ONTARIO MÉTIS FACTS

Paul Vasseur and Marie Prisque’s marriage reflects one of the many marriages between Métis families woven through Penetanguishene’s history.  Born in Penetanguishene around 1837, Paul was the son of Marguerite Longlade and Charles Vasseur, a participant in the 1812 “capture of Mackinaw” and signatory of the 1840 Penetanguishene Petition. Paul was deeply involved in community life, serving as a witness at the wedding of Marie Girroir and Joseph Boucher in 1860, three years bef

The marriage of Alexander Longlade and Marie Sophie Secord on August 22, 1886, reflects a broader pattern of endogamy–Métis marrying Métis–that sustained community life in Georgian Bay throughout the nineteenth century. These unions reinforced kinship networks, cultural continuity, and shared responsibility within an already interconnected Métis society.  Marie Sophie Secord was born around 1870 in Tiny to Benjamin Secord and Sophie Beausoleil, a Métis woman deeply rooted in

The June 3, 1845, marriage of Michel (Michael) Labatte and Archange Berger (Bergé) at St. Ann’s Church in Penetanguishene illustrates the important role of endogamy in sustaining generational connections for the Upper Great Lakes Métis. At a time when the distinct identity of the Métis was only a generation or two, marrying within the community was essential for sustaining Métis cultural life, particularly given the pressures of colonial policies and forced displacement.  Bor