My Great Aunt Marie Clarisse "Doris" Pitre, on my mom's side of the family tree, was the 19th child of Victor Pitre. She was born Sept 23, 1913 in Petit-Rocher, New Brunswick, Canada. It always intrigues me how so many of my ancestors were baptised or had their birth certificates with a totally different name than they were known as. I wonder if it was due to an English speaking person not hearing the name correctly or did they just change their mind after?
Doris was raised around a large family, difficult not to be when you are the 19th of 21 children. When she was 8 she was one of 10 children still living at home in Beresford, New Brunswick, Canada. On Feb 5, 1932, when she was 19 years old, she married her 1st husband Jean Roy. Doris and Jean had at least 6 children together and continued to raise their family in Beresford where they both were from. When Doris was about 2 months along in the pregnancy of their 6th child, her husband Jean died. I wonder if at the time of Jean's death did they know she was pregnant? When it came time for the child's birth it must have been with mixed emotions that she brought this child into the world. She must have experience the joy of bringing another life into the world and the sadness that this child would never know their father. Doris must have been thrilled to learn that the child was a boy as she named him after his father. Her joy would be short lived as she would never get to see this child grow into adulthood as he would only live for 4 days.
Doris would find happiness again.
Two years later on October 13, 1943 (just after Thanksgiving) Doris would marry for the 2nd time to Lawrence Aube. Doris and Lawrence would have 8 additional children (she has almost caught up to her father's 21 children).
Unfortunately tragedy would strike Doris again, this time it would be Doris herself. On November 15, 1955, Doris would die in what appears to be a freak automobile accident, see the newspaper article about the accident in L'Evangeline. In the early hours of the morning, Doris and Lawrence were being driven home by 18 year old Maurice Roy (relative or taxi driver?). As they turned into their driveway, Doris's door opened and she and Lawrence fell out. Doris sustained multiple broken ribs and a lacerated liver and was declared to have died instantly. Lawrence was also thrown from the car but did not sustain serious injuries.
What a tragic and preventable accident. Seat belts were still an option to have in cars in 1955 let alone getting people to wear them. Did she open her door to soon? Was the door not latched properly? 13 children would now live the rest of their lives without their mother.
Remember to buckle up and lock your doors, you have relatives out there who want to get to know you.
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