“carried him home on their shoulders”

The stories of Métis communities across the Upper Great Lakes are filled not only with strength and resilience but also with the deep generosity shared between families and community members. 

Reflecting on her life in A.C. Osborne’s The Migration of Voyageurs from Drummond Island to Penetanguishene in 1828, Métis matriarch and storyteller Rosette Boucher highlights this generosity as a defining feature of the region’s Métis identity, carried forward by her own family through her son, Narcisse Boucher.

When Joseph Giroux travelled from Penetanguishene to nearby Thunder Bay (Beach) in Tiny Township to bring provisions to his son, he became lost in heavy snow near Pinery Point. Concerned, Narcisse Boucher and several other community members set out in harsh winter conditions, searching for days to bring him home. As Rosette Boucher later remembered:

“They found him on the third day in the afternoon lying on some boughs behind a big oak log, his hands and feet frozen solid, and his dog wrapped in the breast of his coat to help keep him warm. They made a stretcher of withes covered with boughs, and carried him home on their shoulders, relieving each other by turns.”

The Métis community’s determination reflects a defining truth: no one was left to face hardship alone. Even at great personal risk, neighbours ventured into the cold, taking turns through an exhausting carry to ensure Giroux returned home safely. This act of care and responsibility echoes the enduring generosity that has sustained Métis communities across generations.

See Our Sources

• The Migration of Voyageurs From Drummond Island to Penetanguishene

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