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Amand François Hugo

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Amand François Hugo

Birth	:	16 Mar 1837 Sommedieue, Departement de la Meuse, Lorraine, France
Death	:	30 Oct 1923 Bay City, Bay County, Michigan, USA
Burial	:	Miramar National Cemetery, San Diego, San Diego County, USA
Coordinate	:	32.8715740, -117.1920030
Plot	:	Block
Description	:	Born in the small village of Sommedieue, Lorraine, France, Amand was the son of Francois and Catherine (Bourguignon) Hugot during a period called the "July Monarchy." His father was a quarry man and his mother a happy homemaker. He was the youngest of their nine children. The area around Sommedieue is known for its rolling hills, trout fishing and orchards. It is also very close to the borders of five countries, those of Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Germany and Switzerland. The surname Hugo, or Hugot as it was often recorded, is said to be a patrynom, probably brought... Read More	Born in the small village of Sommedieue, Lorraine, France, Amand was the son of Francois and Catherine (Bourguignon) Hugot during a period called the "July Monarchy." His father was a quarry man and his mother a happy homemaker. He was the youngest of their nine children. The area around Sommedieue is known for its rolling hills, trout fishing and orchards. It is also very close to the borders of five countries, those of Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Germany and Switzerland. The surname Hugo, or Hugot as it was often recorded, is said to be a patrynom, probably brought into France by a German who settle in the region after crossing the Moselle river. Surnames in France were a relatively new phenomena and were quite fluid for much of the 17th century. But we are able to trace Amand's family back more than 150 years from his birth. After the death of his father in 1848, the widowed Catherine and her surviving children decided to immigrate to the United States. They targeted the area north of Detroit, where large enclaves of Dutch, Flemish and French immigrants had built some thriving communities. They arrived in the US in October, 1849, and were in Michigan before Christmas. Amand and his two brothers only lived in the Detroit area for a couple of years, though. The federal government announced a major project to dig a set of locks on the Saint Mary river at Sault Sainte Marie, the river being the international border between the US and Ontario. With their experience working the quarries in France, and his brother Charles being a trained stone cutter, they were able to find work on the project. But his brothers were a bit older than him, especially Louis who was 19 when Amand was born. He found the winter in the Upper Peninsula difficult and was able to work through his contract, but he did not sign on for another year. Instead, he got passage on a postal ship that travelled up and down the Michigan coast in Lake Huron. When it set in at the town then called Lower Saginaw, he disembarked and stretched his legs. He never left. The post office in the small town was called "Hampton", the name of the charter township in the new Bay County. In 1855, finding that he had been in the United States the requisite five years, and having attained the age of 18, he visited the Hampton Post Office, which coincidentally held the local magistrate, and signed his Naturalization documents. Finding work as a blacksmith (so much warmer in the winter than the work in Sault Saint Marie), he became a respected member of the community. He was able to save his money, with an eye on purchasing his own farm one day. The land could be purchased for $1/acre after the lumber crews had cleared the trees. One of the things which made saving money easier in the young Bay City was that there were very few women in town. It took a concerted effort by the lumber companies to find families to settle in the young lumber towns on of central Michigan. One such family was the Boutillette family of Canada, whose patriarch, Regis, had been working in the lumber fields in St. Albans, Vermont, less than 30 miles south of Montreal, and minutes from the Canadian border. Colonel Roberts, one of the organizers of that first lumber company in the Saginaw/Tittabawassee river region, hired Regis in 1848 to relocate to Lower Saginaw and establish the first lumbering operation in the region. By 1849, with his wife Catherine pregnant with son Henry, he left them in Hamtramck until he could become established in the north and provide an appropriate home for his large family. When the family arrived in 1850, after a year in Hamtramck, they became the first "family" to arrive as a unit. Their young daughter, Caroline grew up to become the first seamstress north of the Detroit area and the first woman in Bay City to own her own business. She and Amand had a warm friendship that blossomed over time. In 1862, they married at St. Joseph Church in Bay City. They had a small home, which Amand had built for her. They spent some time in Macomb County, where Caroline could meet his mother, sisters, and their families. His brother Charles had already enlisted in the Union Army in 1861 and would not return until 1864. While in Macomb, Amand had to register for the draft. As he was also a resident of Bay City, though, he was given a deferment, as it was deemed an inappropriate registration as he owned a home in another draft district. But having registered in Macomb, he wasn't forced to register in Bay City. By a fluke of luck and good timing, he did not have to fight in the war. Amand and Caroline went on to raise two sons and four daughters. He bought her that farm in Hampton Township, not far from the county line with Tuscola, and just south of the Saginaw Bay, where there would never be a drought to afflict his crops. He lived to a ripe old age, though it was tainted during WWI. As one of his grandchildren sat on his lap, they listened to reports from the war in Europe. Tragically, the war arrived in his hometown, Sommedieue. Located just nine miles from Verdun, Sommedieue became a pivotal part of the war. First, a minor battle was fought in the fields just outside of the village. Then the American military created the "Sommedieu sector", which housed the US Army and Marines in the Meuse-Argonne, making the entire area a target for airstrikes by the Germans. Tears streamed from his eyes as he listened to the reports. Many say that he aged rapidly in the wake of those traumatic reports. His daughter Genevieve, who had never married, cared for her aging parents. They had sold their farm to their sons and purchased a beautiful home on Second Street in Bay City. He died quietly after battling senile dementia for several years. With tremendous gratitude to Clement, Isabelle and Charles Hugo for sharing their memories of this wonderful man.

frequently asked questions (FAQ):

Where is Amand François Hugo's memorial?
Amand François Hugo's memorial is located at: Miramar National Cemetery, San Diego, San Diego County, USA.
When did Amand François Hugo death?
Amand François Hugo death on 30 Oct 1923 in Bay City, Bay County, Michigan, USA
Where are the coordinates of the Amand François Hugo's memorial?
Latitude: 32.8715740
Longitude: -117.1920030

Family Members:

Parent

Spouse

Caroline Boutillette Hugo

(1835 - 1925)

Siblings

Children

Francis “Frank” Hugo

(1866 - 1933)

Catherine “Kitty” Hugo Groulx

(1867 - 1939)

Genevieve “Jennie” Hugo

(1870 - 1958)

Victor H. Hugo

(1873 - 1954)

Flowers:

Nearby Cemetories:

1. Miramar National Cemetery
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Coordinate: 32.8715740, -117.1920030

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14. Mission San Diego de Alcala Cemetery
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15. First United Methodist Church Memorial Garden
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16. Presidio Hill Cemetery
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17. First Unitarian Universalist Church of San Diego
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22. Beth Sarim House
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23. Saint Pauls Episcopal Cathedral Columbarium
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