• Families meet in Addis on discovery mission 
• Four families reunite, trace heritage from Canada to Louisiana 
• Acadia CD-ROM can take Cajuns on armchair trip 
       to ancestral home 
• Music sets Cajuns apart
• Acadian clans close local Congrès '99 
• Duhons have their day 
• Breauxs together again
• Hébert Reunion Omelet
• Doucet family revels in reunion
• Savoie-Savoy forge ties at reunion
• State park interprets history of Acadians, 'Evangeline'

Though Betty d'Eon had never been to Louisiana before, she said it felt "just like coming home" when she got off the plane Friday. In a sense it was a homecoming, considering she probably has more relatives here than in her native province of Nova Scotia. Her Louisiana relatives go by the last name of Duhon, and she met many of them for the first time Saturday at the Duhon family reunion in New Iberia City Park. By 10 a.m. Saturday, the official count of Duhons registered at the reunion was up to 236, with family members from 15 states, the province on Nova Scotia and one Duhon from Mexico, according to La Maison Des Duhon Secretary Gerry Duhon Savoy. Besides Duhons and d'Eons, there were also a few d'Entremonts, who reside in the same area of Nova Scotia as the d'Eons and, though not sharing the same name, have strong ties to the family, said reunion organizer Dudley Duhon.

The reunion is part of Congres Mondial Acadien-Louisiane, a two-week celebration bringing together people of Acadian ancestry.

The Duhons who gathered in New Iberia Saturday are the progeny of four brothers: Cyprien, Honore, Charles and Abel, according to Dudley Duhon.

After the deportation of Acadians from Canada in the 1700s, all the brothers except Abel eventually made their way to Louisiana. Abel, who was deported to Boston, returned to Nova Scotia.

A makeshift genealogy room set up in the New Iberia Recreation Center allowed family members to trace find out from which brother their line of Duhons descended.

After looking through one of the more than 20 family pedigree books available, Howard Duhon, a retired educator who traveled from Cleveland, Texas with his wife Audrey, was able to chart his ancestry back to Duhon brother Cyprien.

With the help of a large genealogy chart on the wall, Howard Duhon eventually traced his family history from Cyprien back to 1600s France.

Dudley Duhon said Duhon family ties have been traced back eight generations. 

The remainder of Saturday was set to be spent by family members swapping stories and enjoying
fried catfish, red beans and jambalaya.

The day was to be finished with a film depicting the deportation of the Duhon ancestors from Acadia. 

The family reunion was set to continue Saturday until 5 p.m.

It will resume Sunday at Acadian Village in Lafayette and 9 a.m.