M. 14 Oct 1665 in Château-Richer, New France1
Husband: Antoine Cassé
D. 28 Feb 1713 in St-Etienne-de-Beaumont, New France2
When Françoise Pilois arrived in New France on a ship of prospective brides, she made a quick decision on who to marry, and shortly after, seemed to have a change of heart.
Françoise was born in about 1639 in Paris, the daughter of François Pilois and Claudine Poulet.1,2 The circumstances that caused her to sign up as a Fille du Roi in the spring of 1665 are unknown, but there are a couple of clues. One is that a large group of women and girls that year were said to have been recruited from “charity houses in Paris”; one source put the number at 50.3 Also, three of her shipmates identified St-Nicolas-des-Champs as their parish of origin, so perhaps this wasn’t a place of birth, but the location of a home for impoverished women and girls. Whichever is true, Françoise boarded the Saint-Jean-Baptiste saling out of Dieppe, and arrived in Quebec City on October 2nd.3
The process of pairing off with a husband was one of mutual consent, but the woman had the ultimate say. Typically, upon arrival in Quebec, Filles du Roi were housed in a convent where the men could come meet with them in groups. It only took three days before Françoise agreed to a marriage contract with a man named Marin Gervais,4 a surprisingly short courtship, considering the number of women and the fact she was already 30-years-old. Perhaps she was in too much of a hurry to find a match, because within days, the contract was cancelled. Marin returned home still a bachelor; he later married another Fille du Roi in 1672.5
What Françoise did wasn't that unusual; it's been said that about 10% of all Filles du Roi bailed out on a marriage contract. She rebounded quickly and found a new man to marry, Antoine Cassé. A new contract was drawn up on October 14th in Château-Richer,4 just outside of Quebec City, and their wedding was held that very day.1 Françoise and Antoine started their lives together, and she was soon pregnant with their first child, who was born the following November. By 1682, they had eight more.
During those years, Françoise’s family moved first to Ste-Famille on the Île d’Orleans, then to the south shore community of Beaumont. She was the godmother on the very first baptism at the Beaumont church on July 3, 1679.6 The child was named after her, Françoise Mailloux, and was the daughter of a man who shared ownership of a fishing boat with Antoine.
Françoise as godmother on 1679 baptism.
Françoise spent the rest of her life in Beaumont, seeing her children married off one-by-one. In August 1702, she and Antoine signed over most of their farm to youngest son Charles, who agreed to care for them in their old age.7 Antoine died first, on June 1, 1709;8 she lived another few years, passing away at Beaumont on February 28, 1713.2
Children:
1. Marie-Françoise Cassé — B. 21 Nov 1666, Château-Richer, New France;9 D. 14 Jan 1750, Beaumont, New France;10 M. Étienne Blanchon (?-1712), about 1689, New France11
2. Antoine Cassé — B. 7 May 1668, Château-Richer, New France;12 D. 19 Dec 1687, Lauzon, New France13
3. Joseph Cassé — B. 23 Aug 1669, Ste-Famille, Île d’Orleans, New France;14 D. 23 Jan 1744, St-Etienne-de-Beaumont, New France;15 M. Marie Bazin (1673-1743), 27 Jun 1691, Lauzon, New France16
4. Jeanne-Therese Cassé — B. 7 Feb 1673, Ste-Famille, New France;17 D. 25 Aug 1699, La Durantaye, New France;18 M. Noël Roy (~1663-1731), 27 Apr 1690, Lauzon, New France19
5. Anne Cassé — B. 29 Aug 1674, New France;20 D. 11 Jun 1754, St-Nicolas, Lévis, New France;21 M. Jean-Baptiste Nadeau (1669-1735), 15 Jun 1690, New France22
6. Catherine Cassé — B. 10 May 1676, Ste-Famille, Île d’Orleans, New France;23 D. 20 Mar 1728, St-Etienne-de-Beaumont, New France;24 M. Remi Vallieres (1678-1754), 18 Jan 1701, St-Etienne-de-Beaumont, New France25
7. Charlotte Cassé — B. 21 Jun 1678, St-Etienne-de-Beaumont, New France;26 D. 6 Mar 1722, St-Etienne-de-Beaumont, New France;27 M. Denis Nadeau (1673-1759), 9 Nov 1695, St-Etienne-de-Beaumont, New France28
8. Marguerite Cassé — B. 1679, (probably) St-Etienne-de-Beaumont, New France;4 D. 16 Apr 1751, St-Etienne-de-Beaumont, New France;29 M. Pierre Jean (1672-1737), 1697, New France30
9. Charles Cassé — B. 29 Mar 1682, St-Etienne-de-Beaumont, New France;31 D. 27 Nov 1749, St-Etienne-de-Beaumont, New France;32 M. (1) Françoise Paquet (1682-1731), 12 Sep 1703, St-Etienne-de-Beaumont, New France;33 (2) Marie-Josephte Filteau (1705-1787), 19 Oct 1734, Bellechasse, New France34
Sources:
1 Marriage record of Antoine Cassé and Françoise Pilois, Quebec Catholic Parish Registers, 1621-1979, FamilySearch.org
2 Burial record of Françoise Pilois, Q.C.P.R.
3 Navires venus en Nouvelle France (website)
4 King’s Daughters and Founding Mothers—1663-1673, Peter Gagne, 2000
5 Marriage record of Marin Gervais and Françoise Monvosion, Q.C.P.R.
6 Baptismal record of Françoise Mailloux, Q.C.P.R.
7 Inventaire des greffes des notaires du Régime français, V. 18, Antoine Roy, 1956
8 Burial record of Antoine Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
9 Baptismal record of Marie-Françoise Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
10 Burial record of Marie-Françoise Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
11 Marriage record of Étienne Blanchon and Marie-Françoise Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
12 Baptismal record of Antoine Cassé (younger), Q.C.P.R.
13 Burial record of Antoine Cassé (younger), Q.C.P.R.
14 Baptismal record of Joseph Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
15 Burial record of Joseph Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
16 Marriage record of Joseph Cassé and Marie Bazin, Q.C.P.R.
17 Baptismal record of Jeanne-Therese Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
18 Burial record of Jeanne-Therese Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
19 Marriage record of Noël Roy and Jeanne-Therese Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
20 Baptismal record of Anne Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
21 Burial record of Anne Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
22 Marriage record of Jean-Baptiste Nadeau and Anne Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
23 Baptismal record of Catherine Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
24 Burial record of Catherine Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
25 Marriage record of Remi Vallieres and Catherine Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
26 Baptismal record of Charlotte Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
27 Burial record of Charlotte Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
28 Marriage record of Denis Nadeau and Charlotte Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
29 Burial record of Marguerite Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
30 Marriage record of Pierre Jean and Marguerite Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
31 Baptismal record of Charles Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
32 Burial record of Charles Cassé, Q.C.P.R.
33 Marriage record of Charles Cassé and Françoise Paquet, Q.C.P.R.
34 Marriage record of Charles Cassé and Marie-Josephte Filteau, Q.C.P.R.
