THE STUMP

By Roger C. Legere

 

                                                                         

FOREWARD

                                                                     

                                                                   

                                                    

           It was a cold winter afternoon while living on the shores of Sebago Lake that I decided to put together the information I had at the time regarding my family ancestry. Beverly and I had moved to a condominium on the lake after retiring and the peace and tranquility set itself to the task. As I began to assemble what was at hand, I found much was missing. For the next few years we traveled to towns and villages of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island gathering information and historical data to create this document. Doing the research we meet with librarians, curators, and guides, of which many were also distant cousins. The genealogy section in the library at the University Of Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada contained volumes of pertinent information.

          After assembling the data and taking notes by hand the task of putting it together was before me. We moved back to South Portland where we had lived for so many years. I purchased a computer and self taught my way into the technology. Over 7000 names have been entered into my database and are available with this script. This document has been a great experience formulating and fortune came to us by meeting many of my distant relatives. The name of the document comes from an expression that a befriended distant cousin would refer to when I would ask if a Legere in the town were related to us.

 

         The search of my heritage primarily starts with the first settlers that came to North America with a few references to earlier ancestors. For a better understanding of this heritage, I formulated this script into a synopsis of Acadia history. It also includes many resumes of early ancestral settlers, direct line ancestors and my immediate family. Although this script deals primarily with my paternal ancestors you will find many maternal ancestors of my father, Philip J. Legere and mother, Marie L. Hamanne. I have also done the research of the ancestors of Beverly J. Hall, my wife. There are genealogy tables and charts available with this text for all three families. It is fascinating to navigate through the charts following the direct ancestral line.      

 

 

EARLY ACADIAN HISTORY

       

          During the 16th century and well into the next century the French crowns did not enthusiastically support colonization in the New World. However, other European Countries took stronger interest and supported their explorers with more financial backing and necessary arms. The Government or Social order during this period of time in France was Feudalism and therefore extended into the New World. The Crown awarded fiefdoms to Seigneurs together with titles and powers of a dictator. The lords granted farms from the lands of the fiefdom and the inhabitants in turn owed feudal dues, difference, labor and armed protection. The Seigneurs oversaw justice and protected the tenants. Feudal Law was loosely practice because of the landmasses and few people occupying the fiefdoms. This society existed until 1670 when Hector d’Andigne de Grandfontaine became governor of all Canada, including Acadia, which then became a Royal Province. However, feudalism did linger in a small way as the inhabitants had no other social governing experience. Fur trade dominated the North American continent with fishing the major commerce along the eastern shores. French explorers made some attempts at colonizing, but without adequate monetary backing from the Crown, the fisheries and fur trade would have to support the colonization. Stormy cold winters also contributed greatly to the lack of enthusiasm and success.                                                                 

        Jacques Cartier exploring with two ships and 61 men landed at Gaspe’ and claimed Canada for France in 1534. The following year he returned and explored the St. Lawrence River to where Montreal is now located. Harsh weather caused hardship and 25 men were lost before he returned to France. Colonization was attempted by Jean Francois de la Rougue between 1541 and 1543, but the lack of backing from French Royalty caused its failure. Jacques Noel, a nephew of Jacques Cartier, obtained a short-lived trade monopoly in 1588 even though Bretoner Troilus de Mesgouez, Sieur de La Roche, had jurisdiction over the territory as Lieutenant Governor and Viceroy. Noel confirmed that private enterprise supported by trade, mainly furs, would be the key to successful colonization in North America.

        The Micmac Indians were in the territories of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Cape Breton Island and Nova Scotia Peninsular; the Maliseets and Passamaquoddies Indian Tribes along the Bay of Fundy and New Brunswick; and the Penobscot and Abenakis Indians in Maine. Europeans started fishing “The Banks” of the North Atlantic at the beginning of the 16th century. By the end of the century hundreds of vessels were fishing the area. Fisherman would go ashore and dry their fish before the long return voyage to their homeport. Trade with the Indians for furs began to spread. European fisherman and traders brought disease with them and Indians died by the thousands, leaving 3000 Micmacs, 1000 Maliseets and Passamaquoddies and 12,000 Abenakis. This was one tenth of the previous Indian population and their culture began to fail. The Micmacs were tranquil people with a very simple way of life. They confronted both British and French colonists, but liked and got along with the French settlers because they were also tranquil and the French tolerated the Indian culture. In later years the Indians would side with the French in war against the British.                                                                            

        An outpost At Sable Island was settled with 60 men and women lead by Bretoner Troilus de Mesgouez in 1598. The winter weather was extremely bad and along with scurvy (lack of vitamin C) only 11 men survived the winter. The remaining survivors returned to France leaving the island abandoned. In 1599 a 10-year monopoly for furs in Canada was granted to Pierre Chauvin de Thonnetuit. The following year he led an expedition and founded a settlement on Cape Tadoussac at the mouth of the St. Lawrence and the Saguanay Rivers. A fur trading post was established and the colony would also be a base for the Catholic Missionaries. Among the men with him was; Francois Grave Du Pont, a sea captain; Samuel de Champlain, a pilot and geographer; and Pierre Du Gua de Monts, adventurer. During the winter of 1600-1601 Pierre Chauvin left 16 men at the colony. The weather again was disastrous and most of the men died. Those who did survive were returned to France in 1601. Pierre Chauvin continued his exploration of Canada and made a trip up the St. Lawrence River in 1603 before he died. Aymar de Chaste, Governor of Dieppe, France, was to take over Chauvin’s explorations, but he also died after his first expedition sailed from France. Therefore, neither of these explorers was successful at their attempts to colonize in the New World.   

        The territory of the New World in which the French explorers were attempting to colonize became known as Acadia. The origin of this name supposedly is derived from two different sources. One is the Micmac word for quoddy or cady, a track of land. Henry IV of France called it La Cadie, which became known as Acadie in French and translates to Acadia in English. The original grant by King Henry IV of France included land from Philadelphia to Cape Breton. However, when the French began to develop these lands in North America they claimed as Acadia; the territories now known as Nova Scotia including Cape Breton, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Gaspe Peninsula, the St. Lawrence Valley and the State of Maine west to the Kennebec River.

        In 1604 King Henry IV of France commissioned Pierre Du Gua de Monts to develop Acadia. He was made Seigneur of Acadia, given a 10 year monopoly of the fur trade and organized a trading company. Gua de Monts had been with Chauvin on an earlier voyage. He brought with him on this new venture Jean de Biencourt de Poutrincourt and hired Samuel de Champlain. In the spring of that year de Monts outfitted two ships and set sail with 120 men. He commanded one ship and Francois Grave Du Pont, who also was with Chauvin in 1603, commanded the other ship. De Monts made landfall on the coast of Nova Scotia at Cape La Have and sailed on to Liverpool and Port Mouton. He sent out a search for Grave Du Pont and directed Camplain to explore Cape Sable and the Bay of Fundy. Champlain sailed past Yarmouth and on to St. Mary’s Bay. He then returned to rendezvous with de Monts. Grave Du Pont had been located and de Monts sent him on to the St. Lawrence River. De Monts together with Poutrincourt and Champlain sailed around Cape Sable to St. Mary’s Bay and left some of his men. After looking Saint Mary’s Bay over, he was not satisfied and sailed on probing the eastern shores of the Bay of Fundy, passing up Port Royal, Minas Basin and Chignecto Bay. They continued along the shores of New Brunswick to the St. John’s River, Passamaquoddy Bay and St. Croix Island. Because of its logistic location he decided to build his settlement on the island and brought the men from St. Mary’s Bay.                                                           

        That autumn, 1604, Poutrincourt and Grave Du Pont returned to France on the ocean sailing ship with a cargo of fur and fish. De Monts and Champlain stayed at St. Croix Island. Champlain explored Mount Desert Island, Penobscot Bay to Bangor and the coast of Maine to the mouth of the Kennebec River. Champlain returned to St. Croix in October and spent the winter with de Monts and 77 men. The winter turned out to be a disaster and 35 of the men died. Isolation, the inability to get off the island because of storms and ice left them short of adequate food and fuel.                                                                

       By June of 1605 Du Pont returned with 60 new colonists. During the summer de Monts and Champlain continue exploring to the south; The Kennebec River, Merrymeeting Bay, Casco Bay, Saco Bay, Cape Ann, Boston Harbor, Charles River, and Plymouth Bay to Eastham on Cape Cod. They found that Captain George Weymouth on the British ship “Archangel” had also been exploring the Maine coast and encountered skirmishes with the Indians. When they returned to St. Croix in late summer, de Monts moved his settlement to Port Royal establishing the first permanent French Colony in North America. The post and town was situated on the Nova Scotia peninsular, along the west shore of the bay now known as Annapolis Bay and southwest of Annapolis Royal. Today at this location can be found the Port Royal National Historic Site, a replica of the original post.

       De Monts returned to France in the fall of 1605 after he had built his new colony. He took with him the survivors of the previous winter. He had to attend to the affairs of the company in order to retain his 10-year monopoly. Grave Du Pont was left in charge along with Champlain. They got through the winter well, as they didn’t have the isolation problems of being on an island. Food, fuel and shelter were more plentiful. They made friends with Chief Membertou of the Micmac Indians. That certainly helped them through the first winter at Port Royal. In the spring the following year Champlain attempted to leave on additional explorations, but was hampered by inexperienced seamen which caused a couple groundings of his ship while navigating out of the Port Royal Basin.. At the same time, de Monts was still in France and readying the ship “Jonas” with supplies and more men for the French colony. He had difficulty signing new men because of the stories told by men of previous voyages. It was necessary to increase the wages to get the appropriate volunteers. Before the ship was ready to leave port it was blown against the sea wall causing damage and further delay. When they were finally ready to sail on the “Jonas” in late spring 1606, de Monts appointed Poutrincourt his commander who had enlisted his son Charles de Biencourt de Saint-Just to join him. Also included in this expedition were de Monts’ lawyer, Marc Lescarbot and a cousin named Lewis Hebert. Back in Acadia, those that stayed for the winter were awaiting de Monts return and when he didn’t return by July, all but two men left Port Royal with intent to return to France.

         Poutrincourt arrived in Acadia and made landfall at Canso. He sent a small boat out to find Grave Du Pont and located him and the others at Cape Sable. They all then returned to Port Royal.  De Monts wanted to find a more suitable location so he sent Poutrincourt and Champlain exploring to the south. They got as far south as Cape Cod. There they meet with unfriendly Indians and returned to Port Royal as it was getting late in the fall for any further explorations. In the mean time, de Monts and Du Pont returned to France on the ship “Jonas”. The remaining men in Port Royal were treated with a pageant directed by Lescarbot when Poutrincourt and Champlain returned. It was agreed that Port Royal would be the best location for the colony and a fur trading post in Acadia. There was much partying the winter of 1606-1607, as the weather was quite mild. A few men were lost, but there was much improvement the in living conditions at the colony. However, the production of furs and trade suffered. Large debts were run up and the company was in trouble. Poutrincourt was called back to France by the merchants backing him in the fur trade and were withdrawing their support. He delayed his return as long as possible to muster some success, but to no avail, and the fur trade monopoly was taken away from de Monts. During the summer of 1607, Port Royal was left to the Indians for a short time. The wars between the Indian tribes started, but the French were able to stay neutral.                                                                

          The British had settled James River, Virginia and had been exploring northeast as far as the Kennebec River. As early as 1607 they were starting their oppression in North America. The following year they abandoned their adventures in the Acadian territory, as they could not get along with the Indians like the French did.  France still had some hopes in de Monts. He shifted sights toward the Saint Lawrence because that area would be a more productive fur territory being further north. He commissioned 3 ships in 1608 sending Champlain and Du Pont to the Saint Lawrence where they settled at Quebec and developed a fur trading post. Champdore, the pilot who had grounded the ships back at Port Royal in 1606, returned to Port Royal with the third ship. He was then sent on to Saco where he was to negotiate peace between the Abenakis and Micmac Indian tribes who were at war with each other. However the peace didn’t last as the Indian wars continued until 1617.

         While Champdore was at Port Royal and de Monts at Quebec with Champlain and Du Pont; Poutrincourt remained in France lobbying King Henry IV for a seigneurie at Port Royal. The Recollet Priest had accompanied de Monts on the earlier voyages to the new continent. Reverend Pierre Coton of the Society of Jesus was the spiritual director and confessor of the court and being in the court’s favor, the court wanted the Jesuits to bring the Catholic Religion to Acadia rather than the Recollet Priest. Poutrincourt was granted the seigneurie providing he agrees to bring with him a member of The Society of Jesus to converts the Acadian natives to Catholicism. Rev. Pierre Coton assigned the Jesuit Priest Pierre Biard. Poutrincourt didn’t like the Jesuits or want the Jesuits to go with him so he procrastinated as long as he could. He convinced Rev. Coton in 1608 that the time was premature for their work in Acadia even though the Recollets had been there before and had baptized many of the Indians. By 1610 Poutrincourt finally organized his expedition and set sail on his ship “Grace de Dieu”. Included in this expedition were a secular priest, Rev. Jesse Fleche, Claude de Saint-Etienne de La Tour, La Tour’s 17-year-old son Charles, and Poutrincourt’s son Charles de Biencourt. Arriving in Port Royal, Poutrincourt had his fiefdom and control with his son Charles de Biencourt. The colony was going well and Fleche converted 140 Indians into the Catholic Church. Biencourt was sent back to France to report the success of Fleche and obtain supplies.

         A frantic Catholic stabbed King Henry IV killing him and France was having political trouble within. Marie de Medici was the regent for the King, Louis XIII, and the child king. The Jesuits had a patroness named Antoinette de Pons Marquise de Guercheville at the Queens (Marie de Medici) side. As a result of this connection, Biencourt was directed to return to Port Royal with the Jesuits, Fr. Pierre Biard and Fr. Enemond Masse. When the outfitters of the ship heard of this, they refused to supply the ship so Guercheville bought them out. The Jesuits were assigned and also became partners of the company and were to share the profits of the company. These negotiations delayed the sailing until January 1611 and therefore, the ship did not arrive in Port Royal until May 1611. By then other traders had already taken large amounts of furs reducing profits for this newly formed company. After their arrival in Acadia the Jesuits presence caused strife and disagreements among the settlers.

         In July of 1611 Poutrincourt returned to France to try and reverse the status of the Jesuits in Acadia. Biencourt was left in charge and did not get along with the Jesuits, nor did the Indians. Chief Membertou died in September while Poutrincourt was still in France. The French Administrator for the Queen was Gilbert Duthet, a Jesuit Friar. He sailed to Port Royal with Poutrincourt on his return trip with the supplies. This ship was owned by Nicholas L’Abbe and captained by his son Nicholas. They sailed in November 1611 arriving at Port Royal January 1612.  Also on board was Simon Imbert who had been on the previous voyage and was to over see the cargos for Poutrincourt.   

         At Port Royal the friction between the Jesuits and Poutrincourt continued. Biard and Masse attempted to return to France later that year on the supply boat with Duthet, but Biencourt put a stop to the planed departure because he did not trust them with the cargo. Poutrincourt went back to France with Duthet, as he needed to return and find additional financial backing. Duthet reported to the court what was going on in Port Royal.

         Based on Duthet’s report, Guercheville had enough of Poutrincourt and he was removed from his position. She picked Rene Le Coq de La Saussaye as the new commander. A new ship, the “Jonas“, was charted and the return trip to North America included; Duthet, Jacques Quentin, another Jesuit, and 27 new colonists.  They set sail under the command of La Saussaye in March, arriving at Port Royal in May 1613. La Saussaye had orders for Biencourt to release Biard and Masse. They joined the ship and sailed on toward Penobscot Bay. Storms drove them into Frenchman Bay where the crew refused to go any further. A settlement was established at Saint Sauveur, today known as Somes Sound on Mount Desert Island, Maine. Captain Samuel Argall raided this settlement with the British war ship “Treasurer” in July 1613. Argall captured the French settlers and the ship “Jonas”, however some of the crew, La Saussaye and Masse were allowed to leave in small boats and found their way back to France with the fishing fleet via Port Mouton. Capt. Argall kept the Jesuits Baird and Quintin and some of the other settler’s captive on board the ship “Treasurer“. 

         Sir Thomas Gates ordered Argall to drive the French from Acadia and two additional ships joined him. They went back to Saint Sauveur to finish it off and then on to Saint Croix, burned what remained there and on to Port Royal were they sacked and burned the village. After leaving Port Royal with Baird and Quintin still with him, the ships were scattered by storms and Argall made it to Manhattan while the others were blown to the Azores. The Jesuits made their way back to Lyons, the Jesuit Province, via Wales and told of the ordeal.  France protested to the British and was able to get the ship “Jonas” returned.                       

         Poutrincourt was able to negotiate financing and pay off all his debts of previous ventures. He got two new venture partners, La Rochelle merchants Gorges and McCain. A ship was supplied and they set sail for Port Royal in December of 1613, arriving in March 1614. Port Royal was found in ruins and Poutrincourt's dreams of his paradise in New France were shattered. He went back to France and returned to the military activities for the King. He defended the King against the rebelliousness Prince de Conde, but was killed by one of the King’s soldiers who thought he was one of the rebels.                                               

         Biencourt stayed in Port Royal and was the Seigneur in 1614. A few men stayed with him and they included the La Tours, Claude and his son Charles. Claude was sent to Penobscott Bay where he set up a trading post at Pentagoet. Charles stayed in Port Royal as second in command under Biencourt and helped built a fur business and keep the colony alive. A fur and fish trading post was also set up on Cape Sable at Port Lomeron named after David Lomeron who was Biencourt’s secretary and ran that post. During the next few years the fur trade did well, even though Acadia and the colonies did not get any help from the French crown.

         Captain John Smith from the Plymouth Colony sailed into the Penobscot and charted the bay for the British. His notes indicated that French traders were in the area. Biencourt and Charles La Tour built another post at Cape Sable called Fort Saint Louis. Charles de Biencourt died at Fort Saint Louis in 1623 at the age of 32.

         Armand Jean Du Plessis Richelieu the chief administers for King Louis XIII in 1624 finally showed some interest for the crown in New France. Claude La Tour took advantage of Biencourt's death and aggressively lobbied to gain control of Acadia. However, he didn’t have it easy after he got the backing of the Company of New France. Sir Ferdinendo Gorges, the Council for New England, in 1621 had parceled out the northeast part of North America to Scotland so that they would have to deal with the French in Acadia. Sir William Alexander of Scotland desired to colonize for King James I and had gone as far as Newfoundland in 1622 where he sheltered for the winter. After loosing many men he gave up and returned to Scotland. He made two more attempts in 1624 and 1625, but was again unsuccessful. King James I had tried to get subjects to go to the New World by appointing barons, but still had trouble convincing people to go. When King James I died, King Charles of Scotland became a supporter of colonizing in Canada as well. King Charles took the same line to promote colonizing, but with more force and made it easier for the barons to take their titles by making Nova Scotia a part of Scotland. He also supported them with some financial backing. 

         For the next few years there was a lot of shuffling to conquer the territories in North America. War was going on between France and Britain. The Scots wanted to aggressively develop Canada. The Kirk Brothers challenged France in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and won and Britain seized Quebec. Governor William Bradford of Massachusetts and the Plymouth Bay Colony received a grant to the Penobscot Bay area in 1626. He sent traders to the area and they built trading posts at Augusta and Pentagoet (now Castine, Me.) while venturing as far East to Machias for fur trade. The post at Pentagoet was taken over by Isaac Allerton (1583-1658) in 1626. The inlet where the post was located was named Majabagaduce. Isaac Allerton together with his wife Mary Norris and daughter Mary Allerton were members of the original 1620 Mayflower voyage. (They are direct ancestors of Beverly Hall Legere, wife of this writer) 

         By 1629 Scotland had settlements with 64 Knights of Nova Scotia in Acadia at Baleine near Havre an l’Anglois, on Cape Breton Island and at Port Royal. Lord Ochiltree had settled Baleine in an earlier expedition. Claude La Tour was on board a French vessel returning from France when the Kirk Brothers of Scotland defeated Champlain at Quebec and La Tour was captured. La Tour changed his allegiance to Scotland and joined Sir William Alexander promising that his son Charles La Tour would also join him. He returned to Port Royal with the younger William Alexander. Alexander had already taken possession of Port Royal and renamed it Charlesfort. However, France had not given up in Acadia. The Company of New France was formed and Captain Charles Daniel was sent to the new world were he took Baleine from Lord Ochiltree and built a fort at Saint Ann Bay on Cape Breton Island.

        During the winter of 1629-1630 there were 70 colonist at Charlesfort {Port Royal} and again it was another bad winter. Almost one half of the inhabitants died of scurvy or other dieses. Earlier in the year, Claude La Tour went to Scotland to work out his agreement for he and his son Charles. Sir William Alexander Sr. kept his agreement with Claude La Tour, getting a land grant awarded and title of “Barron of Nova Scotia” for Claude La Tour. While in Britain, Claude La Tour also remarried. At this same time his son Charles La Tour had received his own baronetcy from France, becoming the Governor of Acadia. He was at Fort Saint Louis near Cape Sable, where he and Biencourt had built a post. This is now the town of Port La Tour.

       When Claude La Tour returned to Acadia with his new wife and men to reinforce Charlesfort at Port Royal, he stopped at Fort Saint Louis on Cape Sable to advise his son of the arrangement. Charles La Tour did not agree with his father’s change of allegiance and Charles kept his allegiance to France. The Scots wanted control of all of Acadia and Claude La Tour elected to use force to take Fort Saint Louis as well. Casualties were running high for the French at Cape Sable and Charles La Tour decided not to fight it out, so he left for Charlesfort with his father Claude and Claude’s new wife. Once they were at Port Royal, father and son were able to reconcile. Claude and his wife in later years moved to Cape Sable where Charles had built them a new home.

       The treaty of Saint Germain-en-Late was made between Britain and France in 1632.  Acadia as well as the Saint Lawrence valley ended up back in the hands of France. Although Acadia and the Saint Lawrence had been under British rule the last few years the inhabitants were still mostly French. The company of New France sent reinforcements to Charles La Tour and he built another fort at Saint John Harbor and named it Fort La Tour. The French colony at Quebec was also restored with 40 permanent settlers.

       To be sure France maintained its presents in Acadia; Cardinal Richelieu sent another expedition directed by Isaac Razilly. The Company of New France financed this and Isaac Razilly, his brother Claude Launay-Razilly and Jean Condonnier formed the Razilly-Condonnier Company. In September of 1632 a group of new French settlers arrived at La Have. These colonist were represented by 15 to 20 families and included Germain Doucet dit Laverdue (1575-); Jehan Gaudet (1575-1678); Pierre Comeau (1597-1690); Jehan Theriault (1601-); Jacques Bourgeois I and his son Robert; sisters, Michelle and Jeanne Aucoin (1631-); and Pierre Landry among others. These named people are direct maternal ancestors of the writer as found in the genealogy charts.   

       Razilly was also to void the Scots from Charlesfort (Port Royal). Because a ban from Charlesfort had earlier raided Fort La Tour, Razilly had expected resistance when arriving at Charlesfort, but had none. Germain Doucet dit Laverdue (1575-), a staff officer of Razilly’s became the commandant of troops at Port Royal. Others officers included Jacques Bourgeois, the Lieutenant at the garrison and brother-in law to Germain Doucet and Jacques’ son Robert. For the next couple years the French settlers increased in Acadia. Nicholas Denys established fisheries at La Have and also built a lumber mill. Charles de Menou D’Aulnay, a cousin of Razilly, would voyage east with fur and fish cargoes and west with supplies and new settlers. Charles La Tour had his commission as Governor and Lieutenant General and got along with  Razilly. He would let Razilly deal with colonizing as he dealt with the fur trade at Saint John and Pentagoet. Nicholas Denys also got along well with Razilly and La Tour. However, Charles de Menou D’Aulnay was not liked, but Razilly was in control. Samuel de Champlain, with a Governorship, was at Quebec. His fur-trading outpost, founded in 1634 at Trois Riviers on the Saint Lawrence half way between Quebec and Montreal, was also prospering.  

       The Puritans and The Massachusetts Bay Company were becoming a factor in the development of North America. They feared the Papists Acadians as bad or undesirable  neighbors and were afraid there would be conflict. However, the French actually claimed nothing further than the Kennebec River. Boston Harbor was fortified and troops were sent as far as Cape Ann to protect Boston from any French intrusion. The French settlers and soldiers of Acadia were brave and courageous people. They taunted and raided the Pilgrim outpost at Penobscot and Machias because they were occupying French territory. Razilly sent D’Aulnay to peaceably enforce French claim to Penobscot Bay in August 1635. It was at first successful, but the Pilgrims were not happy with the situation, so they sent Captain Miles Standish to retake Pentagoet. D’Aulnay with sufficient supplies was well dug in and Standish retreated. D’Aulnay was then made the Seigneur of Pentagoet.

       Before Razilly died at the end of 1635, he had successfully brought people to Acadia and well established his colonies. There were 100 permanent colonists at Cape La Have, 40 at Port Royal and outpost and forts at Cape Sable, Pentagoet and Saint John. Many of these people are ancestors of this writer, but census was not taken or records kept. The fortunes of the French Seigneurs began to decline. Immigration continued as more settlers arrived. The ship “Saint Jehan” arrived in April of 1636 at La Have with 78 new settlers. The people in this group included 7 men with wives and children, widows, with and without children, single men and single women. Trades and artisans included carpenters, wine makers, farmers or gardeners, tailors, metal and arms makers, shoe makers, barrels makers, grain grinders, domestic maids, servants and boat builders. Known ancestors on the “Saint Jehan” in 1636 were Pierre Martin (1601-) and wife Catherine Vigneau (1603-), Issac Pesselet and his wife Barbe Barjolet (1608-), Nicholas Boyolle, Guillaume Trahan (1611-1682), his first wife Francoise Carbonneau and daughter Jeanne (1629-).

       Charles La Tour still had his commission, soldiers and forts. He was getting support from the Company of New France and remained at Saint John. He also had with him the Recollet Friars to spread the Catholic Religion. Charles de Menou D‘Aulnay had positioned himself and got support of the Razilly-Condonnier Company when Razilly died in 1635.  He drove Nicholas Denys out of business at La Have. Denys left Acadia, returning to France. D’Aulnay married Jeanne Motin who had arrived on the ship “Saint Jehan” in 1636. He then moved the people from La Have to Port Royal and established his headquarters at Port Royal which today is known as Annapolis Royal, The Port Royal River basin and valley would be better suited for farming as well as a more suitable harbor for fortification.

        The Acadian settlers adopted a method of farming similar to that in the Netherlands. They built dikes, called aboiteaux, along the shores of the extreme tides of the Bay of Fundy. Under the dikes they installed wooden sluices with top hinged gates. On an incoming tide the force of the water would close the gate not allowing the seawater onto the drained land. Rain water, fresh spring water and water from streams would flush the land and drain out through the sluices at low tide. The rich soil would then be exposed for farming and grazing. This way of preparing the land required far less labor than the conventional way of clearing the land of trees and rocks.

       The Capuchin Fathers who were brought from France would tend to the religious needs of the Acadian colonists who were very religious. Acadian culture surrounded the church and the priest had more control over the inhabitants than that of the Seigneurs. The seeds of the Acadian culture and simple way of life was planted by these settlers. In 1636 Mathieu Martin was the first Acadian born of the French settlers from Europe. He was the son of Pierre Martin (1601-) and Catherine Vigneau (1603-). They were passengers on the “Saint Jehan”. Mathieu was also a brother to Marguerite Martin.  

       In 1638 D'Aulnay was commissioned the Seigneur of Port Royal to go along with his Pentagoet commission, but ordered to cooperate with Charles La Tour. At this time the seigneurs of Acadia were lobbying, positioning and feuding for power. However, La Tour held the upper hand in Acadia. The Kings ministers tried to appease the Seigneurs of Acadia, but it didn’t work like it was suppose to, as the lords had overlapping territories unknown by the ministers of France. Charles La Tour married an Indian woman and they had two daughters. A third marriage in 1640 was to Francoise-Marie Jacqueline an actress and daughter of a physician from the Paris suburbs. Upon his return to Acadia with his new wife, he went to Port Royal to meet D’Aulnay and Jean Motin. Arriving there he found that D’Aulnay was on a voyage to Pentagoet visiting his captain of the arms, Germain Doucet. D’Aulnay had left orders not to allow La Tour ashore while he was gone. This upset La Tour and they had a battle when D’Aulnay returned. La Tour was defeated and both he and his wife were jailed by D’Aulnay. He later released them and allowed them to return to Saint John. The ministers tried again to resolve the situation in Acadia. They sided with D’Aulnay and La Tour lost his commission. He was ordered to report to the King or be jailed again by D’Aulnay. 

       La Tour was faced with the loss of a profitable trade, but was able to keep some backing from the Company of New France with arms and soldiers. He also turned to the Puritans of Boston for help. His representative was able to negotiate trade agreements with the Puritans for the future, but was unable to get any other financial backing there. In 1642 D’Aulnay sailed to France, got control of the Razilly-Condonnier Company and obtained financial backing from Emmanuel Le Borgne. He then hired men and ships and returned to Acadia with orders in hand to arrest La Tour. Rather than confront La tour directly, D’Aulnay though it best to set up a blockade of Fort La Tour and Saint John Harbor, cutting off supplies to La Tour. Jacques de Murat, a Lieutenant of La Tour’s was able to get by the blockade and sail to Boston. There he convinced the Puritans of Boston to commence immediate commercial trade with the papists at Saint John.

       The settlements of the Saint Lawrence Valley were also increasing in population with new settlers. Quebec was the center of the French governing in Canada, but was far removed from the seigneurs of Acadia, so they governed on their own. Sieur de Paul de Chomedey de Maisonneuve founded Ville Marie in 1642 later renamed Montreal. He brought Marguerite Bourgeois from Troyes, France. Marguerite Bourgeois together with Francois de Laval, 1st. Bishop of Quebec founded the Canadian Church, The Congregation de Notre Dame. This church was most influential in the future of Canada. As in Acadia, the culture of the inhabitants in Quebec also surrounded the church. Marguerite could have been related to Jacques Bourgeois, but this was not researched.      

       There remained an out standing arrest warrant for Charles La Tour, so he stayed in the comfort of his fort at Saint John and sent his wife to France to see if she could reverse his position in Acadia. Richelieu had died and Jules Mazarin replaced him as the King’s Minister. Madam La Tour was successful as Mazarin reversed the arrest decree and reinstated La Tour’s title. Orders were also issued for a ship and supplies to aid La Tour. The 120-ton ship “Saint Cement” sailed with 63 men to reinforce Charles La Tour and the official papers restoring La Tour‘s commission. They arrived off the shores of Saint John and confronted the blockade by D’Aulnay. Francoise-Marie Jacqueline was able to get a message ashore to her husband and he along with Jacques Murat found their way to the ship and set sail for Boston arriving on June 22, 1644.

       Once they arrived in Boston, La Tour produced the documents and was able to convince Governor Winthrop and his advisors that he was the legal Governor of Acadia. They declined to become involved directly, but allowed La Tour to hire men and ships in Massachusetts to go with him and take back Acadia by force. The clergy and elders of the Puritan colony had not been consulted and were upset with Winthrop’s decision. But, it was too late to reverse. They were drawn into an armed conflict of the French colony and did not understand why they became involved, political or religious. Boston merchants Edward Gibbons and Thomas Hawkins were La Tour’s financial backers, holding a mortgage on Fort La Tour. Five ships were outfitted with supplies, crews and 70 hired soldiers. This armada of ships was to accompany the ship “Clement” sailing under her flag. When returning to the Bay of Fundy, La Tour meet the blockade with little resistance and followed D’Aulnay’s ships to Port Royal. After entering the basin on that summer day of 1643, La Tour sent for D’Aulnay’s surrender. In turn D’Aulnay returned with the outstanding warrant for La Tour’s arrest. Seeing this, Hawkins had second thoughts about his involvement and would not order an attack, but allowed La Tour to recruit volunteers. La Tour was able to enlist about one half of the soldiers to join him with the promise of booty. An assault was launched with minimal success. Before retreating, a mill was burned, a few crops destroyed, a few cattle killed, three defenders killed, seven men wounded and one soldier captured.

       The Puritans in Boston no longer wanted anything to do with La Tour. Additionally he was in bad favor with the French because he had been in armed conflict against his countrymen and the Protestants of Boston sided with him. D’Aulnay went to France in the fall of 1643 to undo what Mazarin had done for La Tour and his wife. D’Aulnay returned to Acadia with a war ship, reinforcements and another arrest warrant for Charles La Tour. Francoise-Marie Jacqueline had gone back to France also, but was not received as she had hoped to be. Finding no sympathy with the hostile administration, she found her way to London. There she hired Captain John Bradley to bing her back to Saint John. Because of other voyage commitments, six months later the vessel arrived in Boston. Charles La Tour had been in Boston just a few days prior to her arrival. He again was trying to get financial backing from the people of Massachusetts. Madam La Tour sued Captain Bradley for breach of contract and was awarded the ships cargo. With the money from the sale of the cargo she was able to buy supplies and hire another ship to return her to Saint John.

       Governor D‘Aulnay was able to make amends with the Puritans. A treaty was signed October 18, 1644 between the Massachusetts Bay Colony and Acadia. It recognized D’Aulnay the Governor of Acadia, assured peace between the two colonies and permitted unlimited merchant trading. D’Aulnay was also allowed to maintain his blockade of Fort La Tour. However, Charles La Tour would not give in easily. The people of Boston liked him, so he and his wife put together another plan to present to the Puritans. La Tour left for Boston in the spring of 1645. D’Aulnay heard of his absence from Fort La Tour and took the opportunity to attack the fort. Francoise-Marie Jacqueline, the wife of Charles La Tour, strongly led the defense of the fort. The battle lasted for three days and there were many casualties. Fort La Tour finally fell under siege on Easter of 1645. All but one of La Tour’s men was hanged while Madam La Tour was made to watch. She was put in prison and died June 15,1645. Charles La Tour in defeat went to Newfoundland to enlist help from his father’s old friend David Kirke. Unable to get any assistance there, he went into exile at Quebec. 

       The French Colonies of Acadia were growing from the people Razilly brought, some of D’Aulnay’s immigrants and a generation of the new Acadian born. Those that came from France were mostly from the counties of Tourine and Brittany. D’Aulnay had his forts, private armies, and control of the fur trade and wealth. Most of the colonists and a few soldiers resided at Port Royal. There were still a few settlers at La Have and others at D’Aulnay’s controlled forts. Nicholas Denys returned to Acadia to build a post at Chaleur Bay in what is now northeast New Brunswick and D’Aulnay again put him out of business. There were about 300 people in the territory.

      Sixty eight known ancestors of the writer included in the population of Acadia in 1650 were:
Jean Blanchard, wife Radegonde Lanbert and four children, born in Acadia, of which three are ancestors, Madeleine, Anne and Guillaume;
Michael Boudreau (1699-), Judge, Councilor and Lieutenant General, his wife Michelle Aucoin and four children born in Acadia of which two, Marguerite and Charles are ancestors;
Antoine Bourg, wife Antoinette Landry and five children of which three are ancestors, Francois, Marie and Jean;
Jacques Bourgeois;
Jacques Bourgeois II, wife Jeanne Trahan and three children of which two, Charles and Germain are ancestors;
Pierre Comeau and wife Rose Bayolle;
Robert Cormier, wife Marie Peraude and two sons Thomas, an ancestor, and Jean;
Germain Doucet, D’Aulnay’s staff officer, his wife Marie Bourgeois (sister to Jacques Bourgeois);
Pierre Doucet, a widower and son Germain who is not an ancestor;
Abraham Dugas (1616-1698), his wife Marguerite-Louise Doucet and daughter Marie;
Michael Forest; a farmer (also known as De Forest);
Jehan Gaudet was a farmer and in a second marriage with Nicole Coleson with a son Jean, not an ancestors;
Dennis Gaudet his wife Martine Gauthier, daughter Anne and first son Pierre;
Francois Gautreau, wife Edmee Lejeune and four children, two from a previous marriage, Marie (1636-) and Charles (1637-) and two children in a second marriage, Marie (1647-) and Jean (1648-) of which both Marie’s are ancestors;
Francois Girouard, a farmer, wife Jeanne Aucoin and a son Jacques, not an ancestor;
Antoine Hebert, a barrel maker, wife Genevieve Lefranc and son Jean;
Etienne Hebert and wife Marie Gaudet;
Daniel La Blanc and his wife Francoise Gaudet;
Rene Landry, his wife Perrine Bourg (the widow Peltret) and two daughters, both named Marie, the first born an ancestor;
Pierre Martin, his wife Catherine Vigneau and five children, daughter Marguerite the only child that is an ancestor;
Barbe Barjolet the widow of Isaac Pesselet and one of their children, Marie;
Jean Petre;
Jehan Poirier and wife Jeanne Chebrat;
Jehan Theriault, wife Perrine Rau and six children, Claude and Jeanne being ancestors;
Guillaume Trahan and his first wife Francoise Carbonneau.

In early 1650 D’Aulnay died in the cold waters of Port Royal as a result of a canoeing accident. D’Aulnay settlements got scrambled as civil strife plagued the homeland France during the “Fonde”. Emmanuel Le Borgne not able to see a return of his investment in D’Aulnay looted the warehouse at Port Royal. He then took over the colony, acting as “The Lord of Acadia“. Denys had again relocated at Cape Breton Island and Le Borgne forced him into exile at Quebec. Le Borgne also had Charles La Tour to contend with as he came out of exile from Quebec and took the opportunity of D’Aulnay’s death to regain political presence. France again renewed their faith in La Tour, as he was made Governor of Acadia and returned to Port Royal in September 1651.

 

       Jeanne Motin, the widow of D’Aulnay, was in trouble as her support from France had fallen apart. When La Tour returned to Acadia he forced Jeanne Motin to turn over Saint John Harbor and the new forts her husband had built. He then made his base there. Denys again came back relocating at Saint Peters {Cape Breton Island}. Le Borgne raided Port Royal for its goods a second time in the winter of 1652-1653. In the spring of 1653 Charles La Tour proposed to Jeanne Motin and married her in July. She was 30 years younger and the widow of his archrival. Soon after the wedding while La Tour was at Saint John, Le Borgne returned again to Port Royal and took control of that settlement. He placed Jeanne Motin in prison, went on to raid La Have and Denys’ post at Saint Peters. This time Nicholas Denys was placed in a dungeon shackled in irons. However, Denys was able to get free and returned to France. The Company of New France awarded the inlands and coast of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence from Canso to Gaspe’, including Prince Edward Island and Cape Breton Island to Nicholas Denys. Along with the backing of the Company of New France he was given Governorship of the same territory by the French Crown.

 

                                                                           

       At the end of 1654 Acadia was a scrambled mess with the Governorships and commissions, Charles La Tour at Saint John, Nicholas Denys at Saint Peters and Emmanuel Le Borgne at Port Royal. The Puritan political party controlled Britain as well as New England from 1642 to 1648.  King Henry VIII and Parliament fought a civil war. The Parliament won and the king was beheaded. Oliver Cromwell, a Puritan, became “The Lord Protector” and ruled until 1660. The “Navigation Act”, banning British imports except in British ships limited Dutch trade. After a century of Spanish rule over the Dutch, Holland became a nation and built their own merchant fleet. In 1652 war between Britain and the Dutch started. The war lasted for only two years because Cromwell did not like the conflict with other protestant nations. Robert Sedgwick together with John Leverett had prepared an armada of ships and trained soldiers from New England to take Manhattan from the Dutch. The war ended before the planned assault on Manhattan took place, so they had the trained forces and supplies ready for an attack.                 

 

       French privateers were very active in the Atlantic Ocean seizing British ships even though Britain and France were at peace. Britain was under the leadership of the Puritans and Cromwell commissioned Robert Sedgwick to seize French ships in reprisal. Robert Sedgwick interpreted this commission as the approval to conquer Acadia. Based on that, Sedgwick decide to invade French Acadia with his trained troops and armada of ships. In the summer of 1654 he sailed to the Bay of Fundy, first to Saint John where he accepted Charles La Tour’s surrender after three days of minimal fighting. He then sailed across the bay to Port Royal where Emmanuel Le Borgne gave up after a small skirmish. Sedgwick then went on to take possession of La Have and Pentagoet. Nicholas Denys was let be at Saint Peters, probably to far away to bother with.           

 

       Acadia was now governed by Britain and the inhabitant’s British subjects. Charles La Tour was sent to Britain and Emmanuel Le Borgne to France with the soldiers of Port Royal. Among them were Germain Doucet, Jacques Bourgeois I and his son Robert who had arrived in the early sixteen thirties. The inhabitants of the settlements had a choice of weather to stay as British subjects or leave and most chose to stay. The French Crown had not done much for the inhabitants anyway. They had been living under the squabbling French seigneurs for some time. The British did not leave any presence at Port Royal and Guillaume Trahan (1611-1682) governed it under syndic. All the French Acadians wanted was to live in peace, be tranquil and raise their large families.

       The Massachusetts Puritans wanted to annex their territory east to include all of Acadia. Sir Ferdinando Gorges and John Mason occupied the territory between Massachusetts and the Kennebec River, now New Hampshire and Southwestern Maine. It was poorly governed and settlers from Massachusetts were moving into the area. Taking control of Acadia would give the Massachusetts Puritans the territory all the way to the Saint Lawrence and allow them to benefit from the fish and fur trades. Leverett went to Cromwell to get the approval of Parliament for the takeover, but Cromwell thought differently. Both Britain and France were under shaky rule and Cromwell though is might create bigger problems for either of the two countries if Acadia was annexed to the Massachusetts Bay Colonies. The Treaty of Westminster was signed in 1656, whereby both countries agreed they would not aid resurgence of each other’s country or assist any other enemies.         

 

       The restoring of Acadia to France was left to arbitration, but never actually happened. Cromwell handed Acadia over to two of his countrymen, Thomas Temple and William Crowne, and the Frenchman Charles La Tour. Again La Tour was back in the thick of things with a barony in Acadia. However, to get that La Tour had to repay his old debts in Boston, pay for the expenses at the three garrisons (Port Royal, Saint John and Pentagoet) and accept Temple and Crowne as partners. The English Lords had no intension of keeping La Tour as a partner and took advantage of the Frenchman . Temple and Crowne forced La Tour to sell his share of Acadia to them. Aging, he gave up with ease and retired to Cape Sable with his wife Jeanne Motin and a daughter, Marie (1654-). Temple and Crowne then divided the territory east and west. Temple then leased Crowne’s half from him with financing from Thomas Breedon. However, Temple lived in Boston and did very little governing of Acadia. While living at Cape Sable, Charles de Saint-Etienne de La Tour and Jeanne Motin had four additional children; Jacques (1661-), Charles (1664-), Anne (1664-) and Marguerite (1665-) before he died in 1666.             

 

       In 1658 Emmanuel Le Borgne attempted a comeback with his son Alexander Le Borgne de Belle-Isle at La Have but was quickly disposed of by Temple. Oliver Cromwell died the same year and by 1660 monarchy returned to Britain. Thomas Temple thought that his relationship with Breedon would allow him to keep his barony in Acadia secure. However, the King awarded the territory to a friend of the court named Thomas Elliott who had little interest in Acadia. Thomas Breedon then bought Elliott out and became Governor of Acadia himself. This left Temple without his barony, so he went to London to re-secure his territory. With shrew maneuvering he was successful and in 1662 he got the governorship back, but was to cover the debts of Breedon to Elliott. For the next eight years under Thomas Temple, trade was established between New England and Acadia. The Boston merchants and Temple made good profits from the trade. It also benefited the Acadian people, as they were able to get useful goods. Nicholas Denys was left alone at Saint Peters, Cape Breton where he managed the fish and fur trades. He was able to pay off his debts, but he finally met defeat when fire destroyed his post in 1669. Denys then returned to France and wrote the early history of Acadia. 

 

       Another war between Britain and Holland started and the French sided with the Dutch. The Treaty of Breda in 1667 brought the war to an end with Britain getting back Antigua, Montserrat and half of the island of Saint Christopher. The Dutch gave up New York and gained Surinam in South America. Acadia was brought back under French rule. The territory had been under British rule since 1654 although the people were still mostly French. The feuding French claimants disappeared under the British government. Thomas Temple had bettered Acadia as a result of contacts and trade with New England. Hector d’Andigne Grandfontaine became the Royal Governor of all of Canada and had the backing of King Louis XIV. Soldiers, men and women were sent to Acadia to govern and work. The French understanding of the Acadian territory was all of the land east of the Kennebec River. Canada had grown, but Acadia grew apart from the rest of Canada.        

 

       The inhabitants that populated Acadia in 1671 desired to be “French Neutrals”. The actual number on the censes did not change a great deal from that of 1650, but the cultural make up of the inhabitants changed. Many of the soldiers and their families were sent to France in the mid 1650s. The inhabitants that remained at that time were mostly settlers and their Acadian born off springs. Most of the population resided at Port Royal, with small communities at Pubnico and Pentagoet. The names on the censes taken in 1671 represented the first and second generation of the French Acadian heritage. The actual population count was 392, represented by 70 heads of families of which 43 heads of families are direct ancestors of the writer and 150 of the individuals inhabitants can be found in the maternal line of the Legere genealogy tables.

 

       Although Canada was under a new type of government, seigneuries were still granted. Vincent Castine who had arrived in Quebec in 1665 at a very young age went to Pentagoet in 1667 after he was discharge from the military. He received a grant from the King for land near Fort Pentagoet. At that time there were a few guns, a number of buildings and a chapel at the fort. He decided to establish a trading post a little farther up the river from the fort where the town of Castine, Maine now lies. There he would not be under the watchful eye of the Catholic priest and the other French settlers. Castine befriended the Indian Chief Madockawando and married his daughter Mathilde. He ran a very successful fur trading business becoming quite wealthy from it. A business partner of his was John Nelson, an Episcopalian and nephew of Sir Thomas Temple. The merchant trading they conducted was illegal according to both French and British law, but they did it at will as Acadia was in need of the trade. He had a warehouse in Port Royal and the Governor encouraged this trade, as it was good for the economy of Acadia. Castine together with his Indian friends harassed the British in the Massachusetts colony outposts around Penobscot Bay. Alexander Le Borgne de Belle Isle, the son of Emmanuel, had been entrenched at Port Royal and got a new seigneur. His wife was Marie La Tour, the eldest daughter of Charles La Tour and Jeanne Motin. He controlled the trade and didn’t do much ruling, however, as he enjoyed the pleasures of life and wine. 

 

       Acadia was not convenient to either Quebec who was to govern the territory or to its mother country France. Therefore, little was done for it and the people survived with their own simple way of life. Trade with New England kept them financially stable. Pierre Landry was one of the successful marine merchants of Acadia. The boundaries of Acadia remained to be disputed. Maine, east of the Kennebec River, had been given to Holland in 1664 when Britain controlled Acadia. But the French claimed that territory and Grandfontaine put his headquarters at Fort Pentagoet. Edmond Andres, Governor of New York built a fort at Pemaquid a few miles west of Penobscot Bay and the Massachusetts Bay Company had pushed their activities into Southwestern Maine.       

 

       The French territory of North America was feeble and venerable. Jacques de Chambly had replaced Grandfontaine at Fort Pentagoet. The Dutch were at war with Britain and France. Acadia became a colony of Holland after Captain Jurriaen Aernoutsz and John Rhodes attacked Fort Pentagoet in 1667 and again in 1674, destroying it. They also took control of Saint John, but did not go to Port Royal. Holland then claimed all of Acadia for William of Orange. New England was happy to be rid of the bothersome French. However, they didn’t like the Dutch interfering with the trade they were doing with Acadia. So New England tried the Dutch as Pirates. Holland compared their conquering of Acadia to that of Sedgwick in 1654, so the Dutch got away with it. In 1676 Cornelis Steenwyck was named Governor of the coast and counties of Nova Scotia and Acadia. Without a military, Acadia still existed as it had for many years.   

 

       Britain and New England were fighting with the French and the Indians. The Indians sided with the French because of the ties they had made with the Catholic Missionaries. The French and Indians also got along because the French respected the Indian way of life as well as wanting to live peaceable tranquil lives. The Indian culture was changing due to the British intervention and aggregation. The taking of their lands, suppression and over hunting added to the conflict with the Indians. The Treaty of Casco Bay in 1678 ended this war and the settlers had to pay for the lands they took from the Indians. The French got back control of Acadia and Hector de Frontenac had become Governor of Canada. Immigration resumed and people were brought to Acadia from France and other parts of Canada. Michael Leneuf de La Valliere was named Governor of Acadia by Frontenac.          

 

       Michael Leneuf de La Valliere was originally from Trois-Rivieres, born in 1640. He went to France for his education and returned to Canada in 1657. Michael Leneuf was among the explorers in 1661 that attempted to find a passage from Quebec to Cathay (China) via the Hudson Bay, but turned back because of disease and fear of the Iroquois Indians. Acadia was not unfamiliar to him as he had performed duties there for Governor Frontenac and engaged British merchant ships in illegal trade. While at Saint Peters, Cape Breton in 1665 Michael Leneuf de La Valliere married Marie Deny the only daughter of Nicholas Denys. He was active in fur trade, fishing and colonizing. It was 1676 when Michael Leneuf de La Valliere sailed to Chignecto on the his schooner “Saint Antoine” to assume his gubernatorial duties and renamed the village Beaubassin. Jean La Barre, Francois Legere and Michael Hache’ Gallant, were three of men among the settlers that were with La Valliere on board the ship.

 

       Jean La Barre married an Indian woman and had a daughter Elizabeth La Barre who became the wife of Jean Baptiste Forest, the son of Michael Forest and Marie Hebert, all ancestors on the maternal Legere genealogy charts. The Francois Legere who was with Michael Leneuf de La Valliere was originally from Angers, southwest of Paris, France. It is possible that he was related in some way to Jacques Legere who is the basis of this script. However, he originated from a different part of France and a study was not pursued. He returned to Quebec, vanished and left no known descendants. Michael Hache’ Gallant stayed at Beaubassin and became a very prominent inhabitant.  He is an ancestor and addressed further in this script. Many of his descendants are found in the ancestral charts of the Legere family.         

 

       New England fishermen were using the Acadian shores illegally to dry their fish catches. Edward Randolph, an agent for the committee of The Lords of Trade, was engaged to spy on the trade activities of Acadia. A compromise made in Quebec by John Nelson, Castine’s business partner, allowed the licensing of New Englanders to use the shores and La Valliere made Nelson his agent to sell the licenses in Boston. Paris was not happy with this situation. Frontenac had lost his support of the French Crown and Francois-Marie Perrot replaced La Valliere in 1684. Perrot had been in Montreal under Frontenac and once Perrot was in Acadia he continued to allow the illegal trading with New England. Therefore, the fisheries trade continued without French control. France and Britain had trouble solving the boundaries, fishing and trading rights in the New World and tried to solve it with the Treaty of White Hall. It had some success by keeping the two countries from war over North America, but it was short lived.

          

       The powers of Europe remained in turmoil with a revolution going on in Britain. William of Orange rallied the protestant states, drove King James, II to France and William became King of Britain in 1689. King James, II attempted a comeback, but was badly defeated in Scotland and Ireland. With the strong combine protestant powers in Europe, New England felt it was time to drive the Catholic demons, the French, from Acadia. The French and Indians had been causing havoc for the Puritans among the New England colonies, even though their numbers were considerably less than those of the New Englanders. Andres’s fort at Pemaquid was demolished. Schenectady, New York, Dover and Salmon Falls in New Hampshire were devastated and Falmouth (now Portland, Maine) was sacked and burned. In 1688 the total population of Acadia was 881 people including 28 soldiers. The center of Acadian population was Port Royal where there was also a small fort. The census of 1689 reviled 461 people in Port Royal, 78 in Chignecto and 164 at the Minus Basin.

       Louis-Alexander des Friches de Meneval was then Governor of Acadia. France and King Louis, XIV had a large army in Europe, but did not send many soldiers to the colonies. De Meneval was rebuilding the fort at Port Royal and the number of his soldiers grew to 86. This French colony was very venerable and the Puritans took advantage of it. In 1690 Sir William Phips was sent to take Acadia with more soldiers than there were inhabitants and soldiers in Acadia. Meneval’s meager army and inadequate fort was no match to the large number of invading forces from New England. Meneval had no choice but to surrender and was taken prisoner. Phips men then rifled the church, cut down the cross, pulled down the high alter, broke the Catholic images, pillaged and robed the town.    

       Phips then made the inhabitants of Port Royal sign allegiance to William and Mary, the British crowns. This first allegiance of the many that would come in future years. However, Phips did allow the inhabitants to continue the practice of their Catholic religious believes. The inhabitants, including those from the Minas Basin settlements, thought that if they signed the allegiance without resistance, Phips would leave them alone and this he did. He then appointed a council to govern the colony. Chevalier, a French officer at Port Royal, was made president of this council. Other men of the council were Alexander Le Borgne de Belle-Isle, Pierre Du Breuil, Mathieu de Goutin, Rene Landry and Daniel La Blanc. In Boston, Phips was considered a military hero.  

       Joseph Robineau de Villebon, an officer for de Meneval, was in France when Phips took Port Royal. Upon his return to Acadia in the later part of 1690, he was made the French Governor of Acadia, but he allowed Chevalier to keep his position at Port Royal, He was under British rule, but a French officer. Because of the success Phips had in the taking of Port Royal, Phips was sent by the Boston Puritans to conquer Quebec. There Phips was badly defeated under the guns of the fortress and aided by Villebon at Cape Tourmente. Phips returned to Boston without plunder and the colony issued paper money to pay the expenses of the failed siege. Villebon then directed the French and Indian hit and run attacks on the Bay Colonies from Fort Naschouac on the Saint John River near Fredericton, New Brunswick. A soldier posted at Fort Naschouac was Jacques Legere dit La Rosette, a drummer.

       The governing at Port Royal by the Puritans was given to a landholder from Maine named Edward Tyng. When he arrived at Port Royal with the businessman John Nelson, the people of Port Royal told him that the Indians would assault him and they would step back and watch. Tyng decided that Port Royal was not for him and he would govern from Boston as Temple had. On the voyage back to Boston with Nelson, they were captured by French sailors and imprisoned. Tyng was sent to France, where he died and Nelson was jailed in Quebec.    

       Phips, who was now the new royal governor of Massachusetts, sent a representative to Port Royal and found the Acadian attitude unchanged. He was besieged with other problems and left the governing status quo. Thus ending Puritan governing in Acadia. Villebon continued his campaign with the Indians against the New England colonies, destroying the villages of York and       Wells, Maine and Durham, New Hampshire. Control was changing back to France when Villebon took Fort Pemaquid. Massachusetts retaliated by sending Colonel Benjamin Church to the defenseless Beaubassin village and slaughtered all the live stock and burned the buildings. When Church was returning to Boston he considered attacking Fort Naschouac, but sailed on toward Boston. He later received orders to go back and root Villebon from Fort Naschouac. The fort was well defended by Villebon and a day and night later Church was forced to retreat down the river in defeat.  The war between France and Britain in Europe ended and the Treaty of Ryswick was signed in 1697, again restoring Acadia back to France.

       Disputes over fishing rights, trade and borders did not go away. Massachusetts still claimed a large part of Acadia and wanted to control the French territory. Villebon confronted Boston regarding their illegal activities, but the inhabitants of Acadia really did not care. There were some things that the inhabitants needed or wanted, such as fancy textiles, arms, sophisticated tools and better farm implements. They should have been able to get these from France, but they had to trade with New England for such products while the authorities looked the other way. They just wanted to be left alone, live their simple lives, raising large families and getting by with what was needed. The early French Acadian people were not overly industrious; their method of farming and fishing with weirs required little physical labor. The inhabitants live simple lives, but well. They made do with what was available. Luxuries and good sprits were few and far between among the inhabitants. They produce a palatable beer made of branches from fir and spruce trees and boiled molasses. 

       The center of the Acadian culture was still at Port Royal where most of the inhabitants resided. With this small number of inhabitants, many were related to each other and it was difficult to find a partner that was not a cousin. New settlements were founded. Jacques Bourgeois, II, had established Chignecto, renamed Beaubassin, in 1676. Other Port Royal leaders Pierre Melanson, Pierre Theriault and Jacques Le Blanc, with three of his brothers, settled Grand Pre in 1682. This is the town Henry Wardsworth Longfellow wrote of in his epic poem “Evangeline“. Mathieu Martin, the first born Acadian, settled Cobequid on the Minas Basin in 1689 and he became the seigneur. This town is now known as Toro, Nova Scotia. Pisiquid another Minus Basin community, now Windsor, was also prospering. Pierre Thibodeau, Guillaume Blanchard and a few families had crossed the Bay of Fundy and settled the new communities of Chipoudy and Blanchard on the banks of the Peticoudiak River in New Brunswick. Philippe Mius d’Entremont had the only true seigneurie situated at Cape Sables. The censes of 1693 recorded a population of inhabitants in Port Royal at 307 among 55 families and Beaubassin 127 inhabitants. By 1700 the population in Acadia had increased to 1500 people. Soldiers that did come were encouraged to stay in Acadia, but the population increased for the most part came from within.

       Villebon had died and Jacques-Francois de Brouillan assumed the governorship of Acadia in 1701. In his opinion, he found the governing structure in shambles. The Acadians existed with little governing as they were far removed from both the mother country and Quebec. Mathieu de Goutin had been made the King’s counselor and Lieutenant General, chief clerk and judge. He was married to Jeanne Thibodeau, a daughter of Pierre Thibodeau and Jeanne Theriault. Subsequently Mathieu de Goutin was related in some way to many of the inhabitants of the settlements and they were reluctant to appear before him for any litigation. The smaller villages were governed under the guidance of panels made up from the inhabitants with the priest usually having the final decision.

       The crowns of Europe were engrossed with the fight over who would acquire the throne of Spain during Queen Anne‘s War. Joseph Dudley, who the Puritans had previously sent back to England, returned to New England to Govern in 1702. He first attempted to make peace with the Indians, but it did not last, as the Indians did not like the British. The Indians raided Deerfield, Connecticut burning barns and homes, killing 50 settlers and drove most of those that survived the raid to Canada. Dudley blamed the Acadians and retaliated by sending Colonel Benjamin Church again to the unprotected communities in the Minus Basin and Beaubassin. There they broke down the dams, burned homes, barns and crops. Port Royal was spared and Dudley alleged he did not attack Port Royal because he was awaiting orders from England. The puritans claimed he avoided Port Royal because he was lining his own pockets with the illegal trade.

       Dudley’s friend Samuel Vetch had just returned from failed duties in South America and Dudley sent him to Quebec to negotiate a prisoner exchange and promote trade. The New England colonists believed that Vetch and his associates were trading in violation of law. They were tried and convicted of trading with the enemy by the General Court, but it was overturned by the Queen’s attorney general. Still the Puritans were convinced that Dudley was behind the scheme. Dudley had to prove that he was not a friend to Acadia and France, so he put together a militia of untrained and unprepared men. Under the leadership of Colonel John March, they were directed to seize Port Royal.

       In 1706 Daniel d’Auger Subercase, an experienced French officer, was sent to govern Acadia. Finding Port Royal in a sad state of affairs, he quickly repaired the fort and trained forces made up from French soldiers, Indian warriors and Acadian militiamen. Colonel March’s army of over 1000 men arrived in Port Royal Basin in early June of 1707. He positioned his troops on both sides of the basin about 5 miles from the fort and commenced movement toward the fort so to put a squeeze on the fort. As they moved toward the fort the Acadian defenses retreated into the fort. Heavy bombardment from the fort broke down the New England militia and they retreated to Casco Bay. When Colonel March’s officer arrived in Boston to report their failure, they were publicly shamed. Dudley responded by sending Colonel Francis Wainwright with reinforcements to Casco Bay and join Colonel March’s remaining troops for another attempt to take Port Royal. Subercase knowing they would return was ready for the invaders and again successfully defended Port Royal.

       At this same period of time there was also a small group of French soldiers and their families at Pentagoet with the younger Castine. One of the soldiers was Nicholas Babineau. He had arrived in Acadia in 1670 and was not married until 1687 in Port Royal. His wife was Marguerite Granger (1668-1719) the daughter of Laurent Granger (1637-), an Englishman, and Marie Landry (1646-). Nicholas Babineau and Marguerite Granger had six children and while posted at Pentagoet his wife gave birth to their youngest child, Jean Pierre Babineau (1709-1796). Years later, 1733, Jean Pierre Babineau married Isabelle Breau at Grand Pre and settled there. He and his family moved three years latter and founded the village of Terre-Rouge at Le Coude. Today this is the city of Moncton, New Brunswick where there is a monument honoring them in Mascaret Park. Jean Pierre Babineau and Isabelle Breau were victims of the suffering and deportation in 1755. They are ancestors of the writer on the maternal side.  

       Queen Ann’s war was winding down and the crowns were engrossed positioning for power in Europe. Little attention was being made to North America and France was unable to give support to Acadia. Subercase was recognized for his defense at Port Royal, but France advised that finances were not available. He would have to find the finances they believed to be hoarded by the Acadians to pay his bills. His soldiers were becoming unhappy and the militiamen returned to their farms. Things really didn’t change much in Acadia. Neutrality was what the Acadians professed. It was under French rule, but the mother country didn’t do much for the colony.

       Samuel Vetch came up with a plan to conquer Acadia and all of Canada. He had a lot of political connections in England and his friend John Dudley, was the Governor of Massachusetts. Vetch got the approval of the Queen for an invasion, a commission as a colonel and the promise of becoming the Governor of Canada. Colonel Francis Nicholson, a highly experienced administrator in many of the American colonies supported Vetch’s plan as well and would become the commander-in-chief. In 1709 the orders were issued to assemble the invading forces. Nicholson would command an army invading from the west moving into the Saint Lawrence Valley. Vetch was to sail with the main invading forces with the British regulars that were due from England. The British troops were instead sent to Portugal thereby delaying the planed invasion. Getting late in the year the decision was made to delay the invasion until the following year and limit it to Acadia only. This gave the men enlisted additional time to be better trained and Nicholson was sent to London to get approval of the delay.

       It was the summer of 1710 when Nicholson returned from London with 400 royal marines and the orders to reduce Port Royal to the obedience of the Queen. Vetch was the adjutant general, would become governor. Nicholson was the commander in chief. With the royal marines, 1,500 trained colonist from the American colonies, six royal navy warships, one Massachusetts warship and 30 plus transports, the invading forces set sail for the Bay of Fundy at the end of September. They arrived at Port Royal Basin having lost one transport by grounding in the Digby Gut and loosing 26 men from drowning. Subercase knew his days were numbered when he saw the size of the attacking forces. His troops and defenses were insufficient, but he had to put up some resistance for his honor. After six days under attack, the heavy artillery shelling overcame the fort and Nicholson requested surrender.              

       The commanders communicated back and forth and the articles of surrender were drawn up. Following are some of the articles;                     

       1). The garrison would march out with their arms and baggage, drums beating and flags flying.

       2). Sufficient ships and adequate provisions would be provided the garrison for transport to France.

      3). The inhabitants within a cannon shot of the fort would be allowed to stay on their land with their personal belongings, crops and livestock. The distance was established to be a three miles radius and it was determined the number of inhabitants was 478.

      4). The inhabitants would have two years to decide whether they would stay or leave Acadia.                      

       These terms were reasonable to bring all of Acadia under British control. When the documents were signed, Vetch and Nicholson wrote to the Queen and advised her that the British Empire in America included all of Acadia and Nova Scotia from the Saint Croix River to the Cape Gaspe’. On October 16, 1710 the French soldiers marched from the fort and the British and American troops marched in. The French flag was lowered and the Union Jack raised. They then drank to Queen Ann and renamed the town Annapolis Royal. The garrison and their families, totaling 258 people, were boarded on to the ships and sent honorably to France. Nicholson returned to Boston in late October and Vetch was left at Annapolis Royal to command 200 Royal Marines, a 250-member New England militia and govern Acadia.

BRITISH ACADIA

       Acadian population had increased to nearly 2000 people by 1710. They were well settled, scattered, independent and also stubborn. The French Acadian people were very strong Roman Catholics and had large families. The culture, society, ideals, mentality, aspirations, way of life, values, priorities and morals were set and controlled by the priest or pastor of the church. They cohered favorable with the Indians. Under British control again didn’t really mean much to the inhabitants. Vetch recommended in 1710 and again in 1711 that the French inhabitants be expelled. London didn’t want to take the responsibility. Had they been expelled there would be no subjects to govern or tax, leaving the colony without people. It would also be more difficult to handle the Indians without the French still present. Paul Mascarene was born in France, but a Huguenot and a career British Army Captain. He was appointed to command the guard, build relations with the inhabitants and do the unpleasant duties for Vetch, enforcing the regulations and collecting the taxes. Mascarene appointed eight deputies to deal with the people for Vetch’s benevolence in 1710. Among them were; Pierre Melanson at Grand Pre and Mathieu Martin in  Cobequid.                                              

       Under the rule of Britain, the Acadians believed it again was temporary. The military governing purported to bind the Indians and Acadians. Trade with France and Canada was prohibited allowing only trade among themselves at Annapolis Royal. They were promised they would be treated well if they lived civilly and peaceable. However, the Marquis de Vaudreuil, at that time the Governor of New France was told the Acadians would suffer “Military Execution” if they did not prevent the Indian raids on the New England and New York colonies. Frenchmen and Indians inhabited the land under British rule and the inhabitants did as they always had, living a tranquil life and raising large families. The Micmacs knew under the new rule they would have to fight the British to maintain their way of life. The British had taken some of their land, did not respect their Indian customs and did not like the religion they shared with the French. They were also jealous of the French relationship with the native North Americans.

       Vetch’s soldiers were becoming dissatisfied, as London was not supporting Vetch in Acadia. It was realized that the Acadians didn’t have the wealth as thought, they had little to nothing. The inhabitants were not able to pay their stipend and Boston merchants were coming up short because of non-payments for goods. Vetch’s colony was falling apart. The inhabitants were resistant to work. Mascarene attempted to roust the people from the Minas Basin and failed. With the blessing of Vaudreuil, Bernard-Anselme de Castine, son of Jean-Vincent de Castine, with his Indian relatives and friends had more success with his hit and run attracts on the British settlements.

       In Europe the war was still on between France and Britain. Nicholson promoted a scheme for Britain to invade Canada by taking Vaudreuil at Quebec and bring all of Canada and Acadia under British rule. Vetch was recalled from Annapolis Royal and sent to join Admiral Sir Hovenden Walker and General Jack Hill to attack Quebec via the Saint Lawrence with 50 ships and 10,000 men. Nicholson would proceed from the west via Lake Champlain. Poor navigational skills and untrained seaman caused a loss of 10 ships and thousands of sailors and soldiers when attempting to navigate the approaches of the Saint Lawrence. The invasion was botched. However, it did bring relief to the garrison at Annapolis Royal. Jack Hill’s soldiers that survived the Saint Lawrence were sent to man the fort at Annapolis Royal. After they arrived, they proclaimed to be well suited to defend Acadia from French Canada.         

       The Tories replaced Vetch and appointed Francis Nicholson Governor of Newfoundland and Nova Scotia in 1712. In 1714 the Treaty of Rastadt concluded among other agreements that Britain would get the Hudson Bay territory, pieces of Newfoundland and a greater part of Acadia within it’s ancient boundaries, but the boundaries were not defined. The French would keep Cape Breton Island, the Isle of Saint Jean and the Saint Lawrence River Valley. The French inhabitants would be allowed to live on British soil of the Nova Scotia peninsular, the Chignecto isthmus and the main land, New Brunswick. To the French, Acadia had always included land southwest to the Kennebec, northwest to the Saint Lawrence and all of Nova Scotia and Cape Breton Island. The French now realized that Britain’s Acadia included the main land as well. The language of the treaty allowed the French inhabitants to stay if they wished, keep their farms or sell them and leave. They were also allowed to practice their Catholic religion, contrary to British laws. However, they would be subjects of the king of England.

       The British wanted the French inhabitants to leave, but they were in no hurry, therefore the inhabitants procrastinated for years. France, at the same time wanted their subject to leave the British territories and move to the French territory of Cape Breton Island and start new lives. Renamed Isle Royal, it was to be governed by Philippe Costabelle. He brought about 150 French people from Newfoundland, Canada and France to Havre’ an l’Anglois. It was renamed Louisburg and Costabelle expected the French people from Acadia to join the settlement. They did not want to give up their easy method of farming the land they had developed and go to the forested and rocky land of the island. Among the men he brought from France was Mathieu de Goutin, the judge who had been deported to France in 1710. De Goutin, you may recall, was married to Jeanne Thibaudeau the daughter of Pierre who had fathered 16 children at Port Royal. Costabelle sent an officer to Annapolis Royal, Grand Pre and Cobequid to rally the heads of the families. “They were Frenchmen who would do as told”. Not so! They swore allegiance and agreed to go, but stayed, the typical Acadian way, they did, as they wanted.

       If the French left Acadia, the settlements would have been rendered to a primitive state. Therefore, they were encouraged to stay by British officials and granted their fidelity by giving oaths of allegiance. They had their choice of either crown. Stay, swear to obey a protestant king or move to the French territory of his own country. Britain did not force the issue so they stayed. At any rate, the oaths would not mean too much to the Acadians because they had been obtained on numerous occasions in the past and it just became a way of pacifying the ruling reign at the time.

       In 1715 Thomas Caulfeild was Lieutenant Governor and again attempted to have the French subjects swear allegiance. It failed and he turned to London for advice, however, none came. Francis Nicholson and Samuel Vetch were at odds with each other and their respective political parties. It was them that organized the governing state that existed under Dudley’s plan and they would have to be the people to solve the dilemma. Nicholson was gone from Acadia and finished his career off as Governor of South Carolina from 1720 to 1725.  Vetch had won over the governorship of Acadia and held it until 1717, however he never returned to Annapolis Royal. Colonel Richard Philipps a career soldier was rewarded the Governorship of Newfoundland and Nova Scotia. He gave up Newfoundland in 1727 and kept Nova Scotia through 1749. Philipps governed in abstention through junior officers while staying in London. Captain John Doucett relieved Caulfeild as Lieutenant Governor in 1717 and was charged to do something about the lax administration. As in the past, he came up against the stubborn French Acadians and they found more ways to delay the signing of allegiance.

       By 1720 the Board of Trade sent Philipps to Acadia in person to organize a government modeled after Virginia’s. This was doomed at its beginning as the subjects were Catholic and under British law they were unable to vote or hold office. His attempts were friendly rather that forceful, but it still failed. He could not expel them, as he didn’t have the soldiers so he returned to London. The inhabitants did not want to bear arms against their native country France or the Indians. They wished to remain neutral. London and the Board did not do much to help the colony. Thomas Coran wanted to bring war veterans, Baltic and Swiss Protestants to integrate the people but didn’t get the official backing or financial resources to do so. Life in Acadia went on as always, British governing with no government administration or control.

       The French began to make the best of the Acadian lands, which they kept in the treaty of Utrecht. These lands included Cape Breton Island (Isle Royal) and Isle Saint Jean (Prince Edward Island). A fort was built at Louisburg and the city grew into a colonial metropolis with outpost and its population increasing to over 3,000 inhabitants by 1726. The Isle Saint Jean became more important to the colonist than its wilderness of 1720.

       Having got a foothold in Louisburg, the French began to flex a little muscle and redefined the boundaries of Acadia. As in the past, its boundaries were always disputed. Now the French were claiming that only Annapolis Royal and south to Yarmouth on the peninsula of Nova Scotia was all that Britain was entitled to in the Treaty of Utrecht. They told the French people at Beaubassin and the Minus settlements of this and told the Indians of Maine and the Saint John Valley that New England had no rights on those lands or the lands in New Brunswick.

       As was the custom of Indian culture, they moved about their land frequently, not settling in one community as the Europeans did. This was interpreted by New England that the Indians did not have title to any of the land. New England claimed that all of Maine and New Hampshire belonged to them according to the Treaty of Utrecht. The Indians agreed with the French that the New Englanders were intruders and taking their land. Therefore, they retaliated with raids, barn burning and scattering or killing of livestock.

       A meeting with New England’s new royal Governor Samuel Shute, members of his council, notables from Massachusetts and New Hampshire and the Abenakis Sagamores was held at Arrowsic Island. This “Paw Wow” was to settle the issue of the Indians obeying British law and governing on British land. But Chief Wiwurna didn’t consider all of Maine British land and claimed all the lands east of the Kennebec River. The negotiations broke down and the Indian Chiefs left. That night the Indian councils meet and went before the British the following morning. Facing reprisal from New England, they agreed to ratify the Treaty of Portsmouth, a very loosely worded treaty to benefit the British.  

       Vaudreuil was committed to provide supplies and support to the Indians so they could protect their lands in Maine and Acadia. The Jesuit priest Sebastien Rale represented Vaudreuil and was his spokesman to the Indians. Rale repudiated the treaty at Arrowsic, declared that the treaty was null and void. He drew the line at the Kennebec and warned New England against crossing it. Shute sent raiders to Norridgewock, Rale’s mission, to silence him. Rale escaped, but the raiders found papers that confirmed what Shute had expected. That the French were behind the Indian resistance. In 1722 the Indians retaliated, attacking settlements along the Kennebec and Shute declared war. For a couple years, war went on with Lieutenant Governor William Dummer in command. At this same time the Maliseets of the Saint John Valley and the Micmacs of Nova Scotia fought the New Englanders over land occupancy, fishing rights and allegiance. The end of Rale’s war came in 1725 when New England militiamen raided Norridgewock in a massacre and killed Rale. Peace was finally restored when the Abenakis of Maine, the Maliseets of the Saint John Valley and the Micmacs of Nova Scotia submitted to British rule under the Treaty of Boston. The French or Vaudreuil were not happy with this outcome.    

       Peace was at hand and the British could work this out with the Indians. However, the Acadians were still tied to France with their language and religion. French culture was nearby in Lewisburg and that influenced the people at Grand Pre, Pisiquid, Cobequid and Beaubassin, where the bulk of Acadians lived. While the Isle of Royal was developing, the Isle of Saint-Jean was also growing. New French settlers were brought to Isle Saint Jean and by 1735 its population had grown to 432.

       The settlers expanded their farms and grew crops for trade between the Isle of Royal, and the communities of the Minus Basin, the Isthmus of Chignecto, and Isle Saint Jean. The ties with France became stronger even though Britain governed the settlements. The British presence   existed only at Annapolis and Canso. Business as usual, Britain governing without direction control or force. So the French settlers remained the neutrals they desired without having to bear arms against anyone. They swore allegiance to Britain in verse only and lived their simple tranquil lives. The trade between New England and Nova Scotia British settlements grew apart.       

       Thomas Pelham-Holles, Duke of New Castile and Sir Robert Walpole were the Lords of Nova Scotia. Their administration was negligible and corrupt while Lt. Col. Lawrence Armstrong was governing the colony. As Phillips and Doucett had attempted in the past, so did Armstrong make his attempts to obtain the oaths of allegiance. He was not concerned with the settlers not bearing arms. It was in violation of British law for Catholics to bear arms along with other restrictions on the Catholics, such as voting, performing official duties or practicing their religion. As other governors, he had his problems with the stubborn Acadians and in a disagreement, he banished a Catholic priest, Father Breslay, from Annapolis Royal. The men of Annapolis Royal did cooperate with Armstrong. However, those at the Minus Basin and Isthmus of Chignecto refused.

       The following spring the Acadian men of Annapolis Royal rescinded their oaths. However, a British Ensign named Robert Wroth was able to obtain a loosely worded pledge of allegiance from the other Acadian settlement and the British lifted an embargo they had placed on trade. Phillips was recalled from his retirement in London to return to Acadia in 1729 and straighten out the allegiance to the British king. The Acadians got what they wanted and the British pretended their issues were satisfied. Accommodations were made, promises won, loyalty and neutrality solved. Phillips returned to London in 1730 and left Armstrong to govern ungovernable people in a growing settlement with its people rapidly multiplying from within.

       The Acadia population was growing fast. By 1736 there were 4,000 to 5,000 inhabitants, double that of 1710. The plentiful marshland available to farm gave the young incentive and ample opportunity to raise families. The were 295 couples married at Annapolis Royal between 1702 and 1730 and they produced an average of 6.75 children. Famines, epidemics, wars or hard work did not effect them. The culture fostered longevity. There were evils however, as immigration had ended in 1710. Very few of the women found husbands among the British soldiers and the young had to look hard to find a spouse who was not a second or third cousin. It became common for the priest to give dispensation for consanguinity, permission to marry first cousins. The colony was becoming inbred. The few outsiders that did come to the communities were either British or New Englanders and the French speaking Acadians had nothing to do with them. What little outside influence that did arrive was from the French priest or travelers from the French community of Louisburg.

       Nova Scotia belonged to King George. The people could not continue to be “French Neutrals”. Ineffective and unimpressive rule would not disappear. The agreement made by Philipps would not last long and change was being made, but the settlers would not accept it. Some Acadians lived near Annapolis Royal, but most of them were away from British influence or authority residing at the Minus Basin and the Isthmus of Chignecto. The trade with the Isle of Royal and influence of Louisburg irritated the British. The only community the British actually controlled, other than Port Royal, was Canso with its fisheries and fish trade.    

       New Englanders fished the waters of the Grand Banks off the shores of Nova Scotia and brought their catch ashore for processing. Trade with Europe and New England flourished, as did the fishing industry. The vessels used in this trade were called “Sack ships”. Dry wine called “Sec”, in the French language, was imported on these ships on the return voyage and this is where the name originated. Liquor was the primary westward trade and Canso had many taverns that were patronized by the New England fishermen while in port.

       Nova Scotia needed the backing of the British Government to solve the problems in the colony and it was not getting it. The colony remained an outpost populated by a handful of soldiers, gangs of seasonal fishermen, bands of hostile Indians and the stubborn French Neutrals. Phillips had good plans for development, but Walpole and Newcastle procrastinated. Adventurers could more easily find their way to the American colonies without any government backing and therefore, Nova Scotia suffered for it.                        

       David Dunbar was sent to Nova Scotia to survey and draw plans for a new colony. However, he was more ambitious and joined up with Thomas Coran to build and promote a colony at Pemaquid on the Maine coast. With the backing of the British Board of Trade, he rebuilt the fort, laid out streets and began constructing houses and retail buildings. This attracted 100 new inhabitants and they formed a new province called Georgia. The Board of Trade had second thoughts about this arrangement and decided it should be a county in Nova Scotia under Phillips’ governorship, leaving Dunbar without any title. New England was displeased with this new settlement becoming a part of Nova Scotia and challenged the decision in court. The London court found that the land between the Kennebec and the Saint Croix Rivers belonged to Massachusetts, not Nova Scotia. This would remain that way until the Missouri Compromise in 1820 when Maine became a separate state.

       Between 1730 and 1732 there were four attempts to improve the settlement. Thomas Coran wanted to bring protestant settlers from Europe’s Rhine Valley and got the support from the Board of Trade. The idea was good, but they didn’t get the financial aid needed to make it work. Boston’s Huguenot Church had a plan to bring French speaking protestant refugees from Britain, but this failed because there was no legislative assembly to issue currency bills. Another “pig in a poke” failed when Samuel Waldo from Maine bought the rights of Nova Scotia from John Nelson. Planning to bring Protestants from the Baltic's and Scotland, his scheme failed when no one took him seriously. Lawrence Armstrong thinking Paul Mascarene had influence, sent him  to New England to recruit settlers. This also failed, as New Englanders did not want military rule, which was how Nova Scotia was governed at that time.

.     Agathe de Saint-Etienne de La Tour, (also known as Mrs. Campbell) the granddaughter of Charles La Tour and Jeanne Motin went to London in 1733 and convinced the Board of Trade that she held the sole seigniorial rights of inhabited Nova Scotia and the inhabitants (tenants) beloved her. The board paid her off and all rights lodged with King George II. Armstrong attempted to build a barracks at Grand Pre, but was turned back by the Indians claiming that British land only included Annapolis Royal.

        The Government of Nova Scotia had almost no income, as there was little to tax. The only revenue collected was that from the fishing trade. There were no new settlers arriving and therefore they were no new taxable landowners. Smuggling was the most productive trade and that avoided taxation. The lack of taxes and revenue created a no win situation for Armstrong. For without the monies, he could not build his government or forces. Therefore, he existed with little power.

        Inhabitants were appointed councilors and attempted to do some governing, mostly by French law. The French Neutrals continued to live and govern with their deputies, publish decrees, kept order and made representation to the British Crown. They live under this method because British law restricted the inhabitants of their religious practices. The priest played a major roll in the governing of the Acadians as well as their way of life. This vexed the British rulers at Annapolis Royal. Life continued, Acadians living on British land, living their simple life, farming the marshland with little effort and allowing the forest to flourish. Labor was not a  priority of their lives. To the British rulers, the Acadians were stubborn, headstrong, obstinate, conceited, proud, lazy and intractable. But they were happy with their religion and large families in this out of the way peaceable corner of the earth.          

        Issac Louis de Forant, a new governor of the French colonies arrived at Louisburg on the Isle Royal in 1730 to find a booming city with sophistication, commerce, and military strength. The city resembled those of France. The population of Louisburg was more than 2,000 people, with smaller communities up and down the coast, totaling another 2,500 people. The Isle of Saint Jean had a population of about 600 with both Acadian farmers and French settlers. France’s North American colonies finally flourished with Louisburg as its center of culture. History and the future of Canada would have been considerably different if the French had supported the colonization 50 years earlier.

        Fishing was the major commerce on the Isle Royal, but trade with other French colonies in Acadia and the military played an important role in the livelihood of it’s inhabitants. Farming was not a priority for the Frenchmen of Lewisburg and it eventually was a downfall for the community and it’s environs. The supplies of wheat and produce from trade were insufficient to sustain appropriate diets. As grander as Louisburg and its fortification was, it was destined to come to its demise.     

        Forant died a few years after his arrival and was replaced by Jean-Baptiste-Louise Le Prevost Duquesnel. However, Francois Bigot was the military commander and colonial administrator for Forant and became powerful and successful. No one wanted to oppose Bigot even though he was notably corrupt, and eventually imprisoned. Duquesnel presided over the colonies of it’s elite, the well to do families, the artisans, the business people and the poor. The Recollet friars maintained the judicial system, Brothers of Charity operated the hospitals and Sisters of the Congregation ran the schools.

        Bread and staples often were scarce, but wine and brandy was always plentiful and eventually became the enemy. Crime increased and the garrison became police officers rather than soldiers. Discontentment overcame the soldiers from the lack of provisions, adequate quarters and working as Louisburg’s labor pool. The officers promised to make change, however, they lived the high life and were the aristocrats of Louisburg. Business interest and trade kept them well off. Two of these officers had roots in French Acadia which had existed for generations. They were brothers, Louis Du Pont Duchambon and Francois Du Pont Duvivier. Originally solders at Port Royal they had married while there and were banished in 1710. Duchambon’s wife was the granddaughter of Philippe Mius d'Entremont and Duvivier was married to a d’Entremont and granddaughter of Charles La Tour and Jeanne Motin. Duchambon rose to become second in the military command and Duvivier’s son Francois became one of the wealthiest traders at Louisburg.

        Peace had existed for some time, thanks to Robert Walpole. However, European parliaments and kingdoms began falling apart. Political positioning, conflict and war prevailed. In America, it was called King George’s war and fought in the Caribbean and Acadia. Governor Duquesnel appointed Duvivier, a merchant soldier, to command his soldiers and strike Canso. This was accomplished with little resistance in May 1744. The garrison and New England fishermen there were captured and imprisoned at Lewisburg. The lack of provisions at Louisburg caused Duquesnel to negotiate the exchange of prisoners for a few Frenchmen held at Boston. A condition of the exchange was that the soldiers would not bear arms for one year.          

        A son of Agathe de La Tour and her British Lieutenant husband were among the prisoners in Louisburg. He had been baptized Jean-Baptiste, but anglicized his mane to John Bradstreet. A great grandson of Charles La Tour as was Duquesnel; Bradstreet in later years advanced to become a Major General in the British army and had a brilliant career.

        After the success of Canso, Duvivier moved down the Nova Scotia peninsula to free his countrymen from British rule at Annapolis Royal. Landing at Baie Verte he found the French inhabitants to be uncooperative and wanting again to remain neutral. A few Frenchmen joined with him and he convinced the Indians to join him to drive the British into the sea. He proceeded from Grand Pre expecting little resistance at Annapolis Royal with back up of a naval blockade. When Duvivier arrived he found the British well prepared.  Paul Mascarene, Lieutenant General, President of the Council and a Lieutenant Colonel of Philips regiment was in command at Port Royal. Mascarene had successfully defended the fort, aided by reinforcements that arrived from Boston. Earlier in the summer an attack by Indians and Jean Louis Le Loutre, the missionary turned warrior, had caused Mascarene to get the help from New England.

        The ships for the planned naval blockade never left Louisburg. The French and Indians were inadequately prepared for a successful battle. Again reinforcements from Boston bolstered the British defense and Mascarene stood fast to defeat the invading French. An officer, named de Gannes, from Louisburg went to Port Royal and advised Duvivier that the ships for the blockade would not be coming as they were being sent to protect the shipping lanes from privateers. The invasion was abandon. Duvivier returned to Louisburg, then sailed to France to plan a larger campaign for the following year.  De Gannes took command and tried to persuade the French Acadians to join him and his soldiers, but they resisted and remained neutral. Mascarene knew who had sided with the French and he was very persuasive with the French inhabitants to maintain their neutrality and oaths of allegiance. They were satisfied to live under a mild and tranquil Government and not be required to take up arms. De Gannes returned to Louisburg with his men in October 1744. Mascarene believed the allegiance of the Acadian inhabitants was earnest and they got along well.

        Governor William Shirley of Massachusetts was convinced that Acadia would play an important roll in the colonization of North America and therefore was giving it some attention. That is something that had not previously happened in Acadia. Shirley was successful in persuading London to support his beliefs. The borders of New England and Massachusetts were uncomfortably close to the French and Naval strength at Louisburg. Governor Shirley felt that Cape Breton should be conquered. John Bradstreet had the plan and William Vaughn, a merchant/soldier from Damariscotta, Maine, endorsed it as well. Shirley consulted his general council, but was delayed in getting their support. Shirley then recruited and equipped an army. Recruiting was easy with the promise of plunder from the mansions at Louisburg. There existed a bias passion between New Englanders and the French Catholics. The recruits could vision them destroying the churches and religious idols of French Acadia. Samuel Moody, a 76 year old New England Chaplin armed himself with an ax to smash the idols. As war fever grew, so did the prayers of New Englanders. Benjamin Franklin advised his brothers of Massachusetts that work and action would do better than faith.  

        William Pepperrell, another Maine merchant, was the chosen general of the forces and Samuel Waldo appointed brigadier. John Bradstreet the professional military man was made Lieutenant Colonel of the Massachusetts regiments and Edward Tyng, son of the ill fated governor of the Puritans, became commodore of the naval forces that were put together from New England. The invasion was on and Commodore Peter Warren of the Royal British Naval was brought back from the Caribbean to assist in the naval blockade. The New England invaders were 4,250 strong. Weather and ice slowed them, but on May 10, 1745, they made their first move.

        The defenders were 560 French and Swiss soldiers and 900 militiamen from Louisburg and environs. Duchambon, the French Commander awaited the naval support from France which he had requested by sending Francois Du Pont Duvivier to France. Seeing the ships on the horizon, he though at first they were the French naval forces. Soon he realized Louisburg was under attack and thereafter fought off various charges from sea and landings outside of Louisburg. Marin, a French Lieutenant had left Quebec in January with 600 soldiers and Indians to aid Duchambon on his planned campaign in Nova Scotia. After capturing two schooners carrying supplies to Paul Mascarene they pulled back and met resistance at Tatmagouche Bay from Tyng’s Squadron. Naval support from France finally arrived at Louisburg, but was defeated effectively by the Royal British Navy. After 7 weeks of defending the attacks and bombardments, Duchambon was beaten and surrendered Louisburg.

        Boston, New York and Philadelphia celebrated New England’s victory. Pride and confidence built as militiamen had beaten a world power. The men from New England were kept at Louisburg, but did not receive the rewards they expected. They performed garrison duty in the cold and rain of Cape Breton and sickness overcame them. By the spring of 1746 almost 900 New England soldiers had died. During the war and taking of Louisburg they had lost only 130 men. The British took advantage, taking booty and credit for the victory. Warren and his crews were the only actual invaders who received any of the prizes. The officers and heroes of the campaign reveled in victory and praise. But the men who fought became more and more discontent with the duties they were performing. They had to stay until professional troops from Europe relieved them in order to prevent Louisburg from being retaken by the French.

        Peter Warren was named Governor and his first concern was to rid the country of the Frenchmen. Louisburg’s elite had left after the surrender, but it’s working people stayed. He wanted Isle Royal, Isle Saint Jean and Nova Scotia empted, however, succeeded only on the Isle Royal. All the French settlers on the Isle Saint Jean remained and amounted to less than 100 people. For the next few years the powers of Acadia and Nova Scotia vacillated on the expulsion of all Acadians and those that claimed to be neutrals. Who would replace them? What if they resisted? What if they took up arms? What would be done with them? Where would they go? Would they side with the French if they invaded? Should they be replaced with good Protestants?                                .    

        In 1746 a couple different plans to invade and retake the colony in Acadia by the French failed. Bad weather caused extreme loss of ships, supplies and men. Again in May 1747 an armada of French ships commanded by Marquis de La Jonquiere and Jean-Louis Le Loutre set sail for North America and were meet and defeated badly by Admiral Peter Warren and Lord George Anson at the Battle of Cape Ortegal. War and politics kept Europe in turmoil and Britain still could not decide what would happen in North America. Plans to take all of Canada from the French were made with 500 men from Britain. Support would come from the American colonies and the naval forces from Louisburg. However, this was postponed due to bad weather and instability in London. 

        The British had control of Isle Royal at Louisburg and the Nova Scotia Peninsular with Port Royal regaining strength. However, there were still pockets of French and French Acadians in the territory. A detachment of 470 soldiers from Massachusetts’s led by Colonel Arthur Noble moved in and occupied the residences of Grand Pre. The French still had some troops at Beaubassin commanded by Jean-Baptiste-Nicholas Roche de Ramezay. He made a daring move and retook Grand Pre on a cold February morning during a snowstorm. The New Englanders were not accustom to the snow and cold of Nova Scotia and sustained substantial personnel loss. Peace was made and the New Englanders retreated to Annapolis Royal. A condition of their release was a promise to not take up arms in this territory. Confusion existed among the inhabitants as the French commanders vacated their post.

        The French would have to handle the status of the Acadian people diplomatically. King George’s war was winding down in 1747 and diplomacy was at work. The French regained Isle Royal and Isle Saint Jean. Louisburg was rebuilt and became the city it was before the war. The population grew to 4,000 people. Quebec was French territory as well, and the French also claimed the Saint John Valley and all of main land Acadia. Britain had the Nova Scotia peninsular and based its cultural center at Chebucto Bay, building the city of Halifax.

        Acting French Governor of Canada, Roland-Michael Barrin, Marquis de La Galissoniere challenged Mascarene’s authority at the Isthmus of Chignecto, the Minas settlements and the Saint John Valley. Mascarene rejected this claim and advised Governor Shirley. Both of these British officials agreed the territory to be under British jurisdiction. La Galissoniere sent soldiers to Saint John Harbor and ordered Louis La Corne, one of the officers at Grand Pre, to occupy Beausejour across the Missaguash River from Beaubassin. The river being the dividing lines between the British Nova Scotia and French main land territories.

        Halifax became the capitol of British Nova Scotia. New immigrants were brought from England, the Rhine Valley of Europe and New England. British and New England soldiers from Louisburg were also brought to settle in the area. They had hoped that Nova Scotia would become the fourteenth American Colony. Colonization grew rapidly and within a couple years there were more that 5,000 people. The aged Colonel Richards Philipps was finally eased into retirement in July 1749 and Colonel Edward Cornwallis relieved Paul Mascarene. Cornwallis allegedly found the government he acquired in shambles and its people uncooperative. The settlement at Halifax began to decline because the immigrants from the different countries did not intermingle. The different ethnic groups were; the French Loyalists, some French Acadian Neutrals, British settlers, New Englanders and the German speaking Rhine Valley immigrants. The Micmacs were also unhappy with the land grabbing British settlers and renewed their raids against the settlements. The Indians had the blessing of the French in these raids as they had in the past. Because of this unrest, the population decreased to about 2,000 people and the administration would not be able to sustain much aggression from an outside source. 

        The French Neutrals were still a troublesome group and Cornwallis was to again bring them under British rule. His mission was also to build protestant schools, encourage mix marriages among the different ethnic groups and award tax-free land to Acadians who would renew oaths of allegiances without any reservations. He gave them three mouths to oblige. The Acadian inhabitant’s council did not change their minds in regards to the oaths. A letter signed by one thousands Acadians advising Cornwallis that they would stand by the oaths agreed to with John Doucett in 1717 and again with Phillips in 1730, other wise they would leave the country. Again, the French Acadians won as Cornwallis or the Board of Trade could not let the country be vacated, feeling that it would strengthen the French presents.      

        In 1749 Marquis De La Jonquiere advised Cornwallis that the main land and Chignecto were French territory. But, Cornwallis stood fast that they were within the boundaries of the original Acadian lands in the 1714 Treaty of Rastadt and therefore under the British jurisdiction. Cornwallis also warned that fighting could break out while the two crowns debated the boundaries. In the spring of 1750 Lt. Louis La Corne had French troops in position and well established at the heavily supplied Fort Beausejour. La Corne would concede east of the Missaguash River to the British. He had the missionary Jean-Louis Le Loutre and a band of Micmacs burn homes, barns, churches and the village so to drive the settlers behind the French line on the east bank of the river. Major Charles Lawrence brought troops from Halifax to the Minus Basin and Chignecto Bay. When the British arrived they found the village of Beaubassin in flames. Lawrence found himself in a poor strategic location and retreated to the Minus Basin and then built Fort Edwards on the Avon River in what is now Windsor. In the fall of that year Lawrence returned to Beaubassin were he meet some resistance from Indians and then he built Fort Lawrence across the river from Fort Beausejour. For the next five years the two occupied forts would face each other awaiting the diplomats to decide the boundaries.

        The inhabitants were in a dilemma. France wanted them to grow and expand on the Isle Saint Jean and Isle Royal. While the British wanted them to stay and assimilate, become subjects and good Protestants. Le Loutre preached and invoked damnation and Indian threats to the people of the Chignecto Isthmus to get them to leave British territory. La Jonquiere wanted oaths and imposed the bearing of arms on them for a militia. This, they avoided from the British for so many years and they stood fast, not wanting to do for the French either. The smaller villages became over crowded. Some of the people moved to the Isle Saint Jean where it‘s population grew to over 2,000, while others scattered to Shepody Bay, the Petitcodiac or Memramcook River Valleys. These lands were not clear like those of the Minas Basin where farming could be done with little labor. Those that left wanted to return to their homes, but British authority would force them to be anglicized and mix with the Protestants. The Acadians also feared the loss of their Catholic religion.

        Most of the Acadians in the Annapolis Valley, Minus Basin and Chignecto stayed at their farms hoping for the best, but time was running out. The diplomats and commissioners of the expanding nations of Europe debated and attempted to resolve ownership in the territories of North America. Acadia was a major territory at stake, as was the Ohio River Valley. War was brought about by dispute of the Ohio River territories. George Washington and the Virginians were defeated in a second attempt at Great Meadows (Uniontown, Pa.) by Louis Coulon de Villiers and troops from Fort Duquesne. Negotiations for boundaries continued. France wanted the Isthmus of Chignecto and the mainland above Penobscot Bay, including Fort Pentagoet, Saint Croix Island and Saint John. The British would keep the Nova Scotia Peninsular and allow the Acadians living on the peninsular three years to leave with their possessions if they so desired. However, in London they did not like the idea of loosing a large number of “useful subjects“. The British on the frontier felt entirely different than the diplomats. Cornwallis, as others preceding him had, wanted to expel the “French Neutrals”.    

        By 1752 Colonel Peregrine Hopson from Louisburg had replaced Cornwallis and he was of the mind to live with the Acadians neutrality, even though expulsion was desirable. A year later sickness returned him to London and Charles Lawrence replaced him. To Lawrence there was no such thing as neutrality. The inhabitants would indeed take the oaths declined for the past 50 years or be expelled. The Board of Trade as usual vacillated. So Lawrence held off for the time being and enforced a grain embargo on the Acadian settlements. The farmers near Pisiquid balked and refused to cut any additional wood for Fort Edwards. Captain Alexander Murray had the priest jailed and ordered the people to turn in their boats and canoes. In early 1755 all their personnel arms were confiscated.

        The cold war turned hot and Britain invaded the French strongholds in North America. Lawrence got reinforcements from William Shirley in Massachusetts. Shirley enlisted 2,000 volunteers and rendezvoused at Annapolis Royal with 250 of Lawrence’s regular army. Robert Moncton was in command and with him was Massachusetts Colonel John Winslow. They landed at Chignecto on June 2nd facing a French stronghold led poorly by Louis Du Pont Duchambon de Vergor, son of the commander who lost Louisburg in 1745. He had been more concerned with bettering his life and lining his pockets than being a soldier. There were only 150 French troops in defense of the fort, so the French commander sent for reinforcements from Quebec, Louisbourg and the surrounding Acadian communities. The only response was from about 200 settlers who agreed to help defend the fort if Duchambon would sign an agreement stating that they were pressed into duty. After a couple week of fighting on June 16,1655 Moncton took Fort Beausejour and renamed it Fort Cumberland. The invaders lost only 20 men to death and wounds. The surrender agreement allowed the French soldiers and their commander to withdraw to Louisburg with a promise not to take up arms for 6 months. Those Acadians who acted under compulsion were pardoned. A couple weeks after the capture of Fort Beausejour, Saint John was brought under British flag as well. The Penobscot had been void of the French the year before. The resolution of Acadia and its inhabitants were in the hands of Charles Lawrence.                

        During the invasion of Acadia the British simultaneously were mounting attacks on other French North American Forts. Major General Edward Braddock arrived in Virginia with two regiments, recruited more colonists and launched the campaign to conquer Fort Duquesne where Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania now lies. William Shirley would lead troops against Fort Niagara; New York and the attack on Crown Point at Lake Champlain would be under the command of Colonel William Johnson. A British plan to intercept French reinforcements at sea failed. The French were able to hold off the British aggression at these other locations and kept their positions, loosing only in Acadia.       

        Just before the capture of Fort Beausejour, the Minus Basin inhabitants had partitioned Halifax for return of their boats, canoes and arms, but it fell on deaf ears. Lawrence took advantage of their request after the fort had been taken and summoned the council of the inhabitants. He attempted to force the men of the council as individuals to swear allegiance to Britain on the spot. Taken by surprise with this request, they procrastinated and wanted to consult their neighbors. Lawrence gave them one night to decide. Returning the following morning the men had not changed their minds. Lawrence denied them their request and ruled that they be deported. The councilmen then agreed to take the oaths and Lawrence said it was too late and jailed all the councilmen.

        Charles Lawrence took upon himself, without the authorization of the Board of Trade,  to do what had been threatened many times before and no one would carry out. He decided that all the Acadian French Neutrals would be deported and scattered to various British settlements, France, the Caribbean or where ever they could be sent. His intent was to disperse them to other places of the world‘s civilization so their numbers would be no threat. The Acadian land would be vacated of all inhabitants who would not take the oaths. Lawrence had the support of Chief Justice Belcher, who wrote the decree, two Admirals; Edward Boscawen and Savage Mostyn. Other councilmen on his board who approved this expulsion were; William Cotterell and Benjamin Green, two New England merchants; a British settler named John Collier and a Captain John Rous. Ethnic cleansing, the expulsion of an entire culture, a cruel act, for which Charles Lawrence would bear the blame, but he considered it a military necessity.       

                                         

EXPULSION OF THE FRENCH ACADIANS

        The round up and embarkation started in July 1755. To carry out this treacherous act, orders were sent to Colonel Robert Moncton at Fort Cumberland, Captain John Handfield at Annapolis Royal, Captain Alexander Murray at Pisiquid and Colonel John Winslow at Grand Pre. At Grand Pre, 480 inhabitants were lured to the church in the evening, placed under confinement and the later boarded on to a transport ship. Of these 480 inhabitants, 64 carried the surname of La Blanc. Some of these La Blanc's and many of the others that night were direct ancestors to the writer on both the maternal and paternal (Legere) side. The officer who read the decree that fateful night at Grand Pre was Colonel John Winslow, a relative of Beverly Legere, wife of this writer, but not a direct descendant. An entry in his journal stated that the act was carried out under orders, but not to his liking. During the following months other villages were raided and the inhabitants rounded up. Many were placed in prison at Fort Cumberland and/or boarded on to the ships waiting at the ports. They included all men, women, and children that they were able to capture. All homes, barns and churches were burned and the harvested crops and livestock confiscated for the crown. The initial deportation netted about 5,500 Acadian inhabitants.            

        After the deportation was completed, 12,500 French Acadians had been deported, escaped or found other ways out of their homeland of Acadia. Lawrence had accomplished his objective  to empty the land of the French Acadians and scorched the earth. There was minimal resistance by the inhabitants, but the offences of the British were not conducted without some fighting and loss of life. About one half of the inhabitants either left before being captured or escaped to Isle Saint Jean (Prince Edward Island), Cape Breton, Chaleur Bay, Quebec, Massachusetts (now Maine) and the woods of the main land (New Brunswick). For the next couple years the roundup and deportation continued in the Acadian territories. The British soldiers aggressively pursued the escaping inhabitants and moved through the other villages of the main land capturing the Acadian populace when they could and destroying property. Many of those that escaped the deportation headed north on foot to the Cocagne region, Chaleur Bay and the Miramichi River valley where they suffered of cold, starvation and in many cases death.

        Many of the captured were places in prison at Fort Cumberland or other locations and later boarded onto the ships like cattle and brought to places unknown to the people. Some were brought to the colonies in America while others were transported to other ports such as Louisiana, ports in the Caribbean and as far away as the Falkland Islands. Families and friends were separated and scatted. Some found their way to France. To the English colonists in the New World the Acadians were Catholic, disliked, mistrusted, and misfits. They were for the most part not welcome or wanted in the colonies either. There were a few exceptions though, such as the Quakers of Pennsylvania. Most of the unaccepted deportees sent to the colonies wandered and moved about the Americas for the next few years.

        Although many Acadians died of suffering, disease, starvation, cold and mistreatment following the events of 1755, their numbers remained close to 12,000. These numbers stayed constant because of the proliferation of the people. The Treaty of Paris in 1763 ended France’s governing in the North American territories. Acadian refugees would be allowed to return to their native land near the Fundy tides and other parts of Nova Scotia as British subjects. Those that did return, found the English speaking Britons and New Englanders occupying Nova Scotia and the lands the Acadians had been driven from along the Bay of Fundy.  Not being compatible, many sort new lives north and west of Nova Scotia in New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Quebec and New England.

        Louisiana had been discovered by Cavalier de La Salle back in 1682 and claimed it for France. France had ceded Louisiana to Spain, but it was still a French speaking Catholic inhabited territory. Many of the captured Acadians were brought to Louisiana on the British ships. Other wayward Acadians were able to find their way to the Mississippi bayous. In later years, after the Treaty of Paris, many other Acadians who had been dislodged found their way to Louisiana to reunite with their families and friends. This was the beginning of the “Cajun Culture”. Today the majority of the inhabitants in this territory are descendants of the displaced Acadians and related to the Acadian descendents still in the Canadian Provinces and New England. The name Legere is a common name among these people and can be traced to the children and grand children of Jacques Legere.     

        The rivalry of France and Britain was mirrored in the New World as war continued between Britain and France. Louisburg had fallen into the hands of Jeffery Amherst. Many of the Acadians that had escaped to Cape Breton during the original deportation were sent to France, as were the soldiers of the garrison. In 1759 Governor Pownal at Fort Point (Stockton, Maine) crossed the Penobscot Bay and raised the Union Jack at the abandon fort in Pentagoet. The same year British soldiers under the command of Brigadier General James Wolfe moved up from the Colonies in the south and retook Fort Carillon on Lake Champlain and Fort Niagara. They continued to advance toward Quebec and mounted an attack on the French General Louis-Joseph Montcalm. Fierce battles followed and Wolfe was finally able to force a pass up the cliffs of Quebec and defeated Montcalm on the Plains of Abraham. Casualties ran high taking many of the civilian population as well as soldiers and both commanders were killed in battle. Colonel Pierre Rigaud de Vaudreuil took command and retreated toward Montreal with the remaining French troops. The British continued their pursuit after Amherst arrived from Louisburg to take command and he forced Vaudreuil to surrender in 1760. After “The Conquest” Amherst did not deport the remaining inhabitants of Quebec as the British had done in Acadia. He offered them property rights, the use of the French language, the retention of their culture and freedom to practice their Catholic religion. Most of the high-ranking officials and soldiers were sent to France. The majority of the inhabitants stayed and accepted the conditions, as they had no real ties to France and most were Canadian born. These actions were ratified at a later time by the Quebec Act of 1774.

        It was in 1766 that the Minus d’Entremont families together with other Acadian exiles, Amirault, Belliveau and Duon (d’Eon) returned from Salem, Massachusetts to Pobomcoup. They found their barony and the Barrington region, where they had lived prior to the expulsion of 1755, occupied by the Loyalists from New England. They then chose to settle on vacant land, west of the harbor on the peninsular in East Pubnico. Other exile Acadians joined them and today the regions is populated mostly by Acadian descendants of the people who twice had settled in the region. Pubnico is the oldest village in Acadia still occupied by Acadians descendants from the original founding settlers.

        Nova Scotia and the Acadian territory would remain British territory. The Acadians that returned to Acadia found new lands, continued to live in peace and raise their large families. They were able to keep their language and pretty much maintain their cultures. The Catholic Church stilled played a major part of their customs. Land grants were awarded or they were able to purchase large tracts of land for farming. The fishing trade also flourished. Villages such as Caraquet, Miramichi, Richibucto, Memramcook, Shediac, Cape Pele, Sackville, Dorchester Crossing, Rogersville, Dieppe, Moncton, Shemogue, Aboujagane, Robichard, Barachois, and Scoudouc sprouted throughout the main land of New Brunswick. Many of the villages carried the family name of the founding settler. Today there are thousands of inhabitants with the same family names in the villages of New Brunswick that are descendents of the original founders or the repatriated Acadians. The Acadian flag below was established in 1784.

        Pentagoet was in the hands of the British after the American Revolution. In 1779, British General Francis McLean landed with two regiments and built Fort George on the highest point on the peninsular. The Revolutionist began to realize the importance of keeping the peninsular in their custody. The Massachusetts Board of War organized a large armada to regain Pentagoet with 18 armed vessels, 24 transport ships, 1,000 militiamen and 400 marines. Commodore Dudley Saltonstall led the naval forces. Brigadier General Solomon Lowell led the land forces with General Peleg Wadsworth and Colonel Paul Revere. General Mc Lean was able to summon the superior British naval forces from Halifax to assist in the defense of Pentagoet and they drove the Americans up the Penobscot River forcing them to scuttle their ships. This 1779 invasion resulted in one of the worst American naval defeats in history.

        Under British control Pentagoet became a desirable place to reside for Loyalist sympathizers, as they believed it to be in Acadia. Those in New England who swore allegiance to Britain were forced to abandon their farms and business. Many of the Loyalist, including some settlers from Falmouth (Portland, Maine), decided to move to the friendlier British settlement where they built new homes. When the Treaty of Paris was signed, the Acadian boarder was set at the Saint Croix River. So after the revolution these same Loyalists found themselves in revolutionary territory and were again forced to move. Some dismantled their homes, loaded them onto ships or barges and transported them to Saint Andrews, New Brunswick. Today some of the loyalist’s homes in both Castine and Saint Andrews are still standing. During the next few years other Loyalists wanting to remain loyal to the British crown also emigrated from the United States to the Saint John Valley in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. 

        Until the war of 1812 the town of Castine was very prosperous with shipbuilding, merchant shipping and lumbering. Having lost Castine in 1812, the British retook the town in 1814 because of its strategic location. The town continued to nourish and the British began reworking on the canal between Wadsworth Cove and Hatch Cove that had begun during their previous occupation. On April 15, 1815 the British were again evacuated and the American town of Castine once again became a major seaport and business community. The Civil war, railroading and the decline of sailing ships brought about a decline in the economic well being of Castine. However, from 1870 through 1890 steam boating and tourism had a slight impact. Eastern State Normal began in 1867 and moved into the two large buildings in the shadows of Fort George at the head of Main and Pleasant Streets in 1873. It was 1941 when Maine Maritime Academy was founded and occupied these two buildings in 1942 when the Normal School ceased to operate. These two buildings renamed Dismukes Hall and Leavitt Hall were renovated and continue to function as the center of the internationally known maritime academy.    

        The Maritime Provinces grew over the next few decades after peace was restored. Prince Edward Island had split from Nova Scotia in 1769, as did New Brunswick in 1784. Ontario separated from Quebec by a constitutional act and became Upper Canada in 1791. Upper Canada was governed by English common law, whereas Quebec maintained French law and was known as Lower Canada. The Catholic Church directed the culture of Quebec, like in Acadia. It repressed the mentality, ideas, aspirations, values, priorities and morals of the inhabitants. The Pastor of the church was in control of society and directed the inhabitant’s way of life. The government governed, but delegated education to the church that also owned and operated hospitals, health care facilities, nursing homes and orphanages. Due to a high birth rate, Quebec experienced a higher increase in population than that of Acadia. In 1663 there were 3,000 inhabitants and it grew to 65,000 by 1759. Trois Rivieres was the center for iron production and the making of tools, plows and anchors. By 1840 Quebec had grown to 600,000 people. It was not until 1820 when Cape Breton Island reunited with Nova Scotia. The British North American Act of 1867 formed a new nation Canada, and included the provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec and Ontario. Prince Edward Island became a province of Canada in 1873.

        French-Canadian migration from Quebec and Acadia to Maine and New England began in 1850 and continued for the next 100 years. The elite and the Catholic Church controlled the social and economic condition of Canada. The farmers being suppressed, as they were, caused them to look toward the States for employment and a more prosperous life. Society in Quebec basically continued to be feudal and the farmers made up the larger percentages of the population. The volume of migration threatened Canadian-French culture and to combat this upheaval, the Province opened up large tracts of land previously held back from the lowly farmers. That not working, they turned to propaganda degrading these people to be stupid, lazy, drunken wastrels and afraid to work Those that were less fortunate had sustained a menial livelihood up to that point and had nothing to loose by moving to the states. Migration continuing, the Catholic Church and Quebec Province turned to threats and propaganda. This was a position opposite from what had been promoted. They degraded the communities in the states as decadence and sinful for the far better Frenchman. Their thinking was that they could infiltrate their society in the state and still have influence over their people.

        The mill towns of Maine and other New England states experienced substantial growth in their population from the French Canadians who went to work in the textile and paper mills. The State of Maine population at one time exceeded better than 50 percent French Canadian heritage. The demographics have changed over the years and in 1990 the percentage of French Canadians was down to 27 percent further declining to 23 percent the following decade. However, some of the smaller mill towns have retained large percentages of French Canadian inhabitants who are descendants of the original Acadian and Canadian settlers.

MATERNAL ANCESTORS OF THE LEGERE’S

        A number of ancestors on the Legere maternal side back through the generations have already been mentioned. Following are some of those and additional ones that are known to have been among the inhabitants of Acadia during the first 100 years.

        The ship “L'Oranger” arrived in Acadia in 1671 with a number of new settlers. Among this group was Francois Amirault (1654-) from Tours, France. He was seven years old at the time and it is assumed that he was orphaned, as the passenger list did not include his parents. In 1683 at Port Royal, Francois Amirault married Marie Petre (1666) the daughter of Jean Petre (1636-1689), and Marie Pesselet (1641-). Francois Amirault and Marie Petre were parents to 10 children. Their daughter Anne (1691-) married Jacques Legere II, three sons married three Laure sisters and two of the siblings married into the d’Entremont family.   

        Antoine Babin (1625-) married Marie Mercer (1646-) at Port Royal in 1661 having arrived the pervious year from La Chaussee, France. They were parents to seven children. A daughter Catherine Babin (1671-) married Jean-Augustin Comeau (1665-) a son of Pierre Comeau and Rose Bayolle. Descendants of Antoine and Marie are numerous, as many were able to escape the deportation of 1755 to Quebec or the Gaspe Peninsular. The Babin family descendants are also found in a number of villages throughout New Brunswick and are among the Legere ancestry.

        There was a Louis Blanchard who came to Acadia on the ship “Saint Jehan” in 1636. He is not in any of the early censors and therefore assumed that he returned to France. The first Blanchard on record is Jean Blanchard born in 1611, the son of Guillaume Blanchard (1590-) and Huguette Poirier. They were from the Martaize region, near Poitiers, France where many of the early Acadian settlers came from. Jean Blanchard married Radegonde Lambert (1629-) in 1642 and were parents to six children, of which three, Madeleine (1643-), Anne (1645-) and Guillaume (1650-) are ancestors. Guillaume (1650-) married Huguette Gougeon (1657-) in 1672 and had twelve children. Their daughter Anne (1684-) married to Claude Bourgeois (1674-) is the only ancestor of the twelve children in the Legere maternal table.

        Antoine Bourg a laborer/farmer was a settler that arrived about 1636 and in 1641 he married Antoinette Landry. They became parents to 11 children over the following 25 years and ultimately became grandparents to 92 grandchildren in Acadia. Five of their 11 children, indicated by the asterisk below, are found in the Legere maternal ancestry charts. Their children are:                     Francoise Bourg *(1644) spouse- Marguerite Boudreau*

                           Marie Bourg *(1645)             ``     Vincent Breau*

                           Jean Bourg *(1647)                ``     Marguerite Martin*

                           Renee Bourg *(1655)             ``     Charles Boudreau *(brother to Marguerite)

                           Jeanne Bourg *(1659)           ``      Pierre Comeau*

                           Bernard Bourg (1649            ``      Françoise Brun (sister to Sebastien and Marie)

                           Martin Bourg (1650)             ``     Marie Potet

                           Jeanne Bourg (1653)             ``     Jean Belliveau

                           Huguette Bourg (1651)         ``     Sebastien Brun

                           Abraham Bourg (1662)         ``     Marie Brun

                           Marguerite Bourg (1667)      ``     Louis Allain    

                                                                     

        Alexander Bourg a son of Francoise and Marguerite Boudreau studied in France and returned to Acadia to become the Kings Notary in Grand Pre. His wife was Marguerite Melanson daughter of Pierre Melanson and Marie Marguerite Mius D’Entremont. Renee Bourg (1655) died about 1685 and her husband, Charles Boudreau, remarried Marie Corporon and had 9 additional children. From the original family, the next generation and the generations that followed, there are thousands of descendants of Antoine Bourg and Antoinette Landry. Down through the generations the spelling of the family name has varied such as Bourque, Bourc, Bourk, or Bour, but Bourg is used in the text.  

        A son of Jacques Bourgeois, I, Jacques Bourgeois, II (1618-1701) was one of the early inhabitants that stayed in Acadia in 1655. In 1642 he joined his father and brother Robert in Acadia and became the Governor’s Surgeon General of Acadia. Governor D’Aulnay had granted the island of Cochons in the Dauphin River to him and he became a prosperous farmer as well. This river later became the Port Royal River and is now called the Annapolis River. In 1644 Jacques Bourgeois, II married Jeanne Trahan (1629-) when she was 16. She was the daughter of Guillaume Trahan and Francoise Carbonneau, who arrived on the “Saint Jehan” in 1636. Jacques, II and Jeanne had ten children. Five of their children are found in the maternal line of the Legere genealogy and three children married into the Dugas family, another large family in the settlement. Many other descendants of Jacques, II and Jeanne are also in the ancestral line. Jacques Bourgeois, II founded the settlement of Chignecto in the Minus Basin in 1672 with five other families which included Pierre Cyr and Germain Girouard, sons-in-law to Jacques Bourgeois, II; Jacques Below, brother-in-law to Pierre Cyr; Pierre Arsenault; and Thomas Cormier with his wife Madeleine Girouard, a sister to Germain Girouard. It was known as the Bourgeois Colony and in 1676 was renamed Beaubassin by Michel Leneuf de la Valliere and again renamed Amherst after the British Conquest.

        Vincent Breau (1629-1686) married Marie Bourg (1645-1740) in 1661 when she was 16 years old. Vincent came to Port Royal in 1652 from La Chaussee, France. They had eight children, five boys and three girls. Daughter Marie Breau (1662- 749) and son Pierre Breau (1670-1758) are ancestors in the Legere maternal charts. All of their children married into other Acadian families and there are numerous descendants of the original Breau family throughout the Americas.           

        Among the settlers brought to Acadia on the “Saint Jehan” in 1632 by Issac Razilly  was Pierre Comeau (1597-1690). In 1649 he married Rose Bayolle the daughter of Nicolas Bayolle who was a Passenger on the “Saint Jehan” in 1636. Pierre and Rose had 9 children. Their son Pierre (1653-1730) married Jeanne Bourg (1647-) in 1677 and they had 19 children between 1678 and 1708. Pierre (1653-1730) and some of his sons and grandsons had farms neighboring the farm of Jacques Legere, (“The Stump”) along the banks of the Port Royal River. A son Abraham Comeau (1679-) married to Marguerite Petre had two daughters, Marguerite and Madeleine who married two sons of Jacques Legere and Madeleine Trahan, Jean and Francois. The descendants of Pierre Comeau are in the thousands and many are found in the Legere maternal genealogy tables.

 

        It was in 1644 that Robert Cormier, his wife Marie Peraude and their son Thomas arrived at Fort Saint-Pierre, Cape Breton from La Rochelle, France. The following year their son Jean was born when the Cormier family were residing in Port Royal. Thomas Cormier married Madeleine Girouard at Port Royal in 1668. Madeleine was 14 years old and the daughter of the early settlers Francois Girouard and Jeanne Aucoin. Thomas and Madeleine were parents to nine children who married into the next generation of the Acadians families of Boudreau, La Blanc, Hache-Gallant, Cyr and Poirier. Three sons married daughters of Jacque La Blanc and Catherine Hebert and another son married a daughter of Andre La Blanc and Marie Dugas, Andre and Jacques were brothers. Daughters Marie and Agnes Cormier married brothers Jean-Baptiste and Pierre Poirier. A daughter Madeleine Cormier married Michael Boudreau, the son of Michael Boudreau, the Judge and Lieutenant General. Daughter Clair Cormier married Pierre Cyr and daughter Anne Cormier married Michael-Hache Gallant. Thomas Cormier with his family left Port Royal in 1676 with other settlers that founded the village that became Beaubassin and there he became a very prosperous farmer. Three of the Thomas Cormier children and many other descendants can be found in the Legere ancestry. There are thousands of Cormier’s and other Acadian descendants that come from this Acadian pioneer family.

.                               

 

        The first Cyr in Acadia was Pierre Sire (1644-1680) a soldier at the fort in Port Royal. In 1670 he married Marie Bourgeois the daughter of Jacques Bourgeois and Jeanne Trahan. He and Marie had three sons, Jean (1671-), Pierre (1678-) and Guillaume (1680-) who married into other ancestral families, Melanson, Cormier and Bourg. Pierre Sire, Marie Bourgeois and their son Jean (1671-) were among the settlers that went to Chignecto with her father in 1672. Pierre died in 1780 and Marie became the wife of Germain Girouard, son of Francoise Girouard and Jeanne Aucoin. Germain Girouard was a brother to Marie, Madeleine and Anne who are all ancestors. The name Sire was changed to Cyr in the early settlement and Pierre’s children’s children spread to all the Acadian villages. This family, as all other Acadian families, suffered the effects of the 1755 deportation. There are thousands of descendants of Pierre and his three sons through out Canada and the United States.

        A key person Charles La Tour brought with him in 1651 was a Norman military officer Philippe Mius d’Entremont (1609-1700), a maternal ancestor. D’Entremont was also his Attorney General and had to be fairly close to La Tour. The Governor gave d’Entremont his choice of where he would like to live and he chose what was then known as Pobomcoup at Cape Sable, today called Pubnico. La Tour created a barony for him and bestowed a title. Philippe moved there in 1653 with his wife Madeleine Helie and daughter Marie-Marguerite (1649-) who had come with him from France. Three sons, Jacques (1654-), Abraham (1658-) and Philippe, II (1660-) and another daughter Madeline (1669-) were born to Philippe Mius d’Entremont and Madeline Helie while living in Pobomcoup. A manor house had been built at the barony and stood there for over for 100 years until after the expulsion when the British burned it to the ground in 1758. It was in 1700 while living with his daughter in Grand Pre that the patriarch, Philippe, of the Mius d’Entremont family died.

        Marie-Marguerite d’Entremont in 1664 married Pierre Melanson. Jacques d’Entremont married Anne de Saints-Etienne de La Tour and Abraham d’Entremont married Marguerite de Saint-Entienne de La Tour. These girls were the daughters of Charles La Tour and Jeanne Motin. Jacques’ descendants dropped the name Mius retaining the surname of d’Entremont. Jacques’ oldest son also named Jacques settled in the Barrington region near Pubnico where he raised his family. His son Jacques III was sent to France during the expulsion of 1755 while Jacques II and other members of the family including sons Paul, Joseph and Benoni were sent to Massachusetts. Jacques d’Entremont, II died while exiled in 1759. Abraham d’Entremont and Marguerite La Tour had a large family, but their children left no known descendants.

        Philippe Mius d‘Entremont, II (1660-) in 1678 married a native Acadian Indian named Marie. This couple were parents to ten children. Some of Philippe‘s descendants kept Mius as a surname, dropping d’Entremont. The first born to Philippe, II and his Indian wife Marie was Francoise Mius d‘Entremont (1679-) who married Jacques Bonnevie. Francois Legere (1793-1813), a fourth generation Legere, married Marguerite Bonnevie (1796-1889) a descendant Jacque Bonnevie and Francoise Mius d’Entremont. A grandson of Philippe Mius d’Entremont and Madeline Helie married a daughter of Jean-Vincent Saint-Castine.

 

        Jean Doiron (1649-) arrived with the group of settlers in 1671 and soon married Marie-Anne Canol (1651-). Marie-Anne Canol was among five single women who had been brought from Rochefort, France that same year. Jean and Marie-Anne had ten children. Their son Pierre Doiron married to Madeleine Doucet are in the ancestral tables.           

 

        Abraham Dugas (1616-1698) was Armourer and Lieutenant General of the King in Acadia and later a successful farmer of the territory. He was one of the early settlers and was very influential. In 1647 he married Marguerite-Louise Doucet (1634-), the daughter of Germain Doucet, D’Aulnay’s staff officer. He and Marguerite had 8 children of which six are direct ancestors on the maternal side of the Legere’s, having married into the Bourgeois, Melanson, Arsenault and Le Blanc families. His granddaughter Anne Melanson (1664), daughter of Charles Melanson (1643-1700) and Marie Dugas (1648-1737) married Jacques La Tour, the son of Charles La Tour and Jeanne Motin. Anne is a sister to Isabelle Melanson married to Michael Bourg (1665), also ancestors. Abraham died at Port Royal in 1698.         

          

        Jehan Gaudet (1575-1675) was from Martaize in Poitou, France. A farmer, he was brought to Acadia by Razilly and D‘Aulnay on the ship Saint Jehan in 1636. In 1628 Jehan had married Nicole Coleson (1607-) He was married before and had two children in his first marriage, Francoise (1623-) who married Daniel La Blanc and Denis (1626-) who married Martine Gauthier. Jehan and Nicole Colson also had two children, Marie (1633-) and Jean (1643-).

 

        Michael Hache’ had arrived in Chignecto in 1676 with Michael Leneuf de La Valliere. It was about 1713 that Michael Hache’ became known as Michael Hache’ Gallant. During one of the raids on Beaubassin by the British, Michael and his oldest son encountered a Captain Blackmore on board a British sloop. A detachment from the sloop pursued the French vessel into the creek and captured it. They were left on board their own vessel under guard. During the night Michael over powered the guards, put them in a canoe and escaped under sail on his own vessel. The next morning Captain Blackmore in a larger sloop caught up with Michael, re-captured him and took him prisoner. Exhibiting this extreme bravery, Michael was dubbed “Galland” by his enemy's, thus be became known as the “Gallant One” and there after carried the sir name Hache‘ Gallant. A captive of the British he eventually was brought before a court. The governor thought that a sentence to death would be the most appropriate, but the court could not find him guilty of the charges. Paul Mascarene, born a Frenchman, was the presiding British officer and probably had reservations in condemning a fellow Frenchman to death. The outcome of this sentence was kept secret from the inhabitants allowing them to think the he had been condemned to death. However, he was later released from custody. Michael is an ancestor on the maternal side of the Legere family.          

 

        Michael Hache-Gallant decided that he was not going to take any oaths to the British Crown, so in 1715 he elected to leave Beaubassin with a few other families and moved to Isle Saint Jean, now known as Prince Edward Island. Michael was of stature at Beaubassin and therefore carried his prominence to the island. After the French Government assigned Comte Saint-Pierre Seigneur of the island, Michael was appointed Captain of the Port at Port La Joy. By 1721 there were sixteen families from France and four from Acadia residing on the island. Michael and his wife were parents to twelve children, all of which also resided on Isle Saint Jean. Michael Hache-Gallant, II later returned to Beaubassin becoming a British Subject. Joseph the second son of Michael Hache-Gallant succeeded his father as the Captain of the Port. In his ageing years Michael Hache-Gallant set up a retirement plan for he and his wife of substance from their children, were by they would provide for their parents for life. On April 10, 1737 Michael fell through thin nice on the North River and his body was not recovered until July of the same year. Anne Cormier, Michael’s widow, returned to live with her son Michael Hache-Gallant, II, at Beaubassin. Many descendants of Michael Hache-Gallant have dropped Hache and use the sir name Gallant.   

          

        Michael Hache-Gallant, II (1691-1765) the son of Michael and Anne Cormier married Madeline La Blanc, the daughter of Jacques La Blanc and Catherine Hebert at Grand Pre on October 12, 1711. Her parents were among the founders of Grand Pre and she was the grand- daughter of the early Port Royal settlers. These people are found in the maternal Legere ancestry. Michael was with his father at the time of his father‘s gallant episode and Michael experienced many horrors of war throughout his lifetime. He had survived the attacks and burning of Beaubassin, gone to Isle Saint-Jean with his father, returned to Beaubassin and became a British subject. He eventually found his way to France where he died in 1765. The children of Michael Hache-Gallant, II and Madeline Le Blanc were among the unfortunate Acadians affected by the horrors of 1755 and the few years that followed. 

        Pierre Laverdure arrived in Acadia on the ship “Satisfaction” with Thomas Temple in 1657. He had married Pricilla Melanson from Scotland in 1630. They had three sons, Pierre (1632-), Charles (1642-) and David. Pierre and Charles took the surname of their mother, Melanson. In Port Royal they married into two well-known Acadian families. Pierre Melanson married Marie Marguerite Mius d’Entremont in 1664. She was the daughter of Philippe Mius d’Entremont, Baron of Pobomcoup and Madeline Helie. Pierre Melanson and Marie Marguerite d’Entremont were among the founders of Grand Pre. Charles Melanson married Marie Dugas the daughter of Abraham Dugas, Lieutenant General of the King in Acadia and Marguerite-Louise Doucet, the daughter of Germain Doucet dit Laverdure, Commander at the original Port Royal colony. Pierre and Charles Melanson both had large families with 24 children between them. Thus there are numerous descendants of theirs throughout Canada and United States. Some of their descendants adopted a variation of spelling the family name. The above families are found in the maternal genealogy of the Legere family.

                                                                                  

        Daniel La Blanc (1626-) arrived at Port Royal in 1645 leaving ancestry-tracing back to the first century in France. He was a very prosperous farmer soon after his arrival in Acadia. He married Francoise Gaudet (1623-) in 1650, the daughter of Jehan Gaudet and Nicole Coleson who were among the earliest settlers. Francoise Gaudet was the widow of a man named Mercer. Daniel became very well known and respected in the community. William Phips appointed him a member of the Council of the French inhabitants that governed the colony after the British conquered Acadia in 1690. Daniel and Francoise were parents to seven children of which most married into other early settler’s families. The children are as follows and the asterisks indicate direct ancestors.

                          Jacques* (1652)                  spouse - Catherine Hebert*                                                                          

                          Marie-Francoise (1653)          ``     - Martin Blanchard

                          Entienne (1656)                         

                          Rene (1675)                        spouse - Anne Bourgeois

                          Andre *(1659)                        ``     -  Marie Dugas*

                          Antoine* (1662)                     ``     -  Marie Bourgeois*

                          Pierre* (1664)                         ``    -  1st .- Marie Theriault

                                                                                     2nd. - Madeleine Bourg*

        Entienne La Blanc took to the sea and left Acadia. Four brothers; Jacques, Rene, Andre and Antoine were among the founding settlers of Grand Pre in 1686. Rene La Blanc the notary in “Evangeline”, Longfellow‘s poem, was a grandson of Antoine La Blanc and Marie Bourgeois. It was Rene that also interpreted Lawrence’s decree read by Colonel John Winslow that fateful night in the church at Grand Pre on September 5, 1755.  Jacques La Blanc and Catherine Hebert parented 15 children of which three are direct ancestors and included in the genealogy charts of the Legere family. The descendants of Daniel La Blanc and Francoise Gaudet throughout North America today number over 100,000, including those of the female gender. Often you will find this sir name Le Blanc. La Blanc and Le Blanc are one in the same, descendants of Daniel. The difference is the gender spelling, the choice of the individual, or the name recorded by censor’s taker. In this text I have used La Blanc, but in the charts and records associated with this script both sir names are used.

        Pierre Martin was a passenger on the “Saint Jehan” in 1636 with his wife Catherine Vigneau and their first son Pierre. They came from Bourgueuil, France. Their second child, Mathieu (1636-) was the first child to be born in Acadia of the French settlers. Three additional children were born to this couple, Marie (1637-), Marguerite (1639-) and Andree (1641-). Marguerite is a direct descendent who married Jean Bourg (1647-1695) in 1667.                    

        Jean Petre (1636-1689) was an edge tool maker. He and Marie Pesselet married in 1664 and had 9 children; two are in the Legere maternal genealogy tables. Their daughter Marie (1666-) was married to Francois Amirault and daughter Marguerite (1684-) married Abraham Comeau. Marie Pesselet became a widow in 1689 and she later married Francois Robin.                 

        In 1649 Jehan Poirier (1626-1652) arrived in Acadia from La Chaussee with his wife Jeanne Chebrat (1627-). This couple had two children, Marie-Francoise Poirier (1649-) and Michael Poirier (1651-). Marie-Francoise married Roger Caissy who was one of the first settlers at Beaubassin and introduced the first fruit bearing trees in the new colony. Michael Poirier married Marie Boudreau and are ancestors of the writer. Jehan Poirier died in 1652 and his widow Jeanne Chebrat married Antoine Gougeon in 1655. Their daughter Huguette Gougeon (1657-) married Guillaume Blanchard (1650-) the son of Jean Blanchard and Radegonde Lambert.

        Michael Richard (1630-1687) from Saintonge, France came to Acadia as a soldier and was known by the nickname, Sansoucy. In 1658 he married Madeleine Blanchard, daughter of Jean Blanchard and Radegonde Lambert (1643-1679) and they had ten children. Daughters Anne and Marie-Anne, also known as Marie-Josephte, and son Rene are ancestors. Michael became a widower and married Jeanne Babin in 1683 and had two additional children. Jeanne was the daughter of Antoine Babin and Marie Mercier, both ancestors.  

        The sailor Pierre Saulnier (1663-10/10/1723) arrived in Acadia about 1682 and in 1684 married Louise Bastinaux (1668-1740). They were parents to seven sons and six daughters. Some of the children settled in the Minus Basin communities. Their son Pierre (1696-) married Madeline Comeau the daughter of Jean-Augustin Comeau (1665-) and Catherine Babin (1671-).

        Francois Savoie (1621-) from Martaize, France was a soldier with D’Aulnay. He married Catherine Lejeune (1633-) in 1651 at Port Royal and remained there to become a farmer. They had nine children and their first son Germain (1654-1728) married Marie Breau (1662-1749) about 1678 at Port Royal. Jean Savoie a son of Germain Savoie and Marie Breau married Marie Dupuis. She was the granddaughter of Michael Dupuis (1637-) and Marie Gautreau (! 636-) other early settlers.

        Jehan Theriault (1601-) a farmer was the first member of this family to arrive in Acadia with D'Aulnay in 1637. He and Perrine Rau (1611-) had already married in 1635 before leaving their native France. This couple had seven children of which two; Claude (1637-) and Jeanne (1644-) are ancestors. The sir name over the centuries has been modified to various spellings such as Terriault, Terriot, Therriot, and Terio. There are thousands of descendants of this original Acadian family

        Pierre Thibodeau (1631-1704) was from Poitou, France and was hired by Alexander Le Borgne at Rochelle about 1651 when Le Borgne was making an effort to succeed D’Aulnay. He was in the services of Le Borgne when first arriving in Acadia with intent to return to France. In 1660 Pierre married at Port Royal to Jeanne Theriault the daughter of early settlers Jehan Theriault (1601-) and Perrine Rau (1611-). Pierre decided to remain in Acadia and became a successful farmer and built the first flour mill in Acadia at Pre Ronde on the riverbank a few miles north of  Port Royal. He and Jeanne had 16 children, 7 sons and 9 daughters. Their children all married at Port Royal and some of them to the most influential people of Port Royal and Acadia. A daughter, Jeanne (1672-) married Mathieu de Goutin, King’s Councilor and Lieutenant General of Justus in Acadia. Daughter Cecile (1680-) married Emmanuel Le Borgne, son of Alexander Le Borgne and Marie de Saint Etienne de La Tour and daughter Marie Anne Louise (1682-) married Charles D’Amours, son of Mathieu D’Amours and Marie Marsolet. Sons. Claude (1685-) and Charles (1689-) married Comeau sisters Elizabeth (1692-) and Francoise (1693-), son Pierre (1670-) married Anne Bourg and son Michael (1678-) married Agnes Dugas the daughter of Claude and granddaughter of Abraham Dugas (1616-) the Armourer and Lieutenant General of the King in Acadia. 

        In 1698 Pierre Thibodeau resettled at Chipoudy, founding this community on the Chipoudy River with four of his sons, Pierre, Jean, Antoine and Michel and a friend Pierre Gaudet. The location of this settlement is now Hopewell, New Brunswick. Pierre left his sons at the new settlement to return to Port Royal for supplies. On the voyage back to Chipoudy Pierre was accompanied by additional adventurous settlers, Guillaume Blanchard (1650-), three of his sons Rene, Antoine and Jean; Guillaume’s son-in-law Oliver Daigle and two nephews, sons of Pierre Gaudet and Marie Blanchard. When they arrived in the valley, Guillaume Blanchard and his family continued up the Petitcodiac River and founded the settlement of Blanchard. During the next couple years voyages would be made back to Port Royal for additional supplies and they would also return with spouses, new settlers or intended wives. By 1702 the population of these two communities had increased to 48 inhabitants. The Thibodeau family intertwines with most all families of Acadian heritage, including the Legere family.        

        Guillaume Trahan, the father of Madeleine Trahan, was born in 1611 in France, the son of Nicholas Trahan and Rene Desloges. He and his first wife Francoise Carbonneau were married at Saint-Etienne de Chinon, France on July 17, 1627. The had a daughter Jeanne born in 1629. This family arrived in Acadia with 78 other emigrants on board the ship “Saint Jehan” from at La Rochelle, France in April 1636. A few years later Guillaume became the representative of the inhabitants of La Have, Port Royal and Pentagoet. When Sedgwick captured Port Royal in 1654, Guillaume was appointed a trustee and president of the inhabitants. Francoise Carbonneau, the wife of Guillaume died and in 1666 and he took a second wife, Madeline Brun, born 1645. She was one of six children of Vincent Brun (1611-) and Renee Breau (1515-) who had come from Poitou, France. Guillaume and Madeline Brun also had six children; Guillaume II, Jean Charles, Alexandre, Marie, Jeanne and the youngest, Madeline. Guillaume had become the Marshall at Port Royal and died in 1682. After his death his widow Madeline Brun married Pierre de Bezier (1616-), also known as Pierre de la Riviere Arbuzier and Pierre Touin. He was a soldier at the garrison in Port Royal and became a well to do farmer in the Port Royal Valley. The origin of his aliases are unknown and remain to be mysterious. Madeline Brun and Pierre de Bezier had one daughter Suzanne born in 1686.   

        There are 809 direct ancestors documented in the genealogy charts of the Legere family starting with the writer going back twelve generations. 319 individuals represent these ancestors because many appear on the charts numerous times. Below is an alphabetical listing of these ancestors and the number of times (in parentheses) the individual appears in the charts. Any one that can trace their heritage back to a person on the list below would be related to this writer. The ancestors on my mother’s side are not included in this summery, but they are listed later in the text and on the accompanying overview charts.

                                                

                                          

                              Multiples on the charts;             

                                                17  times on charts  -  3   people

                                                13     "      "      "       -  5       "

                                                12     "      "       "      -  2       "

                                                11     "      "       "      -  4       "

                                                10     "      "       "      -  4       "

                                                 9      "      "       "      -  6       "

                                                 7      "      "       "      -  1       "

                                                 6      "       "      "      -  4       "                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

                                                 5      "       "      "      -  6       "

                                                 4      "       "      "      -  14     "

                                                 3      "       "      "      -  58     "

                                                 2      "       "      "      -  30     "

                                                 1   time on charts    -  182   "    

 

 

                                                                                         

ANCESTORS                            

 

                 Amirault, Anne 1691-1758   (2)                               Bourg, Jeanne 1659-

                 Amirault, Francois 1664  (2)                                    Bourg, Madeleine 1674-

                 Arsenault, Abraham 1719-                                      Bourg, Marie

                 Arsenault, Francois 1706-  (2)                                Bourg, Marie 1645-     (3)

                 Arsenault, Marie 1740-                                            Bourg, Marie Marguerite 1763-1807

                 Arsenault, Marguerite 1746-                                   Bourg, Michael 1665-   (3) 

                 Arsenault, Marguerite                                             Bourg, Michael 1692-1754  (2) 

                 Arsenault, Pierre 1676-   (3)                                     Bourg, Michael 1719-1790

                 Arsenault, Pierre  1646-1710   (3)                            Bourg, Perrine 1626-    (7)  (2 marriages)

                 Aucoin, Jeanne  1621-     (6)                                    Bourg, Renee 1655-  (3)

                 Aucoin, Michelle  1618-   (9)                                   Bourgeois, Anastasie 1764-1828

                 Babin, Antoine 1625-1686                                       Bourgeois, Anne 1718-   (2)

                 Babin, Catherine 1671-                                             Bourgeois, Charles 1646-1678   (3)

                 Babineau, Anastasie                                                Bourgeois, Claude 1674-   (3)                                                                                                                         

                 Babineau, Isabelle 1735-1840                                  Bourgeois, Claude

                 Babineau, Jean Pierre 1709-1790   (2)                     Bourgeois, Francoise 1659-

                 Babineau, Nicholas 1645-   (2)                                Bourgeois, Germain 1650-   (2)

                 Babineau, Sylvain 1750-1814                                  Bourgeois, Jacques      (10)

                 Bajolet, Antoine  (3)                                                 Bourgeois, Jacques, II 1618-1701    (10)

                 Bajolet, Barbe 1608-  (3)                                           Bourgeois, Madeleine 1683-1760

                 Barillot, Francoise 1684-                                          Bourgeois, Marguerite 1720- (2)

                 Barillot, Nicholas 1646-                                            Bourgeois, Marie    (17)

                 Bastinaux, Louise 1668-1740                                   Bourgeois, Marie 1653-

                 Baudinet, Jehanne  (3)                                             Bourgeois, Marie 1664-   (3)

                 Bayolle, Nicholas   (2)                                              Bourgeois, Pierre Benjamin 1726-1821

                 Bayolle, Rose 1631-1678  (2)                                   Breau, Isabelle 1712-   (2)

                 Belliveau, Antoine 1621-                                         Breau, Marie 1662-1749

                 Belliveau, Marie Madeleine 1654-                          Breau, Pierre 1670-1758   (2)

                 Below, Jacques 1641-                                               Breau, Rene

                 Below, Marguerite 1680-                                          Breau, Renee 1615-  (3)

                 Blanchard, Anne 1645-                                             Breau Vincent 1629-   (3)

                 Blanchard, Anne 1684-   (3)                                     Brun, Madeleine 1645- 

                 Blanchard, Guillaume  1590-  (9)                              Brun, Vincent 1611-  (3)

                 Blanchard, Guillaume 1650-   (3)                              Canol, Marie Anne    (3)

                 Blanchard, Jean 1611-   (9)                                       Carbonneau, Francoise    (10)

                 Blanchard, Madeleine 1643-1679   (5)                    Chaumeret, Francoise    (3)

                 Bonnevie, Jacques 1678-                                         Chebrat, Antoine    (3)

                 Bonnevie, Jacques 1704-                                         Chebrat, Jeanne 1627-   (4)    (2 marriages)

                 Bonnevie, Joseph 1730-1813                                   Cherlot, Catharine

                 Bonnevie,  Joseph 1772-                                          Cherlot, Jean

                 Bonnevie, Marguerite                                              Codber, Marie

                 Bornstra, Marguerite   (3)                                        Coloson, Nicole 1607-    (4)

                 Boudreau, Anne 1678-   (3)                                     Comeau, Abraham 1679-

                 Boudreau, Charles 1649-  (3)                                   Comeau, Jean Augustin 1665-                                                                                                                                      

                 Boudreau, Francois 1666-                                        Comeau, Madeleine 1696-

                 Boudreau, Marguerite 1648-   (4)                            Comeau, Madeleine 1720-1755

                 Boudreau, Marie 1653-                                             Comeau, Pierre 1597-1690  (2)

                 Boudreau, Marie Madeleine 1696-                         Comeau, Pierre 1653-1730

                 Boudreau, Michael 1600-   (9)                                 Cormier, Alexis 1672-   (2)

                 Bourg, Anne 1668-                                                   Cormier, Ann 1674-

                 Bourg, Anne 1706-                                                   Cormier, Clair 1684-

                 Bourg, Antoine 1609-1686  (12)                              Cormier, Marie 1698-1754    (2)

                 Bourg, Francois 1644-1684    (4)                             Cormier, Robert 1616-1712    (4)

                 Bourg, Jean 1647-1695                                             Cormier, Thomas  1636-1693   (4)

                 Bourg, Jean 1734-                                                     Cousins, Jeanne

                 Bourg, Jean Chrisostone                                         Cyr, Marie 1704-

 

                                                                                  

                                                                                        

                                                                                          

                 Cyr, Pierre 1644-1680                                                 Hache-Gallant, Michael 1661- 

                 Cyr, Pierre 1678-                                                         Hache-Gallant, Michael 1691-1765

                  d' Entremont, Philippe 1609-1700                            Hache-Gallant, Michael 1713-1785 

                  d 'Entremont, Philippe 1660-                                    Hebert, Antoine 1621-   (6) 

                 Desloges, Renee    (13)                                              Hebert, Catherine 1656-    (5)  

                 Doiron, Jean 1649-    (3)                                             Hebert, Etienne 1625-1670   (4)

                 Doiron, Madeleine                                                     Hebert, Francois 1726-

                 Doiron, Marie                                                             Hebert, Jacques       (11)

                 Doiron, Marie 1742-1827                                           Hebert, Jean 1649-

                 Doiron, Pierre 1680-   (3)                                            Hebert, Marie

                 Doiron, Pierre 1710-1794  (2)                                     Hebert, Marie 1651-   (3)

                 Doiron, Pierre 1734-1825                                            Hebert, Martine 1665-

                 Doucet, Anne 1661-                                                   Hebert, Paul

                 Doucet, Germain  1595-    (17)                                   Helie, Madeleine 1626-

                 Doucet, Madeleine 1670-   (3)                                   Huleton, Marie Reine

                 Doucet, Marguerite 1625-   (13)                                Hurdoil, Marie

                 Doucet, Pierre 1621-1713   (4)                                    Indian Woman  1636-      (3)

                 Duchesne, Marie                                                        Jeanne, Marie 1668-

                 Dugas, Abraham 1616-   (13)                                    Jeanne, Robert 1639-

                 Dugas, Agnes 1686-                                                  Jeanne, Yves

                 Dugas, Anne 1654  (3)                                               Juneau, Marie        (11) 

                 Dugas, Claude 1652-                                                  La Barre, Elizabeth 1682-   (3)

                 Dugas, Madeleine 1664-   (2)                                    La Barre Jean 1636-   (3)

                 Dugas, Marguerite 1657-  (3)                                    La Blanc, Andre 1659-  

                 Dugas, Marie 1665-                                                    La Blanc, Anne

                 Dugas, Marie 1648-1737   (3)                                    La Blanc, Anne 1681-   (2)

                 Dupuis, Jean 1675-1744                                             La Blanc, Anne 1700-

                 Dupuis, Marie                                                             La Blanc, Antoine 1662-     (3)

                 Dupuis, Michael 1637-                                               La Blanc, Clair 1724-1817

                 Forest, Anne 1715-1790    (2)                                    La Blanc, Claude Andre 1696- 

                 Forest, Crispin    (3)                                                    La Blanc, Daniel  1626-    (11)

                 Forest, Jean Baptiste 1677-   (3)                               La Blanc, Francois 1762-1844

                 Forest, Michael 1637-   (3)                                        La Blanc, Jacques 1651-  (5)

                 Gaudet, Anne 1645-                                                   La Blanc, Janet

                 Gaudet, Claude 1677-                                                 La Blanc, Joseph Andre

                 Gaudet, Dennis 1626-   (2)                                         La Blanc, Madeleine 1687-

                 Gaudet, Francoise  1623-    (11)                                La Blanc, Marie 1678-   (2)

                 Gaudet, Jehan  1575-1675    (17)                               La Blanc, Pelagie 

                 Gaudet, Marie  1633-    (4)                                         La Blanc, Pierre 1664-

                 Gaudet, Marie Josephte  1708-                                 La Blanc, Pierre Victor 1742-1817

                 Gaudet, Pierre 1650-                                                   La Blanc, Rene 1701-1759   (3)

                 Gauthier, Martine 1619-   (2)                                     La Blanc, Simon 1776-1856

                 Gautreau, Francois 1613-1693 (4) (2 marriages)     La Verdue, Pierre         (3)

                 Gautreau, Marie 1647-1732  (3)                                 Lambert, Redegonde 1621-   (9)

                 Gautreau, Marie 1636-                                                Landry, Antoinette 1618-1693   (12)

                 Girouard, Ann  1659-                                                  Landry, Madeleine 1655-1740

                 Girouard, Francois 1621-   (6)                                    Landry, Marie 1664-    (2)

                 Girouard, Madeline 1654-    (4)                                  Landry, Rene 1618-   (3)

                 Girouard, Marie 1651-                                                 Laure, Alexander 1676-

                 Gougeon, Antoine 1626-    (3)                                   Laure, Julien  1654-

                 Gougeon, Huguette 1657-   (3)                                  Laure, Marguerite 1712-

                 Granger, Laurent 1637-   (2)                                       Le France, Genevieve 1613-   (6)                                                                                                         

                 Granger, Marguerite 1668-1719   (2)                         Legere, Charles 1749-1837

                 Gravois, Anne Marie 1720-1748                               Legere, Fidele 1820-1921

                 Gravois, Joseph 1670-                                                Legere, Francois 1714-   

                 Gravois, Joseph 1695 -                                               Legere, Francois 1793-1868

                 Guion, Andree                                                             Legere, Francois 1845-1942                                                                                  

                 Hache-Gallant, Marguerite 1741-1824                      Legere, Jacques 1663-1751  (3)

             

                                                                                           

 

                 Legere, Jacques II 1695-1758   (2)                           Theriault, Claude 1637-1725   (3)

                 Legere, Joseph 1720-1806                                        Theriault, Germain 1662-1737   (3)

                 Legere, Marguerite 1733-1826                                 Theriault, Jeanne 1644-   (2)

                 Legere, Philip Joseph 1891-1973                             Theriault, Jehan 1601-   (5)

                 Lejeune, Catherine 1633-1689                                  Thibodeau, Benjamin 1721-1772

                 Lejeune, Edmee 1624-   (3)                                        Thibodeau, Blanche 1823-1912

                 Manson, Jeanne                                                        Thibodeau, Firmin Gregorie 1748-1825

                 Maranda, Jean                                                           Thibodeau, Isabelle

                 Maranda, Marie Madeleine 1689-                           Thibodeau, Marc

                 Maranda, Michael                                                     Thibodeau, Michael 1678-

                 Martin, Marguerite 1639-                                         Thibodeau, Philippe 1693-

                 Martin, Pierre 1601-                                                   Thibodeau, Pierre 1631-1704  (2)

                 Melanson, Charles 1643-1700  (3)                           Thibodeau, Pierre 1670-

                 Melanson, Isabelle 1673-  (3)                                   Trahan, Guillaume 1611-1682   (13)

                 Melanson, Pricilla   (3)                                              Trahan, Jeanne 1629-   (10)

                 Mercier                                                                        Trahan, Madeleine 1677-1742   (3)

                 Mercier, Marie 1646-                                                 Trahan, Nicholas 1570-   (13)                 

                 Mius d' Entremont, Francoise 1679-                       Vautour, Alexy 1811-1889

                 Niles, Marie                                                                Vautour, Andre-

                 Noyls, George                                                            Vautour, Jean Baptiste 1766-

                 Nuirat, Marguerite                                                    Vautour, Jochin

                 Peltret, Henriette 1641-   (4)                                     Vautour, Joseph Pierre

                 Peltret, Simon   (4)                                                     Vautour, Leonard

                 Peraude, Marie   (4)                                                   Vautour, Marie 1833-

                 Pesselet, Isaac 16__ -1645   (3)                                Vigneau, Catherine 1603-

                 Pesselet, Marie 1641-  (3)                                          Vincent, Isabelle 1694-

                 Petre, Jehan 1636-1689  (3)                                        Vincent, Michael 1667-

                 Petre, Marguerite 1684-                                             Vincent, Pierre 1631-

                 Petre, Marie 1666-    (2)                                              Vivier, Marie Josephe

                 Poirier, Ambroise  1708-                                            XXXX, Marie (An Indian Woman)

                 Poirier, Huguette    (9)                                               XXXX, Marie 00-1639 (An Indian Woman)

                 Poirier, Jehan 1626-1652

                 Poirier, Joseph 1738-

                 Poirier, Marguerite

                 Poirier, Michael    1651-

                 Poirier, Michael    1674-                

                 Porelle, Dina 1859-1953

                 Porelle, Francois  1832-

                 Porelle, Jean

                 Porelle, Jean 1801-

                 Rau, Perrine  1611-   (5)

                 Renaulne, Marie      (3)

                 Richard, Anne 1670-    (3)

                 Richard, Anne Madeleine 1682-1754

                 Richard, Marie Anne 1674-

                 Richard, Michael  1630-1687  (5)

                 Richard, Rene  1657-1693

                 Saulnier, Charles  1721-

                 Saulnier, Louis 1663-1723

                 Saulnier, Marguerite

                 Saulnier, Pierre  1696-

                 Savard, Francoise

                 Savard, Simon

                 Savoie, Francois 1621-

                 Savoie, Germain  1654-1728

                 Savoie, Jean  1692-

                 Savoie, Marie Josephe  1722-

                 Theriault, Ann 1705-1759     (3)

                                                                                             

                                                                                                   

                         

 

                                             

PATERNAL GENERATION LINE “THE STUMP” TO THE WRITER

Jacques Legere dit La Rosette (1663-1751)
Anne Madeline Trahan (1677-1742)

Francois Legere (1714- )
Madeline Comeau (1720-1755)

Charles Legere (1747-1837)
Marie Marguerite Bourg (1763-1807)

Francois Legere (1793-1868)
Marguerite Bonnevie (1771- )

Fidele Legere (1820-1921)
Blanche Thibodeau (1823-1912)

Francois Legere (1850-1942)
Dina Porelle (1859-1953)

Philip J. Legere (1891-1973)
Marie L. Hamanne (1893-1982)

Roger C. Legere (1935-)
Beverly J. Hall (1934-)

LEGERE

 

        The French translation of the word “legere” is light, as light in weight. It was not until the twelfth century that society adopted sir names. Prior to that, individuals went by their given names only. As history reveals, sir names were derived from many means such as by occupation, vocation, appearance, colors, geographical origins, nick names and other identifying methods. Aliases were common and some used patrons or lords to identify their families. It wasn’t until late in the eighteenth century that the French Crown ordered all citizens to use their family sir names.

        The name Legere is found as far back as the fourth century and in many regions of France. It  is possible that it could have been adopted by many from Saint Legere, a patron and famous saint approaching the notoriety of Saint Martin of Tours. Others may have taken the name as an identity of their size in weight or complexion of their skin. The spelling differences of the name, Legere and Leger, are derivatives of the gender spelling and in some cases the way the name was documented by the censor’s takers or told by the individuals. Many of the early settlers in Acadia were illiterate and unable to properly record documents. The writer has use “Legere” in this script, but it is acknowledged that some the people herein may have used or do use, “Leger”. Legare was also found in areas other than Acadia and it is possible that came from Legere. The research of that in itself would be very extensive and the findings interesting. 

        The blazon is a symbol that was used to identify families or individuals during in the medieval period. Warriors wore heavy metal armor and it became difficult to distinguish the soldiers, so the use of a coat of arms inscribed on the shield of the soldier was used for identification. The coat of arms was designed and scripted similar to the adoption of a sir name. Through the centuries the coat of arms remained as identification of families and were passed on to the next generation. The first coat of arms (see appendix B) is alleged to be the official blazon registered in the name Legere. The second coat of arms illustrated (see appendix B) depicts a drum and roses and supposedly is the blazon of Jacques Legere. The early settlers of Acadia did not use coats of arms and it is believed that this was probably a design illustrated by a more recent descendant of Jacques Legere dit La Rosette. The literal translation of the Latin on this coat of arms is “Legere Faithful to Country ”. The crest does make a pleasant family symbol. 

OTHER LEGERE’S

        This document addresses the Legere family beginning with the ancestry in Acadia during the 17th century. It was this period of time that the Europeans were settling in the Americas. Although the name appears a few times in the early settlement of Quebec, it was not pursued in any detail other than indicated in this research. Family ties could have been connected in France prior to the new settler arriving, but again that research was not pursued. During and after the 1755 deportation of the French Acadians by the British from Acadia the name and descendants did spread to other parts of Canada and the American Colonies. All Legere's that are traceable to Acadia are decedents of Jacques Legere dit La Rosette. Following are the Legere’s among the early settlers in the Quebec region of Canada before 1755.

        Francois Legere born in Angers, France about 1621 was another follower of Michael Leneuf de la Valliere when he took possessions of his seigniory at Beaubassin in 1676. Valliere was called back to Quebec by Governor Frontenac in 1687. It is assumed that Francois returned to Quebec with de la Valliere as we find traces of Francois in Quebec a few years later and none in Acadia. He was never married and therefore left no descendants.

        Cesar Legere, born south of La Rochelle, France, was the son of Jean Legere and Marie Messiager from Marnac, France. He was among the first settlers at Ville Marie (now Montreal) in 1642. In May 1644 he married Roberte Gadouas, daughter of Pierre Gadouas and Louise Mauger. Cesar made edge tools and died at Quebec in 1651 leaving no descendants.

        Pierre Legere dit Lajeunesse was a soldier of Charles Petit Levilliers’ Company and married Anne Marguerite Forestier, the daughter of Etienne Forestier and Marguerite Lauzon of Quebec. There were nine daughters and two sons of this marriage. Of the two sons born to this couple, Pierre Louis, born on August 18, 1730 was the only adult male survivor. Their oldest daughter Marguerite married Antoine LeBlanc. 

        Adrien Legere the son of Louis Legere and Pierrette Lacaille was born at Normandy, France about 1631. In 1659 he married Catherine Lotier at Ville Marie. She was the daughter of Adrien Lotier and Anne Desdames from a suburb of Paris. They had two daughters, Marie and Louise. A falling tree killed Adrien in 1661 at Pointe Saint Charles.  

        Maurice Averty, nicknamed Legere, was a settler at Ville-Marie in 1653. He was under contract with Sieur Maisonneuve the original founder of Montreal. Maurice was one of the founders of the Saint Joseph Hospital at Ville Marie. In 1663 he was in a militia group at Ville Marie and also at Cap-Trinity in 1681. Married in 1684, Maurice had two daughters and died in 1709.

        Jean Legere de la Grange, born June 19, 1663 in France, the son of Elie Legere and Jeanne de Phelis, came to Quebec about 1690. He was a doctor and surgeon. On November 3, 1691 he married Louise Fauvel in Quebec and they had five daughters. Jean Legere gave up his medical practice and became a sea captain. In 1708 Jean married a second time at La Rochelle, France to Marie Desreaux the widow of Jean Berthelot, a royal notary. A daughter Marie-Louise married Jean-Mathieu D'Amours de Freneuse the Captain of the ship “La Renommee” which shipwrecked in 1736. One of the survivors from that ship was a Legere, probably a half brother to Marie. Jean Legere’s daughter Genevieve became the Mother Saint Louis at the Ursulines Convent in Quebec.

        Pierre Legere dit Parisian was born of Pierre Legere and Marguerite Dandase in 1685 at Paris. A soldier, he married Jeanne Boilard in Quebec and in 1706 was at Fort Detroit. Descendants of Pierre Legere dit Parisian are brothers, Governor General of Canada Jules Legere and Cardinal Paul Emile Legere. Bishop Guillaume Forbes of Ottawa, is also descendants of Pierre Legere dit Parisian as his mother was Octave Legere.                      

        Jean Legere dit Richelieu of Poitiers, France was married at Quebec in 1726. His children born in Quebec were later found in the Acadian communities. There, they became subjects of the deportation in 1755 being exiled first to the Ile Saint-Jean (Prince Edward Island) and later to France. Some of this family reunited with the Acadian families in Louisiana.                       

                        

GENERATION ONE - JACQUES LEGERE DIT LA ROSETTE

        Jacques Legere dit La Rosette (1663-1751). France was the birthplace of Jacques about 1663. It is believed that his father was also named Jacques and born in 1645. Many searches have been made to trace his ancestry, but there have been no conclusions. His actual place of birth or date has not been confirmed either. It is believed that he arrived in Acadia on the French frigate “La Friponne” in 1687, a soldier/drummer in the company of Sieur de Villieu, a Naval detachment. He also had duties at Port Royal as a soldier and was probably with Joseph de Villebon in his defeat of William Phips at Cape Tourmente in 1690. In 1691 Jacques, the soldier, performed duties at Fort Naschouac, also known as Fort Saint Joseph, in what is now Fredericton, New Brunswick, on the Saint John River. It is from this fort that many raids by the French soldiers and the Indians originated, including the attract and seizure of Fort Henry at Pemaquid, now Woolwich, Maine. Jacques was known as La Rosette when a soldier and we believe that this nickname came about from the arrangement of rose symbols on his drum. As was the custom, the soldiers were encouraged to stay in Acadia and find new lives after they completed their military service. Jacques most probably became acquainted with Madeline Trahan (1677-1742), daughter of Guillaume Trahan (1611-1682) and Madeline Brun (1645-), while he was stationed at Port Royal. Madeline Trahan was 15 years old when they were married at Port Royal in 1693. Jacques and Madeline lived on the farm with Madeline’s stepfather Pierre de Bezier for a short time and then Jacques became a prosperous farmer himself on adjacent land along the east bank of the Port Royal River. They were neighbors to Pierre Thibodeau, the miller, and the Pierre Comeau families.

        The area of Jacques’ farm became known as La Rosette Village and is now called the Rosette Marsh. It is located about four and one half miles north of Annapolis Royal on Route 201. Next to this property today is The Rosette Anglican Church. Jacques and Madeline had ten children, all raised on their homestead. Madeline died December 9, 1742 and was buried in the Saint-Jean The Baptist Catholic Church graveyard in Annapolis Royal. Jacques dit La Rosette Legere died on March 8, 1751 and was buried next to his wife. The Catholic Church in Port Royal was replaced in 1822 by Saint Luke’s Anglican Church. Today both Acadians and English are buried in the graveyard beside the church on Upper Saint George Street in Annapolis Royal. Jacques lived through 60 years of minimal growth, wars and strife in Acadia, but he or Madeline did not live to go through the horrors or brutality of the deportation in 1755. By that time only four of his 10 children were still living. They together with 24 grandchildren and 11 great grandchildren experienced those sufferings.

             

GENERATION TWO - CHILDREN OF JACQUES LEGERE AND MADELINE TRAHAN

        The first child of Jacques Legere and Madeline Trahan was Jacques II (1695-1758) who married Anne Amirault (1691-1758) in 1717, the daughter of Francois Amirault (1664-) and Marie Pitre (1666-) at Port Royal. Francois Amirault arrived in Acadia in 1671 at the age of 7 on the ship “L’Oranger”. Marie was the daughter of Jean Pitre (1636-1689) and Marie Pesselet (1641-), some of the original settlers in Acadia. In 1721 Jacques II and his family, Anne and 3 children, left La Rosette Village outside of Port Royal and moved to the mouth of the Petcoudiac River across the Bay of Fundy to Blanchard Village. Today the spot is called Milk Creek or Edgett’s Landing in Hillsborough, New Brunswick. Jacques II was the first Legere to settle in New Brunswick. He was a craftsman and the museum at Beausejour now exhibits two of his chairs made in 1720. When the British troops were rounding up the Acadian inhabitants for deportation in 1755, they approached Blanchard Village and meet resistance led by a French officer named Charles Deschamps de Boishebert. After a 3-hour battle the British soldiers retreated. The inhabitants then abandoned the village and fled north toward the Cocagne region and the Miramichi River. The trip was to exhausting for Jacques II and Anne and neither were able to survive the suffering and fatigue, as was the situation for many of the escaping Acadians. Jacques Legere, II is a direct descendant of the writer through the maternal line.

        The 11 children that Jacques II and Anne Amirault raised were adults in 1755 and scattered among the Acadian villages near the Bay of Fundy. They also experienced the deportation or escape as all Acadians did. Their son Joseph (1720-1806) had married Clair La Blanc (1724-1817), daughter of Rene La Blanc (1701-1759) and Anne Terriot (1705-1759), in the village of Beaubassin on June 5, 1744. They are the great grand parents of Marguerite Bonnevie (1796-1889) who married Francois F. Legere (1793-1868), great-great grand parents of the writer. A daughter of Jacques II and Anne, Marguerite (1733-1826) married Pierre Doiron (1734-1825) and they are great-great grand parents of Dina Porelle (1859-1953) husband of Francois Legere (1845-1942), grand parents of the writer. Other children of Jacques II and Anne Amirault are Marie (1717-), Jean-Baptiste (1719-1787), Paul (1724-), Jacques III (1726-1814), Anne (1728-1812), Armand (1729-), Pierre (1730-1805), Oliver (1734-1818) and Rene (1737-).

        Anne Legere (1697- 1742) was the second child of Jacques and Madeline Trahan. She was the first to marry in 1715 to Francois Michel (1689-) and they had eight 8 children. Francois’s parents were Jacques Michel and Catherine Comeau, daughter of Pierre Comeau (1653-1730).  Anne died in 1742 and Francois married again in 1751 to Isabelle Lejuge, the widow of Pierre Benoit.                      

        Child number three of Jacques and Madeline was Marie (1698-). She was married in 1717 to Jean Robichard (1694-1758) son of Charles Robichard (1667-) and Marie Thibaudeau (1664-1700). This Marie Thibaudeau is the daughter of Pierre (1631-1704) and Jeanne Terriot (1644-). In 1717 Marie Legere and Jean Robichard left Annapolis Royal moving to Cobequid, today Truro, Nova Scotia. She was the first of her siblings to leave Annapolis Royal. This couple had three children. A son Francois (1734-) married Cecile Thibaudeau the daughter of Antoine Thibaudeau (1674-) and grand daughter of Pierre (1631-1704). This was a marriage between first cousins. Marie and Jean eventually found their way to Badeque, near Summerside on the Isle of Saint Jean.      

        The next child born to Jacques and Madeline was a daughter Francoise in October 1703 who died at the age of three.

        Another daughter came to Jacque Legere and Madeline Trahan in October 1706 and was named Marie Francoise. When she became sixteen she married Jean Bertrand, son of Claude Bertrand and Catherine Pitre (1668-). In 1721 the newly weds joined her brother and the other Acadian pioneers at Chipoudie, now Hopewell, New Brunswick. This family was able to escape the horrors of the deportation in 1755 and went to Quebec.

        Son number two, the sixth child of Jacques and Madeline, was Jean born January 28, 1709. Jean married a neighborhood girl, Marguerite Comeau, daughter of Abraham Comeau and Marguerite Pitre. Jean and Marguerite were both 21 years old at the time of their wedding. This young couple followed his brother Jacques II and sister Marguerite and her husband Jean Bertrand to Chipoudie. In 1752 Jean and Marguerite left Chipoudie with two sons and six daughters moving to the Isle of Saint Jean. Most probably following Father Jean-Louis Le Loutre. Marguerite died on August 12, 1756 and was buried at Fort Lajoie. The British later deported Jean to La Rochelle when they went to the island in 1760. After the Treaty of Paris, Jean was able to relocate in Louisiana and was there in 1765 with some of his children. 

        Madeline Legere, born December 23, 1711 of Jacques Legere and Madeline Trahan, married Alexis Doucet in 1729. Alexis's parents were Jacques Doucet and Marie Pellerin. His grandfather, Germain Duocet det Laverdue, was commander of the Fort at Port Royal in the original colony. Alexis and Madeline remained at Annapolis Royal. Their son Charles Doucet born in 1736 married Marguerite Landry in Quebec on February 8, 1762. She was the daughter of Jean Landry and Anne Saint Seine, both originally from Annapolis Royal.

        Francois Baptiste Legere the third son and eight child of Jacques and Madeleine was born in 1714. At the age of 25 he married Madeline Comeau, age 19. She was his next door neighbor and sister to Marguerite Comeau, his brother Jean’s wife. Francois stayed at Annapolis Royal and inherited his father’s property at La Rosette Village. However, a few years later we find Francois a baker at Beaubassin, most probably driven from his land by the British. Francois and Madeline were the parents to eight known children; Joseph (1740-), Jean-Baptiste (1741-1809), Marie-Josephte (1743-), Scholastique (1744-), Francois (1746-), Charles (1749-1837), Marguerite (1751-) and Anne (1753-). Some research indicates that Francois was deported from Acadia to Connecticut in 1755 with some of his family and there are no other traces of him. However, there is a Francois Legere buried in Barachois and could possibly be him. His wife Madeline Comeau and some of their children took refuge in the forest where she and some of the children died of hunger and misery. A Paul Legere born in New York in 1759 reportedly was a son of Francois and Madeline Comeau. However, he could not have been, as they separated during the expulsion of 1755. It is possible that Paul could be from a second marriage of Francois, but unlikely. More than likely Paul was the son of Jacques III. This Paul and a sister Marie eventually resided in the Louisiana Bayous with many of the other Acadian refuges. Francois Baptiste is a direct paternal ancestor.

        The last two children of Jacques Legere and Madeline Trahan were; Marguerite born in 1717, dieing in 1721 and Elizabeth who was born in 1719 and died as an infant.

                                               

GENERATION THREE - CHARLES LEGERE

        Charles Legere (1749-1837) son of Francoise Legere and Madeline Comeau became separated from his parents during the expulsion of the Acadians in 1755. He was six years old at the time and was adopted by his Godmother Marguerite Grosvalet (1731-1769) who was with the family when they took refuge in the forest. Marguerite was married to Pierre Legere son of Jacques II and a cousin to Charles. Her parents were Francois Grosvalet and Angelique Mius D’Entremont, a descendant of the original family from Pubnico. During the expulsion Marguerite and Charles took refuge first at Chipoudie and then to the Isle of Saint Jean where she raised Charles as her own child. At the age of 18, Charles and his Godmother returned to Menoudie, Nova Scotia near Beaubassin. Marguerite Grosvalet died in 1769 and Charles stayed in Menoudie until he was 25 years old, then moving to Petitcodiac. In 1778 Charles married Marie Marguerite Bourque (1763-1807) the daughter of Michael Bourque (1719-1790) and Marguerite Bourgeois (1720-). They lived in Petitcodiac for a couple years and relocated to Menoudie until 1802. Charles (1749-1837) with his sons Charles and Simon and their families were among 16 Acadian families from Petitcodiac and Menoudie that founded the village of Shemogue, New Brunswick. It was this group of pioneers that also founded the church parishes of Cape Pele and Shemogue.

        Charles Legere and Marie Marguerite Bourque were parents to twelve children. They were Charles Dit Charlitte (1779-1827), Isabelle (1781-1859), Simon (1783-1827), Moise (1786-1861), Collette (1787-1842), Paul (1791-1869), Francois (1793-1868), Louis (1796-1845), Thaddee, Modeste (1800-1842) Prime and Pierre. Marie Marguerite Bourque died in 1807 and after being a widower for 20 years Charles went to Trois-Ruisseau-des-Legere (Three Rivers) to live with his son Francois until his death in 1837 at the age of 88. There were many descendants of Jacques Legere living in Trois-Ruisseau and the village was called La Rosette until about 1900. The area is now referred to as Legere‘s Brook and in the town of Cape Pele, New Brunswick. There are still many Legere descendants living in this community.                                                        

GENERATION FOUR- FRANCOIS LEGERE

        It was about 1812 that Simon Legere (1783-1827); a brother to Francois (1794-1868), obtained some land at Cap Pele. On December 30, 1817 three of his brothers, Paul, Moise and Francois (1794-1868) each purchased 800 acres of land near Simon in the village of Trois-Ruisseau-des-Legere. The four brothers, sons of Charles Legere and Marie Marguerite Bourque, had been living in Shemogue, but were born in Menoudie where their parents lived at the time.  Simon was married to Isabelle Le Blanc (1789-), with two children at that time. Paul, 27 years of age, was married to Marie Melanson (1791-1888), and also had two children. Moise, married to Marie Theriault was 31 years old with one child and Francois, age 22, and was recently married.    

        Francois had married Marguerite Bonnevie (1796-1889) in 1817 at Shemogue. She was the daughter of Joseph Bonnevie (1772-) and Anastasie Babineau. Joseph Bonnevie was one of the original settlers at Shemogue. Anastasie's mother was Marguerite Legere the daughter of Joseph (1720-1806) and the grand daughter of Jacques II (1695-1758). Francois was using the sir name Larosette. Some of the family members used Larosette as the family name in place of Legere at that time. In the early eight-teen hundreds, Larosette was dropped and replaced by all family members with Legere or Leger. The different spellings are adaptations of the masculine and feminine genders of the sir name.

        This area of Trois-Ruisseau was forested with large trees and much long had work was needed to clear the land for farming. It took a few years to clear the land and kept these pioneers and their families fully occupied. All of the brothers carried on a tradition of the family and custom of the Acadians, producing large families. Collectively these four brothers fostered 48 children. The children of Francois Legere and Marguerite Bonnevie were; Thaddee (1818-1879), Fidele (1820-1921), Maxime (1822-1902), Placide (1824- 1829), Francoise (1826-1894), Aime (1828-1915), Osithe (1830-1860), Domithile (1832-), Antoinette (1834-1906), Marguerite (1836-1867), Barbe (1838-), Philomene (1840-), and Justine (1843-1885).

        Francois’s farm at Trois-Ruisseau is still owned, occupied and worked by his descendants, the children and grandchildren of Joseph Gilbert Legere. Some of the land has been divided among this family and they have built their own homes. They are descendent of Fidele (1820-1921) and his wife Marie Blanche Thibodeau (1825-1912); of Raymond Legere (1859-1936) and his wife Francoise Legere (1856-1938); of Joseph Gilbert Legere (1889-1973) and his wife Rosanna Leblanc (1893-). Raymond and Francoise had common great grand parents, Charles Legere (1749-1837) and Marie Marguerite Bourg (1763-1807).

        Aime (1828-1915) became a farmer on land adjacent to his father and brothers in Trois Ruisseau. In later years his farmland came under the ownership of Leonard St Pierre, but some of it is now back in the ownership of the children and grandchildren of Joseph Gilbert Legere. The town of Cap Pele and the region is populated by hundreds of Legere descendants.

GENERATION FIVE - FIDELE LEGERE

        Fidele (1820-1921) was born in Cape Pele and lived there for a number of years on the farm of his father. He left and moved to Rogersville, New Brunswick where he became a lumberman and transporter of lumber. He kept the family production up by having 13 children with his wife Marie Blanche Thibaudeau (1823-1912), a descendant of the early settler Pierre.

        Their children were; Julienne (1846-1847), Zoel (1848-), Jules (1848-1921), Francois (1850-1942), his twin brother Marc (1850-), Andre (1852-), Gregoire (1853-1918), Henriette (1858-), Raymond (1859-1936), Benji (1860-), Albini (1861-1869), Octave (1864-1873) and Antoinette.

        Fidel’s sons Jules and Raymond stayed in Trois Ruisseau. Raymond took over the family farm when Fidel went to Rogersville. Fidel’s sons Marc, Andre and Gregoire left Cape Pele and went to Rumford Falls, Maine in the early eighteen nineties. There, it is believed, they went to work on the railroad or in the Oxford Paper Mill. In his later years Fidel returned to Trois Ruisseau and lived with his son Raymond until after he celebrated his one-hundredth birthday, dieing in 1921.

GENERATION SIX - FRANCOIS LEGERE

        Francois (1850-1942), son of Fidel Legere and Blanche Thibaudeau, married Dina Porelle (1859-1952) of Cape Pele in 1877. Dina was the daughter of Francois Porelle (1832-) and Marie Vautour (1833-). As a young man Francois was diagnosed with consumption (Tuberculosis) and went to sea on board a ship for a period of two years. The reasoning to go to sea was that the sea air was supposed to be an effective remedy for the illness. While living in Cape Pele they had three children; Adeline was born in 1879 and died at age three while Francois was at sea. She had fallen from a ladder to the bedroom loft and died as a result of a head injury. Alphie was born 1881 and Lillian born in 1883.

        It was about 1885 when Francois and Dina moved the family to the United States, first living in Portland, Maine for a while and then move to Canton, Maine where he worked for the railroad. He later returned to Portland and found employment in construction and later as a longshoreman on the Portland water front where he worked for many years. His name is among those inscribed on the cornerstone at the Sacred Heart Church in Portland when it was originally built.

        Additional children born after settling in the United States were; Wilfred (1885-), Eugenia (1886-1969), Eva Irene (1889-1985), Philip Joseph (1891-1973), Helen May (1894-1975), Fredrick Lawrence (1896-1925), George Edward (1898-1937), and Emma Philomena (1901-2001). Fredrick and George both died when they were young men. There were two other children Isabelle and Catherine, both dieing as infants.

        Of the five sons of Francois and Dina, Philip was the only one to have children and therefore, this writer has no first cousins that carried the sir name of Legere. In their later years Francois and Dina lived with their daughter Helen and her husband Arthur Cassidy in Portland. Both Francois and Dina lived into there nineties.   

GENERATION 7, 8 & 9 OF JACQUES LEGERE AND MADELEINE TRAHAN

         Adeline Legere (1879-1882)

         Alphie Legere (6/14/1881-)                              Wife; Dagma Peterson

   Isabelle Legere (1882 died as an infant)

   Lillian Legere (9/6/1883-2/9/1974)                 Husband; Samuel Mishoe

                  Children; Emma Mishoe (-12/27/77)               Husband; Arthur Olsen

                                  Robert Samuel Mishoe (-7/28/1986)

                                  Eva Mishoe (-6/6/43)                        Husband; Roger Haskell

                                                  Son; Roger Haskell, Jr.

                                  Genevieve (Jean) Lillian Mishoe

                                  Harold Orman Mishoe                       Wife; Althea Gray

                                                  Children; Harold Orman Mishoe, Jr.

                                                                  Bruce Mishoe

                                                                  Vickie Mishoe

                                                                  Toni Mishoe

Catherine Legere (1884 died as an infant)

Wilfred Legere (1885 -died as a young man)

Marie Eugenia Legere (4/5/1886-11/21/1969)          Husband; Charles Burt Kelly

                  Children; Charles Burt Kelly, Jr.

                                  Shirley Ann Kelly                           Husband; John Ouprie

                                                  Children: Nancy Ouprie

                                                                  David Ouprie

Eva Irene Legere (2/18/89-3/26/1985)            Husband; Henry Robert Ahern (-1950)

                  Children; Harold Joseph Ahern (3/9/1913-1/15/70)

                                  Robert Henry Ahern (12/28/10-8/5/62)      Wife; Ann

                                                  Son; William Robert Ahern

                                  John E. Ahern                                 Wife; Cora Walk

                                                  Children; Thomas Ahern

                                                                  Maurine Ahern

                                                                  Corinne Ahern

                                                                  Kathleen  Ahern

                                                                  Jeanie Ahern

                                                                  Timothy Ahern

                                 Walter Morris Ahern (1/24/1918-3/9/1970)

                                 Helen Ahern (6/7/1923-)                Husband: Donald  C. Keating

                                                  Children: Robert  M. Keating

                                                                  Steven J. Keating (-11/26/1978)

                                                                  Dr. Thomas J. Keating

                                 Ruth Ahern                                      Husband: James E. Conley

                                                  Children: James E. Conley, Jr.

                                                                  Carol Ann Conley

                                                                               Kathy Conley

                                              Frank W. Ahern                               Wife: Inez

                                                               Children: Ronda Ahern

                                                                               John Ahern

           Philip Joseph Legere (9/22/91- 4/22/73) Wife: Marie L. Hamanne (11/28/93-8/12/82)

                               Children: (see generation eight of Jacque Legere)            

           Helen May Legere (4/24/1894-7/22/1975)      1st Husband: Albert E. Corey

                             Child; Eleanor Alberta Corey (10/24/1912-5/21/1987)  

                                        1st Husband: Elvin S. Winckler (10/12/1910-1998)                                                                              

                                   Children: Elvin S. Winckler, Jr. (01/05/1929)  Wife: Barbara Allen

                                                 Richard Edward Winckler (01/12/1930-12/30/1988) Wife: Marina De Louie

                                                                                    Children: Richard Edward Winckler, Jr.

                                                                                                    Mark Leslie Winckler

                           Eleanor Alberta Corey                         2nd Husband: Leonard J. Curtis

            Helen May Legere                                             2nd Husband: Arthur D. Cassidy (-1961)

Frederick Lawrence Legere (8/4/1896-9/17/1926)

George Edward Legere (3/24/1898-8/8/1928)

Emma Philomena Legere (11/22/1901-2000)1stHusband:James Howard Keith (-9/ /1930)

                   Children: James Howard Keith, Jr.         Wife: Doris

                                   Norma Jacqueline Keith          1st Husband: Sanford Carney (-1945)

                                                  Child: James Thomas Carney

                                   Norma Jacqueline Keith           2nd Husband: Michael Miccichi

                                                 Children: Michael Miccichi, Jr. (twin)  

                                                                 Linda Miccichi (twin)

                                                                 Charlene Miccichi

Emma Philomena  Legere                                2nd Husband: Herman Morrison

Emma Philomena  Legere                                3rd Husband: George Barton

 

 

GENERATION SEVEN - PHILIP JOSEPH LEGERE

        Philip Joseph Legere (9/22/1891-4/22/1973) was born in Portland, Maine. His mother, Dina Porelle, gave birth to him at home. At that time they lived on Green Street which was located where the rose garden is now in Deering Oaks Park across the street from the Portland Post Office on Forest Avenue. As a youth the family lived in the heavier populated sections of the city near the waterfront. Philip’s education was limited to the eighth grade at the Staples elementary school. He was as active baseball player throughout his teens. Small in size, but big in stature. He acquired the nickname “Pug’ as a youth. At a very young age he became an apprentice baker working in Combs Bakery in the West End of Portland. Philip made a few coastal voyages on the steamer “Rockland” employed as a baker. He then went ashore, going to work for the Armstrong Company, the food services contractor for the railroad serving Portland. Prior to World War I, Philip meet Marie Lobertine Hamanne (1893-1982) introduced by a mutual friend (Belle Huedon) on a blind date. Marie was the daughter of Amedee Hamanne (1861-1919) and Odile Carrier (1860-1937). 

        Marie Lobertine Hamanne was born on November 28, 1893 in Berlin, New Hampshire. Her father Amedee was a shoe cobbler and when Marie was seven years old the family moved to Rumford, Maine. Amedee and Odile were parents to 14 children, five of which died before they reached the age of three. Refer to tables for names of their children. Nicholas, the first Hamanne in the Americas, (See Hamanne family in next chapter) was born in what is now Germany, his wife Isabelle was French and living in Quebec, the language spoken was French. The family decedents from there on were French and their language continued to be French. A larger percentage of the inhabitants in the mill towns of Maine, such as Rumford, were Canadian French and they spoke the French language. Marie was a teenager before she learned to speak English. As was the custom of the day, education was not a priority for the children. When Marie completed elementary school she stayed at home to help attend to the younger children of the family. Upon reaching the age of 17, Marie was old enough to leave home, so she went to Portland, Maine and found employment as a domestic for a Doctor Robinson. It was in Portland that Marie and Philip meet.

        On September 5, 1914 Philip and Marie married at Saint Dominic's Church in Portland, Maine. When World War I broke out Philip did not serve in the military, as he was exempt because of his paternal status. They lived on the Portland peninsular and moved to South Portland in 1932. They had nine children, three girls (Marjorie, Phyllis and Loraine) and six boys (Philip, Thomas, Edward, Francis, Gerard and Roger). All of the children had strong supervision and direction from both parents. The children all worked part time jobs in their teen years caddying on the golf course, delivering news papers, working on the truck farms of Cape Elizabeth or working on the Casco Bay Lines passenger ferries. Tom started working a paper route in South Portland and the route remained in the family for 18 years, passing it along to the next younger brother. Tom was also the first of five brothers to work at Casco Bay Lines during their high school years. Each child completed high school educations and the four youngest with determination, sacrifice and aid were fortunate enough to graduate from college. All of their children were veterans of military service, including the three girls. The five older members of the family performed active military duty during World War II, some of which was in hostile action. One son served between World War II the Korean War and two other sons were in the military during the Korean Conflict, one in combat. The youngest did not serve in wartime.                                                                            

        Philip was a baker at various restaurants in the greater Portland area. He own and operate his own bakery in the Woodfords section of Portland for a short time. Pot pies were his specialty in the bakery, but the lack of business knowledge and his graciousness caused the business to fail. For a short period of time during World War II, Philip left the bakery trade and went to work in the shipyards of South Portland. There, patriotic hard working men and women made exceptional wages building Victory ships and Liberty ships used to transport supplies to the war fronts. He then returned to his baking trade. A baker’s day starts in the early A.M., as the pastries must be fresh each day. A three mile plus walk from his home and across the old “Million Dollar” bridge to Portland downtown before day break was a common occurrence if either he or the first bus was running late. Most other early risers in downtown Portland and the policeman on the beat knew Phil well. There was always a cup of coffee and a pastry ready for a visitor at the bakeshop. A lover of music he always enjoyed singing and sang for many barbershop quartets. In his young adult years he played the drums and was an end man in many minstrel shows. These were usually put on to raise money for an organization or church. A typical song and dance man. Things always reminded him of a song and he would break out with a tune.

        Afternoons were free for Phil and he always had a second job to help support his large family. These efforts were spent in the field of sports and athletics. He worked with the youth developing sports leagues and teams, teaching the young boys of South Portland football, basketball or baseball techniques and good sportsmanship. When little league baseball arrived in greater Portland he became a director. South Portland benefited most from his passion for helping boys in sports. Adult sports activities also fell within his supervision, directing basketball and softball leagues and teams. Weather it was monetary or not, he was involved. Phil had been a baker for over fifty years before retiring in the middle nineteen fifties. But his strong interest in sports was lifetime. He worked a few years part time for his son Thomas when he purchased a local tavern in South Portland and after it was sold he continued part time there and at another local tavern. These were the local sports bars and gathering places for the athletes of the time and Phil could spend hours in the sports environment.

        Phil gave freely of himself to family, youth, church and the Knights of Columbus, a two time Past Grand Knight and a member of the Fourth Degree in the Knights of Columbus. Numerous other organizations benefited from his kindness when they were in need of services for raising money. He had an abiding gift of good cheer, spirit, humor and interest in the young. Everybody was “A nice guy”. Slowing down was not in his vocabulary, even after losing his eyesight in his later years. The daily walks to the Knightville part of South Portland and making his stops to visit and discuss the daily sport events along the way was truly missed after his passing. Many years were spent on the advisory board of the South Portland Park and Recreation Department and the City of South Portland in 1968 fittingly named a park and playground on Waterman Drive in his honor.       

        The six sons of Phil and Marie took the leadership of their father and guidance of their mother to write a unique story unlikely to be matched in local sports, with few rivals anywhere. The good all round athletes divided evenly between Cheverus High School, Portland’s Catholic school, and South Portland High School. Their sports abilities and competition spanned many years and at times competing against other. The high point in Phil’s sports pride came when he assembled his six boys on the same basketball team. Over a span of ten years they successfully competed against the local college, adult basketball teams and another brother team.          

HAMANNE - GENERATIONS

     Generation Line - Hamanne

            Nicholas Hamanne (1757-)

            Isabelle Fontaine

                           

                            Jean Hamanne (1787- )

                            Marie Valliere

                     

                                         Joseph Hamanne (1820-)

                                         Mathilde Fortier

                                 

                                                      Amedee Hamanne (6/16/1861-5/26/1919)

                                                      Odile Carrier (7/21/1860-3/9/1937)

                                  

                                                                   Marie Lobertine Hamanne (11/28/1893 - 8/12/1982)

                                                                   Philip Joseph Legere (9/22/1891- 4/22/1973)

                                  

                                                                                   Roger C. Legere (1935-)

                                                                                   Beverly J. Hall (1934-)

      

        Nicholas Hamanne, the first Hamanne to arrive in North America, was born in 1756 at Dutenhofen in the Holy Roman Empire, now Germany. He was a soldier in the company of Colonel Lentz arriving in Canada about 1778. After serving seven years he got a separation and remained in Quebec. There, Nicholas meet Isabelle Fontaine and married her on May 6, 1786 in The Anglican Church of The Holy Trinity. After their marriage, Nicholas and Isabelle moved to Saint Isidore in the Province of Quebec and developed their farm. They had two children, a son Jean (1787-) and a daughter Elizabeth. To my knowledge this farm house still stands as the writer visited this homestead when a youth and it was occupied by cousins of Marie Lobertine Hamanne Legere.

        Jean Hamanne, the son of Nicholas and Isabelle Fontaine, married Marie Valliere at Saint Marie in 1819 and returned to Saint Isidore. Jean and Marie Valliere parented five daughters and three sons. Their son Joseph, born in 1820 married Mathilde Fortier and had seven children one of which is Amedee (1861-1919). Amedee Hamanne and Odile Carrier were married at Saint Isidore in 1882. Three of their children were born to them before they moved to the Berlin, New Hampshire about 1887. They had a total of 14 children, five of them dieing as youths.                                                                                     

GENERATION 5 AND 6 OF NICHOLAS HAMANNE AND ISABELLE FONTAINE

 

Marie Ernestine Hamanne (9/15/1883-6/28/63) Husband; Augustus Maillet (5-/1880-4/23/39)

                                   Children: William Maillet (1914-7/7/1980)   Wife: Delia Langevin

                                                   Marion Maillet                                 Husband; ------ Marshall

 

Marie Anne Hamanne (7/26/1885-5/30/1888)                                                                          

 

Marie Caroline Hamanne (3/14/1887-7/28/1887)

 

Joseph Thomas Hamanne (9/11/1888-9/13/1888)

 

Marie Anne Albertine Hamanne (3/15/1890-   )       Husband; Ernest Cote

                                   Children: Roland Cote

                                                   Norman Cote

                                                   George Cote

                                                   Leander Cote

                                                   Evon Cote

                                                   Noel Cote

                                                   Henry Cote

                                                   Loraine Cote

 

Marie Eva Aurore Hamanne (8/28/1891-9/12/1891)

 

Marie Lobertine Hamanne (11/28/1893-8/12/82)   Husband; Philip J. Legere (9/22/1891-4/22/73)  

                                 Children: (see Legere generation eight)

 

William Henri Joseph Hamanne (10/12/1895-7/30/83)  Wife: Yvonne Deroy (1894/6/25/1966)

                                  Children: William D. Hamanne

                                                  Raymond Hamanne (1921-7/11/1995)

                                                  Leo Hamanne

                                                  George Hamanne

                                                  Robert D. Hamanne (1927-3/23/1998)  Wife: Genevieve Hawkins

                                                             Children: Robert D. Hamanne. Jr.

                                                                             Kathryn Cleary Hamanne

 

Marie Clara Yvonne Hamanne (10/20/1897-8/26/76) Husband; James Gallant (5/25/96-6/6/1939)

                                 Children: Beatrice Gallant            Husband: Francois McInnis(1926-8/25/88)

                                                 Janet Gallant                      Husband; Albert Lamontagne

                                                 Evon Gallant (1923-7/9/1998)

                                                 Mary Gallant

                                                 Anita Gallant                      Husband; Gerard Coulombe

                                                 Doris Gallant                      Husband; Bernard McInnis

                                                 Joseph Gallant

                                                 Edgar Gallant

                                                 Arthur Gallant (1935)

 

Marie Rosiana Hamanne (4/30/1899-9/26/78) Husband; Charles Desveaux  (11/24/1895-11/9/68)

                           Children: Alice Desveaux                                  Husband; Alphege Thibodeau

                                           Irene Desveaux                                   Husband; Paul Bilodeau

                                           Lena Desveaux                                   Husband; George Garon

                                           Cecile Desveaux                                 Husband; ______ O’Hearn

                                           Philip Desveaux                                  Wife:

                                           Theodore Desveaux                            Wife; Adrian           

 

Joseph Petre Hamanne (10/3/1900-5/ /1973)

 

Pierre Joseph Hamanne (12/4/1902-9/7/1903)

 

Joseph Thomas Hamanne (4/17/1904-2/8/1970)

                                                

Alice Hamanne (11/1/1905-2000)                      1st Husband; Clifford Willard

                          Children; Clifford Willard, Jr. (     -1976)

                                          Theodore Willard

                                          Rita Willard

Alice Hamanne                                                      2nd Husband; Samuel Petris 

        

GENERATION EIGHT - CHILDREN OF PHILIP LEGERE AND MARIE HAMANNE

        Marjorie Marie was born at Portland on January 18, 1917. After graduating from Cathedral High School in Portland she stayed at home for one year helping her mother with the younger children. She them accepted a position with the Prudential Insurance Company and retired with 43 years of service. During World War II she was on active duty for four years with the U.S. Navy reaching the rank of Yeoman First Class. Over the years with Prudential she improved her positions up through the ranks from clerk, traveling in a field office consultant position and retiring from a management position. Marjorie played the piano, was active in music groups when a young lady and belonged to women‘s Catholic organizations. She never married, but spent a lot of her time with her family and their activities. Marjorie lived with her parent in South Portland for most of her life and cared for them in their aging years. After retiring she wintered in Lake Worth, Florida, bringing her parents with her until they past away. For many years she suffered with arthritis and passed away May 18, 2001 while hospitalized for Alzheimer's.

        On September 16,1918 Philip Joseph Legere, Jr. was born in Portland. An outstanding athlete he participated in varsity football, basketball, baseball and winter skiing. In his youth he began a long interest in golf, caddying at Prouts Neck Country Club in Scarborough, Maine. After graduating from Cheverus High School in Portland he worked about four years for Cumberland Optometrist in Portland. He then went to work in the maintenance department at the U.S. Customs house in Portland and in a short time obtained certification as a customs inspector. He remained with the U. S. Customs Service and the Department Of Transportation until his retirement. Corinne M. Laberge (6/5/1917) and Philip Legere Jr. were high school sweethearts and married at Holy Cross Church, South Portland in 1941. She was the daughter of Melite Laberge and Amanda Bourque. Amanda was of Francois Bourque and Antoinette Cormier. Corinne’s parents and grandparents were all from New Brunswick, Canada and Acadian descendants. Francois Bourque and Antoinette Cormier being descendants of the same Bourque and Cormier families in the Legere maternal genealogy. Phil and Corinne were parents to Carolyn Jean Legere (6/2/1942-5/3/1999) and Paulette Marie Legere (4/22/1947-6/20/1971).

        For a number of years, Phil was stationed on the U.S./Canadian border between Calais and Fort Kent, Maine. He eventually returned to Portland where he became the U.S. Coast Guard Vessel Documentation Officer for the ports of Searsport, Maine, Portland, Maine and Portsmouth, New Hampshire. During World War II he was in the U.S. Navy on board a destroyed and saw duty in both the Atlantic and Pacific theaters. His ship was stationed in Japan at the time of the surrender. As a young man Phil continued to play baseball and basketball until he was in his late thirties. He was a player/manager of the Calais Chiefs in the Down East Semi-pro Basketball League and had some National Basketball Association players on his team. As he got older and it became more difficult to participate in the heavier physical sports, he played more golf. Becoming one of the top amateur golfers in the state of Maine he continued excellent play throughout his retirement in Florida. He was a past President of the Maine State Golf Association and directed the Southern Maine Women’s Golf Association Tournaments for many years aided by his wife, Corinne. He was a club champion at a few different golf clubs and registered 13 holes-in-one in his lifetime. Very active in the Knight of Columbus, he held all office chairs including the highest-ranking office in Maine, State Deputy. He was also a Fourth Degree member of the Knights of Columbus. After retirement, Phil and Corinne spent many winters in Lake Worth, Florida and eventually resided their full time. Phil, Jr. passed away on May 3, 1996 and Corinne is living in West Palm Beach, Florida. 

        May 18, 1921 was the birth date of Phyllis Ann Legere in Portland. She split her education between Cathedral High School and South Portland High. A son Peter Michael Legere was born to Phyllis on 11/29/39. Shortly after, Phyllis was seriously injured in a hit and run automobile accident and was unconscious for 6 weeks with little hope of any recovery. After coming out of the coma they did not give much hope of her recovering from the injuries. Due to her condition as a result of the accident she was unable to care for Peter. Her mother was not well and unable to add another child to the household at that time. Therefore Peter was placed in foster care. Phyllis over came the injuries and was accepted into the U.S. Army Air Corp during World War II. After the war she returned to South Portland and meet her husband to be, who was stationed on board an U.S. Navy ship in Portland. On October 17, 1946 she married Kenneth B. Triplett (8/1/20-1/12/81) in Bridgeport Connecticut. He was from West Virginia and the son of Elmer P. Triplett and Dorthula Payton. They lived in Bridgeport for a few years and then moved to Warren, Ohio where they both worked in factories manufacturing automobile parts. It was in the middle nineteen fifties that her son Peter went to live with Phyllis and Ken. About 1976 Phyllis and Ken retired to Irving, Texas near her brother Frances. Phyllis and Ken both died of lung cancer, Phyllis on 1/8/81 and Ken four days later on 1/12/81.

        Loraine Cecile Legere was born 6/8/1923 in Portland. Involved in school extra curricular activities, she performed in school plays and was a varsity cheerleader. She enjoyed music and sang on amateur radio shows and also did some professional singing. After graduating from South Portland High School she was employed with Union Mutual Life Insurance Company until she joined the U.S. Navy during World War II. She returned to South Portland upon her discharge from the Navy and on 1/13/45 married a school friend, Alfred W. Bowen, Jr. (7/25/1924-8/11/1953). “Al” was the son of Alfred W. Bowen and Harriet Nadeau of South Portland. Both Loraine and “Al” were very adventurous people and traveled across the country and back by hitch hiking.  “Al” stayed in the Navy for a number of years and when he was released he became a bar tender and a salesman traveling the state of Maine. They had two children, Robert Paul Bowen (1/2/1948-8/10/2001) and Diane Marie Bowen (8/27/1950). Loraine was a stay at home wife raising their children. On August 11, 1953, “Al” was killed in an automobile accident, unable to negotiate a curve and running off the road in thick fog.

        Sherman A. Hardy became the second husband of Loraine and they had two children, Sherman A Hardy, Jr. (12/28/1955) and Janice Ann Hardy (9/1/1957). Robert Paul Bowen and Diane Marie Bowen took the surname of their stepfather Sherman A. Hardy. Sherman worked in the trucking industry in sales and management. In 1971 Loraine and Sherman divorced. Loraine was then twice married to and divorced from Howard Churchill (6/14/1916-1898). She then married Robert H. Ware (3/11/1928). All of Loraine’s children were born in Portland and graduated from South Portland High School. After the children were grown, Loraine became very active in local theater, performing in a number of productions. Robert H. Ware is a draftsman, retired from Associated Grocers of Maine and he and Loraine reside in Freeport, Maine.         

        Thomas Hamanne Legere the second son of Philip and Marie was born in Portland on December 4, 1924. He was a high school athlete and graduated from South Portland high School in 1941. During his early teens he followed his older brother Phil to the golf course at Prouts Neck to caddy, starting an early interest in that sport. During his high school years Tom worked part time on the steam boats of Casco Bay Lines that serviced the inlands of Casco Bay. After graduating from high school he started work at the shipyard in South Portland, but before the year was over he enlisted in the U.S. Navy where he spent the next four years. “Tom” was stationed on board a minesweeper and participated in the Normandy invasion of Europe. While still on active duty he returned to South Portland to marry his high school sweetheart, Bette Jean Work (9/27/1924-11/25/1998). She was born in Aspen, Colorado, the daughter of George Work (-1961) and Gladys Ford (1889-11/26/90). Gladys was from Staten Island, New York the daughter of William Ford and Adeline Batz.

        When “Tom” and Bette were married, Bette was a student nurse at the Maine General Hospital and was not allowed to be married while in her studies. They were secretly married and “Tom” went back to his duty station. Bette completed her schooling and became a registered nurse which she practiced at the Maine Medical Center in Portland until retirement. After his release form the Navy “Tom” returned to South Portland where he worked in various sales jobs. He owned and operated a local sports bar (“The Bridgeway”) for a few years and them went back into sales, traveling the state selling spices to food processors. “Tom” played adult basketball and softball for a number of years and then turned to playing golf as a past time. “Tom” and Bette were parents to six children, all born in Portland, Maine and all graduated from South Portland High School. The children are; Donna Marie (7/12/46), Theresa Jean (4/5/48), Denise Ann (7/15/52), Suzanne (12/3/55), Thomas Michael (8/26/57) and Marie Annette (11/28/60). After retiring “Tom” and Bette moved to Indiantown, Florida where “Tom“ could play golf year round. Bette died in 1998 and “Tom” still resides in Indiantown.

        Edward James Legere born February 8,1928 in Portland is the third son of Philip and Marie. He went to South Portland schools and was an outstanding athlete lettering in three major sports. Ed captained both the basketball and football teams at South Portland High School and was selected to the all state football team. After graduation he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corp. World War II had ended and he was able to receive an early release from the service. He returned to Maine and made application for college. He was excepted at the University of Maine and attended the first semester. He then transferred to Bowdon College where he played both football and basketball. During his primary and secondary education “Edd” had part time employment with the Casco Bay Lines working on the steamboats. He obtained his U.S. Coast Guard 200-ton captain’s license and started a life long interest in the maritime field. After graduating from Bowdon with a business degree he entered the insurance industry, first working as a safety engineer. He was in Minneapolis, Minnesota with the Glenn Falls Insurance Company when he meet and married Elsie B. Calloway (8/10/31) in 1955. Elsie was the daughter of James Augustus Calloway and Hallie M. Cabe from Ashville, North Carolina.          

        “Edd” and Elsie returned to Cape Elizabeth, Maine when “Edd” got a marketing position with the National Fire Insurance Company. He worked for a couple of different insurance companies in sales and marketing and became the President of the Maine Mutual Insurance Group in Presque Isle, Maine until his retirement. “Edd” was an active member of the Lions Club and many insurance related organizations. He played adult basketball until he was well into his sixties. Over the years he maintained an interest in Casco Bay working part time on the steam boats and owning and operating “Eagle Tours”, an excursion boat business. “Edd” is currently a member of the board of directors for the Portland Harbor Museum where both he and Elsie are very active. There have a home in Cape Elizabeth, Maine and spend winters in their Indiantown, Florida home where they play a lot of golf. “Edd” and Elsie are parents to four children, all born in Portland, Maine. The children are; Laurence Edward (4/24/56), Julianne (9/10/57), Paul James (1/21/59) and Elizabeth Allen (9/5/60).

        Francis Robert Legere, son number four of Philip and Marie was born on May 4, 1930 in Portland. Attending South Portland High School Fran was a three-sport ballplayer, excelling in baseball and basketball. Like his brothers he worked part time at Casco Bay Lines. He advance his education at the Maine Maritime Academy in Castine, Maine where he excelled in baseball and basketball. Upon graduation in 1951 he received an U.S. Coast Guard Third Assistant Marine Engineering License and an U.S. Navy Commission with the rank of Ensign. He sailed with the Moore McCormick Steamship Lines under his license for a year and then entered the U.S. Navy for two years and was Executive officer on board a minesweeper. “Fran” was married to Alberta Nadine Seeley (10/31/31) in 1955, the daughter of Charles Seeley and Pearl Lee of Denver, Colorado. After release from the Navy “Fran” joined the U.S. Customs Service and was stationed in Madawaska, Maine. He was able to get an administrative transfer and was sent first to the Galveston Bay area for a few years. He was then assigned to Love International Airport in Dallas, Texas and moved to Irving, Texas. Nadine started jewelry making mail order business and “Fran” was active in the Knights of Columbus. They had six children; Steven Francis (2/24/56), Karen (3/1/56), Susan (5/3/58), Gary Philip (9/17/60), Linda (7/28/62) and Kevin Charles (12/30/63).

        “Fran” and Nadine divorced and he moved to Brownsville, Texas and was later promoted to Chief Customs Inspector on the U.S./ Mexico border. Nadine continued to operate her business and the family remained in Irving and the greater Dallas area. When “Fran” retired in 1991 he moved to Indiantown, Florida in the same retirement community with three of his brothers, “Tom“, “Edd”, and “Jerry“. There he played golf almost daily. “Fran” remarried while living in Indiantown to Myrtle Slay (6/7/41) of Indiantown. Myrtle was the daughter of J. A. Slay and twice widowed when she and “Fran” married. Fran was stricken with Alzheimer's and passed away 11/18/99. Myrtle remains to live in Indiantown with a sir name of Green, a previous husband who she had been with for a number of years.

        Gerard Paul Legere was born in Portland on September 13, 1932, the fifth son of Phil and Marie. He attended Catholic schools, graduating from Cheverus High School. “Jerry” was an all round outstanding athlete in football, basketball and track in high school. He worked summers at Casco Bay Line. At the age of eighteen he became a professional boxer fighting in Portland and Miami, Florida. Realizing the consequences of the sport, he decided to stop fighting with a record of 14 wins and 1 loss. “Jerry” joined the U.S. Marines and saw duty in Korea on the battlefront. After his discharge from the Marines he returned to South Portland and was a Captain of the Casco Bay Lines passenger ferries. He then went to work as a lineman with the New England Telephone Company. While there he took the opportunity to further his education and graduated from the University of Southern Maine with a degree in industrial management. Like his other brothers he also enjoyed playing adult sports and took up golf. He still plays an excellent and competitive round. “Jerry” accepted a management position with Fairchild Semi Conductor Manufacturing Company. He had a successful career in industrial management with major computer chip manufactures which allowed him to extensively travel nationally and internationally.

        On 1/30/60 Gerard married Margaret Flanagan (3/24/36) the daughter of Thomas H. Flanagan and Rose H. Quatrano. Margaret, “Margo”, had a son Thomas E. born 2/2/55 when they married and he was adopted by “Jerry”. They have four additional children; David (12/11/60), Michelle (1/31/62), Kristin (7/3/63) and Monique (8/5/64). All of the children were born in Portland, Maine and graduated from Cape Elizabeth High School. Jerry” and ’Margo have been divorced for a number of years and “Margo” divides her time living in Boston and Cape Elizabeth, Maine. “Jerry” retired to Indiantown, Florida where three of his brothers were living. In 1996 “Jerry” married Jacquelyn Labrecque Parrent who he had dated years before either were first married. “Jackie” was widowed. They now live in Port Saint Lucie, Florida and summer at their camp on Sabbath Day Lake, New Gloucester, Maine where they both enjoy playing a lot of golf. 

        Roger Colin Legere was born in Portland, Maine on October 8, 1935, the ninth child and sixth son of Philip and Marie. He graduated from Cheverus High School and like his brothers, played school sports, excelling in football at high school and college level. Roger followed his older brother working on the steam boats of Casco Bay Lines. He attended the Maine Maritime Academy and graduated with a Marine Engineering Degree, U.S. Coast Guard Third Assistant Engineer’s License and an Officer’s Commission in the U.S. Navy. On 6/22/57 Roger and Beverly Joan Hall (2/20/34) were married at Holy Cross Parish in South Portland. Beverly was the daughter of Everard E. Hall and Wilma C. Frank She had been raised by her parents in the mill town of Westbrook, Maine until her early teens. This town had a large population of “French Catholics” and her father was not fond of her association with them. Therefore the family moved to South Portland, Maine where the exposure to that society would be lessened. Ironically the same prejudices that existed in Acadia and New England regarding the Acadians centuries before were still present. Needless to say his thinking changed and fortunately he was able to overcome his prejudice. He became very supportive of his daughter and son-in-law, becoming very close with the author and his grandchildren.

        Roger was employed as a Third Assistant Marine Engineer with American Trading and Production Company for a year before entering the U.S. Navy. Three years were spent in the Panama Canal Zone attached to the Military Sea Transportation Service as Operations Officer. After release from the Navy as a Lieutenant, he took employment with the Insurance Company of North America as a marine surveyor and transportation loss control specialist. For a few years he did fire technical engineering, insurance safety engineering, auditing and property and casualty insurance marketing with a couple different large insurance companies. He became an owner and corporate officer of Blake Hall and Sprague Insurance Agency in South Portland until retirement. For 25 years he specialized in servicing the agency’s commercial customer’s insurance programs for property, casualty and marine insurance.     

        Roger was very involved in civic activities and other organizations. He was a Director and Past President of the South Portland Chamber of Commerce, a Director of the Regional Chamber of Commerce and chaired the Port Development Committee. As chairman of a number of committees and the state‘s Bridge Replacement Committee, he orchestrated numerous studies and the process to move the project along through many hearings to replace the “Million Dollar” Bridge with the Casco Bay Bridge between Portland and South Portland At the time the bridge was built it was the largest single engineering project ever completed by the state of Maine. Other directorships and presidencies included Cumberland County Independent Insurance Agents Association, Maine Maritime Academy Alumni Association, and a number of youth support organizations and past Grand Knight of Cheverus Council, Knights of Columbus.           

        Beverly and Roger are parents to four children; Daniel Kevin Legere (8/13/60), Donald Colin Legere (4/30/62), Randall Philip Legere (6/7/66) and Renee Lynn Legere (3/28/68). In their retirement Beverly and Roger live in South Portland, Maine and winter in Leesburg, Florida where they enjoy playing tennis and golf, boating and traveling.   

        The ancestry of Beverly has been traced and can be found with the documentation and records of the writer with this script. It has been found that Beverly had six direct ancestors on the “Mayflower” that landed at Plymouth Rock in 1620. They were James Chilton, his wife Susan Furner and their daughter Mary Chilton; Isaac Allerton, his wife Mary Norris and their daughter Mary Allerton. Mary Chilton was the first woman ashore at Plymouth Rock. She married John Winslow the brother of Governor Edward Winslow. Edward Winslow was a passenger on the “Mayflower” with his first wife, Elizabeth Barker. Edward’s second wife was Susanna Fuller, the widow of William White, also passengers on the “Mayflower”. Other relatives, but not direct ancestors, on that ship were Miles Standish and his wife Rose. The Winslow’s are found twice in Beverly’s ancestral line through the Hall and Hawkes lines. Governor Edward Winslow‘s two brothers, John and Kemelm are both direct ancestors and can be found in the family files navigating back through the overview charts.

        Beverly‘s ancestry of the Hall’s has been documented back thirteen generations. On the paternal side of Beverly’s ancestry the Hall’s also appear three additional times going back to John Hall born prior to 1600. He had a son John Hall, Jr. (1617-1693) who fathered 3 sons and 3 daughters. John Hall, III (1645-1697) the grand son of the first known John Hall had six children which included four sons. His son Hate Evil Hall died when a young man, but he had a son Hate Evil, Jr. who had 13 children, 10 sons and 3 daughters fostering 133 grand children. Of the 133 grand children of Hate Evil Hall, Jr., 105 had the sir name of Hall. 

 

GENERATION NINE - GRAND CHILDREN OF PHILIP LEGERE AND MARIE HAMANNE

        Peter Michael Legere (11/29/39) lived in foster homes when he was a child and went to live with his mother Phyllis and her husband Ken in Warren, Ohio when he was a teenager. Peter left home at a young age and became a substance user. He eventually overcame substance abuse with the assistance of the Salvation Army. He became a civilian employee in the Salvation Army and obtained a degree in substance abuse counseling working in that field with the Salvation Army for many years. Peter was in his fifties when he married and has no children. He retired from the Salvation Army in 2001 and resides in Portland, Maine with his wife Juanita.

        Carolyn Jean Legere (6/2/1942-5/3/1999) was born in Portland and graduated from Cathedral High School and the New York Fashion Institute of Technology. She worked in Chicago, Illinois and Lake Worth, Florida. Most of her work was in retailing and residential home sales. Carolyn never married.

        Paulette Marie Legere (4/22/1947-6/20/1971) was born in Portland, Maine. She graduated from Cathedral High School and Boston University with Bachelor of Science Degree and a certification in radiology. Paulette did not marry and died at a very young age.           .

        Robert Paul Bowen Hardy (1/2/1948-8/10/2001), born in Portland, Maine and graduated from South Portland High School. “Bob” attended Southern Maine Technical College and took culinary arts.  About 8 years were spent on active military duty in the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Coast Guard. He married Nancy MacLean of South Portland and they had two daughters, Michelle Renee Hardy (3/3/69) and Susan Hardy (3/2/71). Michelle is married to Anthony Finochetti and has two children, Brittany Catherine Finochetti (10/22/1889) and Anthony John Finochetti (9/1/1993). “Bobby” married three more times, his last wife Sharon Ann Caron. He had no children from these other marriages, but did have two stepchildren, the daughters of Sharon, Erin Codd and Katie Codd. “Bobby” enjoyed music and was an Elvis Pressley impersonator. He performed professionally, including “Gigs” in Las Vegas, Nevada. He had a nation wide tour scheduled, but was not able to undertake because of cancer illness and his untimely death.          

        Diane Marie Bowen Hardy (8/27/1950) attended Cathedral High School and graduated from South Portland High School. She married Ronald Mackenzie, son of John Mackenzie and Mary. Three children of this marriage are; Erin Ann Yeejoo Mackenzie, (5/22/76) (an adopted Korean girl), Elizabeth Marie Mackenzie, (1/19/78) and Tyler John Mackenzie, 3/1/83. Diane and Ronald divorced and she is now married to Raoul Deragon. Diane is an active artist working with pastels and Raoul is a business consultant. They reside in South Portland, Maine. Elizabeth Marie Mackenzie is married to Joseph Gass and has a son Joseph born June 9, 2003.

        Sherman A Hardy, Jr. (12/28/1955) graduated from South Portland High School and attended South Maine Technical College and Andover College. After a tour in the U.S. Navy he married Denise Morse, the daughter of Erlon Morse and Jean. “Chip“, as he is called, and Denise have three children; Joseph Ray Hardy, (6/12/79), Christopher Andrew Hardy, (7/30/85) and Jaymes Tyler Hardy, (12/26/89).“Chip” is a Manager of Captains Newark’s Lobster House in South Portland and Denise is employed at the Maine Medical Center while they live in Standish, Maine. 

        Janice Ann Hardy (9/1/1957) also graduated from South Portland High School, is unmarried and resides in Saco, Maine.

        Donna Marie Legere (7/12/46) went on to graduate from Bridgewater State University in Connecticut after graduating from South Portland High School. Married to Raymond M Bell, III (3/28/43) and they have two Daughters; Annette M. Bell (1/31/74) married to Michael David Spencer (8/9/71), son of Edward M. Spencer and Helen Livingston. Helen is the daughter of David Livingston and Annie. Angela Nichole Bell (9/26/76) is the second daughter to Donna and Raymond. Donna works in the Falmouth, Maine School Department and Raymond has retired from Central Maine Power Company. They live in Falmouth, Maine

.     Theresa Jean Legere (4/5/48) graduated from South Portland High School and married Robert Dee, Jr. of Cape Elizabeth, Maine. They have three children; Jessica Lynn Dee (7/28/78), Robert Joseph Dee (6/5/82) and Christopher Thomas Dee (6/3/84). “Terry” is a stay at home mom in South Portland while “Bob” operates his own welding business and teaches industrial arts, having a degree from University Of Southern Maine. Jessica is a graduate of Saint Joseph College in Standish, Maine. Robert attends University of Southern Maine and Christopher in a student at the Maine Maritime Academy in Castine.         

      Denise Ann Legere (7/15/52) is married to John E Feeney, II. They both graduated from South Portland High School and “Jay” went on to graduate from University Of Bridgeport. They have two children, John E. Feeney, III (8/11/81) and Michael Thomas Feeney (12/10/82). Denise in employed by the Maine Medical Center in Portland and her husband “Jay” is a Captain in the Portland Fire Department. They live in Gray, Maine.

      Suzanne Legere (12/3/55) graduated from South Portland High School and was married to Paul Lavigne. They divorced with no children. She married a second husband Christopher Hawkins and has two children, Kristie Leigh Hawkins (5/21/85) and Nicholas Edward Hawkins (7/2/87). Susan works in the Maine Medical Center and they live in Portland, Maine.           

      Thomas Michael Legere (8/26/57) after graduating from South Portland High School attended Antigonish University in Nova Scotia. He is married to Robin Lang and they have three children, Benjamin Lang Legere (5/22/87), Jeffery Michael Legere (8/20/84) and Jillian Andrea Legere (5/17/94). “Mike” travels the state of Maine selling food products to institutions while Robin is a stay at home mom in South Portland. Ben attended University Of Southern Maine and is in the U.S. Marine Corp.

      Marie Annette Legere (11/28/60) married Peter Maietta of South Portland after they graduated from South Portland High School. They had a daughter Katelyn Elizabeth Maietta (9/29/85). In a second marriage to David Bridges she has a daughter Victoria Wilder Bridges (6/12/92). Marie and her husband are with UNUM Provident Insurance Company in Portland and reside in Falmouth, Maine.  

      Laurence Edward Legere (4/24/56) was married to Cindy Daigle and they are now divorced. Three girls were born of that marriage; Alexandra Burr Legere (5/8/88), Cassandra Rae Legere (9/26/90) and Adrienne Rose Legere (9/27/91). A Cape Elizabeth High School graduate, Larry attended University of Jacksonville and Southern Maine Technical College in South Portland. He holds U.S. Coast Guard deck officer’s license and limited captain’s license. He is employed by Casco Bay Lines in Portland, Maine as operations manager and lives in Cape Elizabeth, Maine. His girls attend South Portland Schools.

      Julianne Legere (9/10/57) graduated from Cape Elizabeth High Schools and attended Nason College in Sanford, Maine. She was married to Richard Thurlow, Jr. and had two sons, Eric Paul Thurlow (3/22/76) and Adam Lawrence Thurlow (12/1278). Julie had a second marriage to Thomas Godin and is now married to William Putnam, a boyhood friend. William is an Industrial Manager with Yale Yardage Company and Julie is a food products broker. They now live in Cumberland, Maine 

      Paul James Legere (1/21/59) was married and is now divorced with no children. After graduating from Presque Isle High School, he attended Southern Maine Technical College, studied marine sciences and has a U.S. Coast Guard Limited Captain’s License. He currently co-habitats with Pam Hersey on Peaks Island, Portland, Maine and is an independent construction contractor.  

      Elizabeth Allen Legere (9/5/60) completed her high schooling in Presque Isle, attended Vermont College, University of Southern Maine and graduated from the University of Colorado with a degree in journalism. She is married to Allan Boeve a graduate of Arizona State. They reside in Bolder, Colorado with their two children, Lewis Anders Boeve (9/23/86) and Jane Rebecca Boeve (10/28/88). Allen managers a franchise Best Western Motel, a family business.

      Steven Francis Legere (2/24/56), born in Fort Kent, Maine was first married to Rebecca Riggs on 12/15/74 in Irving, Texas and they were parents to Steven Philip Legere (8/11/75). In a second marriage to Sharon Elaine Ready on 9/24/76, two children were born; Amy Michelle Legere (6/5/77) and Brandon Edward Legere (1/ /79). Steven married again on 7/2/82 to Kelsey Diane Runge who has two sons from a previous marriage, Jeff Bryant Runge (1970) and Christopher Paul Runge (1972). Steven lives in Irving, Texas.

      Karen Legere (3/1/57), born in Fort Kent, Maine married Edwin Byron Cooper on 10/1/76 in Irving, Texas and has three children; Paul Byron Cooper (9/23/81), Kathryn Cooper (3/28/85) and Daniel George Cooper (1/15/92). Karen teachers dance and a is choreographer with her own dance studio. Her husband is a supervisor with DHL Airways in Dallas.

      Susan Legere (5/3/58), born in Texas City, Texas is married to Frank Salvato and has two children; Anthony Frank Salvato (4/14/93) and Jeremy Jasper Salvato (9/29/96). Frank is a retail merchant with two stores called Little Taste of Texas I and II and owns Yippi Yi Ya Distributors, Texas souvenirs. Susan is a stay at home mom.

      Gary Philip Legere (9/17/60), born in Houston, Texas and his wife Sandra from the country of Nicaragua have two sons; Gary James Legere (1/10/91) and Matthew Philip Legere (12/19/93).Gary Philip is Operations Manager for U.S. Deliveries in Dallas, Texas, while Sandra tends to the household matters.

      Linda Legere (7/28/62), born in Dallas, Texas is married to Thomas Hendler and has two children; Michael Thomas Hendler (11/25/89) and Holly Marie Hendler (11/30/92). Thomas is a funeral director/manager of La Grone Funeral Chapel in Roswell, New Mexico.

      Kevin Charles Legere (12/30/63) was born in Dallas, Texas. Living in Irving Texas, he is a certified bike mechanic, is not married and spends his spare time sailing and mountain biking.                  

      Thomas E. Legere (2/2/55), born in Portland attended Cape Elizabeth Schools and was a state schoolboy golf champion. He attended Amherst University and obtained a Bachelor of Science Degree from Saint Mary’s College in California. He currently holds Masters Business Administration Degree in Technology Management from University of Colorado and is working toward a Masters Degree in Engineering Manufacturing Systems. Tom and Vanessa Lynn Goff married on 7/28/83 in Cape Elizabeth, Maine. They have two children, Jordan Thomas Legere (3/27/86) a student at Texas Tech University and Alisha Rose Legere (6/19/90). Tom and his family now live in Phoenix, Arizona. Tom is Vice President of Operations for Validity Sensors, Inc.                

      David Legere (12/11/60), born in Portland, graduated from Cape Elizabeth High School, went on to University of Southern Maine and obtained a Bachelors of Science Degree in Industrial Management and holds a Master of Science Degree in Management of Technology from the University of Texas, San Antonio. He was first married to Susie Mathews. They had a daughter Renee Michelle Legere (4/28/90). Renee lives with her mother in Florida. David was in a second marriage to Lori Mortensen, the daughter of William Mortensen and Margaret MacDonald. William Mortensen is the son of Svend Mortensen and Mable Chapman. Lori and David have a son, Steven H. Legere (7/24/95). David and Lori divorced and Lori resides in Falmouth, Maine with Steven. David is in industrial and transportation management for a computer manufacturer, residing in Austin, Texas.          

      Michelle (1/31/62), also born in Portland, became a state swimming champion at Cape Elizabeth School and went on to the University of  Maine School of Engineering. Before she completed her education, Michelle was inflicted with leukemia and has suffered with advanced staged for many years. She is unmarried and resides with her mother in Cape Elizabeth, Maine.

      Kristin (7/3/63), born in Portland became a state swimming champion while at Cape Elizabeth School and went on to Slippery Rock College in Pennsylvania where she was selected to the Little All America College Swim Team in two events, Kristin is married to Mark Moreau and they have a daughter, Kira Marie Moreau (7/21/97) and son Mathew Louie Moreau (7/13/2001). They live in Lakeville, Massachusetts where Kristin with a degree in Physical Education is teaching and coaching and Mark is a banker.

      Monique (8/5/64), born in Portland attended Cape Elizabeth Schools and was also a state high school swimming champion. Teikyo Post University, Waterbury Connecticut was the school of her advanced education where she got a Bachelor of Science Degree in Industrial Management. She now holds a Masters Degree in education from the University of Bridgeport, Connecticut and is a teacher/coach at City Hall Middle School in Naugatuck, Connecticut. On 9/23/95 she married Michael Gerard Crane and they have twin children born in Waterbury Connecticut on May 19, 2002, Nathaniel Gerard Crane and Chelsea Rose Crane. Michael is a branch manager for the Torrington Supply Company in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

      Daniel Kevin Legere (8/13/60) was born in Balboa, Panama Canal Zone where his parents were at the time. While at South Portland High School, “Dan” was a member of many state champion track and cross-country teams. He went on to Maine Maritime Academy and captained the cross-country team for three years. After graduating with a Marine Engineering Degree and U.S. Coast Guard Third Assistances Engineers License “Dan” went to sea and sailed for a number of years acquiring additional limited deck and engineering U.S. Coast Guard licenses. “Dan” is married to Anne O’Brien (12/3/59), living in Portland with Anne and her son, Bryan Randall (9/6/87), from a previous marriage. He is employed in technical sales of heating, ventilation and air conditioning. Dan and Anne spend their leisure time on the ski slopes during the winter and Dan is still participates in distance running. Anne has a Bachelors of Science Degree in nursing from Saint Joseph’s College in Standish, Maine and is employed in the insurance industry, specializing in industrial rehabilitation.

      Donald Colin Legere (4/30/62) was born in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. After holding many state track and cross-country titles while at South Portland High School, “Don” went to the University of Rhode Island with athletic scholarships where he ran track and cross-country, captaining for two years. He graduated with a Bachelors Degree in business and insurance and went to work with a major insurance company, marketing property and casualty insurance. On 10/12/85 “Don” married Mary Elizabeth Raymond (11/11/60) the daughter of Hebert Alfred Raymond and Mary Kathryn Fuber of Haverhill, Massachusetts. “Don” and Mary have three children; Jennifer Jane Legere (2/12/88), Andrew Alfred Legere (8/24/89) and Michael Colin                                                            Legere (12/10/92). “Don” returned to South Portland and with a partner, bought Blake Hall and Sprague Insurance Agency from his father and uncle, “Reg” Hall, the brother of Beverly. He has since sold the insurance agency and in now in industrial sale. Don has been very involved in community affairs. He was elected a member of the South Portland School Board, completed two terms as President of the South Portland Chamber of Commerce and was on the Board of Directors of The Cumberland County Civic Center. He is divorced and lives in South Portland. Still active in distant running, “Don” remains to be rated with the top male runners of Maine.  

      Randall Philip Legere (6/7/66) was born in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. He attended schools in South Portland and also ran track. “Randy” attended the University of Southern Maine. He was in residential development and building and a residential real estate agent in greater Portland. In addition to real estate, “Randy” an entrepreneur owned “Bungee Jump U.S.A.” and   a marketing company, developing Internet marketing production and sales. He had a first marriage to Kimberly Bernier (9/5/67), the daughter of Donald Bernier and Nancy Lagassee. They had a daughter Victoria Marie Legere (6/7/93). A second marriage was to Connie Minervino (2/22/66), the daughter of Henry Minervino and Patricia Murphy. In this marriage there were two children; Samuel Philip Legere (5/3/96) and Carli Mae Legere (5/6/97). “Randy” is again divorced and lives in Greater Portland while the children reside with their mothers.

      Renee Lynn Legere (3/28/68) was born at Maine Medical Center, Portland, Maine. Renee played field hockey at South Portland High School and after graduating attended Burdette College in Boston. There, she took secretarial sciences courses and worked in Boston for a few years for a major law firm and a large insurance broker. On August 28, 1993 Renee married Mark Salafia (3/29/68) the son of Frank Salafia and Maryann Berube. Living in South Portland, they have two children; Kristina Renee Salafia (5/5/96) and Anthony Joseph Salafia (4/3/99). Mark works for Bath Iron Works in the construction of war ships and Renee is employed in the executive offices of Hannaford Brothers Incorporated, a large retail grocery chain.

                                                                                    

                                                              

APPENDIX

 

     In doing the research for this document I came cross the following line of genealogy and thought it might reflect a little humor.

   

JACK SCHITT

        

        Jack is the only son of Awe Schitt and O. Schitt. Awe Schitt was the fertilizer magnate who married O.Schitt the owner of  Knee Deep Schitt Inc.

        Jack  married  Noe Schitt. They were deeply religious and produced six children ; Holie Schitt, Fulla Schitt, Giva Schitt, Bull Schitt and the twins, Deep and  Dip Schitt. After being married for 15 years, Jack and Noe got a divorce.

        Noe later remarried a  Mr. Sherlock and she became known as, Noe Schitt Sherlock.

        Deep Schitt married Loda Schitt and they produced a cowardly son, Chicken Schitt.

        Fulla Schitt and Giva Schitt were inseparable during their childhood and they married the Happens brothers in a double wedding ceremony. The Schitt Happens children were Dawg, Bird and Horse.

       Bull Schitt was the last of Jack Schitt’s kids to leave home. He later returned to his home town with his new bride, Pisa Schitt..   

                      

                Genealogy Line:

                       Awe Schitt - wife - O. Schitt                            

                                     Child - Jack  Schitt - wife -  Noe Schitt

                                                          Children -  Holie     

                                                                           Fulla - husband - Mr. Happins                                                                                                         Giva - husband - Mr. Happins

                                                                                  Children; -                                                                                                  Dawg                                                                                                                                                                                                 Bird          

                                                                                                      Horse

                                                                           Bull  - wife - Pisa Schitt           

                                                                           Deep - wife - Loda                             

                                                                               Child - Chicken

                                                                            Dip  

                                    2nd marriage of Noe Schitt - husband - Mr. Sherlock     

 

                                                 

APPENDIX B (Attached)

 

 

Acadian Flag

Acadian Map From University Of Maine

The Stump Acadian Map

Family Shield One

Family Shield Two

 

11/08/05