Eustache Masson III, oldest son of Pierre Marc Masson II and of Catherine Pilon, was born in Île Bizard on October 6th 1781 and was baptized the next day at the Parish church of Sainte-Geneviève (1). He was named Eustache in honour of his godfather Eustache Bruyé (2) whose family lived next to that of the Masson on Île Bizard (3). This Christian name was in honour in the region since the concession January 20th 1752 of the Seigneurie of a Thousand-Islands to Sieur Eustache Lambert-Dumont. This is the reason why the Parish there was named Saint-Eustache.

Eustache Masson was raised on the paternal land, at Île Bizard, where he lived probably until around 1806 when he became a merchant at Sainte-Geneviève.

He was only 19 years of age when he married, on January 11th 1801, at Sainte-Geneviève church, Scholastique Payfer, a young woman of 18 years of age, born February 8th 1782 (4), daughter of Henri Paul Payfer, merchant at Sainte-Geneviève, and of Catherine Éthier.

The wedding of the young couple brought together a good number of parents from both sides. The Act found in the Parish Register of Sainte-Geneviève (5) tells us first, that Pierre Marc Masson II acted as father to his son and that Louis, his brother, was there. There was also, on the Masson's side, Louis Parthenais, half-brother of Pierre Marc Masson and uncle of the Groom, and his wife Marie Angèle Dufrêne (6).

The Bride, Scholastique Payfer, one of the youngest of a large family, was without her father since the age of 2 and it was her brother-in-law, Pierre Marc Alexandre Delienne dit Bélanger, husband of her eldest sister Catherine Payfer, aged 39 years, who acted as father. Were also present the mother of the Bride Marie Catherine Éthier, then 57, and her brothers Louis, Henry, Hyacinthe and Janvier Payfer, as well as her sister Marie Catherine Payfer, wife of François Rochon.

Scholastique Payfer had an older sister, Suzanne Payfer, baptized at Sainte-Geneviève September 10th 1767, who married, February 7th 1785, at Saint-Eustache, Antoine Masson, born December 19th 1760 à Sainte-Rose, the son of Joseph Masson and Louise Maisonneuve. He was the ancestor of the lords of Terrebonne. He was a fourth generation descendant of Gilles Masson, from France, born circa 1630, son of Pierre Masson and Françoise Gendreneau, of Notre Dame de Longueville, Luçon, France.

Antoine Masson and Suzanne Payfer were father and mother of Joseph Masson, lord of Terrebonne and one of the richest French Canadians of his time, who was the father of Louis François Rodrigue Masson, lieutenant-governor of the province of Québec from 1884 to 1887.

So it is that the descendants of Eustache Masson III and of the Masson families of Terrebonne are related, not by having husbands of the same family name but of different roots, but because of the common ancestor of the wives, the two Payfer sisters of Sainte Geneviève.

The Payfer Family originated from Alsace (7) and spoke High-German.

The first of that name who came to Canada was Henri Paul Payfer, the father of the two Misses Payfer married to the two Masson above.

Born circa 1739, probably about Herkimer, in the valley of Mohawki River, New York, he was the son of André Payfer and of Christine Foncein and was at the Lake of The Two Mountains as soon as 1754. (8)

The region of Herkimer and of Little Falls in what is now the American State of New York was colonized by German families coming from the Palatinate, old German State on the Rhine Valley, families who had arrived in Pennsylvania around 1700, and of which some moved again later to the valley of the Mohawk River, in the then English Province of New-York, and formed a german group in this district which was known then under the names of "New Germany" and "German Flatts". TO SEE MAPS OF THE AREA, PRESS HERE

The origin of Henri Paul Payfer, rather vague if one only considers his Act of Marriage to Marie Catherine Ethier, on February 2nd 1761, at Sainte-Geneviève, where it is written that he is "son of andré paifer and of christine Fonsein living in the new germany", gets more precise by the examination of two documents kept in the Canadian Public Archives in Ottawa.

These two very interesting documents tell us that Henri Paul Payfer, lieutenant in the Militia at Sainte-Geneviève (9) , had a brother who fought for the American Rebels at the Mohawk River and was taken prisoner in 1778 by the English Forces coming from Canada. He would have been freed here, on parole, to stay some time with is brother in Sainte-Geneviève.

This would explain the presence of Pierre Payfer, uncle of the future Bride, at the signing of the Marriage Contract of Marc Alexandre Delienne and of Marie Catherine Payfer on the 11th of September 1780, in front of Notary Soupras, at Sainte-Geneviève.

He went back home in his country some time later.

In 1782, it is the turn of one of his sons, André (or Antoine) to be captured, on June 22nd 1782. Brought back to Canada, he also begs from the authorities permission to visit his relatives of Sainte-Geneviève. In his declaration, he says he is 20 years old and a River Mohawk native, which would confirm that when Henri Paul Payfer arrived in Canada his family was living on the Mohawk River, the "New Germany" mentioned in the Marriage Act already quoted.

The first of these documents is a letter in French from Lance Sergeant ["brigadier général"] De Speth to Governor Haldimand about a prisoner named André Payfer, as follows:

The second document is about the examination of the prisoner, who here is named Antoine Payfer, by James Hugues City Major, and the statement that follows [quoted in English]:

Henry Paul Payfer was during his lifetime merchant at Sainte-Geneviève. He died in his house March 11th 1784. The property was then bought by his son-in-law, Marc Alexandre Delienne, by contract in front of Notary L. S. Soupras, on May 5th 1784.

The inventory of the Common Goods of deceased Henry Paul Payfer and of Marie Catherine Éthier, his widow, was made in front of the same Notary, on May 26th 1784 and their children Marie Catherine, wife of Marc Alexandre Delienne, Marie Christine, 18 years of age, Marie Suzanne, 17, Louis, 13, Marguerite, 11, Henry, 7, Hyacinthe, 5, Janvier 3, and Scholastique, 2, all inherit one ninth of their father's succession. John Wifer, "cousin on the Father's side of said minor children" is present at the inventory.

Eustache Masson III and his wife Scholastique Payfer had seventeen children baptized in the church of Sainte-Geneviève from 1801 to 1820 but, as for the previous generation, child mortality wrought havoc and only eight children reached adulthood.

Eustache Masson seems to have been one of the last chidren of Pierre Marc Masson to leave his father's land on ÃŽle Bizard which he had received by settlement from his parents in front of Notary Louis Thibodeau on November 14th 1803.

In 1809 he was already established as a merchant in Sainte-Geneviève but it is highly probable that many of his children were born afterwards on Île Bizard.

His sister, Geneviève, had married Joseph Gatinau, in 1802, and his other sister, Catherine, had died at 21 years of age in 1807. Louis had married Marie Louise Choquet in 1808 and was living in Saint Benoît.

In 1818, the eldest of Eustache Masson's daughters marries Paul Timothé Masson, and in 1824 Louise Amélie marries the Notary André Jobin, while Marie Scholastique marries the Notary Jean Baptiste Généreux Pelletier.

A few years after his father's death, probably in 1829, Eustache Masson left Sainte-Geneviève and moved his family and his business to the new village of Beauharnois on the south shore of Lake Saint-Louis.

He rapidly became a citizen very much in the public eye at the Saint-Clément of Beauharnois Parish where his business, helped adroitly by his son Damase, grew year after year.

In 1835, he was the manager of the Beauharnois schools.

Eustache Masson and his son Damase, Louis Masson at Saint-Benoît, the Notary André Jobin at Sainte Geneviève as well as other members of the family were as many active Patriots when the swell of indignation of French Canadian Patriots against the established oligarchy reached its pitch in 1837-38 and the rebellion broke.

Saint Benoît and Beauharnois were nerve centers of the insurrection and the Masson and Jobin families played a role.

We saw in the previous chapter how Eustache's mother, Catherine Pilon, died at Beauharnois on November 4th 1838, the exact day the open rebellion took place.

Eustache and Damase Masson took an active part in the insurrection which was as we know of short duration. Tracked down by the loyalist volunteers and the militia, they had no other recourse than to flee to the United States, their properties have been destroyed during the week following the insurrection.

Totally ruined, Eustache Masson still had to see to his family's needs, and in the refuge of Fort Covington, in the State of New York, next to the border, he built a general store where soon came to join him and enter into partnership with him his nephew, doctor Luc Hyacinthe Masson, freed from exile by the repudiation in England of the Lord Durham's Proclamation.

On June 8th 1839, Eustache Masson III gave his daughter Cécile (or Célinie) in marriage to his nephew Luc Hyacinthe Masson.

A few weeks before, on May 1st 1839, another of his daughters married Henry Bogue, an irish merchant of Beauharnois, probably also a refugee to Fort Covington.

These two marriages were celebrated at Hogansburg, New York, close to Fort Covington.

Eustache Masson III died prematurely at Fort Covington, New York, on April 22nd 1840, aged 58 years. His remains were brought back to Beauharnois where he was buried in the local Parish church, the 25th of that month. (17)

Scholastique Payfer, his widow, survived him by about five years and died at Montréal at her son Damase Masson IV's home on October 25th 1845, at the age of 63 years, and was buried in Notre Dame de Montréal church three days later. (18)

When in 1852 the Union government paid indemnity to the victims of the 1837-38 rebellion, the heirs of Madame Eustache Masson shared between themselves the sum of £637 17s 7d in reparation for the losses encurred at Beauharnois by the family (19) which makes one believe that although Eustache Masson did support the Patriots' cause during the rebellion, he did not take up arms or fire any as otherwise the claim would have been rejected by the commission investigating the losses.

Notwithstanding, his role in the insurrection was sufficiently important that Aegidius Fauteux, in his dictionary of the Patriots of 1837-38, wrote an interesting article on him (20).

The family of Eustache Masson III and Scholastique Payfer was as such:

C-2 1801 - (11th January) Sainte-Geneviève

III	MASSON,	Eustache born Oct. 6th 1781 on Île Bizard and baptized the next day at Sainte-Geneviève; died Apr. 22th 1840 at Fort Covington and buried on the 25th of the same month in the church of Beauharnois	(Pierre Marc and Catherine Pilon).
III	PAYFER,	Scholastique, born Feb. 8th 1782 and baptized the 21st of the same month at Sainte-Geneviève; died Oct. 25th 1845 and buried the 28th in Notre-Dame church in Montréal	(Henri Paul and Catherine Éthier).

Children:

D-1	i.	ESTHER, baptized Nov. 21st 1801 at Sainte-Geneviève; married at Sainte-Geneviève Nov. 9th 1818 to Paul Timothé Masson; died Nov. 15th 1875 and buried the 19th at Saint-Eustache.
D-2	ii.	EUSTACHE THÉODORE, baptized Mar. 23rd 1803 at Sainte-Geneviève; buried Sept. the 21st 1803 at Sainte-Geneviève.
D-3	iii.	LOUISE AMÉLIE, baptized Feb. 25th 1804 at Sainte-Geneviève; married at Sainte-Geneviève Feb. 16th 1824 to André Jobin; died Mar. 27th 1838 and buried the 30th at in the church at Beauharnois.
D-4	iv.	MARC DAMASE, born Feb. 23rd 1805 and baptized the next day at Sainte-Geneviève; married at Beauharnois Feb. 1st 1830 to Marie Louise Virginie Jobin; died Apr. 22nd 1878 and buried the 25th at Montréal.
D-5	v.	NARCISSE THÈCLE, baptized Mar. 11th 1806 at Sainte-Geneviève; buried Jul. the 5th 1808 at Sainte-Geneviève.
D-6	vi.	MARIE SCHOLASTIQUE, baptized March 22nd 1807 at Sainte-Geneviève; married at Sainte-Geneviève Sept. 13th 1824 to Jean-Baptiste Généreux Pelletier; died Mar. 28th 1858 and buried the 31st at Montréal.
D-7	vii.	SOPHIE, baptized Mar. 23rd 1808 at Sainte-Geneviève; buried Jul. 16th 1808 at Sainte-Geneviève.
D-8	viii.	MARIE JUDITH, baptized May 2nd 1809 at Sainte-Geneviève; buried Jan. 3rd 1814 at Sainte-Geneviève.
D-9	ix.	EUPHROSINE, baptized Aug. 2nd 1810 at Sainte-Geneviève; buried Oct. 28th 1810 at Sainte-Geneviève.
D-10	x.	MARIE ZOÉ, baptized Aug. 19th 1811 at Sainte-Geneviève; buried Feb. 12th 1813 at Sainte-Geneviève.
D-11	xi.	MARIE ANNE, baptized Sep. 16th 1811 at Sainte-Geneviève; buried Aug. 11th 1813 at Sainte-Geneviève.
D-12	xii.	LUCIE, baptized Sep. 25th 1813 at Sainte-Geneviève; died single, at the age of 76, and buried Feb. 28th 1890 at Montréal.
D-13	xiii.	MARTINE, baptized Nov. 29th 1814 at Sainte-Geneviève; buried Oct. 5th 1815 at Sainte-Geneviève.
D-14	xiv.	MARIE LÉOCADIE, baptized Nov. 18th 1815 at Sainte-Geneviève; married at Montréal Nov. 22nd 1843 to Léandre Brault; died at Montréal and buried Jun. 17th 1896 at Longueuil.
D-15	xv.	MARIE ELMIRE, baptized Dec. 16th 1816 at Sainte-Geneviève; married at Hogansburg, N.Y., May 1st 1839 to Henry Bogue; died Oct. 18th 1881 and buried the 22nd at Montréal .
D-16	xvi.	CHARLES ISIDORE, baptized Dec. 8th 1817 at Sainte-Geneviève; buried Aug. 9th 1818 at Sainte-Geneviève.
D-17	xvii.	CÉCILE (CÉLINIE), baptized Nov. 8th 1817 at Sainte-Geneviève; married at Hogansburg, N.Y., June 8th 1839 to Luc Hyacinthe Masson; buried May 6th 1848 at Saint-Anicet .