Édéas Messier and Marie Marguerite Granger Family

They took up residence on a farm in St-Armand, that they have sold a few years later, to settle down on another farm, in Fall River, Mass.  In 1908, they came back in Stanbridge-Station, on the farm which was transmitted from father to son afterwards.  After commercial studies to the « Collège de Farnham », Édéas took over the farm in 1915.

Left photo : Édouard Messier and Delphine Juaire, grandparents of Édéas.

 

Right photo: Jean-Baptiste Messier and Octavie Benoit. The children are, from left to right,

Edeas Messier and two adopted children: Hormidas / Armidas and Aldei Racine.
Photo taken on September 19th, 1898

On January 22nd, 1918, Édéas married, in Notre-Dame de Stanbridge, Marie Marguerite Granger, daughter of Joseph and Victoria Roy, born on July 1st, 1896.  Of this union were born 6 children :

 

- Adrien

      born on October 15th, 1918,

          married as a first marriage to Adrienne Racine (died on July 19th, 1948), 1 child,

          and in second wedding to Noëlla Noël (died on November 11th, 1979), 6 children,

          when she got married, Noëlla had a child born from her previous union with Doris Létourneau,

     died on March 10th, 1999,

     17 grandchildren, 1 great-grandchild,

 

- Lucien

      born on October 29th, 1919,

        married to Rhéa Forgues (died on February 20th, 1993),

      died on January 17th, 2011,

      7 children, 21 grandchildren, 31 great-grandchildren,

 

- Rolland

       born on November 24th, 1920,

          married to Ghislaine Forgues (died on July 11, 2015),

        7 children, 11 grandchildren, 7 great-grandchildren,

 

- a boy

      born and dead on October 26th, 1921,

 

- Cécile

       born on May 20th, 1923,

           married to Albert Melaven,

       died on May 11th, 2010,

       7 children, 16 grandchildren, 21 great-grandchildren,

 

- Marie Rita

       born on June 22nd, 1925,

           married to Paul-Abel Rhéaume (died on February 28th, 2002),

       died on February 3rd, 1972,

       10 children, 15 grandchildren, 4 great-grandchildren.

 

As several women of her time, Marie Marguerite passed away after complications arose during her last childbirth on June 27th, 1925.  Besides, to take care his farm, Édéas worked on contract on surrounding farms as to make plowings, pressing or threshing.  He worked many years on an upright hay baler and sixteen years on a hay baler in a prone position.

 

Involved in his community, Édéas was a local councillor, then a secretary and treasurer for the municipality for 25 years, school commissionner, director of « La Société d’agriculture » and director of « La Laiterie Saint-Antoine (from 1939 to 1956).

 

During Fall 1945, pouring rains beat down on the region.  It seems that the only way of getting back the corn from the fields will be to cut it by hand.  Édéas appeals to the German prisoners of the Camp of Farnham to help him.  Thus, for several weeks, 12 German prisoners found themselves on the farm to participate in the harvest.  Four of them will spend all winter in Stanbridge-Station to assist Édéas and his family with their duties.

 

Édéas was the only owner of his farm until his death, which came too early, on March 25th, 1956.

 

Réjean Messier (12)

grandson