M. (1) 7 Nov 1689 in Château-Richer, New France2
Wife: Marie-Sainte Boucher
M. (2) 3 Mar 1726 in Rivière-Ouelle, New France3
Wife: Marie-Anne Dube
D. 6 Dec 1735 in Rivière-Ouelle, New France1
In the colony of New France, the river was the lifeblood of the people who lived there. It was their highway, it was their source of ice in the winter, and sometimes it was their income. One way a man could make money was by the killing of porpoises, and Jean Mignault dit LaBrie spent years at it.
Jean first appeared in the records of New France when he married Marie-Sainte Boucher on November 7, 1689 in Château-Richer.2 Why he migrated from France isn't known, but a witness to the marriage was an army surgeon, suggesting he may have been a soldier. The Boucher family was well-established in New France and Sainte's dowry included 30 livres and "a mother cow."4 The priest who performed the wedding was Charles-Amadour Martin,2 son of Quebec pioneer Abraham Martin. Jean and Sainte had 10 children born between 1690 and 1713. The LaBries moved to a cabin built by Jean on land he was granted in the small settlement of Rivière-Ouelle "east of the river, at Pointe-aux-Iroquois."4 Jean had land measuring 4 arpents of frontage on the river and extended 42 arpents in depth.
Not long after Jean settled there, the area came under attack from a force led by Sir William Phipps of the Massachusetts Bay colony. Before reaching Quebec City, the English fleet tried to pass Rivière-Ouelle.4 The people who lived there had to defend themselves from a possible raid, so the priest, Father Francheville, gathered every able bodied man, 39 in all, and Jean was one of them.5 Father Francheville organized them into a sort of militia saying, "Take arms and be ready for the first signal." The men went out to meet the boats and at a certain moment the order was given to fire. It was said that many English fell dead and a large number were seriously injured. Phipps' fleet moved down the river and suffered an even bigger defeat at Quebec City. Jean seems to have continued to serve some military role; years later he was described on a document in 1713 as being a militia sergeant.4
In 1710, Jean gained authorization to engage in porpoise fishing,4 presumably on his riverfront land. It is recognized now as a cruel activity, along the lines of clubbing baby seals. The procedure was to trap the porpoises with "thousands of poles" driven into the river bank, then to spear them "unmercifully" from a raft.4 Jean is said to have done this for about 19 years, and this brought in a decent amount of money.4
Jean's wife Sainte died on July 15, 1717 at the age of 48.6 Nine years later, Jean married a second wife, Marie-Anne Dube, on March 4, 1726 in Riviére-Ouelle. They had three daughters, the youngest born when Jean was about 69. He died the following year on December 6, 1735 in Rivière-Ouelle.1 His underage children had a priest named as their guardian, Jacques-Louis Gastonguay.4 It was said that the family was poor at the time of Jean's death, but recovered by 1740.4 His widow Marie-Ann remarried in 1744.8 Jean was the ancestor of several famous people, including Jack Kerouac, Nathan Fillion, Angelina Jolie, Chloë Sevigny, Dan Aykroyd, and Madonna.9
Children by Marie-Sainte Boucher:
1. Marie-Madeleine Mignault — B. 9 Sep 1690, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;10 M. Pierre Emond (~1693-1749), 5 Feb 1714, Riviére-Ouelle, New France11
2. Marie-Françoise Mignault — B. 9 Mar 1692, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;12 D. 29 Jan 1760, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;13 M. Nicolas Lebel (1694-1774), 7 Jan 1716, Rivière-Ouelle, New France14
3. Marie-Therese Mignault — B. 11 Nov 1694, Rivière-Ouelle New France;15 D. 15 Jul 1729, Rivière-Ouelle New France;16 M. (1) Joseph Emond (1698-1721), 30 Apr 1719, Contrat Notaire Janneau, New France;17 (2) Joseph Gagnon (1701-1791), 2 May 1725, Rivière-Ouelle, New France18
4. Michel Mignault dit LaBrie — B. 2 May 1697, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;19 D. before 24 Nov 1755, (probably) Ste-Anne-de-la-Pocatiere, New France;20 M. (1) Marie-Ursule Soucy (1706-1754), 26 Oct 1724, Ste-Anne-de-la-Pocatiere, New France;21 (2) Angelique-Rosalie Morin (1710-?), 25 Nov 1755, Rock St-des-Aulnaies, New France22
5. Marie-Ursule Mignault — B. 27 Sep 1699, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;23 D. 4 Apr 1758, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;24 M. Augustin Emond (1700-1770), 7 Aug 1720, Rivière-Ouelle, New France25
6. Marie-Rosalie Mignault — B. about 1700, (probably) Rivière-Ouelle, New France;26 M. Phillipe Baudin (1687-1756), 7 Aug 1729, Rivière-Ouelle, New France27
7. Charles Mignault — B. 2 Feb 1705, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;28 M. Marie-Madeleine Aubert (1711-1790), 12 Jan 1728, La Pocatiere, New France29
8. Jean-Baptiste LaBrie Mignault — B. 1 May 1707, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;30 D. 5 Mar 1781, La Pocatiere, New France;31 M. (1) Marie-Anne Chouinard (1708-?), 10 Nov 1766, Ste-Anne-de-la-Pocatiere, New France;32 (2) Marie-Anne Grondin (?-1764) 22 Sep 1733, La Pocatiere, New France33
9. Marie-Cecile Mignault — B. 17 Nov 1709, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;34 D. 14 Mar 1753, Ste-Marie-de-Beauce, New France;35 M. Étienne Raymond (1708-1788), 22 Jun 1732, Rivière-Ouelle, New France36
10. Nicolas Mignault — B. 25 Jan 1713, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;37 D. 27 Jan 1713, Riviére-Ouelle, New France38
Children by Marie-Anne Dube:
1. Marie-Josephe Mignault — B. 15 Sep 1730, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;39 M. Jean Gagnon, 20 Nov 17524
2. Marie-Genevieve Mignault — B. about 1727, (probably) Rivière-Ouelle, New France;40 D. 26 Mar 1798, Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière, Quebec;40 M. Pierre Rouleau (1720-1790), 24 Jan 1780, Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière, Quebec41
3. Marie-Veronique Mignault — B. 25 Jan 1734, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;7 D. 10 Mar 1816, Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière, Quebec;42 M. Gabriel-Basile Ouellet (1724-1809), 2 Feb 1758, Kamouraska, New France43
Sources:
1 Burial record of Jean Mignault dit LaBrie, Quebec Catholic Parish Registers, 1621-1979, FamilySearch.org
2 Marriage record of Jean Mignault dit LaBrie and Marie-Sainte Boucher, Q.C.P.R.
3 Marriage record of Jean Mignault dit LaBrie and Marie-Anne Dube, Q.C.P.R.
4 Our French-Canadian Ancestors, Gerard Lebel (translated by Thomas J. Laforest), 1990
5 A point in history… The Heroes of Rivière-Ouelle (website)
6 Burial record of Marie-Sainte Boucher, Q.C.P.R.
7 Baptismal record of Marie-Veronique Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
8 Marriage record of François Pauze and Marie-Anne Dube, Q.C.P.R.
9 FamousKin.com listing of Jean Baptiste Mignault-LaBrie
10 Baptismal record of Marie-Madeleine Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
11 Marriage record of Pierre Emond and Marie-Madeleine Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
12 Baptismal record of Marie-Françoise Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
13 Burial record of Marie-Françoise Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
14 Marriage record of Nicolas Lebel and Marie-Françoise Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
15 Baptismal record of Marie-Therese Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
16 Burial record of Marie-Therese Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
17 Marriage record of Joseph Emond and Marie-Therese Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
18 Marriage record of Joseph Gagnon and Marie-Therese Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
19 Baptismal record of Michel Mignault dit LaBrie, Q.C.P.R.
20 Probate file of Michel Mignot dit Labrie, 25 Mar 1756 - 12 May 1759, BAnQ
21 Marriage record of Michel Mignault dit LaBrie and Marie-Ursule Soucy, Q.C.P.R.
22 Marriage record of Michel Mignault dit LaBrie and Angelique-Rosalie Morin, Q.C.P.R.
23 Baptismal record of Marie-Ursule Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
24 Burial record of Marie-Ursule Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
25 Marriage record of Augustin Emond and Marie-Ursule Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
26 Généalogie du Québec et d’ Amérique française listing for Marie-Rosalie Mignault
27 Marriage record of Phillippe Beaudin and Marie-Rosalie Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
28 Baptismal record of Charles Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
29 Marriage record of Charles Mignault and Marie-Madeleine Aubert, Q.C.P.R.
30 Baptismal record of Jean-Baptiste Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
31 Burial record of Jean-Baptiste Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
32 Marriage record of Jean-Baptiste Mignault and Marie-Anne Chouinard, Q.C.P.R.
33 Marriage record of Jean-Baptiste Mignault and Marie-Anne Grondin, Q.C.P.R.
34 Baptismal record of Marie-Cecile Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
35 Burial record of Marie-Cecile Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
36 Marriage record of Étienne Raymond and Marie-Cecile Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
37 Baptismal record of Nicolas Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
38 Burial record of Nicolas Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
39 Baptismal record of Marie-Josephe Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
40 Burial record of Marie-Genevieve Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
41 Marriage record of Paul Rouleau and Marie-Genevieve Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
42 Burial record of Marie-Veronique Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
43 Marriage record of Gabriel-Basile Ouellet and Marie-Veronique Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
D. 6 Dec 1735 in Rivière-Ouelle, New France1
In the colony of New France, the river was the lifeblood of the people who lived there. It was their highway, it was their source of ice in the winter, and sometimes it was their income. One way a man could make money was by the killing of porpoises, and Jean Mignault dit LaBrie spent years at it.
Jean was born in about 1665 to Louis-Joseph Mignault and Jean Charron (or Chazou) in Saint-Germain-Laxis, France,1,2 not far from Paris. Some of this region was called Brie, and Jean acquired the suffix "dit LaBrie" to identify his land of birth. It is not known whether Jean had any siblings, but his parents died when he was young and he had little or no education.
Map showing Saint-Germain-Laxis.
Jean first appeared in the records of New France when he married Marie-Sainte Boucher on November 7, 1689 in Château-Richer.2 Why he migrated from France isn't known, but a witness to the marriage was an army surgeon, suggesting he may have been a soldier. The Boucher family was well-established in New France and Sainte's dowry included 30 livres and "a mother cow."4 The priest who performed the wedding was Charles-Amadour Martin,2 son of Quebec pioneer Abraham Martin. Jean and Sainte had 10 children born between 1690 and 1713. The LaBries moved to a cabin built by Jean on land he was granted in the small settlement of Rivière-Ouelle "east of the river, at Pointe-aux-Iroquois."4 Jean had land measuring 4 arpents of frontage on the river and extended 42 arpents in depth.
Not long after Jean settled there, the area came under attack from a force led by Sir William Phipps of the Massachusetts Bay colony. Before reaching Quebec City, the English fleet tried to pass Rivière-Ouelle.4 The people who lived there had to defend themselves from a possible raid, so the priest, Father Francheville, gathered every able bodied man, 39 in all, and Jean was one of them.5 Father Francheville organized them into a sort of militia saying, "Take arms and be ready for the first signal." The men went out to meet the boats and at a certain moment the order was given to fire. It was said that many English fell dead and a large number were seriously injured. Phipps' fleet moved down the river and suffered an even bigger defeat at Quebec City. Jean seems to have continued to serve some military role; years later he was described on a document in 1713 as being a militia sergeant.4
In 1710, Jean gained authorization to engage in porpoise fishing,4 presumably on his riverfront land. It is recognized now as a cruel activity, along the lines of clubbing baby seals. The procedure was to trap the porpoises with "thousands of poles" driven into the river bank, then to spear them "unmercifully" from a raft.4 Jean is said to have done this for about 19 years, and this brought in a decent amount of money.4
Porpoise hunting as practiced by Indigenous people.
Jean's wife Sainte died on July 15, 1717 at the age of 48.6 Nine years later, Jean married a second wife, Marie-Anne Dube, on March 4, 1726 in Riviére-Ouelle. They had three daughters, the youngest born when Jean was about 69. He died the following year on December 6, 1735 in Rivière-Ouelle.1 His underage children had a priest named as their guardian, Jacques-Louis Gastonguay.4 It was said that the family was poor at the time of Jean's death, but recovered by 1740.4 His widow Marie-Ann remarried in 1744.8 Jean was the ancestor of several famous people, including Jack Kerouac, Nathan Fillion, Angelina Jolie, Chloë Sevigny, Dan Aykroyd, and Madonna.9
Children by Marie-Sainte Boucher:
1. Marie-Madeleine Mignault — B. 9 Sep 1690, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;10 M. Pierre Emond (~1693-1749), 5 Feb 1714, Riviére-Ouelle, New France11
2. Marie-Françoise Mignault — B. 9 Mar 1692, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;12 D. 29 Jan 1760, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;13 M. Nicolas Lebel (1694-1774), 7 Jan 1716, Rivière-Ouelle, New France14
3. Marie-Therese Mignault — B. 11 Nov 1694, Rivière-Ouelle New France;15 D. 15 Jul 1729, Rivière-Ouelle New France;16 M. (1) Joseph Emond (1698-1721), 30 Apr 1719, Contrat Notaire Janneau, New France;17 (2) Joseph Gagnon (1701-1791), 2 May 1725, Rivière-Ouelle, New France18
4. Michel Mignault dit LaBrie — B. 2 May 1697, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;19 D. before 24 Nov 1755, (probably) Ste-Anne-de-la-Pocatiere, New France;20 M. (1) Marie-Ursule Soucy (1706-1754), 26 Oct 1724, Ste-Anne-de-la-Pocatiere, New France;21 (2) Angelique-Rosalie Morin (1710-?), 25 Nov 1755, Rock St-des-Aulnaies, New France22
5. Marie-Ursule Mignault — B. 27 Sep 1699, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;23 D. 4 Apr 1758, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;24 M. Augustin Emond (1700-1770), 7 Aug 1720, Rivière-Ouelle, New France25
6. Marie-Rosalie Mignault — B. about 1700, (probably) Rivière-Ouelle, New France;26 M. Phillipe Baudin (1687-1756), 7 Aug 1729, Rivière-Ouelle, New France27
7. Charles Mignault — B. 2 Feb 1705, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;28 M. Marie-Madeleine Aubert (1711-1790), 12 Jan 1728, La Pocatiere, New France29
8. Jean-Baptiste LaBrie Mignault — B. 1 May 1707, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;30 D. 5 Mar 1781, La Pocatiere, New France;31 M. (1) Marie-Anne Chouinard (1708-?), 10 Nov 1766, Ste-Anne-de-la-Pocatiere, New France;32 (2) Marie-Anne Grondin (?-1764) 22 Sep 1733, La Pocatiere, New France33
9. Marie-Cecile Mignault — B. 17 Nov 1709, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;34 D. 14 Mar 1753, Ste-Marie-de-Beauce, New France;35 M. Étienne Raymond (1708-1788), 22 Jun 1732, Rivière-Ouelle, New France36
10. Nicolas Mignault — B. 25 Jan 1713, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;37 D. 27 Jan 1713, Riviére-Ouelle, New France38
Children by Marie-Anne Dube:
1. Marie-Josephe Mignault — B. 15 Sep 1730, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;39 M. Jean Gagnon, 20 Nov 17524
2. Marie-Genevieve Mignault — B. about 1727, (probably) Rivière-Ouelle, New France;40 D. 26 Mar 1798, Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière, Quebec;40 M. Pierre Rouleau (1720-1790), 24 Jan 1780, Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière, Quebec41
3. Marie-Veronique Mignault — B. 25 Jan 1734, Rivière-Ouelle, New France;7 D. 10 Mar 1816, Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière, Quebec;42 M. Gabriel-Basile Ouellet (1724-1809), 2 Feb 1758, Kamouraska, New France43
Sources:
1 Burial record of Jean Mignault dit LaBrie, Quebec Catholic Parish Registers, 1621-1979, FamilySearch.org
2 Marriage record of Jean Mignault dit LaBrie and Marie-Sainte Boucher, Q.C.P.R.
3 Marriage record of Jean Mignault dit LaBrie and Marie-Anne Dube, Q.C.P.R.
4 Our French-Canadian Ancestors, Gerard Lebel (translated by Thomas J. Laforest), 1990
5 A point in history… The Heroes of Rivière-Ouelle (website)
6 Burial record of Marie-Sainte Boucher, Q.C.P.R.
7 Baptismal record of Marie-Veronique Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
8 Marriage record of François Pauze and Marie-Anne Dube, Q.C.P.R.
9 FamousKin.com listing of Jean Baptiste Mignault-LaBrie
10 Baptismal record of Marie-Madeleine Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
11 Marriage record of Pierre Emond and Marie-Madeleine Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
12 Baptismal record of Marie-Françoise Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
13 Burial record of Marie-Françoise Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
14 Marriage record of Nicolas Lebel and Marie-Françoise Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
15 Baptismal record of Marie-Therese Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
16 Burial record of Marie-Therese Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
17 Marriage record of Joseph Emond and Marie-Therese Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
18 Marriage record of Joseph Gagnon and Marie-Therese Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
19 Baptismal record of Michel Mignault dit LaBrie, Q.C.P.R.
20 Probate file of Michel Mignot dit Labrie, 25 Mar 1756 - 12 May 1759, BAnQ
21 Marriage record of Michel Mignault dit LaBrie and Marie-Ursule Soucy, Q.C.P.R.
22 Marriage record of Michel Mignault dit LaBrie and Angelique-Rosalie Morin, Q.C.P.R.
23 Baptismal record of Marie-Ursule Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
24 Burial record of Marie-Ursule Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
25 Marriage record of Augustin Emond and Marie-Ursule Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
26 Généalogie du Québec et d’ Amérique française listing for Marie-Rosalie Mignault
27 Marriage record of Phillippe Beaudin and Marie-Rosalie Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
28 Baptismal record of Charles Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
29 Marriage record of Charles Mignault and Marie-Madeleine Aubert, Q.C.P.R.
30 Baptismal record of Jean-Baptiste Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
31 Burial record of Jean-Baptiste Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
32 Marriage record of Jean-Baptiste Mignault and Marie-Anne Chouinard, Q.C.P.R.
33 Marriage record of Jean-Baptiste Mignault and Marie-Anne Grondin, Q.C.P.R.
34 Baptismal record of Marie-Cecile Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
35 Burial record of Marie-Cecile Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
36 Marriage record of Étienne Raymond and Marie-Cecile Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
37 Baptismal record of Nicolas Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
38 Burial record of Nicolas Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
39 Baptismal record of Marie-Josephe Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
40 Burial record of Marie-Genevieve Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
41 Marriage record of Paul Rouleau and Marie-Genevieve Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
42 Burial record of Marie-Veronique Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
43 Marriage record of Gabriel-Basile Ouellet and Marie-Veronique Mignault, Q.C.P.R.
