Etienne Racine

On March 23, 1632, by the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, England returned to France its' rights to all the provinces, which then made up New France. Immediately, Cardinal de Richelieu ordered the Company of One Hundred Associates to send a contingent to Quebec, to drive out the Kirke brothers and to take back possession of the fort. Emery de Caen, his lieutenant, Duplessis Bochart and their escort left Le Harve, pulled into port at Honfleur and on April 18, the day of Quasimodo, set sail on the high seas. After ten days of good weather, the small fleet came up against mountainous seas.

"We have found winter during the summer, in other words the month of May and a part of June, the winds and the fog froze us",

recounted Father Paul Le Jeune, who took part in the voyage.

On July 5, after two months and 18 days of sailing, there finally appeared what remained of Quebec. The English had burned the dwellings of the Jesuits and Champlain's homestead.

"We went to celebrate holy mass in the oldest house of the country. It is the house of madame Hebert, who was accustomed to the fort, during the lifetime of her husband; she had a fine family, her daughter is married here to an honest Frenchman. God blesses them every day, he has given them very beautiful children; their livestock are in very good condition, their lands yield good grain; they are the only French family accustomed to Canada. They sought means to return to France but having learned that the French had returned to Kebec, they began to be restored . When they saw the arrival of these white flags on the masts of our ships, they did not know to whom to express their pleasure; but when they saw us in their house to say the holy mass, which they had not heard in three years, good God, what joy! Tears fell from the eyes of almost everyone, from the extreme satisfaction that they had".

SERVANT OF GUILLAUME HUBOU

This Dame Hebert, mentioned in the report of Father Le Jeune, was Marie Rolet, the widow of Louis Hebert, the first Canadian colonist. She remarried, in May of 1629, to Guillaume Hubou, originally from Mesnil-Durand, Arrondisement of Liseux, in Normandy (Calvados). We know from an act drawn up on May 23, 1641, by the Notary Martial Piraube that, in 1637, Etienne Racine was in service to Guillaume Hubou, at Quebec. In the autumn of the same year, two marriage contracts written by Jean Guitet also attest to the presence of the young Normand colonist on this side of the Atlantic. His fine signature is also proof that, he had received an above average education. On October 22, Etienne Racine and Claude Etienne were the two official witnesses when Jean Nicolet, clerk and interpreter of the Company of New France promised to marry Marguerite Couillard, the daughter of Guillaume Couillard and Guillaumette Hebert. What was more natural than for Etienne Racine to participate in the festivities, in which his adoptive family took part! Present were Guillaume Hubou, Marie Rolet, Guillaume Hebert and other pioneers of the new colony, such as Francois Derre de Grand, Pierre de Laporte, Jean Juchereau de Maure, Olivier Tardif/LeTardif and Nicolas Marsolet.

On November 16, Etienne Racine and Marguerite Martin were the heros of the celebration held in the house of Abraham Martin. This document is the first to reveal to us the origins of the young fiance. He was the son of Rene Racine and Marie Loisel, from the parish Fumichon, in Normandy. For the occasion, he was assisted by his "kind friends" Guillaume Couillard and Adrienne d'Abancourt, the future bride of Jean Joliet. For her part, Marguerite Martin, the daughter of Abraham and Marguerite Langlois, was baptized at Quebec, on January 4, 1624 and displayed the freshness of her thirteen years against the mature thirties that her suitor had already accumulated. The young girl was assisted by her godfather and godmother, Nicolas Pivert and Marguerite Lesage and Guillaume Hebert. What probably appeared to her as a fortune was the 200 livres promised from her groom to her, plus a dowry of 50 livres. The couple benefited also from the 100 livres in silver which Abraham Martin gave Etienne after the wedding, plus utensils and clothes valued at 64 livres. The godfather and godmother, who had no children, also gave a gift of 100 livres, in silver, several articles of clothing and utensils appraised at 260 livres, for a total value of 524 livres. Also noted was the presence of Guillaume Hebert, Olivier Tardif/LeTardif, general clerk and Adrien Duchesne, the first surgeon of Quebec.

THE FRENCH FAMILY

Like Guillaume Hubou, his employer, Etienne Racine was originally from the region of Lisieux. The community of Fumichon is located thirteen kilometers northeast of this city. It's 21 hamlets are now wedged into Calvados. Fumichon already existed in the thirteenth century. The seigneurs built a chateau there at the end of the sixteenth century, as well as buildings bonded in square towards Lisieux before plunging down a more hilly slope.

According to Lucien and Denis Racine, authors of the Dictionnaire genealogique de la famille Racine in Amerique, the last name of Our Ancestor is frequently found not only at Fumichon but also in the neighboring villages of Saint-Vincent-du-Boulay, Saint-Martin-le-Vieil, Thiberville, Neuville-sur-Authou and Morainville.

Research carried out at Fumichon allowed the discovery, on January 23, 1628, of the marriage contract of Francois Barbey and Marguerite Racine, Etienne's sister. On this date, Rene, the father, was already dead. Etienne and his brothers, Jean and Pierre, were mentioned there. It also noted that other sons were absent. Marie Loisel and her children promised a dowry of 620 livres, one cow, two dozen ewes and an impressive trousseau. In the receipt, dated August 10, 1630, from Francois Barbey, the presence of Etienne, his mother and another of his brothers was noted.

IN THE CRADLE OF NEW FRANCE

What year did Etienne Racine immigrate to New France? Was he on board one of the eight ships commanded by the Admiral Duplessis Bochart, which left the port of Dieppe, on April 8, 1636? We know that, Governor Huault de Montmagny was part of this voyage and that, he was welcomed triumphantly at Quebec on June 11. On that occasion, Father Le Jeune noted in his report that

"the number of ships informs us that the matters of New France hold importance among the great cares of the Ancienne and that the affections of the Messieurs of the Company will every day be increasing and the first actions of Monsieur de Montmagny, our Governor, gives us hope that we all can reach a spirit full of piety, resolution and conduct".

In this same report, Father Le Jeune also praised Guillaume Hubou, perhaps Etienne Racine's first employer, in these heroic times in which New France had barely begun to see the arrival of French colonists.

It was on May 22, 1638 that, Father Nicolas Adam fulfilled his parish duties at Quebec. He blessed the union of Etienne Racine and Marguerite Martin, now fourteen years old. Olivier Tardif/LeTardif and Guillaume Couillard were present. Abraham Martin dit l'Ecossais, the father of the bride, was one of the earliest colonists of the country. Having arrived before 1620, with his wife, he practiced the trade of royal pilot. His presence in New France, during the occupation by the Kirke brothers, between 1629 and 1632, is not unanimous with historians. Some, following Benjamin Sulte, affirm it strongly. Archange Godbout doubts it. Marcel Trudel and Rene Jette are of the opinion that, he and his family returned to France, which seems to be the case if we believe the observations held by Father Le Jeune, in 1632. Eustache Martin, the eldest son of Abraham and his sister, Marguerite, were baptized respectively in 1621 and 1623, were the second and third children of White men born at Quebec, the first having been their cousin Helene Desportes, born in 1620, to the marriage of Pierre Desportes and Francoise Langlois.

The family of Etienne Racine and Marguerite Martin began under an unfortunate omen. On September 30, 1640, they had a little girl, whom Nicolas Pivert hurried to conditionally baptize and who died before she could be given a first name. This birth would be followed by nine others more fortunate. These children all became adults and married, except for a daughter, Marie, who became a nun.

An educated man, Etienne Racine was often called to act as witness in notarized acts. Several times, he and Marguerite were also asked to become godparents, even for the Amerindians. On October 21, 1639, Etienne was asked by Governor Montmagny to be a guardian for the minor children of the late Guillaume Hebert and Helene Desportes. The same day, he was also a witness to the renunciation by the latter, to the estate of her late husband. He was also present when Notary Martial Piraube, on the following December 27, drew up the marriage contract of Noel Morin and Helene Desportes. Already the mother of three children by Guillaume Hebert, Helene would give Noel twelve more.

On November 25, 1643, Marguerite Lesage, the godmother of Marguerite Martin, feeling her end approach, summoned the Notary Guillaume Tronquet to her home, in order to dictate to him her last wishes. She was lying in her sick bed, in the lower room located across from the barn of the homestead. Her husband, Nicolas Pivert, a clerk in service of the Company of New France, would be the executor of her will. Among other gifts, Marguerite bequeathed to her god-daughter 50 livres for "the agreeable services which she had rendered her". A similar amount was awarded to Louise Racine, then two years old, for "the affection that she bears her". The dying woman surrendered her soul three days later.

A SOJOURN WITH THE HURONS AND IN FRANCE

By 1639, the Jesuits had established at Sainte-Marie-des-Hurons (Midland Ontario), a post from where they would be able to spread their missionary activities in Huronia. About 1644, they invited Etienne Racine to join them there. Some 45 other colonists also worked at this mission, notably Gilles Bacon, Claude and Pierre Boucher, Jean Garon, Guillaume Couture, Medard Chouart des Groseillers, Jean Pelletier, Louis Pinard and Pierre Tourmente. Etienne Racine returned to Quebec in 1645 and went back the following year because, on July 25, 1646, his daughter, Marie-Madeleine, was baptized by Father Jean de Quen. On August 29, the Journal of the Jesuits noted:

"Those who returned this year from the Hurons were Pierrot Cochon, Gilles Bacon, Daniel Carteron, Jean Le Mercier des Groseillers, Racine & Eustache Lambert who was a donne and had to go back & in fact he went back with the above said named; & in addition he was in charge of two calves".

In 1649, under pressure from the Iroquois, the Jesuits regretfully had to destroy their settlement at Sainte-Marie. There was a chapel there, the residences of the Priests, lay personnel, some workshops for the woodworkers and blacksmith, a hospital, a retreat house for the novices, an inn for the non-Christians passing through, a cemetery, a farm with farm yard and domestic animals. The fortified area was flanked by four bastions of stone and it was necessary to cross a drawbridge to enter it. What had been the contribution of Etienne Racine in a village so well organized? Did he practice his talents there as a woodworker? Probably. In his report for the years 1647 and 1648, Father Ragueneau reports the following on the subject of the mission of Sainte-Marie:

"We are forty-two Frenchmen in the middle of all these infidel Nations; eighteen of our Company, the rest of the chosen people the majority of whom plan to live and die with us, assist us by their work and industry with a courage, a fidelity and a saintliness which undoubtedly are not of this earth; also it is only from God alone whom they wait for reward, counting themselves fortunate to spread through their labor and if it is needed through all their blood, in order to contribute what they will be able to in conversion of the barbarians".

The missionary added that the Christians found a hospital, a refuge and an alms house there which had given shelter to more than 3,000 people for a year. The subsisted on Indian corn ground in a mortar and boiled in water, seasoned with a few smoked fish which took the place of salt. All this was used as beverage and food and kept the people in a healthy state less subject to illness. Such was the mode of life which Etienne Racine must have known at Sainte-Marie-des-Hurons.

Returned to his home for more than a year, we find him a month before his departure for France. On September 23, 1647. at the request of Governor Montmagny, he visited the cleared land of Jacques Maheu, located not far from Cap-aux-Diamants, in order to verify the damage caused by the pigs. Etienne himself drew up the report of this visit in the following terms:

"Today Twenty third Day of September gbj forty seven (1647) made a Visit by Estienne Racine To the cleard land of Jacques Maheust by Order of Monsieur Le Governor Who Reported that he had The Value of two minots of peas damaged lost by the pigs of the farm of the homestead And Signed to be Used as thought Proper".

E. Racine (with initial)

A month later, on October 21, a fleet commanded by Louis d'Ailleboust, future governor of New France, left Quebec for France. The Journal of the Jesuits noted this event:

"On the 21st, left the fleet on which were general M. Aillebout, Father Vimont & Father Quentin with him & Father Defretat in the ship Notre-Dame with Monsieur le Tardif, Item M. Nicolet & M. the Prior in other ships".

Etienne Racine was certainly part of this voyage, even if he was not mentioned in this short note because, that autumn, these ships were the last to leave Quebec with a destination for the mother country. Etienne probably did it at the request of Olivier LeTardif/Tardif, since he replaced, in 1641, Francois Derre de Gand as general clerk of the Company of New France. LeTardif/Tardif also took command of the ship LA NOTRE-DAME on board which he went to France each year on Company business. This ship was effectively part of the fleet which left Quebec, on October 21. He returned to Quebec, on September 20, 1648. In the meantime, LeTardif/Tardif took advantage of his stay at La Rochelle to get married. On May 21, in the parish of Saint-Barthelemi, he married Barbe Emard, the daughter of Jean and Marie Bineau and the widow of Gilles Michel. On the preceding April 4, in the same church, Zacharie Cloutier junior had married Madeleine Emard, sister of Barbe. Among the signers of the act appears the name of Etienne Racine, with those of several other Canadian colonists, notable Olivier LeTardif/Tardif, Noel Juchererau, Nicolas Maquart, Jacques Loyer de la Tour, Claude Bouchard dit Dorval, Jeanne Evrard and Jeanne Crevier.

PIONEER OF SAINTE-ANNE-DE-BEAUPRE

It was in 1650 and 1651 that, Olivier LeTardif/Tardif distributed the first official concessions of land at Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupre. Etienne Racine, Claude Poulin, Etienne de Lessard, Robert Giguere, Julien Mercer, Louis Gasnier, Pierre Picard, Julien Fortin and Claude Bouchard were the first beneficiaries. The land with 12 arpents, in frontage, by 126 deep, which Racine obtained, on March 27, 1650, stretched here and there along the Riviere aux Chiens. It had first belonged for the most part to Jacques Boessel, who sold six arpents of it to Jean Cochon. These six arpents with a house, passed to Jacques Delaunay in 1643, before being re-ceded to Etienne Racine in 1650.

LeTardif/Tardif's concession was made by way of cens and seigneurial rents payable on Saint-Martin's Day, in the winter. Etienne promised to build a home during the same year. He also had hunting and fishing rights and he had to fence in his land as it became cleared.

An act by the Notary Audouart, dated July 31, 1650, informs us that, Our Ancestor was not completely settled at Sainte-Anne. On that day, Etienne Racine, ususally living on the homestead at Saint-Francois, near Sillery, leased from Nicolas Juchereau de Saint-Denis a hairless cow and a two-month old calf, for three consecutive years beginning on May 15, 1649. The tenant had to provide each year, half of the manure and 25 pounds of butter which the cow produced and 10 livres the first year and 12 for the other two years, for the calf. The witnesses Flour Boujonnier and Nicolas Colson signed with Racine at the bottom of the act. Upon his return from France, in 1648, Racine would have continued to work for the Jesuits at their mission at Saint-Francois de Sillery, where the Christian Hurons sought shelter beginning in 1646, after being driven out of Saint-Marie by the Iroquois.

If Etienne Racine found himself more often than usually at the homestead at Saint-Francois, we can assume that, he stayed elsewhere sometimes. This was his land at the Riviere aux Chiens, where he had a house, perhaps also the cow and the calf that he had in his possession for more than a year. His family must have already been living on the Beaupre Coast. This would explain why Francois, born on July 16, 1649, had only been brought to Quebec, on August 22, to be baptized.

In 1650, the engineer Jean Bourdon, accompanied by Jean-Paul Godefroy, went to France to negotiate the establishment of the Compagnie de Tadoussac. The following year, on July 5, before he left to return to Canada, he hired several recruits, including Francois Lemaitre, who settled at Trois-Rivieres, and Julien Lenoble, originally from Blainville, whose services were required by Etienne Racine. This Lenoble does not seem to have left any trace here. Did he really come?

The year 1651 would be tragic for the Racine family. On July 21, the Journal of the Jesuits reported that Etienne's house burned about 10:00 o'clock in the morning. Since this disaster took place during daytime, there was fortunately no loss of life.

THE BRIDE WAS TWELVE YEARS OLD

Marguerite Martin was only 14 years old when she married Etienne Racine, in 1638. Their daughter, Louise, baptized at Quebec, on September 2, 1641, would marry even younger than her mother. On November 10, 1653, at the age of 12 years and two months old, she married Simon Guyon, who was 32 years old, 20 years older. At that time, the age to marry was set at 14 for boys and 12 for girls. There were a few cases in which the bride was only 11. These marriages, if they were reported to the religious authorities, had to be annulled. Marguerite Couillard, the daughter of Guillaume and Guillemette Hebert, Marguerite Sedilot, the daughter of Louis and Marie Grimoult, Marie-Francoise Giffard, the daughter of Robert and Marie Renouard, Catherine Gauthier, the daughter of Philippe and Marie Pichin, contracted marriages, at the age of 11 years old.

Twelve year old brides were not numerous either. The most famous was, undoubtedly, Helene Boulle, the daughter of Nicolas and Marguerite Allix, whom Champlain took for his wife, on December 30, 1610. Because of her age, it was specified that, the marriage would only be consummated two years later. We have not found any such written contract between Simon Guyon and Louise Racine but, at the very least, there must have been a verbal agreement because, their first child was only born in 1659.

SLOW BEGINNING OF SAINTE-ANNE AND CHATEAU-RICHER

The Beaupre Coast received its first inhabitants shortly after the departure of the Kirke brothers, during the fourth decade of the seventeenth century. Until 1658, there was no chapel at either Sainte-Anne-du-Petit-Cap or Chateau-Richer. From time to time, the colonists received visits from a missionary. Babies were conditionally baptized before being regularly baptized, sometimes very much later. Pierre Racine, born on October 26, 1654, conditionally baptized on November 2, by Father Paul Ragueneau, was finally brought to Quebec to be baptized there on October 3, 1655, by Father Jerome Lalemant. The infant had the first name of Pierre, like his godfather Pierre LeGangneur, ship's captain and merchant, from La Rochelle, passing through Quebec.

During the same years, Marguerite Martin and Etienne Racine would, themselves, be godparents of many children from their neighborhood. Sometimes, the baptisms took place at Etienne's house. On August 6, 1658, the latter conditionally baptized Marie-Madeleine, the daughter of Georges Pelletier and Catherine Vanier. The preceding year, the same couple had had a child with the given name of Claude, who joined the Recollets in 1679 and was better known by the name of Brother Didace. He died at Trois-Rivieres, in 1699.

Arriving in the country, on June 16, 1659, Msgr. de Laval, the following year, undertook his first pastoral visit during the course of which, he administered the sacrament of confirmation not only to children but to many adults, who, in the absence of a bishop in New France, had not yet received it. On February 2, 1660, the bishop was at Chateau-Richer. Five members of the Racine family were confirmed there; Marguerite Martin and four of her seven children, Louise, Noel, Madeleine and Francois.

A HOUSE IN THE LOWER TOWN

On February 6, 1661, Bertrand Chesnaye de la Garenne summoned the Notary Guillaume Audouart and Etienne Racine and his son-in-law, Simon Guyon, to his home at Quebec, in order to sell them a house located in the Lower-Town, of Quebec, in the immediate neighborhood of the storehouse of the Community of Inhabitants. The said property included two rooms and an attic. In return, the seller asked the buyers to build him a shed and a house on his homestead, on the Beaupre Coast, adjacent to that of Zacharie Cloutier junior. It all had to be completed on All Saint's Day of the following year. Some difficulties occured concerning the possession of the house in the Lower-Town because, January 21, 1667, Pierre and Guyon addressed the judge of the Provost of Quebec, in order to force Sieur de la Garenne to pay them 800 livres, which was the value of the exchanged house or to build them a similar one. Chesnaye stated that, the problem would have occured about the month of August 1665, when the Intendant presented an obstacle. The judge had to render a decision in one week. However, after an agreement between the parties and the arbitration of the Intendant, the compensation was set at 700 livres. The house, in the Lower-Town, would finally be sold to Intendant Talon, on October 11, 1671 for 400 livres.

THREE TIMES IN THE CENSUS

Etienne Racine and his family were recorded in the three major censuses of New France, in the seventeenth century. Each time they were reported on the coast or Seigneurie of Beaupre. In 1666, the Ancestor said that, he was 59 years old and his wife was 41. Louise, the eldest daughter, was listed at her parents home and then at her home with her husband, Simon Guyon and her three children, Jean, Marie and Marguerite. Nicolas Delage, 24 years old, was a servant for the Racines. Originally from Segonzac, in Saintonge, Nicolas settled at Sainte-Famille, Ile d'Orleans and founded a home there. In 1667, Etienne Racine stated that, he owned eleven head of cattle and that, he worked 30 arpents of his land. Seven children still lived under the paternal roof. In 1681, 77 years old and now a widower, Etienne lived with three of his children, Pierre, Etienne and Jeanne. The young Etienne Simard, 16 years old, acted as servant. The livestock was reduced to eight head of cattle and the cultivated land to 15 arpents. Over the hearth hung two rifles used for hunting wild game and any possible enemy. The majority of the married children lived in the immediate area of the paternal land.

DEATH OF PATRIARCH ABRAHAM

The Racine family suffered its first important mourning in 1664. On September 8, patriarch Abraham Martin, the father of Marguerite, undertook his ultimate journey, the one from which no one ever has returned. The sisters, Marguerite and Francoise Langlois, married respectively to Abraham Martin and Pierre Desportes, had given birth to the first living children in New France. Arrived here in the 1610's, these two families are counted among the first who lived on Quebec soil.

Two days before the death of Abraham, the Notary Duquet went to the bedside of the sick man, in his house on the outskirts of Quebec, in order to record his last wishes. This occured about 9:00 o'clock, in the evening, in the presence of the bailiffs Jean Levasseur and Jean Bourdon de Romainville and the master cabinetmaker Jacques de la Roe and Jacques Ratte, the dying man's son-in-law. On October 7th and 8th, the same notary drew up the inventory of property left by the deceased. We learn from it that, Abraham died in his house and that, the land that he had first occupied had been ceded by Montmagny to the surgeon Adrien Duchesne, on April 5, 1639 and that, the latter had given it to Abraham six years later. In an agreemnet reached on November 7, before the same notary, the heirs agreed that their mother could continue to own the land, her personal property and the livestock on the condition that she pay her late husband's debts and meet certain financial commitments.

Marguerite Langlois did not suffer the absence of her husband for very long. She, herself, was buried on December 19, 1665. Less than two years later, on the first of June, 1667, the heirs, Etienne Racine, as their leader, decided to sell this land with an estimated area of 32 arpents, for 1,200 livres to the Ursulines. The nuns were represented by the surgeon Jean Madry, who was in charge of distributing this amount as follows: 240 livres to Amador Martin, when he reaches his majority; 480 livres to the sellers except for the share to Nicolas Forget, the husband of Madeleine Martin, the daughter of Abraham which remained in the hands of Madry, the remaining 480 livres had to be paid on the next Christmas. The heirs stated that, they had been forced to sell this land because it remained fallow and that, the buildings had fallen into ruins and that, they did not have sufficient resources to return it to a cultivated state.

According to the description made by the historian Marcel Trudel, the old homestead of Abraham Martin would today be located on the plateau, which overhangs the coast of Abraham, in a quadrilateral located north of the Grand-Theatre and the Marie Guyart building. During the morning of January 11, 1668, in the outer parlor of the Ursulines, Etienne Racine and Marguerite Martin gave a receipt to the nuns for 120 livres, the remainder of their share of the estate of Abraham Martin. This document was initialed by the Notary Becquet.

A GREAT FRIEND

Father Paul Ragueneau arrived at Quebec in the company of Brother Louis Gobert, on June 28, 1636, with the fleet commanded by Duplessis Bochart. He appears to have been a great friend of the Racine family. Did he and Etienne meet each other during this crossing of 1636? It is possible. In 1637, Father Ragueneau was assigned to the Huron mission, which he became head of in 1645. He was probably the one who requested the services of Etienne Racine at his mission. On March 22, 1652, at Quebec, it was this missionary, who baptized Marguerite, the third daughter of Etienne Racine and Marguerite Martin. On November 2, 1654, he was found again at the Racine home, on the Beaupre Coast where, he conditionally baptized the newborn Pierre, born on October 26 and baptized at Quebec on October 3rd of the following year.

Father Ragueneau went back to France and never returned. However, the contacts with the Racines continued. A letter written at Paris, on December 18, 1669 and sent to Marguerite Martin was discovered in an old chest full of documents concerning the Racine family, property of Lucien Racine.

"My dear daughter", wrote the former missionary, "the hand which has written for you is a good hand. A similar one is needed for your good heart which aways gave me only consolation, always being disposed to God and to the matter of your salvation, as well as the good heart of your dear husband, which has made me hope that God will always bless your family and which has always given me a great love for all your children, which I will keep all my life. And if God grants me mercy, I will continue in heaven after my death to pray for all of you because I would willingly give my blood and my life for all of you. My dear daughter, although you will fall in your weaknesses and in your faults, everything will not fail to go well for you. You will have reward of your good desires and when you achieve them, you will have in addition reward for your good work. Continue as you have begun, Heaven will be for you".

And the letter continues, very full of pious exhortations and expressions of love for the children, as well as good words for the Cloutier family. He adds:

"It seems to me that I travelled the entire coast during that Christmas time. The thought of it is more agreeable to me than the magnificent palaces of the Seigneurs and the Princes which often I see in Paris. Jesus Christ was born in a stable. Your poor little house are closer to it than the Louvres and Palaces".

DEPARTURE AND MOURNING

The decade which followed was mainly marked by death and two mournings, which decimated the very close Racine family. The year 1675 began rather badly with the sudden death of Louise, the eldest daughter, married more than twenty years to the carpenter Simon Guyon. Besides her husband, she left seven young children.

The same year, it was the departure of Marie, for Montreal. She left everything to join the nursing sisters at the Hotel-Dieu. Her father, already aging, did not make the journey to see his daughter receive the nun's habit. Instead, he entrusted this duty to her godfather, Pierre Gagnon. On March 15, in the presence of Father Francois Fillon, Etienne and Marguerite charged the latter to represent them and to act in their place.

"for the taking of the veil of religion of their said daughter and reception in their community (that of the Nursing Sisters of Ville-Marie called Saint-Joseph) of the Hospital of Montreal in the usual forms and approved by the Catholic church and for an amount of one hundred minots of wheat transported and delivered to Quebec, in order to be received on their part by whomever it seems good to them and also they promise 50 livres payable also at Quebec..."

On the following June 14, Pierre Gagnon was at Montreal and was committed, in the name of Etienne and Marguerite, concerning the nuns of the Hospital of Montreal where their daughter was already living. This document was initialed by Notary Benigne Basset. Marie took her vows two years later.

In 1679, the married life of the couple came to an end after 41 years. Marguerite, although much younger than her husband, was the first to depart. The pastor, Gaultier, recorded the following act in the registry of Chateau-Richer.

"The year one thousand six hundred seventy-nine, the twenty-fifth day of november died in the communion of our holy mother Church Marguerite Martin fifty-six years old, wife of Etienne Racine, resident of Notre-Dame de la Visitation and after having received the Sacraments of penitence, Eucharist and extreme unction and the next day was by me Guillaume Gaultier parish priest and missionary of la Visitation buried in the said church in the presence of Claud Auber, Antoine Toupin, Nicolas Guion and Charles Henou who have signed".

LAST YEARS

For more than a half-century of life, in New France, Etienne Racine seems to have known no rest. Not only was he involved endlessly in all the family enterprises, his activities extended beyond this limited frame, taking him to the land of missions. We have seen him helping the missionaries in the land of the Hurons and when they were moved to the Fort Saint-Francois (Sillery), he was present again. He was also a witness to the joys and sorrows of the residents of the Beaupre Coast. The registries of Chateau-Richer, Sainte-Anne-du-Petit-Cap and Sainte-Famille, Ile d'Orleans mention him until the last years of his life.

On April 30, 1688, undoubtedly more and more overwhelmed by the weight of his years, he had recourse to the services of the Notary Etienne Jacob to draw up an inventory of the property left after the death of Marguerite Martin, which occured in November of 1679. This inventory was made in the presence of the entire family and was limited to the description of the personal property: utensils, clothes, linens and old clothes, livestock, farming tools, on the whole, all of the household items for farming. Everything was appraised by Pierre Gagnon and Michel Roullois.

Etienne Racine died one year later and his body was buried in the church of Sainte-Anne. The pastor, Germain Morin, the first priest of Canadian origin, recorded the following act for the occasion:

"The year one-thousand six hundred eighty-nine the twenty fourth day of the month of April died in the communion of our Holy mother Church Estienne Racine resident of this parish about eighty-five years of age, after having received the sacraments of Penitence and Viatica and was the following day buried in our church after his funeral conducted in the presence of Noel, Pierre and Francoise Racine his children and other of his friends, who have declared not to know how to write nor sign this document according to the ordinance.

Signed: Morin,priest "

Another inventory recorded by Jacob, not dated nor signed, but taken after the death of Etienne, mentions a few images, undoubtedly hung on the walls of the paternal house. They were, among others, representations of a crucifix, the holy Virgin and Saint Marguerite, whom the family must have called upon in its daily prayers. The same document also mentions the deed of concession, dated March 17, 1650, the marriage contract, dated November 16, 1637 and nine pieces of paper transcribed in parchment. These documents contain the rights and claims which the deceased could have to the inheritance in Normandy. These papers had been entrusted into the care of Noel Racine.

A tireless and meticulous researcher, Raymond Gariepy added the commentary which follows concerning this inventory.

"Among the papers was found an official report of the survey and boundaries between the concession of Etienne Racine and that of Robert Drouin by Jean Bourdon on September 13, 1672, by which it appears that a stream separates their lands. This stream strays from the riviere aux Chiens a short distance north of the royal road and gradually wanders towards the south. We find it again quite close today to the former manufactury of wines for mass, closed for a very long time. This gap between the said stream and the riviere aux Chiens formed a triangle of considerable size in the most fertile part of the lands, to the benefit of Etienne Racine. As it was located west of the actual riviere aux Chiens, which separates the parishes of Chateau-Richer and Sainte-Anne, this space is now part of Chateau-Richer".

DIVISION OF THE ESTATE

On November 25, 1689, the Notary Jacob proceeded with the division of the estate of the late Etienne Racine. Among his heirs were Noel, Francois, Pierre and Etienne Racine, as well as their brothers-in-law Jean Gagnon and Jean Pare. Jean Guyon, guardian of the minor children of the late Simon Guyon and Louise Racine, also represented Noel Simard dit Lombrette and Madeleine Racine, who lived at Baie-Saint-Paul. The six arpents and six perches, which remained to the ancestral land, were divided into eight pieces of unequal size and drawn by lot by a young boy named Pierre Constant. The house, the two barns and the stable were submitted to another drawing. Luck smiled on Noel and Francoise Racine, who won the house, the others had to share the remaining buildings.

In 1691, Msgr. de Laval, who wrote "Francois l'Ancien", after he retired as bishop of the diocese of Quebec, made two transactions in favor of the heirs of Etienne Racine. On April 27, he sold to each of the sons, portions of 2 1/2 perches, 4 feet and 6 inches of frontal land by a league and a half of depth, adjoining their respective properties, for 78 livres, 19 sols and 11 deniers. They each also had to pay 5 sols and 6 deniers in seigneurial rent. On August 27, the sons-in-law, Jean Gagnon, Noel Simard and Jean Pare obtained the same advantages but with less area. These two acts are also found in the records of Etienne Jacob.

A FINE FAMILY

Etienne Racine and Marguerite Martin appear to have been extraordinary parents to their children. Preaching by example, they instilled in them a sense of duty, devotion towards Church and country, especially the spirit of a very mature family. In 1650, by accepting the concessions from Olivier LeTardif/Tardif, Etienne was already undoubtedly planning to set up his sons around him. A dream which he managed to achieve in great part. Here are a few details about the ten children of Etienne and Marguerite.

1) Anonymous girl was born, baptized, died and was buried, on September 30, 1640.

2) Louise was baptized September 2, 1641, at Quebec. She married Simon Guyon, the son of Jean and Mathurine Robin, on November 10, 1653, at Quebec. They had seven children, 6 girls and 1 boy.

3) Noel was baptized December 26, 1643, at Quebec. He married Marguerite Gravel, the daughter of Masse and Marguerite Tavernier, on September 12, 1667, at Chateau-Richer. Etienne and Marguerite were committed to feed and house them in their own house for two years. Also to provide them with a concession of which four arpents would be cleared without delay. Marguerite Gravel's parents brought their contribution worth 300 livres, in livestock, clothes and linens. This couple had ten little ones, 4 girls and 6 boys.

4) Marie-Madeleine was baptized July 25, 1646, at Quebec. She took for her husband Noel Simard, the son of Pierre and Suzanne Durand, on November 23, 1661, at Chateau-Richer. The bride received from her parents 18 minots of wheat, 2 oxen, a cow and various household articles, valued at 526 livres. The groom's father promised his son half of a concession, with house, shed, livestock and furniture. Noel would receive the other half of the concession on the condition of favoring his sister, Suzanne, with the amount of 300 livres. Fourteen children came into their lives, 8 sons and 6 daughters.

5) Francois was born July 16, 1649 and baptized August 22, at Quebec. Marie Baucher, the daughter of Guillaume and Marie Paradis, took Francois for her lifetime partner, on October 29, 1676, at Sainte-Famille, Ile d'Orleans. Etienne and Marguerite endowed this son with a piece of land with two arpents, in frontage and obliged themselves to feed, house and support the couple for two years, to build them a house and a barn, on condition and that their son help them to erect the buildings required to clear four arpents of land which can be seeded. Marie's parents promised to give the young couple in two and a half years, the value of 500 livres in furniture, livestock and clothes. A dozen offspring were given to them, 9 girls and 3 boys.

6) Marguerite born March 8, 1652 and baptized the 26th, at Quebec. On November 6, 1667, at Chateau-Richer, Jean Gagnon, the son of Pierre and Vincente Desvarieux, took Marguerite for his wife. Marguerite received from her parents a cow, two oxen, 18 minots of wheat, two suits of clothes and other clothing, a mattress, some utensils, etc. Jean's parents promised to feed the couple for two years and to build them a house on the homestead acquired in the name of their sons, Jean and Pierre. They had thirteen children, 8 boys, 3 girls and two that died at birth, dender unknown.

7) Pierre was born October 26, 1654 and baptized October 3, 1655, at Quebec. He married Louise Guyon, the daughter of Claude and Catherine Colin, on July 6, 1682, at Sainte-Famille, Ile d'Orleans. Etienne and Marguerite gave the newlyweds two arpents and two perches, in frontage, to which was added another arpent. He was also obligated to build a house with a fireplace of stone and lime, as well as a barn, to clear an area of four arpents and finally, to feed and support the couple for two years. The contribution of Claude Guyon and Catherine Colin would be 300 livres, 146 of which were already received, two cows and some wedding clothes. Nine children were born to this couple, 2 girls and 7 boys.

8) Marie was born about 1657, according to the censuses of 1667 and 1681. She became a Nursing Sister of Saint-Joseph. She was the last surviving child of Etienne Racine and Marguerite Martin.

9) Jeanne was born about 1660, according to the censuses of 1666 and 1667. Jean Pare, the son of Robert and Francoise Lehoux, became the husband of Jeanne, on November 3, 1682, at Chateau-Richer. Etienne and Marguerite gave them a cow, two oxen, 18 minots of wheat, linen, some utensils, a mattress, a blanket and so forth. Jean Pare's parents added a concession of four arpents, in frontage, with a house and plowable land, all valued at 600 livres. They also had nine children, 3 girls and 6 boys. Jeanne apparently died. When and where ?? But Jean remarried to Catherine Laine, the daughter of Jean and Marie Renault and widow of Etienne Mesny, on May 23, 1709, at Sainte-Famille, Ile d'Orleans. They had no children.

10) Etienne was born August 3, 1662 and baptized the 14th, at Chateau-Richer. He also married into the Guyon family. Catherine Guyon, the daughter of Claude and Catherine Colin and sister to Louise, who married Pierre, on October 25, 1683, at Sainte-Famille, Ile d'Orleans. Catherine received a dowry of 500 livres, while Etienne would become the owner of a homestead, with two arpents and two perches, in frontage. From the edge of the bank to the Riviere aux Chiens; beyond this river, this land would expand to three arpents by a league and a half, in depth. His immediate neighbor was his brother, Noel. Etienne senior promised to house the couple at his home for two years. In the meantime, he would have a house and barn built for them. In return, he required that his son and his daughter-in-law provide for him in his old age. They had thirteen babies, 8 daughters and 5 sons.

The descendants of Etienne Racine and Marguerite Martin are very numerous, in North America. In the eighteenth century, we find several of them settled on American soil. Francois, born at Quebec, in 1718, the son of Joseph dit Beauchesne and Marguerite Pilote, founded the town of Cote-a-Beauchesne, on the banks of the Wabash (Indiana). Jean-Baptiste, born in Quebec, in 1719, the son of Pierre dit Sainte-Marie and Louise Levasseur, in 1755 participated in the construction of Fort Duquesne (Pittsburgh).

FAMILY NAME VARIATIONS

The only known variations of Racine are: Beauchesne, Desnoyes, Noyer, Rasine, Roots, Saint-Marie and Varennes.

This biography was taken from "Our French-Canadian Ancestors" by Thomas J. Laforest; Volume 27- Chapter 8- Page 149 2-28-99