On 9 January 1723 Jeanne Hébert, wife of Augustin Guédry, gave birth to twin daughters Hélène and Marie-Josephe in Boston. On the day of their birth their grandfather Claude Guédry conditionally baptized his new twin granddaughters.^26,27,28,29 A short time after these births the Acadians must have been released and returned to their homes for on 26 September 1723 Hélène Guédry and Marie-Josephe Guédry were baptized with full church ceremonies and their baptisms were recorded in the baptismal register of St-Charles-aux-Mines Catholic Church in Grand-Pré, Acadia.^27,28

In September 1726 Jean-Baptiste Guédry and his son Jean-Baptiste Guédry fils along with three Mi’kmaq Indians were captured in the bay at Merliguèche, brought to Boston and charged with piracy. After quick trials all five were found guilty and hung on 13 November 1726. Shortly after Jean-Baptiste and his son had captured the boat, the captain of the boat asked Jean-Baptiste’s mother, Marguerite Petitpas, and his brother Augustin Guédry to intercede and convince Jean-Baptiste to disembark from the boat. They attempted to convince Jean-Baptiste to leave the boat, but he would not.^{30,31,32,33,34,35,36}

After 1726 no record of Augustin Guédry or his family can be found for almost 26 years. Eventually, because of the heightened tension and increasing threats from the British, almost all Acadians at Merliguèche including Augustin Guédry and his family left their homes at Merliguèche and resettled in Île Royale (today Cape Breton).

Arsenault believed they stayed a few years near Cobequid (today Truro) before going to Île Royale.³⁷ There is evidence, however, that they may have gone directly from Merliguèche to Île Royale in 1749 or 1750. TheAcadian settlement at Merliguèche persisted until at least June 1749 when Cornwallis anchored the Sphinx in the harbor at Merliguèche on his way to Chebucto (today Halifax). Here he stated:

We came to anchor in Merliguiche Bay where I was told there was a French settlement. I sent ashore to see the Houses and manner of living of the Inhabitants – there are but a few Families with tolerable wooden Houses covered with Bark, a good many Cattle and clear ground more than serves themselves – they seem to be very peaceable, say they always looked upon themselves as English Subjects, have their Grants from Colonel Mascarene the Governor of Annapolis, and showed an unfeigned joy to hear of the new Settlement. They assure us the Indians are quite peaceable and not at all to be feared – there are none hereabouts.

I have, &tc.,

ED. CORNWALLIS^38,39

Later in the summer of 1749 Cornwallis returned to Merliguèche for some “garden stuff”.39 Earlier on 12 September 1745 the governor and intendant from Québec, Messieurs Beauharnois and Hocquard, visited Merliguèche and commented in their report:

At Merligueche, a small harbour five leagues east of LaHeve, are only eight settlers, among the rest Paul Guidry, alias Grivois, jovial or jolly, a good coast pilot.^39,40,41

The above reference to “eight settlers” probably meant eight adult males and thus several families. In 1746 Abbé Le Loutre wrote a “Description de L’Acadie” in which he said:

From Chegekkouk he went to Misliguesch et Haivre which is 25 leagues further; here there are a dozen French families and 3 to 400 Indians who assembled here.^39,42

Finally in 1748 a “Description de L’Acadie” indicates that there were 20 families at Mirliguèche:

The 2^nd is Mioligueche at three leagues from la Haïve , the missionary has started constructing a church, it has twenty French families and 300 to 400 Indians assembled there since the month of June.^39,43

On arriving in Halifax in August 1754 to avoid starvation on Île Royale, a group of nine Acadian men with their families stated that they had been enticed to leave Acadia after the founding of Halifax in 1749.⁴⁴ These people primarily were children of Augustin Guédry and Jeanne Hébert and their families. Several members of the Guédry family of Merliguèche were known for their excellent coasting pilot skills and thus could easily have made the short voyage to Île Royale about 1750.³⁹

In 1752 M. le Comte de Raymond directed a survey of the French possessions Île Royale and Île Saint-Jean (present-day Prince Edward Island) to census the growing population and to establish boundaries of present and future concessions on the islands.^45,46 Sieur Joseph de la Roque, King’s Surveyor, commenced the survey on 5 February 1752 to the southeast of Louisbourg. About the 2^nd of April 1752 Sieur de la Roque reached the Baie des Espagnols (today North Sydney, Cape Breton). Here among the resettled Acadians were several children of Augustin Guédry and Jeanne Hébert with their families including Marie-Josephe (called Joseph), Hélène (called Eleine), Ursule (called Eustache) and Pierre.^45,47 (a) In his typical detailed style of recording each family he encountered, Sieur de la Roque wrote:

Paul Boutin, ploughman, native of la Cadie, aged 25 years. Married to Eustache Guedry, native of la Cadie, aged 21 years.

They have Pierre Guedry their brother, aged 11 years.
They have two sheep and one hen.
The land on which they are was given to them verbally by Messieurs Desherbiers and Prevost. They have made a clearing in which to sow a peck of oats and a bushel of peas.

Charles Boutin, ploughman, native of la Cadie, aged 29 years. Married to Joseph Guedry, native of la Cadie, aged 28 years.
They have three children, two sons and a daughter.
Jean Charles, aged 5 years;
Olive, aged 3 years;
Marie Françoise, aged 3 months;
Eleine Guédry, her sister, native of l’Acadie, aged 29 years.

Living nearby were the families of their uncle Paul Guédry married to Anne Mius and their aunt Françoise Guédry married to Jean LeJeune as well as their cousins Judith Guédry (daughter of Paul Guédry) with her husband Jean Cousin and their children, Marie Guédry (daughter of Jean-Baptiste Guédry) with her husband Germain LeJeune and their children and Joseph Guédry with his wife Josette Benoît and their children. Although we don’t know the year in which Marie-Josephe, Hélène, Ursule and Pierre Guédry migrated to Île Royale, it was probably in mid to late 1750 as this was when most of the Acadians of Baie des Espagnols arrived.^45,48 Paul Boutin and Ursule Guédry received their marriage certificate at Louisbourg on 9 November 1750.⁴⁹

Leaving the Baie des Espagnols on the 5th of April 1752, Sieur de la Roque continued around the eastern coast of Île Royale surveying the shores of the Baie de l’Indienne, the Baie de Mordienne and the Baie de Miré at which he arrived the 9th of April 1752. Here he found Jeanne Guédry, the daughter of Augustin Guédry and Jeanne Hébert, with her husband Julien Bourneuf, their four daughters, Julien’s sister Renée Guillaume Bourneuf and Jeanne’s brother Joseph Guédry.^45,50  Sieur de la Roque thus recorded:

Julien Bourneuf, ploughman, native of Médrillac, bishopric of St. Malo, aged 36 years. Married to Jeanne Guedry, native of la Cadie, ages 27 years.
They have four daughters: --
Anne, aged 12 years;
Jeanne, aged 9 years;
Julienne, aged 7 years;
Sophie, aged 5 years;
Joseph Guedry, his brother-in-law, native of la Cadie, aged 17 years. Renée Guillaume, his sister, native of the parish of Argence, aged 20 years.
He owns in livestock: one pig and three fowls. He is in the colony three years, and has been given rations for that time.
The land on which he is settled is situated to the east of the dwelling place of Monsieur de la Borde, treasurer to the colony; it was given to him verbally by Messieurs Desherbiers and Prévost. He has made a good clearing in which he sowed two pecks of oats.

Note that the four daughters listed above are those of Julien Bourneuf and his first wife Anne Marie Hyaune, who died 10 February 1750. He and Jeanne Guédry wed about 14 January 1751 on which date their marriage certificate was recorded at Louisbourg.⁵¹  Shortly after Sieur de la Roque censused Julien Bourneuf and Jeanne Guédry their first child François Bourneuf was born. He was baptized at Louisbourg on 26 July 1752.⁵² Two years later they had a daughter Françoise Bourneuf, who was baptized on 30 June 1754 at Louisbourg.⁵³

In the summer of 1753 Paul Boutin, his wife (i.e., Ursule Guédry), one boy (i.e., Pierre Guédry) and two girls were living at Baie des Espagnols on Bras du Sud. They had one sow and one arpent of cleared land. Residing next to Paul Boutin was Charles Boutin with his wife (i.e., Marie-Josephe Guédry), two boys and one girl. Apparently during the previous year Hélène Guédry, sister of Marie-Josephe Guédry, had left the home of Charles Boutin. They had one beef, one cow, two calves and one sow. Next to Charles Boutin lived François Lucas with his wife. This couple had one pig and one sow. The wife of François Lucas almost certainly was Hélène Guédry as we will see shortly. On the north side of the Rivière de Miré was Julien Bourneuf with his wife (i.e., Jeanne Guédry), one boy and four girls. They had one domestic servant and one cow.⁵⁴

In August of 1754 twenty-five persons arrived at Halifax from Louisbourg, Île Royale stating that earlier they had been enticed to leave Acadia with the founding of Halifax in 1749, but now were returning to escape starvation on Île Royale. They professed that they would take the Oath of Allegiance. Of the 25 persons nine were adult males. They stated to William Cotterell, Secretary, at Halifax that they were “nearly related to old Labradore” - who was most likely Paul Guédry, youngest son of Claude Guédry and Marguerite Petitpas.

The nine men named were Paul Boutin, Charles Boutin, Julien Bourneuf, Sebastian Bourneuf, Joseph Gedri, Pierre Gedri, Pierre Erio, François Lucas and Claude Erot.^55,56,57,58 The land that they had cleared at Baie des Espagnols on Île Royale was rocky and had very poor soil, never able to produce enough to support their families. They had lived off the rations supplied by the French at Louisbourg. These ceased in 1754 and the Acadians realized that they could not support themselves so they had asked permission to leave.⁵⁹ Governor Lawrence determined to send these Acadians to the newly-established Lunenburg just below their former home of Merliguèche. Through his Provincial Secretary William Cotterell he instructed the Commander at Lunenburg Lt. Colonel Patrick Sutherland to victual the new arrivals and to give them tools and land.^{55,56,58,60,61} They settled just above Lunenburg on their former lands at Merliguèche.

SECRETARY’S OFFICE, 24 August 1754.

DR. SIR,--
* * * * The Bearers hereof being in all twenty-five persons are just arrived here from Louisbourg, from whence they made their Escape to avoid starving. Some of them were formerly Inhabitants of this Country, and are nearly related to old Labrador; they have all taken the oaths; the Colonel desires you would treat them kindly, ordered them to be Vituelled, to have tools given them, and Land laid out for them where you shall see most convenient.

                    I am, Dr. Sir,
                              Yours, &c.,|
                                        WM. COTTERELL

To Col. Sutherland,
  commanding at Lunenburg^56,58,61

Between 16 June 1755 and 29 June 1755 one thousand five hundred and forty-eight persons were victualled at Lunenburg.^62,63  Almost all of the persons victualled were Germans recently settled at Lunenburg; however, a few were Acadians newly-arrived from Île Royale and Île Saint-Jean who had settled at Merliguèche just above Lunenburg. Below in the order that they appear on the 1755 Victual List for Lunenburg are the Acadians from Île Royale who arrived at Halifax in August 1754. The number to the right of each name is the number assigned that person on the 1755 Victual List for Lunenburg. Note that the Acadians that arrived in August 1754 appear as one contiguous group (Nos. 1402-1425) on the 1755 Victual List for Lunenburg. Family groups are separated by a blank for convenience. In parentheses beside each name are the usual spelling of the name and key relationships.

1403 – Helena Loucas (Hélène Guédry, his wife)
[daughter of Augustin Guédry & Jeanne Hébert]
1404 – Maria Loucas (Marie Lucas, their daughter)

1405 – Charles Boutein (Charles Boutin)
1406 – Maria Boutein (Marie-Josephe Guédry, his wife)
[daughter of Augustin Guédry & Jeanne Hébert]
1407 – Jean Charles Boutein (Jean Charles Boutin, their son)
1408 – Pierre Oliver Boutein (Pierre Olivier Boutin, their son)
1409 – Maria Frans Boutein (Marie Françoise Boutin, their daughter)
1410 – Magd Perpeta Boutein (Magdeleine Perpetue Boutin, their daughter)

1411 – Julien Bourneuve (Julien Bourneuf)
1412 – Jeane Bourneuve (Jeanne Guédry, his wife)
[daughter of Augustin Guédry & Jeanne Hébert]
1413 – Francois Bourneuve (François Bourneuf)
1414 – Jean Bourneuve (Jeanne Bourneuf, daughter of Julien Bourneuf & first wife)
1415 – Sophia Bourneuve (Sophie Bourneuf, daughter of Julien Bourneuf & first wife)
1416 – Francois Bourneuve (François Bourneuf, their son)
1417 – Sabastien Bourneuve (Sébastien Bourneuf, brother of Julien Bourneuf)
1418 – Leon Deran Bourneuve (Léon Deran Bourneuf)

1419 – Paul Boutein (Paul Boutin)
1420 – Ursula Boutein (Ursule Guédry, his wife)
[daughter of Augustin Guédry & Jeanne Hébert]
1421 – Cathrina Boutein (Marguerite Catherine Boutin, their daughter)
1422 – Joseph Boutein (Joseph Boutin, their son)
1423 – Joseph Boutein (Joseph Boutin)
1424 – Pierre Boutein (Pierre Guédry, brother of Ursule Guédry)
[son of Augustin Guédry & Jeanne Hébert]
1425 – Joseph Guedry (Joseph Guédry)
[son of Augustin Guédry & Jeanne Hébert]

Of the nine adult males identified as coming with their families from Louisbourg to Halifax,^55,56,57,58 seven appear above. Neither Pierre Erio nor Claude Erot appear on the 1755 Victual List for Lunenburg. Furthermore, six of the seven known children of Augustin Guédry and Jeanne Hébert appear on the 1755 Victual List for Lunenburg. Only their son Jean-Baptiste Guédry does not appear. Where he and his family were residing in early 1750’s is not known.

Pierre Erio and Claude Erot probably were Pierre Terriau and Claude Terriau. On 7 April 1752 Sieur de la Roque arrived at Baie de Mordienne, a small community not far from Baie des Espagnols. The first two families he surveyed were those of Claude Teriau and of Pierre Teriau.^45,47(f) Claude Teriau was 56 years of age living with his wife Marie Guérin and their nine children - three sons and six daughters ranging in age from 6 years to 25 years. Pierre Teriau was 58 years of age living with his wife Margueritte Guérin and their nine children – four sons and five daughters ranging in age from 4 years to 24 years. These two men were much older than the other Acadians leaving the Louisbourg area for Merliguèche. It is doubtful that they came to Merliguèche with their families. The above letter56,^58,61 states that only 25 persons arrived from Louisbourg in August 1754. The families of the other seven men that are listed on the 1755 Victual List for Lunenburg number 24 persons.^62,63 Including Claude Teriau and Pierre Teriau by themselves in the number of Acadians arriving at Halifax closely matches the 25 Acadians mentioned in the letter.^56,58,61 Also, at their advanced age and that of their families it is likely that Pierre Terriau and Claude Terriau may have come to Merliguèche to determine if the “accommodations” were suitable for their families who planned to come later. Since they did not appear on the 1755 Victual List for Lunenburg, they probably returned to their families at Baie de Mordienne between August 1754 and June 1755.

Although to date we have not uncovered any definitive records proving that François Lucas married Hélène Guédry, daughter of Augustin Guédry and Jeanne Hébert, it certainly appeared likely from the 1755 Victual List of Lunenburg and other corroborative evidence that the Helena (Loucas) mentioned is in fact Hélène Guédry, the daughter of Augustin Guédry and Jeanne Hébert. In April 1752 Hélène Guédry was unmarried and living with Charles Boutin and Marie-Josephe Guédry, her brother-in-law and sister, at Baie des Espagnols, Île Royale.^45,47 By summer 1753 it appears that she was no longer living in the Charles Boutin home; however, living next to Charles Boutin was François Lucas and his wife. They had no children indicating they probably were newly married. In the 1755 Victual List for Lunenburg the wife of François Loucas was Helena and they have a daughter Maria Loucas – an infant born since the census in 1753.⁵⁴ Although circumstantial, this evidence certainly indicates that the wife of François Lucas was Hélène Guédry, daughter of Augustin Guédry and Jeanne Hébert.

Twenty-five Acadians traveled from Louisbourg to Halifax in August 1754 and then to Lunenburg.^56,58,61 Twenty-four Acadians from this contingent appear on the 1755 Victual List for Lunenburg as a contiguous group. Neither Pierre Terriau (Pierre Erio) nor Claude Terriau (Claude Erot) appears on the 1755 Victual List for Lunenburg. It is very likely that one or two Acadian children were born between the arrival of the Louisbourg Acadians in August 1754 and the enumerations in the June 1755 Victual List for Lunenburg. Possible births include Marie Lucas, infant daughter of François Lucas and Hélène Guédry, and Marie Perpetua Boutin, daughter of Charles Boutin and Marie-Josephe Guédry.

None of these Acadians appear on the 1756 Victual List for Lunenburg^64,65,66 which suggests that they were no longer in Lunenburg by February 1756.
 

A Second Group of Acadians Arrive at Merliguèche in October 1754

A second group of six Acadian families (28 persons) arrived at Halifax from Île Royale in early October 1754 under the leadership of Charles King. Four persons in this group returned to their former homes at Pisiquit and the remainder went to Lunenburg, settling just above the little community at Merliguèche. Like the August 1754 group, these people also had previous connections with Merliguèche.^67,68 They too had gone to Île Royale because of the threats of Father Le Loutre, but now wanted to return to their former lands due to the very poor soil on Île Royale and the starvation suffered by their families.

At a council holden at the Governors House in Halifax on Wednesday the 9^th day of Oct., 1754

PRESENT

Chas. Lawrence, Esq., President.

Jno. Collier,         |
Willm. Cotterell,   | Councs.
Robt. Monckton,   |
Jno. Rous,           |

The President acquainted the Council that six French Families, consisting of Twenty-eight Persons, who had deserted their Lands in this Province were arrived at Halifax, and desired to be permitted to return to their said Lands. The Heads of the said Families being called in and asked the Reason of their quitting their Lands, They declared that upon the first Settling of the English at Halifax, they were so terrified by the Threats that Mr. Le Leutre had used and his declaring the great distresses they would be reduced to if they remained under the Dominion of the English, That they, on that account, had retired and were set down on the Island of Cape Breton, where they had remained ever since; but that the Land there being so very bad they were utterly incapable of subsisting their Families, and had applied to the Governor of Louisbourg for leave to return to their former Habitations, to which he had consented. They further declared that if the Council would permit them to enjoy their former Lands, that they were willing to take the Oath of Allegiance to His Majesty, and that their future Behaviour should be unexceptionable.

The Council being of Opinion that the return of these People might have a good Effect, not only on the German Settlers, many of whom had formerly deserted to the French, but also on the other French Inhabitants, by voluntarily taking the Oath of Allegiance to His Majesty, unqualified by any reservation. And it appearing that they were in very great distress being intirely destitute of all necessaries, It was Resolved that they should be permitted to return to their former Possessions, and that Twenty-four of them being the most necessitous, should be allowed Provisions during the Winter, and that the other four should have a Week’s Provisions given them to Subsist them till they returned to their former Habitations at Pisiquid where they would be assisted by their Friends and Relations.

The said Inhabitants then very chearfully took the Oath of Allegiance to his Majesty, appointed to be taken by the french Inhabitants.

JNO. DUPORT, Secy. CHAS: LAWRENCE^67,68

At the Baie des Espagnols in early April 1752 Sieur de la Roque censused Joseph Guédry, nephew of Augustin Guédry and Jeanne Hébert, with his wife Marie-Joseph Benoît and their three children;^45,47(b) Honoré Trahan with his wife Marie Corperon and their three children;^45,47(c) Jean Baptiste LeJeune and Margueritte Trahan and their three children;^45,47(d) Jean Benoît with his wife Anne Trahan^45,47(e) and Charles Roy with his wife Marguerite LeJeune.^45,47(d)

Like the Acadians that arrived at Halifax in August 1754, the Acadians that arrived in October 1754 also appear as one contiguous group (Nos. 1448- 471) on the 1755 Victual List for Lunenburg.^62,63 Family groups below are separated by a blank for convenience. In parentheses beside each name are the usual spelling of the name and key relationships.

1448 – Charles King (Charles Roy) [ 1^st cousin of Marguerite Trahan]
1449 – Margretta King (Marguerite LeJeune, his wife)
1450 – Peter King (Pierre Roy, their son)
1451 – Olive King (Olive Roy, their son)

1452 – Joseph Laberdore (Joseph Guédry, son of Jean-Baptiste Guédry & Madeleine Mius dit dAzy and the nephew of Augustin Guédry & Jeanne Hébert)
1453 – Joseph Laberdore (Marie-Josephe ‘Josette’ Benoît, his wife)
1454 – Bering Laberdore (Perrine Guédry, their daughter)
1455 – Jeane Laberdore (Jeanne Guédry, their daughter)
1456 – Servant Laberdore (Servant Guédry, their son)

1457 – Nore Trahan (Honoré Trahan)
[1^st cousin of Anne Trahan below]
1458 – Maria Trahan (Marie Corperon, his wife)
1459 – Maria Trahan (Marie Trahan, their daughter)
1460 – Pierre Trahan (Pierre Trahan, their son)
1461 – Pellage Trahan (Marguerite Trahan, their daughter)
1462 – Jean Lejeune Lejeune (Jean Baptiste LeJeune)
1463 – Margretha Lejeune (Marguerite Trahan, his wife) [1^st cousin of Charles Roy]
1464 – Jeane Lejeune (Jean LeJeune, their son)
1465 – Margretha Lejeune (Marguerite LeJeune, their daughter)
1466 – Blaise Lejeune (Blaise LeJeune, their son)
1467 – Marie Lejeune (Marie LeJeune, their daughter)

1468 – Jean Bonneau (Jean Benoît)
1469 – Anna Bonneau (Anne Trahan, his wife)
[1^st cousin of Honoré Trahan above]
1470 – Anna Bonneau (Anne Casimere Benoît, their daughter)
1471 – Roze Bonneau (Rose Benoît, their daughter)

Like the Acadians that arrived in August 1754, the Acadians that arrived in October 1754 also came from the area near Baie des Espagnols, Île Royale.

None of these Acadians that arrived in October 1754 appear on the 1756 Victual List for Lunenburg^64,65,66 which suggests that they were no longer in Lunenburg by February 1756.

Acadians from Île Saint-Jean Join Their Cousins at Merliguèche

Joseph Deschamps dit Cloche, ploughman, native of l’Acadie, aged 42 years, he has been in the country three years. Married to Judict Duaron, native of l’Acadie, aged 32 years.
They have five sons and three daughters: --
Philippe Deschamps, aged 16 years;
Louis, aged 14 years;
Augustin, aged 12 years;
Jean Baptiste, aged 6 years;
François, aged 14 years;
Eufrozinne, aged 18 years;
La Blanche, aged 8 months
Elisabeth, aged 18 months.
Their live stock consists of: eight pigs and twenty fowls.
The land on which they are settled is situated as in the preceding case, it was given to them verbally by Monsieur de Bonnaventure. On it they have made a clearing for the sowing of three bushels of wheat.^45,75(a)

Joseph Deschamps, whose full name was Nicolas Joseph Deschamps, was at Lunenburg at least by June 1753 when the first German settlers arrived. Father Clarence d’Entremont (see below) discusses Governor Lawrence mentioning Vieux Labrador and Deschamps nicknamed Cloverwater. Although Father d’Entremont appears uncertain as to the identity of these two men, they almost certainly were Paul Guédry, youngest son of Claude Guédry and Marguerite Petitpas, and Nicolas Joseph Deschamps dit Cloche, husband of Judith Douaron (Doiron),⁷⁸ who was the daughter of Philippe Doiron and Marie-Josephe Guédry.⁷⁹ 

Marie-Josephe Guédry was the daughter of Claude Guédry and Marguerite Petitpas^80,81 and thus was the sister of Paul Guédry. Joseph Deschamps, therefore, was the nephew through marriage of Paul Guédry. Of course, as with Paul Guédry, Marie-Josephe Guédry is referred to as an “Indian” because of her close association with Mi’kmaq living near the Guédry and Petitpas families at Merliguèche from the late 1600’s to the mid-1700’s. Father Clarence-Joseph d’Entremont wrote:

Charles Lawrence, while he was overseer for establishing some Foreign Protestants at Lunenburg, they arriving here, the 8th of June 1753, with some new colonists, found there the Vieux Labrador (Old Labrador), who was an Indian or at least a half-breed, as he said in his journal. He found likewise his nephew, he called Deschamps, nicknamed Cloverwater, whose services were very useful to Lawrence. It is not a question of the family of Vieux Labrador.

As for Deschamps, Captain Charles Morris said the 15th of May 1754 that he was a neutral French, in the employ of the English (a). In reality, however, his father was Acadian and his mother an Indian. Winthrop Bell, in his Index, identifies him with Joseph (or René) Deschamps (b). The census of Île Saint-Jean of 1752 places at Anse au Comte Saint-Pierre “Joseph Deschamps dit Cloche, resident farmer, native of Acadia, age of 42 years ... married to Judit Duaron, native of Acadia, age of 32 years”, having with them five boys and three daughters, Philippe, the oldest of the family being then 16 years. The following year, the 12th of February, when he married at Port-Lajoie with Madeleine Trahan, daughter of Jean- aptiste and of Catherine Joseph Boudrot, he said that his father was “Nicolas Joseph Deschamps of Saint Martin de Ray, (sic, for Île de Ré), diocese of La Rochelle”. Consequently the Deschamps of the journal of Lawrence cannot be this Joseph, of whom the father was not Acadian and the mother was not an Indian. Notice that this family of Joseph Deschamps was sent in exile to Pennsylvania where one of his daughters, Blanche, wed the 14th of February 1763 René LeCore (c).

There were in Acadia two other persons of the name of Deschamps, namely Isaac, later judge in Nova  Scotia, perhaps descendant of the Huguenot Isaac Deschamps of Boston and afterwards of Narragansett and Marie Broussard; and Charles Deschamps de Boishébert, military officer, from Québec, whom we find in Acadia from 1747. But both are born in 1722 and could not be the father of our Deschamps (d).

We find at Massachusetts with a number of the exiles Jean Deschamps, born about 1798 (sic 1698), his wife Jeanne, called here Joan, born about 1703 and their daughter Anne or Nannette, called Nanny, born about 1739, married to Joseph La Noue. They have been put first at Malden, the 28th of November 1755, but were transferred to Stoneham the 17th of March following. Both parents were sick and crippled and unable to work. It is rather strange to find in 1760 some bills of Joseph La Noue for having taken care of these persons. Jean Deschamps and his wife, at the same time as Nannette and her two children, were transferred to Boston the 28th of August 1760. Notice that in 1763 Joseph La Noue and Anne Deschamps had two sons and a daughter (a). We do mention that family in exile at Stoneham in the 40th chapter in connection with one the children of François Mius who was sent here the 3rd of Sep tember 1760. This Jean Deschamps, whom we met here for the first time, but of whom we no longer hear after 1760, could be the Deschamps of the journal of Lawrence, who disappeared from the public records of Acadia after 1754 or 1755.

Be that as it may of the identity of our Deschamps, he must have wanted to settle at Merliguesh, became Lunenburg, having requested a share of land with gardens, in order to send to Pisiquid for his wife and his children; they having passed through Halifax. His Indian mother must be sister to Vieux Labrador since Deschamps called him his uncle. Is it possible that this one whom we consider as the eldest of the children of Pierre Guidry would have been likewise half-bred, therefore, he called himself Labrador, the name that his real father had born? Moreover, would not Vieux Labrador himself have been half-bred instead of pure-blooded Indian?⁷⁶

On the 1755 Victual List for Lunenburg was the family of Nicolas-Joseph Deschamps:^62,63

1312 – Joseph Deschamps (Nicolas-Joseph Deschamps)
1313 – Judith Deschamps (Judith Doiron, his wife)
1314 – Louis Deschamps (Louis Deschamps, their son)
1315 – Gustave Deschamps (Augustin Deschamps, their son)
1316 – Leblanch Deschamps (La Blanche Deschamps their daughter)
1317 – Jean Deschamps (Jean Baptiste Deschamps, their son)
1318 – Francois Deschamps (François Deschamps, their son)
1319 – Isabella Deschamps (Elisabeth Deschamps, their daughter)
1320 – Maria Deschamps (Marie Deschamps, their daughter)

The Deschamps did not appear on the 1756 Victual List for Lunenburg^64,65,66 which suggests that they were no longer in Lunenburg by February 1756.

At least a few of the Acadians victualled at Lunenburg in June 1755 left the area voluntarily. Julien Bourneuf, Jeanne Guédry and their family returned to the Louisbourg area between late June 1755 and September 1755. Likewise, Sébastien Bourneuf returned to the Louisbourg area with his brother and sister-in-law. On 28 September 1755 Françoise Bourneuf, just 15 months old and the daughter of Julien Bourneuf and Jeanne Guédry, was buried in the cemetery at Louisbourg.⁶⁹ At this time Jeanne Guédry was expecting another child within a few days. Shortly after the death of her daughter Françoise, Jeanne Guédry gave birth to another daughter Marie. Unfortunately, complications in the birth developed and both Marie Bourneuf and Jeanne Guédry died shortly after Marie’s birth.  Marie Bourneufwas baptized on 12 October 1755 at Louisbourg70 – just three days before her mother was buried in the nearby cemetery.⁷¹ The next day young Marie was buried near her mother.⁷² With the fall of Louisbourg in 1758 the British exiled Julien Bourneuf, his four young children François, Julienne, Sophie and Jeanne, his daughter Anne and her husband Guillaume Mervin and Julien’s brother Sébastien Bourneuf to France on the ship Le Duc Guillaume. They disembarked from the Le Duc Guillaume at St. Malo, France on 1 November 1758. Sébastien Bourneuf died shortly afterwards on 15 May 1759.^73,74 Apparently Pierre Terriau (Pierre Erio) and Claude Terriau (Claude Erot) left Merliguèche before June 1755 as they did not appear on the 1755 Victual List for Lunenburg.

In addition to the Acadians discussed above, Stephen White at the Centre d’Etudes Acadiennes in Moncton, New Brunswick suspects that the family of Paul Hébert was at Halifax in late December 1755 and was deported from there.⁷⁹

Censused by Sieur de la Roque in early May 1752 at Rivière du Moulin-à-scie on Île Saint-Jean not far from the home of Joseph Deschamps were:

Paul Hébert, imbecile, ploughman, native of l’Acadie, aged 35 years, he has been three years in the country. Married to Marie Michel, native of l’Acadie, aged 32 years.
They have two sons and two daughters:
François Hébert, aged 10 years;
Louis, aged 8 years;
Théotiste, aged 17 years;
Margueritte, aged 6 months.
The land of which they are settled is situated on the Anse aux Pirgoues, it was given to them verbally by Monsieur de Bonnaventure. On it they have made a clearing for the sowing of six bushels of wheat.^45,75(b)

Paul Hébert and his family were not on the 1755 Victual List for Lunenburg,^62,63 but did appear in June 1763 on the census taken of Acadians in Pennsylvania.^102,103,104 They apparently were not deported directly to Pennsylvania in late 1755 as they were not on the “List of Acadian Families in Pennsylvania at the Beginning of 1757”105 indicating that they arrived in Pennsylvania after this time. Although we have no documentation of their being in Merliguèche in late 1755, they may have come to Merliguèche with or shortly after Joseph Deschamps and his family since they lived near the Deschamps family on Île Saint-Jean. Furthermore, the parents of Paul Hébert were Jean Hébert and Jeanne Doiron. Paul Hébert, therefore, was the brother of Jeanne Hébert, wife of Augustin Guédry, and thus the uncle of Hélène, Marie-Josephe, Ursule, Jeanne, Joseph and Pierre Guédry, who were at Merliguèche in 1754 and 1755.
 

Acadians at Merliguèche Imprisoned on George’s Island

Acadians Deported to North Carolina

Where on the North Carolina shore did Captain Barron unload the Acadians? Although not known with certainty at this time, these Acadians likely first touched North Carolina soil on the shores of Albemarle Sound and possibly in today’s Chowan County.⁸⁷ Chowan County lies on the northwestern edge of Albermarle Sound. Chowan County, originally formed in 1670 as Shaftsbury Precinct of old Albermarle County, was named after the Chowan Indians living there. After several changes during the next century, the boundaries of Chowan County became stable after 1778. Edenton, the seat of Chowan County since 1720, was incorporated in 1715 as the town of Queen Anne’s Creek. In 1722 it became Edenton honoring Governor Charles Eden. From its earliest days Edenton was a thriving town and seaport lying on Albermale Sound at the confluence of the Chowan and Roanoke Rivers. In 1728 it became the colonial capital of North Carolina and was the cultural and economic hub of the state. During this period its docks constantly buzzed with activity as hundreds of ships docked there annually. Certainly known to Captain Barron, Edenton may have been the location where in early January 1756 the Providence docked and Barron unloaded his weary cargo of Acadians.
 

Few records of Acadians in North Carolina survive. On Thursday, 24 November 1757 the “Minutes of the Lower House of the North Carolina General Assembly” recorded:

Mr. Vail moved that a Sufficient Sum be allowed and paid to the Neutral French in and about Chowan County towards their subsistence.

Resolved, That the sum of Twenty five pounds proclamation Money be laid out in provisions and other necessaries by the Treasurer of the Northern District and delivered the said Neutrals and that the said sum be allowed him in account with the Public.^{87,90,91,92,93}

Augustin Deschamps Remains in North Carolina

According to Chowan County records and United States Censuses for 1790 through 1820, Augustin Deschamps and Elizabeth White had at least nine sons and three daughters. For several years Augustin Deschamps operated a ferry in Chowan County for which he was paid 1256 pounds and 1516 pounds at different times by the Colonial Government. Augustin Deschamps and his family lived in Chowan County until 1793 when they all moved to Orange County, North Carolina. In Orange County Augustin Deschamps had a farm with a large peach orchard and on this farm he lived from 1793 until his death in 1820. In describing Augustin Deschamps’ last days, Dr. Louis Deshong said “My grandfather Dishong remained in Chowan County, North Carolina until the close of the War of 1776 when he and all of his family removed to Orange County some 200 miles west where he lived and died of a pollypud of the nose; he was 80 years of age, and had been a member of the Baptist Church for many years”. The American Revolution ended with the Treaty of Paris in 1783 thus it appears that Dr. Deshong may have been confused by ten years on the date that Augustin Deschamps moved to Orange County. Records in Chowan County after 1793 are devoid of any mention of Augustin Deschamps or his family.⁹⁷ Today descendants of Augustin Deschamps and Elizabeth White live in North Carolina as well as many other states including Mississippi, Oklahoma, Texas and Florida.^95,97,98

The Marriage Register of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) for the year 1761 records the marriage of one of the Acadians deported to North Carolina - Simon Guétry.¹⁰⁰ The Simon Guétry mentioned is Joseph Guédry, son of Augustin Guédry and Jeanne Hébert.<="2">

Also, this register for the year 1763 contains the marriage of René Le Core and Blanche Dechamps, daughter of Joseph Dechamps and Judith Douaron (Doiron).¹⁰⁰

Guétry-Melançon: January 22d, Simon Yetry (Guétry) to Magdalen Melançon

Le Core-Dechamps: February 14^th, René Le Core to Blanche, daughter of Joseph Dechamps; witnesses Halin d’Aigre and Joseph Ribaud; the nuptial blessing was given afterwards at Mass.

The Baptismal Register of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) for the year 1762 records the baptism of Susan Catharine Butin.¹⁰¹ She was Susan Catherine Boutin, daughter of Paul Boutin and Ursule Guédry. The sponsor (i.e., godfather) of Susan Catherine Boutin, called “Peter Dietry” in the Register, was Pierre Guédry, the brother of Ursule Guédry and uncle of Susan Catherine Boutin.

Butin, Susan Catharine, of Paul and Ursula Butin, born December 17, 1761, baptized June 24, sponsors Peter Dietry and Christina Geiger, ibid.

At least some of the Acadians deported to North Carolina left for Pennsylvania by late 1760 as indicated by the marriage of Joseph Guédry to Magdalen Melançon on 22 January 1761 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Why they left North Carolina and how they traveled to Pennsylvania is not known at this time.

In 1763 we find many of the Merilguèche Acadians in Pennsylvania and Maryland. On 10 February 1763 the Treaty of Paris ended the Seven Years War (French and Indian War) and a new phase in Acadian – British relations began. The French government petitioned England to send the Acadians imprisoned there to France. Once on French soil, these Acadians sent copies of the petition to their relatives in British North America. By mid-1763 the Acadians in each English colony sent a petition to the French government requesting repatriation to France or a French colony. Each petition included a list of the Acadians in the particular colony. In the petitions from Pennsylvania and the Maryland communities of Snowhill and Port Tobacco we find many of the Acadians captured in Merliguèche in September 1755 and deported to North Carolina from Halifax in December 1755.

On 20 June 1763 in Pennsylvania^102,103,104 were:
* Paul Boutin, Ursulle Boutin, his wife with six children
* Joseph Guedry, Magdelaine his wife with three children
* Pierre Guedry single
* Allen Daigle and Frosine Deschamps and three children
* René Le Corps and LaBlanche Deschamps his wife
* Paul Ebert, Marie Ebert his wife with five children

None of the above Acadians appeared on the “List of Acadian Families in Pennsylvania at the Beginning of 1757”¹⁰⁵ indicating that they arrived in Pennsylvania after early 1757.

In Snowhill, Maryland on 7 July 1763^{106,107,108,109} were:
* Francois Lucas, Anne Lucas his wife, Rose Lucas, Marie Lucas, Margueritte Lucas
* Louis Déchamp, Marie Déchamp his wife, Marie Déchamp [NOTE: Louis Déchamp was the son of Augustin Deschamps and Elizabeth White.]

At Port Tobacco, Maryland on 7 July 1763^{110,111,112,113} were:
* Joseph Gaidris, Marie Benoist Gaidris his wife, Gabriel Gaidris, Joseph Gaidris, Genevieve Gaidris
* Honoré Trahan, Marie Trahan his wife, Marie Trahan, Pierre Trahan, orphan Joseph LeJeunne, orphan Antoine LeJeune
* Honoré Braux, Magdelaine Braux his wife, Magdelaine Braux, Marie Breaux, Margueritte Braux; Blaise LeJeune orphan. [NOTE: Apparently both Jean LeJeune and his wife Marguerite Trahan died before July 1763 as their son Blaise LeJeune is listed as an orphan.]
* Louis Latier, Anne Latier his wife, Antoine Latier, Anne Benoist orphan, Rose Benoist orphan, Margueritte Benoist orphan. [NOTE: Anne Trahan Latier, wife of Louis Latier, was the first cousin of Honoré Trahan and the widow of Jean Benoît. Anne, Rose and Margueritte Benoist were not truly orphans, but the children of her first marriage to the deceased Jean Benoît.]

Within these three petitions from Acadians at Snowhill and Port Tobacco, Maryland and at Pennsylvania are found at least one member of each family from the reconstructed list of Acadians deported to North Carolina from Halifax on 30 December 1755. Several of these Acadians continued their search for a new Acadian homeland and migrated to Louisiana in 1767, 1768 and 1769 including the families of Paul Boutin (Ursule Guédry) [with two of the children of the late Charles Boutin and Marie-Josephe Guédry], Pierre Guédry, Honoré Trahan (Marie Corperon), Blaise LeJeune, Joseph Guédry (son of Joseph Guédry & Magdeleine Melançon), Joseph Guédry (Marie-Josephe Benoît) and Louis Latier (Anne Trahan). A few families stayed in Maryland after 1763 including the families of Louis Déchamp and François Lucas (Hélène Guédry).

A long journey indeed was suffered by these Merliguèche Acadians exiled to North Carolina in 1756. Fearing the harsh policies of the British and threatened by their priest Father Le Loutre, they left the Acadian mainland in 1749-1750 to resettle on Île Royale or Île Saint-Jean. Facing near starvation from drought and poor soils they returned to Merliguèche in 1754 where they were captured by the British in late 1755, imprisoned on George’s Island at Halifax and then deported to North Carolina on 30 December 1755. Leaving North Carolina about 1760, they went either to Pennsylvania or Maryland where they remained until the late 1760’s. Still seeking a new Acadian homeland, many journeyed to Louisiana in 1767- 769; however, even within Louisiana they had to relocate several times within the next fifteen years. The tenacity and courage of these Acadian people to preserve their culture and religion is almost unparalleled in human history.

REFERENCES

39. Bell, Winthrop P.; The “Foreign Protestants” and the Settlement of Nova Scotia - The History of a Piece of Arrested British Colonial Policy in the Eighteenth Century (Centre for Canadian Studies, Mount Allison University; Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada; 2^nd edition, 1992), pp. 403-404. [1^st edition, 1961 by University of Toronto Press; Toronto, Ontario, Canada]

40. Murdoch, Beamish; A History of Nova-Scotia or Acadie (James Barnes, Printer and Publisher; Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada; 1866), p. 81.

41. “Letter of Messrs. Beauharnois & Hocquart to the Count de Maurepas, 12 September 1745, Québec, Canada”. Transcribed copy at the National Archives of Canada (395 Wellington Street, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1A 0N3), MG1, Series C11A, Vol. 83. (Microfilm No. F-83).

63. “1755 Victual List for Lunenburg”; http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.co/~ked1/1755vict.html

64. “A list of Foreign and other Settlers Victualled at Lunenburg and Halifax Between the 23 Feb. 1756 and the 16th May”; National Archives of Canada (395 Wellington Street, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1A 0N3), MG18, F19, N.S. 1749-1756.

65. Kaulback, Ruth E.; Historic Saga of Lehève (LaHave) (Ruth E. Kaulback; Petite Riviere, Nova Scotia, Canada; 1970), pp. 94-102 (“A list of Foreign and other Settlers Victualled at Lunenburg and Halifax Between the 23 Feb. 1756 and the 16th May”).

66. “1756 Lunenburg Vitualling List”; http://www.seawhy.com/vict56.html

89. Landry, Don; “Ships of the Acadian Expulsion – A Compilation of Information on the Eighteenth Century Transport Vessels, Used by the British to Transport the Acadians (“Neutral French”) during the Acadian Expulsion of 1755”; http://www.landrystuff.com/ExpulsionShips.html

94. Saunders, William L., Clark, Walter and Weeks, Stephen B.; The Colonial and State Records of North Carolina (“Documenting the American South” [DocSouth]; Online Digital Collection; 2008-2009), Volume V, p. 894; http://docsouth.unc.edu/csr/index.html/volumes

95. Land Record of Luke White dated 8 October 1758, Chowan County, North Carolina; “Record of Deeds Book Q, 1773-1777, Chowan County”. Located in the Chowan County Courthouse in Edeton, NC, it was registered on 26 February 1774.

96. Maxson, Helen Morin, Ibid.; pp. 72, 74.

97. Will of Luke White dated 17 November 1770, Chowan County, North Carolina; “Chowan Co. Wills, 1694-1938, Warner-White, Will Book A, Page 185”. The will was executed at Edenton, Chowan County, NC and is located in the North Carolina State Archives in Raleigh, NC.

98. Johnson, Jeffrey Earl (Jay); “Deschamps Family History” (Website within FamilyTreeMaker Online of Genealogy.com; Updated September 6, 2000). http://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/users/j/o/h/Jeffrey-E-Johnson/index.html

99. Letter, Stephen A. White (Centre d’Études Acadiennes, Université de Moncton, Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada) to Mrs. Helen Morin Maxson (Charlotte, North Carolina), 9 February 2006.

100. Furey, Francis T.; “Father Farmer’s Marriage Register, 1758-1786, Preserved at St. Joseph’s Church, Philad’a.”, Records of the American Catholic Historical Society of Philadelphia, Vol. 1 – 1884-1886 (American Catholic Historical Society of Philadelphia; Philadelphia, PA; 1887), pp. 279, 282.

101. Middleton, Rev. Dr.; “List of Baptisms Registered at St. Joseph’s Church, Philadelphia. (First Series.) From August 29, 1758, to December 31, 1775.”, Records of the American Catholic Historical Society of Philadelphia, Vol. 1I – 1886-1888 (American Catholic Historical Society of Philadelphia; Philadelphia, PA; 1889), p. 266.

102. Rieder, Milton P. Jr. and Rieder, Norma Gaudet; The Acadian Exiles in the American Colonies, 1755-1768 (Milton P. Rieder, Jr. and Norma Gaudet Rieder; Metairie, LA; 1977), pp. 2-3, 5.

103. Jehn, Janet; Acadian Exiles in the Colonies (Janet Jehn; Covington, KY; 1977), pp. 213-214, 216-218.

104. National Archives of Canada (Ottawa, Canada); “Liste Des noms et nombres de Tous Les accadiens qui sont dans la pinsilvenia, 20 juin 1763”, MG 5, Volume 450, Folios 416-417.

by Marty Guidry