Heritage Sunday - A Heritage Newspaper

Sunday July 29, 2001

Woman uncovers rich family heritage.....By Andrea Blum, Heritage Newspapers

DETROIT — Esther Lyons came home Tuesday.

As she stood on the stage at Hart Plaza to accept a plaque in honour of her family’s heritage, she said she felt as if she truly belonged to the city that her real-great-great-grandfather helped to found.

Born in India and now living in Australia, Lyons travelled a long way to come to Detroit to take part in the re-enactment of city founder Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac’s landing on the shores of the Detroit River.

A descendant of Francois Bienvenu dit Delisle, one of the Frenchmen who helped Cadillac found the city in 1701, Lyons was presented with a plaque commemorating her family’s place in history.

"I’ve always wanted to find my identity," the 60-year-old teacher said. "I want to be a part of Detroit and now I feel that I belong to the community and am doing what my family would’ve wanted me to do."

Lyons mingled with descendants of other famous Detroit families at the re-enactment, including the St. Aubin and Campeau families.

Gail Moreau, editor of Michigan Habitant Heritage magazine, presented Lyons with the plaque.

"I first told her about my ancestors two years ago and just kept sending her more and more information," Lyons said.

The thrill of watching a flotilla of 60 voyageurs paddling canoes down the Detroit River seemed to transport her back in time.

"It was beautiful," she said. "I felt like I was there."

As a statue of Cadillac was unveiled to celebrate his discovery, Lyons was proud to see Francois Delisle’s name engraved on the monument as well.

"I didn’t know I was getting an award," she said. "I just came for the celebration."

What endears the experience to her most is that it finally gives her a tangible connection to her French ancestry.

"I’ve always felt close to the French people," she said, remembering a time during college when she had to give up French lessons.

Born in India in 1940 to Agnes Shah and Michael Lyons, she grew up as one of two children in a single-parent household.

Her father returned to the United States when she was almost 5 years old, leaving her mother to raise the two girls, who faced discrimination and cultural conflicts due to their racial background.

Lyons’ quest to find her father and establish her identity led her to research her genealogy.

What she found was a lineage of prestigious family members, including her great-grandfather, Peter Delisle, a judge in the Del Ray section of southwest Detroit and a state senator.

The rich family history she uncovered became the basis for several books.

"I started writing in 1991 when my mother died and kept getting more and more information while I was writing," she said.

Almost five years later, her first book, "Unwanted," was published.

The volume details her recollections as an Anglo-Indian born during the last years of the British Raj.

Her second book, "Bitter Sweet Truth" further chronicles her history and long-awaited reunion with her father.

"I found him in 1965 living in Colorado," she said. "He left when I was 5 and I only knew his voice. He was a linguist."

Lyons located her father through a priest, who said the former Jesuit missionary was desperate to meet his daughter.

So on her first trip to the United States at age 24, she reunited with him.

"I stayed with him and found him to be a very loving man," she said.

Soon afterward, she took back the Lyons family name.

"It gave me such joy," she said.

A cousin (Jeff McQueen) in Detroit, Michigan USA helped put her in touch with family in the United States in 1995, including the Lyons family in Trenton, whom she stayed with during her latest visit.

"They are such good, supportive people," she said. "They accepted me right away. For a person like me, who didn’t know anything about her family, it’s wonderful to have researched and found every one of them."

A family Web site she established has records linking the clan as far back as 1600.

"My whole life has been searching and searching," she said. "I feel that my search is over now."