Series

This series is composed of the diaries of Marie-Angélique Hay Des Rivières, covering the years 1846 to 1871. Most of them were written in almost daily and document the family relationships, domestic life and daily concerns of this upper middle-class woman during the second half of the 19^th century. These journals chronicle a particular time, conveying the slow pace of life in repetitious descriptions of weather and road conditions, the health of family members, activities of the parish priest, multiple walks, and the constant waiting for a letter or visit from a friend or family. This repetition also gives the diaries the appearance of logbooks.

The social and political climate of the era is mentioned in notes about the Patriot Rebellions, the "immigration sheds" (built to receive immigrants), the "cholera in the country," celebrating Saint-Jean-Baptiste in the church "decked out in maple leaves," and crossing the frozen St. Lawrence between Montreal and Longueuil. Some passages refer to Marie-Angélique's role in managing the family sawmill: "the sawmill needs more day labourers, and those who work there will indeed have to be supervised, for they don't appear to make good use of their time." Other sections reveal much more private aspects of her life. For example, she talks about her sorrow at the death of her three-month-old child and her plans to create bracelets with the recently cut hair of her daughter Caroline. In addition, the journals of Marie-Angélique Hay Des Rivières chronicle the professional activities of her husband, Henri Des Rivières. There is mention, for example, of him ordering machinery for the mill or attending council meetings in Bedford to discuss the planned construction of the railway. Marie-Angélique also regularly records the activities and movements of her children, Caroline and François Guillaume ("Willie"), who grow into young adults as the years pass. Young Willie gradually gets involved in helping with the family property, assisting his father with various tasks or going to Bedford to attend the agricultural fair. In various passages describing horseback riding, croquet, hunting and music, the diaries reveal information about the family's many acquaintances and leisure pursuits.

While statements from her contemporaries tend to paint a somewhat different reality than the bucolic picture drawn by Marie-Angélique in her journals, which suggests that these diaries present an idealized vision of the Des Rivières' life in Stanbridge, this family chronicle covering a quarter of a century is nonetheless an exceptional record of Quebec social customs in the 19^th century.