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Little Cousins or Actual Cousins?

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Father Gerald Langevin (son of **Edgar Langevin) recently posted on the Livingston family Facebook page: My dad 's, Ed’s, understanding was that Archbishop Langevin referred to my Grandpa Joe and his brothers and sisters as “his little cousins”, but that there was no actual relation. I have the utmost respect for these comments, but I’ve discovered a newspaper article that offers a different opinion. First, here’s a description of John Baptiste Langevin, brother of Joseph Langevin (1857-1933) and husband of Marie Claire Lafreniere*, published by the Winnipeg Tribune on April 16, 1936:   John Baptiste had an interesting life. He did not marry until he returned from the Klondike in 1920. He wed Mary Anna Leonard in 1920 and she had three children from a previous marriage. John Baptiste became an employee at the Duplex Printing Press company in Urbandale, Battle Creek, Michigan where he worked until age 62. Here's an article, published on March 27, 1936, by the Battle Creek M...
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Are we related to Archbishop Louis-Philippe Adelard Langevin?

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I've almost completed my work on the Livingston Family Tree, stored on Ancestry.ca, with more than 4300 family members. So I've decided to pursue the truth behind one of the family mysteries: At Helen Langevin's (wife of Ulric Livingston) First Communion on May 30, 1909 at St. Alphonse Parish in Manitoba, Archbishop Louis-Philippe Adelard Langevin referred to Helen as "cousin." I have begun a new family tree on Ancestry.ca to try to determine if they were true cousins or if the Archbishop was simply stating an endearment. I hope to discover the truth before the end of 2026. Attached below is the article published in St. Paul, Minnesota's Catholic Bulletin on June 20, 1915 following the death of the Archbishop. So far, I've mapped out the generations at a high level on both sides of the family. Archbishop Louis-Philippe Adelard Langevin Father: Francois Theophile Langevin Mother: Marie Pamela Racicot Francois Theophile Langevin Father: Etienne Langevin Mot...
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2nd Livingston Family completed

Hi everyone,  I'm happy to report that the 2nd Livingston Family book, The Livingston Family: Living Well , has been published. It's 250 pages and documents the children and ancestors of Ulric and Helen Livingston.  I have a few copies if you're interested.  The book is $45 and $25 for postage. Update December 31, 2025: I still have three copies left. If you would like to receive a copy, please email me at dbon8118@outlook.com. Please note: For some reason, I'm having a hard time replying to comments posted on this blog. 
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Farming in the 1800's

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 Farming in the late 1800s Continued translation of Odile Marten's  Pionniers de la Montagne Pembina:  Saint-Leon 1877-2000  borrowed from the Manitoba Legislative Library. p. H-117 Ovide Lafreniere is one of the farmers among the pioneers of Saint-Leon. Arriving in 1878, the year after the first four settlers arrived, he took a homestead of 180 acres and a long preemption of the same and brought his family, already 11 children, including 2 boys aged 11 and 12. His fortune was not large since he had only his arms, but he also went to work despite the difficulties of the beginning. It was 75 miles away, without roads, that he had to fetch the instruments of work as well as the flour and other essential provisions. In addition, there was a lack of market for the products of his land. p. H-127-129 Despite all the progress made after 1900, the fact remains that the farmer did not have the easy work. His first concerns were his farm work. The quality of his harvest in the...
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Transportation to Saint Leon

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Translated from Odile Martel's book  Pionniers de la Montagne Pembina p. H-18 Manitoba becomes a province In 1870, Manitoba's entry into the Canadian confederation was the entry. From 1871 to 1876, a multitude of government surveyors marked Pembina Mountain in townships, in sections of one square mile and in quarter sections. At that time, Manitoba's population was made up of two linguistic groups in roughly equal numbers, English and French.   The Influence of Monsignor Taché  Following the Manitoba Act of 1870, a large wave of immigrants from Ontario threatened the Pembina Mountain area with being invaded by English and Protestant immigrants. To restore linguistic and religious balance in Manitoba, Bishop Taché of Saint-Boniface made numerous appeals to Quebec settlers through Quebec parish priests. In 1874 he organized a colonization society for French Canadians and sent Father Albert Lacombe, OMI, to Quebec and the United States in search of French-speaking settlers. ...
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Mary Marguerite Helen Langevin Livingston Lafreniere

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This is my attempt to trace the ancestors of my Great Grandmother Marie Marguerite Helen Langevin, loving spouse of Ulric Livingston.  This is written to commemorate the wonderful living legends, John and Bernie Livingston, still living upon this glorious sunny afternoon. It's Bernie's 85th birthday today so let's take a moment and send him a barrelful of well wishes! None of the information posted in this blog can be shared without mentioning the wonderful work carried out by my Great Auntie Doreen and Great Uncle Bernie - we would be so lost without your wonderful guidance, encouragement, and enthusiasm!   Helen and Ulric Livingston Marie Marguerite Helen Langevin was born to parents Joseph Langevin and Clara Ann Lafreniere  on October 6, 1897, but we'll discuss her parents momentarily. Helen was born in 1897, wed Ulric in 1917 and died in 1984 (some of the information can be found in earlier blog posts as well as the Livingston Family book published in 2013)....
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