French Canadians Living in Ferrisburgh, VT in 1850: #7 Oliver Sorrell

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Oliver Sorrell is listed in the 1850 US Census for Ferrisburgh. He is referred to as Oliver Sorell on Page 306 (stamped), Line 17, Household 190, with the following persons listed, respectively, on lines 18 to 21:

  • Mary Sorell
  • Joseph Sorell
  • Mary Sorell
  • Oliver S. Sorell

Mary is Oliver’s wife, Marie Cognac, and the others are some of their children, Joseph, Mary (baptized Marie-Virginie) and Oliver S. Information is accurate about the children’s place of birth. We can therefore assume that Oliver and his family emigrated to Ferrisburgh between 1847 and 1849.

oliver sorrel

Name Transcribed from the 1850 US Census:Sorell, Oliver
Last Name:Sorrell
First & Middle Name:Oliver

(He was baptized under the name of François-Xavier. He is also referred to as Xavier in Vermont Catholic Church Repertoires.)
Sex:M
Original Surname in Québec:Sorel
Earliest Known Paternal Ancestor:Pierre Chorel & Annie (?). Their son Hilaire, born abt 1695 in Saint-Sernin Parish, Carcassonne, Aude, France, was married to Geneviève Brault Pominville on 23 Jul 1715 at Québec's Notre-Dame Church. He died in Montréal on March 19, 1736.
Status:Born in Québec; came with spouse and children
Parents' Name:Joseph Sorel & Marie-Louise Rielle
Parents' Marriage Date & Place:23 Jan 1809, Saint-Philippe, Laprairie, Québec, Canada
Spouse:Marie Cognac
Marriage Date & Place:6 Feb 1844, Chambly (Saint-Joseph), Chambly, Québec, Canada
Other Spouses:N/A
Vital Information:
Birth Date & Place:4 Dec 1824, Chambly, Chambly, Québec, Canada
Baptismal Date & Place:5 Dec 1824, Chambly (Saint-Joseph), Chambly, Québec, Canada
Death Date & Place:2 May 1887, Ferrisburgh, Addison County, Vermont
Burial Date & Place:aft 2 May 1887, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cemetery, East Charlotte, Chittenden, Vermont
Naturalization Date & Place:31 Aug 1878, Vergennes City Court, Vergennes, Addison County, Vermont
Land Owner in Ferrisburgh:Yes
Military:N/A
Religion:Catholic
Life Before Ferrisburgh:At the time of his marriage, Oliver is a labourer from Chambly. He lived in said town probably until he left for Ferrisburgh between 1847 and 1849. Their eldest is baptized in Saint-Mathias in 1845, where Oliver was a farmer.
Life After Ferrisburgh:Oliver lived in Ferrisburgh until his death in 1887. The first mention of Oliver Sorrell in the Ferrisburgh deed index as a grantee is in 1857 although the 1860 Census does not indicate that he owned real estate and that he was still a laborer. In 1870, he is listed as a farmer with real estate estimated at $1,000 and personal estate at $200. In 1880, he is a teamster and, interesting fact, on the day of the enumeration, he was sick with phthisie. Oliver died from paralysis seven years later. I have found probate records for Oliver Sorrell who will be featured in a future post, since I do not have access to land records for now (and there are a lot!).
Notes:Information was taken from the 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880 US Census, Parish Repertoire of Burlington, Vergennes and Charlotte, Vermont, Naturalizations records on Family Search, Find-a-Grave Website and Collection Drouin (Quebec parish records).

Last Updated: February 11, 2016


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