When I think of family members who emigrated from Canada to Minnesota, the first that come to mind are all direct ancestors:
Francois and Tharsile (Hus Lemoine) Vadnais, my 2nd great-grandparents,
Charles and Mathilda Domitille (Garceau) Peltier, my 2nd great-grandparents,
Jean Baptiste and Rose Delima (Peltier) Derosier, my 2nd great-grandparents,
Albert Norbert and Genevieve (Giguere) Baillargeon, my 2nd great-grandparents,
Paul Peltier, my 3rd great-grandfather and
Jean and Marie Anne (Gingras) Garceau, my 3rd great-grandparents,
but there are others, specifically the children and siblings of these direct ancestors that came with them. These pioneer ancestors left many family members behind, but most of them also had many family members that made the same journey as they did. Who were these other extended family members?
The following extended family members immigrated from about 1845 to 1865. In their new home, there were many people they had known their entire lives, but where they now lived had changed. At the time they settled in Minnesota, the communities they became a part of, Centerville and Little Canada, were quite small. The 1860 U. S. census shows Centerville as having a population of 357 people in about 60 households and the 1850 U. S. census shows Little Canada as having a population of 194 people: 103 males and 91 females, in 30 households.
![](https://wblvadnais.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Immigrant-family-members.jpg)
Including the direct ancestors mentioned first, there were about 47 relatives that made the approximately 1200 mile trip from Quebec to Minnesota. At the time, quite a few of these extended family members were children. For those that married in Minnesota, many married others that had also emigrated from Canada.
Thanks for visiting, come back soon,
Cynthia
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And my husband and I are cousins in that mix of Vadnais/Parenteau also! (-: Kissin cousins
oxox
Further strengthening my belief that all French-Canadians are related to one another!