In the verdant heart of New France, where the St. Lawrence River's tributaries whispered tales of untamed wilderness and imperial ambition, Jacques Pinsonneau dit Lafleur—sometimes known as Jean-Jacques "Jacques" Pinsonneault dit Lafleur—entered the world on March 13, 1682, in Saint-Ours, Montérégie Region, Quebec. Born to François Pinsonneau dit Lafleur (1646-1731), a battle-hardened veteran of the Carignan-Salières Regiment who arrived in 1665 to defend the colony against Iroquois threats, and Anne Le Ber (1647-1732), a resilient fille du roi who crossed the Atlantic in 1667 to bolster New France's population, Jacques inherited a legacy of fortitude and frontier spirit. His father, from the Diocese of Saintes in Saintonge, France, transitioned from soldier to settler after the regiment's disbandment in 1668, farming land in La Prairie while his mother, one of over 800 King's Daughters sponsored by Louis XIV, brought dowries and determination to build families in the harsh colony.
Jacques grew up in the bustling community of La Prairie-de-la-Madeleine, a hub for voyageurs and traders drawn to the lucrative fur trade that fueled New France's economy. Though no early records explicitly document his exploits as a coureur des bois—those unlicensed "runners of the woods" who ventured deep into Indigenous territories to trade for beaver pelts, evading royal monopolies and risking fines or imprisonment—his family's deep entanglements in the industry strongly suggest he participated in such illicit pursuits. The Pinsonneaus were intertwined with prominent fur-trading clans, including the Le Bers and Bourassas, through marriages and partnerships that spanned generations. His uncle by marriage, René Bourassa dit La Ronde (Jacques's brother-in-law via sister Anne's union), was a notorious coureur des bois who faced fines for illegal trading and later commanded western posts, embodying the daring that likely influenced Jacques.
In 1712, at age 30, Jacques solidified his ties to the fur trade elite by marrying Marie Elisabeth Bourassa (1695-1766) in La Prairie. Daughter of François Bourassa (1659-1708), a legendary voyageur who conquered Hudson Bay in 1686, and Marie Le Ber (1666-1756), from a merchant family that operated key trading posts like the Le Ber-Le Moyne House in Lachine, Elisabeth brought connections to the "fathers of the fur trade." Together, they raised a large family in La Prairie, including sons François (1714-1803), René (1724-1793), Pascal (1729-1802), Joseph (1733-1799), and daughters Marie-Françoise (1717-1776), Marie-Anne (1718-1771), and Marie Amable (1739-1804). Many of their descendants perpetuated the voyageur legacy; for instance, son Joseph signed a 1763 contract as a voyageur with Montreal merchant Michel Laselle, bound for western outposts.
A tantalizing record from Jacques's later years hints at his direct involvement in licensed expeditions. On April 12, 1744, at around age 62, he entered an engagement contract with Joseph Delalamce (likely Joseph de Lalancette, a master surgeon or "Maître Chirurgien") to voyage to the pays d'en Haut—the "upper countries" encompassing the Great Lakes and Illinois Country, a vast interior region critical for French fur trading and alliances with Indigenous nations like the Ojibwe and Potawatomi. This agreement, notarized amid the escalating King George's War (1744-1748), may have involved Jacques as a seasoned guide or trader accompanying the surgeon to remote posts, where medical expertise was vital amid the perils of disease, injury, and conflict. Such late-life ventures were not uncommon for experienced frontiersmen, whose knowledge of routes and Indigenous protocols proved invaluable in sustaining New France's western empire.
Jacques lived through transformative eras, from the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713 that reshaped colonial boundaries to the British conquest looming by mid-century. He passed away on March 19, 1773, in La Prairie, outliving his wife by seven years and leaving a progeny that spanned the shift from French to British rule. His lineage endured through son Joseph, who married Marie Madeleine Duquet (1734-1791) in 1761, fathering Gabriel Pinsonneau (1770-1807), whose descendants included Gabriel (1803-1877) and Lucy Pinsonneau (1836-1917), a 2nd great-grandmother embodying the resilient echo of her ancestor's shadowed trails. Jacques Pinsonneau dit Lafleur stood as a pillar of La Prairie's voyageur heritage—a man whose life bridged military roots, familial alliances, and the elusive pursuits of the fur trade's golden age.
Enhanced Notes:
Jacques Pinsonneau dit Lafleur (1682-1773) (6th great-grandfather)
Sometimes called: Jean Dit Jacques “Jacques” Pinsonneault dit Lafleur
• Given the family connection to Bourassa fur trade family it is likely he was a Coureurs des bois.
This is likely him: 1744, Apr 12, Engagement of Jacques Pinsonneau to Joseph Delalamce & Mc Cherurgien to go to pays d'Haut?
This entry refers to Jacques Pinsonneau, a man involved in a 1744 agreement with Joseph Delalamce, likely a surgeon (Mc Cherurgien, probably 'Maître Chirurgien'), to travel or work in the "pays d'Haut," a term for the upper country or hinterlands (like the Great Lakes/Illinois Country) in New France, indicating his role as a voyager or frontiersman. The specific Pinsonneau cited in this blog post was born in 1682 in Quebec, making him around 62 in 1744, and this record marks his entry into voyages, as noted in the Laprairie Voyageur Ancestors blog.
Who: Jacques Pinsonneau, a voyager/frontiersman from New France.
What: An engagement (contract) was made for him to go to the pays d'Haut.
With Whom: Joseph Delalamce, a surgeon (Maître Chirurgien).
When: April 12, 1744.
Where: Pays d'Haut (the Upper Country/interior of New France).
Earlier file: Pinsonneau Family
https://laprairie-voyageur-canoes.blogspot.com/2017/03/ripples-chapter-three-pinsonneau-family.html
Thanks to Gemini AI for the updates and enhancements.
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