It is with deep sadness on behalf of our family that I post the death of Sonny Pelaquin on March 1, 2002. One of the best showmen in the family and in the business, Sonny was loved and respected by his family and those who had the privilege of knowing or working with him. The "Mad Penguin" and his one-of-a-kind sense of humor will be missed. An even sadder postscript to this is the death of his wife Judy on May 27, 2002. They were inseparable in life and are now together again. I am grateful to them for giving Russ and I the once in a lifetime experience of traveling with the carnival--I will never forget all they've done for us. Their passing marks the end of an era and leaves a huge hole in my past..and my heart. Jolynn The Pelaquin family was famous for being motor drome riders--riding a motorcycle on a wall. I could take a lot of time to try and explain this talent-- or I could simply have you take a look for yourself. Check out Thrillarena to take a look at the history of this sport and the pioneers of the dying art of motor drome riding. The website is the creation of Samantha Morgan, a motor drome rider who learned the craft from Sonny Pelaquin. She went on to become one of the most renowned and world-traveled daredevils; riding in motor dromes in Germany and France as well as all over America and Canada. After Sonny's death, she dedicated herself to keeping his memory alive. Thanks to her efforts, Sonny was posthumously inducted into the Hall of Fame at Sturgis, ND; Samantha was inducted as well. She has often ridden under the name "Sunny Pelaquin"--just to keep the name "out there".
Sam was in the process of completely revamping the website before her untimely death on April 24, 2008. So, even though you may see phrases like "Much, much more to come!" on the site, it is, sadly, not true. Now that she's gone, it's up to those of us left to take up where she left off and keep the memory and legacy of the Pelaquin family alive. This page is my small contribution.Mathurin Peloquin - Ambroise Syllard Mathurin Peloquin wa the first member of the Peloquin/Pelaquin family to set foot in North America.
Mathurin hailed from the region of France called Poitou; specifically, the town of Niort. Even more specifically, the parish of St. Andre. His parents were Mathurin Peloquin & Françoise Chatesgner; his birthday is not known. On 1 July 1658, he married Ambroise Syllard in his home parish. She was the daughter of Guillaume Syllard & Ambroise Barbeau, who had been married in the very same parish on 7 November 1632.11
Other than their years of birth--1674 and 1699, respectively--nothing else is known about Philippe and Marguerite Peloquin, the two younger children of Mathurin and Ambroise. But their oldest known child, François, had a mind of his own and a taste for adventure.François Peloquin dit Credit - Marie Niquet François Peloquin dit Credit was born in either 1657 or 1664, in the St. Andre parish of Niort, France. About 1690, he arrived in Canada, a member of the 'troupes de la Marine, compagnie de Saint-Martin'.
Nine years later, François met and married Ms. Marie Niquet, on 27 July 1699 in Trois-Rivières, Québec. Marie was the daughter of Pierre René Niquet & Françoise Lemoine, both of whom were from France. Pierre René was born in 1642, in the parish of St. Jean d'Angely in Brizambourg, in the Saintonge region of France; his parents were Michel Niquet & Catherine Montis. Françoise Lemoine was a fille du roi from Paris, the St.-Laurent-St.-Giles parish, born there in 1645 to Antoine Lemoine & Françoise De Longuemerlière.
As a prerequisite to all marriages in Canada at that time, non-Catholics had to convert to Catholicism and be confirmed before a wedding could take place. Although he went through the motions, this requirement did not sit well with François. A note in the Fichier Origine indicates that he was a 'bad Catholic' who twisted and 'perverted' the beliefs of the Catholic religion. It does not indicate if his attitude came from a problem with the tenets of the Catholic religion, or simply not having a choice in the matter.
François and Marie had seven known children; the one who contributes to our line is Felix.11,12Marie Niquet was buried at Trois-Rivières on 29 November 1706. Her youngest child, Therese (or Marie Therese, depending on which volume of Tanguay is consulted), had been born eight months earlier. Did she not completely recover from the birth, or was her death caused by illness? We don't know. But either way, François found himself in a not-uncommon predicament for men in that time period: small children who needed care, land that needed to be worked in order to provide food for his family, and only himself to get it all done, as his oldest child was only 6 years old.12
François managed on his own for three years--longer than a lot of men manage to juggle the inside work and the outside, too. Finally, on 7 January 1709, he married Françoise Harel, who had been widowed by Pierre Blanchet.François Peloquin dit Credit was buried 12 September 1727 at St. Ours, Québec.
Felix Peloquin dit Credy - Marie Pelletier Felix Peloquin dit Credy was born 19 May 1700 in Trois-Rivières, Quebec to François Peloquin dit Credit & Marie Niquet. He was baptized in the same place on 30 May 1700.
Marie Pelletier was baptized 2 April 1698 at Ste. Famille, on the Ile d'Orléans, Québec. Her parents were Michel Pelletier & Françoise Meneux13
Paul and his parents (Peter and Frances) were born in Canada. Lizzie’s parents were born in Canada, but Lizzie’s place of birth has been recorded as Canada; St. Albans, Vermont; and Montpelier, Vermont. Lizzie’s father’s name was Paul and her mother’s name has been recorded as Roseanne Bul.2
Being a French-Canadian immigrant presented language challenges. To quote Thomas LaForest in “Our French-Canadian Ancestors”: ‘A beautiful French name, in an Anglo-Saxon’s mouth, was usually massacred with no malice aforethought’. This happened in our family–Champoux became Shampoo; D’aoust became Dow–and Pelaquin became Pelican-or Piliken.4
Because of this, French-Canadian immigrants often gave the English translation of their name rather than the French version–although after they began having children, they often reverted back to the original French form of their name. In our family, Beauchamp became Fairfield; LeBlanc became White; Boulanger became Baker–and Lac became Lake. Add to this the fact that those who recorded vital records back in that time were usually folks who had been given that job due to political influences–many were barely literate. This helps to explain why these names were so butchered in the records of the past--and makes finding these folks such a challenge.4Paul Piliken and Lizabeth Lack were married on 26 February 1854 in Milbury, Worcester Co., Massachusetts. He was 19 years old; she was 15. He was a weaver, probably in a textile factory. He would soon make his way into the shoe factory, where he would work for the rest of his life.2
The couple had the following children–shown with the different spellings of the last name as show in the record books:Paul Periken- born 9 May 1855 in Grafton, Massachusetts.1
Peter Pelakin- born 27 Aug 1856 in Grafton.1
Emily- ca 1859; no birth record found-is listed w/family in two 1870 census enumerations.6
January- male child born ca 1860. No birth record found; however this person is listed in the abovementioned 1870 census records.6
Joseph Pelican- 6 July 1860 Grafton. Joseph is not listed in either of the 1870 enumerations for this family. It is possible that Joseph and January are the same person.1
Melinda Pelican- ca Aug 1861 Sorel, Canada (?); died 27 Apr 1862 Grafton of "infantile". (This info is from the death record and I question the place of birth).3
Edward- ca 1863. No birth record can be located, but he is listed in the 1870 and 1880 census for this family.6
Nesra Pelican- born 24 Mar 1866 in Hudson, Massachusetts.1
Sarah Pelllican- 17 Nov 1867 in Hudson;died 17 Feb 1868 in Hudson of lung fever (info from death rec-no birth rec found).3
Josephine Pellican- Born 18 Dec 1872 in Hudson.1
Rosa Pellican- Born 29 Jun 1874 in Hudson.1
Louis- ca Apr 1875 in Massachusetts. No birth record can be located, but he is included in the family 1880 census.6In 1870, the family was living in Southborough, Worcester Co., Massachustts when the census taker came on 13 June–and listed Lizzie as “Emily” and Nesra as “Nelson”. By 18 August of that year, the family had moved to Hudson, Middlesex County. The census taker for that district came calling–and the family was enumerated again! Except that this time, Lizzie was “Elizabeth” and Nesra was “Nesy”.6
The 1880 census found the family living in Westbrough, Worcester Co., Massachusetts. Paul and Lizzie had Edward, Nelson, Josephine, Rosa, and Louis living at home. This census claims that neither Paul nor Lizzie could read or write, which wasn’t a surprise. But it also claims that Edward could not do so either. It does not make this claim for Nelson.6
Paul Peloquin succumbed to pneumonia on 26 April 1890 in Grafton. The recording of this event in the record book reflects a spelling of the surname much closer to the one that is used today.3
At some point after the death of her husband, Lizzie makes her way southeast–to the town of Whitman, Plymouth Co., Massachusetts. It is here that she married Octave Harper on 5 November 1891.2 It is not known when Lizzie Lake died.Louis, who was 16 or so when his mother remarried, probably accompanied her to the Plymouth County area. There were lots of shoe factories in Brockton, the largest city in the county-which meant work. However, Louis seems to have left his heart in Grafton–in the care of one Annie Drumgool. And on 14 July 1895, he went back to Grafton and married her. Annie was born in Scotland, the daughter of Irish immigrants John Drumgool and Annie (maiden name unknown). Her year of immigration to America has been listed as both 1881 and 1892–with the former making more sense.2
From this point on, the spelling of the family name seems to be fixed at Pelaquin–at least for this branch of the family. How did this come about? Did someone actually find the original spelling of the name–and insist that it be used? Did someone get tired of being called by the same name as the large, unattractive, fish-swallowing bird? At any rate, in both the record books of Brockton and the census records, the name “Pelican” and all of its mutations seem to have been retired–for this part of the family, anyway.Louis made his living the way his father had–working in a shoe factory. By 1900, the couple was living on Plain Street in Brockton with 3 children:
Louis J.- born in June 1896.3
Paul M.- born in March 1898.3
Rosanna- born in February 1900.3
There was also a Joseph Pelaquin living with them, listed as Louis’ nephew.3In 1910, the couple was living at #14 Perkins Place in Brockton. They had added Joseph Alfred, who was born 12 May 1903; and James G., born about 1905, to their brood. The census of that year indicates that Annie was mother of 6 children, with 5 living.3
Louis Pelaquin died sometimes between the 1910 and 1920 census. The 1920 census shows Annie as a widow, living with her son Joseph. Son James does not appear. Annie seems to be running a boarding house of sorts.3
About 1923 or so, Joseph Alfred Pelaquin married Viola Emmeline Noel. The groom was 20 years old; the bride 16.3 Viola was the daughter and oldest child of Edgar Noel and Josephine Brunell, and was born October 31, 1907, in Randolph, Massachusetts.1
This union would produce some of the best riders in the motor drome industry.Joe and Viola had 6 children:
Lorraine- Is still living as far as I know, so no details will be posted. I can tell you that she opted for a more traditional lifestyle and did not follow her parents and brothers "up on the wall".6,9
On 5 July 1957, Sonny joined the US Army, where he spent almost 2 years. His DD-214 lists his reason for separation from service as "Early Separation of Overseas Returnees." His marital status was listed as divorced. He spent some time living near Chicago, IL after his Army discharge, where he married a second time and had 2 more children. Some time after this marriage ended, he returned to the motor drome. He met his 3rd wife, Judith Atwell, in Richmond, VA. They had no offspring, but they had many, many "kids" that they took under their wing and into their fold. My brother and I are lucky enough to be included in that number.7,9
Ill health caused Sonny to give up drome riding and take a position managing a horse farm; eventually even that became too much. Diabetes and heart trouble took its toll--and eventually, his life. Sonny died in Atlantis, Florida at John F. Kennedy Hospital on March 1, 2002.7,9
Judy took care of Sonny tirelessly, endlessly, and selflessly; and hid the extent of her own ill health. After Sonny's death, Judy deteriorated rapidly. She died less than 3 months later, on 27 May 2002 in Richmond, Virginia.--where she had been taken by Samantha Morgan and Russ Noel because she wanted to be near her family.9The early years of her marriage were probably hectic for Viola. Her mother had died three years before and her father, who never remarried, had 4 children ranging in ages from 12-3 years of age. It is reasonable to assume that Viola continued to help care for her brothers and sisters for a few years after she was married; even after she had her own children to care for. The 1930 census shows Joe and Viola Pelaquin and their first 3 children living on Beacon St. in Brockton. In the apartment building across the street lived Viola's father Edgar Noel and his children in one apartment, and Joe's mother Annie Pelaquin in another.6
My father, Joe Noel, son of Viola's brother, recalls a lot of alcohol consumption in this branch of the family; but he also indicated that the family was close and spent a lot of time together. There seemed to be a shortage of money for a number of years. I don't know when the family started the motor drome, but records from 1930-1934 show Joe Pelaquin being employed as a taxi driver. The state of the family's finances is best illustrated by a story my dad told me about a particular Thanksgiving:My dad (who was known as Sonny Noel at the time) said that he, Sonny Pelaquin, and their other cousin, Sonny Richardson, were all about 10 years old (they'd all been born in 1934 and they all got the nickname "Sonny") on this Thanksgiving, so it must have been around 1944. Their parents had pooled their money to buy stuff for Thanksgiving dinner, but didn't have enough to buy a turkey. The three Sonnys got together and came up with a creative way to solve this problem.
Back in that era, large cities like Brockton had big hotels that cooked meals for their guests every evening. Since it was Thanksgiving, the hotels would be cooking lots of turkeys--and setting them out on the porch off the kitchen to cool for a few minutes before carving.
So the boys hid under the porch of one of the hotels and waited. And as soon as one of the turkeys were set on the porch and the cook was out of sight, they darted out, grabbed the turkey, and ran off down the alley! However, they forgot one thing--that a turkey fresh out of the oven would be HOT!!! Too hot for them to hold onto. So they continued to run, through the alleys of Brockton, passing the turkey back and forth between the three of them until they got it back home! Apparently, the families enjoyed a pretty good Thanksgiving that year. It's all about teamwork!!!8According to Dad, times got better when the Pelaquin family got into the motor drome business.8
After losing track of each other for decades, cousins Sonny Pelaquin and my father, Joe Noel crossed paths in the mid-1970's in Lantana, Florida, where our family lived at the time. My brother, Russ, happened upon Sonny's motorcycle show while it was set up in the Winn-Dixie parking lot along with a few other rides from Deggeller Amusemnt Co. Dad had told us stories for years about his cousins who rode motorcycles on a wall, so Russ told Dad about it being there. Dad checked it out, and sure enough, it was Sonny's drome.9
Russ had his own motorcycle at the time, so Sonny began going trail riding with him. Sonny saw some potential in Russ and began training him to ride on the Wall during summer when school was out. Russ was billed as the "Nation's Youngest Daredevil" for years, and learned to trick ride as well. Guess it goes to show that natural aptitude and talent can spread itself freely along family lines!9
This reunion of the cousins allowed the two Sonnys-Noel and Pelaquin-to resume the close family relationship they had enjoyed as children. Sonny and Dad spent many an afternoon playing cribbage together on the back porch of our house in Ocala, Fla. In my mind, I can still hear them tallying their scores--"Fifteen two, fifteen four, a pair is six...." Now I have no idea what that means, as I never could get the hang of playing. But I heard it a lot.9
Viola Noel died of heart complications in 1953 according to an e-mail that I received from one of her grandsons.9
Joe Pelaquin Sr died in 1982--the day before Christmas. "Old Joe", as he was known, was a delightful man with a great sense of humor. He attended my 18th birthday party in 1976 and showed that his wit was sharp as ever!7,9The In-Laws The in-laws are listed in alphabetical order by husband's surname. Note that any in-laws mentioned above whose link takes you to another page won't be repeated here.
Jacques Meneux was born about 1640 in Château-Giron, Rennes, Brittany, France to Jean & Jeanne Trochon.15
Jacques was an educated man; not only could he sign his name, but he had been trained as a surgeon. It is not known when he landed in Canada. But his future wife, Marguerite, arrived in Canada in 1663. She was a fille du roi with a dowry of goods worth 300 livres, and had traveled from Paris, France; the St. Severin parish, where she had been born about 1640 to Nicolas & Margeurite Bourgeois. Nicolas Peuvrier was an attorney for the Parliament of Paris.15
Jacques and Marguerite were married in Château-Richer, Québec on 23 Oct 1663. Marguerite was able to pen her name to the marriage contract. Of their ten children the one that falls into this lineage is Françoise.
Jacques Meneux dit Châteauneuf died in Québec's Hôtel-Dieu on 19 December 1690. Their youngest child was but 7 years old. Six years later, on 9 Oct 1696, Marguerite married Guillaume Lizot in Québec City and moved with him to Rivière-Ouelle. By 1707, she was once again widowed. Marguerite Peuvrier died at the Hôtel-Dieu de Québec on 10 January 1709 and was buried the next day.François Pelletier dit Antaya - Marguerite Madeleine Morisseau
Francois Pelletier was born circa 1635 in the St.-Pierre parish of Gallardon, Chartres, Orléanis, France. He came to Canada with his parents, Nicolas & Jeanne De Vouzy.
Michel Pelletier dit Antaya - Françoise Meneux dit Chateauneuf
Michel Pelletier was born about 1674 to François Pelletier & Marguerite Madeleine Morisseau.14
Françoise Meneux dit Chateauneuf was baptized 21 April 1676 at Ste. Famille, on Québec's Ile d'Orléans;her parents were Jacques Meneux dit Chateauneuf & Marguerite Peuvrier15,16
Michel and Françoise were married 9 July 1697 at Ste. Famille. Their known child is Marie.13
Nothing more is known about this couple.13Sources:
1. Birth records from New England Historic Genealogical Society
2. Marriage records from New England Historic Genealogical Society
3. Death records from New England Historic Genealogical Society
4. "Our French Canadian Ancestors", Volume 3 by Thomas Laforest
5. Social Security Death Index (SSDI)
6. Census records
7. Personal Papers of Sonny Pelaquin (copies of family documents & news clippings)
8. Personal recollections of Joseph R. Noel, Jr.
9. Personal recollections of the webmaster.
10. Find A Grave
11. Fichier Origine
12. Tanguay's Dictionary
13. The Drouin Collection at Ancestry
14. "Before the King's Daughters: The Filles à Marier" by Peter Gagné
15. "King's Daughters and Founding Mothers: The Filles du Roi" by Peter Gagné
16. PRDH
This page was updated March 2010. .
Noel Family of Brockton, MA by Jolynn Noel Winland is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States LicenseWhat does this mean?
Email: littleangeljw@yahoo.com
