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HÉLÈNE'S WORLD
Hélène Desportes of Seventeenth-Century Quebec French
Canadian
Pioneers of the Seventeenth Century
Hélène Desportes, born in 1620, was the first child of French parents to be born in Québec and to survive. For nine years, she lived in Samuel de Champlain’s Habitation. In 1629, the little settlement was captured by the English. Hélène, along with the majority of the other French settlers, was put on an English ship and taken to France. She returned to Québec in 1634 and spent the remainder of her life in the little colony. She was married twice, had fifteen children, and seventy grandchildren. No portrait of Hélène exists. There are no letters, no diaries, no memoirs to guide the biographer. Nevertheless, there are a number of public records and other primary sources from which we are able to piece together the outline of her life. This, then, is her remarkable story, set against the backdrop of France’s attempts to establish a colony in the New World along the banks of the St. Lawrence River. Learn more about the world of Hélène Desportes and the other French Canadian pioneers in this thoroughly researched book which includes nearly seven hundred source citations and notes. Read
excerpts from the book:
Hélène Desportes of Early Québec: Her Years of Exile in France Midwives of Early Québec Weather -- A Formidable Foe for the French-Canadian Pioneers The Scourge of Smallpox ... Did Guillaume Hébert Die of the Disease? Listen to the author's podcast interviews on Maple Stars and Stripes: Hélène's World -- Part I (Episode 020) In Introduction to Hélène Desportes and a discussion on researching life in 17th-century Québec. Hélène's World -- Part II (Episode 033) Survival and Relationships with the Native Americans in 17th-century New France Hélène's World -- Part III (Episode 043) The role of Religion in New France Hélène's World -- Part IV (Episode 056) Health and Sickness in New France About
the
author:
Susan McNelley has long been interested in women’s stories, particularly those occurring in other places and in other times. She has also been researching family history for some thirty years. A few years ago, she was able to trace her personal ancestry back to seventeenth-century Québec and to Hélène Desportes. Thus began a quest to learn more about what life was like for the early colonists. Hélène's World, meticulously researched and documented, is the outcome of this effort. List
Price of Paperback: $19.95
Kindle eBook: $9.95 Available on Amazon.com  Both versions of the book are also available for purchase in Canada at Amazon.ca Paperback: 350 pages Publisher: Etta Heritage Press, June 2013; Second printing September 2014 Language: English ISBN-10: 0615738591 ISBN-13: 978-0615738598 Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.9 inches
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