Historian Pierre Lavoie will present Mille Après Mille and Making a New Franco-American Identity, based on his first book, which offers a fresh look at how early 20th-century Francophone celebrities, such as Mary Bolduc Travers, Rudy Vallée, and Jean Grimaldi, helped shape the collective identities of Francophones in Quebec and New England. Lavoie will be joining guests remotely at the Museum.
Admission to the Valley Talk is free, but registration is required. Guests can attend the program in person, or on zoom and can register online here.
Lavoie is a historian and postdoctoral researcher affiliated with Université Laval. His research and publications focus on the history of popular culture and Francophone migration in North America. He is a regular contributor on the Canadian public broadcaster for radio, ICI Radio-Canada Première. His first book, Mille après mille: Célébrité et migrations dans le Nord-Est américain was published by Boréal in 2022.
The Museum’s 2024 Valley Talks series is presented by Amica Insurance, with additional support from the Museum of Work & Culture Preservation Foundation and the Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park.