Our Fournier’s Ancestors – Short stories of all Fournier who came in New-France

According to our research, 40 persons named Fournier crossed the Atlantic between 1650 and 1850. Most of these Fournier’s married after they arrived in New France. Seventeen of these Fournier were soldiers of which 9 married and the others died as bachelors. Of the ancestors who were married, three had no children; eight had descendants for two to four generations named Fournier; twelve left a line that can be traced up to the present day.

1. Guillaume Fournier appears to be the first of our ancestors who came to New France. He was the son of Gilles Fournier and Noëlle Gagnon from Coulmer in Normandy. His arrival date is approximate since we have found no documents proving his arrival before his marriage to Françoise Hébert on November 20, 1651 in Quebec. Guillaume Fournier and Françoise Hébert produced the most numerous line of descendants in America named Fournier.
2. Jacques Fournier de la Ville was the second Fournier to arrive in this country. A native of Saint-Jean-en-Grève parish in Paris, he was the son of Michel Fournier, a king’s adviser, and of Michelle Croyer. On May 14, 1657 he married Marguerite Crevier in Trois-Rivières. This marriage was annulled a few years later. No child was born of this marriage. On October 24, 1663 Jacques Fournier married Hélène Dufiguier in Quebec and they had many children. However, we have found no descendants named Fournier after the third generation. (Additional information on Fichier origine)
3. Nicolas Fournier arrived in New France on May 25, 1664 aboard the ship “Noir de Hollande”. A native of Saint-Étienne des Marans, he was the son of (Pierre)Hugues Fournier and Jeanne Huguette. Before he was married, he worked as a servant. On September 30, 1670 he married Marie Hubert, a girl of the King, in Quebec. Nicolas Fournier and Marie Hubert left the second most important line of descendants throughout Canada and the United States. (Additional information on Fichier origine)
4. Pierre Fournier dit des Forges arrived in 1664 on the same ship, the “Noir de Hollande”. A native of Poitou, Pierre was a miller working for Jean Bourdon. He seems to have remained a bachelor. We have found no trace of a marriage.
5. Robert Fournier, a native of Saint-Ouen de Lampar parish in Normandy, signed a contract as a hired hand (“contrat d’engagement”) on June 15, 1661 in Dieppe. In the 1681 census of Lachine, he is 62 years old. He seems to have remained a bachelor. Brother of the following Jean Fournier.
6. Jean Fournier, also a native of Saint-Ouen de Lampar, was Robert’s brother. He was married to Marie Crispin in 1667, place unknown. Therefore, we do not know if he was married in France or after he arrived in Canada. We have found no children for this couple. In the 1681 census of Lachine, Jean was 54 years old and his wife was 42. He owned 2 guns, 14 horned animals and 50 “arpents” of land.
7. François Fournier dit LaRoche arrived in the country around 1663. He was living in Quebec during the census of 1666. Later on, he lived in Montreal. He worked as a stonemason.
8. Gabriel Fournier dit Laverdure was a soldier in the “Compagnie Carignan-Salières”. In 1667, he signed a contract for an obligation at the notary Bénigne Basset in Montreal.
9. François Fournier dit Le Poignon was problably born around 1685. His place of origin is unknown. He was nicknamed François dit “Le Poignon” because his left hand was fingerless. He worked at the Hôtel-Dieu in Quebec. In 1712, he drowned in Baie Saint-Paul along with Jean Bois.
10. Claude Fournier dit L’Esprit is the fourth Fournier to have descendants in New France. He was the son of Étienne Fournier and Michelle Gendray of Pouilly-en-Auxois in Bourgogne. He worked as a cooper. He married Jeanne Renault, daughter of Jacques Renault and Marie Charrier on November 11, 1681 in Château-Richer. His descendants span five generations.
11. Antoine Fournier dit Préfontaine married Marie Ronceray on February 11, 1688 and they lived in the Longueuil region. A native of Beaumont-les-Nonains, diocese of Beauvais, Ile-de-France, he was the son of Denis Fournier-Préfontaine and Catherine Desallières. On July 16, 1696, he married Marie-Madeleine Ozannes in Notre-Dame church of Montreal. The descendants of Antoine Fournier and Marie Ronceray took the name Fournier and sometimes Préfontaine starting in 1800. From 1925 most of their descendants, with a few exceptions, are known as Préfontaine. (Additional information on Fichier origine)
12. Jean Fournier signed a marriage contract before the notary, Gilles Rageot, on April 30, 1690 with Anne Massard, daughter of Nicolas Massard and Anne Bellesoeur. He was a native of Saint-Sauveur de La Rochelle in Aunis. We have found no descendants for this couple. (Additional information on Fichier origine)
13. Jules Le Fournier Du Vivier, son of Jacques Le Fournier and Marguerite Carpentier, was lieutenant of an infantry company. On August 16, 1692, he married Madeleine Thérèse Gadbois in Montreal. His descendants, mostly named DuVivier, span two or three generations.
14. Pierre Fournier de Belleval was the son Jacques Fournier de Belval and Ursule Gaucher, of Sainte-Catherine d’Orléans, in Orléanais. On July 30, 1693 Pierre Fournier married Marie Ancellin in Quebec. Their descendants lived in the regions of Richelieu and Sorel. Pierre Fournier’s and Marie Ancellin’s descendants can still be found today but, with a few exceptions, they adopted the name Belval around 1850.
15. Guillaume Fournier dit Dufresne was a native of Saint-Jean, diocese of Limoges in France. He was a soldier in the “Compagnie de Saint-Martin”. He died on July 20, 1706 at the Hôtel-Dieu of Quebec.
16. René Fournier, born around 1685, was a native of Mans. The names of this parents are unknown. He probably arrived at Quebec around 1700 at the age of 15. He was a gardener at Quebec, a verger in Ancienne-Lorette and a servant for Antoine Langlois. He died at L’Hôtel-Dieu of Quebec on April 16 1748.
17. Liévain (Lyvrain) Fournier. A few years later, this Fournier came to New France and married Marie-Suzanne Fauteux in Pointe-aux-Trembles of Neuville on April 6, 1728. He was the son of Antoine Fournier and Anne Gourdon of Maurage, near Mons en Hainault in Belgium. His descendants lived around Sorel and Portneuf. At the beginning, they adopted the family name Fournier, then Liévain-Fournier, then Clément and finally Guévin or Guérin. This family line still has descendants living today.
18. Antoine Fournier, a salt-smuggler, was sent to Canada by a King’s order on February 24, 1733. His place of origin is unknown.
19. Pierre Fournier, another salt-smuggler, left the prison in Châlans and on March 12, 1742, he was sent to Canada for the rest of his life.
20. Pierre Fournier dit Vendôme. In 1739, another Fournier established himself in Canada. he was the son of Guillaume Fournier and Madeleine Poirier from Fontaine-Raoul, in Loir and Cher in France. On February 5, 1743 in Beaumont, he married Françoise Couture, daughter of Guillaume Couture and Marie-Anne Adam. Pierre was a miller. He lived a few years in Quebec before moving to Saint-Thomas-de-Montmagny in 1747. Pierre Fournier and Françoise Couture produced many descendants to this day. (Additional information on Fichier origine)
21. Pierre Fournier dit Brisefer. During that decade, another soldier, Corporal de Lanaudière, son of Pierre Fournier and Marguerite Métayer arrived in Canada. He was a native of Notre-Dame-de-Niort parish, diocese of Poitier in Poitou. In Quebec, on September 29, 1749 Pierre married Marie-Louise Liénard/Durbois, daughter of Sébatien Liénard and Catherine Bonhomme. Their descesdants span two generations.
22. Jean Fournier dit Léveillé was a native of Tours and a soldier in the “Compagnie de Lusignan”. He died on April 14, 1751 at the Hôtel-Dieu of Quebec. He was 23 years old.
23. Pierre Fournier dit Polard was a young soldier in the Camp de Chasaille. He died in 1756 in Montreal at the age of 27.
24. François Fournier dit Latulipe was a native of Nasseau. He was a soldier in the Béarn battalion. On October 26, 1756 he died at Notre-Dame of Montreal.
25. Pierre Fournier, a cobbler, was a native of Cahors in Quercy. On March 6, 1755 at the age of 24, he was hired for a period of 3 years to work in Quebec. He arrived on the ship “Deux-Frères”. (List of migrants leaving from Bordeaux)
26. Louis-Antoine Fournier dit Champagne, a native on Bordeaux, was probably born around 1676. His arrival date in Quebec is unknown. On July 17, 1760 he was buried at l’Hôpital Général of Montreal.
27. Éméry Amiens/Fournier dit Larose. He was the next one to arrive in Quebec. He was the son of Jean-Baptiste Amiens and Pauline Fournier. He then adopted his mother’s maiden name, Fournier. The fourth generation took the name Fournier dit Larose. On February 14, 1757 Éméry married Marguerite Guénet. Since the 1800’s, their descendants adopted the name Fournier as much as the name Larose. (Additional information on Fichier origine)
28. Pierre Fournier dit Lapierre arrived from Brittany. A soldier, he was the son of Julien Fournier and Périne Aubin from Saint-Pierre de Rétiers, diocese of Rennes in Brittany. His first marriage, in Lachine on May 18, 1757 was to Catherine Audon-Rochefort, daughter of Bernard Audon-Rochefort and Marie-Josephte Desforges. His second marriage was in Montreal on April 25, 1763 to Suzanne Campagnac, daughter of Louis Campagnac and Marie-Catherine Bernier. We have found only two daughters from this two marriages. (Additional information on Fichier origine)
29. Jean Fournier dit Labonté was a native of Bressenègre in Rouargue, sodier in the Béarn regiment, “Compagne Mazerac”. He died at L’Hôpital Général of Quebec on september 30, 1759.
30. Maurice Fournier. Several Fournier, soldiers and civilians, established themselves in New France after the Seven Year War. This Maurice, gunner-bomber, was the son of Joseph-Benoît Fournier and Marie Molar of Saint-Laurent-de-la-Roche in Franche-Comté. He married Marie-Josephte Forget/LeNormand, daughter of Jean-Baptiste Forget/LeNormand and Marie-Thérèse Minville on February 18 1760 in Varennes. He then lived in Lévis. We found his descendants for two generations.
31. Joseph Fournier dit Ladouceur, a native of Lieffrans in Franche-Comté, married Françoise Carlos, daughter of Claude Carlos and Françoise Dauphin on January 26, 1761 in Cap-Saint-Ignace and lived in that parish. Joseph Fournier and Françoise Carlos did not leave many descendants but their line still exists today. Joseph was the son of Jean-Claude Fournier and Jeanne Collet. (Additional information on Fichier origine)
32. Augustin Fournier dit La Grenade, soldier in the Queen’s Regiment, was the son of Nicolas Fournier and Claudette Urbain of Rouvre-la-Chétine in Lorraine. After the war, he married Thérèse Demers, daughter of Henri Demers and Thérèse Poirier on November 24, 1760 in Chambly. Even though their line is small, it still exists. (Additional information on Fichier origine)
33. Pierre Fournier dit Saint-Pierre, former soldier, died in 1770 at Notre-Dame-de Montreal at the age of 46.
34. Claude Fournier dit L’Esprit was the last soldier of this war. A native of Languedoc, he was the son of Claude Fournier and Marie Vitrine of Pont Saint-Esprit. He married Marie-Anne Besset on June 30, 1772 in Chambly. Claude Fournier and Marie-Anne Besset left a large line of descendants in the Outaouais region and elsewhere.
35. Étienne Fournier and his wife, Denise Debron are natives of Lyon in France where Étienne was a merchant. They arrived in Quebec around 1785 with at least two young children : Jean-Baptiste and Michel. We have found baptism certificates dated 1786 in Notre-Dame of Montreal and 1789 in L’Assomption where he established himself as a merchant. The line of Étienne Fournier and Denise Debron, continued by three sons, is small but still alive. Étienne was the son Pierre Fournier and Antoinette Serroux. (Additional information on Fichier origine)
36. Pierre Fournier was the son of Louis Fournier and Marie-Anne Monin of Saint-Benoît du Retour d’Orléans parish in Orléanais. He married Angélique Carpentier on June 24, 1816 in Christ Church of Sorel. We have found no descendants.
37. Charles-Vincent Fournier, born around 1771, came from Orléans’ parish in France. He came to Quebec as a missionary priest. For many years, he was the parish priest of Saint-Antoine de Baie du Febvre where he died in 1839. Charles-Vincent was the son of Pierre-Laurent Fournier and Marie-Anne Péguy. (Additional information on Fichier origine)
38. Charles Fournier dit Lajeunesse was already in Montreal in 1830 with his wife, Émérence Baillargeon. His place of origin is yet unknown. Two children were born in Montreal and we then loose trace of this couple.
39. Jean-Baptiste Fournier dit Lajeunesse, Charles’ brother, also lived in Montreal in 1830 with his wife, Marguerite Delorme and at least two children. We have also lost trace of this couple after 1835.
40. Laurent-Louis Fournier was born in 1818 in France. He remained some time in Montreal, then in the Outaouais region, where he worked in the lumber industry. He married around 1845 Mathilde Hutton, a Scottish. The couple settled first in Pembrooke. The family later moved in Bruce County, Ontario, with other Scottish, including the Clendennings families. They remained some time, working in the lumber industry. Then, Laurent and his family emigrated in British Colombia finally came to settle permanently in Carman, Manitoba. Laurent-Louis died on February 12, 1891, at Carman.
41. Louis Fournier and Odile Gourd married about 1870. They seem to be settling in Saint-Jérôme in the Laurentians region.

Research: Armelle Fournier†, genealogist ©