Thomé Ariste BOISSARD and Violet Agatha née MELVILLE (the latter always referred to in the family as Shuffle) grew sugar on a plantation called Finca ‘Mauricio’ near Palin in Guatemala where they had three children; Joan Mary (b. 6 May 1914), Guy Peter Bartholomew (b. 19 June 1915) and Margaret Lilian usually called Peggy (b. 6 October 1916). The latter was my mother. Although of French descent, the family regarded themselves as British by virtue of having lived for generations in Mauritius, ceded by France to Britain in the Treaty of Paris in 1814. Growing sugar in Mauritius must have equipped the Boissards with much the same skill-set required to grow sugar in Guatemala where they were tempted to migrate by favourable land deals and the offer of managing a sugar refinery some time around the turn of the 20th C.
There are conflicting details about Thomé, starting with his name. His friends, Gordon and Lucy Smith, who grew coffee 70 miles away at Finca Moca, Atitlan, called him Ariste, which is how he is named on his wedding certificate, whereas my mother said he was known as Dickie in the family. In the photo albums he is always called ‘Daddy’ but John Smith, son of Gordon and Lucy, when he came to write his history of Finca Moca and the Smiths, also referred to him as Dickie. Thomé's grave is inscribed “Thomy Ariste Boissard de L'Ile Maurice 14 Decembre 1928. A demain.”
Thomé was born on 5th February 1875 in Mauritius so he was a little over 53 when he died, not exceptionally young but young enough for Jo to lament many years later that his cause of death, a simple kidney infection could, according to her, have been easily and successfully treated with antibiotics. On the other hand, lung cancer is something else and according to John Smith it was that which caused his death. As Jo was only 14 at the time of her father's death, and by that time about 5,000 miles away at school in England, her reliability is questionable. The cause of death is, however, of some significance when it comes to these photo albums, which have a distinct air of Dido's Lament about them. [“When I am deeee-ad, and la-a-a-a-aid in earth...”] All three albums are dated July-Sept 1927. If Thomé died of a ‘simple’ kidney infection his death was presumably unforeseen. If he died of lung cancer then he and his wife may well have had more than an inkling that sending the three children to school in England could be the last time that they saw their father. And thus it turned out.
It seems the British contingent in Central America generally, and Guatemala in particular, sent their children back to Blighty to be educated. It was certainly true of the Boissards and Smiths in the 1920s and remained so even into the 1960s. July - September 1927 presumably covered the last summer holiday that the three Boissard children were together en famille in Guatemala. I think Guy went to England in 1927; Peg and Jo, together with Shuffle and Solsie, joined him some time in 1928. In her album, Peg dated a photo of her father 1928 and wrote under it “After we'd left.” The 3 albums are all very similar and each was seeded with photographs. Some photos are common to all three albums; others are specific to the owner. Other photos were added later by the owners of the albums.
Duncan Linklater © 2026