GRANDMA ANDREA TIMM 1905-1994
My grandmother Andrea Timm was born at the beginning of the 20th century in the Laurentides region of Quebec. She was the fifth of six children born to her parents. She had two sisters and three brothers. Families were very close knit in those days. The 1911 census shows that Grandma Andrea is living with her mother Dalia, and her five siblings together with her maternal grandparents and older auntie Sarah. Her father was no longer present. Grandma was a waitress in Timmins, Ontario when she met and married my grandfather in 1925. In the early 1940’s the family (including my grandparents and their two sons) moved to western Canada. Most of Grandma’s siblings also moved west. I recall that Grandma’s sister Delia and brothers Romeo and Arthur were sometimes present at family gatherings. When my parents were first married they lived together with Grandma Andrea and Grandpa Eddie. This was a continuation of the same lifestyle my grandmother had experienced as a youngster.
Grandma was a gentle woman with a very nice smile. She was very proud of her two sons and enjoyed spending time with her nine grandchildren. Sleepovers at grandma’s house were very special. We wore our grandfather’s large white undershirts as a pseudo nightie. Breakfasts included French toast with maple syrup and back bacon. Grandma was always delighted when my two younger sisters and I would drop in for a visit after we had played in Mount Elizabeth park (Vancouver, BC) on weekends.
ANCESTORS OF GRANDMA TIMM:
CHARLES TIMM 1845–1905 ARRIVAL 1885 from BELGIUM
Charles Timm was born in 1845 at Neubukow, Germany. He married Catherine Kohnen at Liege, Belgium in 1874 where all four of their children were born. The entire family together with Catherine’s mother emigrated to Quebec, Canada in 1885. The 1891 census records the Timm family at Sainte-Lucie -des-Laurentides, Quebec, except for the oldest son Charles. During the late 19th century most Belgian immigrants came as agricultural workers. Charles Timm and his son Henri are both listed as “cultivateurs” or farmers in the Census of 1891. Charles Timm is my great-great grandfather and Henri Timm is my great grandfather.
MARIE CHEVREAU 1645 – 1724 ARRIVAL 1665 from FRANCE
Marie Chevreau was born in 1645 at Châteaudun in the Center-Val de Lorie region of France. Marie’s father died when she was only 7 years old. She had 4 brothers and 4 sisters. Marie was a Daughter of the King. She arrived at Quebec city aboard the St. Jean Baptiste with 68 other “Filles du Roi” on October 2, 1665. She married master carpenter Rene Reaume (also a French born Pioneer). Her dowry of 200 livres, was unusually large as most daughters of the king were given a dowry of 50 livres. The wedding was attended by dignitaries including Marquis de Tracy who was the commander of the Carignan Saliére Regiment; Monsieur de Courcelles-Governor of New France and Jean Talon -the first Intendant of New France. Marie and Rene had 13 children-11 boys and 2 girls. Five of their sons were involved in the fur trade. Marie Chevreau is my 9th great grandmother. (matrilineal)
CONECTING THE 17th and 21st CENTURIES
The whitewashed cottages of the French Canadian habitants were spread out along the banks of the St Lawrence River like an endless village street. The sparkling St Lawrence was also the highway of New France, it stretched for 200 miles from Montreal to Trois Riviere to Quebec. Once the land was all allocated there was migration to other parts of Quebec first, then Ontario. From 1850 to 1930 there was high emigration to the United States and then in the mid-20th century emigration to the western provinces occurred. My ancestors stayed in Canada moving from Quebec to Ontario and then to Western Canada. At first my ancestors moved to obtain new land grants, eventually the moves were made to obtain employment.
During COVID 19 a paradigm shift about work location has occurred. Many, many workers are successfully working from home. Many companies and organizations have embraced this new paradigm and it is believed that there will be many redundant office buildings and storefronts in the near future. A new job will not always necessitate a re-location as it did in the past. Perhaps the excess buildings will be re-purposed to house people in a community setting similar to the small communities of my ancestors.
ANCESTRY BY THE NUMBERS
It is interesting to note that by 1680, 75% of all emigrants from France had already arrived in New France. During the seventeenth century in Quebec, three censuses were completed: 1666, 1667, 1681.
Here are the population figures from each census:
KEY REFERENCES FOR CHARLES TIMM:
- ‘Charles Timm’, (1891), Census of Canada return for Ste-Lucie, Terrebonne, Quebec, Item No: 4655778, page 23, line 13. Available at https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/census/1891 Accessed 23 March 2021
- ‘Henri Timm, (1901), Census of Canada return for Ste-Lucie-de-Doncaster, Terrebonne, Quebec, page 9, line 24. Available at http://automatedgenealogy.com/census/District.jsp?id=197 Accessed 23 March 2021
- ‘Andrea Timm’, (1911), Census of Canada return for Ste-Lucie, Terrebonne, Quebec, page 9, line 32. Available at http://automatedgenealogy.com/census11/District.jsp?did=202 Accessed 23 March 2021
- Familysearch.org
- Institut généalogique Drouin, “Le LAFRANCE” database with images, Act 5130543 Wedding record Henri Timm and Dalila Labelle, Généalogie Québec, accessed 17 March 2021.
KEY REFERENCES FOR MARIE CHEVREAU:
- Cyprien Tanguay, Genealogical Dictionary of French Canadian Families, (Montreal, Quebec: E. Senécal and Sons, 1871-1890), Volume 1, 511.
- Thomas J. Laforest, Our French Canadian Ancestors, (Palm Harbor, Florida: LISI Press,1983), Volume 1, Chapter 21, 145-152.
- The Origin File: Marie Chevreau