Thomas Douaire de Bondy is one of my many French Canadian ancestors. He is not one of the first branches of my family to come to New France, but his story is just as interesting as some of those who came during the first wave of immigration. Join me as I explore the interesting life of Thomas Douaire de Bondy, his royal connection and his tragic death.
Early Life in France
Thomas Douaire was born around 1636 in Paris in the parish of Saint-Germain L’Auxerrois to Thomas Douaire and Barbe Régnier. His father was a mercer in Paris who started a business with his mother Denise Gautherot and his brothers-in-law, Gratien Daudreau, a tailor, and Antoine Quittet, sergeant at the châtelet, after evaluating the mercer merchandise. At some point, Thomas Douaire Jr. joined the family business.
Marriage and Family
Thomas Douaire de Bondy married Marguerite Chavigny, daughter of François Chavigny de la Chevrotière and Éléonore de Grandmaison on July 26, 1656 on Île d’Orléans, New France. Both of Marguerite’s parents are considered acknowledged members of Quebec’s nobility. Her father was entrusted with the colony’s command during the governor’s absences and also served on the Council of Quebec from its establishment in 1648.
Douaire and Chavigny had six children together: Dorothee Douaire de Bondy, Jacques Douaire de Bondy, Thomas Douaire De Bondy, Louise Marguerite Douaire de Bondy, Joseph Douaire de Bondy and Augustin Douaire de Bondy.
Thomas Duaire de Bondy’s Royal Connections
Thomas Douaire de Bondy and his family were wealthy. He was a gentleman and served in the chamber of King Louis XIV. The title “de Bondy” suggests that King Louis possibly bestowed some property upon Thomas, perhaps a piece of land in Bondy. In 1655, King Louis XIV sent Douaire to New France with orders and in 1664 he served as a lieutenant for the King in Île d’Orléans, New France.
Thomas wasn’t the only member of his family with royal connections. His uncle, Gratien Dandreau, served as a valet to Queen Anne and was her tailor.
Life in New France
As mentioned, Thomas Douaire de Bondy first came to New France in 1655, one year before he met his wife, Marguerite Chavigny. Although it is unclear how often he returned to France, he did so at least once. In 1664, Douaire returned to New France after receiving 3,500 livres. This money may have been an inheritance.
While in New France, Douaire employed two new French arrivals, Mathieu Corbonnois and Toussaint Jarday, beginning in 1664. Both served him for three years.
On July 19, 1667, Thomas Douaire de Bondy drowned unexpectedly. Records indicated that he was denied a Christian burial because he had been drunk at the time. As a result, he was buried “like a dog.”
My Relation to Thomas Douaire de Bondy
I am related to Thomas Douaire de Bondy through my mother in two ways — one way is through my grandfather and the other is through my grandmother.
Connection One
- Thomas Douaire de Bondy (1636 – 1667) and Marguerite Chavigny (1643 – 1705)
- Jacques Douaire de Bondy (1660 – 1703) and Madeleine Gatineau dit Duplessis (abt. 1672 – 1747)
- Jacques Douaire de Bondy (1698 – 1732) and Marie-Therese Arguin (1709 – 1745)
- Joseph Douaire de Bondy (1733 – 1802) and Marie Josephe Gamelin (1741 – 1797)
- Laurent Douaire de Bondy (1771 – 1813) and Marie-Madeleine Pageot (1772 – 1856)
- Eustache Edouard Bondy (1801 – 1850) and Genevieve Reaume (1804 – 1875)
- Eli Bondy (1827 – 1894) and Marguerite Baron (1832 – 1898)
- Joseph Edward Eli Bondy (1858 – 1944) and Amelia Isabella Brush (1864 – 1935)
- Pearl Leafy Bondy (1885 – 1966) and Edward Walter Grondin (1886 – 1973)
- Walter Grondin (1910 – 1998) and Mary Catherine Higgins (1908 – 1983)
- Martha Grondin (Born 1950) and Gary Willis (Born 1946) – my parents
Connection Two
- Thomas Douaire de Bondy (1636 – 1667) and Marguerite Chavigny (1643 – 1705)
- Jacques Douaire de Bondy (1660 – 1703) and Madeleine Gatineau dit Duplessis (abt. 1672 – 1747)
- Joseph Douaire de Bondy (1700 – 1760) and Marie Cécile Campeau (1707 – 1782)
- Joseph Douaire Bondy (1733 – 1802) and Marie Josephe Gamelin (1741 – 1797)
- Catherine Bondy (1769 – 1814) and Anthony Alexis Barron (1768 – aft. 1813)
- Antoine Barron (1790 – aft. 1834) and Archange Langlois (1798 – 1848)
- Patrice Barron (1822 – 1898) and Olive Meloche (1828 – 1916)
- Catherine Barron (
- Mary Catherine Higgins (1908 – 1983) and Walter Grondin (1910 – 1998)
- Martha Grondin (Born 1950) and Gary Willis (Born 1946) – my parents
Do you want to know more about the earliest settlers in New France? Check out New France’s Founding Families and Their Fascinating Stories.
Cate,
I am a distant relative of yours living in Michigan, USA.
I have been researching the family line going back to 1500’s in Paris through Thomas Douaire de Bondy.
Definitely interested in chatting with you regarding our ancestry.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Rob
Hi Rob!
Thanks for reaching out! I’m really interested in hearing about what you’ve found. I’m also curious about where our lines diverge. My mom’s family, who are related to the Bondys, ended up in Essex County, just outside of Windsor. Researching the Bondy family has left me with more questions than answers.
Hi there, I find this so fascinating! I am also related to Thomas as I am a Bondy. Cate, it seems we are likely closely related as Eli Bondy is a few great grandfather’s away. I believe my dad has an Aunt Pearl as well. Most of my dad’s family live in the Windsor area but we live in Kitchener. I have done a lot of research in recent years on the history of our family and what you have compiled here all aligns with some extra details.
I formed a connection with some of the De Chavigny side still in Ile de Orleans and he is really knowledgeable of the Douaire side of things as well. Would love to chat!
Hi Darren! Thanks for connecting with me! My mom’s family is from the Windsor area too — Amherstburg, to be exact. Is that where you family is from? It’s funny that you live in Kitchener; I grew up in Kitchener and Waterloo. I’m currently living in Guelph. I’d love to chat!
Hi Cate, sounds great! My email is dmbondy88@gmail.com if you’d like to connect! Im sure we have lots to chat about! I am literally on my way back from Quebec where I visited a lot of the places our ancestors lived. It was amazing.
Hello again. I have been continuing my efforts and dug into one of the last Douaire de Bondy’s before they switched to just Bondy. His name was Laurent Douaire de Bondy (as referenced in your story). He owned one of the first grist mills in Canada and lived in LaSalle and is referenced in the book “A Wampum Denied” by Sandy Antal.
I would be interested in finding Douaire’s that kept the family name instead of going with the de Bondy portion of the name.
I have also been talking about a trip through Quebec with my brother to follow the movement of the family west through Canada to Windsor and into Michigan where I am today. Darren, would love to hear more about your trip and anything you found out.
Cate, thank you for this incredible article. I am descendent of reverend Waupahetah Peter Bondy(1814-1897) son of Anthony De Padua Bondy (1767-1821) through to Thomas Douaire de Bondy 1636-1667). I would absolutely love more information about our shared ancestry if you are willing to share.
Hi Colin,
Thank you for reaching out! I looked into your ancestor, Reverend Waupahetah Peter Bondy, and his story is fascinating! Did your branch of the Bondy family remain in Indiana?
I’d be more than happy to share what I’ve uncovered about the Douaire de Bondy line and the various connections stemming from it. I’ve been working on my family tree for a couple of years now, and it’s been quite the adventure!
Hello there, distant cousin! Thank you writing this history out; you saved me a lot of time and effort trying to trace the French-Canadian Bondy line back, especially since genealogy research gets so confusing with all the “dit” and “de” names that variously do and do not get recorded. I see from your bio that you’re also a descendant of United Empire Loyalists as well!
The connection to Thomas Douaire de Bondy I’ve found so far (I likely have more than one as there was a lot of intermarriage between the French families that settled in and around Detroit (for example, my great(x4)-grandfather Andrew Bodary and his second wife, Matilda Bondy, were 3rd cousins)):
1. Thomas Douaire de Bondy (1636 – 1667) and Marguerite Chavigny (1643 – 1705)
2. Jacques Douaire de Bondy (1660 – 1703) and Madeleine Gatineau dit Duplessis (abt. 1672 – 1747)
3. Joseph Douaire de Bondy (1700 – 1760) and Marie Cécile Campeau (1707 – 1782)
4. Joseph Douaire Bondy (1733 – 1802) and Marie Josephe Gamelin (1741 – 1797)
5. Joseph Douaire Bondy (abt. 1759 – 1805) and Marie Jeanne Meloche (1761 – 1802)
6. Marie Jeanne Bondy (1783 – 1815) and Jean Baptiste Saliotte (1776 – 1824)
7. Marie Jeanne Saliotte (1800 – 1829) and André Barbeau dit Boisdoré (1774 – 1828)
8. Andrew Bodary [Boisdoré] (1825 – 1884) and Thérèse Drouillard (1832 – 1878)
9. Cecilia Alice Bodary (1852 – 1919) and Frank Gasco [possibly Gascoigne originally] (1846 – 1919)
10. Richard Alexander Gasco (1873 – 1955) and Alice Richardson (1889 – 1978)
11. Earl Alexander Gasco (1912 – 1973) and Pauline Vanderhoof (1918 – 1999)
12. Neil Gasco (1936 – 1993) and Ardis Nicol (1935 – 2020)
13. Timothy Gasco (born 1961) and Christine Wilson (born 1961) — my parents.
I would love to pick your brain about any tips and tricks you have for historical/genealogy research for the Detroit area, as I’ve about exhausted what I’m able to find on my great(x3)-grandfather Frank Gasco through the aggregator sites like Ancestry and FamilySearch and am thinking I’m now going to have to harass the downriver and Windsor-area parishes for access to their hard copy records. Thanks in advance for reading!
Hey distant cus!
Thank you so much for reaching out and sharing all of this information — it’s a goldmine! When I do genealogy, I mostly use Geni, WikiTree, and FamilySearch, and I also use Ancestry to record my tree. I’ve actually never paid for Ancestry, although I think about it from time to time because of the additional records that would be available.
I did a quick Google search on André Barbeau dit Boisdoré, and within a minute, I found that he descends from Philippe Amiot and Anne Couvent. Anne has royal lineage — she descends from Charlemagne, Louis the Pious, King Charles II of France, William the Conqueror, King Henry II, King John, Henry III and King Louis VIII of France. Congrats — that’s quite the ancestry you have!
It does seem like there were a lot of marriages between cousins in the Detroit area. I haven’t looked closely at how closely related everyone was, but it’s something I’ve been curious about (though, honestly, a little nervous to dive into).
Does your family still live in the Detroit area? My mom’s family ended up settling around Windsor, where, based on things I’ve heard from my uncle, everyone seemed to be a little too related.
I’d love to discuss tips and tricks — I bet you have a lot to share! I consider myself in a constant state of learning but haven’t had many opportunities to exchange ideas with others. Let me know the best way to connect!
Hi Cate,
Wow! I occasionally see in the kooky ways that people annotate their trees on Ancestry to show notes at a glance (for example, people putting notes about a family line in the “suffix” section of the person’s information so it displays as part of their name) references like “DIRECT LINE TO CHARLEMAGNE” but I had always assumed that was nonsense or apocrypha, but the Anne Couvent connection is actually legitimate!
I do pay for Ancestry to have access to look at the records directly instead of the summary (and I also have a Newspapers.com subscription for the same reason) because sometimes that data is inaccurate, but in my experience you can often find a lot of the same vital records freely available on FamilySearch. My approach is usually not to copy anything from other member trees on Ancestry, Geni, WikiTree, FamilySearch, etc., unless I can see the primary sources tied to the information. This helps me avoid a “garbage in, garbage out” data problem. For example, one of my Puritan-era ancestors, William Durkee (alternately spelled Durgie, Dirkey, Durken, Durgee, and Durgin, depending on the record) came to Ipswich, Massachusetts in 1663 at the age of 33 by way of Barbados as an Irish indentured servant. If you Google him you will find a lot of speculation that he is the son of Sir William O’Durge and a survivor of the 1649 siege of Drogheda, but there is basically nothing in the historical record that I or anyone else has found to definitively support this, just a lot of speculation based on trying to divine the etymology of the name Durkee (William himself seems to have mostly used the Durgie or Durgee spellings; his children are a split between Durgees/Durgeys and Durkees).
My family does still live in the Detroit area! I was born in Southfield, Michigan, spent the first few years of my life in Redford, and then my family moved to the suburbs about 40 minutes outside the city in Oakland county. My parents currently live in Florida but are planning to move back to the area, and my brother lives in our paternal grandmother’s old house in Farmington Hills. Ironically from doing genealogy research I’ve discovered that a lot of relatives I never knew I had on my mom’s side (which is primarily English and German) also ended up settling in the Detroit area after immigrating from England to Canada and then to the US, and some of them lived right around where I grew up. Quite a surreal feeling to realize there were all these great-aunts and great-uncles and cousins-once-removed living within a 15 minute drive of my house I didn’t know about because we never saw them! My only real experience with the Windsor area is using my Michigan driver’s license to cross the Ambassador Bridge without a passport to go barhopping at age 19, though, haha.
Sorry for this long comment! Would love to chat more. You can reach me at bilkincaid@gmail.com