Chapter One - From France to
Acadia then France, England, etc.
(Reprint of an article in The Advertiser,
Sept. 14, 1997)
Jean-Baptiste Duon dit Lyonais arrived in Acadia sometime during the
early part of the 18th century and married Agnes Hebert, the daughter
of Antoine Hebert and Jeanne Corporon of Port Royal on Feb. 27,
1713. As his name suggests, Jean-Baptiste was a native of Lyon
in south-central France. He was the son of Jean-Louis Duon and
Jeanne Clemenson and the grandson of Mathieu Duon and Catherine Pyrieu
of Lyon.
Jean-Baptiste's arrival in Acadia coincided with the War
of Spanish Succession and the Treaty of Utrecht, which gave the colony
definitely to the English. Jean-Baptiste worked as a notary in
Port Royal.
Jean-Baptiste and Agnes had 13 children, 10 boys and 3
girls. The boys were named Jean-Baptiste (m. 1736 Madeleine
Vincent), Honore (m. 1745 Anne-Marie Vincent), Pierre (m. Angelique
Aucoin), Abel (m. 1757 Anne d'Entremont), Jean-Jacques, Louis-Basile
(m. 1754 Marie-Josephe Comeau), Francois, Cyprian (m. 1758 Marguerite
Landry), Charles (m.c. 1756 Marie-Josephe Prejean), and Claude -Amable
(m. 1757 Marie-Joseph Vincent). The daughters were Jeanne (m.
1735 Francoise d'Entremont), Euphrosine (m. Charles Vincent), and
Rosalie (m. Jean Landry, m. Pierre Louseneau).
Jean-Baptiste's relatively late arrival in Acadia assured
that his children and grandchildren were deported by the English
beginning in 1755. As with most Acadian families, the Duon clan
was scattered far and wide by the deportation, and Agnes Hebert was
one of its victims. She was deported with her daughter Rosalie
to New York but died before Rosalie was able to escape to the
French-owned island of Martinique. Jean-Baptiste (pere),
died at Port Royal in 1746.
Jean-Baptpiste (fils), Cyprien, Pierre, and
Euphrosine, along with their families were deported to England.
Jean-Baptiste died at Liverpool about 1758 and his widow, Madeleine
Vincent, remarried there. Cyprien and his family were
repatriated to France and settled at Belle-Isle-en-Mer.
Two of Cyprien's sons, Jean-Baptiste and Joseph (m. 1791 Escolasitica
Hebert) made their way to Louisiana from Nantes, France. in
1785. Euphrosine and her husband died at Plymouth,
England. Pierre settled at Plouhard in France following his
repatriation at the end of the Seven Year's War.
In addition to Agnes Hebert and Rosalie, the sixth son of
Jean-Baptiste, Louis-Basile, was also deported to New York. He
apparently was able to escape to Martinique.
Jeanne and Abel were deported to Boston. Both were
eventually able to return to Acadia, by then renamed Nova Scotia.
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CHAPTER-FINALLY IN LOUISIANA
