Matrilineal Monday: Remembering Juliette

Juliette (Beauvais) Desgroseilliers, 1930s

Today – June 30th – is the 113th anniversary of my maternal grandmother Juliette’s birth.

Juliette, baptised “Julie Marie”, was born on 30 June 1901 in the village of Chénéville, Papineau County, Quebec. She was the third child and eldest daughter of Joseph Beauvais and his wife Olivine Hotte.

My aunt Madeleine (Mom’s sister) gave me this photo, which I saw for the first time when I visited her during my recent trip to Ontario.

The first thing I notice about this picture is how casual my grandmother Juliette is. I’m also struck by her youth and beauty. I see a strong resemblance between her and her youngest daughter Jeanne d’arc.

Juliette appears confident as she looks straight at the camera. She is young, probably in her 30s. She is dressed stylishly and wears white pumps. There’s a large floral decoration at her right shoulder. I think I see a barrette (hair clip) in her hair, as well as a necklace, and a ring (her wedding ring?) on her left hand.

If I’m right about her age, the photo was probably taken in Hearst, Ontario, between 1927 and 1936, but more likely 1931 to 1935. The house number “205” is seen above the door. Is this her home, where she lived with her husband Eugène and their children?

I wonder why this picture was taken – could it be her birthday?

So many questions, so few answers.

Copyright © 2014, Yvonne Demoskoff.

Matrilineal Monday: Eugène Desgroseilliers

My maternal grandfather Eugène Desgroseilliers' matrilineal line is relatively long: it extends 12 generations. His matrilineal ancestry reaches back to the early 1600s to his 9x great-grandmother Marie Bruyère who was born and died in France. Marie and her husband did not immigrate to New France (Canada). Their daughter Marie, probably born in Cognac, Saintonge, France, arrived in Montreal in November 1653.

Eugène Desgroseilliers's Matrilineal Ancestry:

1. Eugène Desgroseilliers (1900-1960)

m. 1925 Juliette Beauvais

2. Clémentine Léveillé (1878-1969)

m. 1899 Albert Desgroseilliers

3. Cordélia Racette (1849-1928)

m. 1870 Joseph Léveillé

4. Marcelline Gagnon (1831-1918)

m. 1847 Joseph Racette

5. Marguerite Ducasse (1804-1872)

m. 1823 Charles Gagnon

6. Marguerite Charland (1788-after 1851)

m. 1802 François Ducasse

7. Geneviève Rouillard (1756-1815)

m. (1) 1773 Jean-Baptiste Charland

8. Marie Josephe Truchon (1726-1784)

m. (2) 1750 Pierre Rouillard

9. Marie Josephe Charpentier (1698-1729)

m. 1720 Pierre Truchon dit Léveillé

10. Françoise Hunault (1667-1748)

m. (2) 1691 Gilles (Jean) Charpentier

11. Marie Lorgueil (about 1636-1700)

m. 1654 Toussaint Hunault

12. Marie Bruyère (?-?)

m. Pierre Lorgeuil

Copyright © 2012, Yvonne Demoskoff.

Matrilineal Monday: My Father’s Matrilineal Line

My father Maurice’s matrilineal line is short – it’s only six generations. His matrilineal ancestry goes back to his great-great-great-grandmother Marie Kekijicakoe, who was born about 1793. Marie was possibly Ojibwa (Chippewa, Algonquin) from the Lake Nipissing region of present-day Ontario, Canada.

Maurice Belair’s Matrilineal Line:

1. Maurice Belair (1927-1996)

2. Julie Vanasse (1896-1967)

3. Elisabeth Vanasse (1862-1947)

4. Marie Guérard (1840-1917)

5. Euphrosine Laronde (ca 1820-between 1852 – 1861)

6. Marie Kekijicakoe [Kekijicoköe] (ca 1793-between 1846 – 1870)

I plan on writing an article or two about what I’ve found so far about my Métis and Aboriginal heritage in a future article on my blog.

Copyright © 2012, Yvonne Demoskoff.

Matrilineal Monday: My Husband’s Matrilineal Line

Two weeks ago, I posted my seven-generation matrilineal line here. Today, I’m following up that post with a brief review of my husband Michael’s matrilineal line. His line is shorter than mine – it’s only four generations. His matrilineal ancestry goes back to his great-grandmother who died in 1925. I should emphasize that this is Michael’s known matrilineal line; of course, his line extends even further back, but at this time, it’s unknown to him and to me despite our research into his past.

Michael’s Matrilineal Line:

1. Michael Demoskoff

2. Ann Cazakoff (1926-1980)

3. Polya [Pelageya] (Polly) Poznekoff (1887-1971)

4. Oxenia [Aksin’ya] Malakoff (?- 1925)

Copyright © 2012, Yvonne Demoskoff.

Matrilineal Monday: My Matrilineal Line

Scientists have “calculated that all living humans are related to a single woman who lived roughly 150,000 years ago in Africa, a ‘mitochondrial Eve’ […].” (Source: James Shreeve, “The Greatest Journey”, National Geographic, March 2006, p. 62.)

I have been fascinated for years by mtDNA (mitochondrial DNA), in which a person’s maternal ancestry (from a daughter to her mother to her mother’s mother and so on) is traced. I can follow my matrilineal line for seven generations – from myself (no. 1) to my great-great-great-great-grandmother (no. 7).  I can’t go further, though, because I haven’t been able to find any information about Marie Marguerite’s parents.

My Matrilineal Line:

1. Yvonne Belair

2. Jacqueline Desgroseilliers

3. Juliette Beauvais (1901-1948)

4. Olivine Hotte (1879-1926)

5. Marguerite Lacasse (1839-1907)

6. Thérèse Durgey dite Doyer (1810-1900)

 7. Marie Marguerite Carpentier (ca 1782-1874)

For those who are curious, the longest proven matrilineal descent is an amazing 37 generations, from the wife of Henry I, Count of Limburg (who died in 1119) through Empress Maria Theresia of Austria to the granddaughters of Michael, the exiled King of Romania (born in 1921). The interested reader will find this line and 100s of other ones in Matrilineal Descents of the European Royalty (5th edition, 1997) by William Addams Reitwiesner. This monumental work is the largest collection of matrilineal genealogies ever assembled. It was compiled by William (who passed away in 2010) and is available in book format at the Library of Congress and on microfiche in larger libraries around the world. 

Copyright © 2012, Yvonne Demoskoff.