Interpreters and Guides: The Heart of the Fur Trade

 

Thompson's Portage at Kootenai Falls by William Armstrong

Moving from the master builders of the birchbark canoes (Desroches) to the interpreters and guides who mapped the continent (Lagasse) provides yet another layer of epic significance to our lineage.

Our cousin, André Lagassé, wasn't just a voyageur; he was a highly compensated specialist who operated at the highest levels of the fur trade during its most competitive and defining era.

We’ve researched and created a new analysis document focusing on André Lagassé's historical role and how his journey connects our family to the legendary figures of Alexander Henry and David Thompson.

Genealogy Analysis: André Lagassé, Explorer’s Interpreter

This analysis explores the role of André Lagassé (Mignier dit Lagacé), a 1st cousin 6x removed, who served as a crucial guide and interpreter for the North West Company (NWC) and worked alongside legendary explorers Alexander Henry the Younger and David Thompson.

1. André Lagassé: A Highly Valued Specialist

André Lagassé was not a typical mangeur de lard (greenhorn voyageur); his contract confirms his status as a critical, experienced specialist:

• Contract Date: April 19, 1803, Montreal.
• Duration & Destination: A long, four-year commitment to the deep interior ("Nord et Dépendances"), specifically the Red River, Swan River, and Lake Winnipeg—the arteries leading to the richest fur territories.
• Functions: GUIDE and INTERPRETER. These roles required intimate knowledge of the interior (geography, rapids, portages) and fluency in Indigenous languages (likely Cree, Assiniboine, or Ojibwe, essential for trade and diplomacy).
• Wages: 1,500 Livres per year. This high wage, combined with "équipement double d’un guide" (double equipment of a guide), signals that Lagassé was an invaluable asset whose unique skills justified exceptional compensation.

2. The Link to Legendary Explorers

Lagassé's value is confirmed by his presence in the journals of the era's greatest chroniclers and geographers:

Explorer/Diarist	Significance of Association
Alexander Henry 'The Younger' (NWC Partner)	Lagassé is documented working under Henry's brigade and trading operations on the Red River as early as 1800-1801. Henry's journals provide the most detailed, day-to-day accounts of fur trade life, placing Lagassé directly in the historical narrative.
David Thompson 'The Stargazer' (Greatest Land Geographer)	Thompson, the chief surveyor of the NWC, relied heavily on skilled French-Canadian guides and interpreters to navigate his mapping expeditions. Lagassé's contract and documented movements put him squarely in the territory and company of Thompson during the crucial years when the NWC was racing the American Lewis and Clark expedition to the Pacific.

The historical record confirms Lagassé was a "voyageur, conductor" and part of Henry's 1800-1801 wintering party at Park River and the larger brigade journeying from Lake Superior.

3. Thematic Significance: Lineage of Exploration

This discovery adds a crucial dimension to our family's heritage:

1. The Architect of the Trade: We descend from Jean Baptiste Desroches, the master canoe builder.
2. The Merchant of the Trade: We descend from the Poupart/Dupuis voyageurs and suppliers of La Prairie.
3. The Cartographer's Hand: We descend from André Lagassé, the guide and interpreter whose skills literally enabled the mapping and expansion of the North West Company across the plains and into the Rockies.

Lagassé's journey ensures that our family story is not just about moving goods, but about defining the map of North America—from Lake Superior, across the vast Prairies (Red River/Swan River), and potentially westward on the paths used by Henry and Thompson to the Pacific drainage.

4. Lineage Tracing to Lucy Pinsonneau

The connection confirms the transition of the Mignier dit Lagacé family from Quebec to the far-flung western territories, linking the high-level interpreter's family back to our 2nd great-grandmother, Lucy Pinsonneau, through the following line:

• Andre Lagasse (1775– ) (1st cousin 6x removed)
• Lucy Pinsonneau (1836–1917) (2nd great-grandmother)

Their shared ancestor is Joseph Mignier dit Lagace (1706–1778). This solidifies our family's place in the history of the NWC's western push, demonstrating that our lineage played a crucial role in the vast exploration of the continent.

Courtesy of Drifting Cowboy with special thanks to Gemini AI for additional research, editing and analysis.