St. Ann's centennial: 100 years of faith, Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation, Belcourt, North Dakota, 1885-1985

• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: North Dakota State Library
• Subjects: Canada; Indian; Esther; Malo; Minot; Haskell; Metis
• Online Access: http://cdm16921.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/ndsl-books/id/27785

and lineage analyses, personal testimony in official records by grandchildren suggest that Antoine Sr. was Metis, otherwise the grandchildren would have been V4 or less Indian which is contradicted by official records. Further, the origin of the surname Brien is unquestionably French. The first Frenchmen landed in Goosebay, Canada, in 1534. A Frenchmen named Julien Brien immigrated from St-Malo, Bretagne, France in the 1650's to Montriel, Quebec, Canada. In conclusion, the overwhelming logic and testimony established that Antoine Sr. was Metis and that the family Metis origin begins earlier than what has been indicated. The objective is to identify the year or approximate time of the Metis origin - when did the Frenchmen Brien marry the Indian (Cree or Chippewa) woman - which would subsequently complete out Metis heritage. A Metis historian described the Metis". as a new nation, a new culture, a compromise between European and Indian ways, neither White or Indian in their ways." The Metis women are described as pretty, resourceful, industrious, religious and chaste women. The Metis loved the fiddle and used the cry of the loon and the bellow of a rutting moose to tune his fiddle, which humorously describes the peculiar lifestyle of the Metis and seeks to depict a new and separate culture highly adaptable to the times. The Belcourt and Turtle Mountain people are merely an extension of the Canadian Metis culture which is still visibly evident throughout Canada and is politically active through National Metis Associations. It should be noted that a second marriage by Alexander Sr. was to Helen Landry having had five children. A second marriage by Alexander Jr. was to Mary Jane Belgarde having had 10 children. A conservative estimate suggests that there are 500 or more blood line living relatives stemming from this family tree. It is the intent to carry out a family matriarchal genealogy which will undoubtedly produce a similar number of blood line living relatives. The thought of it all certainly stimulates the imagination. Prior to concluding these historical remarks, the second and third generation forebears made their living as part-time hunters and trappers, participated in the annual hunts of the buffalo, and engaged in commercial freighting by conducting wagon trains which involved thousands of miles and sometimes took a year or more to complete. It is understood why they were multi-linguistic since they interacted with varieties of peoples. It is recorded in diaries that Alexander Sr. spoke seven languages. All were Catholic and their burial sites are to be found either in Canada, North Dakota or Montana. Living relatives are located and residing in all parts of the United States and Canada. William married Rose LaFromboise, daughter of Gabriel LaFromboise and Margaret Cecilia Langer (Longie). Rose was born in Belcourt, attended several out-of-state boarding schools, a 1928 high school graduate of Haskell Institute, Kansas, Standing: Kenneth, Marie, Dalbert, Patricia, Dallas, Ruth and Edward. Seated: Esther, William and Rose (LaFromboise) Brien. acquired a primary grade teaching certificate. She spent many years as a housewife and retired in 1978 after having been employed for 20 years with the Turtle Mountain Jewel Bearing Plant, Rolla. William attended local grade schools, worked on local farms, did some farming, and as a young adult he worked in Minnesota, Montana, Idaho and most of the large towns in North Dakota. After his marriage, he worked in a Chicago industry, war defense plant on the West Coast, worked for the US Government in the State of Washington and in Belcourt. The last 30 years prior to his retirement in 1975, William was the proprietor of a Gas and Oil Service Station in Belcourt. William and Rose were married in St. Mary's Catholic Church, Chicago, in October 1929. The family consists of the following children: Dallas; Reginald; Kenneth; Ester, formerly Mrs. Roy LaFontaine; Dalbert; Ruth who is married to Patrick Marcellaise; Marie, formerly Mrs. Wesley Arpan; Patricia who is married to Ronald Allery; and Edward Brien. All reside within the immediate area of Belcourt with the exception of Edward who resides in Minot. Dallas and Theresa (Poitra) Brien and Father George Lyon, OSB, Wedding Day, Sept. 25, 1954. 283 Scanned with a Zeutschel Zeta book scanner at 300 dpi. Edited with Multi-Page TIFF Editor.