b.c.1637
m. 2 Oct. 1667 Chateau Richer, MARIE ANCELIN (bpt. 7 May 1651 Notre Dame de Cogne, La Rochelle, Charente-Maritime, Poitou, bur. 18 Apr. 1729 St. Louis de Kamouraska)
d. between 30 May 1702 and 8 May 1703 Kamouraska

Notre Dame church- Fontenay-le-Comte

Pierre Michaud dit Michel was born in 1638 in the Bas-Poitou region of the country of France, and was baptized in the church of Notre-Dame, in the town of Fontenay-le-Comte under the name of Pierre Michel, in honor of his father's grandfather, Pierre Train.

In 1655 his father apprentices Pierre to Jacques Audouit "who promises to teach him his craft and skills as a hat decorator and all the ensuings...". His apprenticeship lasts only a year.

Life in France at this time was difficult, the Thirty Years War was raging, the religious wars between the Catholics and the Hugenots was also in full swing, there was a crop failure as well as epidemics going through the community. Even though his father was a merchant, they could not escape the horrible economic/political/religious situation at the time with people starving everywhere and the economy being menopolized by the monarchy.

So to escape being a haberdasher and all the hardships of the times Pierre decides to leave for New France. During this period of time 30 people from Fontenay emigrated to Canada. On 27 Mar. 1656, "Pierre Micheau, 18 ans, de Fontenay-le-Comte", along with twenty others, went to notary Paul Moreau in La Rochelle, and was hired by Jacques Pepin, in the service of Sieur de Courville, for a term of three years for 36 livres per year. This salary was that of an unskilled laborer as at the time a baker made 60 livres per year, a carpenter 150. Pierre received an advance of 38 livres, 5 sols so he could buy the items necessary for his journey and stay in the colony. In May 1656 Pierre embarked at Nantes on the La Fortune, a three masted ship of 100 tons owned by M. Auboyneau with Edouard Raymond, captain. Also on board was a contingent of Filles de Roi to provide wives for the men in the colony. The La Fortune arrived in Quebec on 14 July 1656. Pierre and the others probably worked at clearing the land of the Sieur de Courville at Beaupr�. The living conditions were horrible and it was so cold in the houses in the winter that the settlers breath would freeze on the covers of their beds at night.

What Pierre did after his contract ran out in 1659 is not known, however, in 1661 he was working for the parish of Sainte-Anne-du-Petit-Cap for which he received 6 livres for four days work and had to donate 40 sols to the parish. The custom was for folks working for a parish to make a donation from their wages. Pierre undoubtedly was performing manual labor in the contruction of the new church of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupr�. This church has been associated with numerous miracles since the time the original chapel was built in 1658. In 1665 Mother Marie de l'Incarnation noted: "Seven leagues distant from Qu�bec is a village called "le Petit Cap" (the Little Cape), where there is a church of Saint Anne..... It is here that paralytics walk once more, that the blind recover their sight, and the sick are returned to health, whatever their affliction may be...."

Sainte Anne de Beaupr�- 1901

On 27 Apr. 1662, at the notary Guillaume Audouart's, he signed a contract where he agreed to pay Jean Rabouin five days work at a rate of 30 sols per day plus the 13 livres, 10 sols which he owed him. Pierre had probably borrowed the money from Rabouin in order to live a bit more comfortably (ie. survive!) until he became established.

In Aug. 1663 he, along with Michel Marquiseau, purchased three arpents of frontage on the river and 126 in depth in the village of Beaupr� east of the Sainte-Anne River. On 6 Sept. 1665 he sold this land to Francis Deniaud for 150 livres. Pierre is not listed in the census reports for 1666 or '67 so he probably was working away from town, perhaps as a farm hand or a "coureur de bois", a lumberjack. At the time of his marriage contract in 1667 notary Aubert called him "Pierre Michel, habitant de Sainte-Anne du cote de Petit-Cap et Seigneurie de Beaupr�..." So he must have still been living in the area.

Pierre Michaud received a grant from Bishop Laval, the first bishop of Qu�bec, on June 2 or 22, 1667, before Notary Paul Vachon, of 3 arpents of land at St. Jean parish on l'Isle d'Orleans situated between Robert Boulay & Louis Bibet (very close to the land of Rene Ancelin).

L'Auberge Le P'tit Bonheur, Saint-Jean- built 1647

On Oct. 2, 1667, a Sunday, Pierre Michel presents himself to notary Aubert a "resident of Ste Anne du Petit Cap, coast of Beaupr�, son & inheritor of Antoine Michel & of Marie Grain (or Train) of the city of Fontenay, LeCompte, in Poitou, diocese of malezair, Vend�e" to have a marriage contract made up with "Marie ancelin, daughter of Regne Ancelin, living on the coast of Ange Gardien, & of Claire Rousselot". Oddly this contract was never signed by either party, or by the notary Aubert (not an unusual occurance for Aubert). So, on this Sunday in the presence of witnesses Pierre Louis Cabassier, Pierre Gendreau dit lapoussiere, Quentin dit Nicolas Lafontaine, Me Tr�paphy Roman, and the witness for Marie were Rene Ancelin, her father, Marie, her stepmother, Abraham Fiset and his wife Denise Savard. Pierre and Marie committed to one another, promising to respect their wedding vows. In signing this contract Rene Ancelin and his wife Marie, promised to give to any future husbands, part of their estate. Rene Ancelin didn't force himself to do anything immediately. For their part, Pierre and Marie agreed to mutually share all of their possessions and inheritances. So the marriage was a union without dowry. The marriage contract stipulated that Pierre would live with his father-in-law along with his new wife, Marie Ancellin for a minimum of one year from that date. Pierre, although he possessed the land granted by Bishop Laval, probably hadn't had time to build a house to accommodate his new wife. By living with his in-laws he gained more time to clear his own land and build his house. So, on that same day, 2 Oct. 1667, the couple were probably married in Ch�teau-Richer, Quebec, celebrated by the missionary priest, Francois Fillon in the presence of Rene Ancelin, Jacques Goulet and Pierre Gendreau. The marriage was not recorded, again, a not an unusual occurance at the time.

On 31 May 1671 a complaint is brought before Th�andre-Louis Chartier de Lotbini�re against Mathurin Thibodeau dit Lalime. It follows a trial in which we learn that Mathurin had enterered into an agreement with Rene Ancelin, Pierre's father-in-law, in which he would tend Mathurin's farm while he was away on a trip (a Voyageur perhaps?). Mathurin states that all went well until Rene prevailed on Pierre to provide room and board for Marie Roberts, Mathurin's wife, which he did. Marie brought along to Pierre's cabin her husband's dog and gun both of which she forgot and left there when she returned home only to learn later that it was Pierre's intention to keep them in payment for her room and board. Pierre lodged the complaint stating that when Mathurin came to retrieve his property on May 10th or 11th, Pierre's wife Marie was alone in the cabin and was not about to give up the dog or the gun and a scuffle ensued in which Marie was injured by Mathurin and she took to her bed for days and was attended to by a surgeon. A satisfactory solution was reached and Mathurin got his gun and dog back and had to pay litigation costs (12 bushels of wheat). It's interesting to note that years later Pierre's son married Mathurin's daughter!

It's about this time that Pierre and Marie left l'Ile d'Orleans and moved to l'Ile-aux-Oies, an island in the St. Lawrence off Cap St. Ignace. On 9 Sept. 1673 "Pierre Michel living on the ile-aux-Oyes" sold the house and land on Ile d'Orleans to Jean Morier dit Veron of Quebec for 90 livres.

Pierre was probably employed for a three year contract to work for the Sieur de Granville. On 17 July 1674 Pierre is granted by M. Pierre Becard de Granville, Seigneur des Iles-aux-Oies-et-aux-Grues, 6 arpents of frontage on the St. Lawrence on Ile-aux-Grues to the other side of the island and bounded by Pierre Terrien and Jean Soucy dit Lavigne. The document was notarized by Romain Becquet. Ile-aux-Grues is the only island in this area that is now permanently inhabited and today has a population of 250.

Ile-aux-Grues

On 22 Sept. 1680 Pierre acknowledges a debt to M. Thieray LeVallon, alderman of Quebec. The following year on 2 Nov. he hires out his oldest son, Pierre, to Jean-Baptiste Couillard, Sieur de Lespinay. About this time Pierre and Marie may have moved to the mainland to the St. Michel de Bellechasse area. The census for 1681 for L'Ile-aux-Grues lists Pierre Michel, age 44, living on his farm with six arpents under cultivation, 10 animals, and a hunting rifle, along with his wife Marie Anseline, age 27, and their children, Pierre, 10, Jean 8, Marie 6, Joseph 4, and Pierre 2. It is also about this time that Pierre decided to change his name from Michel to Michaud.

On 18 May 1683 a grant was made from J.B. Francois Deschamps, Sieur de Bouteillerie to his servant Pierre Michel of 6 arpents of frontage on Riviere Ouelle, however, this grant was cancelled as Pierre did not take possession of the property. He didn't take possession as he was living on L'Islet-St-Jean. Pierre was present at the meeting, 16 Dec. 1685, of the settlers to discuss the construction of the first church at L'Islet. The settlers felt their church was too far away and they petitioned the missionaries for permission to build one at L'Islet. Baptismal and burial records for the family are listed at Cap St. Ignace and Riviere Ouelle. At the time Cap. St. Ignace and L'Islet were missions of Riviere Ouelle and so the records are often recorded there.

On 30 June 1695 Pierre received a grant from Sieur Charles Aubert de la Chesnaye to land in St. Louis de Kamouraska, 12 arpents of frontage by 30 arpents deep on the south west of the creek and 9 arpents on the north east to another small creek. This was the largest grant given in Kamouraska. That year Pierre and his son Pierre, Mathurin Dub�, Mathurin Ouellet, Pierre Fournier and Rene Plourde moved to Kamouraska and settled their grants. On 19 July 1695 Pierre's daughter, Marie-Anne, married Pierre Boucher Galeran, master mason in Rivi�re-Ouelle. On 19 Oct. of that year Pierre Michaud received a grant from Genevi�ve Couillard, widow of the late M. Tartar to land in the manor of Islet-St-Jean which Pierre sold to Pierre Lessard two years later. Pierre and his family had evidently been living on this property since 1692, prior to their move to Kamouraska.

Pierre fell ill in the summer of 1700 and on 16 Oct. 1701, suffering from pain due to a canker of the mouth ("chancre de pipe"), he and Marie signed an agreement with their children concerning the division of his property after their deaths. Pierre Michaud died in 1702, between the months of May, when he was present at the marriage of his son Joseph, and Sept. 15 when Marie is said to be widowed in a record by Chamballon concerning the sale of Rene Ancelin's farm on l'Ile d'Orleans.

On 18 Oct. 1704 Marie received a grant of an additional 8 arpents of frontage to add to the family's 12 arpents of cleared land. On 20 Apr. 1724 the family inventoried her possessions and the following week she gave all her assets to her son Joseph in return for him taking care of her for the remainder of her life. Marie Ancelin died 5 years later and was buried 18 April 1729 at Kamouraska. It's also noted that Marie Ancelin had attended classes at the convent of the Urseline sisters of Quebec for some time. Pierre and Marie's nine children within four generations had produced 458 Michaud heirs and records indicate that the Michaud family made up about half of the population of Kamouraska by 1750!

Ref:

Memoires- Francoise Michaud Dufresne in "Soci�t� G�n�alogique Canadien Francais"- Vol. XXXV, p. 163
Pierre Michaud dit Michel and Marie Ancelin web page at: http://www.acadian.org/michaud.html; see also Scott Michaud's web page at: http://members.tripod.com/~Scott_Michaud/Michaud-history.html
Our French Canadian Ancestors- Thomas J. Laforest- Vol. II, p. 163
Dictionnaire g�n�alogique des familles canadiennes: depuis la fondation de la colonie jusqu'� nos jours- Cyprien Tanguay, E. Sen�cal, 1886- Vol. I, p. 429; II, p. 35