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July 14th and 15th, in the Belgian Pavilion in the Notre Dame High School, you'll be assured a Welkum (Dutch/Flemish); Bienevenue (Walloon). This nationality with its interesting history and two official languages will be happy to share with its guests ethnic food, dancing, music, displays. The country of Belgium is divided by a line called ‘the linguistic border’. The Flemings who inhabit northern Belgium (Flanders) speak Dutch. French is spoken by the Walloons who live in Wallonia, the southern part of the nation. The first Belgians to arrive in this area reached St. Alphonse, Manitoba April 2nd and 3rd, 1888. (Many more joined them within a few days.) That first group was comprised of three Flemings and several Walloons. In a pamphlet circulated in Belgium in 1893 many of those who had settled at St. Alphonse five years earlier wrote letters encouraging fellow countrymen to join them in Manitoba. Francis Deschouwer, one of the three Flemings, penned the following. Translated it reads, “I left Everbeck, Saint-Joseph, Belgium on March 19, 1888. I was then a carpenter. We had five children, I was forced to look elsewhere in order to have a better future for my family. I sold all my belongings and left alone for Manitoba. The money I made here was sent to my family and in April of 1889 my wife and children joined me. When they arrived I had no money but I had my homestead, a grub hoe and a cow. Now (1893) we have seven children, two bulls, seven cows, four pigs, four chickens, a plow, a harrow, a pair of sleighs, a wagon, a binder, a machine to cut the hay. At the start I had built a shack covered with sod, now I have a house 18’ x 20’ and a granary 18’ x 22’. I then broke fifteen acres of land. Another fifteen acres are waiting for the plow. Part of my homestead is fenced off and used as an enclosure for the animals. All told, the value was estimated at $1500. Much of the land taken over by his first contingent of Belgian colonists had been left abandoned by French settlers who earlier, discouraged trying to make a living at St. Alphonse, had moved elsewhere. Clearing wooded hills or land to farm was not easy work. The Belgians seemed more adept with the grub hoe than the French . Accompanying Francis Deschouwer were his brother-in-law, Jan Baptiste returned from the Klondike, in 1901, where he was lured two years earlier by the Gold Rush, he had enough money to buy a half section of land at St. Alphonse. (He retained a quarter at Swan Lake he had rented to a neighbor when he left in 1899). Of the seventeen children born to the Pouteaus (Jan Baptiste had married Adelia Delichte of St. Alphonse in 1893) six died in childhood. In 1917, when Mr. Pouteau, at the age of 59, was killed instantly by a bolt of lightning his widow was left with a large family to raise. The youngest was three. History doesn’t record if J.B. Steyaert was married when he came but its DOES record that his baby daughter, Marie Leonie born March 18, 1889 was the first Flemish child baptized in the Catholic Church in St. Alphonse. Because he was very conscious of his baldness he felt uncomfortable in a society in which it was impolite to keep on one’s cap in a public place or private residence. Rumor has it he returned to his homeland where the dictates of etiquette weren’t quite so rigid. Francis Deschouwer in his 88 years (he died in 1944) proved a most versatile colonist. He farmed (moved west of Bruxelles at the turn of the century), blacksmithed, carpentered (did most of the interior finishing in the original Church in St. Alphonse for $1.00 per day), fashioned caskets and made grave markers for bereaved families. For a time he was foreman of the Ruston Brick Foundry at Cypress River and each fall (1893 - 1908) ran the Ruston steam threshing outfit. Later he operated a sawmill on his own land. He loved photography. Not only did he take pictures, he developed them. Watch repairing was another of his talents. His shiny black democrat (a heavier version of a buggy) often doubled as a hearse. In those early years, trips to the cemetery were frequent. Too many died young of pneumonia, appendicitis, scarlet or typhoid fever, or in childbirth. Today, Francis Deschouwer (who eventually became the father of nine) and Jan Baptiste Pouteau are the forebears of hundreds. Many with surnames of Claeys, DeJaegher, Haegeman, Rigaux, Van Cauwenberghe, Zeghers, DeRiviere, Deschouwer, Van Den Bossche, Pouteau are second, third fourth or even fifth generation descendents of these Flemish pioneers. Of the Walloons who reached St. Alphonse the first few days of April in 1888, Pierre Martin eventually moved to Montmarte, SK., Henri Allard re-located at Mariapolis, MB. Others left for Forget and St. Front in Saskatchewan as homesteads there became available. Of the names included in the 1893 pamphlet - a pamphlet published presumably by William Hespeler, a man instrumental in bringing many Mennonites, Jews, Belgians, etc. to settle in Manitoba - only three can be located in local history books. Alphonse Baccus married Mathilde Lauvelet in 1892 in Bruxelles. The parents of thirteen children, they too have many descendents in surrounding areas. Jean Schumacher and his wife, Seraphine, homesteaded on the 42-2-12. There they raise a family of six. Despite the hardships of pioneer life he lived to be 85. Seraphine was 83 when she died in 1934. Both are buried at Bruxelles. Alphonse LeCoq was an orphan, ten and a half years of age, when he came to this new frontier with a former school teacher, Monsieur Massoz. Written by Ida E. Sanderson A letter sign Joseph Massoz,he was one of the Walloons who wrote for that 1893 publication) translates: My family consisted of seven people. ' left Grand Mesnil the 14th of March, 1888 and arrived there the following April. I had eight dollars left. I immediately started working wages consisting of $1.00 to $1.50 a day. I established myself on the S.E. quarter of 16-6-11 (present home of James Carell), I have 35 acres cultivated. The remainder of my land consists of bush and hay. We built a house, a granary, and several stables. The actual value of my land is $900, and outside of that I have all the machinery for agriculture. I have nine head of livestock and four horses. Six years experience in this country have proven that raising livestock combined with farming is what pays the most. In winter, cutting wood is a great resource for Belgians established here. Last winter * delivered to Holland wood to the value of $308. 1 plan to deliver more this coming winter. I find the air of this country is very healthful and good. The Belgian established here enjoy a living they could never hope for in Belgium. The Canadians distinguish themselves with great hospitality toward strangers.” All the letters, written in French, were concerned mainly with farming conditions and prospects.Who, in Belgium, could ever dream of owning 160 acres of land? The prospect of a homestead, to many reading the pamphlet, seemed like the chance of a lifetime. If they could have envisioned the harshness of Manitoba’s winters, the pestilences (mosquitoes, flies, grasshoppers) of its summers, would they have left family and friends? Although Mr. Massoz moved to Montana, Alphonse LeCoq remained. When he was old enough he bought the N.W. quarter of 33-5-11 and in 1901 at Bruxelles, married Honorine Nicolas. It’s interesting to note his bride was an orphan also, one who had come to Canada with an aunt and uncle. Of their offspring, seven married so they too, have many grandchildren and great grandchildren. Other names in that first group of settlers were Hector LeRoy, Henri and Guillame Dekelver, Victor Richet and Jean B. Dereaux. Celine Delichte, now retired in Holland, MB, was born at St. Alphonse 92 years ago, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Martens. She remembers some of those early pioneers. In fact, Jan Baptiste Pouteac was her brother-in-law. (He married Arthur Delichte’s sister Adelia.) She values a photograph of her mother’s parents, the Van Hoolands, taken in the early 190’s by Francis Deschouwer. She also remembers the recipe for BUTTERMILK PAP (pronounced ‘pop’). It was a dish often served on meatless Friday. If there was any one commodity the early Belgian settlers had in quantity it was buttermilk. All milked cows, churned cream into butter. While heating the resulting buttermilk to make PAP the liquid was stirred frequently to keep it from curdling. Rice, pre cooked in water to which salt had been added, when drained was blended in with the buttermilk. For the right consistency for serving, a bit of flour assured the finished product would be neither too runny nor too thick. For flavor, brown sugar was sprinkled over each bowl as it was ladled out. (You wouldn't like it, warns Mrs. Delichte!) It’s unlikely BUTTERMILK PAP will be served in the Belgian Pavilion. Tastier ethnic favorites will be available. Sample them. Listen to the music. Join the dancing. Study the displays. Converse with the people. Intercultural sharing it’s called the purpose of the FESTIVAL OF NATIONS,
Newspaper Details
The Gazette-News
Baldur, Manitoba, CA
Tue, May 29, 1990
Page 6
Full Page
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Anonymous
CA 18 Feb 2026
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