Article:

Sunday Standard-Times, New Bedford, Mass., November 29, 1970

French Sharpshooters disband after nearly 80 years
By Robert Barcellos Standard-Times Staff Writer

Le Club des Francs-Tireurs— the club of the French Sharpshooters, one of the oldest French Canadian benevolent and fraternal organizations in New Bedford, quietly passed out of existence on Sept. 24.

The organization formed nearly 80 years ago by approximately 80 French Canadian residents of the north end, grew despite vicisitudes to more than 2,000 members in the years before World War II, but gradually dwindled down after the war years until only 208 were still enrolled at the time of it demise.

Leo A. Pelliteer, who headed the organization during its last two decades, attributed the club’s death to a “lack of a need for that kind of society and lack of interest.”

Drill team dropped
Pelletier recalled that the Sharpshooters, once known throughout New England and the east coast for its crack drill teams, gave up this aspect of the club about ten years ago when it became almost impossible to recruit new members. The usefulness off the club’s benevolences declined also through the years as benefits provided by the state and the expansion of social security to cover almost all kinds of work far outweighed the Sharpshooters’ protection. The club provided its dues paying members with $9 a week for 13 weeks in times of unemployment and also a $ 200 burial payment [$240] for those without family – but these figures remained constant throughout the years.

Comprised wholly of French Canadians, the Sharpshooters assisted its members along the path to naturalization and citizenship if they were immigrants. The organization dates back to 1891, when a group of French Canadians in the North End made Edgerton’s Hall, Purchase and Linden Streets, a gathering place and “used the hall as a sort of club room without having any definite name or purpose.” (Edgerton’s Hall was later replaced by Dawson’s Block, housing the quarters of the New Bedford Aerie of Eagles.)

The group organized themselves in March, at first purely for social purposes, but after the group made a pilgrimage to Central Falls, R. I. — A center of the French Canadian settlement in Southern New England — on June 24 for celebration of the Feast of St. Jean Babtiste, members returned with the idea of transforming their organization into a beneficial association.

Incorporate in 1892
The Club of French Sharpshooters was incorporated on Set. 26, 1892. The charter of the group described its purpose as “to form a union of the French Canadians of New Bedford, to have fraternal meetings, to establish a mutual fund for the benefit of sick members and the heirs of deceased members, permit the members to amuse, instruct, and educate themselves and conserve the language by financing a library , by lectures, by dramatics, etc., and by the establishment of a uniformed company.

This ‘uniformed company’ called for in the charter, which would become the focus of the clubs activities for many years, was shelved for the time being — without competitions, a popular aspect of fraternal bodies of the day. Original members of the club were Alfred N. Gravel, President; Isaie Theier, vice-president; Henry M Crouteau, Treasurer; Thomas M. St. Germain, secretary; and Ignace E. Richard, corresponding secretary.

Gravel was followed in 1 Oí 892 by Louis A. Durocher, and in 1893 by Joseph Magnant, whose presidency was marked by two memorable events. In 1893 the Sharpshooters acquired their own headquarters at 70 Hicks Street. Sharpshooters Hall remained the meeting place for the first branch of the club and the central organization until 1955.
In that year also an eight-week strike shut the mills and threw members out of work. With unemployment rampant, many were unable to pay dues and the membership, which had reached 200 dropped down to 110.

Branch established
The election of 22-year old Edmond M. Pothier for 1894 marked the beginning of a period in which the club, having triumphantly weathered a time of trouble, would grow rapidly and divide into two branches.

By 1895 things were on the upswing again, and in 1899 the Sharpshooters Branch No. 2 was formed to serve members in the South End.

Having two branches each with its own set of officers- No. 1 meeting in Sharpshooters Hall and No. 2 in the Orpheum Building (acquired in 19?9) necessitated the creation of a co-ordinating body. This was the Supreme Council, headed by the supreme president — Pothier being the first incumbent. The South End branch was the first to form a uniform company, in 1907, at which time the entire Chevaliers of St. Louis, then an independent group, joined the club and became Sharpshooters Gard. The first leader was Major Odilon Rousseau. Captain Prudent Coderre was the guiding spirit of this group for 41 years — from 1908 until 1949.

Sharpshooters Gard No.1 was not formed until 1923, when Captain William M. Dumas, became its first leader.

Both units acquired many trophies, awards, and honors in competitions. The South End branch, also organized its own rifle team, was admitted to the National Rifle Association in 1916, while the guard joined the union of Franco-American Guards of New England, in 1939, winning its regional championship the next year.

Guard No. 1 joined the Union of Franco-American Guards in 1926 and came out first in five consecutive years – 1927 to 1931, 1933 and 1948.

Athletic Club Formed
An athletic club was also formed by the North End branch in 1920 by the younger members (membership began at 16), leaving older Sharpshooters to the more passive diversions of the card table, the checkerboard and the pool table.

In 1933 the Sharpshooters Bugle and Drum Corps was formed under Major Everiste Richard and soon affiliated with the 150-group Rhode Island Fife Drum and Bugle Association.

Gard units of both branches were well represented in the ranks of military during war time. Gard No. 1 at the entrance of the United States in World War 1 offered membership en masse to the war effort and received thanks of Governor Samuel W. McCall. During World War 11 58 members of Gard 2 and 54 members of Gard 1 lost their lives in North Africa during the latter war.

As the club began to grow in the 1900’s, its by-laws were used as models by other french-speaking groups here and the club gained affiliations with other groups whose members could share in the privileges of the club.

One of these privileges was a library of more than 1600 books, all in the French language. At one time a librarian and two assistants were needed to maintain it. However, use of this remarkable collection declined and the library was broken up and the books sold when the club disposed of its North End quarters.

Anniversaries marked
The club observed its 25th anniversary in 1926, at which time there appears to have been a Branch No. 3., Presidents of the various branches, as derived from lists of Officers in the silver anniversary program, were Odilon Rousseau, supreme president; Edward Cusson, No. 1; J. B. Jourdain, No 2, and Henri Lacosse, No. 3.

When the club marked its golden anniversary in 1941 with even greater festivities, four of the original members were still living — Thomas M. St. Germain, the first secretary back in 1891; Adelard Tetrault, Jean A. Forand and Joseph F. Cote.
Pelltier, who has been a member since 1917, noted that after World War 11 returning members had had enough of uniforms and there was littl Oí e inducement for the formation of new drill teams. However both Gard No. 1 and Gard No. 2 raised teams which made a good showing in 1948 and 1949, but participation began to wane.

The loss of the drill teams, strangely enough, proved beneficial to the drum and bugle corps which have sprung up in recent years, for members unable to participate in Sharpshooter teams went into the new corps.

The first supreme president, Pothier, after his last term expired in 1901, was followed by Rousseau and then Joseph Lapre. The fourth supreme president, Gustave LaMarche served for 20 years — from 1930 to 1950. A former city treasurer, he died in 1965.

Pelletier, who suceeded LaMarche in October 1950, was supreme president whe Oí n the two branches were consolidated into one organization. The Supreme Council was eliminated, and the supreme president reduced to president (along with other supreme officers) under new by-laws.

Hall sold in 1955
In October 1955 the sale of Sharpshooters Hall — now known as the North End Guild – to the Wamsutta Old Timers was announced. The club moved to its South End quarters at 1007 South Water St., and remained there until 1963 when the club sold the Orpheum Building. For the past seven years the club had been renting a store in the Brooklawn Apartments at 1862 Acushnet Ave., but this recently changed hands.

The young people no longer frequented the club house, having found recreational facilities at home and elsewhere. With only 15-20 members attending the monthly meetings on the average, the club decided that support for the club no longer warranted the high upkeep.

Thus it was that at the last meeting, called for the purpose, that 73 0of the 208 remaining members showed up to approve — 72 voting for and the president abstaining — the ringing down of the curtain on an organization which played a major role in the social life of this city’s French Canadian population.

There was no sadness openly expressed at the last meeting. It was rather, the last president notes, like a “grand reunion.”