Joseph deMouilpied - America's East Coast de Mouilpied Patriarch

Joseph deMouilpied was born in Guernsey on June 5, 1824.I (I have one source that says June 22, 1824) He was baptized at St. Martin's Church, the seed of all de Mouilpieds. Joseph was the seventh child born to Thomas de Mouilpied b. 1780 and Marie Blondel deMouilpied b. 1786. Joseph's siblings were:

Marie b. 1810
Thomas b. 1812
Rachel b.1814
Jean b.1816
Sophie b.1818
Charlotte b.1821

We know only a little about him. We do know that he was a minister of the Anglican Faith. Joseph did marry Sophie (Joseph also had a sister Sophie, love the name) Ogier on October 16, 1848. My notes say they were married in St. Martin's Parish.

I recall coming across something that said Joseph attended Elizabeth College, perhaps preparing him for being a minister. Verification of this would be wonderful.

Joseph had three children before he left Guernsey for Canada. Their baptisms were recorded in St. Martin's Parish as:
Emilie Sophia b. Sept. 13, 1849, ( d. Dec. 13, 1904)
Sophie Hamelin b. Sept.17, 1850 (d.?)
Francis Arthur b. Nov. 20, 1852, (d. Seattle, Washington,he remains the mystery child)

The last three children were born in Canada, they were:
Charles b. April 7, 1854, d. May, 22, 1929
Walter b. April 4, 1857, d. ? 1929
Alfred b. March 12, 1861, d. Sept.5, 1925

So we think Joseph arrived in Canada in 1853. His first official sighting is as the first permanent Minister for the St. Peter's Church in Malbay in 1860. Some entrees refer to Joseph as a missionary. Perhaps he was temporary before 1860, for all the local little churches. Joseph was at this church for almost 10 years.

Joseph then transferred to Saint Bartholomew's in Nicolet, near Trois Rivieres, Quebec in 1869. I have some copies of church records that he signed. It was a thrill to see his actual hand writing of the entrees for births, marriages and deaths. Unfortunately there wasn't a lot of action which is perhaps why the church seemed to go out of action. Not surprised given that he was trying to minister a Protestant church in Catholic Quebec. The church has since burned down. He stayed in Nicolet until either 1873 or 1877, I have 2 different records.

We have been told that Joseph did some time ministering on an Indian reservation near Montreal, but we cannot verify it. There are also some entrees for Montreal but just a date. His wife Sophie died 1876 but we can not find the records about her death or where she is buried. We also can not find any records about their daughter Sophie.

The younger 3 boys, Charles, Walter and Alfred attended the local Seminaire de Nicolet from 1870-1875.

Three of Joseph's children remained in Canada: Emily, Sophie and Walter. The other 3 "boys" left Canada and headed for Lowell, Massachusetts, America. And that's another blog...

Joseph eventually came to America, at least by 1900, where he shows up on a Census in Manchester , New Hampshire living with his son, Alfred. It is a guess to say he moved to live out his life with family after having lost his wife and having no remaining children near by in Canada. Joseph died in Manchester, NH on March 19,1903. He is buried at the Pine Grove Cemetery, on Brown Ave in the de Mouilpied Family plot, located in the Chapel Lawn section, lot number 3707, along with his son Charles's family. Joseph other son Alfred, has a separate plot.

What a life he must have had. Early-Mid 1880's in quiet Guernsey and then taking such risk to move to Canada to minister with the hardships of such a remote area. And then finishing his life in bustling Manchester, the heart of mill yards and the industrial revolution. Oh the changes he would have witnessed: first cameras, electricity and cars. And you just have to love those mutton chops on his face! Joseph was my great-great grandfather.