The English, Witches and Captivity

One of our ninth great grandfathers was Rowland Stebbins born November 5, 1592 in Essex, England. (That's right, England.) He married Sarah Whiting in 1618, and they left England out of the port of Ipswich on April 30, 1634 on the “Francis of Ipswich” with their children, Thomas, age 14, Sarah, age 11, Elizabeth, age 6 and John, age 8. They were part of the Puritan emigration. The Rowland Stebbins family initially settled in Roxbury but later moved to Springfield, Massachusetts. Sarah died in 1649 and Rowland in 1671.

Son John Stebbins (1626-1679) is our 8th great grandfather. He owned saw mills in Springfield was a measurer of land in 1659-71. He served on a  committee to lay out highways in 1660, served as a juror in 1661 and was a selectman 1675-78.  He owned a covenant in the church, and served on the church building committee. He was chosen bailiff in 1664 responsible for clearing cattle and swine from public meadows. He also contributed ten bushels of wheat to the Harvard College fund 1672-73. He was married twice and had 13 children. He and his first wife Ann Munson were actively involved in the witchcraft accusation against Hugh and Mary Parsons of Springfield. John Stebbins was also keeper of a sawmill, and it is believed that he was killed by some "runaway logs" in 1679. Some in the community suspected his death was the result of witchcraft.

One of the 13 children was his first son named John born 1646. John Stebbins II married Dorothy Alexander in Boston in 1683. (They are our seventh great grandparents). They lived in Deerfield, Massachusetts and had six children: Abigail, John III, Samuel, Thankful, Ebenezer and Joseph.

In the winter of 1704, a group of about 300 French soldiers and Native Americans from various tribes attacked the English settlement at Deerfield. About 50 people were killed and approximately 112 were taken captive and forced to march to Quebec, about 300 miles away. The Stebbins family home was burned and all were taken captive. Abigail was 17 and recently married to a Frenchman, which most likely caused the Stebbins family to be treated with some kindness. Thankful's parents and youngest brother, John, were redeemed and returned to the colonies two years later. Thankful and her four siblings chose to remain in Canada.

On April 23, 1707, 15 year old Thankful was baptized into the Roman Catholic church, and from then on became known as "Thérèse Stebenne". She married 4 years later to Adrien Charles Legrain dit Lavallée at Boucherville. She was well liked and respected by the community of Chambly, where she and her husband lived and had 11 children. One week after the birth of her last child, on the 11 July 1729, young Thankful died. She was not buried in the parish church cemetery of St-Joseph-de-Chambly, but rather at Saint Louis, at The Fort Pontchartrain (Fort Chambly).

I recently had an opportunity to go to Deerfield, Massachusetts and pay respects at the Old Burying Ground where John Stebbins and Dorothy Alexander lie in unmarked graves. We also visited the "new" Deerfield rebuilt after the raid. I never guessed that I had Puritan ancestors.

"Aye, call it holy ground,

The spot where first they trod!

They have left unstained what here they found

Freedom to worship God."

Old Burying Ground at Deerfield, Massachusetts

Ancestors:

Rowland Stebbins and Sarah Whiting

John Stebbins and Ann Munson

John Stebbins and Dorothy Alexander

Thankful (Therese) Stebbins and Adrien Charles Legrain-Valee

Charlotte Legrain-Valee and Jean Baptiste Jean-Viens

Margaret Viens and Abraham Desroches

Joseph Desroches and Elise Bessette

Azilda Desroches and Arthur Noel Morin

The Desroches - France to Montreal

Our first Desroches ancestor from France was Jean Desroches, who arrived in Montreal in 1647. He married Francoise Gode/Gaudet that same year. (The Gode family had arrived in 1641 and are often referred to as the "First Family of Montreal".) They had 13 children. Here is the Desroches line beginning with our 8th great grandfather:

Jean Desroches (1621-1684)

Nicolas Desroches (1652-1737)

Jean-Baptiste Desroches (1699-1774)

Pierre Gabriel Desroches (173-1793)

Joseph Desroches (1782-1865)

Abraham Desroches (1806-1853)

Joseph Desroches (1837-1912)
Azilda Desroches (1859-1936) married Arthur Noel Morin

Jean Desroches may have been part of the early militia in Montreal at Point-aux-Trembles to protect the early settlers from the Iroquois. He had property in a prominent part of the city in 1655, which was mostly likely a land grant.

Montreal Property for Jean Desroches in 1655

Joseph Desroches and Elise Bessette, our great great grandparents were married in 1857 in Marieville, Quebec, Canada when they were both 20 years old. Their first child was born nine months later and died that same day. Next, our great grandmother, Azilda Desroches, was born in 1859 followed by seven more children. Elise gave birth to a daughter, Marie Victoria, in 1865, who died in 1869 at age 3. Two months after her death, April, 1869,  Elise gave birth to another daughter they also named Marie Victoria. (This renaming was a common practice.) This second Victoria died at age six in 1874 just two months before Elise's death. Another child, Joseph Israel, died in 1870 at four  months of age. The statistics of infant mortality here are heartbreaking. There is no information regarding the cause of Elise' death. 

Elise' early death surprised me. I had been looking for information about her and Joseph for many years. On the record I found, she was listed as Elizabeth instead of Elise. The record was very hard to read and there are a surprising number of  people named Joseph Desroches. The signature of Joseph's uncle Jean Chrysostome Guillet validated it for me. His signature is on many of the family records.

1874 Death Record for Elise Bessette

 Elise died at the age of 37 leaving Joseph with at least four young children including great grandmother Azilda, age 15, Joseph, 12, Alphonsine, 11, Elodie, age 6, and Felix, age 2. Joseph made his living as a "journalier" or day laborer. He could not read or write. Three years later, in 1877, Joseph married Julie Choquette. This record was also not obvious. The index to the record showed a 1877 marriage of Joseph Desroches to Sophie Choquette with Joseph's former spouse named Elizabeth Bonster not Elise Bessette. The priest's handwriting was very hard to read, but this was the correct record and Jean's signature confirmed the translation. Handwriting in the 1800's often had an interesting flourish. Here's an example of Bessette where the first "s" is written like an "f".

Pierre Bessette and Rosalie Bedard -  Exerpt of 1827 Marriage

1880 US census records indicate that Joseph and Julie are living in Brooklyn, Connecticut with Alphonsine and Felix. [Felix is actually a nickname of Jean-Baptiste. I was also confused when I found this census record and thought Elise' name was recorded incorrectly. Finding her death date helped the pieces come together.] Joseph is working as a day laborer. Joseph's sister Celina is widowed and living nearby with four children, all working as mill hands.

In 1885, Joseph, Julie and Felix are living in Lincoln, Rhode Island. Daughter Azilda and family have moved nearby to Pawtucket, Rhode Island. We lose track of Felix here and I have yet to find young Joseph or Elodie. [In 1936, the only surviving sibling of Azilda is her sister Alphonsine Guillet.]

In 1901, Joseph and Julie are back in Iberville, Quebec. By 1911, Joseph is again widowed and living with his sister Judith and their niece, Osias Boulais, the daughter of Louise Desroches. The following September, Joseph dies at age 75.

Finding the records for Joseph and Elise helped me put together (at least in my mind) Azilda's life. She and Arthur most likely knew each other in Marieville, Quebec. They were married in 1878 in Danville, Connecticut when Azilda was 19. I now understand that she had many cousins, aunts, a sister and her father nearby as she started her life in America.

Cotton Mills and our French Canadian Ancestors

On a recent trip to the east coast, I visited Woonsocket, Rhode Island, the home of great grandparents Arthur Noel Morin and Azilda Desroches Morin. I was joined by cousin Cassie in a visit to American-French Genealogy Society library We also toured the Museum of Work and Culture.  The interactive exhibits at the museum included the type of farm our Quebecois ancestors would have left behind to find work in the states. Our great great grandparents made a transition from a barter economy to one of cash. They were enticed by the textile manufacturers to leave everything for this new industrial life. We learned that 70% of the citizens in Woonsocket were of French Canadian ancestry in 1980. The Morin family spoke French.

Main Street with Bienvenue (Welcome in French)

Other exhibits included the Church of the Precious Blood built in 1892 as well as a typical school room. This church was of interest because our great grandparents lived one block from the actual church and attended mass there. In fact, Arthur's cousin, Father Ernest Morin was a pastor in 1919 for several years. We did visit the actual church and the Cemetery of the Precious Blood.

We watched a short film which depicted the history of our ancestors and the work in the textile mills. It was astonishing to learn that children were working ten to twelve hours a day in harsh conditions. We were told that the mill owners preferred to hire women because they were more submissive and brought their children to work. Eventually many of the textile mills moved to the south and today this industry is thriving in China and other countries where labor is cheap. It gives me pause to think about the clothing I wear ...

Barefoot boy working in a cotton mill

When I look at the census records and city directories to learn more about the Morin family, I pay special attention to their occupations. In the 1870 census, Magloire (our second great grandfather) was a baker and lived in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. His sons Napolean and Arthur were machinist operators and Joseph was a farm hand. Josephine, Eliza and Jean Baptiste (aka Cleophas) all worked in the cotton mills.

Magloire's children attended school. Napolean worked as a baker, a sewing machine agent and a carpenter. Arthur worked as a baker, a tin peddler, a carpenter, and finally a real estate and insurance agent in Woonsocket. Joseph Nere lived in Pawtucket and worked as a blind maker. Cleophas also lived in Pawtucket and worked as a carpenter.

 In 1880, Magloire's son Arthur (our great grandfather) is married to Azilda Desroches and working as a baker. They and their young son George are living with or near Azilda's parents, Joseph and Elise Desroches in Danielson, Connecticut. Azilda's sister Alphonsine, age 17, is working as a mill hand and her brother Felix, age 7, attends school. In 1900, Azilda's aunt Celina Desroches Guillet is widowed and working as a mill hand with her children in Vermont.

In 1891, Magloire's grandson Arthur, the son of Joseph Nere, dies tragically at the age of 15.

Visit to Saint-Hyacinthe

River Yamaska with Notre Dame on left and Cathedral on right

Saint-Hyacinthe is a small village with about 53,000 inhabitants located on the Yamaska River. It is approximately 35 miles east of Montreal. In the mid 1800's, the time when our great great grandparents (Magloire Morin and Marguerite Soly) lived here, the population was less than 10,000. I recently had an opportunity to visit this beautiful area.

The Saint-Hyacinthe Market

It was Saturday and the Library of the Seminary of Saint-Hyacinthe would close early.We had lunch, took a quick drive around town and then found the library. The Seminary is a private secondary school founded in 1811. In that library is a special room for genealogical studies only open three days a week. There is also another historical library in the building open daily.

I paid my $5.00 visitor's fee at the genealogy library and was helped by a volunteer who showed me the local family histories and helped me search for more family information. He encouraged me to come back to visit the history library on Monday. 

The next day was Sunday and we attended a French Mass at Notre-Dame-du-Rosaire (Our Lady of the Rosary). This is the church where 4x great grandparents: Joseph Crete married Marie Dugas in 1785 and Laurent Soly married Marie Josephte Crete in 1805. Also, 3x great grandparents:  Joseph Marie Morin married Reine Cormier in 1816. Dozens more relatives were baptized and married here. There is also the Cathedral of Saint-Hyacinthe about one block away on the same street where more ancestors were married and baptized. (This was a genealogist's dream.)

The church bell, which rang for many years calling people to prayer, was rebuilt by Pierre Soly in 1846. Pierre was the son of our 3x great grandfather (with the same name) and brother of Marguerite Soly. Many of his descendants still live in this area. In fact, I have been put in contact with a distant relative in Quebec and his name is ... Pierre Soly.

After Mass, we went for a drive to visit some of the other villages in the area. We looked for Brittania Mills, where Magliore Morin was born and worked as a boulanger. (We later learned that this town name has changed to Saint Damase.) We continued our drive to Marieville, the birth home of great grandmother Azilda Desroches. We then went on to Mont-Saint-Gregoire, the home of the Bessette family. The countryside was beautiful with fall color and small streams along side the road. There was more to see, but it was time to head back to the hotel.

We even stopped at a few cemeteries. (Well things are pretty dead on Sundays).

Found a great headstone

On Monday, we returned to visit the history library and met with a volunteer who helped us with local information. 

Checking Canada City Directories

I learned that great grandfather Magliore Morin lived in a very small community formerly Britannia Mills which is now the town of Saint Damase. We left Saint-Hyacinthe after lunch and continued to our next destination: Trois-Riviere.

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