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  • Evans, Trevor Ainslie & Dorothy (Rhodes)

    Evans, Trevor Ainslie & Dorothy (Rhodes) Back to ALL Bios ​ Trevor Ainslie Evans 1879 – 1939 Trevor Ainslie Evans was born in Montreal 31st December,1879 the son of the Very Reverend Thomas Lewis Frye Evans, Dean of Montreal and Maye Stewart Bethune. He married Dorothy Gwendolyn Esther Rhodes, the eldest daughter of Armitage Rhode in Quebec City in 1920s. He died in Montreal in 1939. As a boy Trevor spent the summers in Tadoussac as his father conducted Sunday services at the Tadoussac Protestant Chapel. He resided in the house currently owned by the Beattie family. In 1921 Dorothy and Trevor purchased ‘Ivanhoe’ from the Royal Trust Company the executors of the Estate of the late Alfred Piddington of Quebec City. Trevor attended High School of Montreal located on University Street. Trevor initially served with the Royal Victoria Rifles which, at the beginning of the First Great War amalgamated with several other Companies and Militia Regiments as the 1st Regiment, Royal Montreal Regiment. He went overseas and saw action at the Somme where he was injured. He recovered from his injuries at ‘Broadlands’ in England an estate owned by his Bethune cousins. After his return to Canada he established an insurance agency for the North American Insurance Company on St. Sacrement Street in Old Montreal. He was a member of the St. James’s Club in a building which was demolished to make way for the building of Place Ville Marie. During his summers in Tadoussac he played golf (left-handed) with his hickory shafted golf clubs. He regularly fished the last hour of the rising tide and first hour of the falling tide. Their children were Phoebe Maye Evans (Skutezky), Dorothy Ainslie Evans (Stephen), Trevor Lewis Armitage Evans and Rhodes Bethune (Tim) Evans. Dorothy Gwendolyn Esther Rhodes 1892 - 1977 Dorothy Rhodes was born 4th April 1892 in Quebec City. Dorothy was the daughter of Armitage Rhodes of Bemore House, Bergerville, QC. Dorothy spent her summers in Tadoussac with her family. Dorothy was ‘home schooled’ and then attended local schools before going to Miss Porter’s School in Farmington, Connecticut and then King’s Hall in Compton, Quebec. Dorothy served with the Canadian Expeditionary Force as a nursing sister during the First Great War. In 1921 Dorothy and Trevor purchased ‘Ivanhoe’ from the Royal Trust Company the executors of the Estate of the late Alfred Pittington of Quebec City. During the summers she managed her children Phoebe Maye Evans (Skutezky), Dorothy Ainslie Evans (Stephen), Trevor Lewis Armitage Evans and Rhodes Bethune (Tim) Evans and their many friends. When they had their own families, she welcomed her grandchildren and a list of chores and responsibilities. It was not uncommon for there to be 20 people for dinner. From Ainslie: Trevor Ainslie Evans - Born and died in Montreal, for many years an insurance agent in that city, He summered at Tadoussac in the original Lewis Evans cottage, with his father and mother, He participated in most sports, was an ardent fisherman, dabbled in poetry and water colour painting. He saw action in France (1914-1918), was twice wounded and convalesced in England at he home of his aunt and uncle, Edward and Stretta Price. The Saguenay River and Tadoussac and its people meant so much to him. He married Dorothy Rhodes and purchased Alfred Piddington’s property, which remains in the family. Michael Skutezky

  • Williams, Sidney

    Williams, Sidney Back to ALL Bios ​ Sydney Waldron Williams 1899 - 1972 Sydney Williams was born in Quebec City in 1899 and was the fourth child of Bishop Lennox Waldron Williams and Caroline Annie Rhodes. Sydney had an older brother James (Jimmy) who died at the battle of the Somme in 1916 and older sisters Mary and Gertrude. Sydney attended Quebec High School (Boy’s School) from 1908 until 1916. He was Head Prefect and was awarded the Governor General’s medal (for mathematics) and the Ann Ross Medal (for science). He attended Bishop’s University from 1916 until 1918 and then the Royal Military College from 1918 until 1921 (College Number 1394). Sydney finished his degree in Chemical Engineering at McGill University (as RMC could not grant degrees at the time) graduating in 1923. After graduation, Sydney worked for the Laurentide Paper Company in Grand Mere between 1923 and 1927. He then decided to follow in the footsteps of so many of his ancestors by pursuing a degree in theology at Bishop’s University (1927-1929). He was ordained a deacon in May 1929, and then a priest in 1930, by his father Bishop Lennox Williams at the cathedral in Quebec City. After a short courtship, Sydney married Enid Price in June 1929 and they had four children: Joan, Susan, Jimmy, and Sheila. Sydney was the curate for St Michael’s Church in Bournemouth, England between 1930 and 1932 before returning to work as the curate at the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in Quebec City while his father was Bishop. From 1933 until 1940 Sydney became the incumbent at St John the Evangelist, in Shawinigan Falls. At the outbreak of war, and based on his previous military background, Sydney volunteered to serve and went overseas serving in the 66th Battery, 14th Field Regiment. While in England, Sydney worked as an instructor and he retired as a Major in 1944. He returned to his parish in Shawinigan as the Anglican Rector where he worked for many years until his retirement in 1967. In addition to an active Parish ministry, he served with great devotion on many Diocesan boards including the Executive Committee of Synod, Church Society, and the Pension Committee, as well as being a member of the Corporation of King’s Hall, Compton. Always a proud military man, in 1956, Sydney was made an Honorary Lt Col. of the 62nd Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment in Shawinigan. He was also the Honorary Chaplain for the RMC Club of Canada and would preside over many Remembrance Day Ceremonies at the College. The following quote comes from an article written for the RMC Review about Sydney: “His many friends knew him as a man of understanding and wit, and he is also remembered by a great many people for his help in times of their trouble. His strong faith and deep understanding enabled him to give both spiritual and practical comfort.” Sports were always a great interest of Sydney and as a young man, he was a member of the Bishop’s University hockey and basketball teams. Sydney was also a great marksman and won many prizes for target shooting. He was a member of the Rifle Team at both RMC and McGill University and started the gun club in Shawinigan. Later in life, he taught the police in Shawinigan how to shoot. He used this skill in retirement when he could often be found shooting rats at the dump in Tadoussac. Sydney spent his childhood summers in Tadoussac living with his parents. He was an avid golfer, tennis player, and canoeist. After his ordination, Sydney followed in the footsteps of his father by officiating the church services in July each summer until his retirement. On the death of his father, he inherited The Barn and spent his retirement playing bridge with Coosie and Ray Price and enjoying his children and grandchildren. He had a strong friendship with Dr Taylor, an American clergyman who visited Tadoussac for many years. Sydney died in St Anne’s Military Hospital in 1972 and was buried in Mount Hermon Cemetery in Quebec City. The reredos (panel behind the altar) in the Protestant Chapel in Tadoussac, was presented in his memory by the congregation. Sydney was a beloved minister and his kind and friendly nature left a mark on everyone he met. Tadoussac was blessed to have had such a fine man as their liturgical leader for so many years. Kevin Webster

  • Wallace, Jack & Mary (Williams)

    Wallace, Jack & Mary (Williams) Back to ALL Bios Bios in the works...I hope! ​

  • Evans, Thomas Frye Lewis

    Evans, Thomas Frye Lewis Back to ALL Bios ​ The Very Reverend Thomas Frye Lewis Evans 1846 – 1919 Marie Stewart (Bethune) 1850 – 1903 Emily Elizabeth (Bethune) 1866 – 1947 Cyril Lewis Evans 1882 – 1887 The Very Reverend Thomas Frye Lewis Evans served as a summer minister in Tadoussac for thirty-five years back between about 1884 and his death in 1919. He married Marie Stewart Bethune in 1874 and with her had five children, Basil (1873), Muriel (1877) Trevor (1879), Cyril (1882), and Ruby (1885). Little is known about Marie except that she was said to have been a lively and engaging woman and usually called May. She married Lewis Evans in 1873 at the age of twenty-three. She is named Maria in her birth record, and Marie in the marriage index, (and Marie on her plaque). Her full name was Maria Stewart Bethune, born in 1850, the second of four children (all girls) of Strachan Bethune (1821 - 1910) and Maria MacLean Phillips (1826 - 1901). She died in 1903 and is buried in The Mount Royal Cemetery. Included in that list of Marie’s children is Cyril who died at five years old. There is a small window in the back wall of the chapel that is dedicated to the memory of Cyril Lewis Evans. He died of hydrocephalus at the age of five. It is hard to imagine now how that tragedy played out, the little boy dying in 1887. Hydrocephalus (sometimes called water on the brain) can cause brain damage as a result of fluid buildup. This can lead to developmental, physical, and intellectual impairments caused by Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) which flows through the brain and spinal cord under normal conditions. Under certain conditions, the amount of this fluid in the brain increases if there is a blockage that prevents it from flowing normally, or if the brain produces an excess amount of it. In the 1880s treatment for this condition was in its infancy, so it must have been a very difficult time for Cyril and his family. 6 After Marie’s death, the Dean married her cousin, Emily Elizabeth Bethune (1866 – 1947), and had one more child, Robert Lewis Evans (1911) when he was about sixty-five years old and Emily was forty-five. This family was not connected to any of the other summer cottage families until son Trevor, and later son Lewis married into the Rhodes family and both had cottages in Tadoussac. Dean Evans was the rector of St. Stephen's Church in Montreal, a church on Atwater Street, and stayed there for forty-six years. While there, he served as an Honourary Canon, Archdeacon, and then was named the fifth Dean of Montreal Diocese, but would only accept the position if he could stay at St. Stephen's and not move over to the Cathedral. In 1908 he was within a whisker of being elected Bishop. It was an actual split vote and they had to adjourn for three weeks to sort it out in typical Anglican political manoeuvring. They picked the other guy, John Craig Farthing. The Dean died in 1919. It is said that he had pneumonia, collapsed in the pulpit on a Sunday morning while delivering his sermon, and died a few days later. Very few of Dean Lewis Evans’s writings remain but it is clear from them that he was a devoted churchman and that he had worked hard to help in the development of the Anglican Diocese of Montreal. A school in the St. Henri district was named after him, and he was very insistent that all of the Anglican clergy should be able to speak French. In Tadoussac, he lived in what was then the furthest east Price house, the Beattie/Price house. It was built along with the other Price houses for the administrators of Price Brothers Lumber, but this one was lent to Dean Evans and he eventually acquired it by squatter’s rights. From him, it passed to his wife, Emily Elizabeth (Bethune) Evans, and then to their son, Lewis Evans, who sold it to James and Anne Beattie. The Dean had also owned a part of the tennis club property which he bought from the Price family, but he sold his portion to Jonathan Dwight and Mr Dwight sold it to the tennis club. Dean Evans was an avid fisherman and actually had built for himself a small log cabin about nine miles up the Saguenay on the west side of the river at a place called Cap à Jack. It seemed he needed a cottage to get away from his cottage! He had a little powerboat called Minota which he would take up there towing a couple of nor'shore canoes to fish out of. One of the local men, André Nicolas, in speaking about the Dean, said he had seen photos of the fishing camp on the website, tidesoftadoussac.com, that grandson Tom Evans set up. He said that where Lewis Evans had his camp was, and still is, the best place on the river to catch sea trout. It is interesting, a hundred years later, to hear a local fisherman say that the Dean got it right! Alan Evans

  • Turcot, Percy & Marjorie (Webb)

    Turcot, Percy & Marjorie (Webb) Back to ALL Bios ​ Marjorie Webb Turcot (1887 – 1976) Percy Turcot (1886 – 1983) Parents and Grandparents to • John Turcot (1920 – 2003) and Margaret Close o Cheryl/Ralph, John/Sue, David/Collette, Greg/Trudy • Elliott Turcot (1922 – 2019) and Peggy Durnford o Mary/Ron, Linda/Cameron, Michael • Peter Turcot (1925 – 2018) and Anne Dean o Wendy/Brian, Peggy/Scott, Peter, Chris/Christine, Susan/Chris • Joan Turcot (1928 – 1972) Marjorie’s sisters were Dorothy (Arthur Warburton) and Rachel (Dennis Stairs) Marjorie Webb grew up on 16 St. Denis street in Quebec City. As a nurse she served overseas from 1914 – 1919, spending significant time on the front lines at the Casualty Clearing Stations in France for which she was decorated with the Royal Red Cross. In a letter home to her mother, she wrote “I am sorry I have not been telling you about the work, it’s rather hard to write about. Lately since the tents were opened, we have been getting all the stretcher cases. The wounds are pretty hard to look at but you get used to it.” She was stationed at the front including spending time at the horrific Battle of the Somme. Percy Turcot, grew up in Quebec City and vacationed with his family in St. Irene. He also served on the front lines and was wounded in WW1 as a Captain. He went onto a career as a shipping executive with Mclean Kennedy, a shipping broker. In 1916, shortly after being commissioned to France from England he wrote to Marjorie: “It is a great feeling to at last feel you are going to try to do something. There is no truer saying than - The only man who is happy today is the man at the front.” Even at the age of 30, he needed permission from his mother as he was the sole supporter of his family. “I had a hard time getting my mother’s permission, but she said yes yesterday, I am now in for it. I was very hard on poor mother.” They were married on Nov 6, 1919 shortly after Marjorie returned from Europe. All four children were born in St. John, New Brunswick before moving to Montreal around 1930. Marjorie and Percy purchased their Tadoussac property from Rachel Stairs and built the existing Turcot house in 1946. Marjorie (and son Peter age 21) spent the summer in Tad overseeing the construction and building the path to the beach, while Percy working in the shipping business made sure that post war supplies were delivered. Tea time was a ritual with friends in the afternoon on the front yard in Tadoussac, and every Sunday in Westmount, with lots and lots of family. Grandchildren were given free run of the house on Belmont Ave., which included playing super eight family movies, ping pong games and watching Walt Disney. The house in Tad was often overflowing with guests and family. Marjorie was a prolific reader who loved picnics, berry picking and flowers. Percy was an avid sportsman. Rumour has it he would play 9 holes before work in St John NB every day. Both played tennis, golf and skied, but not on Sunday. They were opposites in so many ways and married for 57 years. Marjorie, a devoted Anglican, was serious and generous to a fault with a keen interest in everyone she met and interacted with. Percy attended the Catholic church and was a true Quebecer who lived his life full of “joie de vivre” … however one common trait, you were always warmly welcomed by both into their home…and “last touch” by Gammie’s cane was a game with the grandchildren on the way out the door. Betty Evans made the needlepoint seat cushion for one of the chairs at the front of the church in Tad in memory of Marjorie Turcot and the carved wooden top on the font at the back of the church was also given in her memory (carved by Pierre Tremblay). (MMT initials) Fun Facts Percy, having a career in the shipping business, would raise shipping flags with the help of his grandchildren, to salute the passing Headline ships on the Saguenay to see if they would toot their horn in response, which they did on occasion. The funnel colours for the Headline ships were black bearing the ‘Red Hand of Ulster’ with three drops of blood on a white shield. The bloody hand became a theme of many ghost stories told at Tad bonfires on the beach. Marjorie was one of the first women to vote in Canada. In 1917 The federal government granted limited war-time suffrage to enlisted women in 1917 (Military Voters Act, awarded the vote to women serving in the armed forces as well as nurses in the war) and followed with full suffrage for women in 1918. Chris Turcot (plus family!)

  • Dawson, May

    Dawson, May Back to ALL Bios ​ May Dawson 1870 - 1967 The Dawson family was one of the earliest supporters and summer attendees of the Tadoussac Protestant Chapel. The first of four children born to George Dudley Dawson and Elizabeth Crooks, May Dawson had a cognitive disability that required her to have caregivers with her at all times. It is remarkable that in a day and age when most families facing this kind of challenge had their affected children committed to institutions, the Dawsons kept her with them at home. George Dudley Dawson, May’s father, was a wine merchant descended from an Anglican Irish family. May’s mother, Elizabeth Crooks, was from a third-generation Upper Canadian family with roots in Scotland. While May remained single, her younger siblings Aileen, Richard and Dudley Dawson all married. Different members of the family, particularly Aileen, took turns caring for her. Aileen married Charles Carington Smith, and they had three children including Doris Carington Smith. To Doris and her two younger siblings, May Dawson was always simply “Auntie May”. After Doris married C.J.G. “Jack” Molson, “Auntie May” would often stay with them here in Tadoussac. May was fond of sewing and other handicrafts. She was remembered with much affection by those who knew her. Karen Molson

  • Cid, Pierre & Famille

    Cid, Pierre & Famille Back to ALL Bios ​ La famille Cid Les ainés de Tadoussac se rappellent pour la plupart le magasin général Cid, situé au centre du village, là où, aujourd’hui se trouve le Café Bohème. Peut-être même quelques-uns ont connu Joseph Cid, le fils de Pierre Cid, fondateur du magasin général du même nom. Pour ma part, quelques lectures historiques captivantes et une réflexion objective m’ont conduits aux propos suivants. Pierre Cid, à son époque, est sans contredit une personne bien connue à Tadoussac et dans les environs. L’histoire locale identifie d’abord le personnage au magasin général, mais aussi au fait de son origine syrienne, pays de l’Asie de l’Ouest. Selon les sources, il y serait né en 1866. Il arrive en sol canadien entre 1894 et 1897, au début de la trentaine. Selon les données du recensement national de 1911, il semble probable qu’il soit arrivé au pays en 1895. Il est alors accompagné de sa femme Halissah, née en 1877, (souvent prénommée Alice, Marie-Alice, Marie-Halisse, ou Alisse) et de deux enfants: Victoria, 6 ans, et Geneviève 5 ans. Selon madame Gaby Villeneuve (Les vieilles familles de Tadoussac, 1850-1950), ils s’installeraient à Québec à leur arrivée au Canada. Pour ce qui est de son pays d’origine présumé, la Syrie, il est à noter qu’à cette époque, soit la fin du 19e siècle, cette région du monde connaît de multiples conflits politiques avec les pays voisins. La France est présente comme état colonisateur et joue un rôle important dans cette région du monde. Cette présence française explique d’ailleurs la nature francophone du Liban et de la Syrie entre autres, depuis de nombreuses années et aujourd’hui encore. Bien entendu les frontières entre le Liban et la Syrie ont varié au cours du 19ièm et du début du 20ièm siècles et certaines villes ou régions se voit ainsi changer de pays. Selon l’avis de décès paru dans le journal L’Action catholique du samedi 20 mars 1948 (Source BANQ), Pierre Cid serait né dans la ville de «Massoun au Liban (Syrie)» en 1866. S’agirait-il de l’actuelle ville de Massoud (Massoudiyeh ou Massoudieh) du district de l’Akkar au nord du Liban? Cette ville est en effet située très près de la frontière entre les deux pays, dans une région montagneuse limitrophe de la Syrie dont Wikipédia relate un exode important de sa population à travers le monde, entre autres vers le Canada. L’hypothèse de cette origine de Pierre Cid semble intéressante. Quoiqu’il en soit, Pierre Cid parle donc français à son arrivée au Canada. Cela facilitera son intégration au Québec rural où il exerce au début, le métier de commerçant itinérant entre Québec et la côte nord (source : Les vieilles familles de Tadoussac, 1850-1950). Après quelques années à parcourir la région de Charlevoix et de Tadoussac, il s’installe dans ce village au début 1900. Ses activités commerciales sont au début assez modestes, à partir d’un petit local situé dans la maison qui deviendra plus tard le magasin général. Après quelques années, les affaires allant assez bien, il achète la maison de son propriétaire et y installe son magasin général. Rapidement Pierre Cid devient une personnalité importante et respectée au village et dans la région. Il collabore à tous les projets de développement et son nom revient fréquemment dans les journaux du Québec de l’époque, le Soleil, la Presse, l’Action catholique et le Quotidien notamment. Au cours des années il fonde une famille imposante avec onze enfants, quatre garçons et sept filles. Malheureusement, en 1917 il perd un fils, Antoine, âgé de 16 ans. Trois autres enfants décèdent aussi en bas âge; deux garçons, Louis-Joseph à l’âge de deux ans (1905), Joseph-Paul à trois ans (1915) et une fille, Marie-Juliette au cours de sa première année en 1915. Ces sépultures sont gravées sur la stèle de Pierre Cid au cimetière ancestral de Tadoussac. Lors du recensement de 1911 (sources retrouvées par monsieur Tom Evans) les enfants identifiés au registre national sont Victoria, l’aînée, qui est née en Syrie le 17 décembre 1892, de même que Geneviève le 16 mars 1893. Suivent par la suite les enfants nés au Québec : Joseph, le 13 janvier 1896 (d’où mon doute sur l’hypothèse de l’arrivée de Pierre Cid au pays en 1897), Antoine le 11 décembre 1900 et décédé en 1917 (sur l’épitaphe il est indiqué 1901 comme date de naissance, alors que le recensement précise qu’il est né en 1900), Alexandra, le 7 juin 1904, Joséphine, le 5 mars 1905, Marie et Antoinette les jumelles, le premier avril 1910. Les enfants ont été éduqués dans la religion catholique comme le laisse présumer les indications dans les journaux. En effet, certaines des filles ont même été novices chez les religieuses, notamment Geneviève (Soeur Marie-du-St-Esprit), Alexandra (Soeur Marie-du-bon-Pasteur) et Antoinette (Soeur Alarie-du-bon-Pasteur). Certains témoins de l’époque prétendent qu’Alexandra et Marie travaillaient avec Joseph au magasin. Marie souffrait, semble-t-il, de la maladie de Parkinson. L’avis de décès d’Alexandra, retrouvé dans le journal le Soleil du 7 novembre 1978, annonce son décès le 6 novembre 1978 à Québec à l’âge de 74 ans. L’a nécrologie relate la présence aux obsèques de Joseph, Joséphine et Marie. Nous n’avons pas trouvé d’autres traces après cette date. Victoria, l’ainée et Antoinette la cadette seront les seuls enfants Cid à se marier. On retrouve l’inscription au registre, le mariage de Victoria, qui épouse le 20 septembre 1920, à Toronto, monsieur John Moses Cooley, fils de James Cooley et de Agnès Clair. Antoinette, après avoir fait des études en soins infirmiers à l’hôpital Ste-Justine de Montréal et pratiqué sa profession quelques années au Québec, quitte le pays pour s’installer à New York. Elle y fait la Rencontre de John David Barr de Baltimore et l’épouse en 1950. Deux ans plus tôt, le 16 mars 1948, sont célébrées à Tadoussac les funérailles de monsieur Pierre Cid, à l’âge vénérable de 82 ans et 5 mois. Quelques années au paravant, Madame Hallissah Cid est décédée, le 26 juillet 1945 à l’âge de 68 ans. Une épitaphe à sa mémoire est inscrite sur une pierre tombale près de la stèle de Pierre Cid. Il n’y aura donc aucun descendant patronyme de Pierre Cid. Y a-t-il des descendants Cid-Cooley en Ontario issus du mariage de Victoria, ou des Cid-Barr aux États-Unis du mariage d’Antoinette? Malheureusement, nous n’en avons pas trouvé de trace, pour l’instant. À suivre, peut-être. Daniel Delisle PhD The Cid family The elders of Tadoussac mostly remember the Cid general store, located in the center of the village, where the Café Bohème is today. Perhaps even a few knew Joseph Cid, the son of Pierre Cid, founder of the general store of the same name. For my part, some fascinating historical readings and objective reflection led me to the following remarks. Pierre Cid, in his time, is undoubtedly a well-known person in Tadoussac and the surrounding area. Local history identifies the character first with the general store, but also with the fact of his Syrian origin, a country in West Asia. According to sources, he was born there in 1866. He arrived on Canadian soil between 1894 and 1897, in his early thirties. According to data from the 1911 national census, it seems probable that he arrived in the country in 1895. He was then accompanied by his wife Halissah, born in 1877, (often named Alice, Marie-Alice, Marie-Halisse, or Alisse ) and two children: Victoria, 6, and Geneviève 5. According to Ms. Gaby Villeneuve (The old families of Tadoussac, 1850-1950), they would settle in Quebec on their arrival in Canada. As for its presumed country of origin, Syria, it should be noted that at this time, the end of the 19th century, this region of the world was experiencing multiple political conflicts with neighboring countries. France is present as a colonizing state and plays an important role in this region of the world. This French presence also explains the French-speaking nature of Lebanon and Syria, among others, for many years and still today. Of course the borders between Lebanon and Syria varied during the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries and some cities or regions are thus seen changing countries. According to the death notice published in the newspaper L'Action catholique on Saturday, March 20, 1948 (Source BANQ), Pierre Cid was born in the town of "Massoun in Lebanon (Syria)" in 1866. Would it be the current city of Massoud (Massoudiyeh or Massoudieh) in the Akkar district in northern Lebanon? This city is indeed located very close to the border between the two countries, in a mountainous region bordering Syria which Wikipedia relates to a significant exodus of its population across the world, among others to Canada. The hypothesis of this Pierre Cid origin seems interesting. In any event, Pierre Cid therefore spoke French when he arrived in Canada. This will facilitate his integration into rural Quebec, where he started out as an itinerant merchant between Quebec and the north coast (source: The old families of Tadoussac, 1850-1950). After a few years traveling the Charlevoix and Tadoussac region, he settled in this village at the beginning of 1900. At the beginning, his commercial activities were quite modest, from a small room located in the house which would later become the general store. After a few years, with business going fairly well, he bought the owner's house and set up his general store there. Pierre Cid quickly became an important and respected personality in the village and in the region. He collaborated on all development projects and his name appeared frequently in the Quebec newspapers of the time, including Le Soleil, La Presse, Action catholique and Le Quotidien. Over the years he founded an imposing family with eleven children, four boys and seven girls. Unfortunately, in 1917 he lost a son, Antoine, aged 16. Three other children also die at an early age; two boys, Louis-Joseph at the age of two (1905), Joseph-Paul at the age of three (1915) and a girl, Marie-Juliette during her first year in 1915. These graves are engraved on the stele of Pierre Cid at the ancestral cemetery of Tadoussac. During the 1911 census (sources found by Mr. Tom Evans) the children identified in the national register are Victoria, the eldest, who was born in Syria on December 17, 1892, as well as Geneviève on March 16, 1893. children born in Quebec: Joseph, January 13, 1896 (hence my doubt on the hypothesis of the arrival of Pierre Cid in the country in 1897), Antoine on December 11, 1900 and died in 1917 (on the epitaph he is indicated 1901 as the date of birth, while the census specifies that he was born in 1900), Alexandra, June 7, 1904, Joséphine, March 5, 1905, Marie and Antoinette the twins, April 1, 1910. The children were educated in the Catholic religion as the indications in the newspapers suggest. Indeed, some of the girls were even novices with the nuns, notably Geneviève (Sister Marie-du-St-Esprit), Alexandra (Sister Marie-du-bon-Pasteur) and Antoinette (Sister Alarie-du-bon-Pasteur) . Some witnesses at the time claim that Alexandra and Marie worked with Joseph at the store. Marie was reportedly suffering from Parkinson's disease. Alexandra's death notice, found in the newspaper Le Soleil for November 7, 1978, announces her death on November 6, 1978 in Quebec City at the age of 74. The obituary relates the presence at the funerals of Joseph, Josephine and Marie. We have not found any other traces after this date. Victoria, the eldest, and Antoinette the younger, will be the only Cid children to marry. We find the entry in the register, the marriage of Victoria, who married on September 20, 1920, in Toronto, Mr. John Moses Cooley, son of James Cooley and Agnès Clair. Antoinette, after studying nursing at Ste-Justine Hospital in Montreal and practicing her profession for a few years in Quebec, left the country to settle in New York. There she met John David Barr of Baltimore and married in 1950. Two years earlier, on March 16, 1948, the funeral of Mr. Pierre Cid was celebrated in Tadoussac, at the venerable age of 82 years and 5 months. A few years earlier, Mrs. Hallissah Cid died on July 26, 1945 at the age of 68. An epitaph in his memory is inscribed on a tombstone near the stele of Pierre Cid. There will therefore be no patronymic descendant of Pierre Cid. Are there Cid-Cooley descendants in Ontario from Victoria’s marriage, or Cid-Barrs in the United States from Antoinette’s marriage? Unfortunately, we haven't found any evidence of it yet. To be continued, perhaps. Daniel Delisle PhD

  • Smith, Arthur Carington

    Smith, Arthur Carington Back to ALL Bios ​ Arthur Carington Smith 1875-1952 Arthur was born in Quebec City in 1875, the sixth son of Robert Herbert Smith and Amelia Jane LeMesurier. His older brothers were Robert, Herbert, Charles, George and Edmund. He also had two sisters, Edith and Blanche. He attended the Royal Military College in Kingston. He married Constance Naomi Hamilton also of Quebec City. They had one son, Hugh Hamilton Smith 1909-1974. Arthur played hockey for the Quebec Bulldogs and was a prolific goal scorer. He was influential in the introduction of netting between the goal posts to ensure the confirmation of goals scored! He served overseas in the first World War with the Royal Rifles. Arthur was a banker but ended up his career as a stock broker for Greenshields in Quebec City. As with all the Smith boys, his true love was Tadoussac and his boat the Empress of Tadoussac. He was the favourite uncle to a large number of Smith and Price offspring. To be invited to sail with Uncle Art was the highlight of the summer. The stories of adventures on the Empress are legends to this day. He died in 1952. Eve Wickwire

  • Price, Helen Florence

    Price, Helen Florence Back to ALL Bios ​ Helen Florence Price 1902-1981 Helen was born in Quebec in 1902, the eldest daughter of Henry Edward Price and Helen Gilmour. She spent her many summers in Tadoussac, growing up with ten younger siblings and at many times looking out for them. Helen had an active and outgoing life and kept up on all news of the family. She lived in Toronto where facing the hardships of the Great Depression, she worked and for some years served as the Matron for the Junior school at Upper Canada College. In her later years in Tadoussac, she often stayed with her good friend Grace Scott. She had many nieces and nephews, some of whom knew her well, remembering her appearing in pantaloons and black stockings. For one of her nieces, she was there to drive her to the hospital to have her baby. For another, Aunt Helen made the arrangements for her niece and her husband to spend their honeymoon in Tadoussac during the month of April. She was always interested in others, very generous and wanting to help whenever possible. Aunt Helen would never be forgotten by those who knew her. Greville Price

  • Smith, Mary Isabelle (Atkinson)

    Smith, Mary Isabelle (Atkinson) Back to ALL Bios ​ Mary Isabelle Atkinson Smith 1911-1984 Mary was born in 1911 to Henry Atkinson and his wife, Suzanne van Bruyssel. She was the granddaughter of Ferdinand van Bruyssel who was the consul general for Belgium to Canada, 1887-1894 and founder of the Belgo Canadian Pulp Company. She had one older sister Adelaide who died in childhood. Mary married Alexander (Lex) Smith in Levis in 1931, and they lived for many years at 1210 Pine Ave in Quebec City. They had one daughter, Susan who was born in 1942. During World War II, they cared for two English refugee children, Richard and Elizabeth. Richard and Elizabeth returned to their family after the war but the two families remained in touch for many years. Mary was a talented knitter and a superb home chef as well as a community volunteer, especially with the Women’s Auxiliary, and during the war she even learnt auto mechanics! She and Lex lived for many summers at Bayview Cottage where she was the most gracious hostess. Serving dinner to 10 or 15 family and friends was not unusual. The last years of her life were spent living with her daughter Susan and her husband Keith Robbins in and around Guelph, Ontario. She is buried with Lex in Mount Hermon Cemetery in Quebec. Eve Wickwire

  • Radford, Joseph

    Radford, Joseph Back to ALL Bios ​ Joseph Radford 1815 - 1885 There is a window dedicated to the memory of Joseph Radford on the east side of the church. Joseph Radford came to Tadoussac in the 1840s, it is believed from England, and lived in Tadoussac with his wife, Isabella White, and daughter for most of his life, the only anglophone full-time residents of the town at that time. Joseph Radford was a prominent citizen in the early days of the town of Tadoussac and had many different jobs. He originally came to work in the Price Sawmill in Anse à l’Eau, but in 1848 William Price closed the mill, and Radford became the manager, in a caretaker role, to occasionally operate the mill when enough wood was harvested. In 1874 the old mill was ceded to the Federal Ministry of Marine Fisheries for $1, and Radford directed the renovation of the old building for its new role, as a fish hatchery, which he managed for the next 11 years. In 1878, surviving documents show that he was paid $400 for “conducting a Fish Breeding establishment,” and the hatchery raised and released up to a million small salmon a year in the area rivers. Mr. Radford was the last Factor of the Hudson’s Bay Post, which was located in front of the Hotel Tadoussac until it was demolished in about 1870. He was also listed as Tadoussac’s Postmaster, Protection Officer, and Customs Agent, and apparently served as the Swedish and Norwegian Vice Consul. It is uncertain what that job entailed! When the group of summer residents, Rhodes, Russell, and Urquhart got together to form a company to build the first Tadoussac Hotel in 1864, Joseph Radford was a member of the group. He is also listed as one of the founders of the Tadoussac Protestant Chapel in 1866. It was in 1863 that he bought the land opposite the Hotel Georges from David Price, and demolished the house that was there, to build a magnificent white house overlooking the old salmon pool and the cove. Early photos of Anse à l’Eau feature two imposing buildings above the wharf and mill, The Hotel Georges and the Radford House. In 1873 there was excitement in Tadoussac. Lord Dufferin was coming to build a house and become a summer resident. Joseph Radford had been a town councilor and by this time was the Mayor of Tadoussac, although the town had not yet been incorporated so he is not listed as the first mayor officially. However, he and the other prominent people in town at the time wrote a flowery letter of welcome, in which they explained that they could not possibly afford to provide a welcoming reception, being such a small community, but “hope that we may have the pleasure during many future seasons of seeing your Excellencies and your amiable family at our beautiful little seaside village.” Joseph Radford died in Tadoussac in 1885 at the age of 70, and his family continued to live in the house for many years. His unmarried daughter, Belle, inherited the house and lived there until she was too old to manage it, whereupon she sold it to Lady Price in 1918. Belle went to live in Montreal, but continued to spend her summers in Tadoussac, staying at the Hotel Georges across the street, then known as the Desmeules Boarding House. Ainslie Stephen remembered going with her mother, Dorothy Evans, to visit Belle in the years before her death in 1935. The Radford house was used to put up overflow guests from Lady Price’s cottage, and as these guests were mainly relatives and friends of her son, young men home from the First World War, it became known as the “bachelor house”. It was destroyed by fire during a strong Northwest storm in the winter of 1932. Tom & Alan Evans

  • Powel, Henry Baring

    Powel, Henry Baring Back to ALL Bios ​ Henry Baring Powel 1864 – 1917 Henry was the youngest of Robert and Amy Powel’s six children. He was born in Haddon, Camden, New Jersey in 1864. He married Edith Elizabeth Smith in 1888. She was the daughter of Robert Herbert Smith and Amelia Jane (LeMesurier) (see above) so this marriage connected the Powel and Smith families in Tadoussac. Henry and Edith had four children: Robert Hare 1888, Herbert De Veaux 1890, Harcourt 1896, and Blanche Valliere 1899. Harcourt, called Harky, acquired Fletcher Cottage from his aunt, Blanche (Smith) Price and lived there in the summer up until he sold it to his first cousin’s son Bill Glasgow. Henry Baring passed away in 1917, in Chicoutimi.

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