Achan Levoy 1818-1902

Achan Levoy 1818-1902

The Leavoy family history begins with Achan, a French-Canadian whose origins are debated. Some  family members and amateur genealogists believe that he came to Canada as a stowaway on a boat from  France. This exciting and possibly embellished story line follows Achan as he:

[…] came to Canada when he was only a 14 year old lad, stowed away aboard a cattle boat. He was eventually discovered, but not until the boat was too far out to sea to do anything other than put him to work tending the cattle, and thus he earned his way into Canada. He came to Quebec city where he worked a while for a lumber trader whom had horses and other animals to look after. This gentleman was a ship carpenter, and Achan siezed this opportunity to learn as much as he could about the carpentry trade. Later he would use these skills around his homes, and pass them on to his children. (A Pioneer in Quebec & Ontario by Robin Murphy)

Other records, such as Canadian Federal censuses, show that he was born in the province of Quebec. This history needs further research and evidence to make any statements about which is true and which is simply myth. In any case, it is believed that he was born on the 28th March, 1818. In the Wilfred Ronald Leavoy Autobiography (supplied by Garnet Leavoy), the story of this ancestor is given more body through family tales:

I would like to go back to my Great-Grandfather who is the oldest ancestor that I have knowledge of. His name was Etienne Lavoie. He came to Quebec City then Montreal as he was a Chef by trade. He finally ended up in the white pine country around Arnprior, Ontario. He went up the Quyon River into Onslow Township in the Province of Quebec.

Mary Ann Mackay 1820-1905

A chef, a farmer, a lumberman, a carpenter: Achan was a many of many faces and trades. I have been able to verify many of these, including his work in the carpentry of ship building with physical artifacts. I will try to add to these stories of the exciting character that Achan or Etienne was by bringing in Federal and local documents that I have found. This begins with the marriage of Achan and his known wife. Achan is rumored to have married more than once, although I have him officially documented as being married to a woman of Irish descent  named Mary Ann Mackay (sometimes spelled “Mackie”) on 19 April 1840 in Arnprior. Together the couple had a large family, including my great-great-grandfather Peter Levoy. I know of Peter’s siblings through W.R. Leavoy’s autobiography, which I will quote from again to give the story here more substance. He tells us that:

[…] Etienne worked as a cook in the lumber camps in the winter and farmed in the summer months. They [Achan & Mary Ann] had six daughters and three sons.

Note that there were more children than this story numbers: Nancy Cone/McGoon,  Hanna Taylor, Harriet Kerr, Charlotte Parker, Peter Levoy, Mary Jane Hogg, William Leavoy, Henrietta “Etta” Webber, James Edward Lavoy, and Amey Emma Brown .

His description of Achan’s work makes sense to later census documentation of his work as a laborer until retirement in farming. This seems to have been a common lifestyle for many of the white settlers of the area. This side of the story, the way the Leavoy family lead their life in the Ottawa area, is supported through other historical research. In Bytown or Bust: A History & Genealogy of the Ottawa area, Allan Lewis notes that:

[…] the lumber industry provided jobs, especially in the winter time when men who farmed for half the year would head to the shanty with their teams of horses and make some cash income for their families.

This map shows the McNab area where the Leavoy family resided for at least 2 generations. The Madawaska river, which flows from Burnstown down to the Ottawa river was crucial to the loggers of the time. Logs were floated down to the Ottawa river and on to Quebec.

This seems to be precisely the lifestyle that the Leavoy family lead.  In his autobiography, W.R. Leavoy further describes the family following this context:

Around 1860 Etienne moved his family across the Ottawa River into Sands Point, Ontario. As the white pine forests were receding westward, they followed along the Madawaska and Bonchere Rivers, which were the highways of the day as far as the logging was concerned. My Grandfather [William] and his younger brother, James, settled on farms close to Cumbermere, Ontario. As the three sons grew up they sought to change their names to sound more English, as apparently the mother would not let Etienne speak French in the house and besides he was away all winter so the children didn’t learn much French. The oldest son Peter spelled his name “Levoy”, William “Leavoy” and James “Lavoy”.

This story can be validated somewhat in the census research I have done. I have found Achan (“Aken”) and Mary Ann in the 1871 census of  Canada living with their children in McNab Township, Renfrew. This is the first official record that I have listing the couple and they are already in their 50s. The record shows Achan’s birthplace as Quebec.

I’ve also found them on the next federal census in 1881 (Renfrew South) in their 60s and living with their youngest child (19-year-old daughter) Amey (as listed by W.R. Leavoy), and at that time Achan is still working as a laborer. This should be read against W.R. Leavoy’s description of the migration along the Madawaska with the receding forest.

In the 1891 federal census Achan (listed as a farmer) and Mary Ann live in North Hastings on a neighboring property to their son James (35) and his wife and family of 4 sons and infant daughter.  It appears that in their old age James and his wife likely helped to support Achan and Mary Ann. In this census they are living in the area near Cumbermere as described by W.R. Levoy, so again, this aspect of the story is confirmed.

From census searches I’ve also been able to find the elderly couple in their 80’s, the year before Achan’s death,  on the 1901 census. They are still living alone together beside son, James E. Lavoy and his growing farming family.

All of these census documents reveal and confirm the path of Achan & Mary Ann as they moved from the lifestyle of migrating lumber camps as told by Leavoy family historians and into retirement with the help of family.