Individual Details
Pierre-François Perrot-Perreault
(1654 - 21 May 1741)
Pierre Perrot avenges his wife's honor
French article by Jacques Saint-Onge, translated by Diane Lebrun for John Perreault.
At the beginning of 1686, Governor Denonville, as knight of Troyes, head of an expedition which had to be done without delay to Hudson Bay, in order to take back, from Radisson, the fort that he had seized for the English. On March 30, the young captain leaves Montréal with 70 militiamen and 30 soldiers.
To accompany this knight, in this difficult journey, according to an author, 'you had to be Canadian to be able to accomplish such a deed.' A soldier, named Jacques Pourpoint, of the company of Captain Marquis de Crisafy, decided, on his part, that, to play hooky would provide him with far more pleasure and avoid him thousands of worries.
Jacques sneaked out and started to walk through the woods. Luck has it that he found an isolated cabin, which he considered, most inviting at the end of winter. He entered it and found a most attractive young woman of 16 or 17 years of age. His badly deprived male instincts take over and forced himself upon her. This most coward act, brought on another one, he stole her absent husband's clothes and disappeared in the bushes.
When Pierre Perrot came home, may be a few minutes or some hours later, he found his wife more dead than alive, still frozen in fear. Geneviève managed, through tears, to tell him what had happened. Pierre immediately decided to avenge the honor of his beloved but through the normal course of justice.
On April 14, Perrot is in Québec city filing a complaint, with Philippe Gautier de Comporté, Grand Marshall of the constabulary of New France. In this case, justice is fast. Six days later, Pourpoint is caught by Sergeant Robillard of the company of Sire Desquerac; on the 23rd, he is locked in jail, on the 26 and 27th, the Marshall makes his investigation at the Perrot house in Portneuf, on the 29th the stolen articles, which had been entrusted to Jean Mézeré, resident of Neuville, are handed to the Marshall so that he can confront the thief, if it is necessary.
On May 3, the investigation follows its course. The tribunal orders Perrot`s wife to face the accused and that the clothes, which are the objects of the litigation, be recognized or disavowed by the parties. This Tuesday, May 7, since the presumed victim is 10 to 12 lieux from Québec and, that it is the beginning of the planting season, the Counselor Commissary goes, on location, to proceed with the testimony of the witnesses and even to hear more witnesses, if the case is not strong enough. The clerk, the process server and one of the bowmen of the constabulary accompany the commissary.
On may 22, we are already at the trial which is resumed in three short paragraphs.
'According to the conclusions of the Attorney General of the King, dated the 20th of this month and hearing of the report from the said counselor commissary, (Lord de la Martinière); all considered, the Council has declared and declares, the said Jacques Pourpoint, guilty of having deserted his detachment, to which he had been ordered, under the leadership of Sieur de Troyes, for the trip to the bay in the North, to have ravished, forced and raped Geneviève Duclos, said wife of Perrot, and of a variety of incidents contained in this information. In reparation of the above, he has been and is condemned to be hang and strangled until death from the gallows which will be erected in low Quebec, after having been driven in his shirt, holding a burning torch, to the front of the main door of the parish church of this town, to ask forgiveness to God, for his crimes, and as a greater example, orders that his head be detached from his dead body and placed on top of a post which will be planted, on a mound, nearest to this city, on the main road leading to Coulonges, and to leave it there until it rots. Pourpoint`s assets will be confiscated, from which a fine of 100 pounds will go to His Majesty, the stolen items recognized by Perrot`s wife will be returned to him. Declared to Pourpoint in prison' And the penalty was given the same day, (May 22) around five or six
o'clock that evening..
'This sober page, writes the genealogist Archange Godbout, violently inserts itself in the life of the peaceful miller and farmer Pierre Perrot. Twelve children, four boys and eight daughters, of which, one became an Ursuline nun in Trois-Rivières, and the other died, single at the age of 29, that's the whole of the family life of the ancestor Perrot.'
Pierre Perrot, native of an unknown area of France, probably came to New-France in 1680, having crossed the Atlantic on one of the four vessels which reached our shore that year. At the beginning of 1681, the census taker has him as a servant of Sire René Robineau of Bécancour, in Portneuf. Pierre is said to be 26 years old and his work mates are Jeanne Lenoir, Geneviève Duclos, Thomas Godefroy, Jean Bridault, Innocent Laroche, Jean Demars, Pierre Auger, François Turbot, Daniel Lemerle, Jean Legoyer and Mathieu Allero.
The king has just (March 1681) elevated, to the status of Barony, the land of Portneuf (today Cap-Santé). This magnificent domain includes the Seigniorial manor, a chapel and many other buildings serving as lodging for the servant. There are horses and equipages, farmyard, stables, barns, a park, gardens, a mill and lots of well cultivated and productive land.
In the beginning of the fall of 1683, Pierre obtained, from Robineau, the right to clear land on a lot in Cap-Santé. The official concession document would be properly completed on April 23, 1885 in front of notary François Genaple. René Robineau, king's knight, Lord of Bécancour, Baron of Portneuf, King's counselor, recognizes having conceded title of rent and seigniorial income to Pierre Perrot, resident of the Barony of Portneuf, said Cap-Santé, a land on which he would live and work for about 18 months.
This land of four arpents in width by four in depth is located along the river. There are then no immediate neighbor, it is virgin forest. In return the Lord demands that Pierre brings him, at Saint-René, (on November 12) each year, the sum of four pounds, four fat good capons and four deniers in rent.
Perrot obtains the right to fish, on the condition, that one in eleven fish be brought to the Lord, furthermore he will have to give him two days of work per year and have his grain milled at the barony. Finally if he neglects his payments or to look after his place, it will be returned to the lessor, along with everything on the land, without hopes of compensation. This document is drafted in the study of the notary in Québec city in the presence of Lord Bertet, first sergeant of the Castle Garrison and, of the bread maker René Senard.
Rents owed to Baron of Portneuf were heavy, heavier than in most places, notes Father Godbout, however Pierre Perrot persevered in the development of his land for some twenty years. It is there that he will take his young wife, it is also there that were born, in the mists of joys and cruel ordeals, eight of his twelve children.'
Marriage of Pierre Perrot and Geneviève Duclos, daughter of François, native of Manerbe, in Normandie and Jeanne Cérisier, must have been celebrated in 1685 or later, at the very beginning of 1686, at the seigniorial manor of René Robibeau of Bécancour. The missionary must have forgotten to include this act in the registries or he may have done it on a sheet of paper which later disappeared.
Oldest daughter, Marie-Gertrude, born on August 24, 1686, was baptized in Pointe-aux-Trembles, (Neuville) on the following September 2nd. She will be, according to Father Godbout, her mother's auxiliary until 1715. The seven other children, at least those we know of through their birth certificates, were baptized in Cap-Santé, Father Jean Pinguet who administered the baptismal to Pierre-François, the second son, states that the latter was born in Pointe- aux-Envieux, on April 15, 1696.
This name of a place must have been the common designation of Pierre Perrot`s place. The map drawn by the engineer Catalogne in 1709 does not indicate that place, but it shows us Pierre Perrot`s two lands in the actual parish of Deschambault which did not open for another three years.
If we go by Father Archange, it was unbelievable that in 1702 Pierre Perrot, after twenty years in Cap-Santé, would move to Batiscan. 'Due to the lack of sale and purchase contracts, he writes, it is still here a baptismal record that will inform us. On June 5, 1702, Father Constantin Delhalle, the martyr of Detroit, entered in the Batiscan register the following act:
'Today, June 5, 1702, the baptismal rites were given by me, doing the pastoral duties, to Marie Magdeleine Pérot, five weeks old, who had been baptized in emergency, in Cap-Santé, daughter of Pierre and Geneviève Duclos, from a legitimate marriage, had for godfather Augustin Trottier and for godmother Magdeleine Duclos. To which we undersigned, Fr. Constantin Delhalle, Recollet. Augustin Trottier, the godmother declares not being able to sign.`
The genealogist seems to ignore many documents, it is true, of the years to come, in the name of Pierre Perrot. The first is dated March 24, 1708 and is found in the file of Etienne Veron de Grandmesnil. The ancestor, who had been living in Batiscan, accepts a land of 5 arpents that Pierre Lafond dit Mongrain conceded in the name of Father Pierre Raffeix, procurator for the Jesuits. Notary François Trottain also drafted many acts for the members of the Perrot family between 1712 and 1730. On September 4, 1712, Hector Orson dit Vézine sold an arpent of land to Perrot in the Seigniory of Sainte-Marie, that is in the western section of Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pérade. Catalogne`s map shows Orson`s place, then those of Pierre Rivard, Pierre Larue and a Giasson, in the immediate neighborhood of Batiscan. An act of January 30, 1713, indicates that Pierre and Geneviève sold their part of inheritance from François Duclos and Jeanne Cerisier, and it still places the Perrot family in Batiscan. The same from another act dated June 11, 1718 from Pierre Poulin, relating to the Geneviève`s dowry, an Ursuline. However, in the marriage contract of Gertrude with Jean-François Frigon, on May 5, 1715, Trottain indicates that the family is still in the seignory of Sainte-Marie, that is, in Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pérade, as maintained by Father Godbout.
Pierre and Geneviève would live there for more than a quarter of a century, and would die within a year of one another. Father Joseph Voyer, who was pastor of Sainte-Anne from 1722 to 1742, signed both burial records, that of Geneviève, on July 6, 1740, who had died the previous day, at the age of 72 and Pierre`s, dated May 21, 1741, who had died in his home, at around 87 years of age. Both of them, notes the priest, left this world with piety and a great number of parishioners attended their funeral which is a proof of the sympathy that these contemporaries had towards this peaceful family.
THE FOLLOWING COMES FROM THE BOOK 'NOS ANCETRES BIBLIOTHEQUE D'ANCETRE' BY GÉRALD Lebel PAGES 119-123 WRITTEN IN FRENCH.
"Here I am, New France" was expressed by Pierre Perrot on the Quebec pier when he came off the ship in ?.
History often forgets those we cherish and though little is known of Pierre prior to his arrival in Canada, history tells us the secrets of his future.
Hired for 36 months, Pierre Perrot went to the Portneuf manor where he was warmly greeted by René Robineau of Bécancour, Baron of Portneuf. René was 55 married to Marie-Anne Leneuf and father of nine children.
Pierre enjoyed visiting the Baron land. A rich farm of 60 cultivated arpents (about the same as 60 acres) and 22 farm animal. He felt at home.
The manor was surrounded by many buildings, stable, barns, parks, gardens, forest, barnyard, the servants quarters and a windmill.
At the end of his engagement in 1683, Pierre told his master his wish to own land. He was allotted land near the St Lawrence where Cap-Santé is now located, it was 4 arpents in width and 40 in depth. He received the official title on April 23, 1685. Though the rent was very expensive, Pierre remained there until 1702.
In November 1685 Pierre married Geneviève Duclos daughter of François Duclos of Batiscan. He was from Manerne, Normandie and her mother was from Amboise.
On April 14, 1696, Pierre Perrot presented himself to the authority to file a complaint against Jacques Pourpoint, soldier, who had deserted the Compagnie du capitaine Marquis de Crisafy. Pourpoint was to have gone to the Hudson Bay with La Compangie Chevalier de Troyes, to fight the English.
The double complaint included the fact that Jacques Pourpoint had come across Pierre`s residence where his wife Geneviève was alone. He entered, raped her and stole Pierre`s clothing.
At that time justice was swift. Six days later Sargeant Robillard arrested the deserter and the unfaithful soldier was sentenced to hang, on the same day, May 22, 1686.
Though all seemed great on the farm, the Perrot, shortly after the baptismal of their daughter Marie-Madeleine on June 5, by Constantin Delhalle, decided to move back to Batiscan, probably at the Duclos, where they lived for the next nine years.
Then began the great era of buying land. On May 24, 1708 the Jesuits sold him a lot of 5 arpents in width and 21 in depth along the Batiscan River between Luc Proteau and Augustin Trottier. The next year, his son Louis Perrot obtained as much on the other side of the river.
On July 27, 1711, Mrs Mathurin Morisset, bought Pierre`s land in Cap-Santé for 600 pounds. Pierre then purchased another lot 3x40 arpents in Fief Ste-Marie near Ste-Anne-de-la-Pérade which belonged to Marie-Anne Lemoine, Jean Giasson`s wife. On Sept 4, increased it when he bought a lot which had been previously foreclosed.
In 1723 Pierre Perrot owned 20 arpents of cultivated land and paid 8 pounds and 4 chapons annually to the Lord.
At the Perrot, there were no funerals, all their twelve children, four sons and eight daughters lived past the age of 24.
Marie-Madeleine, remained single and was buried in La Pérade on Nov 30, 1721. Geneviève born on Christmas day 1692 in Cap-Santé, became an ursuline nun, on June 11, 1718, under the name of Sister St-Charles. She died in Trois-Rivières in 1742.
Three sons, François, Pierre and Adrien, explored the country from 1720 to 1732. Even their brothers in law often joined them towards Michilimakinak, south of Sault-Ste-Marie, to get fur for traders.
François became the owner of half of his father`s assets on Feb 28, 1728. His brothers and sisters eventually sold him their share of the remaining assets. François accepted the obligations given to him for being the oldest which also included having 80 masses said for the repose of the souls of his father and mother.
In 1735, when his youngest daughter Marie-Françoise, married, Pierre was a windmill owner. Six years later, on May 21, 1747, he died after receiving the last rites. He was 87 years old. He was buried near his wife Geneviève Duclos in the cemetary of Ste-Anne-de-la-Pérade. She had died on July 5, 1740 at the age of 72.
Most of Pierre`s descendants live in the Trois-Rivières and Eastern Township areas of Quebec.
Pierre came to Canada as an indentured servant. For 36 months her served Rene Robineau de Becancour, Baron of Portneuf, Chief Surveyor of the country. By 1683, his indenture was completed. He told his seigneur that he wished to own land. Squire Robineau offered Pierre a lot on the banks of the river, where the village of Cap-Sante is now located. Pierre received the title to the land on April 23, 1685 and called his home "Pointe-aux-Envieux". Pierre lived on the land until 1702.
On April 14, 1686, Pierre appeared before the Provost of the Constabulary of Quebec to file a complaint against Jacques Pourpoint, a military deserter. The complaint alleged that Pourpoint had come upon the Perrot homestead, and finding Genevieve alone, raped her. Pourpoint was arrested and tried and sentenced to death on May 22. 1686.
In 1702 the family moved to Batiscan where they lived with Genevieve's family until 1711 when Pierre began buying land in Ste-Marie, near Ste-Anne-de-la-Perade.[Our French Canadian Ancestors by Thomas J. Laforest, vol 2]
French article by Jacques Saint-Onge, translated by Diane Lebrun for John Perreault.
At the beginning of 1686, Governor Denonville, as knight of Troyes, head of an expedition which had to be done without delay to Hudson Bay, in order to take back, from Radisson, the fort that he had seized for the English. On March 30, the young captain leaves Montréal with 70 militiamen and 30 soldiers.
To accompany this knight, in this difficult journey, according to an author, 'you had to be Canadian to be able to accomplish such a deed.' A soldier, named Jacques Pourpoint, of the company of Captain Marquis de Crisafy, decided, on his part, that, to play hooky would provide him with far more pleasure and avoid him thousands of worries.
Jacques sneaked out and started to walk through the woods. Luck has it that he found an isolated cabin, which he considered, most inviting at the end of winter. He entered it and found a most attractive young woman of 16 or 17 years of age. His badly deprived male instincts take over and forced himself upon her. This most coward act, brought on another one, he stole her absent husband's clothes and disappeared in the bushes.
When Pierre Perrot came home, may be a few minutes or some hours later, he found his wife more dead than alive, still frozen in fear. Geneviève managed, through tears, to tell him what had happened. Pierre immediately decided to avenge the honor of his beloved but through the normal course of justice.
On April 14, Perrot is in Québec city filing a complaint, with Philippe Gautier de Comporté, Grand Marshall of the constabulary of New France. In this case, justice is fast. Six days later, Pourpoint is caught by Sergeant Robillard of the company of Sire Desquerac; on the 23rd, he is locked in jail, on the 26 and 27th, the Marshall makes his investigation at the Perrot house in Portneuf, on the 29th the stolen articles, which had been entrusted to Jean Mézeré, resident of Neuville, are handed to the Marshall so that he can confront the thief, if it is necessary.
On May 3, the investigation follows its course. The tribunal orders Perrot`s wife to face the accused and that the clothes, which are the objects of the litigation, be recognized or disavowed by the parties. This Tuesday, May 7, since the presumed victim is 10 to 12 lieux from Québec and, that it is the beginning of the planting season, the Counselor Commissary goes, on location, to proceed with the testimony of the witnesses and even to hear more witnesses, if the case is not strong enough. The clerk, the process server and one of the bowmen of the constabulary accompany the commissary.
On may 22, we are already at the trial which is resumed in three short paragraphs.
'According to the conclusions of the Attorney General of the King, dated the 20th of this month and hearing of the report from the said counselor commissary, (Lord de la Martinière); all considered, the Council has declared and declares, the said Jacques Pourpoint, guilty of having deserted his detachment, to which he had been ordered, under the leadership of Sieur de Troyes, for the trip to the bay in the North, to have ravished, forced and raped Geneviève Duclos, said wife of Perrot, and of a variety of incidents contained in this information. In reparation of the above, he has been and is condemned to be hang and strangled until death from the gallows which will be erected in low Quebec, after having been driven in his shirt, holding a burning torch, to the front of the main door of the parish church of this town, to ask forgiveness to God, for his crimes, and as a greater example, orders that his head be detached from his dead body and placed on top of a post which will be planted, on a mound, nearest to this city, on the main road leading to Coulonges, and to leave it there until it rots. Pourpoint`s assets will be confiscated, from which a fine of 100 pounds will go to His Majesty, the stolen items recognized by Perrot`s wife will be returned to him. Declared to Pourpoint in prison' And the penalty was given the same day, (May 22) around five or six
o'clock that evening..
'This sober page, writes the genealogist Archange Godbout, violently inserts itself in the life of the peaceful miller and farmer Pierre Perrot. Twelve children, four boys and eight daughters, of which, one became an Ursuline nun in Trois-Rivières, and the other died, single at the age of 29, that's the whole of the family life of the ancestor Perrot.'
Pierre Perrot, native of an unknown area of France, probably came to New-France in 1680, having crossed the Atlantic on one of the four vessels which reached our shore that year. At the beginning of 1681, the census taker has him as a servant of Sire René Robineau of Bécancour, in Portneuf. Pierre is said to be 26 years old and his work mates are Jeanne Lenoir, Geneviève Duclos, Thomas Godefroy, Jean Bridault, Innocent Laroche, Jean Demars, Pierre Auger, François Turbot, Daniel Lemerle, Jean Legoyer and Mathieu Allero.
The king has just (March 1681) elevated, to the status of Barony, the land of Portneuf (today Cap-Santé). This magnificent domain includes the Seigniorial manor, a chapel and many other buildings serving as lodging for the servant. There are horses and equipages, farmyard, stables, barns, a park, gardens, a mill and lots of well cultivated and productive land.
In the beginning of the fall of 1683, Pierre obtained, from Robineau, the right to clear land on a lot in Cap-Santé. The official concession document would be properly completed on April 23, 1885 in front of notary François Genaple. René Robineau, king's knight, Lord of Bécancour, Baron of Portneuf, King's counselor, recognizes having conceded title of rent and seigniorial income to Pierre Perrot, resident of the Barony of Portneuf, said Cap-Santé, a land on which he would live and work for about 18 months.
This land of four arpents in width by four in depth is located along the river. There are then no immediate neighbor, it is virgin forest. In return the Lord demands that Pierre brings him, at Saint-René, (on November 12) each year, the sum of four pounds, four fat good capons and four deniers in rent.
Perrot obtains the right to fish, on the condition, that one in eleven fish be brought to the Lord, furthermore he will have to give him two days of work per year and have his grain milled at the barony. Finally if he neglects his payments or to look after his place, it will be returned to the lessor, along with everything on the land, without hopes of compensation. This document is drafted in the study of the notary in Québec city in the presence of Lord Bertet, first sergeant of the Castle Garrison and, of the bread maker René Senard.
Rents owed to Baron of Portneuf were heavy, heavier than in most places, notes Father Godbout, however Pierre Perrot persevered in the development of his land for some twenty years. It is there that he will take his young wife, it is also there that were born, in the mists of joys and cruel ordeals, eight of his twelve children.'
Marriage of Pierre Perrot and Geneviève Duclos, daughter of François, native of Manerbe, in Normandie and Jeanne Cérisier, must have been celebrated in 1685 or later, at the very beginning of 1686, at the seigniorial manor of René Robibeau of Bécancour. The missionary must have forgotten to include this act in the registries or he may have done it on a sheet of paper which later disappeared.
Oldest daughter, Marie-Gertrude, born on August 24, 1686, was baptized in Pointe-aux-Trembles, (Neuville) on the following September 2nd. She will be, according to Father Godbout, her mother's auxiliary until 1715. The seven other children, at least those we know of through their birth certificates, were baptized in Cap-Santé, Father Jean Pinguet who administered the baptismal to Pierre-François, the second son, states that the latter was born in Pointe- aux-Envieux, on April 15, 1696.
This name of a place must have been the common designation of Pierre Perrot`s place. The map drawn by the engineer Catalogne in 1709 does not indicate that place, but it shows us Pierre Perrot`s two lands in the actual parish of Deschambault which did not open for another three years.
If we go by Father Archange, it was unbelievable that in 1702 Pierre Perrot, after twenty years in Cap-Santé, would move to Batiscan. 'Due to the lack of sale and purchase contracts, he writes, it is still here a baptismal record that will inform us. On June 5, 1702, Father Constantin Delhalle, the martyr of Detroit, entered in the Batiscan register the following act:
'Today, June 5, 1702, the baptismal rites were given by me, doing the pastoral duties, to Marie Magdeleine Pérot, five weeks old, who had been baptized in emergency, in Cap-Santé, daughter of Pierre and Geneviève Duclos, from a legitimate marriage, had for godfather Augustin Trottier and for godmother Magdeleine Duclos. To which we undersigned, Fr. Constantin Delhalle, Recollet. Augustin Trottier, the godmother declares not being able to sign.`
The genealogist seems to ignore many documents, it is true, of the years to come, in the name of Pierre Perrot. The first is dated March 24, 1708 and is found in the file of Etienne Veron de Grandmesnil. The ancestor, who had been living in Batiscan, accepts a land of 5 arpents that Pierre Lafond dit Mongrain conceded in the name of Father Pierre Raffeix, procurator for the Jesuits. Notary François Trottain also drafted many acts for the members of the Perrot family between 1712 and 1730. On September 4, 1712, Hector Orson dit Vézine sold an arpent of land to Perrot in the Seigniory of Sainte-Marie, that is in the western section of Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pérade. Catalogne`s map shows Orson`s place, then those of Pierre Rivard, Pierre Larue and a Giasson, in the immediate neighborhood of Batiscan. An act of January 30, 1713, indicates that Pierre and Geneviève sold their part of inheritance from François Duclos and Jeanne Cerisier, and it still places the Perrot family in Batiscan. The same from another act dated June 11, 1718 from Pierre Poulin, relating to the Geneviève`s dowry, an Ursuline. However, in the marriage contract of Gertrude with Jean-François Frigon, on May 5, 1715, Trottain indicates that the family is still in the seignory of Sainte-Marie, that is, in Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pérade, as maintained by Father Godbout.
Pierre and Geneviève would live there for more than a quarter of a century, and would die within a year of one another. Father Joseph Voyer, who was pastor of Sainte-Anne from 1722 to 1742, signed both burial records, that of Geneviève, on July 6, 1740, who had died the previous day, at the age of 72 and Pierre`s, dated May 21, 1741, who had died in his home, at around 87 years of age. Both of them, notes the priest, left this world with piety and a great number of parishioners attended their funeral which is a proof of the sympathy that these contemporaries had towards this peaceful family.
THE FOLLOWING COMES FROM THE BOOK 'NOS ANCETRES BIBLIOTHEQUE D'ANCETRE' BY GÉRALD Lebel PAGES 119-123 WRITTEN IN FRENCH.
"Here I am, New France" was expressed by Pierre Perrot on the Quebec pier when he came off the ship in ?.
History often forgets those we cherish and though little is known of Pierre prior to his arrival in Canada, history tells us the secrets of his future.
Hired for 36 months, Pierre Perrot went to the Portneuf manor where he was warmly greeted by René Robineau of Bécancour, Baron of Portneuf. René was 55 married to Marie-Anne Leneuf and father of nine children.
Pierre enjoyed visiting the Baron land. A rich farm of 60 cultivated arpents (about the same as 60 acres) and 22 farm animal. He felt at home.
The manor was surrounded by many buildings, stable, barns, parks, gardens, forest, barnyard, the servants quarters and a windmill.
At the end of his engagement in 1683, Pierre told his master his wish to own land. He was allotted land near the St Lawrence where Cap-Santé is now located, it was 4 arpents in width and 40 in depth. He received the official title on April 23, 1685. Though the rent was very expensive, Pierre remained there until 1702.
In November 1685 Pierre married Geneviève Duclos daughter of François Duclos of Batiscan. He was from Manerne, Normandie and her mother was from Amboise.
On April 14, 1696, Pierre Perrot presented himself to the authority to file a complaint against Jacques Pourpoint, soldier, who had deserted the Compagnie du capitaine Marquis de Crisafy. Pourpoint was to have gone to the Hudson Bay with La Compangie Chevalier de Troyes, to fight the English.
The double complaint included the fact that Jacques Pourpoint had come across Pierre`s residence where his wife Geneviève was alone. He entered, raped her and stole Pierre`s clothing.
At that time justice was swift. Six days later Sargeant Robillard arrested the deserter and the unfaithful soldier was sentenced to hang, on the same day, May 22, 1686.
Though all seemed great on the farm, the Perrot, shortly after the baptismal of their daughter Marie-Madeleine on June 5, by Constantin Delhalle, decided to move back to Batiscan, probably at the Duclos, where they lived for the next nine years.
Then began the great era of buying land. On May 24, 1708 the Jesuits sold him a lot of 5 arpents in width and 21 in depth along the Batiscan River between Luc Proteau and Augustin Trottier. The next year, his son Louis Perrot obtained as much on the other side of the river.
On July 27, 1711, Mrs Mathurin Morisset, bought Pierre`s land in Cap-Santé for 600 pounds. Pierre then purchased another lot 3x40 arpents in Fief Ste-Marie near Ste-Anne-de-la-Pérade which belonged to Marie-Anne Lemoine, Jean Giasson`s wife. On Sept 4, increased it when he bought a lot which had been previously foreclosed.
In 1723 Pierre Perrot owned 20 arpents of cultivated land and paid 8 pounds and 4 chapons annually to the Lord.
At the Perrot, there were no funerals, all their twelve children, four sons and eight daughters lived past the age of 24.
Marie-Madeleine, remained single and was buried in La Pérade on Nov 30, 1721. Geneviève born on Christmas day 1692 in Cap-Santé, became an ursuline nun, on June 11, 1718, under the name of Sister St-Charles. She died in Trois-Rivières in 1742.
Three sons, François, Pierre and Adrien, explored the country from 1720 to 1732. Even their brothers in law often joined them towards Michilimakinak, south of Sault-Ste-Marie, to get fur for traders.
François became the owner of half of his father`s assets on Feb 28, 1728. His brothers and sisters eventually sold him their share of the remaining assets. François accepted the obligations given to him for being the oldest which also included having 80 masses said for the repose of the souls of his father and mother.
In 1735, when his youngest daughter Marie-Françoise, married, Pierre was a windmill owner. Six years later, on May 21, 1747, he died after receiving the last rites. He was 87 years old. He was buried near his wife Geneviève Duclos in the cemetary of Ste-Anne-de-la-Pérade. She had died on July 5, 1740 at the age of 72.
Most of Pierre`s descendants live in the Trois-Rivières and Eastern Township areas of Quebec.
Pierre came to Canada as an indentured servant. For 36 months her served Rene Robineau de Becancour, Baron of Portneuf, Chief Surveyor of the country. By 1683, his indenture was completed. He told his seigneur that he wished to own land. Squire Robineau offered Pierre a lot on the banks of the river, where the village of Cap-Sante is now located. Pierre received the title to the land on April 23, 1685 and called his home "Pointe-aux-Envieux". Pierre lived on the land until 1702.
On April 14, 1686, Pierre appeared before the Provost of the Constabulary of Quebec to file a complaint against Jacques Pourpoint, a military deserter. The complaint alleged that Pourpoint had come upon the Perrot homestead, and finding Genevieve alone, raped her. Pourpoint was arrested and tried and sentenced to death on May 22. 1686.
In 1702 the family moved to Batiscan where they lived with Genevieve's family until 1711 when Pierre began buying land in Ste-Marie, near Ste-Anne-de-la-Perade.[Our French Canadian Ancestors by Thomas J. Laforest, vol 2]
Events
| Birth | 1654 | France |  | ||
| Marriage | 26 Nov 1685 | Portneuf, Québec, Canada - Geneviève Françoise Duclos | | ||
| Death | 21 May 1741 | Ste-Anne-de-la-Pérade, Québec, Canada | | ||
| Reference No | C64 | |
Families
| Spouse | Geneviève Françoise Duclos (1670 - 1740) |
| Child | Gertrude Perreault (1688 - 1773) |
| Child | Louis Perreault (1690 - 1718) |
| Child | Geneviève Perreault (1692 - 1742) |
| Child | Elizabeth Perreault (1694 - 1778) |
| Child | Pierre-François Perreault (1696 - 1765) |
| Child | Adrien Perreault (1698 - 1783) |
| Child | François Perreault (1700 - 1757) |
| Child | Madeleine Perreault (1702 - 1731) |
| Child | Marguerite Perreault (1704 - 1728) |
| Child | Marie-Josephe Perreault (1706 - 1784) |
| Child | Angélique Perreault (1708 - 1778) |
| Child | Françoise Perreault (1710 - 1792) |
Endnotes
1. Diane Lebrun , "Ancestors of Calixte Perreault," pp. 1-137; Unpublished family tree, 2025-02-04, Al Perreault, Calgary, AB, Canada.
2. Cyprien Tanguay, Genealogical Dictionary of Canadian Families (Tanguay Collection), 1608-1890 (Montreal, Quebec, Canada: Senécal, n.d.), . (Montreal, Quebec, Canada: Senécal, n.d.), .
3. Diane Lebrun , "Ancestors of Calixte Perreault," pp. 1-137; Unpublished family tree, 2025-02-04, Al Perreault, Calgary, AB, Canada.
4. Cyprien Tanguay, Genealogical Dictionary of Canadian Families (Tanguay Collection), 1608-1890 (Montreal, Quebec, Canada: Senécal, n.d.), . (Montreal, Quebec, Canada: Senécal, n.d.), .
5. Diane Lebrun , "Ancestors of Calixte Perreault," pp. 1-137; Unpublished family tree, 2025-02-04, Al Perreault, Calgary, AB, Canada.
6. Diane Lebrun , "Ancestors of Calixte Perreault," pp. 1-137; Unpublished family tree, 2025-02-04, Al Perreault, Calgary, AB, Canada.