Men And Women Of Renon The Companion Volume [Paperback]

The early Acadian settlers were mostly farmers. Farms were located along the banks of rivers that flowed into the Baie Fran?aise (Bay of Fundy) with Grand-Pr? being the great agricultural area of the colony. Rather than clear the uplands, the Acadians drained the marshes along bays and rivers by building dykes (large, tall mounds of earth covered with grass) and aboiteaux (drainage systems with trap doors that let water out, but not back in) to keep sea water out. An amazing people, the Mothers of Acadia mtDNA Project is serving to paint a picture of the wondrous mtDNA diversity amongst the French Acadian women. Filles du Roi was a term that meant meaning daughters (wards) of the King. These ladies, in large part, started the French Canadian population explosion that has, over 350 years, spread across North America. With fur traders, storekeepers, indentured servants, dockhands, clerics, farmers, settlers, and soldiers in New France, the population was mostly men; hence, the King quickly came to realize that for this new colony to thrive there must be marriageable women. As a result, the King offered 50 livres dowry to each, in addition to whatever the lady brought with her; he also sponsored her transportation. Of the nearly 1000 women who undertook the journey, between 1663 and 1673, about 800 made it to Canada. These were not ladies of ill repute; some were from wealthy families. With all that is written about them, the details of why they chose to come to New France are, for the most part, lost to history. One can only hope that at least one made the journey merely to experience the unknown and satisfy a pioneer spirit. With Catherine de Baillon, a notable ancestress, identified in Men and Women of Renown: My Maternal Ancestry, demonstrating a proven medieval lineage back to Charlemagne, projects such as this always end up expanding their boundaries beyond a single volume; hence, it quickly became evident that the birth of this companion tome had become al£J