From Calais to Boston, Massachusetts

No problem, Catherine, it will be my pleasure.

Let me remind you of the situation. My grandfather was much older than my grandmother. He had been married once before and had nine children from that first marriage. I was looking for the date of death of one of his sons, William Jérémy Léon LE PETIT, on GENEANET and ANCESTRY, two websites dedicated to genealogy. On GENEANET I found nothing, but on ANCESTRY I found a William J. LE PETIT.

Knowing you, I imagine you must have been hopping around with excitement and…

And I will start hopping if you don’t let me finish. So I found a William J. LE PETIT and then a Marguerite HUREZ-LE PETIT, his wife.

On this 1950 census, there was not only William and Marguerite, but also Raymonde.

So you thought she was their daughter.

Exactly, Rose! There was indeed a Raymonde LE PETIT born in France in 1919.

Look at these documents, Rose, and tell me whether you follow the same reasoning. Thanks to an article from The Boston Globe, I discovered that Raymonde was not an only child but had at least two sisters, Susan and Margaret. So I searched through the departmental archives of Pas-de-Calais. Susan Marguerite was born on July 3rd, 1922, in Calais, and Marguerite Violette was born on November 6th, 1924, also in Calais.

Did you find any trace of Raymonde’s birth?

No, Rose, not yet. She was born before her parents married. Did she carry her mother’s surname, HUREZ, or her father’s? Where was she born? In Toulon, where her father lived? In Valenciennes, her mother’s hometown? Or in Calais? Unfortunately, that period is missing from the ten-year registers.

Do you have any information about the husbands?

For Susan, I had no difficulty because the surname was correctly spelled in the newspaper article: ROCUZAC. She must have married Jean ROCUZAC in France. When they arrived in America in 1951, both names appeared on the passenger manifest.

Did you find Jean’s place of birth?

No, I still need to widen my search.

And for Marguerite Violette, what did you find?

Not very much, my little Rose. I haven’t even been able to establish her husband’s name correctly: James F. Fnel! The answers point in every direction — the United States, England, Ireland… But I’m not giving up.

I’m not surprised. You’re not the sort to let things go. In the end, you didn’t really need me.

Yes, Rose, I did. You helped me organize my work. Thank you, my little Rose. »

A moment later, Rose had returned to her own time. I found myself alone again with my papers. I will write to the town halls — perhaps I’ll get some answers.

Documents and records discovered later
« When this story was first written, I had only a few documents concerning William LE PETIT’s American journey… »