HISTORY OF THE LUPIENT FAMILY

Contributed By: Sandra H. Coggeshall

EARLY FRENCH PIONEERS

The Lupien/Lupient families were early settlers in "New France" or what is now known as Quebec, Canada. Lupiens originally came from France, where the earliest known ancestor was Lupien Baron, born circa 1622 in Villehauxe, Troyes, Champagne, France. Lupien Baron married Jeanne Tierson sometime before 1645 in his hometown. Jeanne was born circa 1629 of unknown parents in Villehauxe, Troyes, Champagne, France.

The couple May have had multiple children, but a record has been found for a son whom they named Nicolas, born Jun 17, 1645. He later used the name Nicolas Baron dit Lupien. The "dit" name was a way for a person to distinguish himself from others with similar names and was a common French practice. In this case, Nicolas took the given first name of his father for his "dit" name. Nicolas immigrated to the Montreal area of Quebec about 1672, when he was 27 years old. He worked for the governor of "New France" for a period of time but he also worked as a butcher and as a farmer.

The early French pioneers in Quebec came from France to create a "New France," just as English colonists were seeking to create a "New England" in America. It has been noted that in many emerging societies, a community’s way of governing, its social norms, and its economic structures evolved mostly in reaction to its immediate conditions. For example, in the United States, the social, economic, and legal infrastructures that developed were often in dramatic contrast to the systems the people left in Europe. A change in systems was one of many reasons people emigrated to America. Many emigrants wished to pursue another kind of life, independent of the stifling economic conditions and religious persecution they had experienced in their native countries. Based on reading histories of Quebec, these reasons for change were not present in "New France." The settlers there left France not to escape the conditions but to exploit and benefit from the richer and more abundant resources found in Canada.

Nicolas Baron dit Lupien married Marie Madeleine Chauvin on Nov 16, 1676 in Montreal. Marie Madeleine Chauvin was born Jan 17, 1662 in Montreal and was the daughter of Pierre Chauvin dit LeGrand and Marthe Hautreux/Autreuil, also immigrants to "New France." Nicolas and Marie Madeleine had 8 children. At least 5 of the children married and had children. Descendants of Nicolas and Marie Madeleine have lived in Quebec until the present time. All Lupiens (and Lupients) should be able to trace their ancestry back to Nicolas and Marie. Current Quebec area telephone books have multiple Lupien listings. Also, many of their descendants eventually moved to and settled in the United States. The original ancestor’s name of Lupien Baron evolved over time to the surnames of Baron dit Lupien to Baron, Barron, Lupien, and Lupient.

It is not known what different occupations Theodore pursued in Prairie du Chien. However, there are records of him being one of the construction workers building the first Fort Crawford there. Theodore first married Angelique Ghiar/Giar circa 1811 and they had one child, Felicite, b. 1812. Angelique was the daughter of Basil Ghiar and his Indian wife, "Ma Koch I Koue" or "Catherine." Little is known about this first wife and child and their demise. There was a Felicite Lupient listed as a witness in the 1878 marriage record of one of Theodore’s grandsons, Moses Lupient. It was possible that this was the same Felicite, which would have made her 66 years old at this time.

Theodore married a second time to Theresa Josephine Crely on May 16, 1817 in Prairie du Chien. Therese Josephine Crely was born Dec 4, 1798 in St Louis, Missouri and was the daughter of Joseph Crely/Crelie (b. Sep 7, 1773 in Kaskaskia, Illinois) and Francoise Pelletier dit Antaya (possibly born on Feb 2, 1781 in Kaskaskia). Theodore Lupien died within a year of this marriage and their only child, Theodore Lupient, was born in 1818, the same year as his father’s death.

The Crely family, known as Cresly in France, came from Besancon, Burgundy, France. There have been many different spellings of the Crely name over time: Cresly, Crely, Creely, Crelie, Crelis, and probably more. The earliest known Crely ancestor to emigrate from France to the United States was Jean Baptiste Cresly (b. Apr 10, 1697), the son of Pierre Francois Cresly (b. circa 1650) and Georgine Chevalier (b. Dec 17, 1654). He arrived in New Orleans Parish, French Colony of Louisiana, circa 1720s. In New Orleans, he married Marie Francoise Ayette (b. 1697 in Quimperle, France) on Oct 27, 1727, daughter of Francois Ayette and Jeanne Paulet. Jean Baptiste and Marie were living in the Kaskaskia Illinois area by the early 1730s. Theodore Lupien’s wife, Therese Josephine Crely was the great-granddaughter of Jean Baptiste Cresly.

After Theodore Lupien’s death, Theresa Josephine married Pierre Paquette, a fairly well known figure in early Wisconsin history. He was a "half-breed" with a French father and Winnebago Indian mother. One of Pierre’s occupations was working as an interpreter for the Astor Fur Company. As his stepfather, Pierre helped raise young Theodore Lupient until Pierre’s death when Theodore was 18 years old.

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