(copyright 2018 Dennis M. Doiron)
The Demers Family, Sanford, Maine, May 1914. Sitting: Télesphore, père, Henriette, Odelie, Virginie, Éva, Andreanna. Standing: Télesphore, fils, Donat, Odias, Émile, and Phidelem. Three months after this photo was taken, Télesphore turned 67.
_________________________
On a gray November afternoon in 1915, a gust of wind rattled the windows and woke Télesphore Demers from his nap on the rocking chair near the warmth of the wood-fired kitchen stove. The hum of the fire was the only sound in the house, now so quiet with all the children grown and gone. He looked at his wife, Henriette, peeling apples for more pies than the two could possibly eat, ready to offer them to unexpected visitors or, if none came, to give them to other family members or neighbors in need.
He rose with a grunt and put on his well-worn work coat hanging on a peg by the side door and checked to see that his carpenter’s pencil was in his shirt pocket. Covering his head with a tuque, he told Henriette that he needed to see Phidelem. “Pourquoi?” * she asked. “Il fait frette dehors.” ** Already at the threshold of the door, he replied with some impatience, “Lui parler de quelque chose,” *** then shut the door firmly behind him.
[* “Why?” ** “It’s cold out.” ** “To speak to him about something.”]
Glancing up at the low clouds ripping by, he strode tall and straight toward the center of town, passing clapboarded homes of millworkers that lined both sides of the street. On his right the houses soon gave way to a large mill yard with its towering brick chimneys. Three and four-story factory buildings, also clapboarded, now appeared, their looms clanking, clanking as always during this time of the great war in Europe. A large double door of a factory near the sidewalk opened as he passed, letting out air heavy with the moist smell of wool, the same smell, he thought, that filled the house when his mother had worked her hand loom on the old family farm in Saint-Fortunat. But, oh, what a racket these looms make, how different the sound, like the jarring clatter atop a tractor to the quiet of plowing behind a horse.
He stopped to watch a crew of workers as they demolished a mill building that he had helped build only 25 years earlier, one of the first buildings he had worked on after arriving in Sanford. It and all the other wooden mills would soon be replaced by even larger mills, all to be built in red brick just like the tall chimneys that kept watch over the town. He recognized several of the workers, all carpenters like himself. “Hé, là-bas!” * he yelled. Nobody looked up. “Ho-hé, Ho-hé!” he tried, with the same high-pitched call he’d used as a young man to get someone’s attention in the woods and fields of Saint-Fortunat. Still no response. Waving an arm, he tried again. “Ho-hé, Ho-hé!” Not seeing or hearing him, the men kept their heads down, tearing away at the building that he had built to last a century or more.
[* “Hey there!”]
Reaching the end of the street he turned onto Washington Street, away from the town square, and crossed a bridge over the small Mousam River as it flowed quickly away from the dam. Almost immediately, he turned onto High Street and headed toward the pharmacy that was owned by two of his sons, Phidelem and Donat. The northeast wind struck him in the face now with full-force, blotting out the sound of the pounding of the looms as he walked past more mills on the narrow street.
At the pharmacy he opened the door, its bells announcing his entry, and gave a loud bonjour to Phidelem and an elderly woman being served at the counter. He asked his son for some paper and was quickly handed several sheets of the pharmacy’s stationary. Télesphore stepped to a small cafe table, pulled out its dainty metal chair and sat down heavily, unbuttoning his coat and taking off his tuque. Pulling the carpenter’s pencil from his pocket, he hunched over a sheet of paper and began writing. He paused often to think through what to write next or to puzzle over the spelling of a difficult word.
Phidelem wished a bonne journée to the woman as she left the pharmacy, then looked across the counter at his father, his broad frame dominating the table and chair, his gray and balding head leaning forward over the paper. Now 68, his father had not been working for the past several weeks, complaining he was not well but not saying what ailed him. He still appeared strong and lively to his son and usually walked for miles each day, his back always straight unlike many younger men who seemed burdened by years of work in the mills. There seemed no reason for him not to be working. Yes, he was getting old and his face was wrinkled, of course, but with what appeared to Phidelem to be lines from a life of hard work out of doors, rather than those from worry or pain. He wondered what his father could possibly be writing.
Télesphore finished with one sheet, slid it over and wrote on the next, and then onto a third. Gathering the papers in hand, he read through them slowly, murmuring the words to himself. On the very first line he noticed something he had missed, added two asterisks, and then the words he had forgotten. Finished at last, he signed the third sheet with “Thélesphore Demers” but entered no date. Rising quickly now, the chair scraping the floor, he walked to the counter, handed the pages to Phidelem and said, “Voilà. Garde-les bien.” * He then walked to the door before waiting to hear his son reply, “Oui, bien sûr.” **
[* “Here. Keep this safe.” ** “Yes, of course.”]
Phidelem watched his father open the door and said au revoir, but there was no reply as the door closed. He looked down to read his father’s familiar rough penmanship, smiling at the numerous spelling errors. But as he continued reading, the smile disappeared, and when he finished with the third page, he read it again. He gazed up toward the high ceiling and wondered what had prompted him to write it. And then remembered his father had seen the doctor the day before, the first time since he had stopped working, the second time in a month. Looking down, he read it once more.
My Life
by Thélesphore Demers
Thélesphore Demers
Later that day Phidelem took the papers home, showed them to his wife and mentioned his worries about his father’s health. He then placed them with other important family documents. As he promised his father, he kept them safe, and they were still in his possession when his father died - over 30 years later at 102 years of age.
_________________________
The Demers Brothers Pharmacy at 41 High Street, Sanford, Maine, circa 1915. The owners, Donat and Phidelem, stand at left and right, respectively. Odias, who called himself Pete, stands in the center. He was the youngest brother and the only child born in the United States to Henriette and Télesphore. He, too, had recently become a pharmacist.
Collections of the Sanford-Springvale Historical Society, Sanford, Me.
See also, Eastman, Harland H. Villages on the Mousam: Sanford and Springvale, Maine 81.
(Wilson’s Printers, Sanford, Maine, 1995.)
See also, Eastman, Harland H. Villages on the Mousam: Sanford and Springvale, Maine 81.
(Wilson’s Printers, Sanford, Maine, 1995.)
__________________________
View of the Sanford Mills toward the south, circa 1911. A portion of Allen Street, now Pioneer Avenue, is visible at center-right in front of the homes that face the street and overlook the mill-yard. Heading toward the south (toward the left in the photo), Allen Street followed the edge of factory buildings until the last of those buildings ended at Elm Street. The Demers house is not visible but is in the collection of buildings beyond the mills at the upper left corner. Between 1915 and 1925 most of the factory buildings shown here were replaced with brick and cement structures.
Collections of the Sanford-Springvale Historical Society, Sanford, Me.
See also, Eastman, Harland H. Villages on the Mousam: Sanford and Springvale, Maine 89.
(Wilson’s Printers, Sanford, Maine, 1995.)
__________________________
See also, Eastman, Harland H. Villages on the Mousam: Sanford and Springvale, Maine 89.
(Wilson’s Printers, Sanford, Maine, 1995.)
__________________________
Collections of the Sanford-Springvale Historical Society, Sanford, Me.
See also, Eastman, Harland H. Villages on the Mousam: Sanford and Springvale, Maine 88.
(Wilson’s Printers, Sanford, Maine, 1995.)
_____________________
The Manuscript of the Life of Thélesphore Demers.
Courtesy of Patrick Demers, Acton, Maine.
To better follow the manuscript, a line-by-line transcript of the original text, the corrected text in French, and a literal English translation are provided in the following format:
Line Number.
Line A. French transcript uncorrected.
Line B. Corrected French.
Line C. Literal English Translation.
Line 1
A. née a St Agapit* le 22 Août *co. Lobiniere
B. Né à St-Agapit* le 22 août *comté Lotbinière
C. Born in St-Agapit* August 22 *Lotbinière county
Line 2
A. 1847 jai été a lécole valontère
B. 1847. J’ai été à l’école volontière
C. 1847 I was at the voluntary school
Line 3
A. 4 Ant mon Père a vandre
B. 4 ans. Mon père a vendu
C. 4 years. My father sold
Line 4
A. Sa terre pour aller s'etabire
B. sa terre pour aller s’établir
C. his land to go establish himself
Line 5
A. a St Jeulien à Wolfstown co. Wolfe
B. à St-Julien à Wolfestown, comté Wolfe,
C. at St-Julien in Wolfestown, Wolfe County,
Line 6
A. a 3 mille dans la farait 5 mille pas de
B. à 3 milles dans la forêt, 5 milles pas de
C. three miles in the forest, 5 miles without
Line 7
A. chemain et 9 mille pour les ma -
B. chemin et 9 milles pour les ma-
C. a road and 9 miles for the stores
Line 8
A. gasin le vilage d´alifax.
B. gasins du village d’Halifax.
C. in the village of Halifax.
Line 9
A. a 6 mille de la chapele de st
B. À 6 milles de la chapelle de St- C.
C. 6 miles from the chapel at St-
Line 10
A. Jeulien le vicaire d’alifax donnait
B. Julien, le vicaire d’Halifax donnait
C. Julien, the pastor of Halifax served
Line 11
A. La mitian tant les 2 Semain
B. la mission tant les 2 semaine
C. the mission every 2 weeks.
Line 12
A. L’an 1869 le 19 Janvier jai marier
B. L’an 1869, le 19 janvier, j’ai marié
C. The year 1869, I married
Line 13
A. Hanriette Lamontagne 13 Anfant
B. Henriette Lamontagne. 13 enfants
C. Henriette Lamontagne. 13 children
Line 14
A. San née de notre union 3 filles
B. sont nés de notre union. 3 filles
C. were born of our union. 3 girls
Line 15
A. san morte jeune L’an 1871
B. sont mortes jeunes. L’an 1871
C. died young. The year 1871
Line 16
A. le cantan de Wolfestown ces diviser
B. le canton de Wolfestown se diviser.
C. the township of Wolfestown was divided.
Line 17
A. la parrisse nauvelle a pris le nom
B. la paroisse nouvelle a prise le nom
C. the new parish took the name
Line 18
A. de St Fortunat a 1872 on a
B. de St-Fortunat. En 1872, on a
C. of St-Fortunat. In 1872, we
Line 19
A. organiser un Canseille jai été le
B. organiser un conseil. J’ai été le
C. organized a council. I was the
Line 20
A. pramier Maire le 2me Président
B. premier maire, le 2me président
C. first mayor, the second president
Line 21
A. des camissaire d’écoles an 1880
B. des commissaire d’écoles. An 1880,
C. of the school commission. In 1880.
Line 22
A. namer jeuge-de-Paix jai ramplis
B. nommé juge-de-paix, j’ai remplis
C. named justice of the peace, I fulfilled
Line 23
A. la charge jusque an 1890 quand
B. la charge, jusque en 1890 quand
C. my duties until 1890 when
Line 24
A. je sui venu ici le 9 Octobre 1890
B. je suis venu ici le 9 octobre 1890
C. I came here on October 9 1890.
Line 25
A. un ant a Springvile l’an 1891
B. un an à Sprinvale, l’an 1891
C. a year in Springvale, the the year 1891
Line 26
A. jai acheter la maison que jai
B. j’ai acheté la maison que j’ai
C. I bought the house that I have
Line 27
A. Oujaurhui danc jai pris pacaitio[n]
B. aujourd´hui dont j’ai prise possession
C. today, which I took possession
Line 28
A. le 15 Octobre 1891 56 Allen Stre[et]
B. le 15 octobre 1891. 56 Allen Street
C. on October 15, 1891. 56 Allen Street.
Thelesphore Demers
_______________________
Acknowledgements
Many thanks to cousin Patrick Demers who shared so much information with me about the Demers Pharmacy and the autobiography of Télesphore, including the clear digital copy of the original manuscript. I received much help from my cousins Cécile Leblanc, Jeanne d’Arc Leblanc, and Edmund Demers on the French version of this post, and on the English version from Edmund, cousin Anita Demers Olko, and from my sister Ruth Ballas. Finally, my daughter Kate Doiron helped me put together the maps below showing the route the Demers family took from Saint-Agapit to Wolfestown in 1859. I thank them all their help and advice.
___________________________
Notes on the Text
The story of how Télesphore’s brief autobiography was written includes many details imagined by me, particularly the exact month and year it occurred, Téleshore’s nap and conversation with Henriette and his walk to the pharmacy, the thoughts of Phidelem and Télesphore, and the words exchanged between the two. But those details don’t conflict with the many facts that we do know. According to the recollections of Patrick Demers on what his grandfather Phidelem told him many years ago, Telesphore wrote his short “life” or autobiography in the 1910s at the Demers Pharmacy on High Street while Phidelem was working, and that after writing it Télesphore had given it to Phidelem. Also according to Patrick, Phidelem kept the document safely in the family for years, then it was kept by his son Arthur, and then by his son, Patrick, who still has it today.
According to a newspaper article published in 1937 (Sanford Tribune and Advocate, February 35, 1937, “Local Resident Recalls Twelve French Families Here in 1890.”), Téleshore retired from his work as a carpenter in January 1916. From the letterhead and other sources we know that Phidelem and his brother, Donat, were the owners of the pharmacy.
With the photograph of the pharmacy’s interior we know that the cafe chairs and tables were available for Télesphore to sit and write on, though I suppose he could have written it on the glass counter-top of the display case. And we know that he lived at 56 Allen Street, now Pioneer Avenue, from 1891 until 1919, when, according to the same 1937 Sanford Tribune article, he sold his home to the Goodall Mills. (The home was located at the northeast corner of the intersection with Emery Street. It was later moved, around 1920, along with many other homes on that side of the street to allow for the construction of a mill building which still stands today.)
We also know that the old wooden mill buildings were torn down beginning in 1915 and then replaced with larger brick and cement buildings over the following ten years. See, Eastman, Harland H. Villages on the Mousam: Sanford and Springvale, Maine 89. (Wilson’s Printers, Sanford, Maine, 1995.) Two of the photos above show the mill-yard before the old mills were replaced and give a good idea of the route Télesphore would have walked from his home on Allen Street to his sons’ pharmacy on High Street.
We don’t know what motivated Télesphore to write about his life. That he may have written it because he thought he might soon die is grounded on a brief story my mother told me several times when I was a kid: that when Télesphore was in his 60s he had the idea that he did not have very long to live. And because of that feeling, which may or may not have been based on what a doctor had told him, he decided to retire. Seeing that he then proceeded to live in relatively good health until he was 102 years old, I always enjoyed the irony of the story, as did my mother. (I should note that the story told by my mother may have been just an interesting story, not necessarily a true one. I haven’t found other family members who remember hearing it.) In any event, it seems believable to peg his motivation for writing about his life on the idea that he would soon die and that he wanted to leave behind a writing that showed the highlights of his life, particularly his life in Canada.
We also know that the old wooden mill buildings were torn down beginning in 1915 and then replaced with larger brick and cement buildings over the following ten years. See, Eastman, Harland H. Villages on the Mousam: Sanford and Springvale, Maine 89. (Wilson’s Printers, Sanford, Maine, 1995.) Two of the photos above show the mill-yard before the old mills were replaced and give a good idea of the route Télesphore would have walked from his home on Allen Street to his sons’ pharmacy on High Street.
We don’t know what motivated Télesphore to write about his life. That he may have written it because he thought he might soon die is grounded on a brief story my mother told me several times when I was a kid: that when Télesphore was in his 60s he had the idea that he did not have very long to live. And because of that feeling, which may or may not have been based on what a doctor had told him, he decided to retire. Seeing that he then proceeded to live in relatively good health until he was 102 years old, I always enjoyed the irony of the story, as did my mother. (I should note that the story told by my mother may have been just an interesting story, not necessarily a true one. I haven’t found other family members who remember hearing it.) In any event, it seems believable to peg his motivation for writing about his life on the idea that he would soon die and that he wanted to leave behind a writing that showed the highlights of his life, particularly his life in Canada.
No matter the reason for its being written, the document allows us to better understand Télesphore and the life he led. Some of the facts that he writes about can be found in other documents, such as his birth in Saint-Agapit (really in Saint-Gilles before it was divided after his birth, in part, to form the new town of Saint-Agapit where the Demers family farm was located), the move to Wolfestown, his marriage to Henriette, the birth of their children, the arrival of the family in the United States and the purchase of their home on Allen Street. But there are some things that are not in any other source of which I am aware.
Of his early life, we learn from it that he attended school for four years and that his father sold their farm in Saint-Agapit before moving the family to Wolfestown in 1859 when Télesphore was 12 years old. He also gives a good idea of the isolation of their new family farm. He writes that the nearest stores were in Saint-Ferdinand-de-Halifax, nine miles away from their farm, and that the parish priest there served as a missionary priest every two weeks at the chapel in Saint-Julien.
After leaving Saint-Agapit, the Demers would have taken the Gosford Road, the main route to the Eastern Townships, and would have arrived first at Saint-Ferdinand and, three miles later, at Saint-Julien-de-Wolfstown. Being closer to the Saint Lawrence River than Wolfestown, Saint-Ferdinand had been settled earlier, beginning around the 1830s, and had an established parish by the time the Demers family arrived in Wolfestown in 1859. (Henriette Lamontagne, Télesphore’s future wife, was born in Saint-Ferdinand in 1852 and was still living there in 1859.)
Télesphore also writes that the chapel at Saint-Julien, which was also on the Gosford Road, was six miles from their farm. From Saint-Julien to their farm, he writes that they went five of the six miles without a road (presumably the five miles were on a rough track that began after they left Gosford Road about a mile south of the chapel), three of which were through the forest, which at the time would have been an old growth forest. (Edmund Demers recalls that as a child his grandfather Télesphore told him many times that his father, Damase Demers, was the first man ever to take an axe to the trees on their land.) The other two roadless miles were presumably over newly cleared land.After leaving Saint-Agapit, the Demers would have taken the Gosford Road, the main route to the Eastern Townships, and would have arrived first at Saint-Ferdinand and, three miles later, at Saint-Julien-de-Wolfstown. Being closer to the Saint Lawrence River than Wolfestown, Saint-Ferdinand had been settled earlier, beginning around the 1830s, and had an established parish by the time the Demers family arrived in Wolfestown in 1859. (Henriette Lamontagne, Télesphore’s future wife, was born in Saint-Ferdinand in 1852 and was still living there in 1859.)
From Saint-Agapit to Wolfestown in 1859.
Map data copyright Google 2018
You can interact with the map and read the text for each of the markers at: https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/edit?mid=1-mOy9gAXwbnxn6jQIiWvCJ4tDcX9l4ji&ll=46.280539426924335%2C-71.47996934999998&z=9.
From the family farm in Saint-Agapit, the first marker at the top of the map, the family followed the Craig Road to Saint-Narcisse and then followed the Gosford Road to Saint-Ferdinand-de-Halifax. From there they continued on the Craig Road to the chapel in Saint-Julien-de-Wolfestown, which is at the intersection with what is now Route 216 and the road to Belmina. About a half-mile south of the chapel the family left the Gosford Road to enter a rough path through the woods. The last four markers trace today’s Chemin de 4ième rang, Route Saint-Fortunat/Route du 4ième rang, and the Chemin du 6ième rang. Given the hilly terrain, this is the likely approximate path through the woods that the Demers would have taken. Because of the terrain and the rough condition of the roads, the entire journey from Saint-Agapit would likely have taken them several days.
About his life in Springvale and Sanford, Télesphore gives the specific date he and his family arrived in Springvale, October 9, 1890, and writes of living in Springvale for one year and of buying a house at 56 Allen Street in Sanford on October 15, 1891, almost exactly a year after their arrival in Maine. (We have other documentation about their home on Allen Street, including a copy of the mortgage agreement and a photograph of the house, both of which will be included in a future post.) Curiously, and unfortunately, he gives no other information about his life in Maine, including about his work as a carpenter or his church-related activities, such as his efforts to establish the parish of Saint-Ignatius and its cemetery. Instead he wrote primarily of his life in Canada. If I am right that he wrote the document because he was concerned about dying soon, maybe the details of his earliest years were especially the most important to him.
_____________________
Télesphore’s autobiography also provides some details of his life in Saint-Fortunat after it was established as a town in 1873 (he mistakenly writes that the town was established in 1872). He writes that he was elected the town’s first mayor (there are other documents that confirm that fact), but he also states that he was the second president of the school board and a justice of the peace throughout the 1880s and until he left for Maine in 1890. I have no other documents concerning these last two civic roles he played in Saint-Fortunat.
The short autobiography is also informative beyond the autobiographical facts contained in it. Other than signatures on two other documents, this is the only document we have that is written in Télesphore’s own hand. Although he wrote his long travel journal in 1908, we do not have his original manuscript, only his daughter Odelie’s handwritten version of it. The autobiography shows he has a rough penmanship and that many words are written phonetically, both of which reflect his limited education. He also wrote many incomplete sentences. Odelie would have certainly faced a challenge when she undertook the task of writing the revising version of his 1908 Travel Notes.
Beyond the spelling and grammatical errors, his penmanship itself seems to offer some clues about Télesphore’s personality. Edmund Demers, his grandson, who as a child and young man knew Télesphore, included the handwritten autobiography as an appendix to his translation of Télesphore’s travel journal. In introducing it, Edmund wrote:
"This biographical note was written by my grandfather on Demers Pharmacy stationary sometime between 1910 and 1920. Those of us who remember his loud voice can readily relate it to his handwriting - large, free, vigorous, with a bold slant to the right."
Josh Canty, a friend of mine who has training in graphology, or handwriting analysis, examined Télesphore’s handwriting. Recognizing that graphology is much in dispute as a science (see Wikipedia for a critical article on the subject at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graphology), the following analysis does seem to me to be consistent with Telesphore’s personality that can be gleaned from this 1908 Travel Notes (which Josh has not read):
"Thelesphore Demers’s handwriting shows that he was a person who had a good sense of self-worth and self-respect; he was outspoken when he needed to be, especially with his opinions. He was also friendly, but he tended to speak indirectly: he would often take a little more time than was necessary to get to the point. He was generally optimistic and able to look on the bright side of things.
Josh Canty, a friend of mine who has training in graphology, or handwriting analysis, examined Télesphore’s handwriting. Recognizing that graphology is much in dispute as a science (see Wikipedia for a critical article on the subject at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graphology), the following analysis does seem to me to be consistent with Télesphore’s personality that can be gleaned from this 1908 Travel Notes (which Josh has not read):
"Thélesphore’s writing shows that he made quick, bold decisions, and that he could be impatient at times. Although he was outgoing, he preferred to spend more time with his family and close friends than his work acquaintances. He was demanding and could get bossy at times, especially when people went against what he believed was the right thing to do. He did not worry about money excessively; he did not let it control his decisions."
"He was honest and forthcoming. He tended to be slightly reserved socially but was still expressive. He was clever and able to connect ideas and thoughts together easily."
The spelling and grammar used by Telesphore in the autobiography, I believe, gives us a good indication of how he spoke French. I am certainly no expert on the accent of Québec, or more specifically the accent of the Chaudiere and Appalachian region where Telesphore had lived, but it appears to me that his phonetic spelling reflects his accent. This is shown particularly with the many “a” s that he uses instead of the correct vowel, as in vandre instead of vendre (to sell), ramplis for remplis (to fill or to fulfill), farait for forêt (forest), namer for nommé (to name), san for sont (third person, present indicative of verb to be), and even Hanriette for the name of his wife, Henriette. The use of the letter a in these instances seems to me to reflect the a sound often used for other vowels by many who live in the Chaudière and Appalachian region even today.
But with other phonetic spellings, he seems to be following the standard French pronunciation, such as Lobiniere for Lotbinière, d’alifax for d’Halifax, vilage for village, Jeulien for Julien, and jeuge for juge (judge). Other words seem to be careless errors, ones that would not necessarily reflect how he pronounced the words, like “ant” for an (year) and the missing “l” in “s’etabire” for s’établir (to establish oneself). His use of the accents grave, aïgu, and circonflex is spotty, as is the use of apostrophes.
Other than the word terre, which is used to mean farm as well as land in Québec, there do not appear to be words that were used only in, or had special meanings, in French Canada. And there also do not appear to be any anglicisms, although his use of capital letters for the months of the year might be considered a type of anglicism.
And finally there is the spelling of his first name. The standard spelling of it, which I’ve used throughout the blog, is Télesphore, but in all three of the documents which show his signature (in the 1871 petition to the Archbishop of Québec to establish the parish of Saint-Fortunat, the 1891 mortgage agreement for the purchase of his home on Allen Street, and his short autobiography), he spells his name with an h after the T, Thélesphore. Why? I am only speculating, but perhaps it is because he was following the spelling of the name of his older brother, Théodore, which is spelled in French with the letter h, but which is pronounced with a hard letter T, as in Télesphore.
The grammatical errors all seem to be related to issues of agreement, that is, the proper use of gender and number across verbs, adjectives, pronouns, and nouns. The word order (the proper placement of words in sentences) and use of words all seem correct to me. He often uses incomplete sentences, and the use of punctuation marks is, as with his accent marks, spotty.
For other material on the life of Télesphore see:
Vaillaincourt, Éric. Histoire de Saint-Fortunat. (2013; not translated). (ISBN : 978-2-9814128-0-5). Télesphore Demers, and 87 other heads of family, as signatory to the petition to the Archbishop of Québec requesting the establishment of the Parish of Saint-Fortunat in 1871, pp. 56-62; election as first mayor of the newly established town of St-Fortunat in February 1873, pp. 74 - 77.
Sanford Tribune and Advocate, February 35, 1937, “Local Resident Recalls Twelve French Families Here in 1890.” Includes a photograph of Telesphore. Telesphore Demers 89 years old; arrived in Springvale October 9, 1890; purchased home at corner of Emery and Allen Streets in 1891 and sold it to the Sanford Mills in 1919; member of 4 person delegation to Bishop in Portland to request a priest in Sanford in September 1892; member of 3 person delegation to Sanford Mills owner Mr. Goodall to secure land for Catholic cemetery in 1902; has 37 grandchildren, 26 great-grandchildren; celebrated golden anniversary with wife, Henriette, in 1919; after her death in 1923, living with daughter Eva and husband Albenie Doiron on Nason St.; was a carpenter and worked until January 1916; goes to church and seen frequently on Main St., occassionally walks to Springvale; memory is very good; plays cards for a past time. Digital site: http://springvale.advantage-preservation.com/Viewer/?k=telesphore%20demers&i=f&d=01011895-12311951&m=between&fn=sanford_tribune_and_advocate_usa_maine_sanford_19370225_english_4&df=1&dt=10.
Portland Press Herald, “Louis Demers, 91, Is Visiting His Brother, Telesphore, 93, At Sanford,” July 14, 1940. Includes photo of the two men. Louis visiting from Sunol, Nebraska; Télesphore living with daughter Eva Doiron on Nason St; every morning, except in heavy storms, Télesphore is found at 7:30 mass at St. Ignatius Church; is next to oldest member of the parish; is the oldest member of the Prefontaine Council, St John the Baptist Society, one of its 12 founders in July 1893; also member of the League of the Sacred Heart in the parish; is a retired carpenter; is over 6 feet tall and stands erect and walks at least 2 miles daily.
La Justice?, Sanford, Maine [French-language newspaper], "One hundred years, he hasn't lost a tooth," dateline March 2, 1947 [I have a yellowed copy of the article, which doesn't have the name of the paper or the date]. Next August he will celebrate his 100th birthday; born in St-Gilles, Quebec, he is still healthy; although eyes are weak, he has never worn eye-glasses; he always recognizes visitors, if not by sight, than by voice; an absolutely remarkable fact, he has all his teeth, and has never been to a dentist; he is looking forward to celebrating his 100th birthday with his family; he is the oldest member of the St-Jean-de-Baptiste Society in Sanford of which he is one of its founders, and the oldest Knight of Columbus in Sanford which he joined in 1906; he has lived in the Marcotte Nursing Home in Lewiston for 4 years; he lived in Sanford for about 50 years, and with his daughter Éva Doiron there for more than 20 years; he decided to live at Marcotte because of her bad health; every morning he attends mass at the chapel at the nursing home, in the afternoon he returns for a visit and attends all services in the evening; he eats everything that is served and doesn't require any aide at the table, he has a good appetite; he has three surviving sons and two daughters; with his siblings, the youngest who has died was 90 years old, one of his brothers in Lewiston died several weeks before his 100 birthday, another brother died accidentally in a truck accident at 98, others have died to 96 and older; he relives his life though his memories which he conserves jealously, his conversation is very interesting with a remarkable clarity and faithful memories; we have to add that the population of Sanford admires him; he was one of the founders of the parish of St-Ignatius, and he is admired for his devotion and piety as part of several religieuses societies.
Le Messager, Lewiston, Maine (French-language newspaper), “102ie anniversaire de naissance célébré par M. Télesphore Demers, Lewiston, Maine," DATE/Fall? 1949 [I have a yellowed copy of the article, which doesn't have the name the date]. Was interviewed while seated in a wheelchair at the Marcotte Nursing Home in Auburn; gives the impression of still being very intelligent; on first meeting him he was reciting the rosary in a low voice; was wearing a dark dress suit and didn't complain of it, although he looked uncomfortable; one of the nun's says he never complains and has "infinite patience and eats and sleeps like a baby, and still has 28 or his 32 teeth"; at Marcotte's since 1944; he was a carpenter and a joiner; he thinks often of his children; he is often bored during the day, but finds consolation in Christian thoughts and the rosary, which is always with him; he attributes his long life to not ever worrying about the future, he accepts the consolations and the trials of life as they come; if bad things happened he always tried to find the good in it and calmly waited out events; during his birthday party last year, he sang a little.
Lewiston Evening Journal, “Oldest Local Man, 102, Dies/ Telesphore Demers Succumbs, Tuesday Morning, at Marcotte Home,” March 29, 1950 Resided at Marcotte home since July 1944. Always enjoyed good health. At 100th birthday he had 35 grandchildren, 50 great grandchildren, and 2 great-great-grandchildren. 5 children survived him, Phidelem, Odias, and Donat Demers, Andreanna Roberge, and Éva Doiron.
______________________
Dennis M. Doiron, Gardiner, Maine, May 2018
About his life in Springvale and Sanford, Télesphore gives the specific date he and his family arrived in Springvale, October 9, 1890, and writes of living in Springvale for one year and of buying a house at 56 Allen Street in Sanford on October 15, 1891, almost exactly a year after their arrival in Maine. (We have other documentation about their home on Allen Street, including a copy of the mortgage agreement and a photograph of the house, both of which will be included in a future post.) Curiously, and unfortunately, he gives no other information about his life in Maine, including about his work as a carpenter or his church-related activities, such as his efforts to establish the parish of Saint-Ignatius and its cemetery. Instead he wrote primarily of his life in Canada. If I am right that he wrote the document because he was concerned about dying soon, maybe the details of his earliest years were especially the most important to him.
_____________________
Télesphore’s autobiography also provides some details of his life in Saint-Fortunat after it was established as a town in 1873 (he mistakenly writes that the town was established in 1872). He writes that he was elected the town’s first mayor (there are other documents that confirm that fact), but he also states that he was the second president of the school board and a justice of the peace throughout the 1880s and until he left for Maine in 1890. I have no other documents concerning these last two civic roles he played in Saint-Fortunat.
The short autobiography is also informative beyond the autobiographical facts contained in it. Other than signatures on two other documents, this is the only document we have that is written in Télesphore’s own hand. Although he wrote his long travel journal in 1908, we do not have his original manuscript, only his daughter Odelie’s handwritten version of it. The autobiography shows he has a rough penmanship and that many words are written phonetically, both of which reflect his limited education. He also wrote many incomplete sentences. Odelie would have certainly faced a challenge when she undertook the task of writing the revising version of his 1908 Travel Notes.
"Thelesphore Demers’s handwriting shows that he was a person who had a good sense of self-worth and self-respect; he was outspoken when he needed to be, especially with his opinions. He was also friendly, but he tended to speak indirectly: he would often take a little more time than was necessary to get to the point. He was generally optimistic and able to look on the bright side of things.
Josh Canty, a friend of mine who has training in graphology, or handwriting analysis, examined Télesphore’s handwriting. Recognizing that graphology is much in dispute as a science (see Wikipedia for a critical article on the subject at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graphology), the following analysis does seem to me to be consistent with Télesphore’s personality that can be gleaned from this 1908 Travel Notes (which Josh has not read):"Thélesphore’s writing shows that he made quick, bold decisions, and that he could be impatient at times. Although he was outgoing, he preferred to spend more time with his family and close friends than his work acquaintances. He was demanding and could get bossy at times, especially when people went against what he believed was the right thing to do. He did not worry about money excessively; he did not let it control his decisions."
"He was honest and forthcoming. He tended to be slightly reserved socially but was still expressive. He was clever and able to connect ideas and thoughts together easily."
The spelling and grammar used by Telesphore in the autobiography, I believe, gives us a good indication of how he spoke French. I am certainly no expert on the accent of Québec, or more specifically the accent of the Chaudiere and Appalachian region where Telesphore had lived, but it appears to me that his phonetic spelling reflects his accent. This is shown particularly with the many “a” s that he uses instead of the correct vowel, as in vandre instead of vendre (to sell), ramplis for remplis (to fill or to fulfill), farait for forêt (forest), namer for nommé (to name), san for sont (third person, present indicative of verb to be), and even Hanriette for the name of his wife, Henriette. The use of the letter a in these instances seems to me to reflect the a sound often used for other vowels by many who live in the Chaudière and Appalachian region even today.
But with other phonetic spellings, he seems to be following the standard French pronunciation, such as Lobiniere for Lotbinière, d’alifax for d’Halifax, vilage for village, Jeulien for Julien, and jeuge for juge (judge). Other words seem to be careless errors, ones that would not necessarily reflect how he pronounced the words, like “ant” for an (year) and the missing “l” in “s’etabire” for s’établir (to establish oneself). His use of the accents grave, aïgu, and circonflex is spotty, as is the use of apostrophes. Other than the word terre, which is used to mean farm as well as land in Québec, there do not appear to be words that were used only in, or had special meanings, in French Canada. And there also do not appear to be any anglicisms, although his use of capital letters for the months of the year might be considered a type of anglicism.
And finally there is the spelling of his first name. The standard spelling of it, which I’ve used throughout the blog, is Télesphore, but in all three of the documents which show his signature (in the 1871 petition to the Archbishop of Québec to establish the parish of Saint-Fortunat, the 1891 mortgage agreement for the purchase of his home on Allen Street, and his short autobiography), he spells his name with an h after the T, Thélesphore. Why? I am only speculating, but perhaps it is because he was following the spelling of the name of his older brother, Théodore, which is spelled in French with the letter h, but which is pronounced with a hard letter T, as in Télesphore.
The grammatical errors all seem to be related to issues of agreement, that is, the proper use of gender and number across verbs, adjectives, pronouns, and nouns. The word order (the proper placement of words in sentences) and use of words all seem correct to me. He often uses incomplete sentences, and the use of punctuation marks is, as with his accent marks, spotty. For other material on the life of Télesphore see:
Vaillaincourt, Éric. Histoire de Saint-Fortunat. (2013; not translated). (ISBN : 978-2-9814128-0-5). Télesphore Demers, and 87 other heads of family, as signatory to the petition to the Archbishop of Québec requesting the establishment of the Parish of Saint-Fortunat in 1871, pp. 56-62; election as first mayor of the newly established town of St-Fortunat in February 1873, pp. 74 - 77.
Sanford Tribune and Advocate, February 35, 1937, “Local Resident Recalls Twelve French Families Here in 1890.” Includes a photograph of Telesphore. Telesphore Demers 89 years old; arrived in Springvale October 9, 1890; purchased home at corner of Emery and Allen Streets in 1891 and sold it to the Sanford Mills in 1919; member of 4 person delegation to Bishop in Portland to request a priest in Sanford in September 1892; member of 3 person delegation to Sanford Mills owner Mr. Goodall to secure land for Catholic cemetery in 1902; has 37 grandchildren, 26 great-grandchildren; celebrated golden anniversary with wife, Henriette, in 1919; after her death in 1923, living with daughter Eva and husband Albenie Doiron on Nason St.; was a carpenter and worked until January 1916; goes to church and seen frequently on Main St., occassionally walks to Springvale; memory is very good; plays cards for a past time. Digital site: http://springvale.advantage-preservation.com/Viewer/?k=telesphore%20demers&i=f&d=01011895-12311951&m=between&fn=sanford_tribune_and_advocate_usa_maine_sanford_19370225_english_4&df=1&dt=10.
Portland Press Herald, “Louis Demers, 91, Is Visiting His Brother, Telesphore, 93, At Sanford,” July 14, 1940. Includes photo of the two men. Louis visiting from Sunol, Nebraska; Télesphore living with daughter Eva Doiron on Nason St; every morning, except in heavy storms, Télesphore is found at 7:30 mass at St. Ignatius Church; is next to oldest member of the parish; is the oldest member of the Prefontaine Council, St John the Baptist Society, one of its 12 founders in July 1893; also member of the League of the Sacred Heart in the parish; is a retired carpenter; is over 6 feet tall and stands erect and walks at least 2 miles daily.
La Justice?, Sanford, Maine [French-language newspaper], "One hundred years, he hasn't lost a tooth," dateline March 2, 1947 [I have a yellowed copy of the article, which doesn't have the name of the paper or the date]. Next August he will celebrate his 100th birthday; born in St-Gilles, Quebec, he is still healthy; although eyes are weak, he has never worn eye-glasses; he always recognizes visitors, if not by sight, than by voice; an absolutely remarkable fact, he has all his teeth, and has never been to a dentist; he is looking forward to celebrating his 100th birthday with his family; he is the oldest member of the St-Jean-de-Baptiste Society in Sanford of which he is one of its founders, and the oldest Knight of Columbus in Sanford which he joined in 1906; he has lived in the Marcotte Nursing Home in Lewiston for 4 years; he lived in Sanford for about 50 years, and with his daughter Éva Doiron there for more than 20 years; he decided to live at Marcotte because of her bad health; every morning he attends mass at the chapel at the nursing home, in the afternoon he returns for a visit and attends all services in the evening; he eats everything that is served and doesn't require any aide at the table, he has a good appetite; he has three surviving sons and two daughters; with his siblings, the youngest who has died was 90 years old, one of his brothers in Lewiston died several weeks before his 100 birthday, another brother died accidentally in a truck accident at 98, others have died to 96 and older; he relives his life though his memories which he conserves jealously, his conversation is very interesting with a remarkable clarity and faithful memories; we have to add that the population of Sanford admires him; he was one of the founders of the parish of St-Ignatius, and he is admired for his devotion and piety as part of several religieuses societies.
Le Messager, Lewiston, Maine (French-language newspaper), “102ie anniversaire de naissance célébré par M. Télesphore Demers, Lewiston, Maine," DATE/Fall? 1949 [I have a yellowed copy of the article, which doesn't have the name the date]. Was interviewed while seated in a wheelchair at the Marcotte Nursing Home in Auburn; gives the impression of still being very intelligent; on first meeting him he was reciting the rosary in a low voice; was wearing a dark dress suit and didn't complain of it, although he looked uncomfortable; one of the nun's says he never complains and has "infinite patience and eats and sleeps like a baby, and still has 28 or his 32 teeth"; at Marcotte's since 1944; he was a carpenter and a joiner; he thinks often of his children; he is often bored during the day, but finds consolation in Christian thoughts and the rosary, which is always with him; he attributes his long life to not ever worrying about the future, he accepts the consolations and the trials of life as they come; if bad things happened he always tried to find the good in it and calmly waited out events; during his birthday party last year, he sang a little.
Lewiston Evening Journal, “Oldest Local Man, 102, Dies/ Telesphore Demers Succumbs, Tuesday Morning, at Marcotte Home,” March 29, 1950 Resided at Marcotte home since July 1944. Always enjoyed good health. At 100th birthday he had 35 grandchildren, 50 great grandchildren, and 2 great-great-grandchildren. 5 children survived him, Phidelem, Odias, and Donat Demers, Andreanna Roberge, and Éva Doiron.
______________________
Dennis M. Doiron, Gardiner, Maine, May 2018
No comments:
Post a Comment