Hypothesis N°1

Thanks to Jacques Nerrou who has done much research on the AUCOIN family.
This family seems to have its origins in La Rochelle.

The Aucoin family was in La Rochelle in 1570 at the time that Martin  (1) AUCOIN was born. He was a locksmith by profession in Cougne parish.  He then went to St. Eloy.  During this time period, there seems to have been only one AUCOIN family living in La Rochelle.  He  married  Suzanne BARBOTEAU in 1592.   Records found give us the various spellings of this family name:  Aucoing, Ancoing, Auconnois, Oguin, Angevin, this last derivation could come from a more ancient form of the name that would  have originated in the Angers region.

Birth certificates were found for  4 children belonging to this couple.
The children were:   Sebastien, baptized 27/09/1593 at St Pierre Laleu (La Rochelle) as his father, he became a locksmith.
 Martin ( 2 ), baptized 26/04/1595 at St Pierre Laleu (La Rochelle)
 François, Baptized 9/11/1599 at Cougnes
 Daniel, baptized 17/06/1604 ato Cougnes.
 2 other children could belong to this same couple: Michelle and Nicolas.

Martin ( 2 ), was born in 1595.  He married 1.  Barbe MINGUET, certainly by 1617.
 Of this union :
          Michelle born about 1618 (future wife of Michel BOUDROT)
          François born about 1622 (father of Martin AUCOIN the ancestor of ACADIE'S AUCOIN)
          Jeanne born 26/11/1630 (future wife of François GIROUARD)
          And Nicolas who died  30/01/1632 in La Rochelle.

A  widower, Martin (2) AUCOIN ( carpenter) marries 2. Marie SALLÉ  on 20/01/1632 in the church St.  Barthélémy of  the Great Temple in La Rochelle.  She was born about 1600 and was the daughter of  Jean Denys SALLÉ and Françoise ARNAUD.  They had one son:   Jean who was born 15/11/1632 in La Rochelle.

 About 1640  Marie SALLÉ, now a widow, leaves for Acadie accompanied by  her son Jean and with the other children of Martin AUCOIN, Michelle, François and Jeanne.

There has been much discussion about whether or not Jeanne AUCOIN is a descendant of Martin (2) and Martin (1).

However,  Michelle AUCOIN (the birth certificate of which was not found) is the  sister of Jeanne. STEPHEN WHITE offers as proof the dispensations of consaguinity obtained for the marriages of Michelle and Jeanne AUCOIN.

 Michelle AUCOIN is  a descendent of Martin ( 1 ) and Martin ( 2 ).
 As for as François AUCOIN and as his son Martin, it is not  clear and it more open to discussion.   Mr.  Jacques NERROU, author of this research, agrees that he has not found concrete proof of a relationship either.

Father Archange GODBOUT, also querried about whether  or not Martin (3) AUCOIN was  a nephew of Michelle and Jeanne AUCOIN.    STEPHEN WHITE, did not find any dispensations that would have proven a relationship existed between  Martin ( 3 ) and Michelle or Jeanne AUCOIN.

François AUCOIN, presumably the fahter of Martin AUCOIN does not appear in the  census of Port Royal in 1671 nor in any of the censuses of Acadie.

 This François AUCOIN is in Leopold Lanctot's book " Families Acadiennes " but without any source for his informaiton..
 François AUCOIN is also quoted in James Hannay's book " Our first family
 ". The author thinks that François AUCOIN died some years before the  census of 1671  leaving a widow of 26,  Anne Blanchard, daughter of Jean Blanchard with 5 children.  However,  in the census of 1671 Anne Blanchard is the widow of François Guérin.

LA VEUFVE DE DEFUNT FRANCOIS GUERIN aagée de
26 ans, ses enfans 5, Anne aagée de douxe ans, Marie
aagée de neuf, Frivoline 7 ans, Huguette aagée de 5 ans,
François 2 ans, Son bétail a Cornes six piéces et 3 bre-
bis. ses terres en labour six arpans.

A translatipon  of the same census by Dudley J Leblanc in the book " The Acadian Miracle" lists this:

Widow Francois AUCOIN, 26; Children: Anne 12, Marie 9, Jerome 7,
Huguetta 5, Francois 2; cattle 6, sheep 3.

I have seen  a reference for François AUCOIN three tines and by more than one author thought the information of those authors has long been disputed and has no reference sources.

On the other hand,  the Martin surname seems to be a constant in this family. The first child of  Martin ( 3 ) will also be named Martin.
 Martin ( 3 ), not more frequent than his proposed  father,  appears in  the censuses of 1671 and 1678.
 He was 24 years old in 1671 and 31 years in 1678 he was married and already  had 3  children.
 It is necessary to say that the census of 1678 concerns only Port Royal.
One might assume that he was no longer there at the time of this last census.

In 1686, Martin (3) AUCOIN was listed in the bay of mines
Martin AUCOIN 35 
Marie GAUDET 27 
Martin 12 
Marie 10 
Michel 9 
Isabelle 7 
Louis 6 
Agnesse      4
Alexis 3 
Cecille         7 months

Hypothesis N°2
 

In the Dictionnaire Généalogique des Famillies Acadiennes, Stephen White mentions Patrice Gallant's article wherein Martin(3) AUCOIN would have been the son of Marie SALLÉ and Martin(2).  If true, this hypothesis nullifies François AUCOIN, and makes Martin (3)  the half brother of Michelle and Jeanne AUCOIN

Should that be the case, that means it would have been Martin (2) who left for Acadie accompanied by his seocond wife and all of his childen from both marriages.  It appears to be a better hypothesis rather than a young widow leaving alone with four chidlren for about 1640.  Should that be so, Martin(2)AUCOIN died in Acadie and his young widow remarried a Jean Claude.

 The census of 1671 indicates:

MARIE SALE veufve de deffunt Jehan Claude aagée de soixante et un an

That of 1678 lists Marie SALLE with the family of François BOURG and
Marguerite BOUDROT, (Daughter of Michelle AUCOIN)

Marie Sale veuve Jean Claude
François Bourg Marguerite Boudrot
8 acres  15 pièces de bétail
2 garçons               13, 8
3 filles                     10, 5, 1

Case Jean Claude

 This Jean Claude became the object of a whole heap of suppositions.  Rev Clarence J. d'Entremont indicates in its transcription of the census of 1678 Jean  Claude is an Indian.

 But a risky interpretation of the census of 1686, creates a myth that  this Jean Claude  is Jean Claude LANDRY and that Marie SALLE is other than the mother of René LANDRY ( the young) .

 This, becuase she is  listed near  René Landry and Antoine Landry on the census record:

RENE LANDRY 52  
Marie BERNARD 42 
Claude 23  
Jean 20 
Rene 18 
Germain 12 
Abraham  8 
Pierre 6 
Cecile 22 
Marie 16 
Marguerite 14 
Jeanne 10 
Catherine 4 
Anne 2

Marie SALLE     86

Antoine LANDRY 26  
Marie THIBODEAU 25 
Marie 4 
Antoine 2 
Isabelle 1

Personally, I do not believe that this holds any credence.  Why would the enumerator  have forgotten to record the well known surname of Landry during the entire census of 1671 and 1678, the name LANDRY?

On the other hand, in reading the census of 1686 one notices that the elderly fathers and mothers  who live with their children are always listed at the head of the family.  That  it is the case for Nicole COLSON, the widow of Jean GODET listed with her son Jean, and for Madeleine BRUN the widow of Guillaume TRAHAN listed with her son Guillaume, as well as PERINE  BOURG listed with her son Claude LANDRY.
 Jean Claude is for me an Indian, or more credibly Jean CLAUDE, CLAUDE  being simply  surname.

Summarized various hypotheses

The AUCOIN in France nowadays.

Counting reveals us 3 concentrations of AUCOIN in France Burgundy, the North and Aquitaine.
What is interesting is the concentration of AUCOIN around the city of Calais. In fact, on Dec 26, 1758 an English vessel caught in a storm took refuge at the port of Boulogne sur Mer, and on board were Alexis AUCOIN and his wife Marie BOURG.
Descendants of this family settled at Calais and now are among the counted population.
On the other hand for Aquitaine I have no explanation, but Bordeaux is not very far from La Rochelle. 

Thank you Lucie for your help for translation

 Roux François 1999