Categories52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks

The French-Canadian Connection

The twenty-fourth ancestor in my 52 week challenge is my maternal 4th-great-grandmother, Marie DesAnges (MANSEAU) ST. LOUIS.

Marie DesAnges Manseau
Marie DesAnges Manseau

Marie was born sometime in 1806 in Yamaska, Quebec, Canada to Antoine MANSEAU and Catharine CLOUTIER. Her mother Catherine is my connection to the so-called French-Canadian “super ancestor” Zacharie Cloutier. Through him, I share a connection to a bunch of celebrities and other famous people like Celine Dion, Robert Goulet, and Beyoncé.

Sometime around 1831, Marie married Ephraim ST. LOUIS in Quebec. In 1834, my ancestor, Olivine Marie ST. LOUIS was born in Quebec. The family left Canada and settled in central Wisconsin around 1837 or 1838.

To the right is the only photo I have seen of Marie. She looks like a hard, tough woman, which is to be expected while living in rural Wisconsin the 19th century.

I have written down that Marie passed away on 16 October 1895 in Florence County, Wisconsin and is buried there, but I have no documented source for this entry. This is something I probably added early in my research when I wasn’t the smartest genealogist. My guess is that it’s probably close to the real date, but can’t confirm.

This post is 24 of 52 in the “52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks” Challenge” begun by Amy Johnson Crow.

Published by Brian Zalewski

I started genealogy research about mid-1999. My grandfather had passed away in April of that year. Since then I’ve done a lot of research not only for myself, but for friends and other relatives. In 2006, I married the love of my life, Darcy, and welcomed the birth of our daughter, Aerissa Jean, in 2010 and our son, Xander Lee, in 2012. I can’t wait to tell them stories about all of their ancestors.