The Dionne quintuplets: an uneasy story

François Castilloux

The story of the Dionne

quintuplets is

interesting and

heartbreaking; their

childhood is often

synonymous with

exploitation. Two

weeks ago, Tuesday

May 28 more precisely,

the Dionne quintuplets

celebrated their 79th anniversary. They were born in

1934 in a small country house between Corbeil and

Callander. This year, the Chamber of Commerce of

North Bay & District highlighted their anniversary at

the Dionne Quints Museum located on Highway 11

near Seymour Street. This museum is the original

house in which the Dionne quintuplets were born.

This house was converted into a museum many

decades ago and moved to this location in North Bay

in 1985. Originally, it was located between Corbeil

and Callander on Highway 94 where the Dionne story

all began. A little after the quintuplets’ birth, many

buildings dedicated to the quintuplets were built

around the small house making some kind of a

neighbourhood. This neighbourhood quickly gained

international fame and was named “Quintland”. Also,

Highway 94 is opened to link Corbeil and Callander

by driving through Quintland and in front of the

Dionne house. On one side of the highway, there was

the small Dionne house, a restaurant and a parking

lot. The other side was more devoted to tourism and

the quintuplets’ medical welfare. We could see the

well-known Dr Dafoe Hospital guarded by constables,

a staff house and a tourism building to exhibits the

quintuplets playing. Moreover, there was also a

manor built for the Dionne parents and their first

children. For many years, Quintland was a busy and

unavoidable site for the Nipissing region. Today,

driving on Highway 94 doesn’t give the impression to

visit what used to be a site of international fame.

These buildings are no longer part of the scenery.

Interestingly, nothing remains of the exhibit building.

The building of Dr Dafoe hospital and the staff house

are still standing, but almost unrecognizable. Nothing

outside advertises their past with the history of the

quintuplets. The Dionne house was moved to North

Bay and its original location is not indicated. The

manor still stands today and it is now called

“Nipissing Manor”. Strangely, the area doesn’t say

much about the famous story of the Dionne

quintuplets. We must wonder why.

The birth of the Dionne quintuplets made an impact

in World and it was the Nipissing region to be the

first to feel the effects. According to the former mayor

of North Bay, Stan D. Lawlor, the Dionne quintuplets

had undeniably contributed to the economic and

urban development of the region. (It all started with

transportation!, s.d.) Despite all this, the story of the

quintuplets became clouded over time and more

people are asking the following question. Why the

Dionne quintuplets caused such an enormous

sensation? Here are some explanations. First, they

were the first quintuplets in the World to have

survived after birth. Therefore, they represented two

separate achievements which, once combined, was a

milestone for the history of humanity: A brood of 5

identical twins and the success of maintaining their

lives after birth. In a way, the birth and survival also

represented medical progress and the improvement

of living condition. Furthermore, the context of the

time was peculiar and wasn’t expecting this kind of

achievement. The Dionne quintuplets were born

during the hard times of the Great Depression (1929-

1939): a difficult and poor period that announced an

uncertain future. At the time, every day reminded

that progress was a subject of the past. Also, the

previous decades reminded us of many bad results.

For example, the cruelty of the First World War

(1914-1918) and the irresponsibility of the Roaring

Twenties (1920-1929) which caused the Great

Depression. These memories discouraged optimism

and the hope of progress. Against the odds, on May

28 1934 occurs what was never seen in the history of

humanity. The birth and survival of the Dionne

quintuplets caused immediately an international

wave of sensation. The quintuplets aroused hope at

the extent that they were described as miracles and

even signs of God. Instantly, the harshness of the

Great Depression was not so great anymore.

Very quickly, Highway 94 and Quintland became a

famous attraction site that attracted the tourism and

media industry. In front of such lucrative

opportunity, the Government of Ontario got involved.

The control of the Dionne quintuplets also meant the

control of profit that the country needed much to

recover from the Great Depression. At the same time,

the situation at the Dionne home was not very

attractive. According to many, some decisions made

by the Dionne father were questionable.

Furthermore, the Dionne family was far to be rich

and the welfare of the quintuplets was uncertain. For

the Dionne family, the implication of the Ontario

government and the tourism and media industry

were the source of torments. For the politicians, the

welfare of the country was more important than the

rights of the Dionne family. In 1935, a year after the

quintuplets’ birth, Ontario adopts the Dionne

Quintuplet Guardianship Act which emancipated the

quintuplets from their parents. In other words, the

Dionne quintuplets were removed from their parents

to become Crown wards. According to many, the act

contravene directly to the natural right of the Dionne

parents. From the beginning, it is among the greatest

controversies in the history of Ontario. The news of

this law caused uproar in some communities in

particular. The Dionne family was French Canadian

and the act didn’t specify the language of education

and religion that will be conferred to the quintuplets.

The news of this law has upset the French Canadian

communities and mainly the ones in Ontario.

Although the act doesn’t talk about French-language,

the political climate in Ontario brought the French

Canadians to firmly oppose it and support the Dionne

parents. The infamous Regulation 17 that banned

most French education was successfully repealed a

few years before in 1927. In this regard, the birth of

the Dionne quintuplets was followed by a spirit of

resistance still fresh among French Canadians of

Ontario. Therefore, the cause of French-language

quickly joined the tensions. From that moment,

Highway 94 and Quintland became more than an

attraction site. The location became a symbol of two

disputes. The first was between the Dionne parents

and the Ontario government; the second between the

French Canadians of Ontario and the same

government. In this respect, the political climate and

the Dionne quintuplets favoured the re-emergence of

the French Canadian nationalist movement in Ontario

and notably in the Nipissing region. After the

quintuplets’ birth, French Canadian nationalist

groups instantly started to show more their presence.

In the Nipissing region, we also noticed the

appearance of secret societies among these French

Canadian nationalists. These groups left some signs

that are still visible today in Sturgeon Falls and North

Bay. These signs also have a link with the Dionne

quintuplets. This subject will be more discussed in

one my future columns.

The situation of the Dionne family rallied

communities either for or against Dionne Quintuplet

Guardianship Act and the fate of the quintuplets.

Despite all the differences, the Dionne quintuplets

made an impact on the Great Depression and today.

Therefore, they hold an important place in the

history of our region. Nowadays, the Dionne

quintuplets (now three surviving) get together to

remind us about the importance of the family. In

addition, their experience also reminds us about the

danger to collectively undermine our judgment for

the benefit of the law. A legal action doesn’t

guarantee to be moral. The Dionne quintuplets have

recently filed a lawsuit against the Ontario

government which recognized its mistake soon after.

In 1998, the provincial government gave them 2.8

millions of dollars to compensate for their years of

exploitation at Quintland. Today, the area where

Quintland was located is quiet. The Highway 94 is

almost deserted and the few remnants don’t

advertise their past. Driving on Highway 94 doesn’t

give the impression to visit what used to be an

attraction site of international fame. It’s like someone

wanted us to forget the original location where this

uneasy and controversial history all started.