can index, so why not get started today?!
The FamilySearch website has provided a way for anyone with an internet connection to assist in the monumental task of indexing world genealogical records. It is run by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, more commonly known as The Mormons.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is in the process of digitizing the bulk of their genealogical records, as well as partnering with genealogical societies and other groups to digitize other records of genealogical value. Most of the websites today have obtained their records from this church.
As indexing is entered, the records are checked and arbitrated a few times. Then these digitized records are uploaded to the online FamilySearch Indexing project site for anyone, including you, to view free of charge.
Easy to download software and index
The indexing software is free and easy to download, and the online tutorials should get you started quickly. There is also an online help desk if you have questions.
You do not have to be a church member to index or search this free website. To start, simply go to the website link here. It takes only a few minutes to download your selected batch of records — in any language and in any part of the world you choose — and transcribe the entries using the provided software you will find on the web page.
Alternatively, if you just want to research a wonderful database for free with no obligation or fees, go to https://familysearch.org.
If you volunteer to index for FamilySearch, just remember, you are helping to add millions of data for us genealogists to find plus, as a side benefit, indexing can help you become a better researcher as you become more familiar with the wide variety of historical documents available to you and the type of information each contains. You can choose a beginner, intermediate, or advanced batch to index.
Where to start?
Indexing consists of births, deaths, marriages, banns, obituaries, christenings, or baptisms. In addition, there are historical records consisting of many other interesting items worldwide. For instance, how about indexing the following databases?
All of the above databases, and many more, now await us to index them and provide a name or a lead for someone who is searching for their ancestors.
To help you through the indexing process, there are Help fields on the right of every batch you download. You never know, you may even come across some of your family names whilst indexing.
Once records have been indexed through FamilySearch Indexing, the new indices (and sometimes the document images) are posted online for free access at FamilySearch.
How I started
Because I am originally from the UK, I usually go to the UK batches for my indexing as I love history and I find so much of interest there, but I also like to mix it up and, as long as it is in English, I will index it.
Last year, I helped index the US 1940 Census. (As you well know, the census is usually the first place we go to find an ancestor’s name.) That monumental task was also completed well within the time range expected and up and running far sooner than anticipated.
Tremendous response to call for volunteers last month
Last month the FamilySearch website asked for volunteers for two days of indexing by asking everyone you know to join in. This, in part, is their response after that weekend. “We hoped to have an unprecedented 50,000 contributors in a 24-hour period. FamilySearch volunteers excelled, surpassing that goal by 16,511! That’s right—66,511 participants in one day! Incredible! We are grateful for the patience and persistence of many volunteers who faced technical difficulties due to an overwhelming response.” To read more, visit the blog post, FamilySearch Volunteers Set Historic Record.
According to some sources, volunteers participating in online indexing projects are adding over a million names a day in total.
Once records have been indexed through FamilySearch Indexing, the new indices (and sometimes the document images) are posted online for free access at FamilySearch Record Search.
So, log on and go see what you get back for a few hours, or even minutes, of indexing. Why not try a test drive on the above links and be part of the many people proud to add to the billions of records that amateur and professional genealogists like us search for daily.
Have you ever wondered who does some of the indexing for the Mormon Church in Salt Lake City? The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is actively involved in a very unique program in conjunction with the Utah State Prison. “Inmates who volunteered at the Utah State Prison Center last year indexed more than 2 million records…..They put approximately 50,000 hours of personal family research in the project.” This recent article in The Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/03/utah-prisoners-mormon-genealogy_n_5079776.html was like a breath of fresh air to learn that these prisoners are contributing in a very positive way to help genealogists. Perhaps the next time you access familysearch. org you might think about many of those prisoners who are involved in preparing the records we as genealogist so often seek .
Canada’s Forgotten Slaves: Two Centuries of Bondage
Author: Marcel Trudel
English translation by: George Tombs
http://www.vehiculepress.com/q.php?EAN=9781550653274
The attached deals with a book at the QFHS Library in Pointe-Claire, Québec within theEstelle Brisson cabinet by Marcel Trudel entitled “L’esclavage au Canada français“. This book of 324 pages has been translated into the English language by George Tombs and based from comments from reviewers, George Tombs did a well done translation.
Based on the writings of the late Marcel Trudel, there were 4,185 legally owned slaves in Nouvelle France from 1689 to 1759.
Governor Jacques-René de Brisay, Marquis de Denonville, governor of Nouvelle France from 1685 to 1689, had secured from King of France Louis XIV permission for some of the privileged “Seigneurs of Nouvelle France” to keep slaves in the French North American colony – France itself had abolished slavery but allowed the practice in its colonies.
Many family researchers in Québec are not aware of the content of Marcel Trudel’s book about slavery in New France, perhaps to be associated somehow with slavery might not be a subject we care to explore too deeply.
We might not like what we may find about our ancestors in Nouvelle France.
Book in question, English language version, translated by George Tombs, available at Véhicule Press –
255 pages –
ISBN10: 155065327X
ISBN13: 9781550653274
CDN $27.95
Genealogy Ensemble 