Shadows of My French & Belgian Ancestors
Nicolle & Morenier Family Ancestry
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his is how it all begain
It was my dad’s fault. He should have known. You can never keep family secrets secret from a curious and nosey daughter like me.
My father told me his mother was French. He told me his mother’s parents were from France. He did mention his grandmother might have been from Belgium. . He shared that my grandmother, Mathilda Nicolle, had a smattering of brothers scattered here an there with two brothers never to be heard of again and one horrible sister she was close to.
That was it. End of discussion
Thus starts the 25 plus years of research into what I eventually found to be sad and tragic stories of my grandmother, Mathilda née Nicolle Hootman, and the equally sad and tragic stories of her parents and direct siblings.
Today, the male lines of Jules Nicolle & Leopold Morenier (Justine’s father), have died out. None of the sons located from each of the two family lines ever married. Only the female line exists.
he bones here are bones of my bone and flesh of my flesh. It goes to doing something about it. It goes to pride in what our ancestors ere able to accomplish. How they contributed to what we are today. It goes to respecting their hardships and losses, their never giving in or giving up, their resoluteness to go on and build a life for their family. It goes to deep pride that the fathers fought and some died to make and keep us a nation. It goes to a deep and immense understanding that they were doing it for us. It is of equal pride and love that our mothers struggled to give us birth, without them we could not exist, and so we love each one, as far back as we can reach. That we might be born who we are. That we might remember them. So we do. With love and caring and scribing each fact of their existence, because we are they and they are the sum of who we are. So, as a scribe called, I tell the story of my family. It is up to that one called in the next generation to answer the call and take my place in the long line of family storytellers. That is why I do my family genealogy, and that is what calls those young and old to step up and restore the memory or greet those who we had never known before. It goes to a deep and immense understanding that they were doing it for us. It is of equal pride and love that our mothers struggled to give us birth, without them we could not exist, and so we love each one, as far back as we can reach. That we might be born who we are. That we might remember them. So we do. With love and caring and scribing each fact of their existence, because we are they and they are the sum of who we are. So, as a scribe called, I tell the story of my family. It is up to that one called in the next generation to answer the call and take my place in the long line of family storytellers. That is why I do my family genealogy, and that is what calls those young and old to step up and restore the memory or greet those who we had never known before.
by Della M. Cummings Wright; Rewritten by her granddaughter Dell Jo Ann McGinnis Johnson; Edited and Reworded by Tom Dunn, 1943.
My grand-aunt, Bernadette Anne Nicolle (married name Lindeman) was also born in Princeton, Marquette, Michigan 1904. My father told me she was born early and was underweight. They gave her beer to help her gain weight, and also to prevent her contracting Typhoid Fever.
Our Favorite Places
Over 25 years ago, I started my French ancestry. I wanted to know who they were, and where they came from. Now, I have found 99% of my ancestors and their branches dating back to the early 1600s.
After that, I created two web pages; Making French Genealogy Easier Tutorials, and Behind The Guillotine; The website contains tutorials and searchable French Revolution's condemned to death victims.
I make every effort to document and provide citations of my research. If you have question, suggestions or something you would like to add, please contact me.
