At the end of January, I entered the spectacular yellow house, rue de Grand-Pré. Since the publication of this report1, two women wrote to me. Not only had they lived there, but they recognized themselves in the old photo archived by the former owners…
By talking with them, I quickly understood that although they are on the same shot, the women do not know each other. They led their lives in parallel, under one roof… Here is their story.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY BERNARD COOPER
Christiane Duchesne is the little girl on the left, Denyse and Otto are in the middle. We still don’t know who the girls on the right are, probably neighbors. At the window, Yvonne Audet Duchesne.
When Otto fled Hungary for political reasons, he took refuge in a France that didn’t really want him. Fortunately, he met Denyse Loubeyre there, the one who would quickly become his wife.
Only one country has agreed to welcome the young lovers. It was therefore in Canada that they settled, in March 1952, with their 15-month-old son.
Denyse was then pregnant with a second child. She was due to give birth in May, which would theoretically give the family time to settle in… Except that – surprise! – the baby was born a month earlier than expected. The couple then had no job or home. He was living in a shelter, with meager savings in his pocket.
At the hospital, Denyse was trying to push back the panic and focus on her baby. But what was she going to do when she left? One word comes to mind when she thinks back to that time: abandonment.
Then, a woman came to visit Denyse’s roommate, an Italian immigrant. The Good Samaritan brought him clothes. Denyse took the opportunity to reveal to her that she also needed help. The young woman promised to return the next day.
This time, she brought clothes and good news: “My mother-in-law rents apartments. Maybe she would have one for you…”
PHOTO DENIS GERMAIN, THE PRESS
Denyse Loubeyre, who has already lived in the yellow house
A few days later, Denyse, Otto and their children moved into the yellow house, which was not yet there at the time. In fact, it was nicknamed “the flaming castle” (and not “the flamboyant”, as history has retained). Probably because of its red roof.
The owner of the premises, Yvonne Audet Duchesne, did not hesitate for a second before renting a space to the couple. The apartment, however, had nothing of a castle about it. He didn’t look like much, but he kept the family safe and that was a lot.
Yvonne Audet Duchesne was nice without being pleasant, remembers Denyse Loubeyre. She looked tired. Normal: with so many children, she probably had a lot to do…
“It was quite an early life adventure! I was 22 when I arrived,” told me Denyse Loubeyre, who is now 71 more.
“Seeing my photo in front of the facade warms my heart. »
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Denyse is right: Yvonne Audet Duschesne was very tired. Not only did she take care of a large house and 12 children, but she also did cleaning at the Reform School. Oh, and her husband wasn’t really in the picture.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY BERNARD COOPER
Yvonne Audet Duchesne
Native of the Baie-des-Chaleurs, it housed Gaspesians passing through Montreal, little nieces and, obviously, immigrants in trouble. Embarrassed by her accent, she told everyone who asked her the question that she was from Belgium. We believed her.
She knew misery. Yvonne had often paced the harbor collecting items that had fallen from the convoys. She didn’t hesitate to redo the baskets of vegetables at the grocery store so that she only had the most beautiful products in hers. She could wring a hen’s neck and cook every bit of it. She made potato liquor in the cellar and traded it with the local priests.
She was brave. Legend has it that when the family home caught fire, before the clan moved into the blazing castle, Yvonne pulled all her children out, dumped them in the snow, and then went to get the piano!
Every Sunday his home filled up. The whole family came to enjoy ham, sour cream salad and date squares. There were people sitting everywhere. It was singing, it was laughing.
The children paced the big house looking for hiding places. Christiane and her brother Bertrand played the mechanical piano. She handled the keys and he the pedals.
You can also see Christiane in the old photo. The same that shows Denyse, Otto and their little ones. It was taken on a Sunday, precisely. You can see it in the white dress the little girl is wearing.
At the window, Yvonne watches over her world.
Christiane and Bertrand have fond memories of that time and of their grandmother. Under a discreet appearance, she was a formidable storyteller, they say. A gift passed down from generation to generation, Christiane Duchesne being an award-winning writer today.
Yvonne Audet Duchesne died at the age of 63 from generalized cancer. She is still not forgotten, neither by her family nor by the people she welcomed.
And its castle, which has turned yellow, continues to fascinate.