Ripples, Chapter Four, Amiot Family

Amiot (Amyot) Family

Philippe Amiot (Amyot) dit Villeneuve (1602-1639) (9th great-grandfather)

son of Georges Elie Amyot (1570-1620) and Louise Chichon (1580-1610)

Birth 1602 • Soissons, Aisne, Picardie, France

Death 26 AUG 1639 • Québec, Quebec, Canada

Marriage 1625 to Anne Convent (1605-1675)

• 1636, Coureur de bois near Trois-Rivières.

Philippe arrived in Canada in the summer of 1635.  He was accompanied by his wife, Anne Convent, and two sons, Mathieu and Jean. In 1636, another son, Charles was born at Québec. 

There is some evidence to suggest Philippe was a Coureur-de-Bois. Three years after his arrival in New France, Philippe Amiot died 26 Sep 1639, in Québec. However, through his sons, Mathieu and Charles, he established a long line of descendants which today number in the thousands.

Anne Convent (1605-1675), the daughter of Guillaume Convent & Antoinette De Longral, was born about 1604 in L'Estrée, France. Her second marriage on 26 September 1639 was to Jacques Maheu in Québec. Her third husband was Etienne Blanchon Larose. She died on Christmas Day and was buried on 26 December 1675 in Québec.

Children of Philippe and Anne:

Jean Amiot (Amyot) (1630-1648) (9th great-uncle)

son of Philippe Amiot (Amyot) dit Villeneuve (1602-1639) and Anne Convent (1605-1675)

Birth ABT 1630 • France

Death 1648 • Quebec, Canada

unmarried

• 1640s, Interpreter and indentured employee of the Jesuits he spent several years in the Huron country.

Jean Amiot Was an Interpreter for the Jesuits Among the Hurons

Jean Amiot (Amyot) was an interpreter and indentured employee of the Jesuits among the Hurons. Jean Amiot spent several years in the Huron country, and seems to have lived at Trois-Rivières from 1645 on.

The Indians called him “Antaïok.” In 1647 he outran and captured an Iroquois who had taken part in the martyrdom of Father Isaac Jogues. He was a remarkable athlete; in a tournament at Quebec he beat all the young Indians who tried to race against him, either on foot or on snowshoes.

On 23 May 1648, when he was about to get married, Jean Amiot was drowned off Trois-Rivières with a companion, François Marguerie. His body was carried down by the current and recovered on 10 June opposite the Saint-Joseph de Sillery mission, where the burial took place.

Mathieu Amiot (Amyot) Sieur de Villeneuve (1628-1688) (8th great-grandfather)

son of Philippe Amiot (Amyot) dit Villeneuve (1602-1639) and Anne Convent (1605-1675)

Birth 23 MAY 1628 • Estrees, Soissons, Ile-de-France, France

Death 18 DEC 1688 • Québec, Quebec, Canada

Marriage 1650 to Marie Catherine Miville (1632-1702)

• 1640s, Interpreter and fur trader for the Jesuits in the Huron country.

Mathieu Amiot Was also an Interpreter for the Jesuits

Mathieu Amiot (Amyot) was for many years an interpreter for the Jesuits; he worked in their house at Trois-Rivières and also in the Huron country.

Charles Amiot (Amyot) (1636-1669) (9th great-uncle)

son of Philippe Amiot (Amyot) dit Villeneuve (1602-1639) and Anne Convent (1605-1675)

Birth 26 AUG 1636 • Quebec, Canada

Death 10 DEC 1669 • Cap-Saint-Ignace, Quebec, Canada

Marriage 1660 to Genevieve De Chavigny (1645-1724)

• 1650, fur-trader and merchant; educated at the Jesuit college and accompanied Father Bressani as a servant to the Huron country.

Charles Amiot Accompanied Father Bressani as a Servant to the Huron country

Charles Amiot (Amyot) was a fur-trader and merchant; was educated at the Jesuit college and when he was barely 14 years old he accompanied Father Bressani as a servant on a trip to the Huron country.

He was also a merchant interested in eel fishing and in the fur trade. It was his travels among the Papinachois Indians that gave him something of a reputation during his lifetime. On those occasions he accompanied Father Henri Nouvel a Jesuit who landed at Quebec in the summer of 1662.

They left Quebec in November 1663, and presumably went to the Île Verte and the Île aux Basques, then to the Île Saint-Barnabé, finally spending the winter with a band of Algonquins Indians in the neighborhood of Lake Matapédia or Lake Mitis.

Amiot returned to the Île aux Basques in March 1664 and went down to Quebec, where he arrived on 5 April, whilst Father Nouvel remained on the island with his flock.

On 21 April 1664 Father Nouvel crossed to the north shore. He waited near Tadoussac for Father Druillettes, who arrived only on 3 May. The latter decided to go and serve the Indians of the Saguenay. For their part, Father Nouvel and Charles Amiot, the sole Frenchmen to accompany Druillettes, left Tadoussac the same day (3 May) and penetrated overland, with a band of Papinachois Indians, as far as the river Peritibistokou (des Outardes), which they reached on 14 May.

The travelers camped there until 2 June, went upstream for a whole day, and made a portage that brought them to the river Manikouaganistikou (Manicouagan). They got to Lake Saint-Barnabé (Manicouagan) on 9 June. A band of Papinachois Indians who had never met a white man was waiting for them there. The missionary preached the gospel and the traders bartered furs. Father Nouvel named the spot the Saint-Barnabé mission. The expedition returned to Quebec on 30 June 1664.

"French River Rapids," 1845 by Paul Kane

In November Father Nouvel again left Quebec for Tadoussac. This time Amiot apparently stayed at Quebec. Father Nouvel spent the winter of 1664-65 in the Lake St. John region, and returned in the spring. At the end of May 1665 he went back to the Saint-Barnabé mission together with two Frenchmen whom a Relation identifies as Amiot and Couture. Father Godbout specifies that “for this last voyage among the nations of the north, he [Amiot] had taken Guillaume Couture, Noël Jérémie, and Sébastien Prouvereau, on 28 May 1665.” They had arranged to meet the Papinachois Indians at the mouth of the Manicouagan. But they had to go up the river without a guide, for the Indians did not appear at the rendezvous. They returned to Quebec on 26 July.

Father Nouvel returned to the north shore regularly until 1670, but the Relations make no further mention of Amiot’s being with him. Perhaps the latter preferred to stay at Quebec with his family and attend to his general store. Amiot died on 10 Dec. 1669.

Father Nouvel had a much longer career. In the succeeding years he exercised his ministry between Michilimackinac and Sault Ste. Marie.

Daniel Joseph Amiot (Amyot) Dit Villeneuve (1665-1725) (8th great-uncle)

son of Mathieu Amiot (Amyot) Sieur de Villeneuve (1628-1688) and Marie Catherine Miville 

Birth 4 OCT 1665 • Québec, Quebec, Canada

Death 1725 • Michillimackinac, Michigan, United States

Marriage 1719 • Mackinac Island, Mackinac, Michigan, United States to Domithilde Oukabe Nepveuouikabe LaFourche (1690-1782)

(1632-1702)

• 1686, took part in Henri de Tonti’s search for La Salle and descended the Mississippi River

• 1690, François Garconnes de Boisrondel/t, acting for François Daupin sieur de LaForest, hired Daniel Joseph Amiot, Joseph Bénard, Joseph Fafard, Louis Fafard frères, and Jean Lat for a voyage to the Illinois [Antoine  Adhémar.

• MANY MORE THRU 1710.

Daniel Joseph Amiot took part in Henri de Tonti’s search for La Salle and descended the Mississippi River

13 February 1686, Henri de Tonti and the following men left Fort Saint Louis (present day Illinois) and descended the Mississippi to search for La Salle: Daniel Joseph Amiot, André Babeu, Laurent (Couture) Baret, Louis Baron, Vallier Beaufils, François Bisaillon, Pierre Bisaillon, Michel Boyer, Jacques Caillas, Joseph Charbonneau, Jean Couture, René Cuillerier, Charles Delaunay, Joseph Dubos, Martin Faller, Jacques Filiatrault, Jean Filiatrault, Pierre Lafontaine, Jean Lorrain/Laurin, Robert Marchand, Jean Michel, Jean Baptiste Nolan, Vital Oriot, Louis Paquet/Pasquier, Mathieu Perrin, Jean Rouleau, Mathurin Rousseau, Jean Roy, four Shawnee and five Illinois.

De Tonti took possession of the true mouth of the Mississippi/Colbert on 13 April 1686, but found no sign of La Salle even after he had dispatched canoes to the east and west about 30 leagues.

After the canoes returned because they had no fresh water, de Tonti proposed that they go back to Montréal via canoe by following the coast to Manhattan, but his men did not agree with this option.

As de Tonti and his men travelled north on the Mississippi on their return voyage, Tonti moved the King’s arms that La Salle had planted on his 1682 voyage five leagues farther north. He made peace with the Quinipissa (a tribe that joined with the Mougoulascha tribe) and left a letter for La Salle with the chief.

What happened to La Salle?

René-Robert Cavelier, sieur de La Salle, born Nov. 22, 1643, in Rouen, France was an explorer, who led an expedition down the Illinois and Mississippi rivers and claimed all the watershed from the Mississippi and its tributaries for Louis XIV of France. He named the region “Louisiana.”

Years later, on March 19, 1687, near Brazos River (now in Texas), in a unsuccessful expedition searching the mouth of the Mississippi, he was murdered by his men.

Daniel Joseph Amiot's Additional Voyageur Trips

5 May, 7 May and 8 May 1690, François Garconnes de Boisrondel/t, acting for François Daupin sieur de LaForest, hired Daniel Joseph Amiot, Joseph Bénard, Joseph Fafard, Louis Fafard frères, and Jean Lat for a voyage to the Illinois [Antoine  Adhémar, RAPQ1930, 1 p.  198 - four  contracts]. 

Additional information regarding the 1690 contract: Amiot would depart as soon as possible in a canoe supplied by Boisrondel/t and return the following spring; he would help bring back a canoe of beaver. Amiot’s salary was  500 livres.

He  was  permitted  to  bring  with  him  two  packets  of  beaver  and  provisions  for  his subsistence.  He would be permitted to trade the merchandise at any place other than Fort St. Louis or the country  of  the  Illinois.

In  the  event  that  it  was  not  convenient  for  him  to  depart  in  1691,  Boisrondel/t would pay him an  additional 500 livres to remain another year. He would hunt for Laforest during this time [ILHC, 2 Vol. 23, pp. 207 - 210].

23  April  1694,  Louis  Rouer  de  Villeray,  acting  for  the  ancient  company  of Jean  Oudiette  and  Pierre Bénac in the name of Charles Catignon, hired Charles Bissot, Jean Baptiste Monmellian, and Jean Pascal Prévost/Provost, voyageurs,  to  go  to  Michilimackinac  to  hunt  for  the  furs  that Nicolas  Perrot  had  sent sieur Amiot  (probably  Daniel  Joseph)  to  bring  to  the  Jesuit  warehouse  in  the  name  of  Jacques  Charles Patu/Pattu, manager of the ancient company of Oudiette [Chambalon and Roy, 3 Vol. 18, pp. 69 - 70].

21 May 1694, Louis Rouer de Villeray, acting for the ancient company of Jean Oudiette and Pierre Benac, in  the  name  of  Charles  Catignon,  reached  an  agreement  with  Antoine  Martin dit Montpellier,  of  St-Bernard, Charles Cadieux, of Beauport; Charles Neveu/Nepveu and François Dumesny, of Québec; to go to Michilimackinac to hunt for the furs that Nicolas Perrot had sent sieur Amiot (probably Daniel Joseph) to  bring  to  the  Jesuit  warehouse  in  the  name  of  Jacques  Charles  Patu/Pattu,  manager  of  the  ancient company of Oudiette [Chambalon and Roy, Vol. 18, p. 72].

11 April 1710, Jean Soumande, a Montréal merchant, consented to an obligation from Daniel Amiot de  Villeneuve,  a voyageur,  for  837 livres and  two sols for  good  merchandise  for  his  voyage  to Michilimackinac.    Daniel  Amiot  Villeneuve  signed  the  consent  [Michel  LePallieur,  FHL  microfilm #1556892, image #02638].

15  October  1710,  Jean  Soumande,  a  Montréal  merchant,  represented  by  his  wife Damoiselle Anne Chaspoux  consented  to  an  obligation  from Daniel  Amiot dit Villeneuve,  a voyageur who  was  ready  to depart  for  Fort  Pontchartrain,  for  1484 livres, four sols, and  six deniers for  good  merchandise  and equipment  for  his  voyage.    Villeneuve  signed the  obligation  [Michel  LePallieur,  FHL  microfilm #1556892, image #02860].

"The Trapper's Bride" by Alfred Jacob Miller

Daniel Amiot marries the sister of the Ottawa Chief Nissowaquet 

Daniel Joseph Amiot married Domitilde Oukabé (aka Marie Kapiouapnokoué), an Ottawa, 2 September 1709 in Montréal. The  following  people  witnessed  their  marriage: Pierre  Biron,  Joseph  Leduc,  Jean Quenville [Quenneville],  and Jean  Jacquery  Lagenois [Zacharie ditL’Agenois][ancestry.com,  Drouin Collection, M, Montréal, Basilique Notre-Dame, 1705 - 1712, Image 223]. Domitilde was the sister of the Ottawa  chief  Nissowaquet [DCB].

Much of the above information came the The French-Canadian Heritage Society of Michigan, "Michilimackinac Families" - Compiled by Diane Wolford Sheppard, 2016.

I am extremely grateful to them for their marvelous website and historical research.

Jean Baptiste Amiot (Amyot) (1693-1763) (1st cousin 8x removed)

son of Pierre Amiot (Amyot) dit Villeneuve (1653-1714) and Louise Renard Dodier (1651-1724)

Birth 24 DEC 1693 • Neuville, Quebec, Canada

Death AFT 1763 • Green Bay, Wisconsin

Marriage ABT 1715 to Marie Anne Kitoulagué (1700-1758) (Sauvagesse)

• BEF 1724 Jean Baptiste Amiot came to Michilimackinac, where he was employed as a blacksmith by the Jesuit priest.

• 1739, May 4, Engagement de Jean Baptiste Amiot à Louis Gatineau et Compagnie pour aller dans les Pays d'en Haut (Upper Country). Notary Adhémar.

Jean Baptiste Amiot was Michilimackinac's Blacksmith, c. 1724

Sometime before 1724 Jean Baptiste Amiot came to Michilimackinac, where he was employed as a blacksmith by the Jesuit priest.

About 1737 he had a serious disagreement with the priest then in charge, probably Pierre Du Jaunay, who consequently fired him, took all his tools, and hired another blacksmith.

A broken gun could mean disaster in the west, and Pierre-Joseph Céloron de Blainville, the commandant, realizing that two smiths were needed for the rapidly growing community and the neighboring Ottawas and Ojibwas, advanced Amiot the funds to continue working.

The priest, citing the monopoly of blacksmithing granted to the mission by the king, insisted that Amiot pay him half his profits. Thus Amiot worked under the watchful eye of the priest in a shop adjoining the rectory.

Although he was training his oldest son Augustin in his craft, Amiot was barely able to eke out an existence on the profits he was allowed to keep.

By 1742, with a family of eight children, he was reduced to begging at the lodges of the local Ottawas, and he was seriously considering moving to the Illinois country.

The Ottawas complained of Amiot’s plight to the governor, Charles de Beauharnois, and as a result of their intercession Amiot was permitted to retain all his profits.

Iron tools included fire-steels and crooked knives for canoe building

Iron tools included fire-steels and crooked knives for canoe building

Amiot did a considerable amount of work at the fort during the late 1740s, fixing guns, making axes, tomahawks, and picks, and doing other iron work. Apparently he practiced his trade at Michilimackinac during the busy summer trading season and occasionally spent the winter with hunting Indian bands.

In 1758 his wife, Marie-Anne Sauvagesse Kitoulagué, was buried in the cemetery at Michilimackinac. He was still residing at Michilimackinac when the English assumed control in 1761.

Inspired by chief Pontiac, the local Ojibwas attacked the fort and massacred most of the garrison on 2 June 1763. The commandant, George Etherington, who was ransomed by the Ottawas, rewarded them by having Amiot repair their guns.

Amiot apparently moved to La Baye (Green Bay) sometime after 1763. There he quarrelled with an Indian named Ishquaketa, who had left an axe to be repaired. When Amiot seized the Indian with a pair of hot tongs, the Indian knocked him senseless with the axe.

While Amiot was recovering, another Indian paid him a visit and stabbed him to death as he lay in bed. The exact date of Amiot’s death is unknown for the interment records of La Baye (Green Bay) have not survived.

During his lifetime Amiot’s skills as a blacksmith had contributed substantially to the local economy and the necessary maintenance of relations with the Indians.

Source above: Dictionary of Canadian Biography http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/amiot_jean_baptiste_1717_69_3E.html

More from: Technological Adaptation on the Frontier: An Examination of Blacksmithing at Fort Michilimackinac, 1715-1781, by Amy S. Roache-Fedchenko, Syracuse University

An inventory of Amiot’s work from the time he worked for the French military includes the repair or furnishing of screws, sight beads, sights, cocks, ramrod guides, face plates, a bolt, springs, frizzens and tempering, sears, tumblers, a shoulder strap, and the assembly of fusils; all gun parts or gun related work (Amiot 1747 a, 1747b). 

Other, non-gun related items listed within these work inventories includes picks, axes, tomahawks, daggers, swords, and darts (arrow points) (Amiot 1747 a, 1747b).

These objects indicate that the blacksmith may have been completing work for military personnel and for the purposes of trade relations between the French military and Native American groups.

According to Amiot’s 1747 inventory he was repairing traps and trap parts (Amiot 1747). It is not known for whom Amiot made the repairs, although it is likely that traps were being repaired for traders and Native Americans.

Hoes were documented to have been repaired at the site and show up on French trader’s inventory lists as pioches (LeFeuure 1746; Amiot 1774).

Strike-a-lites, or firesteels, as referred to in historic documents, was another type of object that was documented to have been produced by the blacksmith at Fort Michilimackinac (Amiot 1774).

Additional Works Cited:

Amiot, Jean-Baptiste -- 1747a Inventory of Goods Furnished by Order of Louis De La Corne, 13 June. National Archives of Canada, Series C11A, Vol. 117 (MG 1/3, Vol. 141), microfilm C - 2408, Ottawa.

Amiot, Jean-Baptiste -- 1747b Inventory of Goods Furnished by Order of M. De Noyelle, 13 August. National Archives of Canada, Series C11A, Vol. 117, (MG 1/3, 140), microfilm C - 2408, Ottawa.

Armour, David -- 1976 Gunsmithing at Michilimackinac: Jean-Baptiste Amiot, a Blacksmith at Michilimackinac. In, Firearms on the Frontier ed. Hamilton, pp.25 - 31. Mackinac Island, MI: Mackinac Island State Park Commission.

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