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With her new NBC show that explores genealogy, it was only appropriate that Lisa Kudrow brought some info about Ellen's family. She found out the truth about the rumors that Ellen is related to Madonna -- and brought up important questions about Ellen's relationship with Louisiana!
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Ellen! We are cousins! I am from New Orleans originally, and I have the Martin/Cyr heritage, too. I was fortunate to see you twice in that talent show at the lakefront. I forget the name of the bar near the Coast Guard lighthouse, but I remember that you were a riot!
The Acadian story is much more complex than a story of moving from France to Canada to Louisiana. The entire culture was deported in the 1750s, resulting in the death of half the population.
After being held as a prisoner in Halifax, Ellen's 5g grandfather Joseph Sr. came to Louisiana in 1765 and his son Joseph was born that year. He settled in St. James parish along the Acadian Coast. I put together more details and constructed genealogy at http://www.acadian-cajun.com/ellen.htm
Tim
Acadian-Cajun Genealogy & History
PS. Martin's daughters Michelle and Jeanne were actually half-sisters.
HI ELLEN
I am from Nova Scotia and was shocked to hear you have history with us....the history is sad but i can tell you that a great number of nova scotians LOVE you , you should consider visiting and maybe take in a tour of -the fortress of louisbourg- in cape breton, it is very interesting and i'm sure you would be happy that you did...you may even get one of the guards to laugh ..lol
~hoping you visit ...fingers crossed !!
~Bre Wadden :)
I'm a descendant of Martin Aucoin as well, on Michele Aucoin's line. My family was expelled and ended up in Louisiana along with other Acadians. I'm guessing that Madonna's ancestor, also descended from Michele Aucoin, escaped to Quebec during the "Grand Derangement." Nice to see you and others here that are relatives!
Do you think you can bring Jessica Lowndes,from 90210, on the show? she's also a singer song writter..and I think you can help her out by bringing her to the show
thanks.
A.N.L
Hi Ellen
Love those jeans you had on today. (Loved your whole wardrobe today).
On my dad's side they came from France and settled in Toronto, Canada.But then I was told some moved to Louisiana in the 1800's.(so maybe we could be?,who knows, be related?maybe the family tree has another branch) I am related to couple of famous people in the sports world and in politics.
(Anyway,the treaty for The Louisiana Purchase was signed on April 30th 1803).
Ellen see ya 'morrow.
I Love you, Portia and Mama(Mama great to see you on todays show)and BIG HUGS.
Michele
Ellen!!!!!
That is sooo cool that you want to be on "Who Do You Think You Are?" I hope you can be on there and am glad it got picked up for season #2! I LOVE THIS SHOW!!!! It is very intersting to find out... learn about people you like/care about..admire ..fan of. I'm glad because I don't have time to look at my own family tree let alone all the people that I am since this show now curious in knowing... ummm??? I wonder. Especially after seeing Kudrow... she's the only one I've seen as I fell asleep on Broderick's time on the show. ... bummer but I did find out he had relatives in WWII but then I fell asleep. I do love this show as it inspires me to ... well my grams side has their own website!!! Scary... but one of my relatives owns their own airplane fly business... COOL! And my 15h Gram pappie! LOL was a herbalist.. and well another was ... Frenchman! So I am French! My dad's side... an 8th indian.. or a quarter.. mystery. I still don't know what tribe. My aunt doesn't even know.. but if it was the same tribe you were raised by Ellen!(LOL... its your iraquois joke!).. then we could be related!!! LOL
I'll send you a link to my family tree!!! my mothers side! I have a piano that my grams mom had that should be in a museum somewhere!!!! But grams won't let me tell them that she is alive... I think the guy would love to talk to one of the last of the lines still livin'! It would be a privledge... I told grams we could get a free dinner out of it!!!! I am always thinking too! :)
OMG! So, I'm watching Lisa Kudrow on Ellen today, and when Lisa tells Ellen how she is related to Madonna, I about flipped.... She mentions the name Aucoin. And I knew instantly that I had to have some connection! We have the same 10th Great Grandfather (Martin Aucoin)! It's on my mothers side. My Grandmother was born in Nova Scotia. Her great Grandfather was Pierre Aucoin, whose 5 time great grandfather was Marin Aucoin born in 1570 in France!!! I'm an 11th cousin to both Ellen and Madonna....what's even weirder is that we have other relatives that are intertwined as well!!!
So Ellen, we can we have a "Family" Reunion?
Your Cousin!
Diane Thompson (Pleasanton, CA)
Wow~I had the same reaction as most of the folks who posted on this item. Ellen, you are a part of a very rich and dramatic period of North American history. The expulsion of the Acadians from Canada is a dark stain on our history, but the Acadian culture is alive and well on our Eastern seaboard, and I would encourage you to find out more-they love music and dancing too, lol. Maybe when you have a moment to breathe you can make a trip out to Acadia up North 8) Did you know the Acadiens have their own flag?
Ellen pretended she didn't know about her connection to Madonna, but the story was published in Canadian newspapers on March 31st.
I met your dad in 1992 when I worked with Virginia in San Diego. I commented at the time that you look very much like your dad. So not surprising that you look like your grandfather.
By the way, your father was very gracious and Virginia is one of the funniest people I ever met in my life! I regret that we haven't kept in touch.
Hi Ellen, A great book to read is A Great and Noble Scheme by John Mack Faragher. It is the tragic story of the expulsion of the French Acadians from their American homelands. Many were sent to Louisana and many sad to say were killed by the English. This all happen during the French and Indian Wars or in Europe the 100 year War. My family escaped down the St. Lawrence to Quebec.
hiya ellen, i am a canadian just thought i would let you know my moms maiden name is everitt, but her family are from england, who knows we may be related.
Ellen, you know what this means right? You are Acadian/Cajun!! You MUST follow up on your history as us Acadians have a very rich cultural tapestry. And I am sure it's why you have such a tender heart...Acadians faced brutal hatred and prejudice against them in the early days of the colonial race to possess the "new world." Many Acadians ended up in Louisiana after their families were expelled from the Canadian Maritimes by the English government of 1755. It's likely your ancestor was one of them. When the expelled Acadians later identified themselves in their new land, they would have said, "je suis A-cajun " This is how English speakers heard the word "Acadian." Et voila! the Cajuns were born!
The relative that lived in Nova Scotia was an Aucoine which is a French name. These Acadians were expelled from Nova Scotia in 1755 approx. because they would not sign allegiance to the British crown. The men were gathered together in a small church at Grandpre, and when the women and children joined them, they were taken to boats and sent out to sea. Most of them ended up in Louisiana and were known as Cajuns. In the church at Grandpre there is a list of the people who were expelled. The list contains the following Aucoines:
Olivier AUCOINE
Claud AUCOINE
Charles AUCOINE
Jean AUCOINE
Renez AUCOINE
Joseph AUCOINE
Alexandre AUCOINE
Jean Bapiste AUCOINE
Charles AUCOINE
Pierre AUCOINE
Simon AUCOINE
Abraham AUCOINE
Simon AUCOINE
Charles AUCOINE
Martin AUCOINE
Olivier AUCOINE
Jean AUCOINE
Charles AUCOINE
I am a Nova Scotian and we consider this a shameful part of our history.
Trudie
Ellen's fifth great grandfather likely did not "move" the family to Louisianna. Acadians began settling Nova Scotia and the rest of the Maritimes shortly after Champlain established the first permanent European settlement in North America at Port Royale, Nova Scotia in 1604. Based on years of war the decision was made by the British to remove these citizens from their lands and then they often burned what remained so that they could not return. Starting in 1755 England deported hundreds of Acadian families as they would not sign oaths of allegiance to the British Government. The Acadians felt these oaths might be used to force them to fight against France (their homeland) in wars. Acadians were hoarded onto ships and dispersed between the 13 Colonies, France, England and French Colonies in the Caribbean. However, the vast majority ended up in Louisianna. I wonder, therefore, if Ellen's family may have been one of these unfortunately families to be expelled from their lands?
Ellen,
If your family moved to Louisiana in the 1700s from Nova Scotia, your "Cajun"/ Acadian ancestry was part of a Ethnic cleansing known as the "Expulsion of the Acadians" in 1755. Longfellow wrote a famous poem about it called "Evangeline".
You should visit Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia to see the statue of Evangline and lean more about this important and tragic event in your family history.
Hi Ellen, My name is Paul Clark and I live in Nova Scotia. Although I didn't know your great, great great.....great grandfather personally, I thought I may be able to shed some light on some of his circumstance. Being of french decent and residing in Nova Scotia leads me to believe that your family most likely has ties to an Acadian background. Also if your family left here and relocated in Loiusianna, it was probably not under free will or choice. During the 1750's tension between the French and England were at an all time high. When the Acadian's refused to pledge an oath to England they were loaded on ships and sent to other British colony settlements, the most popular being Louisianna. Many Acadians lost their lives during this mass deportation but many Acadians still reside here in Nova Scotia. Come on up sometime and have a look around and see some of the same sites your accestors would have seen a quarter of a cetury ago.
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Ab fab my gooldy man.
Posted by Laticia | November 25, 2011 10:58 PM