ELEVENTH GENERATION

1958. Guillaume Fournier ⁽¹⁾ was born in 1619 in Coulmer, Normandie, France. He died on 24 Oct 1699 in St Thomas, La Pte a la Calle, Quebec, Canada. He was buried on 25 Oct 1699 in St Thomas, La Pte a la Calle, Quebec, Canada. Notes for Guillaume Fournier: Source Renee Jette, "Dictionnaire Genealogique des Familes du Quebec" 1983, Univ of Montreal, Page 437 & 562. He was the Co-Signeur of the Parish of St. Charles, buried October 25, 1699 under the church of St. Thomas. He was from Coulmer, or Argentan, Normandy (Orne), France. He was said to be 80 at his death. He said he was 44 in 1667, and in Charlesbourg or Notre-Dame-des-Anges, and answered that he was 60 in 1681 and in Montmagny, QP. He received a land concession of 3 Nov 1672 at Pointe-au-Foin in Montmagny, QP, which he sold to Jacques Bernier on 15 October 1684.

Guillaume Fournier, first ancestor, came from Normandy. The marriage register, in Notre-Dame-de-Quebec, indicates that he was the son of Gilles Fournier and Noëlle Gageult (or possibly NoëlleGagnon, according with Drouin and Tanguay?), from the small parish of Coulmer, in the department of Orne, district of Argentan. In the Nationales Archives of Quebec, the marriage register indicates that he came from the parish of Coutant, bishopric of Normandy. Since we have not extensively researched the date of his arrival in our country, this question remains unanswered. The first trace of this ancestor is that of his marriage, in Notre-Dame Church in Quebec, on November 20th 1651, to Françoise Hébert, daughter of Guillaume Hébert and Hélène Desportes and grand-daughter of Louis Hébert, first Canadian farmer and the first, in Canada, to whom the King of France conceded lands or "fiefs" for his extraordinary work as a pioneer.

Guillaume Fournier had a combative and demanding temper and launched several proceedings against Mrs. Guillemette Hébert, daughter of Louis Hébert and wife of nobleman Guillaume Couillard. Guillemette Hébert was guardian of the three children of Guillaume Hébert, her brother, married to Hélène Desportes, and who was killed by the Iroquois around 1639. Then, Guillaume Fournier established himself on part of the land of the Sault-au-Matelot fief, conceded by Guillemette Hébert, and extending from Upper-town to Charlesbourg. On the 1667 Census, he was declared as living in Charlesbourg and aged 44 years old.

After several disputes, among them one with lady Charlotte de Poitiers, widow of Joseph Hébert, heir and brother of Françoise Hébert, to whom he had to concede a good part of his land of the Sault-au-Matelot property (Guillaume Fournier is a loser in most trials in which he is involved), Guillaume later received from the Intendant Talon " en fief et seigneurie" a grant of thirty arpents, two leagues deep, on the south shore of the St.-Lawrence River, and called "Fief St-Joseph" or "Fief Fournier" (Montmagny).

Twelve of the fourteen children of Guillaume and Françoise Hébert were born in Quebec. The last two were born in St-Thomas-de-la-Pointe-à-la-Caille (Montmagny). Guillaume becomes also "coseigneur" of the St-Charles parish, seigniory originally conceded to Louis Hébert.

Guillaume Fournier was one of the founders and pioneers of the St-Thomas-de-la-Pointe-à-la-Caille parish, in Montmagny. The first baptism is that of a child of Guillaume Fournier and Françoise Hébert, and it is also the case of the first marriage. Guillaume concedes part of his land for the construction of the second chapel of Montmagny. This generous gift gave him the privilege of having his own bench in the church, and this privilege is transmitted to one of his descendants up to our days. The house of Guillaume Fournier was the seat of various religious ceremonies, until the construction of the first chapel.

Guillaume Fournier died on October 24th 1699 in St-Thomas de Montmagny, at the age of eighty. His wife, Françoise Hébert, was elected "midwife" by the assembly of the women of this parish, on November 21st 1703, in St-Thomas. Françoise Hébert died in 1716, in Montmagny, at the age of eighty-six.

Guillaume Fournier and Françoise Hébert left the most important descendants bearing the name Fournier, in all North America, thanks to six sons and five daughters who married. Charles married to Elisabeth Bouchard on July 13th 1699, and Jean who married Marie Le Roy around 1687 will have the greatest number of descendants.

References:

Genealogical Dictionary of the Province of Quebec families, by Jette. Drouin Genealogical Dictionary. Registers of the parishes of Notre-Dame-de-Québec and of St-Thomas-de-Montmagny

Report of the Archivist.

Memoirs of a Genealogical Society.

More About Guillaume Fournier:
Property: March 11, 1671/72, Received a concession of the fief of La Pointe-au-Foin (Montmagny).
Property Sale: October 15, 1684, Guillaume sold the property at Montmagny to Jacques Bernier

He was married to Francoise Hebert on 20 Nov 1651 in Cape Tourmente, Ste Anne Parish, Québec, Canada. Witness(es): Marriage: November 20, 1651, Jean Bourdon, Louis Sedilot, Robert Caron. Priest: Fr. Joseph Poncet

1959. Francoise Hebert ⁽¹⁾ was born on 23 Jan 1638 in Quebec, Quebec, Canada. She was baptized on 23 Jan 1638 in Quebec, Quebec, Canada. She died on 16 Mar 1716 in St Thomas, Montmagny, Quebec, Canada. She was buried on 16 Mar 1716 in St Thomas, Montmagny, Quebec, Canada. She was a in Mid-Wife. Occupation: Sage Femme
Notes for Francoise Hebert: Source Renee Jette, "Dictionnaire Genealogique des familles du Quebec" 1983, University of Montreal, Page 437 & 562. She was buried at St-Thomas-de Montmagny, PQ, Canada. She was a midwife. Representative for the assembly of females at the parish of the many suffrages on 12 Nov 1703.

Witness(es): Baptism: January 23, 1638, Guillaume Hebou, Guillemete Hebert and her husband Guillaume Couillard. Priest: Jean Dequen Children were:

i. Gilles Fournier⁽¹⁾ was born on 26 Nov 1653 in Hôtel-Dieu, Québec, Canada. He was baptized on 26 Nov 1653 in Hôtel-Dieu, Québec, Canada. He died on 31 Dec 1653 in Hôtel-Dieu, Québec, Canada. He was buried on 31 Dec 1653 in Notre Dame, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
ii. Marie Fournier⁽¹⁾ was born on 5 May 1655 in St Pierre, Ile Orleans, Quebec, Canada. She was baptized on 5 May 1655 in St Pierre, Ile Orleans, Quebec, Canada. She died on 13 Nov 1717 in St Pierre, Ile Orleans, Quebec, Canada.⁽⁸⁶⁾ Date of death may have been July 12, 1723
iii. Agathe Fournier⁽¹⁾ was born on 9 Apr 1657 in Hôtel-Dieu, Québec, Canada. She was baptized on 10 Apr 1657 in Hôtel-Dieu, Québec, Canada. She died on 22 Jan 1735 in Levis Lauzon, Quebec, Canada.
917 iv. Jacquette Fournier.
v. Joseph Fournier⁽¹⁾ was born on 12 Jul 1661 in Hôtel-Dieu, Québec, Canada. He was baptized on 13 Jul 1661 in Hôtel-Dieu, Québec, Canada. He died on 10 Dec 1741 in St Thomas, La Pte a La Caille, Quebec, Canada.
vi. Marie Madeleine Fournier⁽¹⁾ was baptized on 17 Jul 1663 in Notre Dame, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. She was born about 17 Jul 1663 in Hôtel-Dieu, Québec, Canada. She died on 8 Oct 1664 in Hôtel-Dieu, Québec, Canada. She was buried on 8 Oct 1664 in Notre Dame, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
950 vii. Jean Fournier.
viii. Simon Fournier⁽¹⁾ was born on 27 Apr 1667 in Hôtel-Dieu, Québec, Canada. He was baptized on 28 Apr 1667 in Hôtel-Dieu, Québec, Canada. He died in St Thomas, La Pte a La Caille, Quebec, Canada.
ix. Pierre Fournier⁽¹⁾ was born on 23 Apr 1669 in Hôtel-Dieu, Québec, Canada. He was baptized on 24 Apr 1669 in St Jean, Ile d'Orleans, Quebec, Canada. He died on 22 Aug 1750 in Montmagny, Quebec, Canada.
979 x. Francoise Fournier.
xi. Louis Fournier⁽¹⁾ was born after 1672 in Cape Tourmente, Ste Anne Parish, Québec, Canada. He died on 17 Jun 1721 in St Thomas, Ile Orleans, Montmagny, Quebec, Canada.
xii. Louis Fournier⁽¹⁾ was born on 20 Apr 1673 in Riviere-du-Sud, Quebec, Canada. He was baptized on 24 Apr 1673 in Riviere-du-Sud, Quebec, Canada. He died on 3 Nov 1674 in Riviere-du-Sud, Quebec, Canada. He was buried on 3 Nov 1674 in Notre Dame, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
xiii. Madeleine Fournier⁽¹⁾ was born on 3 Aug 1675 in St Thomas, La Pte a La Caille, Quebec, Canada. She was baptized on 9 Aug 1675 in Notre Dame, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
xiv. Charles Fournier⁽¹⁾ was born on 20 Jun 1677 in Hôtel-Dieu, Québec, Canada. He was baptized on 13 Jul 1677 in Notre Dame, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. He died on 9 Sep 1739 in Montmagny, Ile d'Orleans, Quebec, Canada.
xv. Infant-Female Fournier⁽¹⁾ was born in Feb 1679.