William Blanchard (abt. 1834 - 1901)

Born about Apr 1834 in Lower Canada

Husband of Laura (Unknown) Blanchard — married before 1857 (to before 1868) in Quebec, Canada

Husband of Julia (Butler) Blanchard — married about 1868 (to 23 Feb 1901) in Thompson, Windham, Connecticut, United States

Descendants

Died 23 Feb 1901 at about age 66 in Providence, Providence, Rhode Island, United States

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Biography

This profile is part of the Blanchard Name Study.

William, son of Joseph and Mary Blanchard,was born in Quebec, Canada about Apr 1834; He married first Laura _____ of unknown ancestry before 1857; He married second Julia Butler, widow of Peter Wright, probably in Windham County, Connecticut, United States about 1868 (see Research Notes). William Blanchard died in Providence, Rhode Island on 23 February 1901.

William is buried in St Joseph’s Cemetery, West Warwick, Rhode Island under the name Julien (Guillaume?) Blanchette according to cemetery staff. He is in Lot #243.5 with his married daughter Melina Proulx (1857-1901) who died of paralysis at age 44 on 15 July 1901. Cemetery staff indicated it was common for French speaking clerks to revert to Blanchette rather than the anglicized name Blanchard.

The parish name and records have not been discovered for William and Laura Blanchard. Their 22 year old daughter Josephine's baptism record also remains undiscovered, Josephine's 1883 marriage record discloses Quebec born William and Laura as her parents, her mother’s maiden name is unknown. Laura probably died in Connecticut in the mid-1860s, her death record remains undiscovered.

William’s marriage to Julia is suggested from census data, their 1868ish Connecticut marriage record has not been discovered.

Birth locations of Laura's children have been determined with their census, marriage and death record data. In 1870 and 1880 the children in the blended Blanchard family are recorded with the Blanchard surname, including the children of Peter Wright.

Children

Children of Laura Blanchard (maiden name unknown), all Quebec born

1. Malena (1857-1901), death record not foud, buried with father at age 44; Melina's Rhode Island birth suggests she might be William's step-daughter.
2. Josephine (1859-1934), m. 1883 Joseph Callendar Harris / hypothesis
3. Edward/Edmund (1862-1944), m. 1894 Ella Jane Wilson
4. Louis (1863-1885/), ?
5. Mary Louise B (1864-1881), d.y. at age 17 of exhaustion

Children of Julia Butler and William Blanchard

1. Charles (1869-1871), d.y.

Timeline

• 1834, Apr - William was born in French Canada, from the 1900 census. ^[1], About 1833 in Canada from 1901 death record.^[2]
• 1834 - baptism record not discovered in Quebec, Canada
• 1857, by - married Laura _____ in Quebec
• 1857 to 1864 - births of children in Quebec
• 1864, after - arrival from Canada with Laura and five children in North Providence, Rhode Island. (might have lived temporarily in Vermont)
• 1865 - birth of daughter Mary in North Providence
• 1865 to 1868 - death of spouse Laura in Rhode Island
• 1868, by - married Mrs. i Julia (Butler) Wright probably in Windham County, Connecticut.
• 1870 - home at age 37 with 2nd spouse Julia and their blended eleven child family, the youngest their own, five children from William’s previous marriage, and five children from Julia's previous family including two daughters age 6. ^[3]
• 1871 - death of their only child Charles at age 1y, 8m, 18d
• 1880 - home at age 44 in North Providence, R.I. with Julia and five youngest surviving children. ^[4]
• 1900 -at home at age 66 in New Bedford, Massachusetts with wife Julia and step-daughter Lucy(44) ^[1]
• 1901, 23 Feb - William died in Providence, R.I., having frozen to death, an alcholic. ^[5]
• 1901 - burial in Saint Joseph's Cemetery in West Warwick, R.I. ^[6] Cemetery staff reported William is recorded there as Julian (Guillaume?) Blanchette. They summize the recorded surname was reverted back from its Anglicized form Blanchard, a common practice then. Guillaume being the French form for William, rhymes with Julien. Also buried with William is his married first born, a daughter, Melina Proulx (44). (see her presence in their 1870 census. William's second spouse Julia is not buried at Saint Joseph Cemetery, nor is there a record there of the burial of Laura, his first spouse. Julia, spouse two, died 27 months later in New Bedford, Maasachusetts at the same address she and William shared in the 1900 census.
• 1903, 8 May - death of Julia in New Bedford, Massachusetts ^[5]
• 1903 - burial of Julia in “French Cemetery”, locaton not determined. Cemetery staff at Saint Joseph's Cemetery, West Warwick, R.I. have determined that Julia is not buried there. There is no named French Cemetery in New Bedford, Massachusetts.

Research Notes

• it is possible that Josephine Blanchard is the daughter of Peter and Julia Wright, thus William's step-daughter. Need proof of abscence of R.I. birth record for Josephine, There is a five year gap about 1859 in Peter and Julia's family.
• 1868 - CT marriage record for William Blanchard and Mrs. Julia Wright is needed, a record present in either the Connecticut or the Rhode Island Marriage index’s at FamilySearch
• The parish name(s) for William's baptism and marriage location(s) must be discovered for any meaningful research discoveries.
• The given name of William's first spouse is proported to be Laura from daughter Josephine's 1883 birth record. No other records have been discovered to disprove this. However, William and Mary had a daughter named Louise in !865 somewhere in Quebec.
• the 1860 U.S Census in Connecticut is not online in the FamilySearch catalog.
• William’s first spouse remains unknown othe than given name Laura disclosed in Josephine's 1883 marriage record.
• a baptism record for Louise Blanchard has not.....
• Lucy Taylor in the 1900 Census for William and Julia is clearly noted as William's step-daughter, implying that Julia's marriage to William was not her first marriage.
• Julia's 1903 death record has an egregious error, it has reversed surnames. This death record is undoubtably for William's widow borne out by the common address on the 1900 census and Julia's death record.
• daughter Josephine is not at home at age 21 in the family's 1880 census, she is working in Norwich, CT as a domestic. There is a strong possibility that this Josephine Blanchard married Joseph Callender Harris in Malden, Massachusetts in 1883. Several other Josephine Blanchards are accounted.

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} 1900 Census for William Blanchard in "United States Census, 1900", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M95G-BQW ?: Fri Aug 04 00:35:25 UTC 2023), Entry for William Blanchard and Julia Blanchard, 1900.
2. ↑ 1901 Death for William Blanchard in "Rhode Island, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1630-1945," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F8ZK-CV2 : 4 November 2020), William Blanchard, 23 Feb 1901; citing Death, Providence, Rhode Island, United States, Rhode Island State Archives, Providence; FHL microfilm 004250587", see entry on 4th row from bottom of page.
3. ↑ 1870 Residence for William Blanchard in "United States Census, 1870", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MN75-2N6 : Sat Jun 03 21:39:12 UTC 2023), Entry for Wm Blanchard and Julia Blanchard, 1870.
4. ↑ 1880 Residence for William Blanchard in "United States Census, 1880", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M4SV-8NZ : Wed Aug 02 22:15:58 UTC 2023), Entry for William Blanchard and Julia B. Blanchard, 1880.
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1} 1900 Death for Julia Butler in Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FHV6-BJY : 10 November 2020), Julia B. Blanchard Butler, 29 Jul 1903; citing Death, New Bedford, Bristol, Massachusetts, United States, Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, Boston; FHL microfilm 004273870.
6. ↑ 1901 Burial for William Blanchard in Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/241625272/william-blanchard: accessed 30 July 2022), memorial page for William Blanchard (Apr 1834–23 Feb 1901), Find a Grave Memorial ID 241625272, citing Saint Joseph's Cemetery, West Warwick, Kent County, Rhode Island, USA; Maintained by Macduff40 (contributor 47676016)

Acknowledgements

Thanks to Ed Fields for creating this profile. Click the Changes tab for the details of contributions by Ed and others.