LA
PRAIRIE: A BIG FAMILY PARTY
Gabrielle Perron-Newman (313)
The 2004 Perron gathering took place in a climate of charm and great brotherhood. Participation was smaller than in past years but this did not keep the group from celebrating in full swing. And what a better way to start the gathering than with a visit to a long-standing mainstay of the local economy, the Hanson brick factory!
In two years from now the Hanson brick factory will be 100 years old but despite that venerable age, it does not slow down its pace. Far from it. There clay bricks are produced year round, 24 hours a day.
On Friday 6 August, close to 20 members of the Association took a guided tour of the factory. Wearing work helmets and safety goggles, they followed the process by which clay is transformed into a product that can withstand not only frost but also thaw. This feature alone makes this type of brick a very important building material in countries where temperatures go to extremes.
It takes one week for the transformation process to complete. First the clay is ground up, pressed and cut. Raw or “green” bricks break easily; only once they are baked do they become rigid. The oven temperature can reach a maximum of 1500º F and the bricks are baked for five days. If those bricks become red after baking, it is due to the special bed of clay found there which is specific to La Prairie. However it is possible to produce bricks of different colours by adding particular minerals to the mixture.
Looking at a brick building after such a visit makes you wonder where its bricks were made. And how long can they last? With time, clay brick takes on a beautiful patina. Take for example the University of Montreal: its bricks all come from the La Prairie plant and bear witness to the beauty and long life of this type of brick.
On Saturday morning, participants were welcomed by Léopold’s daughter Suzanne (662) and Huguette (466) his sister. Participants mixed and fraternized in the large room of Complexe Saint-Laurent and then Diane Joyal (732) gave a PowerPoint presentation on her ancestors. With a display of poems, texts, music and photos, Diane paid tribute to her grandmother, Rose-Alma Perron. Born in La Prairie, Rose-Alma married François-Xavier Clément who came from Des Cèdres. The couple had 21 children. One of them, Bernadette, was to become Diane’s mother. It should be mentioned that Diane’s grandfather was himself employed at the La Prairie brick factory at a time when all labour was done by hand and bricks were made one by one. Diane’s presentation showed us that her grandmother, for whom she has such admiration, was a courageous, hard-working and warm person. This presentation brought back memories of their youth for several on-looking participants. Congratulations to you, Diane!
Then came four young people dressed in period costumes personifying an Indian girl, a countrywoman, a Jesuit and a bourgeois. Assigned by the Historic Society of La Prairie, they were to be our guides for the afternoon. In turn, the young women talked briefly about the amazing history of La Prairie from the very first trace of human life 4000 years ago to nowadays. The name La Prairie comes from the Amerindian word Kantaké, meaning “the meadow” or “prairie”. La Prairie was one of the first seigniories or feudal domains to be established (1647) in the region of Montreal and profited by the industrial (fur trading) and social prominence of Ville-Marie. From the start of the British Rule in 1760 until Victoria bridge was built in 1859, La Prairie, thanks to its strategic location on the south shore, benefited from a notable commercial trade between Montreal and the United States. In 1846, a huge fire destroyed more than 300 buildings in La Prairie. The fire and repeated floods are events that marked the inhabitants of the town.
Let’s not forget to mention the Perrons of La Prairie. Even though the exact date of the first Perron to settle there is disputable, we know that one of his descendants, Alfred Perron, started a basket-making shop during the 1870 economic crisis that affected the whole of Quebec. In those days, when work was rare and willows were abundant in the region, the introduction of this craft was welcomed, as it required a lot of workers for branch cutting. Alfred Perron was foreman and also designed the baskets according to clients’ needs. The workshop produced clothesbaskets, sowing baskets, or baskets for harvesting fruit or vegetables. They sold for 50 cents to 6 dollars each.
In 1975, the government recognized the rich heritage of Old La Prairie by ranking it as a place of historic interest. And that’s where the Perrons took a walking tour to admire the old houses, the church of the Nativité de la Sainte-Vierge, and the concrete wall that was built long ago to hold back the waters of the St.Lawrence that threatened to flood the village every spring. These days, since the St.Lawrence Seaway was built, the river lies well beyond this wall as route 132 runs between it and Old La Prairie.
So the Perrons were blessed with a radiant sun while they strolled about in Old La Prairie but the sky had turned dark and stormy by the time they arrived at the water filtration plant where they were given a most enlightening tour. Divided into two groups, they were guided by two very knowledgeable employees who described the various stages by which the St Lawrence water is purified and cleared before being directed to citizens’ homes.
The water enters the plant through gravity feed. Then four huge pumps send it to the top floor where it commences its downward journey under gravity, through several purification stages. A cohering agent and a polymer are added to the water as soon as it arrives at the plant. Those substances allow any particles held in suspension to bind together. Those particles are then directed into the sewer system and eventually to the sewage treatment plant. Freed from those harmful elements, the water flows toward the filtering pools where it sinks through a filtration medium consisting of anthracite and sand. Chlorine and fluorine are added to the water when it leaves the filters; chlorine to kill harmful bacteria and fluorine to prevent tooth decay. The water’s journey through the plant lasts about 5 hours. Only then is it fit to drink and ready to be pumped to the aqueduct system, which comprises more than 60 kilometers of pipe.
It was mentioned that each consumer uses 400 liters of water every day and even more in times of great heat and drought. Filtering water is a very expensive process and therefore it is important not to squander it. The guides answered numerous questions, and the Perrons left the plant with more knowledge and much appreciation for the work that is done to ensure that our water is fit to drink.
By the end of the visit, the storm had passed and the participants had time to go to their hotel and freshen up before heading for church. Mass was co-celebrated by Fathers Toussaint (749) and Raymond (332) Perron in the church of the Nativity. Consecrated in 1841, this church was saved from the 1846 great fire. They say, and with reason, that the church was saved by a miracle. The firemen, who had come all the way from Montreal to help those of La Prairie, arrived just in time after doing a large portion of the trip on foot. In the calm of this holy place where the Perrons assembled on Saturday afternoon, surely a prayer of gratitude went up at the thought of that miraculous event.
While the Perrons were visiting Old La Prairie, the great room was being prepared for the cocktail, banquet and social evening. Participants took their places at the tables in anticipation of a fine evening of good food, good wine and good fun. Words of welcome by the mayor of La Prairie were much appreciated after which a succulent meal was served by the staff of a caterer of La Prairie. Soft music accompanied the meal, now and then drowned out by peals of great laughter amid the conversation… when the Perrons get together, it counts.
Later that evening a very special tribute was paid to Mr. Oswald Perron (314) and his wife Florence in honour of their Golden Wedding anniversary. Faithful to tradition, AFPA offered the couple a magnificent bouquet where golden tones prevailed and a certificate of recognition. We wish them many more years filled with happiness and health.
Then the dance floor was filled with couples that moved along with the music. DJ Yvon had the knack of keeping things going. Many door prizes were drawn during the evening to the delight of participants who went home with a token of their weekend. However the most desired prize of all remains the Perron coat of arms sculpted in oak by Jean-Claude (547) of Isle-aux-Coudres. This year the winner was a very happy Lise Perron-Dagenais (553).
On Sunday morning, members in good standing assembled to hear their administrators’ reports and to elect a new board. All went very smoothly. Then brunch was served as the gathering came to an end.
We thank Léopold and Suzanne for such a warm welcome to their hometown. They devoted many hours preparing for this family reunion and they deserve our gratitude. Thanks to this weekend filled with so many activities, we now have a richer and better sense of what La Prairie is about, of its charm and history. A history which the Perrons have helped shape as early as the end of the 18th century by settling there and raising their families with courage.