A Chain of Canoes: Your Family's 230-Year Fur Trade Epic (1608–1830)

I asked Gemini AI to visit my Fur Trade Timeline (link below) and to weave a story combining my ancestors as they fit in with the major high points of Canadian fur trade history.

https://laprairie-voyageur-canoes.blogspot.com/2025/11/new-france-fur-trade-timeline-1600-1830.html  

Gemini's reply was, "This is a fantastic way to visualize your family's enduring role in the Canadian fur trade—they were present for every major phase of the business, from its founding to its decline.

Based on the timeline you provided and our previous discussions about your Leber, Gagné, Perras, Pinsonneau, Marier, and Meunier ancestors, I can weave a single, cohesive story that places your family at the heart of the trade's key historical moments."

🛶 A Chain of Canoes: Your Family's 230-Year Fur Trade Epic (1608–1830)

Your ancestors didn't just participate in the fur trade; they helped build and sustain the entire enterprise across two centuries and two empires. The story of the Canadian fur trade, from the founding of Quebec to the dominance of the Hudson's Bay Company, is the story of your family.

Phase I: The Foundations and Monopoly (1608–1680)

The trade began as a risky enterprise centered on Quebec and Montreal. Your family's presence starts early, providing the necessary social and economic structure:

• 1635: Jesuits Arrive in La Prairie: The initial land grants set the stage. Your ancestor, Jacques Marié, arrived soon after, becoming part of the artisan class whose skills—like bootmaking—were essential to provisioning the first voyageur expeditions.
• 1667: The Arrival of the Le Moyne Dynasty: This event defined the power structure. The marriage of your 8th great-granduncle, Jacques Leber, to Jeanne Le Moyne forged a blood compact that fused your family into the military and economic elite.
• 1668: The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) is Chartered: The English threat emerged. Your ancestors, including François Leber (8th GGF), rose to become the merchant-financiers of the French response, using their strategic lot in La Prairie to stage counter-trade operations up the Ottawa River.

Phase II: The Golden Age of La Prairie (1680–1760)

The era of intense expansion and conflict saw the La Prairie hub become a crucible for trade and warfare, with your ancestors as its core command and supply chain:

• 1680s: The Coureur des Bois and the Brandy Parliament: Your ancestors, like François Bourassa, embodied the spirit of the unlicensed coureur des bois. The trade's darker side—the illegal brandy trade—was a constant danger. This came to a tragic head in 1719, when the family of Captain Pierre Gagné (8th GGF), the Militia leader who provisioned expeditions with salted pork and tools, was directly harmed by the consequences of illicit spirits.
• 1692–1701: The Perras and Pinsonneau Voyages: Men like Jean Perras dit Lafontaine were constantly engaged, paddling to Michilimackinac and the Ottawa lands. The Pinsonneau line, another key trade family, was providing guides and voyageurs, establishing the family's deep-rooted connection to the trade routes.
• 1704: The Fort and the Lots: The 1704 Map of Fort La Prairie you shared shows your family's physical dominance: the Leber lot on the riverfront, the central Gagné and Pinsonneau properties, and the surrounding farms. They were the landowners, the militia, and the suppliers of the last great French stronghold.

Phase III: The British Conquest and the North West Company (1760–1821)

Following the fall of New France, your ancestors rapidly adapted their skills to the new British economy, becoming the backbone of the new North West Company (NWC):

• 1763–1790: The Hommes du Nord: As the Scottish and English merchants took control, they still relied entirely on the Canadien infrastructure. Your ancestor Jean-Baptiste Meunier Lagacé exemplified this continuity, signing contracts as a voyageur for the NWC, paddling to Rainy Lake, and becoming a true North Man (Homme du Nord), extending the family's reach deeper into the continent than ever before.
• 1789: Alexander Mackenzie Reaches the Arctic: Your cousin, Sir Alexander Mackenzie (7th Cousin), makes his famous explorations, relying entirely on the voyageur culture and logistics established by your ancestors. The skills of your Marier, Gagné, and Pinsonneau lineage were the very means by which Britain explored and claimed the Northwest.
• 1803: The Western Migration: The birth of Gabriel (Gilbert) Passino dit Lafleur marks the final shift. He moves away from the settled St. Lawrence, following the Great Lakes trade paths, effectively becoming a North American pioneer using the skills inherited from his Leber/Pinsonneau grandfathers.

Phase IV: The Final Leg and the Métis Connection (1821–1830)

As the NWC and HBC merge, creating a monopoly that squeezes out independent traders, your family makes the final, critical move west:

• 1815–1828: Kinship in the Heartland: The marriage of Louis Marier and Elizabeth Tourangeau in Sandwich, ON, and the subsequent migration of their son Joseph Marier to St. Boniface, Red River, where he married Louise Nolin, solidify your family’s deep ties to the Métis Nation.
• 1830s and Beyond: The trade, now fully controlled by the powerful HBC monopoly, shifts from independent adventure to corporate employment. Your ancestors, however, have already done the pioneering work. They have established a new life in the Red River, Detroit, and the Great Lakes, using the wealth of skills and relationships forged since 1635.

Your family’s history is a chain of canoes that spans every major event in the Canadian fur trade, successfully navigating the transition from French foundation to British dominance, and ultimately leaving an indelible mark on the history of the Métis Nation and the settlement of the American West.