Turgeon Family
FRANCOIS TURGON MATERNAL HISTORY
This will be one of the shortest genealogical documents concerning our family. Francois Turgeon was the father of our great-great grandfather, Cesaire Turgeon. Francois was the son of Antoine Turgeon and Dorothee Baucher-Morency. Francois married Marie-Louise Provost or Prevost in Quebec. The following information shows the Provost family line from which we are descended. Historical information for these other family lines has been discussed in my previous writings.
An Earlier Genealogical Mistake
In the original ‘Turgeon Family” document I identified Cecile Bouchard as our Francois Turgeon’s wife. This is incorrect. Cecile Bouchard married a Francois Turgeon who was the son of Francois Turgeon who was the son of Louis Turgeon. Our Francois Turgeon’s father was Antoine Turgeon, and Antoine’s father was Louis Turgeon. Believe me, it would have been more fun to include Cecile Bouchard as part of our heritage since her mother was infamous in early New France. Her story involves murder, a cage and PT Barnum. Several genealogical tracts show our Francois Turgeon’s wife as Cecile Bouchard; however, further study does not substantiate this claim. From what I can find it appears more reasonable that our early ancestor was Marie-Louise Provost.
If I am proved wrong again, then I will rewrite the genealogical history for Francois Turgeon. We do not have a lot of information regarding Francois or his father, Antoine. There is nothing written to disprove our great ancestors were anyone other than Francois or Antoine. Only when we try to identify the true wife of Francois Turgeon is there any controversy.
Provost Family History
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The ‘Provost’ name is occupational, and it means one who is a commander or chief magistrate. It can also mean one who is in authority. In modern times we see this ‘name’ used in to indicate positions of authority such as ‘Provost Marshall’ (military position) or college ‘Provost’ (someone in charge of administering campus laws). The Coat of Arms shows three gold buckles indicating a high degree of authority. The origin of the ‘Provost’ family comes from France, and variations of this name include Provo, Prevost, Prevot, Proust, Provoost and Provosts. Our earliest ‘Provost’ Canadian ancestor was Francois Provost. He was the son of Marin Provost and Catherine Cornilleau of Tourouvre, parish of St. Aubin, Perche, where he was baptized on August 27, 1637. He died on April 6, 1670 in Quebec. According to the 1667 census he was living at Cote St. Michel, in Sillery, Quebec. Marguerite Gaillard dit Duplessis was the daughter of Jean-Baptiste Gaillard and Catherine Lomelle. She was the widow of Hercule Duperron, esquire, and had lived in Notre-Dame de Calais, Boulogne, in Picardie. Marguerite was a ‘Fille du Roy’, or King’s Daughter, and came to New France in 1664 with some belongings worth approximately 200 pounds. Here is a translation of the marriage act between Francois Provost and Marguerite Gaillard dit Duplessis which was written in Old French: |
Il the year gbi Sixty Four the 26th of July after engagement publication of three bans at the homely on the 20th, 22nd, 25th July and no objection said Messire Jean Lesieur, priest, dit de St. Sauveur by permission of Monsignor de petrie, interrogated in the Chapel of St.Jean, francois provost, don of deceased Marin provost & de Catherine Cornille; from the parish of St. Aubin of Tourouvre in perche bishopric of Chartres for one part And Marguerite gaillard widow of deceased Hercule du peron, daughter of deceased Jean Baptiste gaillard & de Catherine Lomelle from the city of Calais parish of Notre Dame bishopric of Boulogne on the other part their mutual consent taken by him has solemny by words pronounced them husband and wife in front of known witnesses, Sieurs Jean Bourdon attorney general of the King, Denys Joseph Ruette d'auteuil, Concellor; Nicolas gaudry dit La Bourbonnière Ece.
The Provost / Gaillard couple had only two children :
1.- Claude-Anne : born October 11th, 1665 in Québec.
She married Etienne CHEVALIER on October 28th, 1678 in Sillery, Québec : 5 children.
She died October 14th, 1590 at the Hôtel-Dieu Hospital in Québec.
2.- François-Michel: born January 3rd, 1669 in Québec.
Married Catherine BONHOMME on October 23rd, 1695 in Québec : 12 children.
He died on June 4th, 1711 in Ste-Foy.
After Francois died, Marguerite married Louis Saucier in Quebec on January 12, 1671. The parish priest officiating in this wedding was Henri de Bernieres. She had two sons with Louis: Charles and Jean Saucier. She outlasted Monsieur Saucier and married again to Michel Legardeur dit Sansoucy sometime before November 1677. It is not known if any children were born to this union.
There are four Provosts who immigrated to the new world. The first Provost immigrant, Martin Prevost came to Canada from France in 1611. He was followed by Francois Provost (1637), Eustache Prevost (1644) and Rene Provost (1652). It is possible these men were related to each other. Martin Prevost was the first white man in Canada to marry an Indian bride. She was the daughter of an Algonquin chief.
Turgeon Family Tree (Basic):
The following tree shows the Provost family. We begin with John William Smith and show how he is related to the Provost family in Quebec and France. The tree expands to show other branches in this family tree.
John William Smith
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Mary (Smith) Turgeon
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Phileas Turgeon
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Cesaire Turgeon
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Francois Turgeon --- --- Marie-Louise Provost
______|________
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Charles Provost Louise Gosselin
| |
(Continued below)
_François Provost _____________
_François-Michel Provost __|_Marguerite Gaillard __________
_Charles Provost _________|
| | _Ignace Bonhomme ______________
| |_Marie-Catherine Bonhomme _|_Agnès Morin __________________
_Charles Provost ___|
| | _______________________________
| | _Samuel Ricosse ___________|_______________________________
| |_Marie-Charlotte Ricosse _|
| | _Jean Choret __________________
| |_Anne-Charlotte Choret ____|_Claire Baucher _______________
_Charles Provost _|
| | _Mathieu Côté _________________
| | _Martin Côté ______________|_Élisabeth Gravel _____________
| | _Jean-François Côté ______|
| | | | _François Ferland _____________
| | | |_Marguerite Ferland _______|_Jeanne-Françoise Milloir _____
| |_Marie Côté ________|
| | _Isaac (Étienne) Paquet _______
| | _Antoine Paquet ___________|_Élisabeth Meunier ____________
| |_Catherine Paquet ________|
| | _Antoine Paulet _______________
| |_Geneviève Paulet _________|_Anne Loignon _________________
|
|--Marie-Louise Provost
|
| _Ignace Gosselin ______________
| _Joseph Gosselin __________|_Marie-Anne Raté ______________
| _Jean-François Gosselin __|
| | | _Nicolas Godbout ______________
| | |_Françoise Godbout ________|_Marguerite Lemelin _
| _François Gosselin _|
| | | _Antoine Fortier ______________
| | | _Antoine Fortier __________|_Marie-Madeleine Cadieux ______
| | |_Angélique Fortier _______|
| | | _François Noël ________________
| | |_Madeleine Noël ___________|_Nicole Legrand _______________
|_Louise Gosselin _|
| _Bernard Gonthier _____________
| _Jean-Baptiste Gonthier ___|_Marguerite Paquet ____________
| _Étienne Gonthier ________|
| | | _Louis Roy ____________________
| | |_Geneviève Roy ____________|_Marie Ledran _________________
|_Louise Gonthier ___|
| _Zacharie Lis _________________
| _Jacques Lis ______________|_Élisabeth Maranda ____________
|_Marie-Louise Lis ________|
| _Jean Choret __________________
|_Françoise Choret _________|_Claire Baucher _______________
Francois and Marie-Louise Turgeon Family:
Marie Adelaide Turgeon born 1811 in Beaumont, Quebec Province
Louise Francois Turgeon born 1812 in Beaumont, Quebec Province
Cesaire (or Cezaire) Turgeon born on November 10, 1815, Quebec Province
Edouard Turgeon, born in 1816 in Beaumont, Quebec Province
Cecile Turgeon, born in 1816 in Beaumont, Quebec Province
Marie Josephine Turgeon in 1819 in Beaumont, Quebec Province
Francois Xavier Turgeon born 1820 in Beaumont, Quebec Province
Zephirin Turgeon, born 1821 in Beaumont, Quebec Province
Marie Lisa Turgeon born in 1822 in Beaumont, Quebec Province
Pierre Narcisse Turgeon born in 1824 in Beaumont, Quebec Province
Marie Mathilde Turgeon born 1826 in Beaumont, Quebec Province
Marie Elisabeth Turgeon born in 1827 in Beaumont, Quebec Province
Maxime Turgeon born 1828 in Beaumont, Quebec Province
Ferdinand Turgeon born in 1828 in Beaumont, Quebec Province
Cesaire Turgeon is our great-great ancestor and the father of Philias Turgeon. Philias married Merida Patry in Quebec and later moved to Dakota Territory where they raised their family in Charles Mix County.