Part I of this series ( "Generations": Volume 9, Issue 1 - Feb 2011 ) discussed the Catholic churches in Acadia before 1759, where they were located, what records from these churches have survived to this day and where these records are located. Part II of the series ( "Generations": Volume 9, Issue 2 - Aug 2011 ) identified key Acadian religious records in the United States from the post-deportation period (1755-1800). This included not only Acadian religious records in the eastern seaboard states of the U.S., but also Alabama, Louisiana and Michigan where many Acadians eventually resettled.
With the deportation and subsequent dispersion of the Acadians along the Atlantic seaboard of the North America as well as France and England from 1755 through 1759, finding primary source information about individual Acadians often is difficult. The Acadians were quite mobile during this period - moving from town to town and occasionally between states in North America and provinces in Europe.
With the end of the French and Indian War and the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1763, the Acadians once again underwent a major movement to French and former French regions of North America - Québec, Louisiana and Saint-Domingue (Haiti). One group of Acadians moved from England to France and then Louisiana during this period while other Acadians returned to their motherland - now English Nova Scotia.
As in the pre-deportation period, original church records are one of the best primary sources since they almost always were recorded immediately following the event by the priest or minister and often witnesses to the event signed the document and provided family information as parent and grandparent names, location of their residence, etc.
The Guédry family during the post-deportation period was no different than other Acadian families. They were deported to many locations in North America and Europe. After 1763 they resettled in Québec and Louisiana and for a brief period in Saint-Domingue (Haiti). One Guédry remained hidden in Nova Scotia throughout the deportation period and then resettled in English Nova Scotia after 1763.
The towns and villages where the Acadians were deported along the Atlantic seaboard and in England often were not Catholic and not French; therefore, few Acadians participated actively in local church services and received the sacraments.
Records of Acadian baptisms, marriages and funerals are almost non-existent in many areas during this period. France, however, was Catholic and, therefore, those Acadians deported to France or moving from England to France in 1763 were fortunate to be able to practice their Catholic faith while in exile. Records of Acadian baptisms, marriages and deaths in France during the post-deportation period do exist.
This listing of post-deportation Acadian church records for the Québec, Ontario and British Columbia provinces of Canada is not exhaustive, but will provide some of the key locations for finding primary source information on the Acadians during this critical post-deportation period.
QUÉBEC
The Waves of Acadian Emigrants Acadians fled to Québec both before the deportations began in 1755, during the period of deportations from 1755 to 1762 and after the Treaty of Paris in 1763.
As early as 1749 some Acadians sought refuge in Québec to escape the wrath of the English. With the founding of Halifax in 1749 and the emigration of non-French Europeans to Acadia in the ensuing years, some Acadians decided to abandon their lands and seek refuge in Québec. Small numbers made the overland journey or sailed up the Saint Lawrence between 1749 and 1755. This small influx of Acadians to Québec continued until the deportations began in late 1755.
The deportations of 1755 to 1762 caused fear and havoc among the Acadians forcing many to flee to the woods of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick to escape from the English. Several hundred of these Acadians braved the bitter cold and treacherous paths and streams to walk and paddle the almost 400 miles to Québec -many dying along the way. Other Acadians who were deported to the English colonies along the eastern seaboard of North America escaped and walked or sailed in crude boats to Québec.
With the advent of the deportations from the Chignecto peninsula in late 1755, Commander Boishébert and Father LeGuerne began urging the Acadians to escape to Île Saint-Jean (Prince Edward Island) or take refuge upstream on the Miramichi River or Rivière Saint-Jean in New Brunswick. About 2000 of these Acadians from Île Saint-Jean and New Brunswick eventually reached Québec by land and water routes -many dying on the journey. Some of these Acadians escaped capture by the English; others escaped from English forts or jumped into the sea while they and their brethren were being jam-packed into the old cargo ships. Many of the early Acadian refugees to Québec during 1756 to 1758 settled at Île d'Orleans, Bellechasse, Beauce, Lotbinière and other small communities on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River.
A number of Acadians deported to the English colonies of North America escaped from the colonies before the fall of Québec in 1759. They walked overland or sailed via the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to Québec. Here they joined their brethren who had avoided the deportations.
Sadly, with the French and Indian War encompassing the Québec area, the condition of the Acadians improved but slightly with the English causing havoc among the Acadian communities. A smallpox outbreak in 1757-1758 killed many newly- arriving Acadians. Those that survived faced severe famine.
Québec City fell to the English in late 1759 bringing new fears to the Acadians living near it. From 1760 to 1762 many Acadians near Québec City moved south to the Trois-Rivières area, which was less ravaged than Québec. Communities near Trois-Rivières, where Acadians settled, included Louiseville (Riviere-du-Loup), Becquets, Gentilly, Bécancour and Lotbinière.
Québec province parishes welcoming these pre-1763 Acadians included Notre-Dame-de-Québec, Trois-Rivières, Bécancour, Nicolet, Lotbinière, Deschaillons, Le Becquèts, Laprairie, Montréal, Assomption Beaumont, Saint-Valier, Saint-Michel, Saint-Charles, Saint-Augustin, Pointe-aux-Trembles (Neuville), Jacques-Cartier (Donnacona), Cap-Santé, Deschambault, Batiscan, Champlain, Yamachiche and the five parishes of Île d'Orleans (Sainte-Famille, Saint-François, Saint-Jean, Saint-Laurent and Saint-Pierre).
Some Acadians who initially escaped the English deportations fled north to the Gaspé peninsula just north of New Brunswick. Unfortunately, until the Treaty of Paris in 1763 the English hunted down these Acadians mercilessly and imprisoned those they caught at English forts in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. The Gaspé Acadians lived in fear of capture throughout the years 1756 -1763. The woods of Bonaventure and Tracadièche (Carleton) hid a number of Acadians while others fled to Côte Nord and the Îles de la Madeleine.
With the signing of the Treaty of Paris in February 1763 the French and Indian War in North America ended; however, the Acadians were not mentioned in the Treaty. Their condition was in limbo. After petitioning the English colonial authorities several times, by 1765 the Acadians had received permission to leave the colonies. Most wanted to relocate to a French territory - either Saint-Domingue, Québec or Louisiana. (The Treaty of Fontainebleau had transferred Louisiana from France to Spain in November 1762, but this was kept secret until 1763.) Some Acadians desired to return to their native Nova Scotia hoping to return to their old farmlands.
Beginning in 1763 several hundred Acadians deported to Connecticut and Philadelphia were able to leave their exile and traveled to Québec -settling near Trois-Rivières and Montréal in the towns of Assomption, Laprairie, Bécancour and Yamachiche. A number of Acadians escaped from Massachusetts at this time and joined them. In 1766 and 1767 with the approval of the Governors of Massachusetts and Québec, several hundred Acadians came by ship and foot from the Bay Colony to Québec. Many of these settled to the northeast of Montréal at Assomption and the nearby new communities of St-Jacques-de-l'Achigan, St-Alexis, Saint-Liguori and Ste-Marie-Salomé.
The exodus from the English colonies to Québec continued through 1770 with Acadians settling along the Saint Lawrence River north from Montréal to the Trois-Rivières area. These Acadian immigrants began a new life in Québec and today there are approximately one million Acadians in Québec.
The Québec Church Records Almost every community and village within Québec had at least one church for its residents. Today most of these churches or their diocesan archives still maintain the original ecclesiastical records from the 1600's through the present. The largest religious group within Québec throughout this period has been the Roman Catholic Church. The Catholic Church also kept the most accurate and comprehensive baptismal, marriage and burial records. While a researcher could consult the older original records at the individual churches or diocesan archives, this would require significant time to either visit or write each church or diocesan archive having records of interest. There is an alternative research method that is less expensive and time-consuming. Québec had a unique document preservation procedure that greatly facilitates the work of the genealogist. Until 1994 Québec church registers served as both the ecclesiastical and the civil vital records of the province. For all religious denominations a duplicate copy of each church record was sent annually to the appropriate civil courthouse to serve as the government vital record. Furthermore, until 1926 all births and deaths had to be registered at the church while marriages had to occur within a church until 1969. After these dates registration of the pertinent records could occur in the civil courthouse alone if desired. Having this duplicate set of records in the civil courthouses has ensured that the vast majority of Québec's vital records survive to the present. Today the civil copies of records that are more than 100 years old are preserved in the nine regional offices of the Archives Nationales du Québec (ANQ)
Both the Drouin Institute and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Mormon Church) have microfilmed the Québec vital records and have made these images available to the general public.
During the 1940's researchers from the Drouin Institute filmed the entire set of records in the various civil courthouses. Limited filming of records continued into the mid-1960's. The Drouin microfilm collection contains approximately sixty-one million records on 2366 microfilm reels. To obtain these records, researchers microfilmed the vital records of more than three thousand parishes in Québec, Ontario, Acadia, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Maine, New York and Michigan. The records span the timeframe from 1621 to 1967 - almost 350 years of French Canadian history.
Researchers today can access images of the original Québec vital records microfilmed by the Drouin Institute on the fee-based websites Ancestry.com (United States) and Ancestry.ca (Canada). [See the Winter 2010 issue of "Generations" (Vol. 8 Issue 1) for a discussion of the Drouin records.]
The Family History Library of the Mormon Church has microfilm copies of all Québec Catholic registers from 1621 to 1877 and most civil copies of the registers from 1878 to 1899. One can access these microfilms at many archives and libraries within Canada and the United States as well as Mormon Family History Research Centers in most towns and cities. The microfilm images are also available on the free FamilySearch.org website.
The Drouin records are indexed and searchable while the FamilySearch.org records require browsing through the images of each individual church for a specified span of years.
The Guédry and Petitpas in Québec Two descendants of Pierre Guédry dit Labine and Marguerite Brasseau settled in different areas of Québec. They were their son Jean Baptiste Augustin Guédry dit Labine who settled near Montréal and their great grandson Hilaire Augustin Guédry.
Jean Baptiste Augustin Guédry dit Labine, born in 1725 in Acadia, was the son of Pierre Guédry dit Labine and Marguerite Brasseau. About 1747 he married Claire Hélène Benoît with whom he had two children Anne Marie and Mathurin. In October 1755 Jean Baptiste, his wife Claire Hélène and their two children were deported from Pisiquid, Acadia to Boston, Massachusetts. His wife died either during the voyage or shortly after reaching Boston. Very soon after reaching Boston, Jean Baptiste Guédry married a second time to Marie-Marguerite Picot by whom he had 11 children -six in the Boston area and five in Québec.
Jean-Baptiste Guédry and Marie-Marguerite Picot spent the years 1755-1766 in exile in Boston, MA and the nearby towns of Wilmington and Woburn. During this time Jean-Baptiste sent several petitions to the Massachusetts Legislature requesting improved living conditions for his growing family. With the signing of the Treaty of Paris in February 1763 ending the French and Indian War, the Acadians hoped their exile was at its end. Unfortunately Jean-Baptiste and his family had to wait three and a half additional years for their freedom. In mid-1766 Jean-Baptiste and his family sailed to Québec -arriving on 8 September 1766. Their contingent of about 80 Acadians eventually settled at L'Assomption northwest of Montréal on 16 October 1766. Here they spent the winter in a warehouse near the church.
With the arrival of spring and warmer weather Jean-Baptiste Guédry resettled in the nearby village of St-Alexis on the Ruisseau St-Georges -northeast of L'Assomption. In April 1767 Jean-Baptiste purchased land near St-Alexis -the first Acadian to do so. By 1781 he had fully paid for the land. He and Marie-Marguerite raised their growing family on this farm. By the late 1700's several of his sons and grandchildren began using the surnames Guildry dit Labine, Guildry and Labine rather than Guédry. The name Labine derived from the 'it'name of their ancestor Pierre Guédry dit Labine. Today most of the Guédry family of western Québec are known as either Guildry or Labine with Labine being the dominant name.
The early records of the Guildry and Labine families are concentrated in the Lanaudière Region -principally near St-Jacques-de-l'Achigan and St-Alexis. Slowly they moved outward from this area to most southern Québec regions and today we find the Guildry and Labine surnames throughout southern Québec. Few still live near St-Jacques-de-l'Achigan and St-Alexis.
The youngest son of Pierre Guédry dit Labine and Marguerite Brasseau also was named Augustin Guédry. He escaped being deported and stayed in Nova Scotia during the period of deportation -probably hiding in the woods for this long decade of terror. In the mid-1760's he came out of hiding and settled on Hobb's Hill near Gilbert's Cove along St. Mary's Bay in Digby County. In 1767 he married Marie-Françoise Jeanson. In 1787 Augustin, Marie-Françoise and their children loaded their possessions in a small boat and sailed southwest to Bear Cove -just below Meteghan. Here they received a grant of land and soon after founded the town of Chéticamp - later renamed St-Alphonse. They raised their family of eight boys and five girls along St. Mary's Bay. One of their sons Romain Guédry married Marie Comeau. Among their six children was a son Hilaire Augustin Guédry. Hilaire left the family home and traveled north through New Brunswick to the Gaspé area -settling near Carleton. Here he married Cécile Bourg and they raised a family. By the early 1900s most of the descendants of Hilaire and Cécile migrated south across the New Brunswick border and are found in Campbellton, Dalhousie, Bathurst, Keswick and Fredericton.
The majority of the Petitpas family in Québec settled on the Iles-de-la-Madeleine (Magdalen Islands) at L'Etang-du-Nord, Havre-Aubert and Havre-aux-Maisons. Other Petitpas resided at the Cote-Nord region in northwestern Québec in the communities of Sept-Îles, Havre-St-Pierre, Clarke City, Shelter Bay and Natashquan.
Ecclesiastical records of the Guédry (i.e, Guildry, Labine, Guidry, etc.) and Petitpas families in Québec from the late 1700' to the present exist at these communities and churches. Non-Catholic churches are indicated by italics.
Lanaudière Region
Montcalm Regional County Municipality
St-Jacques-de-l'Achigan
St-Jacques-de-l'Achigan Catholic Church
St-Alexis
St-Alexis Catholic Church
St-Esprit
St-Esprit Catholic Church
St-Roch-de-l'Achigan
St-Roch-de-l'Achigan Catholic Church
Ste-Marie-Salomé
Ste-Marie-Salomé Catholic Church
St-Benoît
St-Benoît Catholic Church
Ste-Julienne
Ste-Julienne-de-Montcalm Catholic Church
St-Liguori
St-Liguori Catholic Church
Joliette Regional County Municipality
Joliette
St-Charles-Borroméo Catholic Cathedral
St-Pierre Catholic Church
St-Paul
St-Paul Catholic Church
Ste-Mélanie
Ste-Mélanie-d'Ailleboust Catholic Church
St-Ambroise-de-Kildare
St-Ambroise-de-Kildare Catholic Church
L'Assomption Regional County Municipality
L'Assomption
L'Assomption Catholic Church
Repentigny
La Purification-de-la-Bienheureuse-Vierge-Marie Catholic Church
Notre-Dame-de-Bonsecours-de-la-Petite-Nation Catholic Church
Papineauville
Ste-Angelique Catholic Church
Gatineau Territory Equivalent
Pointe-Gatineau
St-Francis-de-Sales Catholic Church
Aylmer
St-Paul Catholic Church
Hull
Notre-Dame-de-Grâce Catholic Church
La Vallée-de-la-Gatineau Regional County Municipality
Bouchette
St-Gabriel Catholic Church
Montérégie Region
Le Haut-Richelieu Regional County Municipality
St-Jean-sur-Richelieu
St-Jean-l'Évangéliste Catholic Church
Notre-Dame-Auxiliatrice Catholic Church
St-Paul-de-l'Île-aux-Noix
St-Paul-de-l'Île-aux-Noix Catholic Church
L'Acadie
Ste-Marguerite-de-Blairfindie Catholic Church
Le Haut-Saint-Laurent Regional County Municipality
St-Chrysostôme
St-Chrysostome Catholic Church
St-Antoine-Abbé
St-Antoine-Abbé (Catholic)
St-Anicet
St-Anicet Catholic Church
Howick
Très-St-Sacrement Catholic Church
Ormstown
St-Malachie Catholic Church
Beauharnois-Salaberry Regional County Municipality
St-Urbain-Premier
St-Urbain Catholic Church
St-Louis-de-Gonzague
St-Louis-de-Gonzague Catholic Church
Valleyfield
Ste-Cécile Catholic Church
Ste-Martine
Ste-Martine Catholic Church
Beauharnois
St-Clément Catholic Church
Les Jardin-de-Napierville Regional County Municipality
Ste-Clotilde-de-Châteauguay
Ste-Clotilde Catholic Church
St-Jacques-le-Mineur
St-Jacques-le-Mineur Catholic Church
Napierville
St-Cyprien Catholic Church
St-Michel-Archange Catholic Church
Rouville Regional County Municipality
Marieville
St-Nom-de-Marie Catholic Church
Ste-Marie-de-Monnoir Catholic Church
St-Césaire
St-Césaire Catholic Church
Ste-Angèle-de-Monnoir
Ste-Angèle-de-Monnoir Catholic Church
Ange-Gardien
L'Ange-Gardien Catholic Church
Acton Regional County Municipality
Roxton Falls
St-Jean-Baptiste Catholic Church
Upton
St-Éphrem-d'Upton Catholic Church
St-Nazaire-d'Acton
St-Nazaire-d'Acton Catholic Church
Pierre-de-Saurel Regional County Municipality
Sorel
St-Pierre Catholic Church
St-Joseph-de-Sorel
St-Joseph-de-Sorel Catholic Church
Les Maskoutains Regional County Municipality
Ste-Rosalie
Ste-Rosalie Catholic Church
St-Jude
St-Jude Catholic Church
St-Pie
St-Pie Catholic Church
St-Hyacinthe
Notre-Dame-de-Rosaire Catholic Church
St-Hyacinthe Catholic Cathedral
Ste-Hélène-de-Bagot
Ste-Hélène-de-Bagot Catholic Church
Ste-Madeleine
Ste-Madeleine Catholic Church
St-Liboire
St-Liboire Catholic Church
Vaudreuil-Soulanges Regional County Municipality
St-Polycarpe
St-Polycarpe Catholic Church
Les Cèdres
St-Joseph-de-Soulanges Catholic Church
Vaudreuil
St-Michel Catholic Church
Coteau-du-Lac
St-Ignace Catholic Church
Rigaud
Ste-Madeleine Catholic Church
Île-Perrot
Ste-Jeanne-de-Chantal-de-Île-Perrot Catholic Church
St-Lazare-de-Vaudreuil
St-Lazare-de-Vaudreuil Catholic Church
Roussillon Regional County Municipality
Châteauguay
St-Joachim Catholic Church
La Prairie
Notre-Dame-de-LaPrairie-de-la-Madeleine Catholic Church
Ste-Philomène (Ville Mercier)
Ste-Philomène Catholic Church
Longueuil Regional County Municipality
Boucherville
Notre-Dame Catholic Church
La-Vallée-du-Richelieu Regional County Municipality
St-Marc-sur-Richelieu
St-Marc-sur-Richelieu Catholic Church
St-Antoine-sur-Richelieu
St-Antoine-sur-Richelieu Catholic Church
St-Charles-sur-Richelieu
St-Charles-sur-Richelieu Catholic Church
St-Denis-sur-Richelieu
St-Denis-sur-Richelieu Catholic Church
Beloeil
St-Mathieu-de-Beloeil Catholic Church
Chambly
St-Joseph-de-Chambly Catholic Church
Marguerite-d'Youville Regional County Municipality
Contrecoeur
Ste-Trinité Catholic Church
Brome-Missisquoi Regional County Municipality
Notre-Dame-de-Stanbridge
Notre-Dame-de-Stanbridge Catholic Church
Sutton
St-André-de-Sutton Catholic Church
Adamsville
St-Vincent Ferrie Catholic Church
Brome
Methodist Church
La Haute-Yamaska Regional County Municipality
Granby
Ste-Famille Catholic Church
Chaudière-Appalaches Region
Bellechasse Regional County Municipality
Beaumont
St-Etienne Catholic Church
St-Charles-de-Bellechasse
St-Charles-de-Bellechasse Catholic Church
St-Gervais
St-Gervais Catholic Church
Ste-Claire
Ste-Claire Catholic Church
St-Michel-de-Bellechasse
St-Michel-de-Bellechasse Catholic Church
St-Henri-de-Lauzon
St-Henri-de-Lauzon Catholic Church
St-Magliore
St-Magliore Catholic Church
St-Damien-de-Buckland
St-Damien-de-Buckland Catholic Church
St-Anselme
St-Anselme Catholic Church
Robert-Cliche Regional County Municipality
St-Joseph-de Beauce
St-Joseph-de-Beauce Catholic Church
L'Islet Regional County Municipality
St-Roch-des-Aulnaies
St-Roch-des-Aulnaies Catholic Church
St-Jean-Port-Joli
St-Jean-Port-Joli Catholic Church
St-Pamphile
St-Pamphile Catholic Church
La Nouvelle-Beauce Regional County Municipality
Ste-Marie
Ste-Marie Catholic Church
St-Lambert-de-Lauzon
St-Lambert-de-Lauzon Catholic Church
St-Elzéar-de-Linière
St-Elzéar-de-Linière Catholic Church
St-Bernard
St-Bernard Catholic Church
Ste-Marguerite
Ste-Marguerite Catholic Church
Montmagny Regional County Municipality
Montmagny
St-Thomas Catholic Church
St-Pierre-de-la-Rivière-du-Sud
St-Pierre-de-la-Rivière-du-Sud Catholic Church
Lotbinière Regional County Municipality
Lotbinière
St-Louis-de-Lotbinière Catholic Church
St-Narcisse-de-Beaurivage
St-Narcisse-de-Beaurivage Catholic Church
Lévis Territory Equivalent
Lévis (Lauzon)
St-Joseph-de-la-Pointe-Lévy Catholic Church
Notre-Dame-de-la-Victoire-de-Lévis Catholic Church
St-Romuald d'Etchemin
St-Romuald d'Etchemin Catholic Church
Les Appalaches Regional County Municipality
Thetford Mines
St-Alphonse Catholic Church
Black Lake (Lac-Noir)
St-Desire Catholic Church
Beauce-Sartigan Regional County Municipality
St-Côme-de-Kennebec
St-Côme-de-Kennebec Catholic Church
St-Théophile
St-Théophile Catholic Church
Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean Region
Saguenay Territory Equivalent
Grande-Baie
St-Alexis Catholic Church
Jonquière
St-Dominique Catholic Church
Lac-Kénogami
Ste-Famille Catholic Church
Chicoutimi-Ouest
Sacré-Coeur-du-Bassin Catholic Church
Lac-Saint-Jean-Est Regional County Municipality
Alma
St-Joseph-d'Alma Catholic Church
Le Domaine-du-Roy Regional County Municipality
St-François-de-Sales
St-François-de-Sales Catholic Church
Laval Region
Laval Regional County Municipality
St-François
St-François-de-Sales Catholic Church
St-Martin
St-Martin Catholic Church
Ste-Rose-de-Lima
Ste-Rose-de-Lima Catholic Church
Mauricie Region
Maskinongé Regional County Municipality
Louiseville
St-Antoine-de-Rivière-du-Loup Catholic Church
St-Léon-le-Grand
St-Léon-le-Grand Catholic Church
Yamachiche
Ste-Anne-de-Yamachiche Catholic Church
St-Modeste
St-Modeste Catholic Church
Les Chenaux Regional County Municipality
Ste-Anne-de-la-Pérade
Ste-Anne-de-la-Pérade Catholic Church
Trois-Rivières Territory Equivalent
Trois-Rivières
Cathedrale de L'Assomption (Catholic) (Former Immaculate Conception Catholic Church)
St-Sacrement Catholic Church
Notre-Dame-des Sept-Allégresses Catholic Church
Cap-de-la-Madeleine
St-Lazare Catholic Church
Ste-Marie-Madeleine Catholic Church
Mékinac Regional County Municipality
Ste-Thècle
Ste-Thècle Catholic Church
Grande-Anse
St-Théodore Catholic Church
Laurentides Region
Deux-Montagnes Regional County Municipality
St-Eustache
St-Eustache Catholic Church
St-Placide
St-Placide Catholic Church
St-Joseph-du-Lac
St-Joseph-du-Lac Catholic Church
Oka
L'Annonciation-de-la-Bienheureuse-Vierge-Marie Catholic Church
La Rivière-du-Nord Regional County Municipality
St-Jérôme
St-Jérôme Catholic Church
Ste-Sophie
Ste-Sophie Catholic Church
Thérèse-de-Blainville Regional County Municipality
Ste-Anne-des-Plaines
Ste-Anne-des-Plaines Catholic Church
Mirabel Territory Equivalent
St-Augustin
St-Augustin Catholic Church
St-Hermas
St-Hermas Catholic Church
Ste-Scholastique
Ste-Scholastique Catholic Church
Montcalm Regional County Municipality
St-Lin-du-Laurentides
St-Lin-du-Laurentides Catholic Church
Les Pays-d'en-Haut Regional County Municipality
St-Sauveur
St-Sauveur Catholic Church
Argenteuil Regional County Municipality
Grenville
Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Douleurs Catholic Church
St-André-d'Argenteuil
St-André-d'Argenteuil Catholic Church
Les Laurentides Regional County Municipality
Ste-Agathe-des-Monts
Ste-Agathe-des-Monts Catholic Church
Bas-Saint-Laurent Region
Kamouraska Regional County Municipality
Ste-Anne-de-la-Pocatière
Ste-Anne-de-la-Pocatière Catholic Church
St-Pascal
St-Pascal Catholic Church
Rivière-Ouelle
L'Assomption Catholic Church
St-Alexandre-de-Kamouraska
St-Alexandre-de-Kamouraska Catholic Church
Ste-Hélène
St-Hélène Catholic Church
Rivière-du-Loup Regional County Municipality
Rivière-du-Loup
St-Patrice Catholic Church
L'Île Verte
St-Jean-Baptiste Catholic Church
Cacouna
St-Georges-de-Cacouna Catholic Church
St-Hubert-de-Rivière-du-Loup
St-Hubert-de-Rivière-du-Loup Catholic Church
St-Cyprien
St-Cyprien Catholic Church
La Mitis Regional County Municipality
Ste-Flavie
Ste-Flavie Catholic Church
Mont-Joli
Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes Catholic Church
Rimouski-Neigette Regional County Municipality
Rimouski
St-Germain-de-Rimouski Catholic Cathedral
Matane Regional County Municipality
Matane
St-Jérôme Catholic Church
Baie-des-Sables
L'Assomption-de-Notre-Dame Catholic Church
Ste-Félicité
Ste-Félicité Catholic Church
St-Luc
St-Luc Catholic Church
La Matapédia Regional County Municipality
Lac-au-Saumon
St-Edmond Catholic Church
Amqui
St-Benoît-Joseph-Labre Catholic Church
Les Basques Regional County Municipality
St-Clément
St-Clément Catholic Church
Rivière-Trois-Pistoles
St-Jean-Baptiste Catholic Church
Témiscouata Regional County Municipality
Cabano
St-Mathias Catholic Church
Notre-Dame-du-Lac
Notre-Dame-du-Lac Catholic Church
Estrie Region
Le Granit Regional County Municipality
Lambton
St-Vital-de-Lambton Catholic Church
St-Romain-de-Winslow
St-Romain-de-Winslow Catholic Church
Les Sources Regional County Municipality
Wotton
St-Hippolyte Catholic Church
Bienville
St-Antoine Catholic Church
Val-St-François Regional County Municipality
Valcourt
St-Joseph-d'Ély Catholic Church
Memphrémagog Regional County Municipality
Magog
St-Patrice-de-Magog Catholic Church
St-Benoît-du-Lac
St-Benoît-du-Lac-Abbé (Catholic)
Mansonville
Mansonville Methodist Church
Sherbrooke Territory Equivalent
Sherbrooke
St-Michel Catholic Cathedral
Hospice Sacré-Coeur (Catholic)
Côte-Nord Region
Minganie Regional County Municipality
Natashquan
Notre-Dame Catholic Church
Havre-St-Pierre
St-Pierre Catholic Church
Pointe-aux-Esquimaux
St-Pierre Catholic Church
Rivière-au-Tonnerre
St-Hippolyte Catholic Church
Sept-Rivières Regional County Municipality
Shelter Bay
St-Coeur-de-Jésus Catholic Church
Sept-Îles
St-Joseph Catholic Church
Clarke City
St-Coeur-de Marie Catholic Church
Rivière-Pentecôte
St-Patrice Catholic Church
St-Esprit Catholic Church
La Haute-Côte-Nord Regional County Municipality
St-Paul-du-Nord
St-Paul-du-Nord Catholic Church
Manicouagan Regional County Municipality
Godbout
Ste-Anne Catholic Church
First Nation Community
Betsiamites
Notre-Dame-de-Betshiamits Catholic Mission
Abitibi-Témiscamingue Region
Témiscamingue Regional County Municipality
Laverlochère
St-Isidore Catholic Church
Fugèreville
Notre-Dame Catholic Church
Notre-Dame-du-Nord
St-Joseph Catholic Church
Lorrainville
Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes Catholic Church
Ville-Marie
Notre-Dame-du-Rosaire Catholic Church
Montréal Region
Urban Agglomeration of Montréal
Montréal
Ste-Hélène de-Montréal Catholic Church
St-Jean-Berchmans-de-Montréal Catholic Church
St-Jacques-le-Majeur Catholic Cathedral
Basilique Notre-Dame (Catholic)
Ste-Élizabeth-du Portugal Catholic Church
Ste-Cunégonde Catholic Church
St-Vincent-de-Paul Catholic Church
Notre-Dame-de-Grâce Catholic Church
St-Henri-des-Tanneries Catholic Church
Sacré-Coeur-de-Jésus Catholic Church
St-Etienne-de-Montréal Catholic Church
St-Victor-de-la-Terrasse-Vinet Catholic Church
Sacré-Coeur-de-Jésus Catholic Church
St-Anselme-de-Montréal Catholic Church
L'Hôpital St-Luc Catholic Chapel
L'Hôpital St-Jean-de-Dieu Catholic Chapel
St-Jean-Baptiste-Marie-Vianney Catholic Church
St-Zotique Catholic Church
St-Esèbe-de-Verceil Catholic Church
La Nativité-de-la-Bienheureuse-Vierge-Marie Catholic Church
St-Denis Catholic Church
St-Clément Catholic Church
Ste-Brigide Catholic Church
St-Paul Catholic Church
St-Jean-Baptiste Catholic Church
St-Charles Catholic Church
Notre-Dame-des-Neiges Catholic Church
St-Pierre-Apôtre Catholic Church
St-Joseph Catholic Church
Ste-Jeanne-d'Arc Catholic Church
St-Stanislas-de-Kostka Catholic Church
St-Anselme Catholic Church
Très-St-Rédempteur Catholic Church
St-Patrick Catholic Church
Notre-Dame-du-Très-Sacrement Catholic Church
Congregational Zion Church
Jewish Beth Hamedrash Hagadol
Jewish Share Hashomayium
Montréal Cimetières de l’Est, Repos St-François d’Asisse
Lachine
Sts-Anges-Gardiens-de-Lachine Catholic Church
Pointe-Claire
St-Joachim-de-Pointe-Claire Catholic Church
Pierrefonds
Ste-Geneviève-de-Pierrefonds Catholic Church
Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue
Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue Catholic Church
Verdun
Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Douleurs-de-Montréal Catholic Church
Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes Catholic Church
Longue-Pointe
St.-François-d'Assise Catholic Church
L'Île-Bizard
St-Raphaël Archange Catholic Church
Centre-du-Québec Region
Bécancour Regional County Municipality
St-Grégoire
St-Grégoire-le-Grand Catholic Church
Gentilly
St-Édouard-de-Gentilly Catholic Church
Nicolet-Yamaska Regional County Municipality
Nicolet
St-Jean-Baptiste Catholic Cathedral
St-François-du-Lac
St-François-du-Lac Catholic Church
Arthabaska Regional County Municipality
St-Louis-de-Blandford
St-Louis-de-Blandford Catholic Church
St-Norbert-d'Arthabaska
St-Norbert-d'Arthabaska Catholic Church
Ham-Sud
St-Joseph-de Ham-Sud Catholic Church
Blanford
St-Louis Catholic Church
Warwick
St-Médard Catholic Church
L'Érable Regional County Municipality
Ste-Sophie-d'Halifax
Ste-Sophie-d'Halifax Catholic Church
Laurierville
Ste-Julie-de-Somerset Catholic Church
Drummond Regional County Municipality
St-Germain-de-Grantham
St-Germain-de-Grantham Catholic Church
Capitale-Nationale Region
Urban Agglomeration of Québec
L'Ancienne-Lorette
Notre-Dame-de-L'Annonciation Catholic Church
Québec City
Notre-Dame Catholic Basilica
St-Sauveur-de-Québec Catholic Church
Notre-Dame-du-Chemin Catholic Church
St-Roch Catholic Church
St-Dominigue Catholic Church
St-Charles-de-Limoilou Catholic Church
St-Joseph Catholic Church
St-Peter Anglican Church
Wesleyan Methodist Church
St-Grégoire-de-Montmorency
St-Grégoire-de-Montmorency Catholic Church
Sillery
St-Colomb-de-Sillery Catholic Church
La Jacques-Cartier Regional County Municipality
Beauport
La Nativité-de-Notre-Dame Catholic Church
Giffard
St-Ignace-de-Loyola Catholic Church
Portneuf Regional County Municipality
Neuville
St-François-de-Sales Catholic Church
Gaspésie-Îles-de-la-Madeleine Region
Bonaventure Regional County Municipality
Paspébiac
Notre-Dame-de-la-Purification Catholic Church
Rocher-Percé Regional County Municipality
Percé
St-Michel Catholic Church
Grande-Rivière
L'Assomption-de-Notre-Dame Catholic Church
Cap-d'Espoir
St-Joseph Catholic Church
La Haute-Gaspésie Regional County Municipality
Ste-Anne-de-Monts
Ste-Anne-des-Monts Catholic Church
Cap-Chat
St-Norbert-du-Cap-Chat Catholic Church
St-Joachim-de-Tourelle
St-Joachim-de-Tourelle Catholic Church
Mont-Louis
St-Maxime-du-Mont-Louis Catholic Church
Avignon Regional County Municipality
Carleton
St-Joseph-de-Carleton Catholic Church
St-Omer
St-Omer Catholic Church
St-Coeur-de-Marie
St-Coeur-de-Marie Catholic Church
Restigouche
Missionaries
St-André-de-Restigouche
St-André-de-Restigouche Catholic Church
Urban Agglomeration of Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine
L'Étang-du-Nord
St-Pierre-de-La Vernière Catholic Church (St-Pierre-de-l'Étang-du-Nord Catholic Church)
Havre-Aubert
Notre-Dame-de-la-Visitation Catholic Church
Havre-aux-Masions
Sainte-Madeleine Catholic Church
Bassin
St-François-Xavier Catholic Church
ONTARIO
Gradually the Acadians in Québec began to migrate westward in search of jobs and land to settle. By the mid-1800's a large number of Acadians had resettled in Ontario -primarily in the eastern counties. Today there are over 200,000 Acadians living in Ontario.
The Ontario Church Records MAs in Québec, most communities within French Ontario had at least one church for its residents. Today most of these churches or their diocesan archives still maintain the original ecclesiastical records. The largest religious group within French Ontario has been the Roman Catholic Church. The Catholic Church has kept the most accurate and comprehensive baptismal, marriage and burial records.
While a researcher could consult the older original records at the individual churches or diocesan archives, this would require significant time to either visit or write each church or diocesan archive having records of interest. There is an alternative research method that is less expensive and time-consuming.
Both the Drouin Institute and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Mormon Church) have microfilmed the Ontario ecclesiastical records and have made these images available to the general public.
During the 1940's researchers from the Drouin Institute filmed the French-Canadian (including Acadian) Catholic parish records. Limited filming of these records continued into the mid-1960's. The Ontario Drouin microfilm collection contains approximately 1.3 million records. The records span the timeframe from 1747 to 1967 - over 200 years of Ontario history.
Researchers today can access images of the original Ontario French-Canadian Catholic records microfilmed by the Drouin Institute on the fee-based websites Ancestry.com (United States) and Ancestry.ca (Canada). [See the Winter 2010 issue of "Generations" (Vol. 8 Issue 1) for a discussion of the Drouin records.]
The Family History Library of the Mormon Church has microfilm copies of some Ontario Catholic registers from 1760 to 1923. One can access these microfilms at many archives and libraries within Canada and the United States as well as Mormon Family History Research Centers in most towns and cities. The microfilm images are also available on the free FamilySearch.org website.
The Drouin records are indexed and searchable while the FamilySearch.org records require browsing through the images of each individual church for a specified span of years.
The Guédry & Petitpas in Ontario The church records of the Labine and Guildry families in Ontario from the early 1800s until the present are in the communities and churches below. The vast majority of these communities are in southeastern Ontario as the Guildry's and Labine's moved westward from Québec in search of a better life. A large number settled in and near the communities of Embrun, La Passe, Pembroke, Ottawa and Sudbury.
Few Petitpas families have lived in Ontario. Those that did lived primarily in the Nipissing District towns of Field and River Valley and the Essex County towns of Amherstburg and Tecumseh. A few Petitpas families also lived in Ottawa.
Renfrew County
La Passe
Notre-Dame-du-Mont-Carmel Catholic Church
Pembroke
St-Columbkille Catholic Cathedral
Prescott and Russell United Counties
Embrun
St-Jacques Catholic Church
L'Original
St-Jean-Baptiste Catholic Church
St-Eugène
St-Eugène Catholic Church
St-Isidore
St-Isidore-de-Prescott Catholic Church
Vankleek Hill
St-Gregoire-de-Nazianze Catholic Church
Hawkesbury
St-Alphonse-de-Liguori Catholic Church
City of Ottawa
Ottawa
Basilique Notre-Dame (Catholic)
St-Jean-Baptiste Catholic Church
Sacré-Coeur-d'Ottawa Catholic Church
Ste-Anne-d'Ottawa Catholic Church
St-Antoine-de-Padoue Catholic Church
St-François-d'Assise Catholic Church
St-Patrick Catholic Church
Christ-Roi Catholic Church
Notre-Dame-du-Bon-Conseil Catholic Church
South Gloucester
Our Lady of the Visitation Catholic Church
Osgoode
St-Jean-le-Evangeliste Catholic Church
Cyrville
Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes-de-Cyrville Catholic Church
Sarsfield
St-Hughes Catholic Church
Billings Bridge
St-Thomas-d'Aquin Catholic Church
City of Greater Sudbury
Sudbury (Greater Sudbury)
Ste-Anne-des-Pins Catholic Church
St-Jean-de-Brébeuf Catholic Church
Christ-Roi Catholic Church
Ste-Trinité Catholic Church
St-Clément Catholic Church
St-Eugène Catholic Church
Notre-Dame-du-Perpétuel Secours Catholic Church
New Sudbury
L'Annonciation Catholic Church
St-André-l'Apôtre Catholic Church
Sudbury Hôpital Général
St-Joseph-de-Christ-Roi Catholic Church
Blezard Valley
Notre-Dame-du-Rosaire Catholic Church
Hanmer
St-Jacques Catholic Church
Garson (& Garson Mine)
St-Jean-l'Evangeliste Catholic Church
Minnow Lake
La Toussaint Catholic Church
Levack
St-Barthelemi Catholic Church
Azilda
St-Agnès Catholic Church
Gatchell
St-Antoine Catholic Church
Sudbury District
Massey
Immaculée-Conception Catholic Church
Warren
St-Thomas-d'Apôtre Catholic Church
St-Charles
St-Charles Borroméo Catholic Church
Espanola
Bon Pasteur et St-Louis-de-France Catholic Church
Estaire
St-Mathieu Catholic Church
Noëlville
St-David Catholic Church
Essex County
Amherstburg
St-Jean-Baptiste Catholic Church
Windsor
L'Assomption-de-Sandwich Catholic Church
Tecumseh
Ste-Anne Catholic Church
Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry United Counties
Cornwall
St-Colomban Catholic Church
Alexandria
St-Finnan Catholic Cathedral
Greenfield
Ste-Catherine-de-Sienna Catholic Church
Lanark County
Almonte
Holy Name of Mary (St. Mary) Catholic Church
Municipality of Chatham-Kent
Pain Court
Immaculée-Conception Catholic Church
Manitoulin District
Wikwemikong
Holy Cross Catholic Mission
Little Current
St-Bernard Catholic Church
Nipissing District
Bonfield
Ste-Philomène Catholic Church
North Bay
L'Assomption Catholic Pro-Cathedral
Ste-Rita Catholic Church
St-Vincent-de-Paul Catholic Church
Mattawa
Ste-Anne Catholic Church
Field
Notre-Dame-des-Victoires Catholic Church
Sturgeon Falls
La Résurrection Catholic Church
River Valley
Ste-Rose-de-Lima Catholic Church
Algoma District
Sault Ste-Marie
St-Ignace Catholic Church
St-Sacrement Catholic Church
Notre-Dame-du-Bon-Conseil Catholic Church
Blind River
Sainte-Famille Catholic Church
St-Jacques-le-Majeur Catholic Church
Timiskaming District
Lebel
St-Dominigue Catholic Church
BRITISH COLUMBIA
Although in general the Acadians of the 1700s and 1800s did not venture as far west as British Columbia, one member of the Labine family did settle at Namaino, British Columbia. Léon Labine began working for the Hudson Bay Company as a 'middleman' (laborer) in 1849 and from 1850-1853 worked at Fort Rupert (near present-day Port Hardy, British Columbia). In early 1853 he moved to the Nanaimo Post near today's Victoria, British Columbia. Here he and Jean-Baptiste Fortier, both skilled axemen, were the principal builders of the Bastion at Nanaimo -completing it in June, 1853. The Nanaimo Bastion stands today as the most endearing symbol of this harbor city - a tribute to the pioneering spirit of this frontier community. The Bastion is the oldest original freestanding Hudson Bay Company fort in North America and in 1985 was designated a Municipal Heritage Building. It is on the Canadian Register of Heritage Properties.
Léon Labine married Anne Gagner in or before 1855. They had four daughters and two sons born between 1856 and 1864 at Nanaimo. The baptismal records are at St. Andrew's Catholic Cathedral. Except for his Québec origins, the early life of Léon Labine is not known at this time nor do we know how long he and Anne remained in British Columbia. The British Columbia Archives contains several death records from the mid-1900s of Labine'; however, it is uncertain of their relationship to Léon Labine.
Victoria (Victoria County) St. Andrew's Catholic Cathedral 740 View Street Victoria, British Columbia V8W 1J8 (Telephone: 250-388-5571)
