Josiah and Abigail Nims Rising home in Oka, Canada. Photo by Robert Tetreault.

Abigail Nims was born May 27, 1700, in Deerfield, the youngest daughter of Godfrey and Mehitable Nims. She was not quite four when taken captive during the 1704 French and Indian raid at Deerfield along with her mother, stepsister Elizabeth Hull, stepbrother Ebenezer Nims and more than 100 other captives. Her mother did not survive the trek. Abigail arrived at the fort at Sault-au-Recollet in Montreal and was taken in by Ganastarsi, possibly the wife or mother of Abigail’s Iroquois captor. She was initially called Towatogowach meaning “she draws from the water.” On June 15, 1704, she was baptized Mary Elizabeth.

Josiah Rising was born February 2, 1694 in Suffield, Connecticut and was staying at the time of the raid with Mehuman Hinsdale, his father’s cousin. Josiah was also taken to Sault-au-Recollet and named Shoetakwanni meaning “he was taken away from his village.” Josiah was baptized Ignace Raisin on December 23, 1706.  Mary Elizabeth was 12-years-old when step-brother John Nims went to see her while on a mission to redeem captives. She vehemently refused to return to Deerfield. Josiah also refused to return to his family. 

Mary Elizabeth Nims (Abigail) married Ignace Raisin (Josiah Rising) on July 29, 1715. When the mission for the Iroquois at Sault-au-Recollet was transferred to the Lake of Two Mountains in 1721, priests at St. Sulpice granted them 280 acres of land. Ignace became a farmer at Oka and together they had eight children. Mary Elizabeth traveled to Deerfield  to visit her Nims family just once and died about January 3, 1747. Ignace died December 30, 1771. Their children married into established families of New France and their descendants are spread throughout Canada, northern New York, and Michigan. Some American and Canadian cousins visited their former home in Oka during the 2012 Nims Family Association Reunion in Montreal. - Jeff Nims

Abigail Nims Rising Family Migrations

There was a westward migration in New France, Canada as well as in the United States. After leaving the village of Oka, descendants crossed the river to migrate to the Quebec towns of Vaudreuil and Rigaud and to some extent further south of the river within Canada. The next generations then migrated from Quebec to the most eastern part of Ontario. They settled in all of the areas east of Ottawa and descendants of Abigail can be found in nearly every city in Prescott County.

Starting circa 1870’s there was a significant migration to the Jefferson, St. Lawrence and Franklin counties in northeast New York State. All of the towns across the St. Lawrence River have a significant number of Abigail descendants. The town of Tupper Lake in Franklin County, which is located in Adirondack State Park, was a principle destination. It might be possible to prove that fifty percent of all of the families in Tupper Lake are descendants of Abigail. Surnames including Quesnel and Cannell were added to the family at this time.

While a large majority of Abigail’s descendants have stayed in the west Quebec or east Ontario counties, there has been significant migration north in Ontario to North Bay, Sudbury and Sault Ste. Marie. Abigail descendants have used this path to enter Michigan for either the northern peninsula and the Detroit area. Abigail descendants are found in Saskatchewan and Manitoba but a larger number traveled further west and established many communities west of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. In fact, many of the towns northwest of Edmonton where they settled have bilingual signs because of the number of French Canadians in the area.