CHAPTER THREE
Voyageur Families of La Prairie
Barrette (Baret) Family
Guillaume Barette (Baret) (1633-1717) (8th great-grandfather)
son of Guillaume Barette (1600-1638) and Thiphaine Anne Carin (1605-1638)
Birth 3 APR 1633 • Belizeville En Caux, Eure, Haute-Normandie, France
Death 21 JUL 1717 • La Prairie, Quebec, Canada
Marriage 1663 to Louise Charrier (1643-1706)
• Arrived in Quebec, Canada 1660, with his younger brother Jean. They were among the first three thousand colonists in New France.
• Louise Charrier was one of the King's Daughters (filles du roy) and was the first to marry in Trois-Rivières. Governor Boucher himself was the official witness at her wedding.
Laurent Barette (1666-1725) (8th great-uncle)
son of Guillaume Barette (1633-1717) and Louise Charrier (1643-1706)
Birth 1666 • Trois Rivieres, St Maurice, Quebec, Canada
Death 1725 • Cap De La Madeleine, Champlain, Quebec, Canada
Marriage 1689 to Marie Madeline Rochereau dit Rocheleau (1667-1736)
• 1686, Voyageur to Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico with Henri De Tonty
• 1687, Engagement of Dumay and Laurent Barette to La Forest, to go to Fort St. Louis in the Country of the Illinois
20 year-old Laurent Barette Goes to Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico with Henri de Tonty
Henri de Tonty, voyageur, trading post commander, officer in the colonial regular troops and lieutenant to René-Robert Cavelier de La Salle.
In November word reached Tonty that La Salle was in the Gulf of Mexico, so on 16 Feb 1686, he set out with 25 Frenchmen and 4 Indians to join him. La Salle was supposed to be setting up a colony at the Mississippi’s mouth, but when Tonty reached there -- sometime between the 8th and 13th of April -- he learned nothing of La Salle except that some Indians had seen him set sail and proceed southward.
Tonty dispatched canoes to the east and west, to see if they could discover anything. Having found no sign of him after each had sailed about thirty leagues and being obliged to turn back for want of fresh water, Tonty decided to return upriver. He proposed to his men, that they should follow the coast as far as Menade (Manhattan), and then back to Montreal. Part of his men were opposed, so he decided to return the way they came.
16 February 1686, Henri Tonty and the following men left Fort Saint Louis 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. Tonty 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, Tonty 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 Tonty and his men travelled north on the Mississippi on their return voyage, Tonty 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. Ten of his men asked for a settlement on the Arkansas River on land that La Salle had granted to Tonty. Tonty granted the request to some of them, including Jean Couture.
SOURCE: French-Canadian Exploration, Missionary Work, and Fur Trading in Hudson Bay, the Great Lakes, and Mississippi Valley During the 17th Century, Part 8 - 1686 to December 1694.
1687, Laurent returned to the Illinois Country (Pays des Illinois)...
Sometimes referred to as Upper Louisiana (French: la Haute-Louisiane; Spanish: Alta Luisiana) -- was a vast region of New France in what is now the Midwestern United States. While these names generally referred to the entire Upper Mississippi River watershed, French colonial settlement was concentrated along the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers in what is now the U.S. states of Illinois and Missouri, with outposts in Indiana.
Explored in 1673 from Green Bay to the Arkansas River by the Canadien expedition of Louis Joliet and Jacques Marquette, the area was claimed by France. It was settled primarily from the Pays d'en Haut (Upper Country) in the context of the fur trade. The French name, Pays des Illinois, means "Land of the Illinois [plural]" and is a reference to the Illinois Confederation, a group of related Algonquian native peoples.
Aug 19, 1687, engagements of Dumay and Laurent Barette to la Forest, to go to Fort St. Louis in the Country of the Illinois…
August 19, 1687
Agreement between Monsieur de la Forest and Dumay, accounting both for himself and Pichart. Before Antoine Adhemar, recorder, notary, and scrivener of the Isle of Montreal, residing at Villemarie, and the witnesses named at the end, were present in their own persons, the Sieur Francois de la Forest, captain in the detachment of the marine, on the one part, and Francois Dumay, acting both for himself and for Louis Pichart, voyageurs, at present in this city, on the other part, which parties of their own free will and voluntarily have in good faith covenanted and agreed as follows : that is to say, the said Dumay, for himself and for the party above named, obligates himself to take for the said Sieur de la Forest, one thousand weight of merchandise as far as Fort St. Louis in the country of the Illinois on the stipulation that the said Sieur de la Forest shall furnish them a canoe and provisions such as are customarily furnished to voyageurs as far as the said Fort St. Louis ; and in case there is no water in the river of the Illinois to pass with their canoe, the said Sieur de la Forest promises to have them aided in carrying or dragging the said merchandise as far as the said Fort St. Louis; and this is in further consideration of the sum of 600 livres, that is to say 300 livres each, which the said Sieur de la Forest promises and obliges himself to give and pay to them at the said Fort St. Louis in beaver whenever they shall have arrived there with the said merchandise.
This payment of the said 600 livres in beaver the said Dumay and Pichart may load in the canoe that they are to bring back, without prejudice to the said parties from another agreement made with Monsieur de Tonti for their return, which shall retain its force and effect ; and further the said Sieur de la Forest permits the said Dumay and Pichart to carry to the said country of the Illinois up to the value of the sum of 100 livres for the two of them on the stipulation that they furnish the said Sieur de la Forest before their departure a statement of the merchandise and other things that they shall carry and embark in the said canoe; these goods they shall trade as seems good to them and they may carry in their said canoe the peltries that they obtain in the country of the Illinois to the amount or partial amount of the said merchandise; and in default of a statement by the said Dumay and Pichart of what they carry to the said country they shall not be permitted to carry anything there at all.
For thus, etc., promising, etc., obliging, etc., and of the said notary, August 19, 1687, in the morning, in the presence of Sieur Jean Ouenneville, usher of this jurisdiction, and Laurent Barette, of Cap de la Madeleine, witnesses, undersigned with the said Sieur de la Forest and the notary. The said Dumay has declared that he does not know how to sign when interrogated according to the ordinance.
signed:
Laurent Barette
J. Quenneville
F. de la Forest
Adhemar. notary
I, the undersigned, give permission to the said Barette to carry to the said country of the Illinois besides the 100 livres granted him by the aforesaid account, the sum of fifty livres to have provisions or to trade. Done on this last of July, 1688.
F. DE la Forest
Laurent Barrette's two younger brothers were also Voyageurs:
Jacques Barette (1668-1691) (8th great-uncle)
son of Guillaume Barette (1633-1717) and Louise Charrier (1643-1706)
Birth 1668 • Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Canada
Death 1691 • Champlain, Québec, Canada
never married
• 1680s, reported to have been a voyageur and fur trader in Illinois.
Guillaume Barrette dit Courville (1678-745) (7th great-grandfather)
son of Guillaume Barette (1633-1717) and Louise Charrier (1643-1706)
Birth 27 MAY 1678 • Cap-de-la-Madeleine, Quebec, Canada
Death 7 JAN 1745 • La Prairie (Notre-Dame-de-La Prairie-de-la-Madeleine), Québec
Marriage 1706 to Jeanne Gagné (1683-1719)
• 1708, appointed the first Notary Royal de la Seignerie de La Prairie.
Did Laurent's tales of adventure inspire future generations of Barrette voyageurs…
In truth the life of a voyageur was filled with backbreaking toil -- in the sometimes almost inhuman conditions of the frontier. The journey from Lachine to the head of Lake Superior alone took seven to eight weeks, so it must have taken twice that long just to reach the "County of the Illinois"
Danger was at every turn for the voyageur, not just because of exposure to outdoor living, but also because of the hard work.
Canoes were often damaged on rocks in white water. Swift flowing waters with dangerous rapids could cause canoes to overturn. Drowning was common, along with broken limbs, compressed spines, hernias, and rheumatism.
Canoes had to be portaged (carried) around waterfalls and impassable rapids. Some portages were measured in miles, along bushy trails, up creviced cliffs and through bogs -- often in knee-deep mud, where men slithered over slimy boulders and stumbled on tree roots.
Voyageurs encountered impassable portages, rough weather, winds, gales, and freezing cold.
Ambushes from aboriginal peoples sometimes controlled live and death.
Wild animals could also be hazardous. There's an old saying, "voyageurs never met a small bear, tame moose, or a wolf that wasn't snarling with blood lust." When they floated down the rivers on the Great Plains they had to deal with herds of thousands of buffalo.
Swarms of black flies and mosquitoes, were often kept away from men sleeping with a smudge fire, which in turn caused respiratory, sinus and eye problems. Voyageurs sometimes applied an Indian remedy -- ointment made from bear grease and skunk urine -- to rid themselves of the swarms that followed them.
Yet the beautiful scenery, fascinating customs and manners of native peoples, and the opportunity to make a lucrative income from fur trading must have enticed young men to leave their farming jobs at home and to seek their fortunes in the woods.
Still more Barrette family voyageurs...
Pierre Barette dit Courville (1708-1755) (7th great-uncle)
son of Guillaume Barrette (1678-1745) and Jeanne Gagné (1683-1719)
Birth 29 JAN 1708 • Cap-de-la-Madeleine, Quebec, Canada
Death MAY 1755 • St Constant, Lapraire, Quebec
Marriage 1731 to Marie Caille (1710-1762)
• 1734, Jun 2, Engagement de Pierre Barette, de la prairie de la Madeleine, à Michel Gamelin, faisant tant pour lui que pour Pierre Gamelin, son frère, pour faire le voyage à Michilimakinac, aider à y monter un canot de marchandises et le redescendre en la présente année chargé de pelleteries. TRANSLATION: Commitment of Pierre Barette, from the Prairie de la Madeleine, to Michel Gamelin, making so much for himself and Pierre Gamelin, his brother, to make the trip to Michilimakinac, to help to mount a canoe of merchandise and to go down in the present year Loaded with pelts.
• 1744, Jun 1, Engagement of Pierre Barette to Pierre Leduc to go to Michilimakinac. Notary Porlier.
• 1745, Jun 5, Permit of the governor of Beauharnois to Sieur Rivard to leave Montreal with a canoe equipped with seven men to go to the station of Michilimackinac. Defense of Sieur Rivard to trade elsewhere than at the post of Michilimackinac and its dependencies. Role of the engaged of the said canoe: Joseph Jolier (Joliet?), Bourgeois, associate; Pierre Barette, Joseph Rhéaume, François Cardinal, Augustin Baret (Barrette?), Pierre Desnoyers, of La Prairie; Jacques Belestre, of Maskinongé.
Louis Courville Barrette (Baret) (1717-1753) (6th great-grandfather)
son of Guillaume Barrette (1678-1745) and Jeanne Gagné (1683-1719)
Birth 24 FEB 1717 • Napierville, Quebec, Canada
Death 30 JAN 1753 • St Constant, Lapriaire, Quebec, Canada
Marriage 1741 to Marie Josephe Poupart (1725-1799)
• father and brother of voyageurs.
Augustin Barrette (1719-1771) (7th great-uncle)
son of Guillaume Barrette (1678-1745) and Jeanne Gagné (1683-1719)
Birth 21 JAN 1719 • Cap-de-la-Madeleine, Quebec, Canada
Death 1771 • La Prairie, Quebec, Canada
Marriage 1745 to Marie Angelique Caillé dit Biscornet (1718-1795)
• 1751, Engagement of Augustin Barette to the Lemoine Despins brothers to Michilimackinac Notary Adhémar.
• 1745, Jun 5, Permit of the governor of Beauharnois to Sieur Rivard to leave Montreal with a canoe equipped with seven men to go to the station of Michillimakinac. Defense to Sieur Rivard to trade outside the post of Michilimackinac and his dependencies.
• 1751, Jun 14, Engagement of Augustin Barette to the Lemoine Despins brothers to go to Michilimackinac. Notary Adhémar. Role of the engaged of the said canoe: Joseph Jolier (Joliet?), Bourgeois, associate, Pierre Barette, Joseph Rhéaume, François Cardinal, Augustin Baret (Barrette? , Pierre Desnoyers of La Prairie, and Jacques Belestre of Maskinongé.
Pierre Barette dit Courville (1748-1794) (5th great-grandfather)
son of Louis Courville Barrette (Baret) (1717-1753) and Marie Josephe Poupart (1725-1799)
Birth 2 FEB 1748 • La Prairie, Quebec, Canada
Death 31 JAN 1794 • La Prairie, Québec
Marriage 1772 to Marie Anne Dupuis (Dupuy) (1753-1807)
• 1778, May 18, engagement of Pierre Barette to William G Jean Kay to go to Fort Michilimackinac. Notary P. Lalanne,
Louis Pierre Barette dit Courville (1775-1831) (5th great-uncle)
son of Pierre Barette dit Courville (1748-1794) and Marie Anne Dupuis (Dupuy) (1753-1807)
Birth 12 AUG 1775 • La Prairie de la Madeline, Quebec, Canada
Death 1831 • Montréal (Basilique Notre-Dame), Québec
Marriage 1802 to Margaret Catherine Cardinal (1785-1850)
• 1795, Aug 21, Engagement of Louis Barette dit Courville to Jacques & François Laselle to go to Detroit.
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