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Archiver > VERMONT > 2005-02 > 1108069468


From: "Kathy F." <>
Subject: Looking for Pelletier/Pelky
Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2005 15:04:39 -0600


Hi list,

I hope you might be able to help out this lady? She has run into a brick
wall with this line. I had hoped it would connect to my Pelkys but no such
luck yet. Kathy

Please direct all responses directly to Diane Lebrun" <>

She writes:

My grandfather`s legal name is Ernest William Paquette, he was born,Ernest
William Pelkey in Glen Sutton, Québec in 1897. His father was Peter Pelkey
who married Julia McKinney in July 1890 in Richford, Vermont. Peter, 23,on
that marriage certificate, claims that he was born in Bakersfield, that
his father was Peter Pelkey and his mother, Harriet Rosico. I paid a
genealogist for the New England states a few years ago to search for these
Pelkeys. She told me that Harriet was most likely Henriette Racicot and
that Peter, according to a census, was from Canada and most likely Pierre
Peltier-Pelletier. She could not find anything about them. BB (William
Fleming from Quebec Research List)has all the info but, so far, has not been
able to find any marriages between those names.

My grandfather himself always claimed his name was a derivative of
Pelletier. His mother, Julia McKinney was an Irish immigrant, I have not
been able to find anything on her either. They had three sons, George,the
eldest, died fighting for the Americans in WWI in Europe. The second
son,Victor, died in infancy. The third was my grandfather. I guess
postpartum was not known in those days, but she could not look after my
grandfather.

She was still mourning the death of her second child. The
neighbours,Paquette, helped out. When my grandfather was two years old,
Julia left.
The neighbours raised Ernest. When he was 12 years old, his mother came
back, wanting him to come with her claiming she needed a man in her life.
He ran away and looked after himself from then on. At 21, he met my
grandmother, a French girl from Cookshire, Québec and they decided to marry.
The priest asked for his baptismal certificate but, since he did not know
what he was, he was baptized, under condition, and took the name Paquette,in
honour of those who had raised him.

We don`t know what became of his father. We gather that he had either died
or was separated from his wife when she went to Sutton to claim my
grandfather.

Consequently, I have no clues as to which Pelkeys would be relatives. I do
know that Peter, senior, had a brother named Freeman (Firmin) and I have
located some Firmins and Freemans but nothing to indicate that I have found
the right one.

If you (anyone) can find a common link, I would be extremely grateful. My
father,now in his late 80ies, keeps asking me if I found his ancestry, I
would love to say Yes, before he dies!

Diane


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