His origin discovered (2nd part)
The authors
Antonin Proulx - A native of Montmagny (Québec), Antonin Proulx studied at the Collège de Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière and at Laval University. He spent practically all of his career in the Canadian public service working in the Department of Fisheries in Ottawa. Since his retirement in 1985, he spends a good part of his time doing genealogical research, particularly on the Proulx families. A member of many genealogical societies in Québec and Ontario, he is the author, among other works, of a genealogical dictionary of the Proulx families.
Pierre Proulx - Born in Québec City, Pierre Proulx also studied at the Collège de Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière and at Laval University. During more than forty years, he was a general medical practitioner with a special interest in labour medicine in Québec City. In addition to being a medical expert to insurance companies, he was a very active member of the medical board of the Saint-François-d’Assise hospital and of the clinique Roy-Rousseau. After his retirement in 1996, he became a member of the Société généalogique de Québec and part of his leisure time is spent on genealogical work.
Summary
In volume 29, winter 2003, of L’Ancêtre, we published information, with supporting evidence, relating to the date and birthplace of our ancestor Jean Prou(st) together with information on his parents and grandparents. In this second part, we continue our presentation by showing acts of baptism, of marriage and of death of his siblings, aunts and uncles. We also present results of new research concerning his family. Following an analysis and comments concerning these acts, we provide information on the history of the Saumur area plus additional information on the "commune" of Distré and on the Proust who still live in the region.
The siblings of our ancestor (1)
(1)To avoid having too big a document, we present only for a few acts the copy of the act itself close to the typed text; for the other acts, we present only the typed text.1- Denize :
She was baptized on April 5, 1648.
On the fifth day of April, Palm Sunday 1648 was baptized denize daughter of jean proust the young and of loyse vallée his wife were godfather mister vincent arnault (sieur de la grillere) farmer of the priory of Ceaux(2) and godmother julianne toreau who has declared not knowing how to sign, gloss sieur de la grillere(3)L.Esnault (with signature) parish priest (2)The farmer of a priory had an important position, that of the steward. According to our research, this refers to the ptirry of Céaux-en-Loudun which was at that time part of Faye-la-Vineuse, located near Richelieu (Indre-et-Loire). (3)The term "gloss" refers to a marginal or interlinear note; in this case, Mr Arnault was "sieur" or seigneur de la Grillère, a domain part of the priory of Ceaux.
2- Perrine (the first one) :
She was baptized on July 19, 1650.
On July 19 1650 was baptized perrine daughter of jean proust the young and of loyse vallée his wife were godfather mister laurent vallin practitioner and godmother madame perrine Bruneau daughter of mister Toussaint Bruneau merchant who have signedperrine brunneau L Vallin (with signature)
L Esnault (with signature) parish priest
She was buried on February 25, 1654.
On Wednesday 25 day of February 1654 a procession was formed for a young daughter of jean proust the young three years old buried in the church of the said distré high mas.3- Perrine (the second one) :
She was baptized on March 14, 1657.
Today 14th day of March 1657 was baptized perrine daughter of jean proust the young and of louisse vallee her father and mother was godfather Thomas Godineau and godmother perrine Boisnard who have declared not knowing how to sign done by me priest undersignedM Lemée presbre
parish priest of the said distré
(with signature)
4- Thomas :
He was baptized on March 11, 1659.
Thomas son of jean Prousy the young and of Louise Vallée his wife was baptized on the baptismal fonts of St Julien de distré by us parish priest of the said locality undersigned were godfather Thomas Paullayr godmother#(4) and Michelle Bourdin who have declared not knowing how to sign done this eleventh day of march one thousand six hundred and fifty nine.E Verdon (with signature) (4)One of the specials means used by a priest (or if applicable by a notary) between the lines or in the margin of a text in order to add a word or part of a sentence he had forgotten to write or to make an addition.
He was buried on March 18, 1659.
Thomas son of Jean proust and of Louise vallée his wife seven days old was buried in the cemetery of distré by me parish priest undersigned on the eighteenth day of March 1659.parish priest, (with signature)
5- Louise :
She was baptized on October 2, 1661.
The second day of October 1661 was baptized Louise daughter of jean proust and of Louise Vallée her father and mother godfather jeanhardouin de la Bilange(5) and godmother Nicole Martin who did not know how to sign by me parish priest of distré UndersignedF Ammonet (with signature) (5)Parish of Saint-Nicolas, also called Bilange Saint-Nicolas, part of the city of Saumur.
She was buried on October 1664 along with her mother Louise Vallée.
On the day and year as mentioned above was buried the wife of jean proust the young from pocé about forty three years old with her young daughter about twelve days old.6- A young daughter :
Buried on March 5, 1663.
On the fifth day of March 1663 the burial of a young daughter of deceased jean proust was made by me.Portier, Parish priest
Paternal uncles and aunts of our ancestor
1- Anne :
She was baptized on September 8, 1626.
On the eighth day of September one thousand six hundred and twenty six was baptized Anne daughter of jean proust and of denize martin his wife were godfather m.Urbain pavillon of Cunault(6) and godmother m…(name faded) who has declared not to know how to sign.Pavillon
L Esnault (with signature)
parish priest (6)Village located about 15 kilometers to the northwest of Saumur, seat of a priory abolished in 1741; that commune became part of Chênehutte-les-Tuffeaux and Trèves.
2- Pierre :
He was baptized on August 4, 1628.
On Friday fourth day of August one thousand six hundred twenty eight was baptized a child son of Jean proust and of Denize martin born of the lawful marriage who has been named Pierre (godfather) André Ouvrat son of Mathurin Ouvrat and (godmother) …esse (partially faded) Lambert daughter of Nicolas Lambert all of this parish who have declared not to know how to sign done by me parish priest at Distré undersigned on the day and year mentioned above.Fortin (with signature)
3- Jamet (godfather of our ancestor) :
He was married on July 16, 1648.
On the 16th of July 1648 were married in the church of Distré by me undersigned parish priest of the said locality jamet proust son of jean proust and of denize martin his father and mother and julianne thoreau daughter of deceased toussaint toreau and françoise masson her father and mother all of this parish in presence of mister François Philastreau parish priest of the said distré pierre poust Vincent Arnault michel maugin and many others the said parties declare not knowing how to signPhilastreau
Proust
Vincent Arnault
G Arnault
Maugin (godfather of the said thoreau)
L.Esnault (with signature) parish priest.
Results of new research
After a serious study of the microfilms of the parishes of Saint-Julien of Distré, of Saint-Pierre du Vaudelnay and of Notre-Dame de Nantilly we can make the following observations :
1- The microfilm of Distré (7)
(7)Latter-Day Saints, microfilm #1815257, parish registers, catholic church, parish of Distré (Maine-et-Loire).In reading a number of acts, we noticed the births of many cousins of our ancestor. The children of Jamet Proust (uncle and godfather of our ancestor) and of Julianne Thoreau : Ambroise, Andrée (the first one), Andrée (the second one), and Françoise. The children of Pierre Proust, royal sergeant, also an uncle of our ancestor, married to Marie de la Chartre: Julien, Catherine, Renée, Marie and Julienne.
We also discovered a few other Proust. Judging by the names of the godfathers and godmothers at their baptism, it is almost certain that these Proust and those of our ancestor were closely related: René, husband of Jeanne Esnault, a resident of Pocé who died on October 10, 1661 in Distré. Julien, royal sergeant, married to Jacquine Rousseau who was also living in Pocé. Marie, married to Michel Barre.
2- The microfilm of Vaudelnay (8)
(8)Ibid.,microfilm #1809218, parish registers, parish of Vaudelenay (Vaudelnay,Maine-et-Loire).A viewing of this microfilm did not permit us to find the baptismal act of Louise Vallée, mother of our ancestor. She was born most likely in 1618 but unfortunately the writing of the pages of that particular year is so faded that they are impossible to read. We have found, however, on the pages of the year 1620 that her sister, Jeanne, wasborn on April 20.
The Vaudelnay records, which include Saint-Hilaire de Rillé, contain marriage acts from 1666 only. It follows that the marriage act of Charles Vallée and Renée Angers, the parents of Louise, is not iucluded.
These record contain death acts beginning in 1642 but they do not include those of Louise's parents.
- The microfilm of Notre-Dame de Nantilly (9) : an interesting discovery
(9)Ibid., microfilm #1687944, parish registers, parish of Nantilly (Saumur, Maine-et-Loire).We found earlier that Jean Proust, the young, the father of our ancestor, died between October 14, 1661 and March 5, 1663 and that he was not buried in Distré. We examined vey carefully all the death acts in this microfilm between January 1661 and December 1662 written by a priest who certainly did not deserve a prize in calligraphy during his studies. We finally found an act written on May 14, 1662 which reads as follows: "On the same day jean proust in the said village". The village refers to Nantilly, part of the city of Saumur.
This finding seems to confirm the hypothesis made earlier that Jean Proust had moved to the parish of Notre Dame de Nantilly in the city of Saumur after the death of his wife in October 1661. It also explains why our ancestor declared that he was from Nantilly when he married Jacquette Fournier in Québec in 1673.
Analysis and comments
1- First names :
It was the tradition to give only one name which was often that of the godfather or the godmother.
2- Patronyms :
In addition to the patronyms already mentioned, we have found others which are common in Québec: Caron, Garneau, Guérin, Martineau, Ménard, Mercier, Morin, Pelletier, Prémont, etc.
3- Professions :
Professions were seldom mentioned except for people of a certain standing: buyer, court official, farmer, royal notary, medical doctor, merchant, royal sergeant.
4- Local expressions :
It is quite usual to see the expression "son or daughter of deceased X and Y living in the parish of …". It is evident that the term "living" means "when they were alive". We see that expression, to use an example, in the death act of our ancestor's grand-mother: "…was buried Denize Martin living\ That same expression was also used in church records or notarized acts in the early years of the colony of Nouvelle-France.
In the margin of a number of death acts, we find the words such as "La Drouet, La Bourdin, la Proust et sa fille" to indicate that it is the lady Drouet, Bourdin or Proust. In those years, the term was not used in the pejorative sense or to indicate contempt, as it is nowadays.
The term "ensépulturer", which is no longer in use, was a very colourful term used to describe the burial of people.
5- Religious customs :
Birth and baptism(10) : in the baptism acts, the date and hour of birth are not given, in Distré as well as in other parishes, although ministers were required to do so under article 51 of the Edict of Villers-Cotterêt promulgated in August 1539 by François 1er. It is most likely that the newborn was baptized on the day of his (her) birth. We have found in a few acts that the priest mentioned that the child was baptized only the day following his (her) birth. The priest was also required to indicate if the godfather and godmother knew how to sign their name as per the Edict of Blois decreed in May 1579 by Henri III.
(10)G. Cabourdin et G. Viard, Lexique historique de la France d'Ancien Régime, Paris, Ed. Armand Colin, 1990, p.35.Marriage(11) : if one of the two spouses did not live in the parish where the wedding took place, that spouse was obliged to obtain a certificate from the parish priest where he (she) was living; the priest had to mention in the act that the certificate had been issued ("in accordance with the certificate issued by the parish priest of…"). The priest had also to state that "that the contracting parties" and the four required witnesses had declared that they knew how to sign. Those who knew had to put their signatures at the bottom of the act, as required by the Edict mentioned above.
(11)G. Cabourdin et G. Viard, Lexique historique de la France d’Ancien Régime, Paris, Ed. Armand Colin, 1990, pp.212-213.Death : It is almost certain that a person was buried on the same day as he died because embalming did not exist, but mainly because of the danger of deadly and infectious epidemics which spreaded at a violent pace. We found a few cases where the priest stated that he had to "wait" till the day after the death before proceeding with the burial.
In a number of acts, it is mentioned that a "procession" was "formed" for the "deceased buried in the cemetery of distré". In some cases, the interment took place in the church, as it was the case for Perrine Proust, on February 25,1654. The priest also included in the act the number of high masses to be celebrated and if there was to be celebration of vespers and vigil. The parish priest of Notre-Dame de Nantilly mentioned often that the burial took place in the presence of the small community (the immediate family) or of the large one (a large number of parishioners).
6- Illiteracy, poverty and compartmentalization :
In reading the acts, it is easy to realize that most people in Distré were illiterate as it was the case in all villages and for a large proportion of the population of French cities. People who know how to read, write and count - not quite five per cent - are those who need to know or who can afford it: the ruling class of course, in particular the nobility, those in the ecclesiastical, judicial, military and financial circles. "A very small minority of those who can read and write, a very large majority of illeterates"(12). In our ancestor's family, the only signature we found was that of his uncle Pierre Proust.
(12)Gabriel Audioso et Isabelle Rambaud, Lire le français d’hier, Paris, Ed. Armand Colin, 2001, p.21.As we have seen, the parish of Distré was a priory. This means that it was part of a network of priories owned since the 12th century by the Saint-Laurent Abbey of Saumur which derived many benefits from this ownership. This on lasted till the Revolution(13).
(13)Priories and churches (area of Saumur), site : http://pagesperso-orange.fr/saumur-jadis/index.html. (sixteen well documented pages on the history of this region are presented).It is well known that during the 16th and 17th centuries, most of the French population was living in rural communities and that the farmers were very poor. Close to 90 per cent of the married people came from the same parish or from a nearby one "each village lives on its own domain, separated from the others by an unoccupied space. Rural communities have dealings between themselves and with the neighbouring city but these dealings are not on a daily basis and are not too involved(14)". Distré is not an exception: it is a small isolated and closely knit world.
(14)Gabriel Audioso et Isabelle Rambaud, op.cité, p.14-15.7- A few Proust in Distré and Saumur
In concluding the first part of our article, we mentioned that we have initiated contacts with Proust now living in Distré and the Saumur region in order to exchange information on our families. We sent letters to 14 families but only two of them acknowledged receipt of our request. Mrs Marie Proust, 92 years old, the dean of the Proust in the region, graciously invited us through her daughter Mrs Gilberte Proust-Bigot to visit her in Distré, in the hamlet of Munet, where they live. She was not in a position, however, to provide us with information on the Proust ancestors.Mr. Jean-Marie Proust, a resident of Saumur, gave us the results of his research done on his ancestors a few years earlier. He had been able to go as far back as the marriage of François Proust and Marie Parent celebrated on July1, 1715. It is unfortunate that we have not been able to establish a link between his family and ours but it is likel that such a link exists.
Marie Proust
Gilbert Proust-Bigot
In one of our stays in Florida, we met and befriended a businessman from the Angers area, Michel Allard, now retired, and his wife Louisette. We accepted gladly their offer to go in Distré to visit the area and take pictures. After their trip of April 2002, they sent us a series of pictures not only of the historic sites that we reproduced in the first part of our article, but also of residents of the area. They had a very nice meeting with Mrs Marie Proust, her daughter Gilberte and her son-in-law Germain Bigot, a wine producer. We wish to thank them for their kind cooperation.
According to information provided to us by the Mayor of Distré, the "commune" undertook major renovations a few years ago. "The mayor's office moved in 1994 in a building acquired way back in 1891 to be used as the rectory. The building located besides the church was the priory of the monks of Saint-Florent Abbey and their property till the Revolution"(15).
(15)Excerpt of a typed document received in March 2002 from Mr. E.Touron, mayor of Distré, and titled "quelques repères historiques".During his visit to the area, M. Allard noticed that many poeple now working and living in Saumur are moving to the village of Pocé. They make important and costly renovations to old buildings in search of the tranquility of the countryside.
Mairie de Distré
Conclusion
We have made available in this second part as well as in the first one all the information that we have been able to gather so far about the life of our ancestor Prou(st) in France and about his family. We made a detailed analysis of this information and we also described the environment in which this family lived in France.
Initially our objective was simply to find the location and date of birth of our ancestor but we enjoyed the pleasure of finding more and more. There are still a few avenues to explore and we will continue our efforts in this direction.
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