Laurent Soly - The Spaniard (1721-1786)

This is the story of Laurent Soly, our fourth great grandfather, that has been passed down to our family.

"Laurent de Soly, nephew of King Ferdinand VI of Spain, was born in Spain in 1721, near the French border. He married Marie Deligni about the time of King Ferdinand's
accession (1746), but she died shortly afterward.  [Note: They married in 1770 not 1746.]

Laurent was banished from the country when he disagreed with the new policies of the King, one of the Bourbons, described as "anxious-minded and weakly" but who,nevertheless, instigated a  period of reform in Spain and started the country on a career of prosperity. 

Laurent went to Canada, settled at St. Charles du Richelieu, Quebec, where he married Marie Clemence Guiette, a native [in 1771]. A son, Pierre, was born in 1784. Pierre
married and had fourteen children, among them Marguerite de Soly. In 1760 the King died, and Laurent, who would have been welcomed by the new King, Charles III, was persuaded by his wife not to return. 

Laurent's wife burned the deed to the baronial estate when he attempted to return, twenty years later, at the instance (sic) of a French priest, to claim his lands. [note: This wife would have been our ancestor Marie Clemence Guiette. [I have always loved this part about burning the deed.] In St. Charles du Richelieu, both Laurent and Pierre were known as 'L'Espagnol.'"

The name Soly is Spanish and refers to the sun. There is a parish in the Asturias region of Spain called Solis (Corvera). It is not near the French border. Variations of the name are Saulie, Sauly, Solly, Soli and de Solis. It was a surprise to learn of his four other marriages and many children.

Here are the facts that we have so far with the help of Stephen A. White, author of Genealogy Dictionary of Acadian Families:

Laurent came to Nova Scotia, Canada (Ft. Louisbourg) before December 1744. According to the 1752 Ill Royale Census, he originated from Spain. No records have so far been located to confirm or deny that claim of origin. Laurent was part of a Swiss regiment (Karrer) station at Ft. Louisbourg, Acadia, Canada.

 

Laurent Soly, his first wife, Jeanne Lécuyer, and their four children were deported from île Royale to France in the fall of 1758. The youngest of their children, Rose-Françoise, died shortly after their arrival at La Rochelle [France]. The family then went to Rochefort, where Jeanne Lécuyer herself died on August 10, 1759. She was buried in the cemetery of St-Louis parish there the following day. 

We do not know what became of the three other children from Laurent Soly's first marriage. They may all have died young, like their little two-year-old sister, as their names do not appear on the lists of refugees from île Royale at La Rochelle in 1761 or 1762. It might also be that they were placed with relatives, while their father returned to North America. There is nothing that might suggest that they went back to New France with him.

As a widower, Laurent Soly was free to remarry Théodose Girouard in 1760, (the young widow of Pierre Arseneault).  No record of Théodose Girouard's death has been found. It appears that she must have died soon after her second marriage. There were no children of this marriage.

 Laurent Soly and his first wife, Jeanne-Françoise Lécuyer, had four children:

1. Antoine-Thomas, born about 1750
2. Laurent, born about 1752
3. Marie-Françoise, born in Louisbourg 1754
4. Rose-Françoise, born in Louisbourg 1756; buried St-Nicolas de La Rochelle, France 1758

Laurent Soly's third marriage is to Marie-Charlotte Guyon (Dion)  in 1765. She died in 1769. They had two children who both died young:

5. Marie-Charlotte, born Québec Nov. 1765; died  Québec 1769, aged 4 years.
6. Marie, born Québec Sept. 1768; died Chambly Feb. 1774, aged 5 years. 

Laurent Soly and his fourth wife, Marie Déligny, had twin boys who died at birth. She died a week later.

7 and 8. Unbaptized twin sons, buried St-Charles-sur-Richelieu on March 26, 1771.

Laurent Soly's fifth marriage was to Marie-Clémence Guillet dit Saint-Mars in 1771. At least seven children were born to this marriage:

 9. Marie-Clémence, born Chambly April 1772; buried Chambly December 1774
10. Laurent, born Chambly 1773; buried  Chambly 1773, aged 1 month
11. Josèphe-Clémence, born Kamouraska November 1775
12. Marie-Euphrosine, born Kamouraska April 1777
13. Marie-Angélique, no baptismal record found, but probably 1779
14. Marie-Rosalie, born Kamouraska  March 1781
15. Pierre Laurent, born Kamouraska  June 1784

Laurent Soly moved back to St-Charles-sur-Richelieu around 1785, and he died there at the beginning of 1786. He left a thirty-five-year-old widow with at least four, and possibly five, of their young children, and perhaps as many as three adult children from an earlier marriage. Our ancestor, Pierre Laurent, was the youngest and was only 12 when he lost his father. Laurent outlived four other wives, and at least seven (and possibly as many as eleven) of his fifteen children. No one can say that he had lived a life free of troubles considering his living through the last siege of Louisbourg, his deportation in 1758 as well as his presence at the Battle of Restigouche in 1760.

No record of his "royal" birth has yet been found. We continue to look for his birth record and expect to find it in the future when more Spanish records come available. I did find a Dona Isabel de Solis, Queen of Granada. Hmm . . . [See map of Laurent Soly's travels]

Searching for John Dillon

 John Dillon is  my paternal great grandfather. He states in his marriage record to Sarah Montague that he was born in New Jersey in 1849. However, other later documents state that he was born in 1851 and 1853. We know from census reports that his parents were born in Ireland. We have no information about any siblings or whether he came on his own to Illinois or with is his family. I had previously understood that John's middle name was Francis but John Francis Dillon is actually the name of his son. John did not use a middle name on any census or other records. However, his obituary states his name as John Henry Dillon.

John Dillon was a blacksmith and carriage maker. An 1875 city census shows John Dillon, born in New Jersey, working at the Novelty Carriage Works. 

He married Sarah Montague, the daughter of Frank Montague (also a blacksmith), in Chicago in 1879. They had six children: Charlotte (born September 14, 1880), Kathryn (born December 24, 1882), George (born May 5, 1887), Sarah (born February 11, 1886), John Francis (born December 15, 1889) and Royal Andrew (born November 30, 1891). John worked at his own blacksmith shop during their marriage. They did not own their own home and, in fact, moved frequently.

The 1888 Chicago Voter Registration ledger shows John Dillon living at 2426 La Salle Street. The record indicates that he has lived in Illinois for 27 years, which would mean since 1861. The 1892 Voter Registration ledger shows 14 people with the name of John Dillon, but only one is born in New Jersey.

In the 1900 census, John is working as a blacksmith. Sarah is a homemaker. Charlotte is already working as a hairdresser, Kathryn and Sadie (listed as Lottie, Kittie and Sadie), George, John and Royal are at school. Charlotte married in 1908 and was living with her husband Ed Greene. In the 1910 census, John is working in a blacksmith shop, Sarah is a homemaker, Kathryn and Sadie are hairdressers, George is a machinist, John is a driver and Roy is a steamfitter helper.

In 1908, the Model T Ford becomes mass produced and most likely impacted the carriage maker and blacksmith trades.

In 1915, their first grandson, my father, is born and a family dinner is held to celebrate. The baby book for George indicates that John Dillon was not present.

 In the 1920 census Sarah is living at 7078 Chicago Avenue and listed as head of household with her sons George and John. The record states that she is married but husband John is not listed. No record has been found for John after 1910. The next and last record located is his death certificate, which erroneously states that he was widowed. John Dillon died alone at Chicago State Hospital on April 4, 1926. It was Easter Sunday and he was about 76 years old. His doctor had been treating him for three months and the cause of death was arteriosclerosis cerebral which indicates he may have suffered from some memory loss. (I can't help but wonder how prohibition affected this Irishman.)

The death certificate also notes his place of burial as "Central Plant", which means burial on the hospital grounds. Chicago State Hospital was a place for both the mentally ill and the destitute. People were buried there if they had no money. He died alone on Easter. Clearly his wife and children were unaware of his passing. The death notice below shows that he was finally buried nine days later on April 13, 1926. He and Sarah must have been separated but they are together now at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery.