Lévi Ouellette (1842)

Francois (Francis) Xavier (Lévi) Ouellette was born of Gabriel Ouellette and Catherine Laselle in 1842. He married Hannah Poole in 1867 and fathered George Daniel (1867), Agnes Anne (1870), Mary Ellen (1872), Hannah (circa 1872), Lévi (circa 1875), and William Henry (1879) Ouellette. He later remarried Rose McDougald and fathered John Ouellette, George Daniel (1892), Godfrey (1894), Mary Ellen (1896), Agnes Anne (1900), Julianna (circa 1900), Dan (1902), Hugh Louis (circa 1903), Cassie (circa 1903), and Florence Adele (1912) Ouellette.

Early life (1842 – 1866)
Lévi was born on [02 February 1842] of Gabriel Ouellette and Catherine Laselle. At the age of nine years he was registered in the 1851 Census as a labourer (but so was his infant brother Joseph). As of that census he was living with his family at Lochiel, Glengarry, in a one-family two-story stone house.

Marriage to Hannah Poole (1866 – 1889)
On [30 December 1866] he attended Hannah Poole's conditional baptism and absolution from heresy at St. Finnan's Cathedral in Alexandria, and married her there [04 January 1867] (age 24). Their first son George Daniel was baptised [03 November 1867] at the St-Jean-Baptiste Catholic Church in nearby L'Orignal, Prescott. Their first daughter Agnes Anne was baptized [07 March 1870] at St-Finnan's Cathedral in Alexandria, Glengarry.

Lévi's son Lévi was born circa 1875, according to his later marriage. His son William Henry was born in 1879 according to a later LDS family sheet.

George Daniel died of unspecified cause at the age of 15 years on [14 May 1883], and was buried two days later at St. Raphael's Catholic church in Glengarry.

Marriage to Rose McDougald (1891—)
Lévi later married Rose McDougald.

Hannah's death above and George Daniel's birth below were recorded at Moose Creek; it would be reasonable to assume Lévi also remarried there.

A Moose Creek parish record documents the 1891 marriage of widower François X. Ouellette to Marie Jacques. François is described as a widower, but Marie Jacques is strangely described as having unknown parents and uncertain residence. While the parish record does not state the names of Francois' parents or the name of his previous wife, the civil record of the marriage clearly states that Gabriel Ouellette and Catherine Lacelle are the parents of the groom.

The groom's birthdate is noted as around 1850, and his occupation mason. The birthdate is incorrect, but Lévi gave a birthdate of 1852 in the 1881 census. In the 1891 census there can be found in Glengarry a Francis Willet, married to a Mary Willet and living with two boys named Lévi and William. This seems to be Lévi; Lévi and William are the names of two known sons of his, and the ages of the boys are accurate to within one year of the estimated and known birthdates of Lévi's two boys. These boys were born of Hannah Poole, and on the census it is implied that Lévi and William are not born of Mary.

The age of this Francis is the same as Francois Ouellette married in Moose creek, as is the age of Marie Jacques and the Mary in the census. Francis' occupation is also listed as stonemason, much like Francois. Combined, this evidence suggests that the Francois X. Ouellette married in Moose Creek is the same as the Francis Willet on the census, who is likely Lévi.

However, the above evidence also raises some questions. The most obvious is the name of the bride. Why is she called Marie Jacques and not Mary or Rose McDougald? And why are her parents and residence unknown? One might speculate that she is an orphan or illegitimate child, but that does not explain the change from Jacques to McDougald. See Rose's article for further details. Another issue is relationship of the people living in the Willet household. Francis is listed as head, but Mary, Lévi, and Willam are listed as mere lodgers, not wife and sons. Technically Mary and Francis (assuming they are Francois Ouellette and Marie Jacques) were also not married; the enumerator recorded the data on April 6, 1981, but the marriage at Moose Creek did not take place until the next month.

His son George Daniel was baptized on [29 April 1892] at Moose Creek. Agnes Anne was baptized on [24 June 1900] at Saint Andrews West. Florence Adele was baptized [17 March 1912] in Our Lady Church in Moose Creek.

Godfrey was baptized [29 December 1894] according to a later LDS family sheet. Mary Ellen was bapized [17 October 1896] at St. Raphael's Church.

The LDS family sheet also mentions Julianna, Hugh Ouellette, and Florence Adele, but doesn't provide birth dates or places. A marriage index from the Repertoire des Mariages du Comte de Glengarry, Ontario also mentions Dan.

Later life (1901—)
By the 1901 census Lévi was still living in Glengarry and working as a stone mason.

Lévi presumably died before 1927, when his son Hugh's marriage record lists him as the late Lévi Willard.

Name
This article assumes that Lévi Ouellette and Xavier Ouellette are the same person. This hypothesis is falsifiable, and could be refuted if conflicting information were discovered. The table below tracks mentions by date.

Known locations
 6#B2758BC5 (A) 45.379165, -74.729034, M. Hannah Poole (1867), B. Agnes (1870) at Alexandria, ON North Glengarry, ON (B) 45.26203, -74.969619, B. George (1892), B. Florence (1914) at Moose Creek, ON Moose Creek, North Stormont, ON (C) 45.09613, -74.796867, B. Agnes (1900) at South Stormont, ON Saint Andrews West, South Stormont, ON (B) 45.26203, -74.969619, B. George (1892), B. Florence (1914) at Moose Creek Moose Creek, North Stormont, ON