M. 18 Oct 1667 in Quebec City, New France
Wife: Catherine Vieillot
D. Mar 1675 in St-Laurent, Île d’Orleans, New France
Many people migrated to New France in the 17th century because the government offered an opportunity they couldn’t find at home. The story of Jacques Dubois was an example of this.
Jacques was born in 1640 to Jacques Dubois and Jeanne Tinion in Angouleme, a town in western France. He was illiterate and likely had no education, but he came of age when efforts to secure France’s colony in America were of vital interest, and this opened a door for his future. During the early 1660s, the survival of the settlement on the St. Lawrence River was threatened by Iroquois living to the south, as well as by the British in New England. It was thought that the only solution was to grow the population—and fast. So in 1663, the French government started funding the mass migration of single men and women.
In early 1664, advisors to the king looked at how well the program was going, and had a few suggestions for that year. They wrote a report that said, “There should be no girls, no women, no children; but that [the emigrants should be] all well-chosen men, good villagers and working men….” The report set a number of 300 emigrants for that year, advising that they be chosen from Normandy and not the area around La Rochelle, who, in their opinion, tended to be lazy, untrustworthy and without religion. The authorities agreed on most of the points; that year, they would send only one woman to New France, and most of the men would be from from Normandy. But it was decided that one ship carrying 50 recruits would leave from La Rochelle, and Jacques was chosen for that ship.
Jacques signed a 3-year contract of servitude, then boarded the ship Noir. Besides the 50 emigrants, the ship had a cargo of 10 barrels of brandy, 400 axes and 6 sheep. After they docked at Quebec City on May 25th, Jacques and the others awaited their fate for three days before leaving the ship. Local officials took over the recruits with the order that two-thirds of the men would be assigned work in Quebec City, while one-third would be sent to places in the west.
Passenger list of ship Noir. Jacques is the fifth name on the middle page.
Jacques was among those who stayed in Quebec. In 1666, he was shown to be indentured to Louis Sédillot, a 66-year-old farmer living just west of Quebec’s Upper Town; whether Jacques spent his entire term of servitude with him isn’t known. The household had another young man under contract as well, and it's likely that both of them worked outdoors on the farm. Jacques’ term of service ended in late May 1667, and he wasted no time in finding a bride among the Filles du Roi who landed at Quebec that June. Her name was Marie Girard, but unfortunately things didn’t work out, and the marriage contract was cancelled on July 17th. Nothing more is known of the fate of Marie.
In September of that year, another ship of Filles du Roi arrived from France and Jacques found another match; on October 17, 1667, he married Catherine Vieillot at Notre-Dame in Quebec City. The couple settled on a farm in Ste-Famille on Île d’Orleans; they had four children by 1673, one of whom died young. Catherine was pregnant with their fifth child when Jacques suddenly died in March of 1675. He was buried at the church cemetery on March 17th. Catherine remarried only two months later, and Jacques’ child, a son, was born posthumously on October 7th.
Children:
1. François Dubois — B. 12 Nov 1668, Ste-Famille, Île d’Orleans, New France; D. 27 Feb 1714, Quebec City, New France; M. Marie Guay (1674-1747), 18 Jan 1695, New France
2. Clémont Dubois — B. 2 Sep 1670, Ste-Famille, Île d’Orleans, New France; D. young
3. Clémont Dubois — B. 26 Oct 1671, Ste-Famille, Île d’Orleans, New France; D. 15 May 1720, Bécancour, New France; M. (1) Catherine Guay (1676-~1700), 30 Jan 1695, Lauzon, Lévis, New France; (2) Catherine LaBrecque (~1669-1703), 7 Jun 1700, St-Laurent, Île d’Orleans, New France; (3) Marie-Anne Juin (~1679-?), 1 Feb 1706, Beaumont, New France
4. Jeanne Dubois — B. 28 Sep 1673, Ste-Famille, Île d’Orleans, New France; D. 24 Dec 1705, Bellechasse, New France; M. Jacques Charest (1664-1725), 15 Sep 1693, Lauzon, Lévis, New France
5. Pierre Dubois — B. 7 Oct 1675, Ste-Famille, Île d’Orleans, New France; D. 26 Nov 1743, Lachine, New France; M. Marie-Anne Mailloux (1682-1735), 3 Nov 1699, Beaumont, New France
Sources:
Généalogie du Quebec et d’Amérique française (website)
King’s Daughters and Founding Mothers—1663-1673, Peter Gagne, 2000
