Welcome
It began with one Basque fisherman
With only a very few exceptions, those who share the Goyetche surname in North
America trace their origins to Jean Goyetche, a Basque fisherman born in 1763 in
the Bayonne region of France. He arrived in North America sometime before 1793
and may have spent time on the islands of St. Pierre & Miquelon or at Louisbourg
before coming to Arichat on Isle Madame in Nova Scotia.
The Goyetche family in North America has grown
to include more than 1,900 descendants.
Beginning with Jean Goyetche (1763 - 1844),
descendants now span nine generations and
encompass more than 600 family groups. The
genealogy pages on this site provide extensive
information about family members. This includes
family group descendant trees as well as all-
inclusive trees.
Over the generations, the Goyetche family has
included its share of interesting and some colourful
characters. Among them was Martin Goyetche,
who travelled with the pirates Pierre and Jean
Laffite, and married one of the Laffite daughters;
Dominique Goyetche, who was sentenced to prison
on the island of New Caledonia in the South
Pacific; and Billy Goyetche, freight-hauler,
undertaker and police constable in St. Peter's, NS.
Historical profiles of the islands St. Pierre & Miquelon, off the coast of
Newfoundland, and of Isle Madame in Nova Scotia both include references to
Goyetche family members.
Basque origins
The Basque region, or Euskal Herria
as it is traditionally called by the
Basques, straddles southern France
and northern Spain. It is located
where Spain and France connect on
the Bay of Biscay, extending 8,056
square miles (20,864 km2). It
encompasses the western end of
the Pyrenees Mountains on the
Iberian Peninsula, down to the Bay
of Biscay. The region is made up of
seven provinces spanning both
sides of the Spanish/French border,
and has its own unique culture and
language.
While there continue to be
imaginative theories about the
origins of the Basque people
(everything from a lost tribe of Israel to refugees from Atlantis), there is no
evidence that the Basques of ancient times lived anywhere other than where they
are now, in France and Spain. The Basques are known to have had their distinctive
language as early as 7,000 BC, and they have the last remaining non Indo-
European language in the area. Their language, Euskara, is the oldest surviving in
all of Europe. Through history, the Basque people were renowned as fishermen,
traders and shepherds.
Family News
CAPE BRETON TO TEXAS -
MARIE’S STORY
In the late 19th century, a young girl
named Marie Goyetche and her family
from Cape Breton joined a great out-
migration of more than 250,000
Maritimers, almost 30 percent of the
population of the region at the time,
destined for the “Boston States”. Within a
few years her journey took her even
further. Marie and her new husband
booked passage on a ship bound for
Galveston, Texas where they began a new
life. To learn more, see Cape Breton To
Texas – Marie’s Story.
PHOTO GALLERIES
Recent additions include Phil & Laurie
Goyetche of Broadview Heights, OH; Alex
Neve & Patricia Goyeche of Ottawa, ON
with children Brennan, Sean-Daniel &
Selina; Janine, Sarah & Corinne,
daughters of Brian & Christina Goyetche
of West Bay, NS; and Chris, Julie &
Nathaniel Bartkow of Halifax, NS.
Check back in the weeks and months to
come as more photos are added to the
collection.
FAMILY NEWS
Check out the Family News page for new
additions to the family, recent deaths, as
well as significant achievements by family
members. Contributions are always
welcome. Please forward your updates to
djgoyetche@yahoo.ca.
GENEALOGY
Our genealogy pages include information
on more than 1,900 family members and
600 family groups spanning nine
generations beginning in 1763. You may
search or browse our index of family
members, view family group descendant
trees or all-inclusive ancestor trees. Other
reports include all surnames, frequent
surnames, U.S. and European
time/density maps as well as name and
age statistics.
