Augustus was the descendant of Servois Ducray, one of the Ducray Nine, nine Ducray brothers who in the 1590s saved the life of the French King Henry IV ("Henry the Great," "Good King Henry") and were rewarded with knighthood and villages. Servois' village was Gondenans-les-Moulins. The family crest is a shield and swords, with nine arrows crossed in the shape of an asterisk representing the nine brothers.
Augustus's parents Nicholas (1786-1873) and Frances (née Jeanne Françoise Petitjean; 1797-1883; customarily her name was Françoise and Frances) married 13 Feb 1822 in Gondenans-les-Moulins.
Augustus was born Auguste Ducray on 27 September 1827 in the Ducray family village of Gondenans-les-Moulins.
From search "HARDY PIONEER FAMILY Ducray" online:
In 1839, Nicholas and Frances with their nine children left the port of Havre le Grace, France, aboard the ship Navire Marie, headed for a new home in Crawford County, Pennsylvania, where friends from France already had settled. The ship began taking on water near Newfoundland, and hoping to keep the ship afloat, passengers and crew threw everything overboard, including the Ducrays' chest containing $2,000 in gold and everything else they brought for their start in the United States. Despite all efforts, the ship foundered. Everyone aboard was shipwrecked on a sand island off of the coast of Newfoundland, Sable Island. After days without rescue, without food and fresh water, the ship's crew became crazed. A passenger François Poly overheard the crew planning to kill and eat Nicholas Ducray and one of his sons (possibly his eldest, 15-year-old Jean-Baptiste). François saved the lives of the Ducrays by hiding them buried in sand. To everyone's great fortune, all were rescued the following day by a passing ship. The Ducrays remained lifelong friends with Jean François Poly. The Ducrays had with them a simple wooden cross with an ivory carving of Jesus, that they credited for their fortune of surviving the perilous voyage. The Ducray family bought 80 acres acres southeast of East Mead Township (now Meadville, Crawford County, Pennsylvania) on the southern tip of Tamarack Lake; and later bought another farm on 72 acres located "2 miles south of Frenchtown and Route 27" and "on Route 441 near Boussons Corners." (An estate sale was listed in 1963 upon the passing of Nestor Ducray, grandson of Nicholas and Frances, son of Julius C. and Julia [née Grosclaude] Ducray. Nestor's sister Eva/Eve Mary Ducray Brunot passed away in 1967. The wood cross with ivory carving of Jesus brought with the family to America was kept by Eva, then passed to one of her children.)
Nicholas and Frances's descendants (first generation) went to California, Oregon, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Ohio, Wisconsin, Montana, and Minnesota.
Nicholas and Frances and many of their children, friends, and relatives are at rest in the Catholic church cemetery Nicholas founded (as church trustee, bought acre beside church, donated as cemetery; name misspelled on deed "Ducri"): Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Cemetery, Pettis, Pennsylvania, Crawford County, Section B Lot 5.
Nicholas and Frances had ten children, nine born in the family village in France. (The French family tree showed eleven):
1) Françoise Virginie/Frances Virginia born 1822
2) Jean-Baptiste/John B. Ducray 23 June 1824-1890 March 20
3) Celestine F. Ducray Bourquin, 25 Feb 1826-1899 Feb 7
4) Augustus Ducray 27 Sept 1827-1895 May 12 Pettis
Birth name: Auguste Ducray; in 1850 Census, he was named Gustavus.
5) Claude Marie 8 August 1828-1912 February 23 = Mary F. Wood
6) Jeanne Claude/Johanna/Jane born 25 March 1831
7) Jean Claude/John C. Ducray 2 June 1833-1875 April 6
8) Charles Celestin Ducray 29 April 1835-1925
9) baby Ducray (son) born ~1837 Gondenans (per French family tree).
This is Justin Ducray, born 31 January 1836 or 1837. Birth name: François Augustin Ducray. He was known as Augustus Ducray until 1862, when he began using his name Justin Ducray after his brother Auguste/Gustavus's name change to Augustus Ducray.
10) Justin/Augustus Ducray 1840-1914 December 24 (per 1992 French family tree).
The 1992 French family tree shows Justin's birth in 1840, the 10th child of Nicholas and Frances. Subsequently research has shown he was born François Augustin Ducray on 31 January 1836 or 1837, the 9th child of Nicholas and Frances.
11) Julius C. Ducray Meadville 1841-1925 Pettis
Julius was the first descendant of Servois Ducray born in the U.S.; the 10th child of Nicholas and Frances.
Research in the 1839 ship's manifests, the List of Doubs Emigrants to Pennsylvania in the file Pennsylvanie.pdf, U.S. Censuses, and Justin's Civil War Union Army military records shows that Justin, who originally used the name Augustus until 1862, was the baby Ducray son born in Gondenans ~1837.
Ducrays per the 1839 "Elizabeth Ann" ship's manifest from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to Boston, October 1839 (the Ducrays completed their journey to the U.S. on the Elizabeth Ann, after the shipwreck of the ill-fated steamship Le Marie from Le Havre left them stranded on an island off of the coast of Newfoundland):
Comparison of 1839 ship's manifest with family tree information:
Ship's manifest vs. updated Family tree information
Nicholas Male 1789 50 Nicholas 1786 53
Francis Female 1797 42 Frances 1797 42
Francis Male 1823 16 Frances Virginia 1822 16 or 17
John B. Male 1825 14 Jean-Baptiste 1824 15
Charlotte Female 1826 13 Celestine 1826 13
Augustus Male 1828 11 Augustus 1827 12
Mary Female 1829 10 Claude Marie 1828 11
John Male 1831 8 Jeanne Claude 1831 8
Johanna Male 1833 6 Jean Claude 1833 6
Charles Male 1835 4 Charles Celestin 1835 4
Augusta Female 1837 2 baby Ducray Justin 1837 2
---
Notes:
Ship's manifest is shown as recorded by ship official. In reconciling with family's own information, preference is given to family's information.
Among discrepancies noted, it appears that the manifest mixed up Jeanne Claude and Jean Claude (Jean Claude's other life records indicate his birth year was 1833).
Comparison with U.S. census information:
1840 Census showed limited information, and misspelled Ducray "Dickra"
1840 Census showed:
Nicholass Dickra (with Nicholass written olde-timey: Nicholafs)
Home in 1840: Fairfield, Crawford County, Pennsylvania
# males under 5: 2 [= Justin 3, Charles 4]
# males 5 - 9: 1 [= Jean Claude, 7]
# males 10 - 14: 1 [= Augustus/Gustavus, 13]
# males 15 - 19 1 [= Jean-Baptiste, 16]
# males 50 - 59: 1 [= Nicholas, 50 or 54]
# females 5 - 9: 1 [= Jeanne Claude/Johanna/Jane, 8 or 9]
# females 10 - 14: 2 [Claude Marie/Mary 12, Celestine 14]
# females 15 - 19: 1 [Françoise Virginie/Francis, 18]
# females 20 - 41: 1 [Françoise/Frances, 40 (or 43)]
Total # of persons:
11 <= Eleven in the family is consistent with two adults and nine children, Julius not born yet.
----------------------------------------------------------
1850 Census, taken in September 1850
Ducray misspelled Ducra on census, Dacres in ancestry dot com
Note: Birthplace: France for all the Ducrays
Name Age Born Gender Occupation
Nicholas 60 1790 Male Farmer
Francis 50 1800 Female
John 25 1825 Male Farmer
Gustavus 22 1828 Male Farmer
Jane 18 1832 Female
James 16 1834 Male Farmer
Charles 15 1835 Male
Augustus 14 1836 Male
Julia 10 1840 Female
NOTE: The 1850 census is the first official record that states that a male born in 1828 was named Gustavus; and that a male child born in 1836 was named Augustus. The person named Gustavus in the 1850 census later called himself Augustus; the person named Augustus in the 1850 census later called himself Justin. While we don't know why these name changes happened, this record does help establish that the Augustus born in 1828 originally was named Gustavus, and that the son who changed his name from Augustus to Justin was originally named Augustus. The son born in 1828, who later called himself Augustus, used the name Gustave, a diminutive of Gustavus, as the name for his son Gustave Leon (G. L. Ducray, who married Lulu Maude Weitzel).
Note: the child named Julia, identified as born in 1840, 10 years old and female, actually was son Julius C. Ducray, and he was born in Pennsylvania, not France.
1850 census comparison to family tree:
Nicholas 60 1790 Male 64 1786
Francis 50 1800 Female 53 1797
John 25 1825 Male 25 1824
Gustavus 22 1828 Male = Augustus
Jane 18 1832 Female = Jeanne Claude 18/19 1831
James 16 1834 Male = Jean Claude 16/17 1833
Charles 15 1835 Male
Augustus 14 1836 Male = Justin 10 1840
or 13/14 1837
Julia 10 1840 Female = Julius 9/10 ~1841
= 9 people; missing two = X
Not found in 1850 census
X 1) Françoise Virginie/Frances Virginia born 1822
2) Jean-Baptiste/John B. Ducray 23 June 1824-1890 March 20
X 3) Celestine F. Bourquin, 25 Feb 1826-1899 Feb 7
4) Augustus Ducray 27 Sept 1827-1895 May 12 Pettis
= Gustavus in 1850 census
5) Claude Marie 8 August 1828-1912 February 23
= Mary F. Wood; ~22 years old in 1850
6) Jeanne Claude 1831
= Jane in 1850 census, Johanna on 1839 manifest
7) Jean Claude/John C. Ducray 1833-1875 April 6
= James in 1850 census
In 1839 Nicholas and Françoise/Frances (née Petitjean) Ducray emigrated with their nine children from Gondenans-les-Moulins, France, to Meadville, Crawford County, Pennsylvania, where friends already had settled along the route that George Washington had led his Army ("Grand Army of the Republic") during the Revolution. Nicholas and Frances bought a farm at the southern end of Lake Tamarack. They had one more child after they arrived in Crawford County, Julius C. Ducray born in 1841.
Augustus was born in the Ducray family village of Gondenans-les-Moulins.
Nicholas was a peace-loving man who had avoided conscription into Napoleon's army because of a childhood injury that cost his eyesight in one eye. He wanted his sons to grow up in a peaceful land free of the ravages of war. Friends had emigrated to the United States and settled in Crawford County, Pennsylvania. With a spirit of adventure, Nicholas and Frances moved to Crawford County also. This was particularly an adventure given that Nicholas was 50 years old, and Frances 40, when they made the journey with their nine children ranging in age from 3 years old to 17.
The family had a harrowing experience during their journey to the United States, when their ship began taking on water off of the coast of Newfoundland. Passengers and crew threw everything overboard, hoping to stay afloat. The Ducrays threw overboard their chest containing everything they had brought with them, including $2,000 in gold coins. The ship foundered despite their efforts, and they were shipwrecked on a sand island off of the coast of Newfoundland. After days without food and water, the ship's crew became crazed: a fellow passenger, Jean François Poly, overheard the crew plotting to kill and eat Nicholas and one of his sons, perhaps the eldest, Augustus's brother 15-year-old Jean-Baptiste. Monsieur Poly hid the Ducrays by burying them in sand. Fortunately for everyone, they all were rescued by a passing ship the next day. Luckily, also, the Ducrays' chest washed ashore onto the island, so they retrieved all they had brought with them. One of Nicholas's first acts when they settled in Crawford County was to become a trustee of Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Pettis and donate an acre of land beside the church for its graveyard (where Nicholas, Frances, Augustus, and many of the family and their friends and neighbors are at rest). (See "HARDY PIONEER FAMILY Ducray" online.)
After their rescue, the Ducray family eventually arrived in Boston aboard the ship "Elizabeth Ann" from Halifax, Nova Scotia, on 10 October 1839. The ship's manifest shows the following Ducrays (beside it is our family records info):
Est. Year Our info
Ship's manifest Born Age Name Born Age
Nicholas Male 1789 50 Nicholas 1785 54
Francis Female 1797 42 Frances 1795 44
Francis Male 1823 16 Frances Virginia 1822 ~16 or 17
John B. Male 1825 14 Jean-Baptiste 1824 ~14 or 15
Charlotte Female 1826 13 Celestine 1826 13
Augustus Male 1828 11 Augustus 1827 12
Mary Female 1829 10 Claude Marie 1828 11
John Male 1831 8 Jeanne Claude 1831 8
Johanna Male 1833 6 Jean Claude 1833 6
Charles Male 1835 4 Charles Celestin 1835 4
Augusta Female 1837 2 baby Ducray 1837 2
The genders and names are mixed up on the manifest of the ship "Elizabeth Ann" that the Ducrays took to Boston from Halifax, Nova Scotia, in October 1839.
Either the Ducrays had a 2 year old daughter Augusta, or that was Augustus/Justin.
The 1850 census (taken in September 1850) shows the following people in the household of Nicholas and Frances Ducray (last name misspelled Ducra in Census, Dacres in Ancestry dot com):
Age [approximate birth year based on census age]
Nicholas 60 [so birth year ~1790; actually 1785]
Francis 50 [so birth year ~1800; actually 1795]
John 25 [~1825; Jean-Baptiste/John C. Ducray, 1824]
Gustavus 22 [~1828; later known as Augustus Ducray, 1828]
Jane 18 [~1832; Jeanne Claude, 1831]
James 16 [~1834; Jean Claude/John C. Ducray, 1833]
Charles 15 [~1833; Charles Celestin Ducray, 1835]
Augustus 14 [~1834; Justin Ducray, born 1835? 1840?]
Julia 10 [~1840; actually Julius C. Ducray, 1841]
Three children not shown in the Ducray household in 1850:
Françoise Virginie/Frances Virginia, ~28, born 1822
Celestine F. Ducray Bourquin, 24, born 25 Feb 1826
Claude Marie (Mary F. Wood), 22, born 8 August 1828
The family loved Pennsylvania, and made it their home, making trips back to France to visit family and friends. Nicholas purchased a second farm, in Fairfield, Crawford County, Pennsylvania, and he gave each of his children ten acres.
Nicholas encouraged his children who wanted to move and explore West. Four of his six sons and two of his daughters did move West: sons Jean-Baptiste and Jean Claude went to California in 1850 during the Gold Rush, where they fell in love with Nevada City and made it their home. Daughter Claude Marie traveled to visit her brothers in Nevada City, where she met and married her husband Frank N. Wood, a quartz gold miner and member of the Wood family who built on their property and operated the historic Bridgeport Covered Bridge and the Lake Wildwood to French Corral section of the Marysville to Virginia City toll road, using lumber from their forests in Nevada and Sierra Counties, milled in their own lumber mills; upon her marriage, she changed her name to Mary F. Wood, and she and Frank made their home in Albany, Linn County, Oregon, where Frank had a quarry and a marble monument and engraving business. Nicholas and Frances's daughter Celestine Ducray Bourquin traveled by wagon train to Colorado with her gold prospecting sons Augustus Dominick and George Bourquin, who struck gold and settled in Aspen; Augustus Dominick became an Aspen City Councilman, while George Bourquin and his son both became the U.S. Federal District Court Judges in Colorado. Son Charles Celestin Ducray moved to Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Ohio (he actually lived in a small geographic area, near the border of the states), and he patented a corn planter; his son Frank Nicholas Ducray became a Colorado State Champion wrestler, then Sheriff of Colorado Springs, and an educator in western Colorado. Son Justin Ducray moved to East Saint Louis, Illinois, where he established his painting and wallpaper business Justin Ducray & Son, a City contractor for Saint Louis, Missouri, and East Saint Louis, Illinois, which are across the Illinois River from each other. In April 1861 at the start of the Civil War, in Saint Louis, Missouri, Justin enlisted in the First Missouri Cavalry of the Union Army; he re-enlisted twice, and served through the end of the Civil War in 1865.
Augustus and his youngest brother Julius C. Ducray were the two sons that stayed near their parents in Pennsylvania. Julius devoted himself to their care, and after their passing, Julius maintained the family farm, followed by his son Nestor Augustus until 1963; then Julius's daughter Eve/Eva Mary Ducray ran the farm until her passing in 1967. The farm stayed in the Ducray family for 128 years.
In 1851, returning from a visit home to France, Augustus was on the same ship with his future wife Victorine Monnin (alternate spelling Monin) and her family, on the George Turner, from Le Havre, France, and Liverpool, England, to the Port of New York; it arrived New York 2 June 1851. On board with 23 year old Augustus (listed as Auguste on the ship's manifest) were the Monnin family (spelled Monin):
Gustave, age illegible
Françoise Monin, age 50
Nicolas, 22
Jeannette, 21
Victorine, 18
Cesarine, 14
Octave, 12
Jeanne Françoise Perron, wife of Jean Joseph Monin, and five children from Montagney, Doubs [Vital Records], to Crawford County; naturalized, Joseph Monnin, 5 October 1854, 7 October 1856, unpublished papers of Claude Joseph Champagne in the compiler's possession. Source: Crawford County Genealogy, August 1994, Volume 17, Number Two, page 123: French Immigrants to Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana, compiled by Annette L. Lynch, Crawford County Genealogical Society.
Also on the ship were Jean Baptiste Champagne, 28, and Jeanne Claude, 23: Jean Baptiste Champagne of Gouhelans, Doubs, wife Jeanne Claude Ladefroux of Cognieres, Haute-Saône, Franche-Comté (Montbozon Vital Records [married 23 April 1851], to Crawford County to rejoin his parents; naturalized, Jean Baptiste Champagne, 8 October 1856; source: Crawford County Genealogy, August 1994, Volume 17, Number Two, page 123. Reference to CCG 14 [1991] :82.)
[Cesarine/Sarah Monnin married Jules Francois/Frank J. Picquard/Picard (Roye, Haute-Saône, Franche-Comté, France 19 April 1849-1924 June 2 Meadville, buried Pettis; Meadville Tribune 3, 5 June 1824) in Frenchtown 19 February 1873. Crawford County Genealogy, Volume 18, Number one, page 52, "The Picards from Roye" by Thomas L. Yoset.]
In 1853 Augustus Ducray married Victorine Monnin (some sources show 1863; this is believed to be an error). The 1860 Census on July 11 showed their household:
Augustus 31
Victorine 28
Sarah 4
Octave 3
July 2
Nicholas 3/12 months
Near them in 1860 were Ducrays:
Nicholas 75
Frances 65
Julius 17
--
Joseph 51
Jane 51
Joseph 23
--
John 23 <= Jean-Baptiste Ducray
Judith 28
1870 Census (last name misspelled Pucray in Ancestry com, as the census taker's handwriting made the "D" look like a "P") Age:
Augustus 44
Victorine 38
Sarah 16
Mary 14
Julia 11
Justin 8 *
Charles 6
Gustave 3
Emma 4/12 months
*There is a question whether Justin was the nephew and adoptive son of Augustus and Victorine, raised as their son; question whether his father was Augustus's brother also named Augustus (born François Augustin Ducray), who in 1862 changed his name to Justin.
Children of Augustus and Victorine:
1) Cesarine "Sarah" Jane Ducray Mailliard
Pettis 3 July 1854-1935 April 7 Meadville
Married Joseph Mailliard
Children: Augustus S. Mailliard
Charles H. Mailliard
Olivia Mailliard 13 Sept 1882
Albert E. Mailliard 1884-1965
2) Mary Octavia Ducray Roche
27 Dec 1855-1942 March 16
Married Dr. Edward C. Roche
3) Julia M. Le Comte ~1858-1929 September 15
Married Alexis C. Le Comte, banker (1856-1923)
Son: Dr. Ralph M. Le Comte, Washington, D.C.
19 February 1888-1954 March 11
4) Nicholas, born 1860 ~April, 3/12 in 1860 census
*?) Justin Frank Ducray
1 February 1862-1906 September 6
Children of Augustus and Victorine after 1863:
5) Charles H. Ducray
8 May 1864-1880 Jan 11 (only 16)
Tragically, Charles was killed by a falling tree near Stitzerville
(reported in Cochranton Times)
6) Gustave Leon Ducray 1867-1955
Married Lulu Maude Weitzel
Children: Ralph William
(father of Marjorie DuCray DeFaveri)
Harold W. (lived only six weeks)
Leon August
Clovis Miller
7) Emma Eldina
12 March 1870-1881 April 17 (only 11)
Tragically, Emma lost her life to spotted fever (measles?) in
Frenchtown (reported in Cochranton Times)
8) Edward John
30 April 1872-1905 Feb 21 (only 32)
9) Adelaide Maloney Ducray Vincent
25 July 1873-1905 (only 32)
Married Ernest Starr Vincent
After Adelaide's young passing, Ernest married
Zoe Barrier, and they lovingly named their daughter,
who was born on his first wife Adelaide's birthday,
Adelaide Ducray Vincent. First wife Adelaide,
Ernest, and second wife Zoe all are buried together,
their names lovingly sharing a marker.
10) Charles K. Ducray 1874-?
11) Aurelis "Lilly, Ella, Aurella, Lillian" Ducray Baird
Pettis 25 Nov 1875-1965 May 15
Married Benjamin E. BairD
The 1870 census shows 8-year-old Justin living with Augustus and family; but that census does not state relationships. Justin Frank was not in the 1880 census. He had gone to California, where his uncle Jean-Baptiste Ducray established orchards and vineyard and a lovely home on 35 acres after prospering in the Gold Rush. By 1884, at age 22, Justin Frank owned a 173 acre farm in what was then Mountain View (now Los Altos), Santa Clara County, California. He was elected the Republican delegate for Mountain View. Newspaper articles named him as a guest at parties and tea dances. He was a member of the fraternal order of Masons. His property today is bounded by
- San Antonio Road on the west
- East Edith Avenue on the north
- Foothill Expressway/Fremont Avenue on the south
- no through street on the east, but portions of
his property's east boundary are marked by the
north-south portions of South Avalon Drive, Lerida
Avenue, and La Prenda Road. South El Monte Road
(known in his day as Moody Road) crosses his former
property southwest to northeast about 1/3 of the way
from the south boundary.
- His southeast boundary is at a point approximately
between 387 and 405 Fremont Avenue, approximately
five properties to the west of South Clarke Avenue
and three properties to the east of the
Pinewood School Middle Campus.
- His neighbor to the west was Mrs. Sarah L. Winchester,
whose San Jose home is the tourist attraction
Winchester Mystery House. In 1908, Mrs. Winchester
sold her 144 acre ranch in Mountain View to the
developers of the town of Los Altos.
Justin Frank's property today is the site of
- the Los Altos City Hall,
- Los Altos Library,
- Los Altos History Museum and historical society,
- the historic 1905 J. Gilbert Smith House and its
one-acre Historic Peach Orchard
- Hillview Community Center, Park, Baseball Field,
Bus Barn Stage Company
- Hillview School
- Hillview Senior Center and Hillview Youth Center
- Saint William Catholic Church
- Covington Elementary School
- Los Altos Nursery
- Rosita Park
- Los Altos Lutheran Church
- and many homes and businesses.
His property included many ancient heritage trees
hundreds of years old, including oak trees that
the Native Californians gathered acorns from and
ground with mortar and pestle to make a staple for
an oatmeal-type cereal.
Justin Frank planted a variety of fruits, nuts,
vegetables, and grape vines for wines, but soon
discovered that he could make a good living baling
and selling the hay that grew naturally on his
property; hay was in great demand in those days, when
horses still were the primary form of transportation.
In 1885, a young lady named Margaret "Maggie" Nugent
bought an acre and a half beside Justin Frank Ducray's
property, for a vacation home. Her property was at
Augustus and Victorine were shown in the 1870 census in East Fairfield Township, Crawford County, Pennsylvania.(Their last name is misspelled Pucray in Ancestry dot com; the census taker's handwriting made the "D" in Ducray look like a "P"):
There is a mystery that the modern Ducray family has not yet solved, that begins with two of Nicholas and Frances's sons both using the first name Augustus. According to the 1850 census and records from later years, it appears that the second son of Nicholas and Frances originally was named Gustavus; but he later used the name Augustus (he named one of his sons Leon Gustave Ducray). Nicholas and Frances's fifth son, born in 1837, whose name was shown as Augustus in the 1850 census, later used the name Justin Ducray; but for a time there appears to have been overlap when both sons were using the name Augustus Ducray. The confusion arose because the elder Augustus was named Auguste, while his younger brother was named François Augustin, and he also used the name Augustus. There is a family history of using the same name for living siblings: Nicholas's father and his father's brother both were named Jean-Baptiste. Nicholas's father was known as Jean Baptiste l'Ainé (the elder) and his uncle was referred to as Jean-Baptiste le jeune (the younger).
8-year-old Justin Frank was living with Augustus and Victorine's family in the 1870 census; and his sister Julia M. Ducray Le Comte affectionately named him in her biography in the 1910 HISTORY OF WASHINGTON COUNTY [Pennsylvania] as her late brother Jessie (his nickname; he passed away in 1906 in San Francisco.
The mystery about which of the two Augustus Ducrays was Justin Frank's father is compounded by other mysterious circumstances. One is that when Justin Frank passed away, his death certificate named his father as "Augustus" but for Mother's Name his family put a question mark. It is very confusing that his children would not know or state the identity of his mother, their grandmother.
Also, the younger Augustus, who later used the name Justin, enlisted in the Missouri Cavalry as Augustus Ducray in St. Louis at the start of the Civil War in April 1861. In 1862 when he re-enlisted, the records show that both Augustus Ducray and Justin Ducray enlisted the same day, in the same unit, in the Pennsylvania Infantry. In 1864 when he re-enlisted again, in the Pennsylvania Cavalry, he enlisted only as Justin Ducray. Later, one Civil War pension was paid, to Justin Ducray of East Saint Louis, Illinois, and his military records noted that Augustus and Justin were one and the same person.
Compounding the mystery is that although Augustus/Justin enlisted in Missouri in 1861, his military records show he was granted leave "At Home" in February 1862, and in March 1862 he remained on leave due to "family illness." Justin Frank was born February 1, 1862, in Pennsylvania. When Justin/Augustus re-enlisted in 1862, he enlisted in the Pennsylvania Infantry. He did go back to rejoin his Missouri Cavalry unit in 1862, but he was captured by the Confederate Army near Clinton, Missouri. He was held prisoner, and given the choice to die or to swear an Oath to the Confederate States of America. He swore the Oath, then immediately upon his release he returned to Pennsylvania and enlisted in the Pennsylvania Infantry. When Justin/Augustus married and had a family, he married Marie/Mary Jeunette of Crawford County, Pennsylvania, whose family also came from France. At the time of Justin Frank's birth, Marie Jeunette would have been three months shy of her 15th birthday. It is possible she was Justin Frank's mother, and that if she was, her young age, and because she and Justin/Augustus were not yet married, this would have been a shameful situation and scandal for the Ducray and Jeunette families. This could account for why Justin Frank was raised by Augustus and Victorine, even if he was not their son but was Justin/Augustus's son. It is possible Justin Frank did not know, and that his adoptive brothers and sisters -- the children of Augustus and Victorine -- did not know that Justin/Augustus was his father.
Unfortunately, family letters, photographs, keepsakes, and documents that might have helped clear up the confusion were lost in a flood at the California Ducray family historian Jacqueline DuCray York's home years ago. Auntie Jackie did however mention that she thought Justin Frank Ducray was the son of Justin/Augustus Ducray. Another family misfortune was that Justin Frank and his wife Margaret "Maggie" Nugent Ducray both passed away young, when Jackie's father Justin Nugent Ducray was very young, and so a lot of family information didn't get passed down.
One of the clues that may indicate that Justin/Augustus wwas Justin Frank's father is that Augustus's descendants have documented Augustus's children, but they don't mention Justin Frank, other than that Augustus's daughter's obituary did list a late brother, Jesse, which was Justin Frank's nickname. With their having been raised together, she may have considered him her brother even if she found out later he was actually Justin's son, her cousin. It is unknown yet whether Justin Frank was Augustus's son, or whether he was adopted and raised by Augustus but was actually his brother Justin's son.
Justin Frank's death certificate listed Augustus as his father, with a question mark for his mother's name. It seems odd that if Victorine was his mother, he would not have known his own mother's name; but it makes a bit more sense if he knew Justin Ducray, not Augustus, was his real father, but there was some sort of family scandal or confusion or secret about who his mother was; that would perhaps explain why Justin Frank would have been raised by Augustus and Victorine. It is possible Justin Frank's mother became ill and passed away soon after his birth.
An additional confusion arises given the names in the 1850 Census, which shows a Gustavus Ducray born about 1827, an Augustus Ducray born about 1835. It looks like Gustavus changed his name to Augustus, and Augustus changed his to Justin. It's all very confusing. That makes a little more sense why Justin would have enlisted in the Union Army as Augustus, then later have changed his name to Justin; Army records show his name change, and that Augustus and Justin were the same person; one Civil War Pension was paid, to Justin in East St. Louis, Illinois. He enlisted in the 1st Missouri Cavalry as Augustus Ducray in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1861, but was granted family leave in February 1862 (Justin Frank was born February 1, 1862), and was also recorded as away from his unit in March 1862 for family illness. When he re-enlisted in September 1862, he enlisted in the Pennsylvania Infantry as both Augustus Ducray and Justin Ducray; he re-enlisted again in 1864 as Justin Ducray in the Pennsylvania Cavalry. In 1862, when he tried to return to his Missouri Cavalry unit, he was captured by the Confederate States Army, jailed, and was allowed to leave only by swearing an Oath to the C.S.A., which he didn't mean, and promptly renounced once he left captivity; once freed, he returned to Pennsylvania and enlisted in the Union Army's Pennsylvania Infantry (apparently his horse had been captured or killed; members of the Cavalry supplied their own horse). Years later, he was brought up for Court Martial on charges of desertion, but the Adjutant General found that the charges were unfounded and that Justin was not guilty of any crime.
Justin Frank's granddaughter, Jacqueline Marie Ducray York (who was born 20 years after Justin Frank's untimely passing at just age 44), thought he was the son of Justin Ducray. She heard some family lore that indicated that. Her own father, Justin Nugent Ducray, was only one year old when his mother Margaret Nugent Ducray passed away, and only ten when his father Justin Frank passed away. [Justin Frank named his firstborn son Julian August Ducray, his second son Justin Nugent Ducray.]
Still trying to solve this mystery of whether Justin Frank was actually the son of Justin or Augustus.
Civil War records show Augustus enlisted in the Union Army in 1861, in St. Louis, Missouri; enlisted again in 1862 with his brother Justin in Pennsylvania. [National Archives shows both brothers joined 1862 same day and served in same regiment, but only Justin applied for a pension. Pension records state Justin and Augustus are the same person, "alias" for each other; one pension was paid, to Justin, who lived in East Saint Louis, Illinois.]
In 1853, Augustus married Victorine/Victoria Monnin (17 Jan 1833-1908 April 28; obit 8 May 1908, McDonald, Pennsylvania Record) in Pettis, Crawford County, Pennsylvania. A genealogy site online shows their marriage in 1863, but that is believed to be a typographical error.
On 31 October 1887, heir Jean C. Champaigne [signed John Champaigne] requested Augustus Ducray as the Executor of the Will of Charles Champaigne of East Fairfield Township, signed in Meadville, Pa. Attorney Myron Park Davis filed the document 5 November 1887, Registration Docket 5:385 [source: Crawford County Genealogy, Volume 19, Number One, page 39: Renunciations.] The Jean Claude Champagne family came from Gouhelans, Doubs, France, to Crawford County on the ship Louis Philipe, 27 July 1840:
Claude Champagne, 52
Elisa, 44
Jean, 17
Charles, 14
Frederic, 12
Marie, 10
[Source: Crawford County Genealogy, August 1994, Volume 17, Number Two, page 119, French Immigrants to Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana, compiled by Annette L. Lynch; reference to CCG 14 (1991) :81.]
Also aboard the ship Louis Philipe, 27 July 1840, was the Pierre Roche family:
Pierre Roche, 55
Claire, 54
Mathiew, 23
Hyppolite, 18
Constant, 14
And Pierre Gollier, son-in-law of Pierre Roche, 31, farmer; Jeanne, 27; Charles, 1.
Families of Pierre Antide Joseph Roche and son-in-law Pierre Adolphus Gollier from Mondon, Doubs, to Crawford County (reference CCG 17 (1994) :39-40.
Augustus and Victorine are at rest together with their young daughter Emma and son Charles H. in the cemetery Nicholas Ducray helped donate land to establish,
Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Cemetery, Pettis
Section B Lot 5
Children of Augustus and Victorine:
(1) Cesarine "Sarah" Jane Ducray Mailliard
Pettis 3 July 1854-1935 April 7 Meadville
Married Joseph Mailliard
Saints Peter and Paul Cemetery, Section B. Lot 24
Children: Augustus S. Mailliard
Charles H. Mailliard
Olivia Mailliard 13 Sept 1882
Albert E. Mailliard 1884-1965
(2) Mary Octavia Ducray Roche
27 Dec 1855-1942 March 16
Married Dr. Edward C. Roche
(3) Julia M. Ducray Le Comte
~1858-1929 September 15
Married Alexis C. Le Comte, banker (1856-1923)
Son: Dr. Ralph M. Le Comte, Washington, D.C.
19 February 1888-1954 March 11
(4) Nicholas, born 1860 ~April, 3/12 in 1860 census
(*?) Justin Frank Ducray nickname: Jessie/Jesse
1 February 1862-1906 September 6
There is mystery concerning whether Justin Frank was
son of Augustus and Victorine, or Augustus's brother
also known as Augustus, who was born François Augustin
Ducray, and in 1862 changed his name to Justin.
(5) Charles H. Ducray 8 May 1864-1880 Jan 11 (only 16)
(6) Gustave Leon Ducray 1867-1955
Married Lulu Maude Weitzel
Children: Ralph William Ducray
Leon August Ducray
Harold W. Ducray
Clovis Miller Ducray
(7) Emma Eldina 12 March 1870-1881 April 17 (only 11)
(8) Edward John 30 April 1872-1905 Feb 21 (only 32)
(9) Adelaide Maloney 25 July 1873-1905 (only 32)
Married Ernest Starr Vincent
After Adelaide's young passing, Ernest married
Zoe Barrier. They named their daughter, born on
first wife Adelaide's birthday, Adelaide Ducray Vincent.
Adelaide Maloney Ducray Vincent, Ernest Starr Vincent,
and his second wife Zoe Barrier Vincent all are buried
together, showing their great love and affection.
(10) Charles K. Ducray, 1874-?
(11) Aurelis "Lilly, Ella, Aurella, Lillian" Ducray Baird
Pettis 25 Nov 1875-1965 May 15
Married Benjamin E. Baird
----- Additional info:----------
(2) Mary Octavia Ducray Roche
27 Dec 1855-1942 March 16
Married Dr. Edward C. Roche 8 Sept 1874 in
Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Pettis
Twelve children: Laura, Isabella Sarah 1875-1960,
Herbert Alexander 1877, Charles Augustus 1881-1962,
Arthur Eugene 1884, Benjamin Lewis 1886-1964,
Carl John 1888, Anna Marion 1891, Grace 1893-1965,
Oliver Bryan 1896, Leon 1898, Edward Alexis 1901
Buried Section C Lot 4, Saints Peter and Paul Cemetery
(4) Gustave Leon Ducray 1867-1955
Married Maude Lulu Weitzel (1875-1931)
also known as Lulu Maude Ducray
Their children:
{1} Ralph William 18 September 1898-1987 October
{2} Leon A. Ducray 14 July 1901-1985 January 9
{3} Harold W. Ducray December 1904-1905 January 26
{4} Clovis M. Ducray 21 May 1907-1986 November
{5} Barbara A. Ducray 1908-1945
Gustave did well in oil wells and contracting.
Maude was daughter of a well-liked family. Newspaper
articles noted they were good people, and active
socially.
Tragically, Lulu Maude and Clovis were
struck by another car while Clovis was driving her
home. Lulu Maude's injuries took her life at the
hospital, at age 57; Clovis was only 24. The accident
prompted articles in many Pennsylvania newspapers.
Clovis and his father Gustave ("G L Ducray") sued the
other driver for causing her loss. Later in life, Clovis
owned the Sunset Beach Park and Picnic Plaza, which
included a swimming pool and Sunset Drive-In, in
Claysville, Pennsylvania (southwest of Pittsburgh).
Clovis endured other terrible sorrows: his wife
Barbara A.(1908-1945) tragically was killed when her
clothing caught fire while tending their furnace at
home. Their son, Clovis M., Jr., was born disabled,
and lived only to age 19.
Lt. [Lieutenant, Air Force] Leon A. Ducray married
Emmy Lou. They founded Lee Ducray Interiors, and were
among their area's top interior designers. Their
designs for the Carnegie Institute Gala, and other
mentions of their social events and community
activities, show they were well-liked and regarded in
their community.
(7) Adelaide Maloney Ducray 25 July 1873-1905
First wife of Ernest Starr Vincent
Passed away at only 32 years old, with three small
children.
Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Cemetery
Section B Lot 11 - buried with her husband
Ernest Starr Vincent and his second wife Zoe Barrier
(married 1906). Ernest and Zoe named their only child
Adelaide Ducray Vincent, born on first wife Adelaide's
birthday, July 25, in 1908.
The second Adelaide passed away 14 July 1996 in
Meadville.
Children of first Adelaide Ducray, daughter of Augustus:
(1) Alexander Joseph Vincent 26 Aug 1894-1990 Sep 26
*(2) Julian Augustus Vincent 6 Jan 1896-1979 Oct 29
(his cousin Julian August Ducray was born in 1889:
23 Jan 1889-1945 Dec 15)
Married Marie Alva Mailliard 1919 October 8
Children of Julian Augustus and Marie Vincent:
(1) Mildred Isabell [married George R. Enlow
1939 October 21]
(2) James Harry
(3) Winnifred
(4) Carrie [married Don Smith]
(5) Shirley
Descendant Leonard Enlow (genforum) is one of five
children of Mildred and George Enlow: one passed
away as an infant; Nancy Lee, Dale Edward, and
Jeffrey Scott Enlow. Dale Edward married Patricia
Ann Smith 1974 August 3; their children are
*Julian Edward Enlow and *Jesse Orion Enlow.
(3) Albert Ernest Vincent 16 Aug 1897-1962 Oct 4
*(4) Ralph Ducray Vincent born Frenchtown, Pa.
14 May 1899-1977 Jan 15 Chicago, Illinois
info at genforum:
*Children Jurgen Ernest & Ralph Ducray Vincent, Jr.
(5) Marie Isabell Vincent 24 Jan 1901-1985 March 10
Cincinnati, Ohio. Married Leo Harrington.
Augustus's parents Nicholas (1786-1873) and Frances (née Jeanne Françoise Petitjean; 1797-1883; customarily her name was Françoise and Frances) married 13 Feb 1822 in Gondenans-les-Moulins.
Augustus was born Auguste Ducray on 27 September 1827 in the Ducray family village of Gondenans-les-Moulins.
From search "HARDY PIONEER FAMILY Ducray" online:
In 1839, Nicholas and Frances with their nine children left the port of Havre le Grace, France, aboard the ship Navire Marie, headed for a new home in Crawford County, Pennsylvania, where friends from France already had settled. The ship began taking on water near Newfoundland, and hoping to keep the ship afloat, passengers and crew threw everything overboard, including the Ducrays' chest containing $2,000 in gold and everything else they brought for their start in the United States. Despite all efforts, the ship foundered. Everyone aboard was shipwrecked on a sand island off of the coast of Newfoundland, Sable Island. After days without rescue, without food and fresh water, the ship's crew became crazed. A passenger François Poly overheard the crew planning to kill and eat Nicholas Ducray and one of his sons (possibly his eldest, 15-year-old Jean-Baptiste). François saved the lives of the Ducrays by hiding them buried in sand. To everyone's great fortune, all were rescued the following day by a passing ship. The Ducrays remained lifelong friends with Jean François Poly. The Ducrays had with them a simple wooden cross with an ivory carving of Jesus, that they credited for their fortune of surviving the perilous voyage. The Ducray family bought 80 acres acres southeast of East Mead Township (now Meadville, Crawford County, Pennsylvania) on the southern tip of Tamarack Lake; and later bought another farm on 72 acres located "2 miles south of Frenchtown and Route 27" and "on Route 441 near Boussons Corners." (An estate sale was listed in 1963 upon the passing of Nestor Ducray, grandson of Nicholas and Frances, son of Julius C. and Julia [née Grosclaude] Ducray. Nestor's sister Eva/Eve Mary Ducray Brunot passed away in 1967. The wood cross with ivory carving of Jesus brought with the family to America was kept by Eva, then passed to one of her children.)
Nicholas and Frances's descendants (first generation) went to California, Oregon, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Ohio, Wisconsin, Montana, and Minnesota.
Nicholas and Frances and many of their children, friends, and relatives are at rest in the Catholic church cemetery Nicholas founded (as church trustee, bought acre beside church, donated as cemetery; name misspelled on deed "Ducri"): Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Cemetery, Pettis, Pennsylvania, Crawford County, Section B Lot 5.
Nicholas and Frances had ten children, nine born in the family village in France. (The French family tree showed eleven):
1) Françoise Virginie/Frances Virginia born 1822
2) Jean-Baptiste/John B. Ducray 23 June 1824-1890 March 20
3) Celestine F. Ducray Bourquin, 25 Feb 1826-1899 Feb 7
4) Augustus Ducray 27 Sept 1827-1895 May 12 Pettis
Birth name: Auguste Ducray; in 1850 Census, he was named Gustavus.
5) Claude Marie 8 August 1828-1912 February 23 = Mary F. Wood
6) Jeanne Claude/Johanna/Jane born 25 March 1831
7) Jean Claude/John C. Ducray 2 June 1833-1875 April 6
8) Charles Celestin Ducray 29 April 1835-1925
9) baby Ducray (son) born ~1837 Gondenans (per French family tree).
This is Justin Ducray, born 31 January 1836 or 1837. Birth name: François Augustin Ducray. He was known as Augustus Ducray until 1862, when he began using his name Justin Ducray after his brother Auguste/Gustavus's name change to Augustus Ducray.
10) Justin/Augustus Ducray 1840-1914 December 24 (per 1992 French family tree).
The 1992 French family tree shows Justin's birth in 1840, the 10th child of Nicholas and Frances. Subsequently research has shown he was born François Augustin Ducray on 31 January 1836 or 1837, the 9th child of Nicholas and Frances.
11) Julius C. Ducray Meadville 1841-1925 Pettis
Julius was the first descendant of Servois Ducray born in the U.S.; the 10th child of Nicholas and Frances.
Research in the 1839 ship's manifests, the List of Doubs Emigrants to Pennsylvania in the file Pennsylvanie.pdf, U.S. Censuses, and Justin's Civil War Union Army military records shows that Justin, who originally used the name Augustus until 1862, was the baby Ducray son born in Gondenans ~1837.
Ducrays per the 1839 "Elizabeth Ann" ship's manifest from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to Boston, October 1839 (the Ducrays completed their journey to the U.S. on the Elizabeth Ann, after the shipwreck of the ill-fated steamship Le Marie from Le Havre left them stranded on an island off of the coast of Newfoundland):
Comparison of 1839 ship's manifest with family tree information:
Ship's manifest vs. updated Family tree information
Nicholas Male 1789 50 Nicholas 1786 53
Francis Female 1797 42 Frances 1797 42
Francis Male 1823 16 Frances Virginia 1822 16 or 17
John B. Male 1825 14 Jean-Baptiste 1824 15
Charlotte Female 1826 13 Celestine 1826 13
Augustus Male 1828 11 Augustus 1827 12
Mary Female 1829 10 Claude Marie 1828 11
John Male 1831 8 Jeanne Claude 1831 8
Johanna Male 1833 6 Jean Claude 1833 6
Charles Male 1835 4 Charles Celestin 1835 4
Augusta Female 1837 2 baby Ducray Justin 1837 2
---
Notes:
Ship's manifest is shown as recorded by ship official. In reconciling with family's own information, preference is given to family's information.
Among discrepancies noted, it appears that the manifest mixed up Jeanne Claude and Jean Claude (Jean Claude's other life records indicate his birth year was 1833).
Comparison with U.S. census information:
1840 Census showed limited information, and misspelled Ducray "Dickra"
1840 Census showed:
Nicholass Dickra (with Nicholass written olde-timey: Nicholafs)
Home in 1840: Fairfield, Crawford County, Pennsylvania
# males under 5: 2 [= Justin 3, Charles 4]
# males 5 - 9: 1 [= Jean Claude, 7]
# males 10 - 14: 1 [= Augustus/Gustavus, 13]
# males 15 - 19 1 [= Jean-Baptiste, 16]
# males 50 - 59: 1 [= Nicholas, 50 or 54]
# females 5 - 9: 1 [= Jeanne Claude/Johanna/Jane, 8 or 9]
# females 10 - 14: 2 [Claude Marie/Mary 12, Celestine 14]
# females 15 - 19: 1 [Françoise Virginie/Francis, 18]
# females 20 - 41: 1 [Françoise/Frances, 40 (or 43)]
Total # of persons:
11 <= Eleven in the family is consistent with two adults and nine children, Julius not born yet.
----------------------------------------------------------
1850 Census, taken in September 1850
Ducray misspelled Ducra on census, Dacres in ancestry dot com
Note: Birthplace: France for all the Ducrays
Name Age Born Gender Occupation
Nicholas 60 1790 Male Farmer
Francis 50 1800 Female
John 25 1825 Male Farmer
Gustavus 22 1828 Male Farmer
Jane 18 1832 Female
James 16 1834 Male Farmer
Charles 15 1835 Male
Augustus 14 1836 Male
Julia 10 1840 Female
NOTE: The 1850 census is the first official record that states that a male born in 1828 was named Gustavus; and that a male child born in 1836 was named Augustus. The person named Gustavus in the 1850 census later called himself Augustus; the person named Augustus in the 1850 census later called himself Justin. While we don't know why these name changes happened, this record does help establish that the Augustus born in 1828 originally was named Gustavus, and that the son who changed his name from Augustus to Justin was originally named Augustus. The son born in 1828, who later called himself Augustus, used the name Gustave, a diminutive of Gustavus, as the name for his son Gustave Leon (G. L. Ducray, who married Lulu Maude Weitzel).
Note: the child named Julia, identified as born in 1840, 10 years old and female, actually was son Julius C. Ducray, and he was born in Pennsylvania, not France.
1850 census comparison to family tree:
Nicholas 60 1790 Male 64 1786
Francis 50 1800 Female 53 1797
John 25 1825 Male 25 1824
Gustavus 22 1828 Male = Augustus
Jane 18 1832 Female = Jeanne Claude 18/19 1831
James 16 1834 Male = Jean Claude 16/17 1833
Charles 15 1835 Male
Augustus 14 1836 Male = Justin 10 1840
or 13/14 1837
Julia 10 1840 Female = Julius 9/10 ~1841
= 9 people; missing two = X
Not found in 1850 census
X 1) Françoise Virginie/Frances Virginia born 1822
2) Jean-Baptiste/John B. Ducray 23 June 1824-1890 March 20
X 3) Celestine F. Bourquin, 25 Feb 1826-1899 Feb 7
4) Augustus Ducray 27 Sept 1827-1895 May 12 Pettis
= Gustavus in 1850 census
5) Claude Marie 8 August 1828-1912 February 23
= Mary F. Wood; ~22 years old in 1850
6) Jeanne Claude 1831
= Jane in 1850 census, Johanna on 1839 manifest
7) Jean Claude/John C. Ducray 1833-1875 April 6
= James in 1850 census
In 1839 Nicholas and Françoise/Frances (née Petitjean) Ducray emigrated with their nine children from Gondenans-les-Moulins, France, to Meadville, Crawford County, Pennsylvania, where friends already had settled along the route that George Washington had led his Army ("Grand Army of the Republic") during the Revolution. Nicholas and Frances bought a farm at the southern end of Lake Tamarack. They had one more child after they arrived in Crawford County, Julius C. Ducray born in 1841.
Augustus was born in the Ducray family village of Gondenans-les-Moulins.
Nicholas was a peace-loving man who had avoided conscription into Napoleon's army because of a childhood injury that cost his eyesight in one eye. He wanted his sons to grow up in a peaceful land free of the ravages of war. Friends had emigrated to the United States and settled in Crawford County, Pennsylvania. With a spirit of adventure, Nicholas and Frances moved to Crawford County also. This was particularly an adventure given that Nicholas was 50 years old, and Frances 40, when they made the journey with their nine children ranging in age from 3 years old to 17.
The family had a harrowing experience during their journey to the United States, when their ship began taking on water off of the coast of Newfoundland. Passengers and crew threw everything overboard, hoping to stay afloat. The Ducrays threw overboard their chest containing everything they had brought with them, including $2,000 in gold coins. The ship foundered despite their efforts, and they were shipwrecked on a sand island off of the coast of Newfoundland. After days without food and water, the ship's crew became crazed: a fellow passenger, Jean François Poly, overheard the crew plotting to kill and eat Nicholas and one of his sons, perhaps the eldest, Augustus's brother 15-year-old Jean-Baptiste. Monsieur Poly hid the Ducrays by burying them in sand. Fortunately for everyone, they all were rescued by a passing ship the next day. Luckily, also, the Ducrays' chest washed ashore onto the island, so they retrieved all they had brought with them. One of Nicholas's first acts when they settled in Crawford County was to become a trustee of Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Pettis and donate an acre of land beside the church for its graveyard (where Nicholas, Frances, Augustus, and many of the family and their friends and neighbors are at rest). (See "HARDY PIONEER FAMILY Ducray" online.)
After their rescue, the Ducray family eventually arrived in Boston aboard the ship "Elizabeth Ann" from Halifax, Nova Scotia, on 10 October 1839. The ship's manifest shows the following Ducrays (beside it is our family records info):
Est. Year Our info
Ship's manifest Born Age Name Born Age
Nicholas Male 1789 50 Nicholas 1785 54
Francis Female 1797 42 Frances 1795 44
Francis Male 1823 16 Frances Virginia 1822 ~16 or 17
John B. Male 1825 14 Jean-Baptiste 1824 ~14 or 15
Charlotte Female 1826 13 Celestine 1826 13
Augustus Male 1828 11 Augustus 1827 12
Mary Female 1829 10 Claude Marie 1828 11
John Male 1831 8 Jeanne Claude 1831 8
Johanna Male 1833 6 Jean Claude 1833 6
Charles Male 1835 4 Charles Celestin 1835 4
Augusta Female 1837 2 baby Ducray 1837 2
The genders and names are mixed up on the manifest of the ship "Elizabeth Ann" that the Ducrays took to Boston from Halifax, Nova Scotia, in October 1839.
Either the Ducrays had a 2 year old daughter Augusta, or that was Augustus/Justin.
The 1850 census (taken in September 1850) shows the following people in the household of Nicholas and Frances Ducray (last name misspelled Ducra in Census, Dacres in Ancestry dot com):
Age [approximate birth year based on census age]
Nicholas 60 [so birth year ~1790; actually 1785]
Francis 50 [so birth year ~1800; actually 1795]
John 25 [~1825; Jean-Baptiste/John C. Ducray, 1824]
Gustavus 22 [~1828; later known as Augustus Ducray, 1828]
Jane 18 [~1832; Jeanne Claude, 1831]
James 16 [~1834; Jean Claude/John C. Ducray, 1833]
Charles 15 [~1833; Charles Celestin Ducray, 1835]
Augustus 14 [~1834; Justin Ducray, born 1835? 1840?]
Julia 10 [~1840; actually Julius C. Ducray, 1841]
Three children not shown in the Ducray household in 1850:
Françoise Virginie/Frances Virginia, ~28, born 1822
Celestine F. Ducray Bourquin, 24, born 25 Feb 1826
Claude Marie (Mary F. Wood), 22, born 8 August 1828
The family loved Pennsylvania, and made it their home, making trips back to France to visit family and friends. Nicholas purchased a second farm, in Fairfield, Crawford County, Pennsylvania, and he gave each of his children ten acres.
Nicholas encouraged his children who wanted to move and explore West. Four of his six sons and two of his daughters did move West: sons Jean-Baptiste and Jean Claude went to California in 1850 during the Gold Rush, where they fell in love with Nevada City and made it their home. Daughter Claude Marie traveled to visit her brothers in Nevada City, where she met and married her husband Frank N. Wood, a quartz gold miner and member of the Wood family who built on their property and operated the historic Bridgeport Covered Bridge and the Lake Wildwood to French Corral section of the Marysville to Virginia City toll road, using lumber from their forests in Nevada and Sierra Counties, milled in their own lumber mills; upon her marriage, she changed her name to Mary F. Wood, and she and Frank made their home in Albany, Linn County, Oregon, where Frank had a quarry and a marble monument and engraving business. Nicholas and Frances's daughter Celestine Ducray Bourquin traveled by wagon train to Colorado with her gold prospecting sons Augustus Dominick and George Bourquin, who struck gold and settled in Aspen; Augustus Dominick became an Aspen City Councilman, while George Bourquin and his son both became the U.S. Federal District Court Judges in Colorado. Son Charles Celestin Ducray moved to Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Ohio (he actually lived in a small geographic area, near the border of the states), and he patented a corn planter; his son Frank Nicholas Ducray became a Colorado State Champion wrestler, then Sheriff of Colorado Springs, and an educator in western Colorado. Son Justin Ducray moved to East Saint Louis, Illinois, where he established his painting and wallpaper business Justin Ducray & Son, a City contractor for Saint Louis, Missouri, and East Saint Louis, Illinois, which are across the Illinois River from each other. In April 1861 at the start of the Civil War, in Saint Louis, Missouri, Justin enlisted in the First Missouri Cavalry of the Union Army; he re-enlisted twice, and served through the end of the Civil War in 1865.
Augustus and his youngest brother Julius C. Ducray were the two sons that stayed near their parents in Pennsylvania. Julius devoted himself to their care, and after their passing, Julius maintained the family farm, followed by his son Nestor Augustus until 1963; then Julius's daughter Eve/Eva Mary Ducray ran the farm until her passing in 1967. The farm stayed in the Ducray family for 128 years.
In 1851, returning from a visit home to France, Augustus was on the same ship with his future wife Victorine Monnin (alternate spelling Monin) and her family, on the George Turner, from Le Havre, France, and Liverpool, England, to the Port of New York; it arrived New York 2 June 1851. On board with 23 year old Augustus (listed as Auguste on the ship's manifest) were the Monnin family (spelled Monin):
Gustave, age illegible
Françoise Monin, age 50
Nicolas, 22
Jeannette, 21
Victorine, 18
Cesarine, 14
Octave, 12
Jeanne Françoise Perron, wife of Jean Joseph Monin, and five children from Montagney, Doubs [Vital Records], to Crawford County; naturalized, Joseph Monnin, 5 October 1854, 7 October 1856, unpublished papers of Claude Joseph Champagne in the compiler's possession. Source: Crawford County Genealogy, August 1994, Volume 17, Number Two, page 123: French Immigrants to Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana, compiled by Annette L. Lynch, Crawford County Genealogical Society.
Also on the ship were Jean Baptiste Champagne, 28, and Jeanne Claude, 23: Jean Baptiste Champagne of Gouhelans, Doubs, wife Jeanne Claude Ladefroux of Cognieres, Haute-Saône, Franche-Comté (Montbozon Vital Records [married 23 April 1851], to Crawford County to rejoin his parents; naturalized, Jean Baptiste Champagne, 8 October 1856; source: Crawford County Genealogy, August 1994, Volume 17, Number Two, page 123. Reference to CCG 14 [1991] :82.)
[Cesarine/Sarah Monnin married Jules Francois/Frank J. Picquard/Picard (Roye, Haute-Saône, Franche-Comté, France 19 April 1849-1924 June 2 Meadville, buried Pettis; Meadville Tribune 3, 5 June 1824) in Frenchtown 19 February 1873. Crawford County Genealogy, Volume 18, Number one, page 52, "The Picards from Roye" by Thomas L. Yoset.]
In 1853 Augustus Ducray married Victorine Monnin (some sources show 1863; this is believed to be an error). The 1860 Census on July 11 showed their household:
Augustus 31
Victorine 28
Sarah 4
Octave 3
July 2
Nicholas 3/12 months
Near them in 1860 were Ducrays:
Nicholas 75
Frances 65
Julius 17
--
Joseph 51
Jane 51
Joseph 23
--
John 23 <= Jean-Baptiste Ducray
Judith 28
1870 Census (last name misspelled Pucray in Ancestry com, as the census taker's handwriting made the "D" look like a "P") Age:
Augustus 44
Victorine 38
Sarah 16
Mary 14
Julia 11
Justin 8 *
Charles 6
Gustave 3
Emma 4/12 months
*There is a question whether Justin was the nephew and adoptive son of Augustus and Victorine, raised as their son; question whether his father was Augustus's brother also named Augustus (born François Augustin Ducray), who in 1862 changed his name to Justin.
Children of Augustus and Victorine:
1) Cesarine "Sarah" Jane Ducray Mailliard
Pettis 3 July 1854-1935 April 7 Meadville
Married Joseph Mailliard
Children: Augustus S. Mailliard
Charles H. Mailliard
Olivia Mailliard 13 Sept 1882
Albert E. Mailliard 1884-1965
2) Mary Octavia Ducray Roche
27 Dec 1855-1942 March 16
Married Dr. Edward C. Roche
3) Julia M. Le Comte ~1858-1929 September 15
Married Alexis C. Le Comte, banker (1856-1923)
Son: Dr. Ralph M. Le Comte, Washington, D.C.
19 February 1888-1954 March 11
4) Nicholas, born 1860 ~April, 3/12 in 1860 census
*?) Justin Frank Ducray
1 February 1862-1906 September 6
Children of Augustus and Victorine after 1863:
5) Charles H. Ducray
8 May 1864-1880 Jan 11 (only 16)
Tragically, Charles was killed by a falling tree near Stitzerville
(reported in Cochranton Times)
6) Gustave Leon Ducray 1867-1955
Married Lulu Maude Weitzel
Children: Ralph William
(father of Marjorie DuCray DeFaveri)
Harold W. (lived only six weeks)
Leon August
Clovis Miller
7) Emma Eldina
12 March 1870-1881 April 17 (only 11)
Tragically, Emma lost her life to spotted fever (measles?) in
Frenchtown (reported in Cochranton Times)
8) Edward John
30 April 1872-1905 Feb 21 (only 32)
9) Adelaide Maloney Ducray Vincent
25 July 1873-1905 (only 32)
Married Ernest Starr Vincent
After Adelaide's young passing, Ernest married
Zoe Barrier, and they lovingly named their daughter,
who was born on his first wife Adelaide's birthday,
Adelaide Ducray Vincent. First wife Adelaide,
Ernest, and second wife Zoe all are buried together,
their names lovingly sharing a marker.
10) Charles K. Ducray 1874-?
11) Aurelis "Lilly, Ella, Aurella, Lillian" Ducray Baird
Pettis 25 Nov 1875-1965 May 15
Married Benjamin E. BairD
The 1870 census shows 8-year-old Justin living with Augustus and family; but that census does not state relationships. Justin Frank was not in the 1880 census. He had gone to California, where his uncle Jean-Baptiste Ducray established orchards and vineyard and a lovely home on 35 acres after prospering in the Gold Rush. By 1884, at age 22, Justin Frank owned a 173 acre farm in what was then Mountain View (now Los Altos), Santa Clara County, California. He was elected the Republican delegate for Mountain View. Newspaper articles named him as a guest at parties and tea dances. He was a member of the fraternal order of Masons. His property today is bounded by
- San Antonio Road on the west
- East Edith Avenue on the north
- Foothill Expressway/Fremont Avenue on the south
- no through street on the east, but portions of
his property's east boundary are marked by the
north-south portions of South Avalon Drive, Lerida
Avenue, and La Prenda Road. South El Monte Road
(known in his day as Moody Road) crosses his former
property southwest to northeast about 1/3 of the way
from the south boundary.
- His southeast boundary is at a point approximately
between 387 and 405 Fremont Avenue, approximately
five properties to the west of South Clarke Avenue
and three properties to the east of the
Pinewood School Middle Campus.
- His neighbor to the west was Mrs. Sarah L. Winchester,
whose San Jose home is the tourist attraction
Winchester Mystery House. In 1908, Mrs. Winchester
sold her 144 acre ranch in Mountain View to the
developers of the town of Los Altos.
Justin Frank's property today is the site of
- the Los Altos City Hall,
- Los Altos Library,
- Los Altos History Museum and historical society,
- the historic 1905 J. Gilbert Smith House and its
one-acre Historic Peach Orchard
- Hillview Community Center, Park, Baseball Field,
Bus Barn Stage Company
- Hillview School
- Hillview Senior Center and Hillview Youth Center
- Saint William Catholic Church
- Covington Elementary School
- Los Altos Nursery
- Rosita Park
- Los Altos Lutheran Church
- and many homes and businesses.
His property included many ancient heritage trees
hundreds of years old, including oak trees that
the Native Californians gathered acorns from and
ground with mortar and pestle to make a staple for
an oatmeal-type cereal.
Justin Frank planted a variety of fruits, nuts,
vegetables, and grape vines for wines, but soon
discovered that he could make a good living baling
and selling the hay that grew naturally on his
property; hay was in great demand in those days, when
horses still were the primary form of transportation.
In 1885, a young lady named Margaret "Maggie" Nugent
bought an acre and a half beside Justin Frank Ducray's
property, for a vacation home. Her property was at
Augustus and Victorine were shown in the 1870 census in East Fairfield Township, Crawford County, Pennsylvania.(Their last name is misspelled Pucray in Ancestry dot com; the census taker's handwriting made the "D" in Ducray look like a "P"):
There is a mystery that the modern Ducray family has not yet solved, that begins with two of Nicholas and Frances's sons both using the first name Augustus. According to the 1850 census and records from later years, it appears that the second son of Nicholas and Frances originally was named Gustavus; but he later used the name Augustus (he named one of his sons Leon Gustave Ducray). Nicholas and Frances's fifth son, born in 1837, whose name was shown as Augustus in the 1850 census, later used the name Justin Ducray; but for a time there appears to have been overlap when both sons were using the name Augustus Ducray. The confusion arose because the elder Augustus was named Auguste, while his younger brother was named François Augustin, and he also used the name Augustus. There is a family history of using the same name for living siblings: Nicholas's father and his father's brother both were named Jean-Baptiste. Nicholas's father was known as Jean Baptiste l'Ainé (the elder) and his uncle was referred to as Jean-Baptiste le jeune (the younger).
8-year-old Justin Frank was living with Augustus and Victorine's family in the 1870 census; and his sister Julia M. Ducray Le Comte affectionately named him in her biography in the 1910 HISTORY OF WASHINGTON COUNTY [Pennsylvania] as her late brother Jessie (his nickname; he passed away in 1906 in San Francisco.
The mystery about which of the two Augustus Ducrays was Justin Frank's father is compounded by other mysterious circumstances. One is that when Justin Frank passed away, his death certificate named his father as "Augustus" but for Mother's Name his family put a question mark. It is very confusing that his children would not know or state the identity of his mother, their grandmother.
Also, the younger Augustus, who later used the name Justin, enlisted in the Missouri Cavalry as Augustus Ducray in St. Louis at the start of the Civil War in April 1861. In 1862 when he re-enlisted, the records show that both Augustus Ducray and Justin Ducray enlisted the same day, in the same unit, in the Pennsylvania Infantry. In 1864 when he re-enlisted again, in the Pennsylvania Cavalry, he enlisted only as Justin Ducray. Later, one Civil War pension was paid, to Justin Ducray of East Saint Louis, Illinois, and his military records noted that Augustus and Justin were one and the same person.
Compounding the mystery is that although Augustus/Justin enlisted in Missouri in 1861, his military records show he was granted leave "At Home" in February 1862, and in March 1862 he remained on leave due to "family illness." Justin Frank was born February 1, 1862, in Pennsylvania. When Justin/Augustus re-enlisted in 1862, he enlisted in the Pennsylvania Infantry. He did go back to rejoin his Missouri Cavalry unit in 1862, but he was captured by the Confederate Army near Clinton, Missouri. He was held prisoner, and given the choice to die or to swear an Oath to the Confederate States of America. He swore the Oath, then immediately upon his release he returned to Pennsylvania and enlisted in the Pennsylvania Infantry. When Justin/Augustus married and had a family, he married Marie/Mary Jeunette of Crawford County, Pennsylvania, whose family also came from France. At the time of Justin Frank's birth, Marie Jeunette would have been three months shy of her 15th birthday. It is possible she was Justin Frank's mother, and that if she was, her young age, and because she and Justin/Augustus were not yet married, this would have been a shameful situation and scandal for the Ducray and Jeunette families. This could account for why Justin Frank was raised by Augustus and Victorine, even if he was not their son but was Justin/Augustus's son. It is possible Justin Frank did not know, and that his adoptive brothers and sisters -- the children of Augustus and Victorine -- did not know that Justin/Augustus was his father.
Unfortunately, family letters, photographs, keepsakes, and documents that might have helped clear up the confusion were lost in a flood at the California Ducray family historian Jacqueline DuCray York's home years ago. Auntie Jackie did however mention that she thought Justin Frank Ducray was the son of Justin/Augustus Ducray. Another family misfortune was that Justin Frank and his wife Margaret "Maggie" Nugent Ducray both passed away young, when Jackie's father Justin Nugent Ducray was very young, and so a lot of family information didn't get passed down.
One of the clues that may indicate that Justin/Augustus wwas Justin Frank's father is that Augustus's descendants have documented Augustus's children, but they don't mention Justin Frank, other than that Augustus's daughter's obituary did list a late brother, Jesse, which was Justin Frank's nickname. With their having been raised together, she may have considered him her brother even if she found out later he was actually Justin's son, her cousin. It is unknown yet whether Justin Frank was Augustus's son, or whether he was adopted and raised by Augustus but was actually his brother Justin's son.
Justin Frank's death certificate listed Augustus as his father, with a question mark for his mother's name. It seems odd that if Victorine was his mother, he would not have known his own mother's name; but it makes a bit more sense if he knew Justin Ducray, not Augustus, was his real father, but there was some sort of family scandal or confusion or secret about who his mother was; that would perhaps explain why Justin Frank would have been raised by Augustus and Victorine. It is possible Justin Frank's mother became ill and passed away soon after his birth.
An additional confusion arises given the names in the 1850 Census, which shows a Gustavus Ducray born about 1827, an Augustus Ducray born about 1835. It looks like Gustavus changed his name to Augustus, and Augustus changed his to Justin. It's all very confusing. That makes a little more sense why Justin would have enlisted in the Union Army as Augustus, then later have changed his name to Justin; Army records show his name change, and that Augustus and Justin were the same person; one Civil War Pension was paid, to Justin in East St. Louis, Illinois. He enlisted in the 1st Missouri Cavalry as Augustus Ducray in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1861, but was granted family leave in February 1862 (Justin Frank was born February 1, 1862), and was also recorded as away from his unit in March 1862 for family illness. When he re-enlisted in September 1862, he enlisted in the Pennsylvania Infantry as both Augustus Ducray and Justin Ducray; he re-enlisted again in 1864 as Justin Ducray in the Pennsylvania Cavalry. In 1862, when he tried to return to his Missouri Cavalry unit, he was captured by the Confederate States Army, jailed, and was allowed to leave only by swearing an Oath to the C.S.A., which he didn't mean, and promptly renounced once he left captivity; once freed, he returned to Pennsylvania and enlisted in the Union Army's Pennsylvania Infantry (apparently his horse had been captured or killed; members of the Cavalry supplied their own horse). Years later, he was brought up for Court Martial on charges of desertion, but the Adjutant General found that the charges were unfounded and that Justin was not guilty of any crime.
Justin Frank's granddaughter, Jacqueline Marie Ducray York (who was born 20 years after Justin Frank's untimely passing at just age 44), thought he was the son of Justin Ducray. She heard some family lore that indicated that. Her own father, Justin Nugent Ducray, was only one year old when his mother Margaret Nugent Ducray passed away, and only ten when his father Justin Frank passed away. [Justin Frank named his firstborn son Julian August Ducray, his second son Justin Nugent Ducray.]
Still trying to solve this mystery of whether Justin Frank was actually the son of Justin or Augustus.
Civil War records show Augustus enlisted in the Union Army in 1861, in St. Louis, Missouri; enlisted again in 1862 with his brother Justin in Pennsylvania. [National Archives shows both brothers joined 1862 same day and served in same regiment, but only Justin applied for a pension. Pension records state Justin and Augustus are the same person, "alias" for each other; one pension was paid, to Justin, who lived in East Saint Louis, Illinois.]
In 1853, Augustus married Victorine/Victoria Monnin (17 Jan 1833-1908 April 28; obit 8 May 1908, McDonald, Pennsylvania Record) in Pettis, Crawford County, Pennsylvania. A genealogy site online shows their marriage in 1863, but that is believed to be a typographical error.
On 31 October 1887, heir Jean C. Champaigne [signed John Champaigne] requested Augustus Ducray as the Executor of the Will of Charles Champaigne of East Fairfield Township, signed in Meadville, Pa. Attorney Myron Park Davis filed the document 5 November 1887, Registration Docket 5:385 [source: Crawford County Genealogy, Volume 19, Number One, page 39: Renunciations.] The Jean Claude Champagne family came from Gouhelans, Doubs, France, to Crawford County on the ship Louis Philipe, 27 July 1840:
Claude Champagne, 52
Elisa, 44
Jean, 17
Charles, 14
Frederic, 12
Marie, 10
[Source: Crawford County Genealogy, August 1994, Volume 17, Number Two, page 119, French Immigrants to Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana, compiled by Annette L. Lynch; reference to CCG 14 (1991) :81.]
Also aboard the ship Louis Philipe, 27 July 1840, was the Pierre Roche family:
Pierre Roche, 55
Claire, 54
Mathiew, 23
Hyppolite, 18
Constant, 14
And Pierre Gollier, son-in-law of Pierre Roche, 31, farmer; Jeanne, 27; Charles, 1.
Families of Pierre Antide Joseph Roche and son-in-law Pierre Adolphus Gollier from Mondon, Doubs, to Crawford County (reference CCG 17 (1994) :39-40.
Augustus and Victorine are at rest together with their young daughter Emma and son Charles H. in the cemetery Nicholas Ducray helped donate land to establish,
Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Cemetery, Pettis
Section B Lot 5
Children of Augustus and Victorine:
(1) Cesarine "Sarah" Jane Ducray Mailliard
Pettis 3 July 1854-1935 April 7 Meadville
Married Joseph Mailliard
Saints Peter and Paul Cemetery, Section B. Lot 24
Children: Augustus S. Mailliard
Charles H. Mailliard
Olivia Mailliard 13 Sept 1882
Albert E. Mailliard 1884-1965
(2) Mary Octavia Ducray Roche
27 Dec 1855-1942 March 16
Married Dr. Edward C. Roche
(3) Julia M. Ducray Le Comte
~1858-1929 September 15
Married Alexis C. Le Comte, banker (1856-1923)
Son: Dr. Ralph M. Le Comte, Washington, D.C.
19 February 1888-1954 March 11
(4) Nicholas, born 1860 ~April, 3/12 in 1860 census
(*?) Justin Frank Ducray nickname: Jessie/Jesse
1 February 1862-1906 September 6
There is mystery concerning whether Justin Frank was
son of Augustus and Victorine, or Augustus's brother
also known as Augustus, who was born François Augustin
Ducray, and in 1862 changed his name to Justin.
(5) Charles H. Ducray 8 May 1864-1880 Jan 11 (only 16)
(6) Gustave Leon Ducray 1867-1955
Married Lulu Maude Weitzel
Children: Ralph William Ducray
Leon August Ducray
Harold W. Ducray
Clovis Miller Ducray
(7) Emma Eldina 12 March 1870-1881 April 17 (only 11)
(8) Edward John 30 April 1872-1905 Feb 21 (only 32)
(9) Adelaide Maloney 25 July 1873-1905 (only 32)
Married Ernest Starr Vincent
After Adelaide's young passing, Ernest married
Zoe Barrier. They named their daughter, born on
first wife Adelaide's birthday, Adelaide Ducray Vincent.
Adelaide Maloney Ducray Vincent, Ernest Starr Vincent,
and his second wife Zoe Barrier Vincent all are buried
together, showing their great love and affection.
(10) Charles K. Ducray, 1874-?
(11) Aurelis "Lilly, Ella, Aurella, Lillian" Ducray Baird
Pettis 25 Nov 1875-1965 May 15
Married Benjamin E. Baird
----- Additional info:----------
(2) Mary Octavia Ducray Roche
27 Dec 1855-1942 March 16
Married Dr. Edward C. Roche 8 Sept 1874 in
Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Pettis
Twelve children: Laura, Isabella Sarah 1875-1960,
Herbert Alexander 1877, Charles Augustus 1881-1962,
Arthur Eugene 1884, Benjamin Lewis 1886-1964,
Carl John 1888, Anna Marion 1891, Grace 1893-1965,
Oliver Bryan 1896, Leon 1898, Edward Alexis 1901
Buried Section C Lot 4, Saints Peter and Paul Cemetery
(4) Gustave Leon Ducray 1867-1955
Married Maude Lulu Weitzel (1875-1931)
also known as Lulu Maude Ducray
Their children:
{1} Ralph William 18 September 1898-1987 October
{2} Leon A. Ducray 14 July 1901-1985 January 9
{3} Harold W. Ducray December 1904-1905 January 26
{4} Clovis M. Ducray 21 May 1907-1986 November
{5} Barbara A. Ducray 1908-1945
Gustave did well in oil wells and contracting.
Maude was daughter of a well-liked family. Newspaper
articles noted they were good people, and active
socially.
Tragically, Lulu Maude and Clovis were
struck by another car while Clovis was driving her
home. Lulu Maude's injuries took her life at the
hospital, at age 57; Clovis was only 24. The accident
prompted articles in many Pennsylvania newspapers.
Clovis and his father Gustave ("G L Ducray") sued the
other driver for causing her loss. Later in life, Clovis
owned the Sunset Beach Park and Picnic Plaza, which
included a swimming pool and Sunset Drive-In, in
Claysville, Pennsylvania (southwest of Pittsburgh).
Clovis endured other terrible sorrows: his wife
Barbara A.(1908-1945) tragically was killed when her
clothing caught fire while tending their furnace at
home. Their son, Clovis M., Jr., was born disabled,
and lived only to age 19.
Lt. [Lieutenant, Air Force] Leon A. Ducray married
Emmy Lou. They founded Lee Ducray Interiors, and were
among their area's top interior designers. Their
designs for the Carnegie Institute Gala, and other
mentions of their social events and community
activities, show they were well-liked and regarded in
their community.
(7) Adelaide Maloney Ducray 25 July 1873-1905
First wife of Ernest Starr Vincent
Passed away at only 32 years old, with three small
children.
Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Cemetery
Section B Lot 11 - buried with her husband
Ernest Starr Vincent and his second wife Zoe Barrier
(married 1906). Ernest and Zoe named their only child
Adelaide Ducray Vincent, born on first wife Adelaide's
birthday, July 25, in 1908.
The second Adelaide passed away 14 July 1996 in
Meadville.
Children of first Adelaide Ducray, daughter of Augustus:
(1) Alexander Joseph Vincent 26 Aug 1894-1990 Sep 26
*(2) Julian Augustus Vincent 6 Jan 1896-1979 Oct 29
(his cousin Julian August Ducray was born in 1889:
23 Jan 1889-1945 Dec 15)
Married Marie Alva Mailliard 1919 October 8
Children of Julian Augustus and Marie Vincent:
(1) Mildred Isabell [married George R. Enlow
1939 October 21]
(2) James Harry
(3) Winnifred
(4) Carrie [married Don Smith]
(5) Shirley
Descendant Leonard Enlow (genforum) is one of five
children of Mildred and George Enlow: one passed
away as an infant; Nancy Lee, Dale Edward, and
Jeffrey Scott Enlow. Dale Edward married Patricia
Ann Smith 1974 August 3; their children are
*Julian Edward Enlow and *Jesse Orion Enlow.
(3) Albert Ernest Vincent 16 Aug 1897-1962 Oct 4
*(4) Ralph Ducray Vincent born Frenchtown, Pa.
14 May 1899-1977 Jan 15 Chicago, Illinois
info at genforum:
*Children Jurgen Ernest & Ralph Ducray Vincent, Jr.
(5) Marie Isabell Vincent 24 Jan 1901-1985 March 10
Cincinnati, Ohio. Married Leo Harrington.
Augustus was the descendant of Servois Ducray, one of the Ducray Nine, nine Ducray brothers who in the 1590s saved the life of the French King Henry IV ("Henry the Great," "Good King Henry") and were rewarded with knighthood and villages. Servois' village was Gondenans-les-Moulins. The family crest is a shield and swords, with nine arrows crossed in the shape of an asterisk representing the nine brothers.
Augustus's parents Nicholas (1786-1873) and Frances (née Jeanne Françoise Petitjean; 1797-1883; customarily her name was Françoise and Frances) married 13 Feb 1822 in Gondenans-les-Moulins.
Augustus was born Auguste Ducray on 27 September 1827 in the Ducray family village of Gondenans-les-Moulins.
From search "HARDY PIONEER FAMILY Ducray" online:
In 1839, Nicholas and Frances with their nine children left the port of Havre le Grace, France, aboard the ship Navire Marie, headed for a new home in Crawford County, Pennsylvania, where friends from France already had settled. The ship began taking on water near Newfoundland, and hoping to keep the ship afloat, passengers and crew threw everything overboard, including the Ducrays' chest containing $2,000 in gold and everything else they brought for their start in the United States. Despite all efforts, the ship foundered. Everyone aboard was shipwrecked on a sand island off of the coast of Newfoundland, Sable Island. After days without rescue, without food and fresh water, the ship's crew became crazed. A passenger François Poly overheard the crew planning to kill and eat Nicholas Ducray and one of his sons (possibly his eldest, 15-year-old Jean-Baptiste). François saved the lives of the Ducrays by hiding them buried in sand. To everyone's great fortune, all were rescued the following day by a passing ship. The Ducrays remained lifelong friends with Jean François Poly. The Ducrays had with them a simple wooden cross with an ivory carving of Jesus, that they credited for their fortune of surviving the perilous voyage. The Ducray family bought 80 acres acres southeast of East Mead Township (now Meadville, Crawford County, Pennsylvania) on the southern tip of Tamarack Lake; and later bought another farm on 72 acres located "2 miles south of Frenchtown and Route 27" and "on Route 441 near Boussons Corners." (An estate sale was listed in 1963 upon the passing of Nestor Ducray, grandson of Nicholas and Frances, son of Julius C. and Julia [née Grosclaude] Ducray. Nestor's sister Eva/Eve Mary Ducray Brunot passed away in 1967. The wood cross with ivory carving of Jesus brought with the family to America was kept by Eva, then passed to one of her children.)
Nicholas and Frances's descendants (first generation) went to California, Oregon, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Ohio, Wisconsin, Montana, and Minnesota.
Nicholas and Frances and many of their children, friends, and relatives are at rest in the Catholic church cemetery Nicholas founded (as church trustee, bought acre beside church, donated as cemetery; name misspelled on deed "Ducri"): Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Cemetery, Pettis, Pennsylvania, Crawford County, Section B Lot 5.
Nicholas and Frances had ten children, nine born in the family village in France. (The French family tree showed eleven):
1) Françoise Virginie/Frances Virginia born 1822
2) Jean-Baptiste/John B. Ducray 23 June 1824-1890 March 20
3) Celestine F. Ducray Bourquin, 25 Feb 1826-1899 Feb 7
4) Augustus Ducray 27 Sept 1827-1895 May 12 Pettis
Birth name: Auguste Ducray; in 1850 Census, he was named Gustavus.
5) Claude Marie 8 August 1828-1912 February 23 = Mary F. Wood
6) Jeanne Claude/Johanna/Jane born 25 March 1831
7) Jean Claude/John C. Ducray 2 June 1833-1875 April 6
8) Charles Celestin Ducray 29 April 1835-1925
9) baby Ducray (son) born ~1837 Gondenans (per French family tree).
This is Justin Ducray, born 31 January 1836 or 1837. Birth name: François Augustin Ducray. He was known as Augustus Ducray until 1862, when he began using his name Justin Ducray after his brother Auguste/Gustavus's name change to Augustus Ducray.
10) Justin/Augustus Ducray 1840-1914 December 24 (per 1992 French family tree).
The 1992 French family tree shows Justin's birth in 1840, the 10th child of Nicholas and Frances. Subsequently research has shown he was born François Augustin Ducray on 31 January 1836 or 1837, the 9th child of Nicholas and Frances.
11) Julius C. Ducray Meadville 1841-1925 Pettis
Julius was the first descendant of Servois Ducray born in the U.S.; the 10th child of Nicholas and Frances.
Research in the 1839 ship's manifests, the List of Doubs Emigrants to Pennsylvania in the file Pennsylvanie.pdf, U.S. Censuses, and Justin's Civil War Union Army military records shows that Justin, who originally used the name Augustus until 1862, was the baby Ducray son born in Gondenans ~1837.
Ducrays per the 1839 "Elizabeth Ann" ship's manifest from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to Boston, October 1839 (the Ducrays completed their journey to the U.S. on the Elizabeth Ann, after the shipwreck of the ill-fated steamship Le Marie from Le Havre left them stranded on an island off of the coast of Newfoundland):
Comparison of 1839 ship's manifest with family tree information:
Ship's manifest vs. updated Family tree information
Nicholas Male 1789 50 Nicholas 1786 53
Francis Female 1797 42 Frances 1797 42
Francis Male 1823 16 Frances Virginia 1822 16 or 17
John B. Male 1825 14 Jean-Baptiste 1824 15
Charlotte Female 1826 13 Celestine 1826 13
Augustus Male 1828 11 Augustus 1827 12
Mary Female 1829 10 Claude Marie 1828 11
John Male 1831 8 Jeanne Claude 1831 8
Johanna Male 1833 6 Jean Claude 1833 6
Charles Male 1835 4 Charles Celestin 1835 4
Augusta Female 1837 2 baby Ducray Justin 1837 2
---
Notes:
Ship's manifest is shown as recorded by ship official. In reconciling with family's own information, preference is given to family's information.
Among discrepancies noted, it appears that the manifest mixed up Jeanne Claude and Jean Claude (Jean Claude's other life records indicate his birth year was 1833).
Comparison with U.S. census information:
1840 Census showed limited information, and misspelled Ducray "Dickra"
1840 Census showed:
Nicholass Dickra (with Nicholass written olde-timey: Nicholafs)
Home in 1840: Fairfield, Crawford County, Pennsylvania
# males under 5: 2 [= Justin 3, Charles 4]
# males 5 - 9: 1 [= Jean Claude, 7]
# males 10 - 14: 1 [= Augustus/Gustavus, 13]
# males 15 - 19 1 [= Jean-Baptiste, 16]
# males 50 - 59: 1 [= Nicholas, 50 or 54]
# females 5 - 9: 1 [= Jeanne Claude/Johanna/Jane, 8 or 9]
# females 10 - 14: 2 [Claude Marie/Mary 12, Celestine 14]
# females 15 - 19: 1 [Françoise Virginie/Francis, 18]
# females 20 - 41: 1 [Françoise/Frances, 40 (or 43)]
Total # of persons:
11 <= Eleven in the family is consistent with two adults and nine children, Julius not born yet.
----------------------------------------------------------
1850 Census, taken in September 1850
Ducray misspelled Ducra on census, Dacres in ancestry dot com
Note: Birthplace: France for all the Ducrays
Name Age Born Gender Occupation
Nicholas 60 1790 Male Farmer
Francis 50 1800 Female
John 25 1825 Male Farmer
Gustavus 22 1828 Male Farmer
Jane 18 1832 Female
James 16 1834 Male Farmer
Charles 15 1835 Male
Augustus 14 1836 Male
Julia 10 1840 Female
NOTE: The 1850 census is the first official record that states that a male born in 1828 was named Gustavus; and that a male child born in 1836 was named Augustus. The person named Gustavus in the 1850 census later called himself Augustus; the person named Augustus in the 1850 census later called himself Justin. While we don't know why these name changes happened, this record does help establish that the Augustus born in 1828 originally was named Gustavus, and that the son who changed his name from Augustus to Justin was originally named Augustus. The son born in 1828, who later called himself Augustus, used the name Gustave, a diminutive of Gustavus, as the name for his son Gustave Leon (G. L. Ducray, who married Lulu Maude Weitzel).
Note: the child named Julia, identified as born in 1840, 10 years old and female, actually was son Julius C. Ducray, and he was born in Pennsylvania, not France.
1850 census comparison to family tree:
Nicholas 60 1790 Male 64 1786
Francis 50 1800 Female 53 1797
John 25 1825 Male 25 1824
Gustavus 22 1828 Male = Augustus
Jane 18 1832 Female = Jeanne Claude 18/19 1831
James 16 1834 Male = Jean Claude 16/17 1833
Charles 15 1835 Male
Augustus 14 1836 Male = Justin 10 1840
or 13/14 1837
Julia 10 1840 Female = Julius 9/10 ~1841
= 9 people; missing two = X
Not found in 1850 census
X 1) Françoise Virginie/Frances Virginia born 1822
2) Jean-Baptiste/John B. Ducray 23 June 1824-1890 March 20
X 3) Celestine F. Bourquin, 25 Feb 1826-1899 Feb 7
4) Augustus Ducray 27 Sept 1827-1895 May 12 Pettis
= Gustavus in 1850 census
5) Claude Marie 8 August 1828-1912 February 23
= Mary F. Wood; ~22 years old in 1850
6) Jeanne Claude 1831
= Jane in 1850 census, Johanna on 1839 manifest
7) Jean Claude/John C. Ducray 1833-1875 April 6
= James in 1850 census
In 1839 Nicholas and Françoise/Frances (née Petitjean) Ducray emigrated with their nine children from Gondenans-les-Moulins, France, to Meadville, Crawford County, Pennsylvania, where friends already had settled along the route that George Washington had led his Army ("Grand Army of the Republic") during the Revolution. Nicholas and Frances bought a farm at the southern end of Lake Tamarack. They had one more child after they arrived in Crawford County, Julius C. Ducray born in 1841.
Augustus was born in the Ducray family village of Gondenans-les-Moulins.
Nicholas was a peace-loving man who had avoided conscription into Napoleon's army because of a childhood injury that cost his eyesight in one eye. He wanted his sons to grow up in a peaceful land free of the ravages of war. Friends had emigrated to the United States and settled in Crawford County, Pennsylvania. With a spirit of adventure, Nicholas and Frances moved to Crawford County also. This was particularly an adventure given that Nicholas was 50 years old, and Frances 40, when they made the journey with their nine children ranging in age from 3 years old to 17.
The family had a harrowing experience during their journey to the United States, when their ship began taking on water off of the coast of Newfoundland. Passengers and crew threw everything overboard, hoping to stay afloat. The Ducrays threw overboard their chest containing everything they had brought with them, including $2,000 in gold coins. The ship foundered despite their efforts, and they were shipwrecked on a sand island off of the coast of Newfoundland. After days without food and water, the ship's crew became crazed: a fellow passenger, Jean François Poly, overheard the crew plotting to kill and eat Nicholas and one of his sons, perhaps the eldest, Augustus's brother 15-year-old Jean-Baptiste. Monsieur Poly hid the Ducrays by burying them in sand. Fortunately for everyone, they all were rescued by a passing ship the next day. Luckily, also, the Ducrays' chest washed ashore onto the island, so they retrieved all they had brought with them. One of Nicholas's first acts when they settled in Crawford County was to become a trustee of Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Pettis and donate an acre of land beside the church for its graveyard (where Nicholas, Frances, Augustus, and many of the family and their friends and neighbors are at rest). (See "HARDY PIONEER FAMILY Ducray" online.)
After their rescue, the Ducray family eventually arrived in Boston aboard the ship "Elizabeth Ann" from Halifax, Nova Scotia, on 10 October 1839. The ship's manifest shows the following Ducrays (beside it is our family records info):
Est. Year Our info
Ship's manifest Born Age Name Born Age
Nicholas Male 1789 50 Nicholas 1785 54
Francis Female 1797 42 Frances 1795 44
Francis Male 1823 16 Frances Virginia 1822 ~16 or 17
John B. Male 1825 14 Jean-Baptiste 1824 ~14 or 15
Charlotte Female 1826 13 Celestine 1826 13
Augustus Male 1828 11 Augustus 1827 12
Mary Female 1829 10 Claude Marie 1828 11
John Male 1831 8 Jeanne Claude 1831 8
Johanna Male 1833 6 Jean Claude 1833 6
Charles Male 1835 4 Charles Celestin 1835 4
Augusta Female 1837 2 baby Ducray 1837 2
The genders and names are mixed up on the manifest of the ship "Elizabeth Ann" that the Ducrays took to Boston from Halifax, Nova Scotia, in October 1839.
Either the Ducrays had a 2 year old daughter Augusta, or that was Augustus/Justin.
The 1850 census (taken in September 1850) shows the following people in the household of Nicholas and Frances Ducray (last name misspelled Ducra in Census, Dacres in Ancestry dot com):
Age [approximate birth year based on census age]
Nicholas 60 [so birth year ~1790; actually 1785]
Francis 50 [so birth year ~1800; actually 1795]
John 25 [~1825; Jean-Baptiste/John C. Ducray, 1824]
Gustavus 22 [~1828; later known as Augustus Ducray, 1828]
Jane 18 [~1832; Jeanne Claude, 1831]
James 16 [~1834; Jean Claude/John C. Ducray, 1833]
Charles 15 [~1833; Charles Celestin Ducray, 1835]
Augustus 14 [~1834; Justin Ducray, born 1835? 1840?]
Julia 10 [~1840; actually Julius C. Ducray, 1841]
Three children not shown in the Ducray household in 1850:
Françoise Virginie/Frances Virginia, ~28, born 1822
Celestine F. Ducray Bourquin, 24, born 25 Feb 1826
Claude Marie (Mary F. Wood), 22, born 8 August 1828
The family loved Pennsylvania, and made it their home, making trips back to France to visit family and friends. Nicholas purchased a second farm, in Fairfield, Crawford County, Pennsylvania, and he gave each of his children ten acres.
Nicholas encouraged his children who wanted to move and explore West. Four of his six sons and two of his daughters did move West: sons Jean-Baptiste and Jean Claude went to California in 1850 during the Gold Rush, where they fell in love with Nevada City and made it their home. Daughter Claude Marie traveled to visit her brothers in Nevada City, where she met and married her husband Frank N. Wood, a quartz gold miner and member of the Wood family who built on their property and operated the historic Bridgeport Covered Bridge and the Lake Wildwood to French Corral section of the Marysville to Virginia City toll road, using lumber from their forests in Nevada and Sierra Counties, milled in their own lumber mills; upon her marriage, she changed her name to Mary F. Wood, and she and Frank made their home in Albany, Linn County, Oregon, where Frank had a quarry and a marble monument and engraving business. Nicholas and Frances's daughter Celestine Ducray Bourquin traveled by wagon train to Colorado with her gold prospecting sons Augustus Dominick and George Bourquin, who struck gold and settled in Aspen; Augustus Dominick became an Aspen City Councilman, while George Bourquin and his son both became the U.S. Federal District Court Judges in Colorado. Son Charles Celestin Ducray moved to Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Ohio (he actually lived in a small geographic area, near the border of the states), and he patented a corn planter; his son Frank Nicholas Ducray became a Colorado State Champion wrestler, then Sheriff of Colorado Springs, and an educator in western Colorado. Son Justin Ducray moved to East Saint Louis, Illinois, where he established his painting and wallpaper business Justin Ducray & Son, a City contractor for Saint Louis, Missouri, and East Saint Louis, Illinois, which are across the Illinois River from each other. In April 1861 at the start of the Civil War, in Saint Louis, Missouri, Justin enlisted in the First Missouri Cavalry of the Union Army; he re-enlisted twice, and served through the end of the Civil War in 1865.
Augustus and his youngest brother Julius C. Ducray were the two sons that stayed near their parents in Pennsylvania. Julius devoted himself to their care, and after their passing, Julius maintained the family farm, followed by his son Nestor Augustus until 1963; then Julius's daughter Eve/Eva Mary Ducray ran the farm until her passing in 1967. The farm stayed in the Ducray family for 128 years.
In 1851, returning from a visit home to France, Augustus was on the same ship with his future wife Victorine Monnin (alternate spelling Monin) and her family, on the George Turner, from Le Havre, France, and Liverpool, England, to the Port of New York; it arrived New York 2 June 1851. On board with 23 year old Augustus (listed as Auguste on the ship's manifest) were the Monnin family (spelled Monin):
Gustave, age illegible
Françoise Monin, age 50
Nicolas, 22
Jeannette, 21
Victorine, 18
Cesarine, 14
Octave, 12
Jeanne Françoise Perron, wife of Jean Joseph Monin, and five children from Montagney, Doubs [Vital Records], to Crawford County; naturalized, Joseph Monnin, 5 October 1854, 7 October 1856, unpublished papers of Claude Joseph Champagne in the compiler's possession. Source: Crawford County Genealogy, August 1994, Volume 17, Number Two, page 123: French Immigrants to Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana, compiled by Annette L. Lynch, Crawford County Genealogical Society.
Also on the ship were Jean Baptiste Champagne, 28, and Jeanne Claude, 23: Jean Baptiste Champagne of Gouhelans, Doubs, wife Jeanne Claude Ladefroux of Cognieres, Haute-Saône, Franche-Comté (Montbozon Vital Records [married 23 April 1851], to Crawford County to rejoin his parents; naturalized, Jean Baptiste Champagne, 8 October 1856; source: Crawford County Genealogy, August 1994, Volume 17, Number Two, page 123. Reference to CCG 14 [1991] :82.)
[Cesarine/Sarah Monnin married Jules Francois/Frank J. Picquard/Picard (Roye, Haute-Saône, Franche-Comté, France 19 April 1849-1924 June 2 Meadville, buried Pettis; Meadville Tribune 3, 5 June 1824) in Frenchtown 19 February 1873. Crawford County Genealogy, Volume 18, Number one, page 52, "The Picards from Roye" by Thomas L. Yoset.]
In 1853 Augustus Ducray married Victorine Monnin (some sources show 1863; this is believed to be an error). The 1860 Census on July 11 showed their household:
Augustus 31
Victorine 28
Sarah 4
Octave 3
July 2
Nicholas 3/12 months
Near them in 1860 were Ducrays:
Nicholas 75
Frances 65
Julius 17
--
Joseph 51
Jane 51
Joseph 23
--
John 23 <= Jean-Baptiste Ducray
Judith 28
1870 Census (last name misspelled Pucray in Ancestry com, as the census taker's handwriting made the "D" look like a "P") Age:
Augustus 44
Victorine 38
Sarah 16
Mary 14
Julia 11
Justin 8 *
Charles 6
Gustave 3
Emma 4/12 months
*There is a question whether Justin was the nephew and adoptive son of Augustus and Victorine, raised as their son; question whether his father was Augustus's brother also named Augustus (born François Augustin Ducray), who in 1862 changed his name to Justin.
Children of Augustus and Victorine:
1) Cesarine "Sarah" Jane Ducray Mailliard
Pettis 3 July 1854-1935 April 7 Meadville
Married Joseph Mailliard
Children: Augustus S. Mailliard
Charles H. Mailliard
Olivia Mailliard 13 Sept 1882
Albert E. Mailliard 1884-1965
2) Mary Octavia Ducray Roche
27 Dec 1855-1942 March 16
Married Dr. Edward C. Roche
3) Julia M. Le Comte ~1858-1929 September 15
Married Alexis C. Le Comte, banker (1856-1923)
Son: Dr. Ralph M. Le Comte, Washington, D.C.
19 February 1888-1954 March 11
4) Nicholas, born 1860 ~April, 3/12 in 1860 census
*?) Justin Frank Ducray
1 February 1862-1906 September 6
Children of Augustus and Victorine after 1863:
5) Charles H. Ducray
8 May 1864-1880 Jan 11 (only 16)
Tragically, Charles was killed by a falling tree near Stitzerville
(reported in Cochranton Times)
6) Gustave Leon Ducray 1867-1955
Married Lulu Maude Weitzel
Children: Ralph William
(father of Marjorie DuCray DeFaveri)
Harold W. (lived only six weeks)
Leon August
Clovis Miller
7) Emma Eldina
12 March 1870-1881 April 17 (only 11)
Tragically, Emma lost her life to spotted fever (measles?) in
Frenchtown (reported in Cochranton Times)
8) Edward John
30 April 1872-1905 Feb 21 (only 32)
9) Adelaide Maloney Ducray Vincent
25 July 1873-1905 (only 32)
Married Ernest Starr Vincent
After Adelaide's young passing, Ernest married
Zoe Barrier, and they lovingly named their daughter,
who was born on his first wife Adelaide's birthday,
Adelaide Ducray Vincent. First wife Adelaide,
Ernest, and second wife Zoe all are buried together,
their names lovingly sharing a marker.
10) Charles K. Ducray 1874-?
11) Aurelis "Lilly, Ella, Aurella, Lillian" Ducray Baird
Pettis 25 Nov 1875-1965 May 15
Married Benjamin E. BairD
The 1870 census shows 8-year-old Justin living with Augustus and family; but that census does not state relationships. Justin Frank was not in the 1880 census. He had gone to California, where his uncle Jean-Baptiste Ducray established orchards and vineyard and a lovely home on 35 acres after prospering in the Gold Rush. By 1884, at age 22, Justin Frank owned a 173 acre farm in what was then Mountain View (now Los Altos), Santa Clara County, California. He was elected the Republican delegate for Mountain View. Newspaper articles named him as a guest at parties and tea dances. He was a member of the fraternal order of Masons. His property today is bounded by
- San Antonio Road on the west
- East Edith Avenue on the north
- Foothill Expressway/Fremont Avenue on the south
- no through street on the east, but portions of
his property's east boundary are marked by the
north-south portions of South Avalon Drive, Lerida
Avenue, and La Prenda Road. South El Monte Road
(known in his day as Moody Road) crosses his former
property southwest to northeast about 1/3 of the way
from the south boundary.
- His southeast boundary is at a point approximately
between 387 and 405 Fremont Avenue, approximately
five properties to the west of South Clarke Avenue
and three properties to the east of the
Pinewood School Middle Campus.
- His neighbor to the west was Mrs. Sarah L. Winchester,
whose San Jose home is the tourist attraction
Winchester Mystery House. In 1908, Mrs. Winchester
sold her 144 acre ranch in Mountain View to the
developers of the town of Los Altos.
Justin Frank's property today is the site of
- the Los Altos City Hall,
- Los Altos Library,
- Los Altos History Museum and historical society,
- the historic 1905 J. Gilbert Smith House and its
one-acre Historic Peach Orchard
- Hillview Community Center, Park, Baseball Field,
Bus Barn Stage Company
- Hillview School
- Hillview Senior Center and Hillview Youth Center
- Saint William Catholic Church
- Covington Elementary School
- Los Altos Nursery
- Rosita Park
- Los Altos Lutheran Church
- and many homes and businesses.
His property included many ancient heritage trees
hundreds of years old, including oak trees that
the Native Californians gathered acorns from and
ground with mortar and pestle to make a staple for
an oatmeal-type cereal.
Justin Frank planted a variety of fruits, nuts,
vegetables, and grape vines for wines, but soon
discovered that he could make a good living baling
and selling the hay that grew naturally on his
property; hay was in great demand in those days, when
horses still were the primary form of transportation.
In 1885, a young lady named Margaret "Maggie" Nugent
bought an acre and a half beside Justin Frank Ducray's
property, for a vacation home. Her property was at
Augustus and Victorine were shown in the 1870 census in East Fairfield Township, Crawford County, Pennsylvania.(Their last name is misspelled Pucray in Ancestry dot com; the census taker's handwriting made the "D" in Ducray look like a "P"):
There is a mystery that the modern Ducray family has not yet solved, that begins with two of Nicholas and Frances's sons both using the first name Augustus. According to the 1850 census and records from later years, it appears that the second son of Nicholas and Frances originally was named Gustavus; but he later used the name Augustus (he named one of his sons Leon Gustave Ducray). Nicholas and Frances's fifth son, born in 1837, whose name was shown as Augustus in the 1850 census, later used the name Justin Ducray; but for a time there appears to have been overlap when both sons were using the name Augustus Ducray. The confusion arose because the elder Augustus was named Auguste, while his younger brother was named François Augustin, and he also used the name Augustus. There is a family history of using the same name for living siblings: Nicholas's father and his father's brother both were named Jean-Baptiste. Nicholas's father was known as Jean Baptiste l'Ainé (the elder) and his uncle was referred to as Jean-Baptiste le jeune (the younger).
8-year-old Justin Frank was living with Augustus and Victorine's family in the 1870 census; and his sister Julia M. Ducray Le Comte affectionately named him in her biography in the 1910 HISTORY OF WASHINGTON COUNTY [Pennsylvania] as her late brother Jessie (his nickname; he passed away in 1906 in San Francisco.
The mystery about which of the two Augustus Ducrays was Justin Frank's father is compounded by other mysterious circumstances. One is that when Justin Frank passed away, his death certificate named his father as "Augustus" but for Mother's Name his family put a question mark. It is very confusing that his children would not know or state the identity of his mother, their grandmother.
Also, the younger Augustus, who later used the name Justin, enlisted in the Missouri Cavalry as Augustus Ducray in St. Louis at the start of the Civil War in April 1861. In 1862 when he re-enlisted, the records show that both Augustus Ducray and Justin Ducray enlisted the same day, in the same unit, in the Pennsylvania Infantry. In 1864 when he re-enlisted again, in the Pennsylvania Cavalry, he enlisted only as Justin Ducray. Later, one Civil War pension was paid, to Justin Ducray of East Saint Louis, Illinois, and his military records noted that Augustus and Justin were one and the same person.
Compounding the mystery is that although Augustus/Justin enlisted in Missouri in 1861, his military records show he was granted leave "At Home" in February 1862, and in March 1862 he remained on leave due to "family illness." Justin Frank was born February 1, 1862, in Pennsylvania. When Justin/Augustus re-enlisted in 1862, he enlisted in the Pennsylvania Infantry. He did go back to rejoin his Missouri Cavalry unit in 1862, but he was captured by the Confederate Army near Clinton, Missouri. He was held prisoner, and given the choice to die or to swear an Oath to the Confederate States of America. He swore the Oath, then immediately upon his release he returned to Pennsylvania and enlisted in the Pennsylvania Infantry. When Justin/Augustus married and had a family, he married Marie/Mary Jeunette of Crawford County, Pennsylvania, whose family also came from France. At the time of Justin Frank's birth, Marie Jeunette would have been three months shy of her 15th birthday. It is possible she was Justin Frank's mother, and that if she was, her young age, and because she and Justin/Augustus were not yet married, this would have been a shameful situation and scandal for the Ducray and Jeunette families. This could account for why Justin Frank was raised by Augustus and Victorine, even if he was not their son but was Justin/Augustus's son. It is possible Justin Frank did not know, and that his adoptive brothers and sisters -- the children of Augustus and Victorine -- did not know that Justin/Augustus was his father.
Unfortunately, family letters, photographs, keepsakes, and documents that might have helped clear up the confusion were lost in a flood at the California Ducray family historian Jacqueline DuCray York's home years ago. Auntie Jackie did however mention that she thought Justin Frank Ducray was the son of Justin/Augustus Ducray. Another family misfortune was that Justin Frank and his wife Margaret "Maggie" Nugent Ducray both passed away young, when Jackie's father Justin Nugent Ducray was very young, and so a lot of family information didn't get passed down.
One of the clues that may indicate that Justin/Augustus wwas Justin Frank's father is that Augustus's descendants have documented Augustus's children, but they don't mention Justin Frank, other than that Augustus's daughter's obituary did list a late brother, Jesse, which was Justin Frank's nickname. With their having been raised together, she may have considered him her brother even if she found out later he was actually Justin's son, her cousin. It is unknown yet whether Justin Frank was Augustus's son, or whether he was adopted and raised by Augustus but was actually his brother Justin's son.
Justin Frank's death certificate listed Augustus as his father, with a question mark for his mother's name. It seems odd that if Victorine was his mother, he would not have known his own mother's name; but it makes a bit more sense if he knew Justin Ducray, not Augustus, was his real father, but there was some sort of family scandal or confusion or secret about who his mother was; that would perhaps explain why Justin Frank would have been raised by Augustus and Victorine. It is possible Justin Frank's mother became ill and passed away soon after his birth.
An additional confusion arises given the names in the 1850 Census, which shows a Gustavus Ducray born about 1827, an Augustus Ducray born about 1835. It looks like Gustavus changed his name to Augustus, and Augustus changed his to Justin. It's all very confusing. That makes a little more sense why Justin would have enlisted in the Union Army as Augustus, then later have changed his name to Justin; Army records show his name change, and that Augustus and Justin were the same person; one Civil War Pension was paid, to Justin in East St. Louis, Illinois. He enlisted in the 1st Missouri Cavalry as Augustus Ducray in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1861, but was granted family leave in February 1862 (Justin Frank was born February 1, 1862), and was also recorded as away from his unit in March 1862 for family illness. When he re-enlisted in September 1862, he enlisted in the Pennsylvania Infantry as both Augustus Ducray and Justin Ducray; he re-enlisted again in 1864 as Justin Ducray in the Pennsylvania Cavalry. In 1862, when he tried to return to his Missouri Cavalry unit, he was captured by the Confederate States Army, jailed, and was allowed to leave only by swearing an Oath to the C.S.A., which he didn't mean, and promptly renounced once he left captivity; once freed, he returned to Pennsylvania and enlisted in the Union Army's Pennsylvania Infantry (apparently his horse had been captured or killed; members of the Cavalry supplied their own horse). Years later, he was brought up for Court Martial on charges of desertion, but the Adjutant General found that the charges were unfounded and that Justin was not guilty of any crime.
Justin Frank's granddaughter, Jacqueline Marie Ducray York (who was born 20 years after Justin Frank's untimely passing at just age 44), thought he was the son of Justin Ducray. She heard some family lore that indicated that. Her own father, Justin Nugent Ducray, was only one year old when his mother Margaret Nugent Ducray passed away, and only ten when his father Justin Frank passed away. [Justin Frank named his firstborn son Julian August Ducray, his second son Justin Nugent Ducray.]
Still trying to solve this mystery of whether Justin Frank was actually the son of Justin or Augustus.
Civil War records show Augustus enlisted in the Union Army in 1861, in St. Louis, Missouri; enlisted again in 1862 with his brother Justin in Pennsylvania. [National Archives shows both brothers joined 1862 same day and served in same regiment, but only Justin applied for a pension. Pension records state Justin and Augustus are the same person, "alias" for each other; one pension was paid, to Justin, who lived in East Saint Louis, Illinois.]
In 1853, Augustus married Victorine/Victoria Monnin (17 Jan 1833-1908 April 28; obit 8 May 1908, McDonald, Pennsylvania Record) in Pettis, Crawford County, Pennsylvania. A genealogy site online shows their marriage in 1863, but that is believed to be a typographical error.
On 31 October 1887, heir Jean C. Champaigne [signed John Champaigne] requested Augustus Ducray as the Executor of the Will of Charles Champaigne of East Fairfield Township, signed in Meadville, Pa. Attorney Myron Park Davis filed the document 5 November 1887, Registration Docket 5:385 [source: Crawford County Genealogy, Volume 19, Number One, page 39: Renunciations.] The Jean Claude Champagne family came from Gouhelans, Doubs, France, to Crawford County on the ship Louis Philipe, 27 July 1840:
Claude Champagne, 52
Elisa, 44
Jean, 17
Charles, 14
Frederic, 12
Marie, 10
[Source: Crawford County Genealogy, August 1994, Volume 17, Number Two, page 119, French Immigrants to Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana, compiled by Annette L. Lynch; reference to CCG 14 (1991) :81.]
Also aboard the ship Louis Philipe, 27 July 1840, was the Pierre Roche family:
Pierre Roche, 55
Claire, 54
Mathiew, 23
Hyppolite, 18
Constant, 14
And Pierre Gollier, son-in-law of Pierre Roche, 31, farmer; Jeanne, 27; Charles, 1.
Families of Pierre Antide Joseph Roche and son-in-law Pierre Adolphus Gollier from Mondon, Doubs, to Crawford County (reference CCG 17 (1994) :39-40.
Augustus and Victorine are at rest together with their young daughter Emma and son Charles H. in the cemetery Nicholas Ducray helped donate land to establish,
Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Cemetery, Pettis
Section B Lot 5
Children of Augustus and Victorine:
(1) Cesarine "Sarah" Jane Ducray Mailliard
Pettis 3 July 1854-1935 April 7 Meadville
Married Joseph Mailliard
Saints Peter and Paul Cemetery, Section B. Lot 24
Children: Augustus S. Mailliard
Charles H. Mailliard
Olivia Mailliard 13 Sept 1882
Albert E. Mailliard 1884-1965
(2) Mary Octavia Ducray Roche
27 Dec 1855-1942 March 16
Married Dr. Edward C. Roche
(3) Julia M. Ducray Le Comte
~1858-1929 September 15
Married Alexis C. Le Comte, banker (1856-1923)
Son: Dr. Ralph M. Le Comte, Washington, D.C.
19 February 1888-1954 March 11
(4) Nicholas, born 1860 ~April, 3/12 in 1860 census
(*?) Justin Frank Ducray nickname: Jessie/Jesse
1 February 1862-1906 September 6
There is mystery concerning whether Justin Frank was
son of Augustus and Victorine, or Augustus's brother
also known as Augustus, who was born François Augustin
Ducray, and in 1862 changed his name to Justin.
(5) Charles H. Ducray 8 May 1864-1880 Jan 11 (only 16)
(6) Gustave Leon Ducray 1867-1955
Married Lulu Maude Weitzel
Children: Ralph William Ducray
Leon August Ducray
Harold W. Ducray
Clovis Miller Ducray
(7) Emma Eldina 12 March 1870-1881 April 17 (only 11)
(8) Edward John 30 April 1872-1905 Feb 21 (only 32)
(9) Adelaide Maloney 25 July 1873-1905 (only 32)
Married Ernest Starr Vincent
After Adelaide's young passing, Ernest married
Zoe Barrier. They named their daughter, born on
first wife Adelaide's birthday, Adelaide Ducray Vincent.
Adelaide Maloney Ducray Vincent, Ernest Starr Vincent,
and his second wife Zoe Barrier Vincent all are buried
together, showing their great love and affection.
(10) Charles K. Ducray, 1874-?
(11) Aurelis "Lilly, Ella, Aurella, Lillian" Ducray Baird
Pettis 25 Nov 1875-1965 May 15
Married Benjamin E. Baird
----- Additional info:----------
(2) Mary Octavia Ducray Roche
27 Dec 1855-1942 March 16
Married Dr. Edward C. Roche 8 Sept 1874 in
Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Pettis
Twelve children: Laura, Isabella Sarah 1875-1960,
Herbert Alexander 1877, Charles Augustus 1881-1962,
Arthur Eugene 1884, Benjamin Lewis 1886-1964,
Carl John 1888, Anna Marion 1891, Grace 1893-1965,
Oliver Bryan 1896, Leon 1898, Edward Alexis 1901
Buried Section C Lot 4, Saints Peter and Paul Cemetery
(4) Gustave Leon Ducray 1867-1955
Married Maude Lulu Weitzel (1875-1931)
also known as Lulu Maude Ducray
Their children:
{1} Ralph William 18 September 1898-1987 October
{2} Leon A. Ducray 14 July 1901-1985 January 9
{3} Harold W. Ducray December 1904-1905 January 26
{4} Clovis M. Ducray 21 May 1907-1986 November
{5} Barbara A. Ducray 1908-1945
Gustave did well in oil wells and contracting.
Maude was daughter of a well-liked family. Newspaper
articles noted they were good people, and active
socially.
Tragically, Lulu Maude and Clovis were
struck by another car while Clovis was driving her
home. Lulu Maude's injuries took her life at the
hospital, at age 57; Clovis was only 24. The accident
prompted articles in many Pennsylvania newspapers.
Clovis and his father Gustave ("G L Ducray") sued the
other driver for causing her loss. Later in life, Clovis
owned the Sunset Beach Park and Picnic Plaza, which
included a swimming pool and Sunset Drive-In, in
Claysville, Pennsylvania (southwest of Pittsburgh).
Clovis endured other terrible sorrows: his wife
Barbara A.(1908-1945) tragically was killed when her
clothing caught fire while tending their furnace at
home. Their son, Clovis M., Jr., was born disabled,
and lived only to age 19.
Lt. [Lieutenant, Air Force] Leon A. Ducray married
Emmy Lou. They founded Lee Ducray Interiors, and were
among their area's top interior designers. Their
designs for the Carnegie Institute Gala, and other
mentions of their social events and community
activities, show they were well-liked and regarded in
their community.
(7) Adelaide Maloney Ducray 25 July 1873-1905
First wife of Ernest Starr Vincent
Passed away at only 32 years old, with three small
children.
Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Cemetery
Section B Lot 11 - buried with her husband
Ernest Starr Vincent and his second wife Zoe Barrier
(married 1906). Ernest and Zoe named their only child
Adelaide Ducray Vincent, born on first wife Adelaide's
birthday, July 25, in 1908.
The second Adelaide passed away 14 July 1996 in
Meadville.
Children of first Adelaide Ducray, daughter of Augustus:
(1) Alexander Joseph Vincent 26 Aug 1894-1990 Sep 26
*(2) Julian Augustus Vincent 6 Jan 1896-1979 Oct 29
(his cousin Julian August Ducray was born in 1889:
23 Jan 1889-1945 Dec 15)
Married Marie Alva Mailliard 1919 October 8
Children of Julian Augustus and Marie Vincent:
(1) Mildred Isabell [married George R. Enlow
1939 October 21]
(2) James Harry
(3) Winnifred
(4) Carrie [married Don Smith]
(5) Shirley
Descendant Leonard Enlow (genforum) is one of five
children of Mildred and George Enlow: one passed
away as an infant; Nancy Lee, Dale Edward, and
Jeffrey Scott Enlow. Dale Edward married Patricia
Ann Smith 1974 August 3; their children are
*Julian Edward Enlow and *Jesse Orion Enlow.
(3) Albert Ernest Vincent 16 Aug 1897-1962 Oct 4
*(4) Ralph Ducray Vincent born Frenchtown, Pa.
14 May 1899-1977 Jan 15 Chicago, Illinois
info at genforum:
*Children Jurgen Ernest & Ralph Ducray Vincent, Jr.
(5) Marie Isabell Vincent 24 Jan 1901-1985 March 10
Cincinnati, Ohio. Married Leo Harrington.
Augustus's parents Nicholas (1786-1873) and Frances (née Jeanne Françoise Petitjean; 1797-1883; customarily her name was Françoise and Frances) married 13 Feb 1822 in Gondenans-les-Moulins.
Augustus was born Auguste Ducray on 27 September 1827 in the Ducray family village of Gondenans-les-Moulins.
From search "HARDY PIONEER FAMILY Ducray" online:
In 1839, Nicholas and Frances with their nine children left the port of Havre le Grace, France, aboard the ship Navire Marie, headed for a new home in Crawford County, Pennsylvania, where friends from France already had settled. The ship began taking on water near Newfoundland, and hoping to keep the ship afloat, passengers and crew threw everything overboard, including the Ducrays' chest containing $2,000 in gold and everything else they brought for their start in the United States. Despite all efforts, the ship foundered. Everyone aboard was shipwrecked on a sand island off of the coast of Newfoundland, Sable Island. After days without rescue, without food and fresh water, the ship's crew became crazed. A passenger François Poly overheard the crew planning to kill and eat Nicholas Ducray and one of his sons (possibly his eldest, 15-year-old Jean-Baptiste). François saved the lives of the Ducrays by hiding them buried in sand. To everyone's great fortune, all were rescued the following day by a passing ship. The Ducrays remained lifelong friends with Jean François Poly. The Ducrays had with them a simple wooden cross with an ivory carving of Jesus, that they credited for their fortune of surviving the perilous voyage. The Ducray family bought 80 acres acres southeast of East Mead Township (now Meadville, Crawford County, Pennsylvania) on the southern tip of Tamarack Lake; and later bought another farm on 72 acres located "2 miles south of Frenchtown and Route 27" and "on Route 441 near Boussons Corners." (An estate sale was listed in 1963 upon the passing of Nestor Ducray, grandson of Nicholas and Frances, son of Julius C. and Julia [née Grosclaude] Ducray. Nestor's sister Eva/Eve Mary Ducray Brunot passed away in 1967. The wood cross with ivory carving of Jesus brought with the family to America was kept by Eva, then passed to one of her children.)
Nicholas and Frances's descendants (first generation) went to California, Oregon, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Ohio, Wisconsin, Montana, and Minnesota.
Nicholas and Frances and many of their children, friends, and relatives are at rest in the Catholic church cemetery Nicholas founded (as church trustee, bought acre beside church, donated as cemetery; name misspelled on deed "Ducri"): Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Cemetery, Pettis, Pennsylvania, Crawford County, Section B Lot 5.
Nicholas and Frances had ten children, nine born in the family village in France. (The French family tree showed eleven):
1) Françoise Virginie/Frances Virginia born 1822
2) Jean-Baptiste/John B. Ducray 23 June 1824-1890 March 20
3) Celestine F. Ducray Bourquin, 25 Feb 1826-1899 Feb 7
4) Augustus Ducray 27 Sept 1827-1895 May 12 Pettis
Birth name: Auguste Ducray; in 1850 Census, he was named Gustavus.
5) Claude Marie 8 August 1828-1912 February 23 = Mary F. Wood
6) Jeanne Claude/Johanna/Jane born 25 March 1831
7) Jean Claude/John C. Ducray 2 June 1833-1875 April 6
8) Charles Celestin Ducray 29 April 1835-1925
9) baby Ducray (son) born ~1837 Gondenans (per French family tree).
This is Justin Ducray, born 31 January 1836 or 1837. Birth name: François Augustin Ducray. He was known as Augustus Ducray until 1862, when he began using his name Justin Ducray after his brother Auguste/Gustavus's name change to Augustus Ducray.
10) Justin/Augustus Ducray 1840-1914 December 24 (per 1992 French family tree).
The 1992 French family tree shows Justin's birth in 1840, the 10th child of Nicholas and Frances. Subsequently research has shown he was born François Augustin Ducray on 31 January 1836 or 1837, the 9th child of Nicholas and Frances.
11) Julius C. Ducray Meadville 1841-1925 Pettis
Julius was the first descendant of Servois Ducray born in the U.S.; the 10th child of Nicholas and Frances.
Research in the 1839 ship's manifests, the List of Doubs Emigrants to Pennsylvania in the file Pennsylvanie.pdf, U.S. Censuses, and Justin's Civil War Union Army military records shows that Justin, who originally used the name Augustus until 1862, was the baby Ducray son born in Gondenans ~1837.
Ducrays per the 1839 "Elizabeth Ann" ship's manifest from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to Boston, October 1839 (the Ducrays completed their journey to the U.S. on the Elizabeth Ann, after the shipwreck of the ill-fated steamship Le Marie from Le Havre left them stranded on an island off of the coast of Newfoundland):
Comparison of 1839 ship's manifest with family tree information:
Ship's manifest vs. updated Family tree information
Nicholas Male 1789 50 Nicholas 1786 53
Francis Female 1797 42 Frances 1797 42
Francis Male 1823 16 Frances Virginia 1822 16 or 17
John B. Male 1825 14 Jean-Baptiste 1824 15
Charlotte Female 1826 13 Celestine 1826 13
Augustus Male 1828 11 Augustus 1827 12
Mary Female 1829 10 Claude Marie 1828 11
John Male 1831 8 Jeanne Claude 1831 8
Johanna Male 1833 6 Jean Claude 1833 6
Charles Male 1835 4 Charles Celestin 1835 4
Augusta Female 1837 2 baby Ducray Justin 1837 2
---
Notes:
Ship's manifest is shown as recorded by ship official. In reconciling with family's own information, preference is given to family's information.
Among discrepancies noted, it appears that the manifest mixed up Jeanne Claude and Jean Claude (Jean Claude's other life records indicate his birth year was 1833).
Comparison with U.S. census information:
1840 Census showed limited information, and misspelled Ducray "Dickra"
1840 Census showed:
Nicholass Dickra (with Nicholass written olde-timey: Nicholafs)
Home in 1840: Fairfield, Crawford County, Pennsylvania
# males under 5: 2 [= Justin 3, Charles 4]
# males 5 - 9: 1 [= Jean Claude, 7]
# males 10 - 14: 1 [= Augustus/Gustavus, 13]
# males 15 - 19 1 [= Jean-Baptiste, 16]
# males 50 - 59: 1 [= Nicholas, 50 or 54]
# females 5 - 9: 1 [= Jeanne Claude/Johanna/Jane, 8 or 9]
# females 10 - 14: 2 [Claude Marie/Mary 12, Celestine 14]
# females 15 - 19: 1 [Françoise Virginie/Francis, 18]
# females 20 - 41: 1 [Françoise/Frances, 40 (or 43)]
Total # of persons:
11 <= Eleven in the family is consistent with two adults and nine children, Julius not born yet.
----------------------------------------------------------
1850 Census, taken in September 1850
Ducray misspelled Ducra on census, Dacres in ancestry dot com
Note: Birthplace: France for all the Ducrays
Name Age Born Gender Occupation
Nicholas 60 1790 Male Farmer
Francis 50 1800 Female
John 25 1825 Male Farmer
Gustavus 22 1828 Male Farmer
Jane 18 1832 Female
James 16 1834 Male Farmer
Charles 15 1835 Male
Augustus 14 1836 Male
Julia 10 1840 Female
NOTE: The 1850 census is the first official record that states that a male born in 1828 was named Gustavus; and that a male child born in 1836 was named Augustus. The person named Gustavus in the 1850 census later called himself Augustus; the person named Augustus in the 1850 census later called himself Justin. While we don't know why these name changes happened, this record does help establish that the Augustus born in 1828 originally was named Gustavus, and that the son who changed his name from Augustus to Justin was originally named Augustus. The son born in 1828, who later called himself Augustus, used the name Gustave, a diminutive of Gustavus, as the name for his son Gustave Leon (G. L. Ducray, who married Lulu Maude Weitzel).
Note: the child named Julia, identified as born in 1840, 10 years old and female, actually was son Julius C. Ducray, and he was born in Pennsylvania, not France.
1850 census comparison to family tree:
Nicholas 60 1790 Male 64 1786
Francis 50 1800 Female 53 1797
John 25 1825 Male 25 1824
Gustavus 22 1828 Male = Augustus
Jane 18 1832 Female = Jeanne Claude 18/19 1831
James 16 1834 Male = Jean Claude 16/17 1833
Charles 15 1835 Male
Augustus 14 1836 Male = Justin 10 1840
or 13/14 1837
Julia 10 1840 Female = Julius 9/10 ~1841
= 9 people; missing two = X
Not found in 1850 census
X 1) Françoise Virginie/Frances Virginia born 1822
2) Jean-Baptiste/John B. Ducray 23 June 1824-1890 March 20
X 3) Celestine F. Bourquin, 25 Feb 1826-1899 Feb 7
4) Augustus Ducray 27 Sept 1827-1895 May 12 Pettis
= Gustavus in 1850 census
5) Claude Marie 8 August 1828-1912 February 23
= Mary F. Wood; ~22 years old in 1850
6) Jeanne Claude 1831
= Jane in 1850 census, Johanna on 1839 manifest
7) Jean Claude/John C. Ducray 1833-1875 April 6
= James in 1850 census
In 1839 Nicholas and Françoise/Frances (née Petitjean) Ducray emigrated with their nine children from Gondenans-les-Moulins, France, to Meadville, Crawford County, Pennsylvania, where friends already had settled along the route that George Washington had led his Army ("Grand Army of the Republic") during the Revolution. Nicholas and Frances bought a farm at the southern end of Lake Tamarack. They had one more child after they arrived in Crawford County, Julius C. Ducray born in 1841.
Augustus was born in the Ducray family village of Gondenans-les-Moulins.
Nicholas was a peace-loving man who had avoided conscription into Napoleon's army because of a childhood injury that cost his eyesight in one eye. He wanted his sons to grow up in a peaceful land free of the ravages of war. Friends had emigrated to the United States and settled in Crawford County, Pennsylvania. With a spirit of adventure, Nicholas and Frances moved to Crawford County also. This was particularly an adventure given that Nicholas was 50 years old, and Frances 40, when they made the journey with their nine children ranging in age from 3 years old to 17.
The family had a harrowing experience during their journey to the United States, when their ship began taking on water off of the coast of Newfoundland. Passengers and crew threw everything overboard, hoping to stay afloat. The Ducrays threw overboard their chest containing everything they had brought with them, including $2,000 in gold coins. The ship foundered despite their efforts, and they were shipwrecked on a sand island off of the coast of Newfoundland. After days without food and water, the ship's crew became crazed: a fellow passenger, Jean François Poly, overheard the crew plotting to kill and eat Nicholas and one of his sons, perhaps the eldest, Augustus's brother 15-year-old Jean-Baptiste. Monsieur Poly hid the Ducrays by burying them in sand. Fortunately for everyone, they all were rescued by a passing ship the next day. Luckily, also, the Ducrays' chest washed ashore onto the island, so they retrieved all they had brought with them. One of Nicholas's first acts when they settled in Crawford County was to become a trustee of Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Pettis and donate an acre of land beside the church for its graveyard (where Nicholas, Frances, Augustus, and many of the family and their friends and neighbors are at rest). (See "HARDY PIONEER FAMILY Ducray" online.)
After their rescue, the Ducray family eventually arrived in Boston aboard the ship "Elizabeth Ann" from Halifax, Nova Scotia, on 10 October 1839. The ship's manifest shows the following Ducrays (beside it is our family records info):
Est. Year Our info
Ship's manifest Born Age Name Born Age
Nicholas Male 1789 50 Nicholas 1785 54
Francis Female 1797 42 Frances 1795 44
Francis Male 1823 16 Frances Virginia 1822 ~16 or 17
John B. Male 1825 14 Jean-Baptiste 1824 ~14 or 15
Charlotte Female 1826 13 Celestine 1826 13
Augustus Male 1828 11 Augustus 1827 12
Mary Female 1829 10 Claude Marie 1828 11
John Male 1831 8 Jeanne Claude 1831 8
Johanna Male 1833 6 Jean Claude 1833 6
Charles Male 1835 4 Charles Celestin 1835 4
Augusta Female 1837 2 baby Ducray 1837 2
The genders and names are mixed up on the manifest of the ship "Elizabeth Ann" that the Ducrays took to Boston from Halifax, Nova Scotia, in October 1839.
Either the Ducrays had a 2 year old daughter Augusta, or that was Augustus/Justin.
The 1850 census (taken in September 1850) shows the following people in the household of Nicholas and Frances Ducray (last name misspelled Ducra in Census, Dacres in Ancestry dot com):
Age [approximate birth year based on census age]
Nicholas 60 [so birth year ~1790; actually 1785]
Francis 50 [so birth year ~1800; actually 1795]
John 25 [~1825; Jean-Baptiste/John C. Ducray, 1824]
Gustavus 22 [~1828; later known as Augustus Ducray, 1828]
Jane 18 [~1832; Jeanne Claude, 1831]
James 16 [~1834; Jean Claude/John C. Ducray, 1833]
Charles 15 [~1833; Charles Celestin Ducray, 1835]
Augustus 14 [~1834; Justin Ducray, born 1835? 1840?]
Julia 10 [~1840; actually Julius C. Ducray, 1841]
Three children not shown in the Ducray household in 1850:
Françoise Virginie/Frances Virginia, ~28, born 1822
Celestine F. Ducray Bourquin, 24, born 25 Feb 1826
Claude Marie (Mary F. Wood), 22, born 8 August 1828
The family loved Pennsylvania, and made it their home, making trips back to France to visit family and friends. Nicholas purchased a second farm, in Fairfield, Crawford County, Pennsylvania, and he gave each of his children ten acres.
Nicholas encouraged his children who wanted to move and explore West. Four of his six sons and two of his daughters did move West: sons Jean-Baptiste and Jean Claude went to California in 1850 during the Gold Rush, where they fell in love with Nevada City and made it their home. Daughter Claude Marie traveled to visit her brothers in Nevada City, where she met and married her husband Frank N. Wood, a quartz gold miner and member of the Wood family who built on their property and operated the historic Bridgeport Covered Bridge and the Lake Wildwood to French Corral section of the Marysville to Virginia City toll road, using lumber from their forests in Nevada and Sierra Counties, milled in their own lumber mills; upon her marriage, she changed her name to Mary F. Wood, and she and Frank made their home in Albany, Linn County, Oregon, where Frank had a quarry and a marble monument and engraving business. Nicholas and Frances's daughter Celestine Ducray Bourquin traveled by wagon train to Colorado with her gold prospecting sons Augustus Dominick and George Bourquin, who struck gold and settled in Aspen; Augustus Dominick became an Aspen City Councilman, while George Bourquin and his son both became the U.S. Federal District Court Judges in Colorado. Son Charles Celestin Ducray moved to Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Ohio (he actually lived in a small geographic area, near the border of the states), and he patented a corn planter; his son Frank Nicholas Ducray became a Colorado State Champion wrestler, then Sheriff of Colorado Springs, and an educator in western Colorado. Son Justin Ducray moved to East Saint Louis, Illinois, where he established his painting and wallpaper business Justin Ducray & Son, a City contractor for Saint Louis, Missouri, and East Saint Louis, Illinois, which are across the Illinois River from each other. In April 1861 at the start of the Civil War, in Saint Louis, Missouri, Justin enlisted in the First Missouri Cavalry of the Union Army; he re-enlisted twice, and served through the end of the Civil War in 1865.
Augustus and his youngest brother Julius C. Ducray were the two sons that stayed near their parents in Pennsylvania. Julius devoted himself to their care, and after their passing, Julius maintained the family farm, followed by his son Nestor Augustus until 1963; then Julius's daughter Eve/Eva Mary Ducray ran the farm until her passing in 1967. The farm stayed in the Ducray family for 128 years.
In 1851, returning from a visit home to France, Augustus was on the same ship with his future wife Victorine Monnin (alternate spelling Monin) and her family, on the George Turner, from Le Havre, France, and Liverpool, England, to the Port of New York; it arrived New York 2 June 1851. On board with 23 year old Augustus (listed as Auguste on the ship's manifest) were the Monnin family (spelled Monin):
Gustave, age illegible
Françoise Monin, age 50
Nicolas, 22
Jeannette, 21
Victorine, 18
Cesarine, 14
Octave, 12
Jeanne Françoise Perron, wife of Jean Joseph Monin, and five children from Montagney, Doubs [Vital Records], to Crawford County; naturalized, Joseph Monnin, 5 October 1854, 7 October 1856, unpublished papers of Claude Joseph Champagne in the compiler's possession. Source: Crawford County Genealogy, August 1994, Volume 17, Number Two, page 123: French Immigrants to Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana, compiled by Annette L. Lynch, Crawford County Genealogical Society.
Also on the ship were Jean Baptiste Champagne, 28, and Jeanne Claude, 23: Jean Baptiste Champagne of Gouhelans, Doubs, wife Jeanne Claude Ladefroux of Cognieres, Haute-Saône, Franche-Comté (Montbozon Vital Records [married 23 April 1851], to Crawford County to rejoin his parents; naturalized, Jean Baptiste Champagne, 8 October 1856; source: Crawford County Genealogy, August 1994, Volume 17, Number Two, page 123. Reference to CCG 14 [1991] :82.)
[Cesarine/Sarah Monnin married Jules Francois/Frank J. Picquard/Picard (Roye, Haute-Saône, Franche-Comté, France 19 April 1849-1924 June 2 Meadville, buried Pettis; Meadville Tribune 3, 5 June 1824) in Frenchtown 19 February 1873. Crawford County Genealogy, Volume 18, Number one, page 52, "The Picards from Roye" by Thomas L. Yoset.]
In 1853 Augustus Ducray married Victorine Monnin (some sources show 1863; this is believed to be an error). The 1860 Census on July 11 showed their household:
Augustus 31
Victorine 28
Sarah 4
Octave 3
July 2
Nicholas 3/12 months
Near them in 1860 were Ducrays:
Nicholas 75
Frances 65
Julius 17
--
Joseph 51
Jane 51
Joseph 23
--
John 23 <= Jean-Baptiste Ducray
Judith 28
1870 Census (last name misspelled Pucray in Ancestry com, as the census taker's handwriting made the "D" look like a "P") Age:
Augustus 44
Victorine 38
Sarah 16
Mary 14
Julia 11
Justin 8 *
Charles 6
Gustave 3
Emma 4/12 months
*There is a question whether Justin was the nephew and adoptive son of Augustus and Victorine, raised as their son; question whether his father was Augustus's brother also named Augustus (born François Augustin Ducray), who in 1862 changed his name to Justin.
Children of Augustus and Victorine:
1) Cesarine "Sarah" Jane Ducray Mailliard
Pettis 3 July 1854-1935 April 7 Meadville
Married Joseph Mailliard
Children: Augustus S. Mailliard
Charles H. Mailliard
Olivia Mailliard 13 Sept 1882
Albert E. Mailliard 1884-1965
2) Mary Octavia Ducray Roche
27 Dec 1855-1942 March 16
Married Dr. Edward C. Roche
3) Julia M. Le Comte ~1858-1929 September 15
Married Alexis C. Le Comte, banker (1856-1923)
Son: Dr. Ralph M. Le Comte, Washington, D.C.
19 February 1888-1954 March 11
4) Nicholas, born 1860 ~April, 3/12 in 1860 census
*?) Justin Frank Ducray
1 February 1862-1906 September 6
Children of Augustus and Victorine after 1863:
5) Charles H. Ducray
8 May 1864-1880 Jan 11 (only 16)
Tragically, Charles was killed by a falling tree near Stitzerville
(reported in Cochranton Times)
6) Gustave Leon Ducray 1867-1955
Married Lulu Maude Weitzel
Children: Ralph William
(father of Marjorie DuCray DeFaveri)
Harold W. (lived only six weeks)
Leon August
Clovis Miller
7) Emma Eldina
12 March 1870-1881 April 17 (only 11)
Tragically, Emma lost her life to spotted fever (measles?) in
Frenchtown (reported in Cochranton Times)
8) Edward John
30 April 1872-1905 Feb 21 (only 32)
9) Adelaide Maloney Ducray Vincent
25 July 1873-1905 (only 32)
Married Ernest Starr Vincent
After Adelaide's young passing, Ernest married
Zoe Barrier, and they lovingly named their daughter,
who was born on his first wife Adelaide's birthday,
Adelaide Ducray Vincent. First wife Adelaide,
Ernest, and second wife Zoe all are buried together,
their names lovingly sharing a marker.
10) Charles K. Ducray 1874-?
11) Aurelis "Lilly, Ella, Aurella, Lillian" Ducray Baird
Pettis 25 Nov 1875-1965 May 15
Married Benjamin E. BairD
The 1870 census shows 8-year-old Justin living with Augustus and family; but that census does not state relationships. Justin Frank was not in the 1880 census. He had gone to California, where his uncle Jean-Baptiste Ducray established orchards and vineyard and a lovely home on 35 acres after prospering in the Gold Rush. By 1884, at age 22, Justin Frank owned a 173 acre farm in what was then Mountain View (now Los Altos), Santa Clara County, California. He was elected the Republican delegate for Mountain View. Newspaper articles named him as a guest at parties and tea dances. He was a member of the fraternal order of Masons. His property today is bounded by
- San Antonio Road on the west
- East Edith Avenue on the north
- Foothill Expressway/Fremont Avenue on the south
- no through street on the east, but portions of
his property's east boundary are marked by the
north-south portions of South Avalon Drive, Lerida
Avenue, and La Prenda Road. South El Monte Road
(known in his day as Moody Road) crosses his former
property southwest to northeast about 1/3 of the way
from the south boundary.
- His southeast boundary is at a point approximately
between 387 and 405 Fremont Avenue, approximately
five properties to the west of South Clarke Avenue
and three properties to the east of the
Pinewood School Middle Campus.
- His neighbor to the west was Mrs. Sarah L. Winchester,
whose San Jose home is the tourist attraction
Winchester Mystery House. In 1908, Mrs. Winchester
sold her 144 acre ranch in Mountain View to the
developers of the town of Los Altos.
Justin Frank's property today is the site of
- the Los Altos City Hall,
- Los Altos Library,
- Los Altos History Museum and historical society,
- the historic 1905 J. Gilbert Smith House and its
one-acre Historic Peach Orchard
- Hillview Community Center, Park, Baseball Field,
Bus Barn Stage Company
- Hillview School
- Hillview Senior Center and Hillview Youth Center
- Saint William Catholic Church
- Covington Elementary School
- Los Altos Nursery
- Rosita Park
- Los Altos Lutheran Church
- and many homes and businesses.
His property included many ancient heritage trees
hundreds of years old, including oak trees that
the Native Californians gathered acorns from and
ground with mortar and pestle to make a staple for
an oatmeal-type cereal.
Justin Frank planted a variety of fruits, nuts,
vegetables, and grape vines for wines, but soon
discovered that he could make a good living baling
and selling the hay that grew naturally on his
property; hay was in great demand in those days, when
horses still were the primary form of transportation.
In 1885, a young lady named Margaret "Maggie" Nugent
bought an acre and a half beside Justin Frank Ducray's
property, for a vacation home. Her property was at
Augustus and Victorine were shown in the 1870 census in East Fairfield Township, Crawford County, Pennsylvania.(Their last name is misspelled Pucray in Ancestry dot com; the census taker's handwriting made the "D" in Ducray look like a "P"):
There is a mystery that the modern Ducray family has not yet solved, that begins with two of Nicholas and Frances's sons both using the first name Augustus. According to the 1850 census and records from later years, it appears that the second son of Nicholas and Frances originally was named Gustavus; but he later used the name Augustus (he named one of his sons Leon Gustave Ducray). Nicholas and Frances's fifth son, born in 1837, whose name was shown as Augustus in the 1850 census, later used the name Justin Ducray; but for a time there appears to have been overlap when both sons were using the name Augustus Ducray. The confusion arose because the elder Augustus was named Auguste, while his younger brother was named François Augustin, and he also used the name Augustus. There is a family history of using the same name for living siblings: Nicholas's father and his father's brother both were named Jean-Baptiste. Nicholas's father was known as Jean Baptiste l'Ainé (the elder) and his uncle was referred to as Jean-Baptiste le jeune (the younger).
8-year-old Justin Frank was living with Augustus and Victorine's family in the 1870 census; and his sister Julia M. Ducray Le Comte affectionately named him in her biography in the 1910 HISTORY OF WASHINGTON COUNTY [Pennsylvania] as her late brother Jessie (his nickname; he passed away in 1906 in San Francisco.
The mystery about which of the two Augustus Ducrays was Justin Frank's father is compounded by other mysterious circumstances. One is that when Justin Frank passed away, his death certificate named his father as "Augustus" but for Mother's Name his family put a question mark. It is very confusing that his children would not know or state the identity of his mother, their grandmother.
Also, the younger Augustus, who later used the name Justin, enlisted in the Missouri Cavalry as Augustus Ducray in St. Louis at the start of the Civil War in April 1861. In 1862 when he re-enlisted, the records show that both Augustus Ducray and Justin Ducray enlisted the same day, in the same unit, in the Pennsylvania Infantry. In 1864 when he re-enlisted again, in the Pennsylvania Cavalry, he enlisted only as Justin Ducray. Later, one Civil War pension was paid, to Justin Ducray of East Saint Louis, Illinois, and his military records noted that Augustus and Justin were one and the same person.
Compounding the mystery is that although Augustus/Justin enlisted in Missouri in 1861, his military records show he was granted leave "At Home" in February 1862, and in March 1862 he remained on leave due to "family illness." Justin Frank was born February 1, 1862, in Pennsylvania. When Justin/Augustus re-enlisted in 1862, he enlisted in the Pennsylvania Infantry. He did go back to rejoin his Missouri Cavalry unit in 1862, but he was captured by the Confederate Army near Clinton, Missouri. He was held prisoner, and given the choice to die or to swear an Oath to the Confederate States of America. He swore the Oath, then immediately upon his release he returned to Pennsylvania and enlisted in the Pennsylvania Infantry. When Justin/Augustus married and had a family, he married Marie/Mary Jeunette of Crawford County, Pennsylvania, whose family also came from France. At the time of Justin Frank's birth, Marie Jeunette would have been three months shy of her 15th birthday. It is possible she was Justin Frank's mother, and that if she was, her young age, and because she and Justin/Augustus were not yet married, this would have been a shameful situation and scandal for the Ducray and Jeunette families. This could account for why Justin Frank was raised by Augustus and Victorine, even if he was not their son but was Justin/Augustus's son. It is possible Justin Frank did not know, and that his adoptive brothers and sisters -- the children of Augustus and Victorine -- did not know that Justin/Augustus was his father.
Unfortunately, family letters, photographs, keepsakes, and documents that might have helped clear up the confusion were lost in a flood at the California Ducray family historian Jacqueline DuCray York's home years ago. Auntie Jackie did however mention that she thought Justin Frank Ducray was the son of Justin/Augustus Ducray. Another family misfortune was that Justin Frank and his wife Margaret "Maggie" Nugent Ducray both passed away young, when Jackie's father Justin Nugent Ducray was very young, and so a lot of family information didn't get passed down.
One of the clues that may indicate that Justin/Augustus wwas Justin Frank's father is that Augustus's descendants have documented Augustus's children, but they don't mention Justin Frank, other than that Augustus's daughter's obituary did list a late brother, Jesse, which was Justin Frank's nickname. With their having been raised together, she may have considered him her brother even if she found out later he was actually Justin's son, her cousin. It is unknown yet whether Justin Frank was Augustus's son, or whether he was adopted and raised by Augustus but was actually his brother Justin's son.
Justin Frank's death certificate listed Augustus as his father, with a question mark for his mother's name. It seems odd that if Victorine was his mother, he would not have known his own mother's name; but it makes a bit more sense if he knew Justin Ducray, not Augustus, was his real father, but there was some sort of family scandal or confusion or secret about who his mother was; that would perhaps explain why Justin Frank would have been raised by Augustus and Victorine. It is possible Justin Frank's mother became ill and passed away soon after his birth.
An additional confusion arises given the names in the 1850 Census, which shows a Gustavus Ducray born about 1827, an Augustus Ducray born about 1835. It looks like Gustavus changed his name to Augustus, and Augustus changed his to Justin. It's all very confusing. That makes a little more sense why Justin would have enlisted in the Union Army as Augustus, then later have changed his name to Justin; Army records show his name change, and that Augustus and Justin were the same person; one Civil War Pension was paid, to Justin in East St. Louis, Illinois. He enlisted in the 1st Missouri Cavalry as Augustus Ducray in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1861, but was granted family leave in February 1862 (Justin Frank was born February 1, 1862), and was also recorded as away from his unit in March 1862 for family illness. When he re-enlisted in September 1862, he enlisted in the Pennsylvania Infantry as both Augustus Ducray and Justin Ducray; he re-enlisted again in 1864 as Justin Ducray in the Pennsylvania Cavalry. In 1862, when he tried to return to his Missouri Cavalry unit, he was captured by the Confederate States Army, jailed, and was allowed to leave only by swearing an Oath to the C.S.A., which he didn't mean, and promptly renounced once he left captivity; once freed, he returned to Pennsylvania and enlisted in the Union Army's Pennsylvania Infantry (apparently his horse had been captured or killed; members of the Cavalry supplied their own horse). Years later, he was brought up for Court Martial on charges of desertion, but the Adjutant General found that the charges were unfounded and that Justin was not guilty of any crime.
Justin Frank's granddaughter, Jacqueline Marie Ducray York (who was born 20 years after Justin Frank's untimely passing at just age 44), thought he was the son of Justin Ducray. She heard some family lore that indicated that. Her own father, Justin Nugent Ducray, was only one year old when his mother Margaret Nugent Ducray passed away, and only ten when his father Justin Frank passed away. [Justin Frank named his firstborn son Julian August Ducray, his second son Justin Nugent Ducray.]
Still trying to solve this mystery of whether Justin Frank was actually the son of Justin or Augustus.
Civil War records show Augustus enlisted in the Union Army in 1861, in St. Louis, Missouri; enlisted again in 1862 with his brother Justin in Pennsylvania. [National Archives shows both brothers joined 1862 same day and served in same regiment, but only Justin applied for a pension. Pension records state Justin and Augustus are the same person, "alias" for each other; one pension was paid, to Justin, who lived in East Saint Louis, Illinois.]
In 1853, Augustus married Victorine/Victoria Monnin (17 Jan 1833-1908 April 28; obit 8 May 1908, McDonald, Pennsylvania Record) in Pettis, Crawford County, Pennsylvania. A genealogy site online shows their marriage in 1863, but that is believed to be a typographical error.
On 31 October 1887, heir Jean C. Champaigne [signed John Champaigne] requested Augustus Ducray as the Executor of the Will of Charles Champaigne of East Fairfield Township, signed in Meadville, Pa. Attorney Myron Park Davis filed the document 5 November 1887, Registration Docket 5:385 [source: Crawford County Genealogy, Volume 19, Number One, page 39: Renunciations.] The Jean Claude Champagne family came from Gouhelans, Doubs, France, to Crawford County on the ship Louis Philipe, 27 July 1840:
Claude Champagne, 52
Elisa, 44
Jean, 17
Charles, 14
Frederic, 12
Marie, 10
[Source: Crawford County Genealogy, August 1994, Volume 17, Number Two, page 119, French Immigrants to Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana, compiled by Annette L. Lynch; reference to CCG 14 (1991) :81.]
Also aboard the ship Louis Philipe, 27 July 1840, was the Pierre Roche family:
Pierre Roche, 55
Claire, 54
Mathiew, 23
Hyppolite, 18
Constant, 14
And Pierre Gollier, son-in-law of Pierre Roche, 31, farmer; Jeanne, 27; Charles, 1.
Families of Pierre Antide Joseph Roche and son-in-law Pierre Adolphus Gollier from Mondon, Doubs, to Crawford County (reference CCG 17 (1994) :39-40.
Augustus and Victorine are at rest together with their young daughter Emma and son Charles H. in the cemetery Nicholas Ducray helped donate land to establish,
Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Cemetery, Pettis
Section B Lot 5
Children of Augustus and Victorine:
(1) Cesarine "Sarah" Jane Ducray Mailliard
Pettis 3 July 1854-1935 April 7 Meadville
Married Joseph Mailliard
Saints Peter and Paul Cemetery, Section B. Lot 24
Children: Augustus S. Mailliard
Charles H. Mailliard
Olivia Mailliard 13 Sept 1882
Albert E. Mailliard 1884-1965
(2) Mary Octavia Ducray Roche
27 Dec 1855-1942 March 16
Married Dr. Edward C. Roche
(3) Julia M. Ducray Le Comte
~1858-1929 September 15
Married Alexis C. Le Comte, banker (1856-1923)
Son: Dr. Ralph M. Le Comte, Washington, D.C.
19 February 1888-1954 March 11
(4) Nicholas, born 1860 ~April, 3/12 in 1860 census
(*?) Justin Frank Ducray nickname: Jessie/Jesse
1 February 1862-1906 September 6
There is mystery concerning whether Justin Frank was
son of Augustus and Victorine, or Augustus's brother
also known as Augustus, who was born François Augustin
Ducray, and in 1862 changed his name to Justin.
(5) Charles H. Ducray 8 May 1864-1880 Jan 11 (only 16)
(6) Gustave Leon Ducray 1867-1955
Married Lulu Maude Weitzel
Children: Ralph William Ducray
Leon August Ducray
Harold W. Ducray
Clovis Miller Ducray
(7) Emma Eldina 12 March 1870-1881 April 17 (only 11)
(8) Edward John 30 April 1872-1905 Feb 21 (only 32)
(9) Adelaide Maloney 25 July 1873-1905 (only 32)
Married Ernest Starr Vincent
After Adelaide's young passing, Ernest married
Zoe Barrier. They named their daughter, born on
first wife Adelaide's birthday, Adelaide Ducray Vincent.
Adelaide Maloney Ducray Vincent, Ernest Starr Vincent,
and his second wife Zoe Barrier Vincent all are buried
together, showing their great love and affection.
(10) Charles K. Ducray, 1874-?
(11) Aurelis "Lilly, Ella, Aurella, Lillian" Ducray Baird
Pettis 25 Nov 1875-1965 May 15
Married Benjamin E. Baird
----- Additional info:----------
(2) Mary Octavia Ducray Roche
27 Dec 1855-1942 March 16
Married Dr. Edward C. Roche 8 Sept 1874 in
Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Pettis
Twelve children: Laura, Isabella Sarah 1875-1960,
Herbert Alexander 1877, Charles Augustus 1881-1962,
Arthur Eugene 1884, Benjamin Lewis 1886-1964,
Carl John 1888, Anna Marion 1891, Grace 1893-1965,
Oliver Bryan 1896, Leon 1898, Edward Alexis 1901
Buried Section C Lot 4, Saints Peter and Paul Cemetery
(4) Gustave Leon Ducray 1867-1955
Married Maude Lulu Weitzel (1875-1931)
also known as Lulu Maude Ducray
Their children:
{1} Ralph William 18 September 1898-1987 October
{2} Leon A. Ducray 14 July 1901-1985 January 9
{3} Harold W. Ducray December 1904-1905 January 26
{4} Clovis M. Ducray 21 May 1907-1986 November
{5} Barbara A. Ducray 1908-1945
Gustave did well in oil wells and contracting.
Maude was daughter of a well-liked family. Newspaper
articles noted they were good people, and active
socially.
Tragically, Lulu Maude and Clovis were
struck by another car while Clovis was driving her
home. Lulu Maude's injuries took her life at the
hospital, at age 57; Clovis was only 24. The accident
prompted articles in many Pennsylvania newspapers.
Clovis and his father Gustave ("G L Ducray") sued the
other driver for causing her loss. Later in life, Clovis
owned the Sunset Beach Park and Picnic Plaza, which
included a swimming pool and Sunset Drive-In, in
Claysville, Pennsylvania (southwest of Pittsburgh).
Clovis endured other terrible sorrows: his wife
Barbara A.(1908-1945) tragically was killed when her
clothing caught fire while tending their furnace at
home. Their son, Clovis M., Jr., was born disabled,
and lived only to age 19.
Lt. [Lieutenant, Air Force] Leon A. Ducray married
Emmy Lou. They founded Lee Ducray Interiors, and were
among their area's top interior designers. Their
designs for the Carnegie Institute Gala, and other
mentions of their social events and community
activities, show they were well-liked and regarded in
their community.
(7) Adelaide Maloney Ducray 25 July 1873-1905
First wife of Ernest Starr Vincent
Passed away at only 32 years old, with three small
children.
Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Cemetery
Section B Lot 11 - buried with her husband
Ernest Starr Vincent and his second wife Zoe Barrier
(married 1906). Ernest and Zoe named their only child
Adelaide Ducray Vincent, born on first wife Adelaide's
birthday, July 25, in 1908.
The second Adelaide passed away 14 July 1996 in
Meadville.
Children of first Adelaide Ducray, daughter of Augustus:
(1) Alexander Joseph Vincent 26 Aug 1894-1990 Sep 26
*(2) Julian Augustus Vincent 6 Jan 1896-1979 Oct 29
(his cousin Julian August Ducray was born in 1889:
23 Jan 1889-1945 Dec 15)
Married Marie Alva Mailliard 1919 October 8
Children of Julian Augustus and Marie Vincent:
(1) Mildred Isabell [married George R. Enlow
1939 October 21]
(2) James Harry
(3) Winnifred
(4) Carrie [married Don Smith]
(5) Shirley
Descendant Leonard Enlow (genforum) is one of five
children of Mildred and George Enlow: one passed
away as an infant; Nancy Lee, Dale Edward, and
Jeffrey Scott Enlow. Dale Edward married Patricia
Ann Smith 1974 August 3; their children are
*Julian Edward Enlow and *Jesse Orion Enlow.
(3) Albert Ernest Vincent 16 Aug 1897-1962 Oct 4
*(4) Ralph Ducray Vincent born Frenchtown, Pa.
14 May 1899-1977 Jan 15 Chicago, Illinois
info at genforum:
*Children Jurgen Ernest & Ralph Ducray Vincent, Jr.
(5) Marie Isabell Vincent 24 Jan 1901-1985 March 10
Cincinnati, Ohio. Married Leo Harrington.
Gravesite Details
Son of Nicholas and Frances Ducray. Husband of Victorine, born in France
Family Members
Siblings
-
Françoise Virginie Ducray
1822 – unknown
-
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Jean-Baptiste [John B.] "J. B." Ducray
1824–1890
-
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Celestine Ducray Bourquin
1826–1899
-
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Claude Marie/Mary DuCray Wood
1829–1912
-
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Jeanne Claude "Jane" Ducray
1831 – unknown
-
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John Claude Ducray
1833–1875
-
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Charles Celestin Ducray
1835–1923
-
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Augustin (Justin) François Ducray
1837–1914
-
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Julius C. Ducray
1841–1925
Children
-
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Cesarine "Sarah" Jane Ducray Mailliard
1854–1935
-
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Mary Octave Ducray Roche
1855–1942
-
Nicholas Ducray
1860 – unknown
-
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Justin Frank "Jesse" Ducray
1862–1906
-
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Charles H. Ducray
1864–1880
-
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Gustave Leon Ducray
1865–1955
-
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Emma M. Ducray
1870–1881
-
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Edward John Ducray
1872–1905
-
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Adelaide Ducray Vincent
1873–1905
-
Charles K. Ducray
1874 – unknown
-
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Aurelia E. "Lilly" Ducray Baird
1875–1965
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