Maxime Degouff (1870 - abt. 1953)

Born 27 Aug 1870 in Bouctouche, Kent, New Brunswick, Canada

Ancestors

Husband of Apolline E. (Savoie) Degouff — married 18 Oct 1900 in Néguac, Northumberland, New Brunswick, Canada

Descendants

Died about 1953 at about age 82 in Framingham, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Mike Belliveau [send private message]

Biography

Maxime Degouff is a descendant of an Acadian

Maxime Degouff is the descendant of a Huguenot emigrant.

Maxime Degouff was a tall, gentle, sweet and quiet man of the working class, who had a very loving relationship with his wife, Pauline. ^[1] He joined the wave of French-speaking Catholics who emigrated from Canada in the late 1800's and early 1900's, undoubtedly drawn by the prospects of employment in the burgeoning industrial mills of New England.

Maxime was born on August 27, 1870 in Bouctouche ^[2] on the Acadian Shore of eastern New Brunswick, Canada, the youngest of seven children.

His mother was Céleste Richard, a descendant of many Acadian families who emigrated from France to l'Acadie around 1650, including her patrilineal namesake, Michel dit Sansoucy Richard, and whose descendants later survived Le Grand Dérangement (Great Upheaval) in 1755.

Maxime's father was Joseph Degouffe, who migrated south from Gaspésie on the north shore of Chaleur Bay, where his forebears were Aubin Louis Lecouffe, a French sailor from Normandy turned fisherman, and Louise Baudot, a Métis whose Amérindienne mother was probably of the Mi'kmaq nation, who married in 1740.

His father Joseph was a farmer with fifty acres, ten improved, ^[3] one of sixty-three farmers on Bouctouche Bay, ^[4] which is probably the same community as Bay Shore, a settlement of about 300 residents in 1871 five miles north of Bouctouche. ^[5]

Maxime married Appoline Savoie on October 18, 1900 in Néguac, New Brunswick, on the north shore of Miramichi Bay, where she was born and raised. ^[6] He emigrated with his wife to the United States through Vanceboro, Maine, in 18 Sep 1902 ^[7] and settled in Brewer, Maine. ^[8]

Through their union, Appoline, commonly known as Pauline, give birth to six children in and around Brewer, Maine, five of whom lived through adulthood:

• Edward Henry Degouff (1901-1967)
• Elizabeth Mary (Degouff) Belliveau (1903-1996)
• James Degouff (1904-1904)
• Rena Mae (Degouff) LeVasseur (1905-1994)
• Florence Mary (Degouff) Roy (1912-2003)
• Irene (Degouff) Reeves (1912-1952)

Sometime between the births of their fourth and fifth children, Maxime and family moved to New Bedford, Massachsetts, before returning to Brewer. He was a house painter by occupation.^[9]

Maxime moved his family to Waltham, Massachusetts, United States before 1920, where he lived the rest of his life. ^[10]

He passed away in 1953 in nearby Framingham, Massachusetts. ^[11] Maxime is buried in Calvary Cemetery and Mausoleum in Waltham, Massachusetts, ^[12] alongside his wife Pauline, who died about seven years earlier.

Research Notes

Did his father Joseph change farm locations? The Census of 1861 and 1871, along with the directories, indicate that his 50-acre farm was located at Bouctouche Bay (or Bay Shore) in the Parish of Wellington, just north of Bouctouche.

But the Census of 1881, which lists 9-year-old Maxime, indicates the location as Subdistrict C, Saint Louis, (Paroisse de St Louis), which is further south and appears close to where Céleste, now deceased, was raised. Had they moved closer to her family's home when she was ill?

Why was Maxime in New Bedford, Massachusetts in 1910, a unique or one-time job opportunity?

Frank Barthel said the Max managed one or more hotels or motels in Florida late in his life. Is there any record of this business activity?

Sources

1. ↑ Personal communication with Frank Barthel, his grandson, on April 3, 2021.
2. ↑ National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), Washington, D.C. Index to Naturalization Petitions and Records of the U.S. District Court, 1906-1966, and the U.S. Circuit Court, 1906-1911, for the District of Massachusetts. Microfilm Serial: M1545; Microfilm Roll: 45. Source: Ancestry.com. U.S., Naturalization Records Indexes, 1794-1995 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2007.
3. ↑ Census of 1861, Parish of Wellington, Kent County, New Brunswick
4. ↑ Hutchinson's New Brunswick Directory, 1865-1866, p. 587. Source: Ancestry.com. Canada, City and Area Directories, 1819-1906 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013.
5. ↑ Lovell's New Brunswick Directory, 1871. Sourced from Ancestry.com. Canada, City and Area Directories, 1819-1906 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013.
6. ↑ Registry of St-Bernard Parish, Northumberland County, N.B. 1796 À 1899. by Gabriel Drouin, comp. Drouin Collection. Montreal, Quebec, Canada: Institut Généalogique Drouin. Source: Ancestry.com. Acadia, Canada, Vital and Church Records (Drouin Collection), 1757-1946 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2007.
7. ↑ Declaration of Intention, District of Massachusetts, in the United States District Court of Mass. at Boston
8. ↑ Record of Birth, Elizabeth Degouff, daughter, Brewer, Maine, June 27, 1903, and family lore.
9. ↑ 1910 United States Census, and family lore.
10. ↑ United States Federal Census: 1920, 1930 and 1940, and family lore.
11. ↑ Department of Public Health, Registry of Vital Records and Statistics. Massachusetts Vital Records Index to Deaths [1916–1970]. Volumes 66–145. Facsimile edition. Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Massachusetts. Detail: Maxime Degouff, 1953, Framingham, Massachusetts, USA, Index Volume Number: 113, Reference Number: F63.M363 v.113. Source: Ancestry.com. Massachusetts, U.S., Death Index, 1901-1980 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013;
12. ↑ Find a Grave, database and images. Memorial page for Maxime DeGouff. (27 Aug 1870–1953). Find a Grave Memorial ID 199482753. Citing Calvary Cemetery and Mausoleum, Waltham, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA. Maintained by Mike Belliveau (contributor 49994304). Accessed 16 February 2024.