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Métis Marriages: McDonell & Ferris
Métis couple, Annie McDonell and Walter Ferris, were married on July 28, 1864, in the Mattawa region. Annie McDonell was born around 1844 in Moose Factory to Mary Ann (nee McKay) and Alexander McDonell, a lifelong Métis Hudson’s Bay Company employee whose career and connections spanned the Métis Homeland, including the Swan River, Lac la Pluie, and Abitibi Inland regions. By 1848, Annie and her four siblings had relocated to the Mattawa region with their parents, where they b


Métis Marriages: John Saunders & Frances Swanson
On May 18, 1870, John Saunders married Frances Swanson in Moose Factory. Their union of proud Métis families both reflected and continued to strengthen the enduring kinship networks of their Métis fur trade community in the Abitibi Inland region. Frances herself came from a Métis fur-trading family, making the union of the two families a continuation of a familiar way of life shaped by shared work, culture, and community ties. John Saunders was born in 1845 in Matawagamingue


Métis Marriages: Charles Douglas Swanson & Isabella Mabel Saunders
On October 20, 1920, Charles Douglas Swanson and Isabella Mabel Saunders were married in Chapleau, uniting two Métis families already long connected through shared marriage, mutual support, and kinship within the Abitibi Inland Métis Community. Charles Douglas was born around 1892 near James Bay. Like his brother William, his early life was centred within the Abitibi Inland Métis Community. By 1901, Charles was living with his Métis family in Chapleau, where he later grew int


Métis Marriages: William Henry Swanson & Ester Edna Saunders
On November 7, 1916, Abitibi Inland Métis Community members, William Henry Swanson and Ester Edna Saunders were married in Chapleau. William Henry Swanson was born in 1883 on James Bay, the son of George Swanson and Marie McLeod. Working as a laborer for the Hudson’s Bay Company, George Swanson introduced his Métis children to a life deeply rooted in their Métis community. By the 1901 census, William Henry was living in Chapleau alongside many other Métis families, reflecting


Métis Marriages: Roussain & Turner
The marriage of Charles Roussain and Elizabeth Turner reflects the deep traditions of kinship, leadership, and community responsibility that have long defined Métis family life. Their union brought together two families with enduring legacies of defending Métis rights, sovereignty, and identity across the Métis Homeland. Charles Roussain was born around 1820 and raised along the shores of Sault Ste. Marie. The Roussain family was known for its long-standing role as Métis advo


Métis Marriages: Moore & McLeod
Historically, Moose Factory was a prominent trading hub that served as the home and birthplace of many Métis families throughout the 19th century. Among them were William Moore and Jane McLeod, whose marriage reflected the strong cultural, economic, and kinship ties forming around Moose Factory during this period. Jane McLeod was born in Abitibi in 1859 and was raised within a close-knit Métis community where family, trade, and relationships with the land were deeply interco
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