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Let us proceed, with caution, into
a small segment of French-Canadian history as it was in the early years of New
France, or as our ancestors saw and lived it. However, a little warning
pertaining to the genealogists that want to go back to the time of William the
conqueror; the official parish records that exist do not go as far as that. For
example, England begins in 1538, Austria 1542, France 1334 (scattered), United
States (St-Augustine) 1594. The first marriage in Canada, 1618, was
Joseph-Marie-Etienne Jonquest, of Normandy, married Anne Hebert, daughter of
Louis Hebert, the first settler in Canada, and of Marie Rollet, in a little
chapel erected in 1615 and was situated at what is known today as
Petit-Champlain Street.
You should be proud of your
ancestors because the life they led showed faith and courage, and it was a
rugged one. Also, let’s remember that in those early years in Canada, our
forefathers had only their wives and their rifles. Electricity, trains, cars,
gas, etc, simply did not exist. Their only mode of travel was with the little
canoe, as everyone lived along the river.
 Mother was the one who pulled the
plow as dad was busy pushing it with one hand while holding his rifle in the
other. The treacherous Indians and packs of wolves were everywhere. Their days
were long; in the evenings while mother was dipping little strings in the wax to
make candles for the next day, and also spinning and weaving; dad was busy
making his furniture, cutting wood for the next day to keep the fireplaces
going; hunting the animals for their precious meats and skins badly needed to
cover the windows and floors as a safeguard against the terrible winters that
they had in the New World. Large families were a necessity as the children could
help in the many tasks. Neighbors were almost nonexistent. |
