In the sixteenth century, Dieppe was known as the biggest seaport in the kingdom of France. A resident of Dieppe, Thomas Aubert, came to the cod fishing banks of Newfoundland and brought native people back to France in 1508. It was our Canadian soldiers who raided Dieppe in 1944.

During his patient research, Father Archange Godbout found the baptismal acts for Catherine and Laurent Demers at Dieppe, which were recorded in the registry on 5 August 1629 and the first of October 1635; they were children of Jean and of Barbe Mauger. The latter, who died on 11 July 1669, was buried the following day at about the age of 70.

His brother Jean was mentioned for the first time in our history only on 4 October 2654, at the time of his marriage contract signed before the notary Lambert Closse at Montreal. Conclusion: it is not certain that the two brothers came to New France together.

AT MONTREAL

Gathered at Montreal were Andre, Jean and even Cousin Etienne Demers, who on 31 March 1649, had his first child baptized. It is difficult, however, to specify their time table.

On 7 January 1654, Andre Demers, in the presence of Paul de Chomedy, Lambert Closse and Pierre Gadois, was married at Ville-Marie, to Marie Chefdeville, daughter of Jean and of Marguerite Jovicum. Andre and Marie had agreed to a marriage contract on the preceding 11 December. THe Jesuit priest Claude Pijart drew up their marriage contract in Latin. On the same day, 7 January, Jean Milot, master edge tool maker, and Jean Beauvais dit Saint-Gemme, also took wives.

After his marriage contract, also signed by Lambert Closse on 4 October 1654, the youngest, Jean Demers, gave his heart to the sixteen year old Jeanne Voidy, born to Michel and to Catherine Dorbelle, at Saint-Germaine-du-Val, near La Fleche in Anjou.

The two brothers spent their days at Montreal in an area called Pointe Saint-Charles. On 20 August 1655, they each obtained 15 square arpents of land on the Saint-Pierre River, near the properties of Barbe de Boulogne. Price: 100 livres each. Jean resold his lot to his brother Andre, his neighbor, on 9 November 1661, for 500 livres.

On 7 March 1658, Andre acquired one arpent of land property of Richomme, located at Ville-Marie. On 10 August 1658, Jean, in turn, acquired a lot with the same dimensions bordering his brother. On 3 November 1662, Francois Piron dit Lavallee, by paying 170 livres, became the owner of Jean Demers' land. The masonry house was in ruins at the time. Andre copied his brother. On 8 April 1663, he gave up his city property. Bertrand Derennes and Etienne Trudeau paid him 200 livres.

One day there was a friendly and fraternal parting of the brothers. Jean dreamed of going to the region of Quebec. On 9 November 1661, he sold his small farm to his brother.

Andre continued to live at Montreal where, in 1666, he was listed in the census as a resident; the following year, the census takers reported that Andre and Marie Chefdeville, parents of six children, had two servants in their service: Simon Magnan and Thecle-Cornelius Aubry. Nothing was said about their livestock nor their arpents of land under cultivation. In 1681, Andre Demers was indeed living in Montreal between neighbors Jean Senecal and Jacques Milot; he owned two guns and had twenty arpents of land under cultivation.

Between 22 October 1654 and 24 September 1675, the exact number of little people in the Chefdeville-Demers home was established at twelve: Catherine, Marie, Nicolas, Andre, Jean-Baptiste, Michel, Barbe, Charles, Marie, Robert, Paul and Martine. Only the first-born Catherine had left the nest since she had died a month after her birth. Paul died at the age of 17.

1-5 - Nicolas, Andre, Michel, Robert and Martine Demers went to find their wives or their husbands in the family of Urbain Jette and Catherine Charles: Marie-Marthe, Ann, Elisabeth, Madeleine and Paul Jette.

6 - Marie Demers, the first with this given name, took, as her life's companion, Nicolas Nervaux dit Poitou, then Jean Roy.

7 - Cunegonde Masta won the heart of Jean-Baptiste Demers, master edge-tool maker, on 25 February 1686. She gave him three children. Jean-Baptiste died at the Hotel-Dieu de Montreal on 25 October 1690.

8 - On 4 November 1680, at Ville-Marie, Jacques Coiteaux took Barbe Demers as his wife. On 7 September 1699, she died at Pointe-aux-Trenbles de Montreal.

9 - Master baker, Charles Demers, surnamed Dessermons, married three times: first to Elisabeth Papin, then to Catherine Jette and finally to Marie-Madeleine Cauchon. He left a progeny of twelve children.

10 - Jean Bourhis dit LeBreton, master cabinetmaker, courted Marie Demers, the second with this name; they were married at the church of Notre-Dame. After Jean's death, Marie was remarried, on the first of November 1712 at Longueuil, to Charles Vary dit Vigneron, an Angevin immigrant who added two children to the nine Bourhis whom she had already had.

The descendants of Andre and Marie Chefdefille counted 85 members in the third generation

The life of Jean and Jeanne Voidy, according to the documents which history has bequeathed us, appears to be more active and more colorful than that of Andre who lived in one place.

Andre and Jean Demers, Marie Chefdeville and Jeanne Voidy, perched on the edge of eternity, you left the shores of our earthly world while leaving behind you a whirlwind of life which still blows over our continent.

FAMILY NAME VARIATIONS

There are many known variations of the name of Demers: Chedeville, Demair, Demar, Demarce, Demars, Demarse, DeMayer, Demer, Demers, Desmars, Duguay, Dumais, Dumars, Dumas, Dumay, Dumer, Dumet, Dumets, Mars and Mers.