The Patrys - Merida Patry Turgeon
The Patry Family
The surname Patry is rather rare and is probably a patronymn. In French it may mean 'descendent of Patrice' and is thought to indicate a family of nobility. Variations of this name are Patris, Patrix, Patrie, Patrick and Paris. In Scotland this name appears as ‘Petrie’ and the Irish name ‘Fitzpatrick’ may also be a related surname. Many Patry families who moved to the USA changed their name from Patry to Patrie.
During the time of William the Conqueror one William Patry De La Lande was witness to the oaths made by King Harold of England on behalf of Duke William. King Edward the Confessor of England died, and Harold was sworn in as the new King of England. Harold's oath affirmed William the Conqueror's right to the Crown of England. William Patry De La Lande was well known in William's court.
As children we always understood our heritage was 3/4 Irish and 1/4 French; however, we have bloodlines from Germany, Belgium and Switzerland too. I suspect the Irish side may not be so pure either! The following information describes our Patry family tree with any historical information we could find.
The Patry family traces its ancestry to Andre Patry and his immigration to New France around 1665 or 1666. What we knew about this family could possibly fit into a single paragraph. Andre married Henriette Cartois on July 23, 1675, in Quebec and it is from these two that the Patry family of Quebec is descended.
Henriette Cartois was one of the ‘Les Filles du Roi’, or ‘King’s Daughters’. This ‘title’ did not designate royalty; rather, it was applied to the nearly 1000 women who were sent by the French King to New France with hopes of marrying one of the single French settlers. Henriette married Michel Audebout dit Belhumeur on October 26, 1671; however, he died. She then married our ancestor, Andre Patry. After he died, she married Jean Coutelet dit La Rochelle on March 27, 1702.
Les Filles du Roi
A poet by the name of Saint-Amant influenced a rumor about these women who were sent by the King to New France. Some rumors called them prostitutes, and some rumors went further by calling them ‘bitchy girls’. The women sent to New France were, by most accounts, considered of high moral character, and not ‘comfort women’ for the soldiers and first pioneers. By royal orders the prostitutes found in Paris and certain French harbor cities were shipped off to the lower Antilles, but were not sent to New France. Less than 3% of the women sent to New France were determined to be of ‘less than high moral character’.
From 1663 to 1673 nearly 1000 of the King’s Daughters arrived in New France. It is not clear how many there really were. Estimates range from 713 to 961 women who traveled from France to the new world. In the first census of 1666, there were 3,215 inhabitants. The King’s Daughters were under the financial sponsorship of King Louis XIV of France. Most were single women and many were orphans. Their transportation to Canada and settlement in the colony was paid for by the King. Some women were given a royal gift of 50 livres/pounds, which would be used as their dowry for marrying one of the male French colonists. These gifts were reflected in some of the marriage contracts entered into by these women at the time of their first marriages. Without these women it would have been difficult to populate this new land and colonize it for the Crown.
Other Patry Facts
The Patry family has been moving in and out of Canada for years. During the US Civil War there were five enlisted soldiers who had the Patry surname:
Christ Patry, Union, Infantry, 14th Regiment, Ohio Infantry
Henry Patry, Union, Infantry, 52nd Regiment, New York Infantry
John Patry, Union, Infantry, 48th Regiment, Pennsylvania Infantry
Joseph Patry, Union, Cavalry, 21st Regiment, New York Cavalry
Nicholas D. Patry, Union, Infantry, 5th Regiment, Ohio Infantry
You will find several marriages between the Patry and Turgeon families over the years. In fact, Merida Patry was a distant relative of her future husband, Phileas Turgeon. Both shared the same great ancestor, Zacharie Turgeon. The facts are these. The Turgeon and Patry families shared a lot of the same early ancestors, which would have made them related to each other in a number of different ways.
Family Trees
At the end of this document you will find various family trees for the Patry and Shink family lines. As you can tell, the family tree looks relatively uncluttered for the first few generations; however, it becomes a bit more crowded as we begin adding new generations. For the first generation, it typically is you. The next one includes your parents, and the next includes your grandparents. That is, the first generation shows 1 person, the second generation shows 2 people and the third generation shows 4 people. It gets worse because our family tree grows exponentially to 8, 16, 32 names per line and so forth. Part of our family tree extends into the sixteenth century. The Shink family line ends in the early seventeen hundreds as this is when the original Shink family emigrated from Germany to French Canada.
Patry Family
The following shows the family trees for both the Patry and Shink families. Merida Patry Turgeon Delire was born in Quebec in 1864 to Louis Napoleon Patry and Angelique Shink Patry. Louis Patry can trace his ancestry back to France. Merida Patry married Phileas Turgeon and one of their children was our grandmother, Mary J. (Turgeon) Smith. The Shink family originally immigrated in the early eighteenth century to Quebec. Their ancestral name could possibly be either ‘Zinque’ or ‘Shaienks’; however, it is not clear which part of Germany they originated. To make it easier for you to follow our family, I have added our family trees at the end of this document. Later, you can follow our family lines based on different surnames.
This family lineage is set up differently than the others created later. I purposely started the family lineage from the earliest known Patry ancestors to near present times. Merida’s name appears in the seventh and eight generation information found below.
Patry Family Crest
1. First Generation
Spouse: Rene Patrywas (or Patry)
Birth: unknown, Airvault, Deux-Sevres, La Rochelles, France
Spouse: Renee Cousinet
Birth: Unknown
Known children of Rene Patrywas and Renee Cousinet:
+ Andre Patry born 1649 in the Haut-Poitou, Airvault, France
Andre Patry was our great ancestor. The Haut-Poitou a region in France, and Airvault is a small village not very far from Parthenay in the Department of Deux-Sevres.
2. Second Generation
Spouse: Andre Patry
Birth: about 1649 in Airvault, France
Death: November 11, 1697, in La Durantaye, Quebec
Buried: St. Michel Church, December 11, 1687
Spouse: Henriette Cartois
Birth: Unknown, possibly 1649
Marriage: July 23, 1675 in Quebec, Quebec
The following are the known children of Andre Patry and Henriette Cartois:
+Andre Patry, b. January 07, 1681/82, La Durantye, Quebec, d. May 30, 1741, St. Michel, Quebec.
Rene Patry, b. August 26, 1684, Quebec.
Anne Louis Patry, b. May 27, 1677, La Durantaye, Quebec, d. Abt. 1758.
Joseph Patry, b. April 02, 1687, La Durantaye, Quebec.
Rene Patry, b. September 06, 1689, Quebec.
Andre Patry Jr. was our great ancestor. Our great ancestor, Henriette Cartois, was the daughter of Marie Lambert and Lambert Cartois.
3. Third Generation
Spouse: Andre Patry
Birth: January 7, 1681 or 1682, in La Durantaye, Quebec
Baptism: February 17, 1681 or 1682, in Lauson, Quebec
Died: May 30, 1741, in St. Michel, Quebec
Spouse: Catherine Pruneau
Marriage: November 18, 1711, in Berthier, Quebec
Children of Andre Patry and Catherine Pruneau are:
+Clement Patry, b. July 30, 1716, Beaumont, Quebec.
Andre Patry, b. August 31, 1712, Beaumont, Quebec.
Jean Baptiste Patry, b. October 24, 1714, Beaumont, Quebec.
Joseph Patry, b. February 22, 1718/19, La Durantaye, Quebec.
Marie Josephe Patry, b. May 29, 1721, La Durantaye, Quebec.
Marie Genevieve Patry, b. Abt. August 08, 1723, La Durantaye, Quebec.
Pierre Patry, b. December 21, 1725, La Durantaye, Quebec, d. August 10, 1745.
Marie Anne Patry, b. December 21, 1725, La Durantaye, Quebec.
Michel Patry, b. March 12, 1729/30, La Durantaye, Quebec{St.Valier}.
Augustin Patry, b. March 14, 1736/37, La Durantaye, Quebec, d. June 03, 1743.
Clement Patry is our great ancestor. Catherine Pruneau, was the daughter of Jean Pruneau and Susanne Emond. Her first marriage was to our ancestor, Andre Patry. After he died she married Joseph Forgues. Joseph Forgues’ date of death is unknown; however, we do know she remarried again to Jacques Morand on April 10, 1752. At some point Jacques Morand died, and Catherine married Joseph Jean.
4. Fourth Generation
Spouse: Clement Patry
Birth: July 30, 1716 in La Durantaye, Quebec
Death: Unknown
Spouse: Dorothee Brochu
Marriage: June 15, 1744 in St. Vallier (MD), Quebec
Birth: Unknown
Death: Unknown
Children of Clement Patry and Dorothee Brochu are:
Ignace Patry, b. September 26, 1748, Beaumont, Quebec.
Pierre Patry, b. Abt. June 29, 1750, Beaumont, Quebec.
Clement Patry, b. Abt. 1745. La Durantaye, Quebec
Jacques-Francois Patry, b. Abt. 1747, La Durantaye, Quebec
Marie-Dorothee Patry, b. April 09, 1745, La Durantaye, Quebec
Clement[2] Patry, b. March 03, 1746, La Durantaye, Quebec
Gabriel Patry, b. January 21, 1757. La Durantaye, Quebec
Marie-Louise Patry, born February 16, 1760, La Durantaye, Quebec
Marie-Genevieve Patry, born March 4, 1762, La Durantaye, Quebec
Joseph-Marie Patry, born December 12, 1763, St-Vallier, Quebec
Marie-Charlotte Patry, born April 27, 1754, La Durantaye, Quebec
Ignace Patry is our great ancestor. Clement Patry was the son of Andre Patry and Catherine Pruneau. His wife, Dorothee Brochu, was the daughter of Jean Brochu and Dorothee Dallaire (Allaire). It is possible Clement and Dorothee had twelve children even though only eleven are listed.
5. Fifth Generation
Spouse: Ignace Patry
Birth: September 26, 1748, in Beaumont, Bellechasse County, Quebec
Death: Unknown
Spouse: Genevieve Latulippe (Queret)
Birth: Unknown
Death: Unknown
Marriage: Unknown
Children of Ignace Patry and Genevieve Latulippe[ Queret ] are:
Louis Patry, b. Abt. January 01, 1798, Beaumont, Quebec.?, d. June 26, 1855
Marguerite Patry, b. Abt. 1780.
Ignace Patry, b. Abt. 1781.
Marie Patry, b. Abt. 1783.
Josette Patry, b. Abt. 1784.
Angelique Patry, b. Abt. 1786.
Jean Baptiste Patry, b. Abt. 1790
Louis Patry is our great ancestor. Ignace Patry was the son of Clement Patry and Dorothee Brochu. Genevieve Queret was the daughter of Joseph Queret and Marguerite Bissonette. Although not stated, it is possible Genevieve was married once before.
6. Sixth Generation
Spouse: Louis Patry
Birth: January 1, 1798 possibly Beaumont, Bellechasse, Quebec
Died June 26, 1855
First Spouse: Josette Couture, daughter of Joseph Couture and Madeleine
Couillard
Marriage: May 9, 1826, in Beaumont, Bellechasse, Quebec
Birth: Unknown
Second Spouse: Euphrosine Roy (also known as Euphemie) daughter of
Michel Roy and Angelique Cote
Birth: Unknown
Died: Possible September 3, 1844
I could only find four children born of this union and it is possible there were other children.
Louis Patry and Josette Couture had the following children:
Louis Napoleon Patry, born January 1, 1833, in Beaumont, Bellechasse County, Quebec
Louis Patry and Euphemie Roy had the following children:
Jean Patry, birth unknown
Henriette Patry, birth unknown, married Francois-Avila Guay on September 15, 1902
Joseph Patry, birth unknown, married Eugenie Tardiff on January 26, 1874
Louis Napoleon Patry is our great ancestor
7. Seventh Generation
Spouse: Louis Napoleon Patry
Born: January 1, 1833 at Beaumont, Bellechasse County, Quebec
Died: April 20, 1918 at Beaumont, Bellechasse County, Quebec
Marriage: May 10, 1853, at Beaumont, Bellechasse County, Quebec
Spouse: Angelique Shink
Birth: June 1832
Death: November 5, 1915 at Beaumont, Bellechasse County, Quebec
Archille Patry, b. Abt. January 01, 1856, Beaumont, Quebec, d. November 23, 1932, Legal, Alberta.
Angelie Patry, b. Abt. 1854.
Joseph Vital Patry, b. January 01, 1858, Beaumont, Quebec, , d. September 28, 1934, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
Napoleon Patry, b. 1860, Beaumont, Quebec.
Adelard Patry, b. April 10, 1861, Beaumont, Quebec, d. September 03, 1949, Beaumont Quebec.
Merilda Patry, b. March 31, 1864, Beaumont, Bellechasse County, Quebec
Wenceslas Patry, b. 1868.
Amine Patry, b. 1870.
Merilda (Merida) Patry is our great ancestor. Her older brother, Archille. may have also been known as Louis Archille. Angelique Shink was the daughter of Jacques Shink and Eurhosine Roy. Eurhosine Roy was the daughter of Jean Roy and Francois Dallaire (perhaps Mothe).
Merida Patry Turgeon was born in Beaumont, Bellechasse County, in Quebec in 1864. Her given name was Merilda; however, she was known to others as Merida. Merida was one of eleven children born to Louis Napoleon Patry and Angelique Shink.
The 1881 census shows Louis worked as a Cultivatuer or farmer. In 1871 he worked as a Boucher, but I have not been able to find its proper translation.
We know Merida Patry married our ancestor Phileas Turgeon in 1883 and they lived in Charles Mix County, South Dakota. What we did not know was that Merida's two oldest brothers also homesteaded land in the Dakotas. Archille Patry and Joseph Patry moved their families from Quebec to South Dakota in 1893. Archille homesteaded property in Charles Mix County and Joseph homesteaded property in Gregory County. Then in 1902 both Archille and Joseph moved their families to Alberta and homesteaded land 30 miles north of Edmonton. Today, descendents of Archille and Joseph can be found in and around Legal, Alberta, still farming land homesteaded so many years ago.
The following land records were found in the South Dakota records for Charles Mix County:
NAME MERIDIAN TWP RANGE SECTION ACREAGE TYPE CASETYPE DOCID DATE
PATRY ACHILLE 05 100 N 071 W 026 40 251101 PA 12531 12/30/1902
PATRY ACHILLE 05 100 N 071 W 026 20 251101 PA 12531 12/30/1902
PATRY ACHILLE 05 100 N 071 W 026 20 251101 PA 12531 12/30/1902
PATRY ACHILLE 05 100 N 071 W 026 20 251101 PA 12531 12/30/1902
PATRY ACHILLE 05 100 N 071 W 026 20 251101 PA 12531 12/30/1902
PATRY ACHILLE 05 100 N 071 W 027 20 251101 PA 12531 12/30/1902
PATRY ACHILLE 05 100 N 071 W 027 20 251101 PA 12531 12/30/1902
The following land records were found in the South Dakota records for Gregory County:
NAME MERIDIAN TWP RANGE SECTION ACREAGE TYPE CASETYPE DOCID DATE
PATRY JOSEPH 05 097 N 069 W 025 80 251101 PA 62 02/08/1900
PATRY JOSEPH 05 097 N 069 W 025 25 251101 PA 62 02/08/1900
PATRY JOSEPH 05 097 N 069 W 025 15 251101 PA 62 02/08/1900
PATRY JOSEPH 05 097 N 069 W 025 25 251101 PA 62 02/08/1900
PATRY JOSEPH 05 097 N 069 W 025 15 251101 PA 62 02/08/1900
Many of the earliest Turgeon settlers in Dakota Territory lived in La Roche township, Charles Mix County. In the 1895 South Dakota census I found the following Turgeons living in La Roche township: Onesime Turgeon, Desanges Turgeon, Annie Turgeon, Rabecca Turgeon, Blanche Turgeon and Dolar Turgeon. I found one Patry listed in the 1900 US Census and that was Joseph Turgeon, who was 15 years old and listed as a boarder living in La Roche Township. His birthplace was listed as Canada. Now, it is possible we had other Patry relatives living in South Dakota other than those already listed. I found a family living in La Roche township with the name of Patrie, which is another variation of the surname Patry. In the1895 census the following names appeared for La Roche Township: Vena Patrie, Henry Patrie, George Patrie, Ida Patrie and Sary Patrie. As an aside, I found one other Turgeon listed in the 1895 South Dakota Census who was not living in Charles Mix County. His name was Ledger (Ludger?) Turgeon and it showed he was living in Campbell County (Hill Side, 126, 78).
8. Eighth Generation
Phileas (Philias) Turgeon married Merida (Merilda) Patry on February 5, 1883, in Beaumont, Bellechasse, Quebec. They immigrated to America later that year. In 1895 Phileas died in a drowning accident on the Missouri River near Bijou Hills, South Dakota. Merida and Phileas had the following seven children:
Mary J. Turgeon born December 19, 1883, in South Dakota
Delia Turgeon birth date unknown
Joseph Turgeon born December 1886 in South Dakota
Laura Turgeon born December 1885 in South Dakota
Edgar Turgeon born April 1891 in South Dakota
Francis Turgeon born September 1891 in South Dakota
Florida Turgeon born January 1894 in South Dakota
Mary Turgeon is our grandmother. She married William P. Smith and had the following three children: Mary Cecile, Mildred and John.
I do not have any information about Delia Turgeon. It is possible Delia died prior to 1900. The 1900 census indicates that Merida had 8 children, but only 7 survived. In 1900 she had one other child, Louis Delire; therefore, Delia must have been the child that died as Delia’s name is missing on the census records.
Merida and Peter G. Delire Family
Merida Turgeon married Peter G. Delire in either 1898 or 1899. Peter’s family lived in Charles Mix County and very likely met Merida Turgeon there. Peter’s father was from Belgium and his mother was from Austria. From Grandmother Mary J. (Turgeon) Smith we understand Peter was a nice man.
Merida and Peter had the following children together:
1. Louis Delire born approximately 1899
2. Agnes Delire born approximately 1901
3. Cecilia Delire born approximately 1905
Merida (Patry, Turgeon) Delire was born on March 31, 1864, in Canada and died on March 9, 1956, in Alameda County, California. Peter G. Delire was born on April 12, 1870, in either Iowa or South Dakota, and died on October 30, 1949, in Alameda County, California.
Mary J. (Turgeon) Smith
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John William Smith
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