Pioneer Ancestors That Settled in the Wilderness of New France Before 1637

In 1608, Henry IV, Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Mons and Samuel de Champlain founded the city of Quebec with 28 men, the second permanent French settlement in the colony of Canada.  Champlain quickly allied himself with the Algonquin and Montagnais peoples that inhabited the area, and who were at war with the Iroquois.

In 1609, Champlain, along with his French companions, accompanied by his Algonquin, Montagnais and Huron allies, travelled south from the St. Lawrence valley to Lake Champlain, where he participated decisively in a battle against the Iroquois, killing two Iroquois chiefs with the first shot of his arquebus.  This military engagement against the Iroquois solidified Champlain's status with New France's Huron and Algonquin allies, enabling him to maintain bonds that were essential to New France's interests in the fur trade.

Champlain also arranged to have young French men live with the natives, to learn their language and customs and help the French adapt to life in North America.  These men, known as coureurs des bois (runners of the woods), extended French influence south and west to the Great Lakes and among the Huron tribes who lived there.  For the better part of a century the Iroquois and French clashed in a series of attacks and reprisals. 

SEE Great Grandmother's Brothers came with Samuel de Champlain
http://a-drifting-cowboy.blogspot.com/2016/07/great-grandmothers-brothers-came-with.html

Colonization of New France had been slow and difficult.  Many settlers died early, because of harsh weather and diseases.  During the first decades of the colony's existence, the French population numbered only a few hundred, while the English colonies to the south were much more populous and wealthy.

Cardinal Richelieu, adviser to King Louis XIII, wished to make New France as significant as the English colonies, so in 1627, Richelieu founded the "Company of One Hundred Associates" to invest in New France, promising land parcels to hundreds of new settlers and to turn Canada into an important [fur trade] mercantile and farming colony.

Champlain was named Governor of New France and Richelieu forbade non-Roman Catholics from living there.  Protestants were required to renounce their faith prior to settling in New France; many therefore chose instead to move to the English colonies.

The Roman Catholic Church, and missionaries such as the Recollets and the Jesuits, became firmly established in the territory.  Richelieu also introduced the seigneurial system, a semi-feudal system of farming that remained a characteristic feature of the St. Lawrence valley until the 19th century.

While Richelieu's efforts did little to increase the French presence in New France, they did pave the way for the success of later efforts.

At the same time the English colonies to the south began to raid the St. Lawrence valley and, in 1629, Quebec was captured and held by the English until 1632.  Champlain returned to Canada that year, and requested that Sieur de Laviolette found another trading post at Trois-Rivières, which he did in 1634. Champlain died in 1635.

Source (above): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_France#Foundation_of_Quebec_City_.281608.29

We are descended from a few of Quebec's earliest Pioneers that arrived in the wilderness of New France before 1637:

ZACHARIE CLOUTIER AND XAINTES DUPONT

Zacharie Cloutier, b. about 1590 in the parish of Saint-Jean-Baptiste, Mortagne-au-Perche, France.  Cloutier was one of several children of Denis Cloutier and his first wife Renée Brière.  He was a French carpenter who, in 1634, immigrated to New France in the first wave of the Percheron Immigration from the former province of Perche, to Quebec, Canada. He settled in Beauport and founded one of the foremost families of Quebec.

He married Xainte (aka Sainte) Dupont, July 18, 1616.  Xainte had been born about 1595 in Mortagne to Paul-Michel and Perrine Dupont, and was the widow of Michel Lermusier.
In 1619 Henri II de Montmorency purchased the New France colony from his brother-in-law Henry II of Bourbon. Included amongst the laborers hired to assist Samuel de Champlain in “inhabiting, clearing, cultivating and planting” New France were the names of Zacharie and his father Denis. This group was not a group of settlers, but a group of laborers, who would return to France once their work had been completed. Several years later, however, Cloutier returned to Canada to help establish a new settlement at Beauport.

In New France, Cloutier was one of the first Frenchmen recruited by Robert Giffard de Moncel to expand the colony of New France by settling the Beauport area near Quebec City. Cloutier arrived in 1634, and either arrived with or was soon followed by his family. This was an important addition to the colony's population which numbered about 100 prior to his arrival. Cloutier worked with fellow immigrant Jean Guyon du Buisson to construct Giffard's manor house (the oldest house in Canada) and other colonial buildings.

Cloutier and Guyon resisted for several years paying the fealty and homage owed to Giffard under the Seigneurial system of New France until the Governor of New France explicitly ordered them to do so. This was one of the first disputes against transplanting Old World hierarchy to the New World that would carry through the centuries even past the time of the British conquest.
In 1652 Cloutier received a grant of land from Governor Jean de Lauzon in Château-Richer, Quebec. The land on which Cloutier lived in Beauport was known as La Clouterie (or La Cloutièrerie). In 1670 Nicolas Dupont de Neuville purchased this land from Cloutier. This action resulted in disagreements between Cloutier, his neighbor, Jean Guyon, and Giffard, his Seigneur, resulting in the Cloutier family's relocation to Château-Richer.

Zacharie Cloutier died on September 17, 1677 at the age of about 87. His wife died three years later on July 13, 1680 and was buried with her husband in Château-Richer.

Children of Zacharie and Xainte:
Zacharie Cloutier (1617 - 1708)
Jean Cloutier (1620 - 1690)
Ann Cloutier (1626 - 1648), m. Robert Drouin in 1636, the oldest recorded marriage in Canada.
Charles Cloutier (1629 - 1709)
Louise Cloutier (1632 - 1699) m. (1) Francois Marguerie (2) Jean Mignault dit Chatillon

LOUISE CLOUTIER M. (1) FRANCOIS MARGUERIE (2) JEAN MIGNAULT DIT CHATILLON

Louise CLOUTIER was born on 18 March 1632 at St-Jean de Mortagne. She married her first husband François MARGUERIE, an intelligent interpreter at Trois-Rivières, on 26 October 1645.  François drowned in the St.Lawrence on 23 May 1648, without leaving any children. She then married Jean MIGNOT on 10 November 1648 in the paroisse de Notre-Dame de Québec. She entered into a third marriage with Jean MATTEAU in 1684. Louise died on 22 and was buried on 23 June 1699 in Château-Richer.

More about: François MARGUERIE dit LA MARGUERITE, he was born in St-Vincent, dioces of Rouen, Normandie. He married (1) Marthe ROMAIN before 22 October 1612.  Marthe ROMAN dit ROMAIN was born in St-Vincent de Rouen, France.  Child: i. François MARGUERIE dit LAMARGUERITE was born on 22 October 1612 in France.  He married (2) Louise Marie CLOUTIER on 26 Octobert 1645 in Québec.  He died on 23 May 1648 in Québec, after having drowned near Trois-Rivières, where he worked as an "interprère" (interpretor). His body was found near Québec.

Jean (Mignot) Migneault dit Châtillon was born on 20 April 1622 in France. He was a solder who arrived with the troops sent by the Queen in 1644.  In 1648, he commanded a troop of five or six Frenchmen along with Algonquins and Hurons to hunt down the Iroquois.  On 11 January 1648, Montmagny sent him to the Hurons to invite them to the fur-trade. He went up with two Huron Christians and returned with a group of Hurons who had won a memorable victory over the Mohawks near Trois-Rivières.

He married Louise Cloutier, the widow of François Marguerie, on 10 November 1648 in the paroisse de Notre-Dame de Québec. He claimed to be a tailor in 1666, but he worked for his father-in-law Zacharie Cloutier as a farmer in 1667 in Beauport. He died before 1684.

PHILIPPE AMYOT (AMIOT) AND ANNE CONVENT

Philippe AMIOT, also known as Philippe AMYOT, was born around 1600 in Estrées, diocese of Soissons, Île-de-France. He married Anne CONVENT before 31 December 1626 in France. He arrived, along with his family, in New France in 1636.

Anne CONVENT, the daughter of Guillaume CONVENT & Antoinette DE LONGRAL, was born around 1604 in L'Estrée, France. Her second marriage on 26 September 1639 was to Jacques MAHEU in Québec. Her third husband was Etienne BLANCHON LAROSE. She died on 25 and was buried on 26 December 1675 in Québec.

Children of Philippe and Anne:
i. Mathieu AMYOT was born before 1626 in France. He married Marie MIVILLE on 22 November 1650 in the Paroisse de Notre-Dame de Québec. He was confirmed on 10 August 1659 in Québec. He was knighted in 1667, but didn't receive the fief at Point-aux-Bouleaux, near Sainte-Croix, until 1672. He was buried on 19 December 1688 in Basilique Notre-Dame de Québec. Marie died and was buried on 5 September 1702 in Hôtel-Dieu de Québec.
ii. Charles AMYOT was born on 26 August 1636 in Québec. He married Marie Geneviève DECHAVIGNY on 2 May 1660 in Québec. Charles became a merchant in Québec on 2 May 1660. He died on 10 December 1669 in Québec. He was survived by two sons and a daughter.
iii. Jean AMYOT was probably born at Chartres around 1625. When his family arrived at Québec in 1636, he was immediately entrusted to the Jesuits to become one of the young lads who were being brought up on the Huron mission to learn the language and made the trip to Huronia with Father Isacc Jogues. He was the first to have the idea of forming a "mobile squadron" of Frenchmen to attack the Mohawks. In combat, he captured the murderer of Isaac Jogues. He drowned along with François Marguerie on 23 May 1648. His body was recovered in Sillery and was solemnly buried on 10 June in Québec.

ROBERT CARON AND MARIE CREVET

Marie Crevet was born in 1621 at Benouville, Bayeux, Normandy, France; the daughter of  Pierre Crevet and Marie Le Mercier.  At the age of 15, she signed a marriage contract to become one of the  Filles à Marier or “marriageable girls”;  the first single women to set foot in New France since its return from the English in 1632.

She married (1) Robert Caron, an indentured tradesman of Robert Giffard, and it's safe to assume that the Siegneur of Beauport, also sponsored Marie's voyage. Not much is known of Robert Caron, other than the fact that he was born about 1615 at La Rochelle, son of Robert-Edouard Caron, and that he arrived in New France on June 11, 1636.  Because of a fire, all of his records were destroyed. He died on July 08, 1656; at the Hotel-Dieu Hospital in Quebec.
           
Children of Marie and Robert:    
i. Marie Caron, b. 1638.  She married Jean Picard and had one daughter Louise.  Sadly Marie was murdered in an Iroquois Raid on June 10, 1660.
ii. Jean-Baptiste Caron, b. July 10, 1641 and died December 28, 1706.  He married Marguerite Gagnon and the couple had eight children.
iii. Aimee Caron, b. in 1643 and died on October 4, 1685.  She married Noel Langlois Jr.; son of her future stepfather Noel Landglois Sr. and Francois Garnier.  They had five children.
iv. Robert Caron Jr., b. February 8, 1647 and died on April 29, 1714.  He married Marguerite Cloutier and the couple had twelve children.
v. Catherine Caron, b. November 23, 1649 and died June 14, 1725.  She married Jacques Dodier and the couple had six children.
vii. Joseph Caron, b. March 16, 1652 and died May 5, 1711.  He married Elisabeth Bernier and the couple had twelve children.
viii. Pierre Caron, b. July 11, 1654 and died June 26, 1720.  He married Marie-Michelle Bernier and the couple had eight children.

After Robert's death, Marie married (2) widower Noel Langlois and the couple had one daughter, Marie-Anne, who would grow up to marry Jean Cote.  Marie died on November 22, 1695 and Noel July 14, 1684.

LOUIS SÉDILLOT DIT MONTREUIL AND MARIE GRIMOULT

Louis Sédillot (Sédilot) (c.1599 – January 25, 1672) was one of the first French colonists of Québec.

He was born about 1599 or 1600 at Montreuil-sur-Brêche, France, and moved to Gif-sur-Yvette, Île-de-France where he worked as a gardener.  He married (1) Marie Challe Charier in 1626, and they had one child, Marie (1627–84). At some point prior to 1636, the elder Marie died and Sédilot found himself widowed.  In 1636, he married (2) Marie Grimoult in Saint Remy, France (Marie Grimoult was the widow of Bonaventure Pagnon (1600-1632)).

In 1637 Sédilot travelled with his wife and daughter to Québec, where he obtained work from the Company of One Hundred Associates clearing and planting land.  He appears to have been successful at this work as his contract was renewed in 1640.  In 1645 Sédilot received land from Governor Charles de Montmagny, which he settled on with his family.  By this stage Sédilot and Grimoult had had further children, and in order to provide lands for his sons, Sédilot acquired further land from Louis d'Ailleboust in 1651, and from Le Vicomte d'Argenson in 1660.  In 1667, census records show that he owned 34 acres of cropland and three cattle.

Sédilot died January 25, 1672, and he was buried the following day at Notre-Dame-de-Québec.

Children of Louis and Anne:
i. Jacqueline Sédillot.   
ii. Adrien Sédillot, baptized on 18 December 1639 in Québec (Québec Province), Canada.2680 He died about 1 March 1715 in Québec (Québec Province), Canada. He was buried on 1 March 1715 in Québec (Québec Province), Canada.
iii. Étienne Sédillot, baptized on 9 September 1640 at Notre Dame in Québec (Québec Province), Canada.2610 He died on 9 November 1688 in Québec (Québec Province), Canada. He was buried on 10 November 1688 in Québec (Québec Province), Canada.
iv. Marguerite Sédillot, baptized on 4 April 1643 at Notre Dame in Québec (Québec Province), Canada.2446 She died after 10 November 1710 in Montréal (Québec Province), Canada.
v. Marie Sédillot, baptized on 21 October 1644 at Notre Dame in Québec (Québec Province), Canada.   
vi. Jean Sédillot, baptized on 27 January 1647 at Notre Dame in Québec (Québec Province), Canada.

Update May 30, 2018

JEAN CÔTÉ AND ANNE MARTIN

Jean Côté is one of the first settlers in Québec. He witnessed a rapid growth in Champlain's dynamic project. ... He married Anne Martin on November 11, 1635 at Québec by Father Charles Lelemant, a Jesuit priest, and witnessed by Guillaume Couillard and Robert Giffard.

One of the first settlers of Quebec.

It was in the spring of 1634 when Jean Côté crossed the Atlantic Ocean along with a group of colonist from Perche Normandy who were recruited by Robert Giffard, Seigneur of Beauport. He arrived in Québec after a sea voyage of approximately 2 months. Like all his peers, Jean Côté could only dream of coming to the new world on his own. He had made himself available as a farm hand to a colonist already in New France.

He settled at first in Québec on a lot of 150 feet by 60 beside the Notre-Dame-de-Recouverance church which is situated today at the corner of Buade and du Trésor streets. A few years later, in the presence of a notary public, Jean Côté engaged himself in the exploitation of the lands of Seigneur Giffard. This had nothing in common with his previous task as "farm hand" but was more of a rental which left the tenant some advantages. The later, in terms of the contract, could, in effect "grow and harvest hay, graze his animals... as he sees fit to".

Jean Côté did not miss the opportunity to profit from this contract. Another notarized document tells us that he sold to the Company of New France five hundred bales of hay for the sum of 80 livres (approximately $80).

The obligations of this contract were fairly light and reasonable. They consisted of "donating one day's labor each year for each head of cattle excepting calves". Generally, such servants to the Seigeur would seek to establish themselves on their own lands. And so did Jean Côté. In February 1645, he obtained his own parcel of land and immediately started to clear it for cultivation.

A quiet and simple life, this is what our ancestor Jean Côté knew. He married Anne Martin, daughter of Abraham Martin, on the 17 of November 1635 at Notre-Dame church. Witnesses were Robert Giffard and Guillaume Couillard. The Jesuit Missionary, Charles Lallemand, one of the Canadian Martyrs, blessed their union.. From this union issued all the Côté's of Canada.

On February 5th, 1645, Jean Côté received a grant of land, 3 arpents frontage by 126, on the shore of the St Lawrence, in the Seigneurie of Beauport. On the 15th of November 1649, he gives, as wedding gift to his daughter Simone, his property near Notre-Dame church. She married Pierre Soumande on the 10 of November of the same year. At that time, a father had to provide his daughter with a substantial dowry of money or property.

In 1662, he obtained a new piece of land of 5 arpents, 79 perches by 10 arpents deep in the bourg of Du Fargy (Giffard read backwards) near the Beauport river just north of today's church. {One square arpent equals approximately 1.5 acres. One arpent equals 1,260 yards.}

Jean Côté died in Beauport on the 28th of March 1661, after 23 years of marriage. He must have been between 50 and 60 years old. None of his sons were married and Louise, the only daughter at home is 10 years old. She will leave home 3 years later to marry.
Jean Côté is one of the first settlers in Québec. He witnessed a rapid growth in Champlain's dynamic project. His task would now be pursued by a population of approximately 550 inhabitants spread out among over 70 homes.

Source: Dictionaire National des Canadiens-Français - Institut Drouin

Anne Martin

There is a lack of documentation regarding Anne Martin, until her marriage to Jean Cote. 

There are a number of theories about her origin:

1. Anne Martin is a metis (of mixed Native and French heritage). This theory has Anne being the daughter of Abraham Martin dit l'Escossois and an unknown Wendat (Huron) woman. Abraham Martin had been in New France since 1617. 

2. Anne Martin was the daughter of Abraham Martin dit l'Escossois with his first wife, Guillaumette Couillard. They were married in France abt 1610. 

3. Anne Martin is the younger sister of Abraham Martin dit l"Escossais, born ABT 1603 in La Rochelle, Aunis, France; and is the daughter of Galeran Martin (1578–1662) and Isabelle Coté (1567–1635) and is the sister of Abraham Martin dit l'Escossois (1589–1664)

Because each of the above is possible, I have chosen not to include any probable parentage for Anne.

However, given how early Anne was in New France (Before 1635), I think it probable that she had some connection to Abraham Martin.

Many more of our ancestors arrived during the next three decades (1640s - 1670s).  Several went on to become became voyageurs or coureurs de bois -- part of Canada's rich fur trade.

Some of those voyageurs were the first Europeans to see Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota.  Others helped explore the Mississippi River system and the far West.

SEE:
Two Carignan-Salières Soldiers and a Pair of Filles Du Roi
http://a-drifting-cowboy.blogspot.com/2016/07/two-carignan-salieres-soldiers-and-pair.html

It must be in my Genes...
http://a-drifting-cowboy.blogspot.com/2016/06/it-must-be-in-my-genes_29.html

Cowboy Legacy -- Great Granddad Was A Fur Trader
http://a-drifting-cowboy.blogspot.com/2013/08/cowboy-legacy-great-granddad-was-fur.html

Cowboy Legacy -- French connection
http://a-drifting-cowboy.blogspot.com/2011/10/cowboy-legacy-french-connection.html

There are a lot more links in the pages above.  All of our French-Canadian ancestors eventually descend to my 2nd great grandmother Lucy Pinsonneau (Passino).