John & Isabella (Solomon) Musgrove are in the Henss branch of our family lineage. We are in search of additional information and photos regarding John & Isabella that may be available. We are especially keen to find military information (for John’s service and death), gravestone images, marriage documentation and death certificates. Please use our contact page if you have any information to share.

John Musgrove is one of our family’s honored war dead.
He died in the service of his nation from wounds he suffered at Vicksburg, MS.

1850

The 1850 US Census finds the Musgrove family living in Livingston, Clark County, Illinois. At that time, John was a farmer age 26 living with Isabella, his wife age 21. They had two children Henry age 2 and Kesiah age 1. Their farmer real estate was estimated to be worth $500. John was reported to have been born in Ohio, Isabella in Kentucky and both children in Illinois.

1856

By 1856, the Musgrove family had moved to Marion Township in Henry County Iowa. As of the taking of the Iowa Census, they had been in Marion County for 1/4 of a year. John is reported as being 33 years old and a farmer also serving in the militia; Isabella is a 29 year old homemaker with three children:

• Henry 9 years of age
• Keziah age 6
• Christopher age 1.

Also, now living with the family is a Miss Jane Johnson age 16 from Ireland.

1860

1860 finds that the family is prospering and growing. John now age 37 and his wife Isabel age 33 own a farm worth $2500 and have personal assets valued at $1000. Their children are now:

• Henry age 13
• Kesia age 11
• Christopher age 6
• Isabel age 3
• John age 4 months

Notably Isabel (age 3) is reported to have been born in Illinois which, if true, would indicate that Isabella (the mother) was pregnant at the 1856 Iowa Census taking and she went ‘back to Illinois’ to have the baby probably in 1857.

1863

3rd Sgt. John Musgrove was killed in action on 10 Feb 1863. His remains are interred at Keokuk National Cemetery, 1701 J Street, Keokuk, IA

“John Musgrove, a member of Company H, 25th Iowa Infantry, died in the service.” ¹

John Musgrove “Union Army 3rd Sgt. Company H, 25th Iowa Volunteer Infantry [was] shot during Battle of Natchez, died on board a Riverboat Steamer.” Per Marcia Witt [unknown source]

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1. Isaac & Jackson Allen Family History in 1888
2. Isaac Wade and Keziah (Musgrove) Allen- a brief history
3. A History of French Canada 1650 to 1669

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Robert Owen, of Dolserau, came over in the ship Vine, of Liverpool, sailing from Dolyserre, near Dolgules, Merioneth, with his wife, Jane, son Lewis, and a servant boy and four maid servants, and arrived at Philadelphia in Sep. 1684.

He had been a Justice of the Peace at Dolserau, near Dolgelly, (and near Bala), Where he was incarcerated five years in the jail because he was a Quaker. He had been the Governor of Beaumaris, and became a Quaker about 1660. When he came over here, he settled on Duck Creek, in New Castle Co., where his son, Edward Owen, who had come over earlier, in Hugh Roberts’s party, in Nov. 1683, was then settled. Both Robert Owen and Jane, his wife, died in the next year.

They had altogether nine sons, and all were of age before 1684. Their son Lewis Owen returned to Wales to reside, but their son Dr. Griffith Owen, who bought his brother Edward Owen’s land, in the Thomas & Jones tract, Merion, remained here, and became prominent in the Province. ¹

• Robert Owen’s history may be found in the Welsh National Library
• Robert Vaughan’s history is also located in the Welsh National Library (he was the father of Jane Owen)

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What follows is a brief history of the Civil War Unit in which John Musgrove 3. Sgt. fought and died.

A brief visual tour of the Iowa 25th at Vicksburg is also available online on a National Parks website.

source

25th Regiment Infantry

Organized at Mount Pleasant and mustered in September 27, 1862. Ordered to Helena, Ark., November. Attached to District of Eastern Arkansas, Dept. Missouri, to December, 1862. 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, District of Eastern Arkansas, Dept. Tennessee, December, 1862. 2nd Brigade, 11th Division, Right Wing 13th Army Corps, Dept. Tennessee, December, 1862. 2nd Brigade, 4th Division, Sherman’s Yazoo Expedition, to January, 1863. 2nd Brigade, 1st Division, 15th Army Corps, Army Tennessee, to December, 1863. 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, 15th Corps, to April, 1864. 2nd Brigade, 1st Division, 15th Corps, to September, 1864. 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, 15th Corps, to June, 1865.

SERVICE.–Expedition from Helena to mouth of White River, November 17-24, 1862. Sherman’s Yazoo Expedition December 22, 1862, to January 2, 1863. Chickasaw Bayou December 26-28, 1862. Chickasaw Bluff December 29. Expedition to Arkansas Post, Ark., January 3-10, 1863. Assault on and capture of Fort Hindman, Arkansas Post, January 10-11. Moved to Young’s Point, La., January 17-23, and duty there until April. Expedition to Greenville, Black Bayou and Deer Creek April 2-14. Demonstration against Haines and Snyder’s Bluffs April 28-May 2. Moved to join army in rear of Vicksburg, Miss., via Richmond and Grand Gulf May 2-14. Fourteen-Mile Creek May 12-13. Jackson May 14. Siege of Vicksburg May 18-July 4. Assaults on Vicksburg May 19 and 22, Advance on Jackson, Miss., July 5-10. Siege of Jackson July 10-17. Briar Creek near Canton July 17. Canton July 18. Duty at Big Black until September 22. Moved to Memphis, thence march to Chattanooga, Tenn., September 22-November 21. Operations on Memphis & Charleston Railroad in Alabama October 10-29. Cherokee Station October 21 and 29. Cane Creek October 26. Tuscumbia October 26-27. Battles of Chattanooga November 23-27; Lookout Mountain November 23-24; Mission Ridge November 25; Ringgold Gap, Taylor’s Ridge, November 27. March to relief of Knoxville November 28-December 8. Garrison duty in Alabama until May, 1864. Atlanta (Ga.) Campaign May 1 to September 8. Demonstration on Resaca May 8-13. Snake Creek Gap May 10-12. Battle of Resaca May 14-15. Operations on Pumpkin Vine Creek and battles about Dallas, New Hope Church and Allatoona Hills May 25-June 5. Operations about Marietta and against Kenesaw Mountain June 10-July 2. Bushy Mountain June 15-17. Assault on Kenesaw June 27, Nickajack Creek July 2-5. Chattahoochie River July 6-17. Battle of Atlanta July 22. Siege of Atlanta. July 22-August 25. Ezra Chapel, Hood’s second sortie, July 28. Flank movement on Jonesboro August 25-30. Battle of Jonesboro August 31-September 1. Lovejoy Station September 2-6. Pursuit of Hood into Alabama October 1-26. March to the sea November 15-December 10. Clinton November 22. Griswoldsville November 23. Statesboro December 4. Siege of Savannah December December 10-21. campaign of the Carolinas January to April, 1865. Reconnaissance to Salkehatchie River, S.C., January 25. Salkehatchie Swamps, S.C., February 3-5. South Edisto River February 9. North Edisto River February 12-13. Columbia February 15-17. Lynch’s Creek February 25-26. Battle of Bentonville, N. C., March 20-21. Occupation of Goldsboro March 24. Advance on Raleigh April 9-13. Occupation of Raleigh April 14. Bennett’s House April 26. Surrender of Johnston and his army. March to Washington, D.C., via Richmond, Va., April 29-May 20. Grand Review May 24. Mustered out June 6, 1865.

Regiment lost during service 2 officers and 63 Enlisted men killed and mortally wounded and 2 Officers and 207 Enlisted men by disease. Total 274.

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original source: by Dick Barton

Wenger Bros., general merchants.

The most enterprising firm of young men in the village of Wayland are the brothers, Joseph and Christian C. Wenger, both born in Washington County, Iowa, and are the two eldest sons of Christian and Elizabeth (Goldsmith) Wenger. Christian was born in Switzerland and is a son of Christian and Mary (Roth) Wenger, who emigrated from Germany to Hamburg, Canada, and thence to Washington County, Iowa, making the journey with a team passing through Chicago when that now great city was a village but a trifle larger than Wayland. Settling in 1832, in Marion Township, Washington Co., Iowa, the grandsire of our subject purchased a claim, upon which stood a small cabin and later entered the lands. This family were among the first settlers in that county, and both lived and died upon the farm which they had put in fine cultivation. His wife reached sixty, and Christian Wenger, Sr., the ripe age of eighty-three years. All their children but the three eldest were born in Canada, and came with them to Iowa, and perhaps no better family has ever settled in her boundary. We are pleased to make separate mention of each: John married Mary Ernst; Christian, father of our subject, wedded Elizabeth Goldsmith; Nicholas died unmarried; Joseph married Elizabeth Roth; Benjamin became the husband of Lena Gengerich; Annie married Christian Eicher; Mary wedded Joseph Rich; Lena wedded Christian Ernst, a brother of John’s wife; Katie became the wife of John Miller, of Davis County; and Barbara became the wife of Christian Schlatter, the proprietor of the Wayland sawmills. Under the name of Christian Wenger the further history of the family is given. His five eldest children were born in Washington County and are: Joseph, Christian, Samuel, Jacob and Lizzie, the latter the wife of Jacob Kabel. On the farm in Henry County, John, Daniel, Henry, Ella and Levi, were born. Samuel was educated at Howe’s Academy, and has taught in the public schools of this county. The two eldest sons were educated in the schools of the township, but are brilliant business men, and their retail trade is successfully managed.

In 1881 Christian C. left the farm and in 1882, in company with Benjamin Gardiner, engaged in the mercantile trade. Their new store building was erected in 1883, but prior to its completion Joseph purchased the interest of Mr. Gardiner, and the firm was changed to Wenger Bros. The firm carry a full line of general merchandise and the largest stock in the northern part of the county, their stock invoicing over $6,000. Everything is of the best, and selling goods at the lowest living profit has given these young men a trade of over $10,000 per annum, and located as they are in the midst of an excellent agricultural region, their trade is constantly increasing. They are an honor to their parents, their village and their country, and to men of such business enterprise the growth and prosperity of Henry County is due.

The wedding of Joseph, the elder member of this firm, was a brilliant affair, and was celebrated on Thursday, Oct. 27, 1887, the bride being Miss Katie, the handsome daughter of Mr. and Mrs. William Henss, the veteran wagon-maker, and one of the wealthy men of Wayland. The young couple took a pleasant bridal tour, and are now cosily settled in Wayland, the birthplace of the bride, who has one of the best of husbands and a man in whom the public repose confidence.

Christian C., the younger member of the firm, but the original partner of Mr. Gardiner, is also happily married, having, on Dec. 8, 1887, been united to Miss Ella, daughter of Isaac and Keziah Allen, of Wayland, of which place she is a native. She was educated in the schools of the village, and has always been regarded as one of the brightest and best of its daughters, as her husband is known as one of its most honorable and enterprising merchants.

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From The European History of the Swiss Mennonites from Volhynia

Schrag, Martin H 1956

source web document
The early Anabaptists were educated and urban–but the persecution drove them from the cities and towns to the remote and relatively inaccessible highlands and mountain fringes of the fertile areas of the Canton Bern. Here they hid and persisted in spite of persecution, through the centuries to the present time. Persecution, of varying intensity, was the lot of the Swiss Anabaptists (Mennonites) until the middle of the eighteenth century. During the intense periods of persecution many, perhaps most of the Anabaptists, fled to whatever havens of refuge they could find, especially in the Germanic areas to the north and northwest of modern Switzerland. The Swiss-Volhynians were among this group.

Documentation of Swiss Origin. Documentation of the Swiss origin of the Swiss-Volhynian Mennonites is found in families that can be traced back to Switzerland, and in early records written by or about Swiss-Volhynian Mennonites. ¹ Mention should be made of the fact that families of interest in this study left Switzerland in the later part of the seventeenth century and the forepart of the eighteenth.

The Krehbiel family is traceable to Switzerland genealogically. Jost Crayenbuehl ², characterized as a leader in the church, lived at Zäziwil, Switzerland, near the River Aar ³. He was located on a large hof in the immediate vicinity of Zäziwil. Three sons were born to Jost. One of these, named Peter, states that they were reared in the fear of the Lord and with much Bible teaching. They worked their fields and were not too much concerned with matters outside their immediate context. The Anabaptists living in the area met at different places on Sunday because the congregation was scattered. Nearly all of the members were farmers, with a few weavers and carpenters. Persecution came in 1670. Jost Crayenbuehl was imprisoned and mistreated. After something of a miraculous delivery from prison, he and his family left Switzerland ⁴.

On the basis of primary sources, as recorded by the historian Mathiot, it can be asserted that the families arriving in Volhynia from the Montbeliard community in France were of Swiss origin. Mathiot states in relation to families living in the Montbeliard community, that the Fluckiger family came from Lützelfüh and Hettiswil in Bern, the Graber family from Bern (possibly Kirchdorf), the Kauffman family from Grindelwald, Bern, and the Stuckys from Kirchdorf, Diessbach, and Diemtigen ⁵. This evidence relates family names found among Swiss-Volhynian Mennonites with explicit points in Switzerland.

Reinforcing the last paragraph, there is conclusive evidence that the Alsace and Montbeliard communities were almost entirely composed of Swiss Anabaptists and their descendants. A Catholic priest notes the coming of the Swiss Anabaptists to Alsace in 1643. (Earlier Swiss Anabaptists in Alsace had been virtually wiped out by persecution and war.) Primary sources attest to the fact that a large group arrived in Alsace in 1671 ⁶. The Swiss background of the two mentioned communities is commonly accepted by historians conversant with the story ⁷.

Further evidence of the Swiss origin of the Swiss-Volhynian Mennonites is to be found in early documents. In a passport issued to a group of Swiss-Volhynians (Goering, Graber, Lichti, Kaufman, and Roth) as they left Montbeliard for Poland, the group is referred to as “German-Swiss” ⁸. They are referred to as ethnically Swiss. A second document giving further proof is the church book begun approximately 1810 by the Galician Mennonites soon after their arrival in Galacia from the Palatinate. In this source we find that the first settlers, although coming directly from the Palatinate, originated in Switzerland (were “aus der Schweiz abstammend.” ⁹)

Lastly, mention should also be made of the fact that the Anabaptist (Mennonite) communities in Alsace, Montbeliard, and the Palatinate gained very few if any new members by the conversion of their non-Anabaptist neighbors. As a matter of fact, this was forbidden by law ¹⁰. Thus, they remained “pure” in their Swiss ethnic background.

The evidence marshaled suggests the conclusion that the ancestral core of the Swiss-Volhynian Mennonites was of Swiss origin.

Swiss-Anabaptist Life. Continued persecution combined with an interpretation of Anabaptist views, especially the concept of separation from the world, resulted in significant tendencies and patterns in the religious and social life of the Swiss Anabaptists.

Robert Friedmann suggests that the initial zeal of the Anabaptist movement was spent by 1600 ¹¹. A period of declining spiritual vitality and growing institutionalism is evidenced in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The aggressive spirit of early Anabaptism was changed to a quietism characterized by withdrawal from the social order, a deep loyalty to the “faith of the Fathers,” a simple Biblicism, a strong concern regarding the moral life, and an increasing inwardness of religion. These tendencies were transmitted in Mennonite communities, and influenced the Swiss-Volhynian Mennonites.

Persecution and the concept of separation from the world resulted in socio-religious communities withdrawn from the world. Generating strong primary group feelings, such communities also had the effect of fostering feelings of hostility of indifference toward those outside the community. These Mennonite communities were characterized by the qualities of integrity, industry, frugality ¹² and simplicity in dress. Persecution drove the Anabaptists into rural areas, where farming was the chief occupation. The Mennonites continued their agricultural activities as they migrated to new communities. Some aspects of German culture was a part of the pattern since most of the Swiss Mennonites were German-Swiss. Persecution discouraged higher education and creative activity. The patterns of life became institutionalized. This community pattern was inherited and perpetuated by the Swiss-Volhynian Mennonites ¹³.

Life was difficult in the solitary valleys and mountain slopes of the area. Much of the work was done by hand. The Anabaptists specialized in dairying, farming, and fruit raising ¹⁴. Despite many difficulties, they became outstanding farmers–pioneers in Swiss agriculture, contributing to the advancement of that science ¹⁵.

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Much of the Robert Henss family background is rooted in Swiss and Iowa Anabaptist Mennonite traditions.  Many of our forebears were active participants and members of the following congregations. [Please note that this post will be updated as more information is uncovered].

Basel-Holee (Basel Switzerland)

Basel-Holee, a Mennonite congregation with a meetinghouse at Holeestrasse 141 in Basel, Switzerland, formerly called Basel-Binningen, the Amish congregation mentioned in the article Basel. The origins of the congregation go back to the middle of the 18th century, a church book containing records of births, marriages, deaths, and baptisms (probably maintained at the request of the state) having been kept from 1777 on (with an interruption 1880-1910). Throughout its existence a majority of the families of the congregations lived on the Alsatian side of the nearby border and the congregation belonged to the Alsatian Conference. In wartime this caused considerable trouble, particularly in World War II when the Alsatian part of the congregation could not cross the border into Basel and had to meet in near-by Bourgfelden. The first meetinghouse in the village of Binningen (now incorporated in the city of Basel) was built in 1847 and continued in use until the new meetinghouse was built on the same lot in 1932. The membership remained fairly constant for several decades, with considerable losses by emigration to the near-by Mulhouse region and to the United States. The 1952 membership was 185 and 50 children; in 2009 the membership was 100. Most common family names have been Roth, Widmer, Wenger, Würgler, and Goldschmidt. Elders have included Hans Jacob Schmuckli, 1777-?; Hans Freienberg, 1787-?; Johannes Kaufmann, ca. 1800-?; Fritz Steinbrunner, ca. 1830; Hans Steinbrunner, d. ca. 1843; Johannes Kaufmann, ca. 1845; Hans Schmuckli, ca. 1860; Christian Klopfenstein, ca. 1870; Joseph Klopfenstein, d. 1878; Jacob Zimmerman; Jacob Widmer, 1874-? emigrated to America; Michel Widmer, 1893-1924; Christian Roggy, 1896-1904; Daniel Roth, -1927; Jakob Widmer, 1924-1942; Fritz Goldschmidt, 1927-; and Daniel Wenger, 1951-. In the 1950s services are held every two weeks alternating with Schänzli. The congregation has had an organized chorus since 1896. As late as 1915 it still practiced feetwashing. The Ausbund was used as hymnal until into the 20th century.

source: Goldschmidt, Fritz and Harold S. Bender. (1953). Basel-Holee (Basel Switzerland). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 12 July 2010, from http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/B37574.html.

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The Rev. Johann (John) Eicher II, husband of Margaretta (Margaret) Conrod, was a native of Pulversheim in the Alsace and Margaret was born in Switzerland. John had charge of a Mennonite congregation in the Alsace and for many years was engaged not only in the ministry, but in farming. Not all of their children came to America; and of those who did, they came singly. First came Jacob, then John Jr., Christian, Daniel, and then Martin Benjamin.  The boys were followed by a sister Annie and her husband, John W. Wittmer; Annie and John had married in Alsace before settling in Wayne County, Ohio.  Jacob returned from the United States to the Alsace to marry Mary Summer, a “childhood friend”; he brought her back with him to America.

Three of the boys, after trying life first in Ohio, concluded it would be better to make their life in Canada; John, Daniel and Christian relocated to Waterloo County, Ontario.  John and Christian remained in Canada for three years.  Daniel Eicher stayed on for six years, and finally following his brothers to Iowa. Three of the Eicher brothers: Christian, Martin Benjamin, and Jacob located in Washington County, Iowa; and John and Daniel located in Henry County, Iowa. Martin was the only one who invested in land, doing so in 1850.

After coming to Iowa, all the sons married:

• Martin wedded Barbara Roth;
• Christian married Annie Wenger;
• Jacob became the husband of Catherine Rich; and
• Rev. Benjamin Eicher married Lydia Summers.

Johann and Margaretta remained in the Alsace (today France) with their remaining children:

• Joseph, who married Elizabeth Kropf;
• Fannie, wife of Jacob Summer; and
• Peter, husband of Catherine Summer.

Johann Eicher II and Margaretta Conrod lived to a ripe old age, and were buried in the country that gave them birth.

edited by Mark Rabideau from the original:

Portrait and Biographical Album of Henry County, Iowa.Chicago: Acme Publishing Company, 1888. Evansville: Unigraphic, 1976 pp 392

Additional information obtained from: Gingerich, Melvin. “Eicher (Eichert, Eichler, Eycher) family .” Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1956. Web. 13 July 2010. http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/E470ME.html.;

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The Senger Family appears to have had a long term link to the lands around Zeyer (see below). I guess it is no wonder that my mother is still so ‘mentally’ attached to this land and region (Es war einmal…).

Thank you to Rainer Mueller-Glodde for this note & excerpt:

Two years ago (2008) a Dr. Glodde from Berlin, [...] tried to find out the meaning of “Glodde”, [and] sent me a shot he made of a document from about 1805 [located] in the Geheimes Staatsarchiv Preussischer Kulturbesitz. The subject is the estimation of the size of the Grosse Jacob Glode Buden Kampe [in the area of Zeyer, Westpreußen].

Zum Plan von der Großen Buden Kampe

Kott Kampe und Lange Hacken, Sämtliches Land gehörte ehmals dem Einsaßen Glodde, wovon derselbe an die Sengers und Barwigs die Kott Kampe und Lange Hacken verkaufte welche damals betrugen 8 Huf : 12 m : Cut welches aus der unten stehenden alten Berechnung auch zugleich aus der neuen Vermeßung Berechnung zu ersehen ist wie viel die außen Kampen sich vergrößert haben.

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Lacolle is the area from which the Joseph Dion family emigrated to the United States.  Historically both Rabideau and Dion/ Deyo family members lived and traversed this region.

• Click here to read about the Lacolle Military Battles.

source [minor edits and corrections made by ManyRoads]

First written mention of Lacolle can be traced back to July 4, 1609 when Samuel de Champlain and his entourage stopped briefly at the mouth of a small stream for a meal before continuing southward up the Richelieu River into the lake which now bears his name. In his journal Champlain referred to the location of the delta as “Lacole”. When translated literally the term means the neck of a bottle or that which is above the shoulders. [...]This river seems to take its source from a nearby, solitary hill. From many places in France the term “La Cole” or “La Colle” stems from the Latin “colla”, which means “hill”.

“La Rivière à La Colle” appeared for the first time in the 1740 “Map of Lake Champlain from the Fort of Chambly to the ‘pointe à la Chevelure’” drawn by Chaussergros de Lery. His map is seen here. You can barely make out “Beaujeu” in the block to the right of the crease in the paper, below the river

Lacolle Quebec- 1740

What today is the farming village of St-Bernard-de-Lacolle has its roots in the Seigneurie of Beaujeu. The seigneurs of Beauharnois and Hocquart hatched a project to concede some seigneuries in the area of the Lake Champlain Valley. In 1733, they conceded land to Louis Denis de la Ronde (seigneurie of Lacolle) and to Louis Lienard de Beaujeu (seigneurie of Chazy). Unfortunately, as of 1741, both seigneurs had left the land as they received it. On the 10th of May, 1741, the lands were returned to Couronne because the consessioners had not established colonies. On March 22nd, 1743, Beauharnois and Hocquart conceded the seigneurie of Lacolle to sir Daniel Lienard de Beaujeu, son of Louis. By 1751, two new families had settled by the “rivière à la Colle”. On Mar 6, 1752, under the Marquis de la Jonquire and Francois Bigot, Daniel received the lands of his now-deceased father. It would be told “…how he made, before and after the war (1746-1748), considerable dispenses for the establishment of said concession on which he had settlers who have bulls, cows, plows, and other work tools.”

The seigneurie changed hands several times, passing from one generation to the next. During this time, several mills, churches, schools, and homes were built. Some had stone houses while the poorer settlers built log cabins. [...]

Along the Richelieu River, the closest church to Lacolle was in Chambly, quite a distance to travel for marriages and baptisms. In 1810, the curé Berthelot took his chalice and portable alter to visit the settlers in Lacolle. He baptized several children and said mass. Later, other protestant missionaries made their way to the area and founded the United Church of Lacolle called St-Saviour.

In 1841, Lord Sydenham proposed the erection of municipal districts. Everyone thinks these municipalities will revive and that they will come to be well-known like a parish. On November 18, 1841, some residents of the seigneurie of Lacolle addressed Monsignor Ignace Bourget, bishop of Montreal, to obtain the erection of a parish. They presented the usual reasons: distance from the nearest church, the dreadful state of the roads [in order to get there], the difficulty in training their children in the catholic religion. The real reason appeared at the end of the document: “after the ecclesiastical recognition, they would be addressing the government to obtain “some documents that grant to their said new parish a civil existence which will soon be recognized.”

In January 1842, M. Charles Laroque, curé of Blairfindie was sent by Bourget to make an inquest. On the first of February, Monsignor Ignace Bourget set up the “mission of St-Bernard-de-Lacolle”, as the population is still too dispersed to create a parish. He also accepted the gift of three arpents [unit of land] of land from Michel Normandin on which to build a church.

• 11 July 1842 – four representatives (James O’CONNOR, Michel NORMANDIN, Louis REMILLARD, Etienne DUQUETTE) signed a contract with Charles NOËL to build a stone church for $250 ($150 silver,$100 hay and grain).
• 13 October 1843 – three representatives (Patrick BARKER, Constant BOUSQUET, Noël DESAUTELS) purchased 80 benches from the chapel of Saint-Jacques-Mineur for 16 livres 14 shillings.
• 11 November 1843 – Charles François Calixte MORRISON is named the parish priest.
• 16 November 1843 – At the courthouse of Montreal, the church was equipped with the necessary registers for the parish.
• 19 November 1843 – The first baptism is recorded.

In 1851, the census of St-Bernard-de-Lacolle reports: 3483 persons (1760 anglophone and 1723 francophone), 1787 men and 1696 woman, 1886 catholic and 1597 protestant.

The law of December 18, 1854 ended the seigneurial system in Canada, and the municipality of St-Bernard-de-Lacolle has flourished since its first mayor [was elected] in 1833.

Charles Berthelot, curé of Saint-Luc, [wrote] on 9 October 1909 that the young people of the area are working cutting trees down south, near Lake Champlain.” In the 40-50 years since [then], many young families [spent] years in the factories in the [United States] to earn better wages. Many returned, but not all, with their savings. The [Canadian] census records still indicate one or two children from these families [were] born in the United States. [...] In 1850, the California gold rush saw many men leaving behind a wife and children [...]never [to] return with [...] promised riches. Soon after [1850], many farmers left with their families to settle in the fertile prairies of Illinois [and Michigan], where they could easily establish their sons. In October 1867, the [Lacolle] city council began to worry, for an empty house meant that the road opposite this property was no longer maintained. [Dirt roads needed to be maintained by the settlers.]

[At] the turn of the [21st] century, the parish of Notre-Dame-du-Mont-Carmel and the municipality of Lacolle [were] established, and St-Bernard-de-Lacolle has become seemingly very small. The area has seen many ups and downs, but the overall feel for the land is the same. The families who till the land and milk the cows are as hardy today as they were in the first days of the seigneurie. If you ever visit this village, take note of the rolling hills and the wide open fields with their long, plowed rows, [...] you’ll be swept away to another time when your ancestors [settled] a whole new world.

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Both the Rabideau & Deyo families have roots in the area surrounding Lacolle Quebec.  In the early to mid-1800s Lacolle was an area that saw numerous battles and skirmishes, both in the war of 1812 and the Patriotes Rebellion of 1837-1838 including:

Battle Of Lacolle Mills (1812)
Second Battle of Lacolle (1814)
Battle at Odelltown and the Battle of Lacolle (November 7 & 9, 1838)

• Click here to read a more general area history for Lacolle

Battle Of Lacolle Mills (1812)

source Wikipedia

The Battle of Lacolle Mills was fought on November 20, 1812, during the War of 1812. In this relatively short and fast battle, a very small garrison of British troops and Canadian volunteers, with the assistance of Kahnawake Mohawk warriors, defended the Lacolle Mills Blockhouse near the village of Lacolle, Quebec.

The American invasion force, prepared and led by Major General Henry Dearborn, captured the blockhouse in the early morning, possibly following a brief confrontation with the outnumbered defending forces. In the dark, a second group of American militia attacked the troops at the blockhouse, resulting in a short battle between two groups of American forces. In the aftermath of this confusion, the British forces under the command of Charles de Salaberry launched a counter attack against the shaken American forces, forcing a retreat to Champlain before the American forces withdrew from Lower Canada completely. After this defeat, the demoralized American forces would not attempt this assault again until 1814 in the Second Battle of Lacolle Mills.

Second Battle of Lacolle Mills (1814)

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The Second Battle of Lacolle Mills was fought on 30 March 1814 during the War of 1812. The small garrison of a British outpost position, aided by reinforcements, fought off a strong but badly-executed American attack.

After the St. Lawrence campaign had ended late the previous year with the British victory at the Battle of Crysler’s Farm, the defeated American Army under Major General James Wilkinson went into winter quarters at French Mills, New York, only just inside the United States. The British commanders feared that the Americans could threaten the British line of communication along the St. Lawrence River from this position, but Wilkinson made no attempt to do so. His army arrived at French Mills with few supplies, and because of poor roads, lack of transport and draught animals and inefficiency of the Quartermaster General’s Department, it was almost impossible to supply the army in this advanced position. Sickness rapidly increased until there were no less than 450 sick in squalid conditions in a hospital in Malone, New York and many more in French Mills.

Finally, in late January, Secretary of War John Armstrong ordered Wilkinson to detach a division numbering 2,000 men under Brigadier General Jacob Brown to Sackett’s Harbor, New York, and fall back with the main body (about 4,000 fit men) to Plattsburgh, New York on Lake Champlain, while the sick and wounded were removed to Burlington, Vermont. British troops followed up almost to Plattsburgh, recovering large quantities of supplies from settlements in New York state such as Malone and Four Corners and paroling many sick American soldiers who fell into their hands, before withdrawing.

Wilkinson was aware that he would almost certainly be removed from command following the defeat of the St. Lawrence campaign, and planned several offensives to restore his reputation. Most of these were too ambitious with the means available, but one objective seemed feasible. A few miles north of the border between Canada and the United States, the main road running north crossed the small Lacolle River. Here, the British maintained an outpost of 80 men of the 13th Regiment of Foot in a blockhouse and the stout stone-built mill building. The defenders also included a Congreve rocket detachment of the Royal Marine Artillery, and there were other outpost positions and blockhouses nearby.

Battle

Wilkinson marched northwards from Plattsburgh to attack this outpost on 27 March 1814. His force consisted of 4,000 men organised into three brigades, with 11 pieces of artillery. The march was delayed by deep snow and mud, and he was not able to occupy Odelltown until 30 March, and begin the attack on Lacolle Mills until the early afternoon.

The Americans opened fire with two 12-pounder cannon and a 5-and-a-half inch mortar. They could not bring an 18-pounder gun into action because of soft ground around the area. The British garrison fired back with their Congreve rockets. Although the rockets were inaccurate, they caused several American casualties. The American troops had not encountered these weapons before in battle and were unnerved.

The flank (i.e. the Light and Grenadier) companies of the 13th had been stationed nearby, and launched a bayonet charge against the American artillery emplacements, but they were far outnumbered and were repulsed. Hearing the firing from some 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) away, a company of the Canadian Voltigeurs and the Grenadier company of the Canadian Fencibles also marched to reinforce the defenders. They waded through icy water to slip through the American lines and opened fire on American artillery, wounding the American artillery commander, his replacement and many of the gun crews. The Americans were also under fire from British gunboats under Commander Daniel Pring of the Royal Navy, who had brought his vessels up the Richelieu River from Ile aux Noix to the mouth of the Lacolle River.

By evening, the Americans had made little impression on the British defences. Rather than launch an all-out assault, Wilkinson ordered a retreat. The Americans returned to Plattsburgh, considerably disheartened.

Wilkinson had apparently recklessly exposed himself to British fire throughout the action, though to little purpose.

Aftermath

On 11 April, Wilkinson received orders from Armstrong relieving him of command. This was probably not a direct result of the debacle at Lacolle Mills, but followed a request made by Wilkinson himself on 24 March for a Court of Enquiry to rule on his conduct of the St. Lawrence campaign the previous year.[5] This eventually resulted in a court martial, but Wilkinson was acquitted of various charges of negligence and misconduct.

The failure nevertheless allowed Armstrong to promote a crop of comparatively junior officers to command divisions and brigades. Major General George Izard, who had been on leave when the Battle of Lacolle Mills was fought, eventually took command at Plattsburgh.

The November 7 & 9, 1838 Battle at Odelltown and the Battle of Lacolle

The years of 1837 and 1838 were bad for the citizens of Quebec. Many French settlers were led into rebellion by Louis Papineau.

Lacolle was the scene of two significant battles during the Papineau Rebellion, both occuring in the late fall of 1838. About 220 militia and volunteers from Havlock, Covey Hill, Hemmingford and Sherrington marched through Roxham to reinforce those facing the rebels in the November 7, 1838 stand at the Bullis Farm. The Battle of Lacolle was fought on November 7, 1838 between Loyal Lower Canada volunteer forces under Major John Scriver and Lower Canada rebels under Colonel Ferdinand-Alphonse Oklowski. On November 6, on their way to Lacolle, the Patriote rebels had won a first skirmish, but they lost in the final confrontation the next day. The battle lasted half an hour.

Again, on the 9th of November Odelltown (a part of Lacolle today) became a battlefield when nearly 1200 rebels unexpectedly engaged about 200 loyal defenders in and around the Odelltown Church. On both occaisions the rebels were forced to retreat.

Related posts:

1. Lacolle, Quebec- A brief history
2. A History of French Canada 1670 to 1699
3. A History of French Canada 1635 to 1649

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