The people best fitted for this country are those who can work with their own hands.
Pierre Boucher
Tag: French Canadian Roots
Le What?
À vaillant coeur rien d’impossible. -Jacques Cœur
One family name that I have often found spelled in different ways is the La Duke surname. To date, I have discovered Le Duc, La Duc, and, of course, La Duke. Even the capitalization was sometimes different too, for I have also uncovered Le duc, La duc, and La duke. And sometimes the names did not contain any spaces at all; the names were spelled Leduc, Laduc, Laduke, and La Decue. Continue reading “Le What?”
Marie Anne Lagou: A New Life in New France
About 1652, my ninth grandmother, Marie Anne Lagou was born to Pierre Lagou and Marie Boiscochin in the parish of Saint-Etienne in Le Mans, Maine. At the age of 18, after her father’s death, she left her home and sailed to New France under the sponsorship of King Louis XIV of France. Later, she would become known as a filles du roi, or a King’s Daughter. She left France to marry and settle in the wilderness in the New World that France longed to develop. My grandmother arrived in Quebec in 1670 with a dowry of 200 livres. Continue reading “Marie Anne Lagou: A New Life in New France”
The King’s Daughters
As she stood on the ship’s deck, the wind tugged at her hair, pulling it free from the combs and pins that tried to keep rebellious strands in place. She viewed the harbor and the lands before her. The beating of her heart quickened as she thought about the strange new life that waited for her. She could hardly imagine what secrets this new land presented; where would she live? What would her new life offer? Mostly, she wondered about her future husband, and her bewilderment consumed her. Continue reading “The King’s Daughters”
Tales of a Family 