La Prairie family members documented as working for (or directly contracted to) the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC)

 

Direct, named connections are fewer than for the North West Company (NWC) or American Fur Company, largely because many French-Canadian voyageurs from La Prairie lines transitioned via the 1821 NWC–HBC merger rather than signing new HBC contracts from scratch. Here are the individuals explicitly tied to HBC service in the blog and related records:

Lagacé / Meunier / Mignier line

• Charles Lagassé (Lagacé / Mignier dit Lagacé) (c. 1775/1777–c. 1823) — Long-time NWC voyageur, steersman, and Columbia District employee (including service under David Thompson). His NWC contract was transferred to the HBC at the 1821 merger. He continued association with the company into the early post-merger period before apparently becoming a freeman.

• François Rivet (b. 1754, distant cousin through related networks) — After service with the NWC (and earlier with Lewis & Clark and David Thompson), he was later employed by the HBC. He eventually settled as a freeman/U.S. citizen in the French Prairie area of Oregon.

Dupuis line

• Louis Dupuis — 8 March 1821: Signed an engagement with William Wallace Matthews (HBC representative) to go to the Nord-Ouest (Northwest) for a 3-year overwintering term. This is a direct HBC contract dated at the time of the NWC–HBC merger.

Other / related connections

• Jean-Baptiste Marier — Identified in family research as an HBC clerk at Sault Ste. Marie (specific contract details appear in blog posts on the Marier/Lemarier line).

• Early/uncertain: François Dupuis (17th century) — One difficult-to-read notarial record may link him to an engagement with the Compagnie de la Baie d’Hudson (early HBC precursor activity), though the reading is uncertain.

• Family link (not direct employment): Josette (Lagassé) Work (daughter of André Lagassé) married John Work, a prominent HBC Chief Factor in the Columbia District. This brought the Lagacé bloodline into HBC officer circles in the Pacific Northwest.

Notes

• Many other La Prairie-descended NWC voyageurs (from the Boyer, Pinsonneau, Vielle, Lagacé, and related families) almost certainly continued working under the HBC after the 1821 merger, as contracts were routinely transferred and the company absorbed much of the NWC workforce. Specific named post-1821 HBC service beyond the individuals above is not detailed in the available blog summaries.

• The HBC preferred Orkney Islanders and other British recruits for some roles, while French-Canadian voyageurs remained important for canoe brigades, especially in the early decades after the merger.

These are the clearest named La Prairie-linked individuals with documented HBC ties from the family research. Thank you to Grok xAI for your research assistance. -- Drifting Cowboy