Managed by the Village of Saint-Pierre-Jolys

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La Rivière-aux-Rats était, de temps immémorial, une place d'hivernement. D 'année en année, à la fin de I'automne, des familles partaient de Saint-Norbert et de Saint-Vital et venaient avec leurs troupeaux passer l'hiver sous les bois de chênes au milieu de I 'abondance de ses places à foin.

Ce n'est qu'en 1872, que les huit families suivantes viennent s'établir en permanence la Rivière-aux-Rats : Édouard Élémont et Élise Racette, Joseph Gladu et Adèle Lafournaise, Gabriel Lafournaise et Suzanne Collin, Louis Larivière et Mélanie Nault, Boniface Nault et Christine Landry, Marcel Roy et Ursule Venne, Isidore Tourond et Anne Vermette, Toussaint Vermette et Élise Tourond. En 1873, suivent deux autres familles : Martin Jérome et Léocadie Carriére, Alfred Nault et Pauline Zess.

À cette époque, la mission de Saint-Pierre est desservie par Ia paroisse de Sainte-Agathe. La résidence de I' un ou I' autre habitant sert d'église. En 1874, viendront se joindre les familles : Joseph Cadotte et Christine Caron, Romain Nault et Philomène Landry, Jacques Tourond et Marie Courchêne, André Carrière et Marie Gladu. En 1877, la mission de Saint-Pierre compte déjà vingt familles.

(Source : Saint-Pierre-Jolys Manitoba au Fil du Temps, pp 5 f [2005; Adapted])

(Free translation follows)

The Rat River was, from time immemorial, a wintering spot. Year after year, in the autumn, families left St Norbert and St Vital and came with their herds to spend the winter under the oak trees amidst the abundance of these sources of hay.

In 1872, the following eight families settled on the Rat River: Édouard Élémont and Élise Racette, Joseph Gladu and Adèle Lafournaise, Gabriel Lafournaise and Suzanne Collin, Louis Larivière and Mélanie Nault, Boniface Nault and Christine Landry, Marcel Roy and Ursule Venne, Isidore Tourond and Anne Vermette, Toussaint Vermette and Élise Tourond. In 1873, two other families joined them: Martin Jérome and Léocadie Carriére, Alfred Nault and Pauline Zess. In 1877, the mission of Saint-Pierre already had twenty families.

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The new cemetery was developed when it became apparent that there would soon be no room left in the cemetery around the church. It is a well-kept, attractive cemetery in a residential area.

(Source: Manitoba Genealogical Society [Adapted])

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Dominion Land Survey coordinates: LSD16-33-05-04-E1

In the Village of St. Pierre Jolys, which adjoins on all sides the Rural Municipality of De Salaberry

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As noted above, a part of the town's story, and those of its inhabitants, from the early days of European settlement through roughly 2005 is told in the volume "Saint-Pierre-Jolys Manitoba au Fil du Temps", with additional parts in the related volume "St. Pierre-Jolys Aujourd'hui 1977".

Free digital versions of these and many other Manitoba local history books can be found online in the University of Manitoba Digital Collections. There is also a list of such books organized by district and town name on the Manitoba Historical Society's website on their page entitled "Finding Aid: Manitoba Local History Books".

A list of burials in this cemetery is available from the Manitoba Genealogical Society (reference #0654), transcribed by a member or members in 1992. Also available to MGS members is a searchable online database named the "MGS Manitoba Name Index" (or MANI). Some additional information is contained in the 1996 MGS publication "Carved in Stone: Manitoba Cemeteries and Burial Sites" (revised edition, Special Projects Publication, 106 pages).

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Also of note: The St Boniface Historical Society (La Société historique de Saint-Boniface) maintains extensive records of the lives led by and influences of the people in Manitoba who had French ancestry, be it recently from France and Belgium, or by way of Quebec.