M. (1) 4 Feb 1690 in La Prairie, New France
Wife: Marie Perras dite LaFontaine
M. (2) 9 Sep 1737 in La Prairie, New France
Wife: Catherine Surprenant
D. 27 Mar 1747 in (probably) St-Lambert, New France
Like many young men where he lived in New France, Antoine Boyer made money trading in furs. He was born on April 10, 1671 on the south coast of the St. Lawrence River, across from Montreal. Antoine’s parents were Charles Boyer and Marguerite Tenard, and he was one of six children, two of whom died young. The family lived in a place called St-Lambert, but it had no church of its own, and the children were baptized in neighboring La Prairie. Antoine’s mother died when he was about 7-years-old and his father remarried soon after.
Antoine wasn’t yet age 19 when he got married. His bride was Marie Perras, the youngest daughter of a barrel maker and farmer who lived nearby. The wedding took place on February 4, 1690 at the church in La Prairie. Their first child was born that year in December; they would have 13 total, with the youngest born in 1716.
In 1690, Antoine used 600 livres he made from trading furs to purchase some land with his brother-in-law, Pierre Perras, so it's known that he was a coureur de bois by that date. The coureurs de bois were men who worked in the fur trade without a license, a common practice in the Montreal area. Laws had been passed by the authorities that put a limit on the number of licensed fur traders, but the appeal of making easy money was too great for many men on the frontier. Coureurs de bois were so numerous around Montreal that they were rarely prosecuted, so the risk was worth taking.
Typical coureur de bois of the 17th-century.
The life of a fur trader like Antoine involved hiring himself out to companies for expeditions out west. During the 1690s, the bartering with Indians took place in camps or outposts in present-day Ontario and the Great Lakes area; traders were also pushing into the Illinois country as well. Antoine agreed to a contract on August 17, 1694 working for Sieur Charles Legardeur; his charge was to “make a voyage to the Ottawa Indians.” It isn’t known how many other trips Antoine made during this time.
Later in his life, Antoine took on another role as a military man, and he became the captain of the St-Lambert militia in 1729. Captains were chosen by the governor, and were tasked with training local men who could take up arms when needed. When there wasn’t a military need for their service, captains also took on a leadership role, conveying requests and complaints about civic matters to the central authorities. The captains also sometimes acted as police officers in their communities. The period when Antoine led his town’s militia was relatively peaceful, and it isn’t known if he participated in any military action.
Antoine’s wife Marie passed away on May 9, 1736, and Pierre married a second wife, Catherine Surprenant, on September 9th of the following year. Catherine had been widowed twice; she was the aunt of one of his sons-in-law, and her niece would marry Antoine’s son in 1742. Intermarriage between the small number of families in St-Lambert and La Prairie was common.
Antoine died on March 27, 1747 at the age of 76. His wife Catherine survived him, dying in 1762. The tradition of fur trading was carried on by his son and grandson, both named Charles Boyer. In 1788, grandson Charles built a trading outpost far in the north of present-day Alberta, Canada.
Children:
1. Marie Boyer — B. 19 Dec 1692, Montreal, New France; D. 5 Nov 1766, St-Philippe, Quebec; M. (1) Jean-François Baptiste Patenaude (1689-1720), 21 Nov 1712, La Prairie, New France; (2) Maurice Demers, 9 Feb 1722, La Prairie, New France
2. Marie-Jeanne Boyer — B. 16 Aug 1694, St-Lambert, New France; D. 23 Dec 1730, Longueuil, New France; M. Charles Diel (1688-1734), 17 Feb 1716
3. Marie-Anne Jeanne Boyer — B. 1 Feb 1696, St-Lambert, New France; D. 18 Jun 1731, Longueuil, New France; M. Pierre Betourne (1698-1750), 8 Nov 1723, La Prairie, New France
4.Jean-Antoine Boyer — B. 11 Jun 1697, St-Lambert, New France; D. 12 Aug 1768, La Prairie, Quebec; M. (1) Marguerite Demers (1694-1732), 14 Jul 1722, La Prairie, New France; (2) Marie-Anne Haguenier (1714-1746), 7 Jan 1736, La Prairie, New France
5. Marie-Josephe Boyer — B. 5 Oct 1701, St-Lambert, New France; D. 23 Dec 1708, St-Lambert, New France
6. Pierre Boyer — B. 30 Mar 1703, St-Lambert, New France; D. 1 Apr 1703, St-Lambert, New France
7. Pierre Boyer — B. 23 May 1704, St-Lambert, New France; D. 6 Apr 1747, La Prairie, New France; M. Marie-Anne Gervais (1710-1737), 10 Jan 1729, Longueuil, New France
8.Jacques Boyer — B. 21 Mar 1706, St-Lambert, New France; D. 4 May 1795, St-Constant, Quebec; M. Marie-Anne Surprenant (~1713-?), 3 Feb 1733, La Prairie, New France
9. Marie-Jospehe Boyer — B. 3 Sep 1709, St-Lambert, New France; D. 25 Jul 1777, La Prairie, New France; M. Pierre Surprenant (1705-1779), 20 Nov 1730, La Prairie, New France
10. Antoine Boyer — B. 2 Mar 1711, St-Lambert, New France; D. 18 Feb 1717, St-Lambert, New France
11. Charles Boyer — B. 21 Jan 1713, St-Lambert, New France; D. 14 Jan 1801, La Prairie, Quebec; M. Marie-Jeanne Surprenant (1718-1770), 8 Oct 1742, La Prairie, New France
12. Joseph-Marie Boyer — B. 21 Sep 1714, St-Lambert, New France; D. 13 Jun 1797, La Prairie, New France; M. (1) Marie-Angelique Roy (1717-1738), 4 Feb 1737, La Prairie, New France; (2) Michelle Lamarque (1712-1792), 21 Oct 1743, La Prairie, New France
13. Louis Boyer — B. 21 Jun 1716, St-Lambert, New France; D. 1 Jul 1716, La Prairie, New France
Sources:
Généalogie du Quebec et d’Amérique française (website)
A Drifting Cowboy (blog)Minnesota Eh? A Foley/Perras Family History, Gerald Foley
WikiTree
WikiTree
