Maybe at a 1689 Massacre — Marie-Charlotte Jolivet

B. about 1648 in Andrésy, France¹
M. (1) 12 Oct 1671 in Quebec City, New France²
Husband: Leonard Girardin
M. (2) 18 Oct 1688 in Lachine, New France³
Husband: Simon Trilaut
D. before 15 Nov 1699 in New France or France⁴

There is a curious story around Marie-Charlotte Jolivet which may indicate that she was present during an Iroquois massacre. She was born in about 1648 in the village of Andrésy, France,¹ located on the Seine River northwest of Paris. Her parents were Louis Jolivet and Louise Bellemanière, and her father made a living as a ship’s carpenter.⁵

When Charlotte was in her early 20s, she signed up to become a Fille-du Roi during one of the last years of the program, agreeing to become the wife of a man living in New France in return for passage and a dowry. At the end of June 1671, she boarded the Saint Jean-Baptiste, which sailed out from Dieppe loaded with about 120 other prospective brides.⁶ After she arrived at Quebec City on August 15th, the process began to make a match with a husband.

Two months later, Charlotte became engaged to settler Leonard Girardin, and they were married at Notre-Dame-de-Quebec on October 12th.² She soon gave birth to a daughter and a son, the second of whom was baptized at Quebec City in 1675.⁷ After that date, the family seems to have moved to the west, because Charlotte was named as a witness in a criminal case at Trois-Rivières.⁸ The trial involved a married couple named Michel Gauron and Marguerite Robineau who were accused of illegal behavior, perhaps stealing some goods. Charlotte gave a deposition concerning the case in March 1677, along with several others that included René Maillot dit Laviolette of Grondines, and this may have been where she lived.

By the following year, Charlotte’s family moved upriver to the Montreal area, settling in Lachine, where five more children were born. At some point, Leonard passed away, and on October 18, 1688, Charlotte remarried to a man named Simon Trilaut.³

After the event of Charlotte’s second wedding, her whereabouts are uncertain. Some sources say she died in 1689, and that Simon moved back to France in 1691. Others claim she was alive at the time of her son Hilaire’s marriage contract on January 10, 1699, and deceased by her daughter Catherine’s marriage on November 15th of that year.⁴

However, something that happened to Hilaire may provide a clue as to Charlotte’s fate. He reported that when he was age 14 in November of 1689, he had been captured in an Iroquois attack that took place in the settlement of Lachenaie.⁹ Similar to what happened at Lachine a few months earlier, it was a surprise attack that took the lives of many settlers. Hilaire said he was marched to a distant camp with others, and witnessed brutal torture, with some of his fellow prisoners burned alive. One woman had her baby taken from her arms by one of the Iroquois, who grabbed the infant by its feet, smashed its head open, and threw it into a fire. The woman was later burned to death as well.

Sites of two Iroquois attacks in 1689.

So it’s possible that Charlotte was also at Lachenaie, and may even have been killed by the Iroquois. Of course her son Hilaire may have been working on a farm away from his family during the massacre, and she simply moved back to France with her second husband two years later. The lack of further records of her youngest sons Michel and Louis suggest that they may have left with her, spending the rest of their lives in France, but this is speculation. Charlotte’s third youngest son Joseph moved to Poste Mobile (present-day Alabama) in 1708; he later was one of the earliest settlers of New Orleans, spending the rest of his life in that area. 

Charlotte was the ancestor of Dan Aykroyd and Rudy Vallée.

Children (all by Leonard Girardin):
1. Anne-Jeanne Girardin — B. about 1673, New France;¹⁰ D. 28 Apr 1760, Ste-Anne-Bellevue, New France;¹¹ M. Hubert Ranger dit Laviolette (~1681-?), 30 Jul 1686, Lachine, New France¹²

2. Hillaire Girardin — B. 21 Jul 1675, Quebec City, New France;⁷ M. (1) Nicole Salois (1681-?), 26 Jan 1699, St-Laurent, Île d’Orleans, New France;¹³ (2) Anne-Marguerite Dupuis (1705-1767), 16 Aug 1729, La Prairie, New France¹⁴

3. Charles Girardin — B. 9 Mar 1678, Lachine, New France;¹⁵ D. before 30 Jan 1682, (probably) Lachine, New France¹⁶

4. Catherine Girardin — B. 16 Feb 1680, Lachine, New France;¹⁷ D. 24 Feb 1724, Ste-Anne-Bellevue, New France;¹⁸ M. Joseph Lamadeleine (1673-1750), 15 Nov 1699, Lachine, New France⁴

5. Joseph Girardin — B. 30 Jan 1682, Lachine, New France;¹⁹ D. about 1756, Louisiana²⁰

6. Michel Girardin — B. 28 Jan 1684, Lachine, New France²¹

7. Louis Girardin — B. 8 May 1687, Lachine, New France²²

Sources:
1    King’s Daughters and Founding Mothers—1663-1673, Peter Gagne, 2000
2    Marriage record of Leonardin Girardin and Charlotte-Catherine Jolivet, Quebec Catholic Parish Registers, 1621-1979, FamilySearch.org
3    Marriage record of Simon Trilaut and Charlotte-Catherine Jolivet, Q.C.P.R.
4    Marriage record of Joseph Lamadeleine and Catherine Girardin, Q.C.P.R.
5    Migrations.fr listing for Charlotte-Catherine Jolivet  
6    Navires venus en Nouvelle France (website)  
7    Baptismal record of Hillaire Girardin, Q.C.P.R.
8    Summons for Charlotte Jolivet to appear as a witness, BAnQ  
9    The Lachenaie Massacre November 1689 (website)  
10  Généalogie du Québec et d'Amérique français listing for Anne-Jeanne Girardin 
11  Burial of Anne-Jeanne Girardin, Q.C.P.R.
12  Marriage of Hubert Ranger and Anne-Jeanne Girardin, Q.C.P.R.
13  Marriage record of Hillaire Girardin and Nicole Salois, Q.C.P.R.
14  Marriage record of Hillaire Girardin and Anne-Marguerite Dupuis, Q.C.P.R.
15  Baptismal record of Charles Girardin, Q.C.P.R.
16  Recensement de 1681 en Nouvelle-France
17  Baptismal record of Catherine Girardin, Q.C.P.R.
18  Burial record of Catherine Girardin, Q.C.P.R.
19  Baptismal record of Joseph Girardin, Q.C.P.R.
20  Wikitree listing for Joseph Girardy  
21  Baptismal record of Michael Girardin, Q.C.P.R.
22  Baptismal record of Louis Girardin, Q.C.P.R.