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Jean Ouimet also known as Jean Houymet 

par Denis Ouimet

VO20180227

VR20180405

Introduction

 

    Jean Ouimet, also known as Jean Houymet, was born circa 1634(1) is thought to be from Évigny (2) located in the archdiocese of Reims in the Champagne province (Ardennes), France and died November 18, 1687 aged 53 years old in the Sainte-Famille parish of the Isle of Orléans. With his wife Renée Gagnon, they are the ancestors of all Ouimet and Ouimette descendants and some Bastien families of North America.

 

    The following text recounts the present day knowledge about this pioneer. Over time, sources of information and extensive research have made it possible to specify certain details. Thus, traditional genealogical sources are sometimes erroneous but are nevertheless the basis of the information presented below.

 

1. His arrival in New France

2. His place of origin: from Vrigny to Vigny to Évigny!

3. The reasons of his departure from France

4. The journey of his life

5. His first homestead

6. His marriage

7. An illegal purchase

8. Settling down

9. The descendants of Jean Ouimet and Renée Gagnon

10. The end of his adventure

11. The house situated on the ancestral concession at Sainte-Famille, Isle of Orléans

12. The 350th anniversary in the spring of 2009

13. Conclusion

14. Sources and bibliography

 

1. His arrival in New France

 

    On Friday, March 14, 1659, the ship named "The Sacrifice of Abraham" leaves the port of Dieppe to stop at La Rochelle. From there, the crew and passengers awaited the favorable winds, and on Easter Sunday, April 13, 1659, they set sail for America with Bishop Francois Montmorency de Laval, who became the first bishop of Québec. Among the other passengers, Jean Ouimet, aged 25 years old. Thirty-four days later, a fast crossing for the time, the ship stopped at Percé on Friday May 16, 1659. The bishop then confirmed "130 French settlers and native persons". Jean Ouimet certainly took advantage of the opportunity to stretch his legs. On Monday, June 16th of that same year, at six o'clock in the evening, the ship anchored at Quebec, as indicated by the Jesuit Relations (3). It is at this point that Jean Ouimet "descends from the boat to the sound of bells and the sound of cannons that resonate and detonate in honor of the bishop".

 

    There is however no official document that can certify the date of arrival of Jean Ouimet in New France. The first trace of Jean Ouimet recorded in a notarial deed, dated Saturday, November 8, 1659 in Château-Richer, is a land purchase contract in front of notary Claude Aubert. It is Mr. Roland-J. Auger, then a genealogist emeritus at the National Archives in Québec (now BAnQ), who in 1965 transmitted the above information to Father Germain Ouimet, who held the presidency of the family association known as "Les Descendants of Jean Ouimet Inc." during many years.

 

    The following is a summary of the knowledge acquired about the origin of Jean Ouimet as well as the chronology of certain events that punctuated his life since his arrival in New France until the day he left for a better world.

 

    For a human being, knowing one's origins and true roots means knowing one's identity, increasing one's self-esteem, but also affirming one's great pride in bringing the surname that unites him to a great family among whom many people have illustrated themselves throughout history. Reading this document will enable you to go back in time and familiarize yourself with the life and times of the ancestor of the Ouimet, Ouimette families... and some Bastien families.

 

2. His place of origin: from Vrigny to Vigny to Évigny!

 

    Clarifying the origin of Jean Ouimet is a bit like "the quest for the Holy Grail"! Since the summer of 1989, research has been carried out by several people, with no convincing results, with the aim of finding or clarifying the exact origin of Jean Ouimet. Alleged birth dates and published on several websites are not supported by handwritten or archival sources in France.

 

    The starting point, supported by a handwritten source, is the marriage contract of Jean Ouimet and Renée Gagnon, dated October 3, 1660 at Château-Richer. The marriage contract of "Jean houymet" and "Renée Gasgnon", written by the notary Claude Aubert (4) indicates that the father and mother of Jean resided in the parish of Vigny (sic), archbishopric of Reims. Note that only the marriage contract is available at the National Archives of Quebec (located at the Casault Building, Laval University campus in Québec City) and the religious act of marriage cannot be found.

 

It should be noted that "Nicollas houymet" and "Poucette Nicayse" are the parents of Jean. For genealogists in Canada, two important sources indicate the origin of Jean Ouimet: the Dictionnaire National des Canadiens Français (Drouin Institute) indicates that Jean is originally from Vrigny (5), the Dictionnaire généalogique des familles du Québec (René Jetté in collaboration with PRDH : Programme de recherche en démographie historique) specifies that Jean is originally from Vrigny, located in the viscinity and archbishopric of Reims. Jean-Claude Trottier's paleographic analysis of the marriage contract of Jean Ouimet and Renée Gagnon in the fall of 2014 suggests that it is evidently Évigny (6). Reims has never been the county town (chef-lieu) or the capital of the province of Champagne, this role being held by Troyes then Châlons. On the other hand, Reims was the most important city of the former province of Champagne.

Map of the old provinces of France (7)

 

    Vigny and Vrigny are two different places, why? We believe that the genealogists of the time did not find Vigny or a similar place name on the maps of France and they chose Vrigny which was located near Reims.

 

    In the spring of 1994, Jean-Paul Denise, then president of the Genealogical Center of the Marne, carried out research to clarify the place of origin of our ancestor. Finding no documents for the commune of Vrigny to the departmental archives indicating the surnames Houymet and Nicayse, he deduced that the origin had to be Virginy (8). Moreover, he pointed out that there was a certain concentration of Nicayse families over there and that the surname Wuillemet (or Willemet) seemed to be common at that time. On the other hand, no document indicating Jean, Nicollas or Poucette!

 

    Today, on the American continent, there are mainly Ouimet and Ouimette families; in 1659 and 1660, notary Aubert wrote Houymet on his notarial deeds and in 1994 Jean-Paul Denise discovered the mark or the signature of the ancestor Jean Ouimet, and more precisely the "W" or The "Wi" at the bottom of the marriage contract (see below). It was now necessary to think that the surname of our ancestor could be Wilmet, Wuillemet ... or something like that. This corroborated the analysis entitled "Etymology of the surname Ouimet" carried out by Denis Ouimet in 1991 (9). Céline Ouimet-Larivière (2004) (10) concluded that the letter "w" rarely appeared in the proper names of France in the seventeenth century and that it was peculiar to the Germanic and northern European languages.

The presumed mark or signature of Jean Ouimet

 

    In the fall of 2001, Jean-Claude Launois, a resident of La Varenne St-Hilaire (suburb of Paris) found five excerpts from notarial documents. Between 1541 and 1553, Denis Willemet and Jehan Willemet of the Monthois region entered into agreements relating to farm leases and the sale of land (12). The other extract, dated 1556, involving Pierre Willemet, deals with the sale of part of a house (13). These notarial documents precede the birth of Jean Ouimet, our ancestor, from 78 to 93 years respectively. Is there a relationship between these individuals and the ancestor Jean Ouimet? That remains to be proved. Certainly, the Willemet surname is present in this region of Champagne around Reims.

 

    At the end of autumn 2007, Fr. Paul Boussemart of Besançon, France, began research on the exact origin of Jean Ouimet (14). He evaluates the possibility that the ancestor Jean Ouimet is native of Vrizy, where today live families Willemet, Wuillemet and Nicaise (15). He eventually found Vigny, a small commune that existed until 1640 but which was embraced or annexed by Rethel. It is plausible to believe that the parish registers of this period were destroyed by the Spanish invasions in the middle of the seventeenth century. On the other hand, the documentation of six notarial studies for the region of this commune appears to be available. His research, in March 2008, enabled him to trace six extremely difficult to read acts where the surnames Wilmet and Vuilmet are clearly legible. Again, is there a kinship or family relation?

                                                                                 

    A few years ago, Céline Ouimet-Larivière, Francine Ouimet-Goetz and Annette Ouimet-Assad, members of the Association "Les Descendants de Jean Ouimet Inc." tried in vain to trace tracks of Wimet families on French soil.

 

    On October 3, 1660, when notary Claude Aubert wrote the marriage contract of Jean Ouimet and Renée Gagnon, he wrote the place of origin according to what he heard from the mouth of Jean who was surely expressing himself in patois (dialect) of the Ardennes region; «je suis originaire d’Évigny». The notary believed that Jean indicated «je suis originaire de Vigny». According to Denis Ouimet (16), the elision of the vowel of the preposition «de» would be the basis of this ambiguity. Let us not forget that notary Aubert noted the surname « Houymet » which later evolved to Ouimet, Ouimette (as well as thirty-two other spellings!). See his mark above. In addition, the surname «Houymet» cannot be found in France! On the other hand, surnames like Wilmet, Wilmette, Wimet, Wuilmet and Wuillemet are most common at various locations in Belgium and France (17). Other genealogical works and articles stipulate that these numerous variations would be derived from the surname Guillaume (18).

 

    Évigny, commune of the department of the Ardennes, is located 5 km southwest of Charleville-Mézières and is part of the archdiocese of Reims which formerly was part of the former French province of Champagne. So everything seems to be in agreement.

 

    In light of the above information, it appears that conventional genealogical sources (Drouin and Jetté) falsely indicate that the ancestor of all Ouimet/te would be originally from Vrigny. It is for this reason that the hypothesis about the commune of Évigny seems to indicate the region of origin of our ancestor.

 

    Research is long and arduous. The documentation, which is often difficult to read, is not always available because of the numerous armed conflicts that took place in this region during the Spanish invasion, the Thirty Years War, the First World War and the Second World War. There is always hope that one day the exact origin of Jean Ouimet will be found. The next step in this research would be to find passenger roles at the maritime archives of Dieppe and/or La Rochelle in addition to searching for notarized contemporary contracts.


 

3. The reasons for his departure from France

 

              Travelling to a distant colony, leaving everything behind, not knowing if he would survive the long, painful and dangerous crossing of the Atlantic, is the decision that Jean Ouimet must have taken.

 

              He also had to consider other factors such as the severity of the climate, the constant threats of the natives and the prospect of rebuilding his life elsewhere by hard labor. Aged 25 years old, perhaps without a family since he was an heir as indicated in his marriage contract, possibly afflicted by the numerous armed conflicts that ravaged his part of the country (19) or suffering from a heartbreak, our ancestor decided to leave.

 

Had he been recruited and was his place reserved for a colony established in New France? In the studies of Hervé Faupin (20) and René Gobillot (21), there is the question of important historical figures, originating in Champagne, who returned to France for various reasons before returning to New France. They surely had to try to recruit future settlers. The most famous are Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve, born not far from Troyes, on February 15, 1612, Jeanne Mance, born in Nogent-le-Roi, in 1606, Jean Talon, born in Châlons-sur-Marne, around 1625 and Marguerite Bourgeois also born at Troyes, April 17, 1620. There were surely others.

 

Did the ancestor Jean Ouimet flee from lugubrious living conditions, changing climatic conditions, recurrent famines or the possibility of a new epidemic? Again, for us there are no answers to these questions. Certainly the attraction of obtaining a land concession, for free or almost free, to live in relative peace and to be able to benefit from better life conditions had certainly influenced his decision. He was surely a determined individual and knowing that his success would be based on his determination and energy, he embarked on this adventure.

 

4. The journey of his life

 

    Did he leave from Dieppe or La Rochelle? Since the passengers lists cannot be found to this day, it is difficult to determine the exact location of his departure, despite the masterful study of Gaucher, Delafosse and Debien (22). Between December 1952 and March 1960, nine articles published in La Revue d’histoire de l’Amérique française report the enlisted persons travelling to Canada during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Note that a little more than 225 kilometers separate Reims from Dieppe while a little more than 540 kilometers separate Reims from La Rochelle. If Jean Ouimet committed himself for a period of thirty-six months in New France, from where did the recruiters embarked the recruits? It is estimated that the coaches of that time period traveled from thirty to forty kilometers per day. How long did it take him to complete the trip? 5 to 8 days to reach Dieppe and 14 to 18 days to reach La Rochelle. Did he make the journey on foot?

 

    At that time, ship crews waited for the winds to be favorable in order to drop the moorings and set sail. Travelers, as well as the crew, always expected the worst not knowing how many days they would be at sea. Would they have enough food and drinking water, would disease wreak havoc? They were at the mercy of the winds, atmospheric conditions and relied on Providence by praying the Holy Father, the Holy Mother, but also St-Elmo, the patron saint of the sailors and St. Christopher, the patron saint of travelers.

 

    Some 3,500 nautical miles later (approximately 6482 km, if the following conversion factor is used: 1 nautical mile = 1,852 km), according to the Journal des Jésuites, the ship «Le Sacrifice d’Abraham» anchored in front of Québec City, June 16, 1659. It was with a certain excitement and some apprehension that the travelers waited to complete the journey by shuttling between the ship and the rudimentary dock of Québec City. The inhabitants of Québec also awaited the arrival of travelers, the goods and supplies of the mother country, and the mail.

 

    From Sunday, April 13 to Monday, June 16, 1659, interspersed with a small stop over at Gaspé, described in the preamble, the great journey had lasted, forty-four days.

 

    Once landed, what does he do? Until Friday, November 7, 1659, the day Jean Ouimet signed a farmer's lease with Guillaume Thibault, it is impossible to know where he lived and how he occupied his time since there is no document to prove it. Besides, Mr. Roland-J. Auger, genealogist emeritus of the National Archives in Quebec indicates this in his letter dated February 3, 1965 addressed to Father Germain Ouimet.

 

5. His first homestead

 

    At that time, the ancestor Jean Ouimet had to follow the instructions and do like everyone else; he could not buy land until he had been in the country for three years ... unless he had paid his way (23). It seems that Jean Ouimet paid his way for the following two reasons. On the one hand he was not bound by a contract of type "thirty-six months" because he would have started his apprenticeship as a farmer shortly after his arrival and he would not have been able to acquire land. On the other hand, in his marriage contract drafted on October 3, 1660 (24), it is well indicated that he’s "son and heir of the late Nicollas Houymet et Perrette Nicayse his father and mother". If he was an heir, he certainly had money which enabled him to pay for his passage; otherwise, what does the word "heir" mean?

 

    Jean Ouimet leaves his first trace in the notarial archives on Friday, November 7, 1659 when he concludes a farmer's lease with Guillaume Thibault (25). The next day, Saturday, November 8, 1659 in Château-Richer, he signed a land purchase contract in front of notary Claude Aubert, with Guillaume Thibault and Marie-Madeleine Lefrançois.

 

    Guillaume Thibault, son of Nicolas and Elisabeth Anséaume or Anthiome, baker and tailor of clothes, born in 1618 in Rouen in Normandy, settled on the Côte de Beaupré, more precisely at Château-Richer in 1648 (26). He was a volunteer of La Rochelle (27). He had previously settled in Trois-Rivières around 1638 before returning to France. On Monday, January 11, 1655 (28), in Notre-Dame church, Québec City, he married Marie-Madeleine François ou Lefrançois, born around 1635, the adoptive daughter of Isaac and Esther Paigne, native of Metz of the Lorraine area. The ancestral home of Thibault is located at the corner of Avenue Royale and rue Couillard in Château-Richer (see picture below). It is not the house that dates from the time of Jean Ouimet since it was burned like all the others of the Côte de Beaupré and the south shore during the English invasion in 1759. It was rebuilt in 1760 as indicates the plaque appearing on the left part of the house.

 

    In Château-Richer, Saturday November 8, 1659 (29), Jean Ouimet, 25 years old, initialed a contract to purchase a tract of land before notary Claude Aubert, from Guillaume Thibault, 41 years old, and his wife Marie-Madeleine Lefrançois, 24 years old. It’s a tract of land about 2 acres wide "2 arpents de front" on the Saint Lawrence River, situated in Beaupré near the brook named "Rivière du Sault de la puce".

On the left, Guillaume Thibault30;

To the right, the house of Guillaume Thibault in Château-Richer (photo taken by Denis Ouimet)

Map showing the location of Guillaume Thibault’s land tract (31).


 

 

6. His marriage

 

Let us open here an important parenthesis. Shortly before or following the farmer’s lease and the land purchase from Guillaume Thibault, Jean Ouimet met Renée Gagnon, daughter of Jean Gagnon and Marguerite Cauchon. Did he meet her in Québec City a few days after June 16, 1659, or before? It is quite possible because Jean Gagnon (Jean Ouimet’s future father in law) and his two brothers were merchants on Saint-Pierre Street in the lower town of Québec City where Jean Ouimet disembarked from the vessel named «Le Sacrifice d’Abraham».

 

He may have met his future wife and in-laws at the time of his confirmation. Monday, February 2, 1660 (32), Bishop Laval, first bishop of New France, was in Château-Richer to confirm his parishioners, the young and not so young along with Jean Ouimet and Renée Gagnon; she had been christened April 8, 1643 (33) in St-Joachim. The adjacent tract of land located southwest from Jean Ouimet’s is located next to the brook named «La Rivière du Sault de la Puce», and was owned by Jean Cloutier; there was a windmill where the inhabitants came to grind their cereals. Is this where Jean and Renée met or did they meet elsewhere during the Sunday masses?

 

    Time passes, Cupid does his work; Jean Ouimet and Renée Gagnon present themselves with some relatives before the notary Aubert on October 3, 1660 (34) at Château-Richer for the drafting and signing of the marriage contract. The religious act cannot be found but we believe that the marriage took place a few days later most probably in the house of the in-laws in this case Jean Gagnon and Marguerite Cauchon. It was the custom of the time.

 

    Please recall that it is indeed indicated in this marriage contract that the parents of Jean Ouimet are Nicollas Houymet and Poucette Nicayse of the parish «de Vigny», archbishopric de Reims.

 

7. An illegal purchase

 

     On October 2, 1662 (35), three years after his arrival, Jean Ouimet, before the notary Aubert, tries to acquire the tract of land of Marin Nourrice (farm no° 53) situated on Côte de Beaupré. The ancestor Jean Ouimet never inhabited this land (36). Marin Nourrice had acquired the title on this concession from Marie Favery. However, this lady had no right on this concession which invalidated the title of Marin Nourrice. The contract was therefore canceled. Without going into details, we believe that Jean Ouimet, his wife Renée Gagnon and his son Louis would have lived with Jean Gagnon and Marguerite Cauchon before going to settle on the Isle of Orléans.

 

8. Settling down

 

     Earlier that year, that is, on Monday, April 10, 1662, Jean Ouimet bought concession no° 51 from Mr. de Lauzon, Lord of Charny, about two acres wide on the St. Lawrence River on the north passage. It is a concession located in the parish of Sainte-Famille on the Isle of Orléans. His neighbors are Jean Allaire and Pierre Paillereau. According to the minutes of the royal notary Paul Vachon, Mgr Laval regularizes the transfer of this concession on January 26, 1668 (37) by transferring the said concession to Jean Ouimet.

 

We cannot find this notarized document in the archives which is dated April 10, 1662. There is a mention of the purchase of this concession in the minutes of the notary Vachon and more precisely in the inventory of the assets of Jean Ouimet, one year after the Jean's death, that is, on Tuesday, October 26, 1688 (38).

 

In fact, the inventory cites the purchase of land from Mgr de Laval in these translated terms: and the other done by Monsignor de Laval of roughly three acres of the said concession on the said river written in front of the said notary on the twenty sixth of January one thousand six hundred and sixty eight, inventoried and marked at the lettre C. According to the historian Marcel Trudel, in his book «Le terrier du Saint-Laurent in 1663», it would be the same concession, the one bought on April 10, 1662, which would have passed roughly from two to three acres of frontage.

Map showing the location of the concession of Jean Ouimet

 

9. The descendants of Jean Ouimet and Renée Gagnon

 

    Below, a summary table indicating the names and dates of birth of the children of Jean Ouimet and Renée Gagnon. Please note that the first two children (letters a and b) were born in Château-Richer (40).

a) Jean

 

Born November 18, 1661

Château-Richer

Died April 22, 1749

St-Michel-de-la-Durantaye

b) Louis

Born September 17, 1663

Château-Richer

Died February 7, 1716

Saint-Jean, Î.O.

c) Marguerite

Born January 11, 1667

Sainte-Famille, Î.O.

Died January 19, 1718

Sainte-Famille Î.O. 

d) Marie-Madelaine

Born April 20, 1672

Sainte-Famille, Î.O.

Died December 4, 1702

Québec

e) Gabriel

Born February 17, 1675

Sainte-Famille, Î.O.

Died February 22, 1675

Sainte-Famille Î.O. 

f) Jacques

Born August 30, 1776

Sainte-Famille, Î.O.

Died April 12, 1744

Sainte-Famille Î.O. 

g) Jeanne

Born June 14, 1679

Sainte-Famille, Î.O.

Died May 7, 1716

Sainte-Famille Î.O.

h) Pierre-1

Born November 3, 1681

Sainte-Famille, Î.O.

Died November 16, 1681

Sainte-Famille Î.O. 

h) Pierre-2

Born June 18, 1683

Sainte-Famille, Î.O.

Died September 15, 1757

Montréal

All the other children of Jean Ouimet and Renée Gagnon (letters c to i), seven in total, were born and baptized in the parish of Sainte-Famille, on the Isle of Orléans. It is in this parish that Jean Ouimet and his wife Renée Gagnon raised their family, built a house and other buildings that would resist the harsh winters and protect them against the rigors of a climate to which Jean Ouimet was not accustomed to. Jean slowly cleared his concession, painfully, one acre at a time. He cut the wood that would heat his house and plowed the land to get a subsistence, which had to be very rudimentary, during the few years that followed his arrival. He had to adapt his knowledge of the cultivation of the land and the breeding of animals. He also participated in the social life and common tasks required by the authorities in place. In short, in one generation he was able to build a heritage that his ancestors had taken centuries to build in France.

 

10. The end of his adventure

 

    On November 18, 1687, Jean Ouimet died at the age of 53 years old (41). Curiously, several people of the Sainte-Famille parish died in the fall of 1687; would it be possible that the ancestor Jean Ouimet died during an epidemic? It is from this date that one can determine that his year of birth is 1634. This is an approximation because no handwritten source was found to specify and prove this date. One year after his death, on October 26, 1688 (42), notary Paul Vachon made an inventory of his property and belongings. He was allegedly buried in the parish cemetery surrounding the first church of the parish of Sainte-Famille which was located about 90 meters north of the present church (43).

 

11. The house situated on the ancestral concession at Sainte-Famille, Isle of Orléans

 

    Located at 2209, Chemin Royal, at the outskirts of Sainte-Famille parish is the magnificent house of Arthur Plumpton and Nicole Simard (see photo on the following page). It is erected on a part of the concession of Jean Ouimet. The eastern part of this house would have been built between 1750 and 1800 on land cleared and inhabited by Jean Ouimet, Renée Gagnon and their children (44). In a recent letter written by Mr. Plumpton and Mrs. Simard, they point out that the construction of the house would be contemporary with the first half of the 18th century (January 1st, 1701 to December 31st, 1750) (45).

 

    It is not the house that Jean Ouimet has inhabited. In the aforementioned post-death inventory (October 26, 1688) (46), there is a reference to the buildings on this concession at the time of Jean’s death; the framework of a house with beams and covered with planks, an old little log house in which they live and of little value, a barn with beams and covered with straw with and an adjoining stable.

 

Over the years, the current owners have renovated this home and other buildings according to the ancient methods, the standards and styles of the time. In addition, they have the green thumb because the plants that make up the borders that surround the house are simply magnificent.

12. The 350th anniversary in the spring of 2009

 

Twenty years after the founding of the Family Association known as «Les Descendants de Jean Ouimet Inc.», the administrative committee organized an event to mark the 350th anniversary of the arrival of Jean Ouimet in New France. To this end, two historical plaques were installed on the territory of the parish of Sainte-Famille. The first one, in the Parc des Ancêtres on the Isle of Orléans, and the second one, in the parking lot of Monsieur Laval Gagnon's fruit and vegetable kiosque, at 2208, Chemin Royal.

Photos taken by Denis Ouimet (spring of 2009).

 

    These historical plaques pay tribute to Jean and his wife Renée and their many descendants, in recognition of their courage, determination and spirit of adventure. These qualities are observable among several descendants in the following generations of Ouimet families who have not hesitated to leave the Isle of Orléans to spread throughout North America. From the second generation, they settle elsewhere in the provinces of Québec and Ontario, and later in the United States and western Canada. The desire to ensure a better future for their children has been perpetuated from generation to generation.

13. Conclusion

 

    The origins of Jean Ouimet and parts of his life with his wife Renée and their children are documented. Certainly, there are questions that remain unanswered. Research is continuing. In the 21st century, technology now allows all individuals to know their personal genome by analyzing the characteristics of DNA. This is another way to find out how blood ties unite the descendants of Jean Ouimet and Renée Gagnon. It is possibly the means by which the exact origin of the ancestor Jean Ouimet will be identified. The future will tell.

Text written and translated by Denis Ouimet, founding member and genealogist of the family association known as “Les Descendants de Jean Ouimet Inc.”. The French version of this text was revised in 2009 by Céline Ouimet-Larivière, Monique Ouimet-Drolet, Richard Ouimet and in 2016 by Madeleine Ouimet-Théorêt. The English version was revised by Barry MacKenzie and Brian Christensen. This text will posted later in a Wikipedia article.

The text of this website is available for modification and reuse under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Sharealike 4.0 International License and the GNU Free Documentation License (unversioned, with no invariant sections, front-cover texts, or back-cover texts).

Hand-drawned portrait of Jean Ouimet, completed in 1990 by Louise-V. Séguin (Dalkeith, ON).

 

 

14. Notes, sources and bibliography

 

1 Be aware, the date of birth of "September 6, 1634" posted on some websites is unfounded since it is not supported by archival sources such as a notarial contract, a religious document or a passenger list. The dates proposed on some websites are thus erroneous until proven otherwise.

2 According to his marriage contract dated October 3, 1660 at Château-Richer, it is indeed indicated that he is originally from "Vigny". According to our research, this commune does not exist in Champagne. The genealogists of the time opted for "Vrigny" located near Reims; the church of St. Vincent at Vrigny opened its registers in 1692! We believe that it would be Évigny rather than Vigny (see explanation further in this text).

3 Beaulieu, Victor-Lévy (1972). Relations des Jésuites, 1611-1672, Éditions du Jour, Montréal, 6 volumes, [no ISBN number].

4  BAnQ-M, greffe Claude Aubert, October 3rd, 1660.

5 The town of Vrigny is located about 9 kilometers to the west of Reims in Champagne (Marne). The parish registers available (1692 to 1792) are subsequent to the birth and departure of the ancestor Jean Ouimet.

6 Trottier, Jean-Claude (2014). Reims?... Oui… mais…, Le Houymet, vol. XXIV, no 3, September 2014, pp. 49-53 [ISSN 1183-0174].

7 Les provinces sous l’ancien régime avec leur date de rattachement définitif à la France, [Online]. http://www.genealogie.org/famille/charronditcabana/anciennes_provinces.htm (Page consulted February 22nd, 2017).

8 The commune of Virginy is located about 55 kilometers east of Reims in Champagne (Marne) and is part of the archdiocese of Reims.

9 Ouimet, Denis (1991). Étymologie du patronyme Ouimet, Mémoires de la Société généalogique canadienne-française, volume 42, numéro 4, pp. 279-280 [ISSN 0037-9387].

10 Ouimet-Larivière, Céline. La lettre «W» était-elle en usage dans l’alphabet français en 1659?,  Le Houymet, volume XIV, no. 1, janvier 2004, p. 19 [ISSN 1183-0174].

11 Ibidem 4

12 Ouimet, Denis (2002). Denis Willemet et Jehan Willemet, Le Houymet, volume XII, numéro 2, mai 2002, pp. 41-43 (ISSN 1183-0174).

13 Ibidem 12

14 Ouimet, Denis (2008). L’origine des Ouimet et les recherches du Père Paul Boussemart, Le Houymet, volume XVIII, numéro 3, septembre 2008, pp. 10-12 (ISSN 1183-0174).

15 Ibidem 14

16 Ouimet, Denis (2012). De Vrigny à Vigny à Évigny, Le Houymet, volume XXII, numéro 3, septembre 2012, p. 62 (ISSN 1183-0174).

17 Thirty-two known spellings stem from or are at the origin of the patronymic or surname Ouimet : Houmier, Houymet, Houymier, Ouimeth, Ouimette, Ouinet, Oumet, Viliaume, Villiaume, Vilmet, Vilmette, Vuilmet, Vuilmette, Vuillemet, Vuimet, Wemet, Wemette, Wemott, Wilhelm, Wuillaume, Willemet, Wilmet, Wilmette, Wilmeth, Wilmet, Wilmette, Wilmot, Wilmotte, Wuilemet, Wuilmet, Wuilmette et Wuimet.

18 Grandeau, Yann (1997). À la recherché de vos ancêtres; guide du généalogiste amateur, Éd. Stock, Paris, 352 pages.

19 In the 16th and 17th centuries, the borders delimiting the Spanish Netherlands with France were often transgressed during the numerous armed conflicts. The northern part of the Champagne province was particularly affected. The mobility of the residing populations must have also been affected.

20 Faupin, Hervé (2003). Nouvelle-France, la courageuse épopée champenoise, Éditions Dominique Guéniot, Langres, France, 254 pages.

21 Gobillot, René (1955). Champagne et Canada, Le bulletin des recherches historiques , volume 61, numéro 1, pp. 17-28.

22 Gaucher, M., Delafosse, M. et Debien, G. (1952). Engagés pour le Canada au XVIIe siècle vus de La Rochelle, Revue d’histoire de l’Amérique française, Montréal, volume 6, numéro 3, pp. 177-233

23 The probationary period for the volunteers was "thirty-six months". "Once the period of thirty-six months had elapsed, the contractors were free to buy land if they had money, to become settlers (censitaires in French), or to return to France" (see Indentured servant in Wikipedia).

24 Jean Ouimet is heir; this is what is stated in his marriage contract drawn up by notary Claude Aubert on 3 October 1660 in Château-Richer.

25 BAnQ-M, register of notary Claude Aubert (# 60), le November 8, 1659.

26 Gariépy, Raymond (1969). Le village de Château-Richer, 1640-1870, La Société historique de Québec, Cahier d’histoire no. 21, Imprimerie Laflamme, Québec, 168 pages.

27 Trudel, Marcel (1983). Catalogue des immigrants 1632-1662, Montréal, Hurtubise HMH, 569 pages, [ISBN 2-89045-579-3]

28 Jetté, René (1983). Dictionnaire généalogique des familles du Québec des origines à 1730, Programme de  recherche en démographie historique, Les Presses de l’Université de Montréal, Montréal, 1176 pages, [ISBN 2-7606-0645-5].

29 BAnQ-M, register of notary Claude Aubert, le 8 novembre 1659.

30 Portrait by E. Senécal taken from a fascicle Les anciennes familles du Québec published by the Labatt Brewery in 1968.

31 Gariépy, Raymond. Les terres de Château-Richer, 1640-1990, Société de généalogie de Québec, contribution no. 72, 1993, 736 pages [ISBN 2-89120-067-5].

32 BAnQ-M, register of notary Claude Aubert, le November 8, 1659.

33 Langlois, Michel (2001). Dictionnaire biographique des ancêtres québécois 1608-1700, Les Éditions du Mitan, Sillery, 2001, 4 tomes [ISBN 2-9800305-4-6].

34 Ibidem 4

35 BAnQ-M, register of notary Claude Aubert, October 2, 1662.

36 Langlois, Michel (2001). Dictionnaire biographique des ancêtres québécois 1608-1700, Les Éditions du Mitan, Sillery, 2001, 4 tomes [ISBN 2-9800305-4-6].

37 BAnQ-M, register of notary Paul Vachon, le 6 janvier 1668.

38 BAnQ-M, register of notary Paul Vachon, le 26 octobre 1688

39 Trudel, Marcel (1973). Le terrier du Saint-Laurent en 1663, Éditions de l’Université d’Ottawa, Ottawa, 618 pages [ISBN 0-7766-4086-0].

40 Ibidem 28

41 Ibidem 36

42 Ibidem 38

43 Ouimet, Denis (2016). La Sainte-Famille, Î.-O. : la première église et le premier presbytère, Le Houymet, volume XXVI, numéro 1, janvier 2016, pp. 12-13 (ISSN 1183-0174).

44 Ouimet, Yvon (2009). La terre de l’ancêtre, Le Houymet, volume XIX, numéro 3, septembre 2009, pp. 8-19 (ISSN 1183-0174).

45  Plumpton, Arthur, Simard, Nicole (2017). Estimé de la période de construction de la maison ancienne sise au 2209, chemin Royal à Sainte-Famille, Î.O., Le Houymet, volume XXVII, numéro 2, mai 2017, pp. 29-31 (ISSN 1183-0174).

46 Ibidem 38

 

Duccini, Hélène. La France au XVIIe siècle, Éditions Armand Colin, Paris, 2007 192 pages, [ISBN 978-

    2-2003-5357-5].

Gariépy, Raymond. Les terres de Château-Richer, 1640-1990, Société de généalogie de Québec,

    contribution no. 72, 1993, 736 pages [ISBN 2-89120-067-5].

Gobillot, René. Champagne et Canada, Bulletin des recherches historiques, volume LXI, no. 1, pp. 17-

    28, Lévis, Québec, 1955 [no ISBN number].

Grandeau, Yann. À la recherche de vos ancêtres; guide du généalogiste amateur, Éd. Stock, Paris, 1997,

    352 pages [ISBN 29782234107670].

Jetté, René. Dictionnaire généalogique des familles du Québec des origines à 1730, Programme de

    recherche en démographie historique, Les Presses de l’Université de Montréal, Montréal, 1176

    pages, 1983 [ISBN 2-7606-0645-5].

Langlois, Michel. Dictionnaire biographique des ancêtres québécois 1608-1700, Les Éditions du Mitan,

    Sillery, 2001, 4 tomes [ISBN 2-9800305-4-6].

Ouimet, Denis. Étymologie du patronyme Ouimet, Mémoires de la Société généalogique canadienne-

    française, volume 42, no. 4, hiver 1991, pp. 279-280 [ISSN 1183-0174].

Ouimet, Denis. Denis WILLEMET et Jehan WILLEMET, Le Houymet, volume XII, no. 2, mai 2002, pp.

    41-43 [ISSN 0037-9387].

Ouimet, Denis. Pierre WILLEMET, Le Houymet, volume XII, no. 3, septembre 2002, pp. 74-75 [ISSN

    0037-9387].

Ouimet, Denis. L’origine des Ouimet et les recherches du Père Paul Boussemart, Le Houymet, volume

    XVIII, no. 3, septembre 2008, pp. 10-12 [ISSN 1183-0174].

Ouimet, Denis. De Vrigny à Vigny à Évigny, Le Houymet, volume XXII, no. 3, septembre 2012, p. 62

    [ISSN 1183-0174].

Ouimet-Larivière, Céline. La lettre «W» était-elle en usage dans l’alphabet français en 1659?,  Le

    Houymet, volume XIV, no. 1, janvier 2004, p. 19 [ISSN 1183-0174].

Trottier, Jean-Claude. Reims? – Oui, mais…, Le Houymet, volume XXIV, no. 3, septembre 2014, Les

    Descendants de Jean Ouimet Inc., pp. 49-53 [ISSN 1183-0174].

Trudel, Marcel. Le terrier du Saint-Laurent en 1663, Éditions de l’Université d’Ottawa, Ottawa, 1973,

    618 pages [ISBN 0-7766-4086-0].

Trudel, Marcel. Catalogue des immigrants 1632-1662, Montréal, Hurtubise HMH, 1983, 569 pages

    [ISBN 2-89045-579-3].

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