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Born to a well-established mercantile family in British Detroit, James Baby was the first member of Upper Canada's French community to gain prominence in government circles. In 1792, he received lifetime appointments to the executive and legislative councils.
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French Settlement of the South Shore
In 1749, French settlers from parishes along the St. Lawrence were encouraged to relocate along the Detroit River. Joined by discharged soldiers and civilians from Fort Pontchartrain (Detroit), they formed the first permanent agricultural settlement of European origin in what is now Ontario. -
Jesuit Mission to the Hurons, The
The Jesuit mission at Detroit was moved to Bois Blanc Island in 1742 but subsequently reestablished in the vicinity of present-day Windsor, closer to the defences at Detroit. With the arrival of French settlers in the area, the Huron mission served both native and European residents, and in 1767 became the Parish of Assumption, the earliest Roman Catholic parish in present-day Ontario. -
Father Pierre Potier 1708-1781
A Jesuit missionary and scholar, Potier was appointed to the Huron mission at the mouth of the Detroit River in 1744. As the first pastor of Assumption Parish, he ministered to both the Hurons and the French-Canadian settlers in the Windsor area until his death. -
Founding of Belle River, The
As a regional shipping point in the 1850s, Belle River enjoyed a certain amount of prosperity. Throughout most of the 19th century, milling was the major industry in this small community founded by French settlers from the Detroit River area. -
Founding of Stoney Point, The
Coincident with increased travel along the Tecumseh Road in the 1830s, small communities of predominantly French-speaking settlers began to form along the south shore of Lake St. Clair. Stoney Point (Pointe aux Roches) flourished briefly in mid-18th century until depletion of local timber resources reduced the village's mainstay industry. -
Founding of Tecumseh, The
Originally a way-station on the Tecumseh Road in the 1850s, this predominantly French-speaking community evolved into a significant shipping point for local grain and timber. -
Marie-Rose Turcot 1887-1977
Born in Laurierville, Quebec, Marie-Rose Turcot moved to Ottawa around the age of 20 to work in the civil service. Later, working as a journalist, Marie-Rose Turcot published in the daily newspaper Le Droit, as well as in several other weekly and daily publications in Ottawa and Montreal, sometimes using the pseudonym Constance Bayard. She also worked in broadcast journalism for the French radio station CKCH in Hull, Quebec. Turcot was the author of a... -
CFCL Radio
The first French-language radio station in Ontario, CFCL-Timmins, began broadcasting in December 1951. The event was greeted with enthusiasm by Franco-Ontarians who until then had heard limited programming in French over the airwaves. The station reached listeners from Kirkland Lake to Hearst, showcasing local talent and creating a sense of community among the widely dispersed francophone population of northern Ontario. Daily features on French life in the region taught cultural pride, the love of one's... -
French Presence in Hearst, The
French Canadians began to settle in Hearst in 1912 during the construction of the National Transcontinental Railway. Most came to farm but soon turned to the more lucrative forest industry. Sawmills established by French Canadians prospered as family enterprises for decades, before being amalgamated into large forest-product companies by the end of the 20th century. Over the years, the French-speaking community in Hearst – once a minority – grew to 89% of the population with... -
French Presence in Lafontaine, The
French explorers first arrived in the Lafontaine area around 1610. An intermittent French presence of fur traders, soldiers and missionaries continued until 1650 when the sojourns ended after the Huron-Iroquois wars. Eventually a group of former French Canadian and Métis voyageurs from Drummond Island settled here in 1830 followed by successive waves of immigrants from Quebec, the three main groups originating from Batiscan, Joliette and the counties of Soulanges and Vaudreuil. The church and parish... -
French-Canadian Settlement and the CPR in the Mattawa Area
Francophone settlement rapidly increased in the Mattawa area with the arrival of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) in 1881. During construction of the rail line, the local economy benefitted from the presence of thousands of French-Canadian workers, some of whom were accompanied by their families. Once the railway was operational, the local lumber industry expanded and Mattawa prospered as a community, a supply and transportation hub, and a lumber depot. Development was also stimulated in... -
Jeanne Lajoie, 1899-1930
Jeanne Lajoie, a dedicated teacher and advocate for the establishment of French schools in Ontario, was born in Lefaivre, near Hawkesbury, in 1899. In 1923, Lajoie helped a group of francophone parents to establish the first independent French school in Pembroke. The school ensured that their children were educated in their own language. The creation of L'École Sainte-Jeanne d'Arc was one of the last major events in the Franco-Ontarian struggle against Regulation 17, which from... -
French Community in Welland
The neighbourhood that became commonly known as "French Town" was established in this area in 1918, when approximately 20 French-Canadian families arrived from Quebec to work at the Empire Cotton Mills plant. The Roman Catholic Parish of Sacré-Cœur was established in 1920 and became the cultural centre of the francophone community that developed around Empire Street. Additional French-Canadian families arrived from Quebec, New Brunswick and northern Ontario throughout the 1920s. Another wave of francophones moved... -
Sacré-Cœur Parish
In 1887, Sacré-Cœur Parish was founded as the first Roman Catholic parish to serve the French-Canadian community in Toronto. Father Philippe Lamarche came from Montreal to found the church and served as priest until his death in 1924. The Parish's first church building, located on King Street near Sackville Street, was purchased from a Presbyterian congregation in 1888. Since that time, francophones have been able to worship in their own language at Sacré-Cœur Church. This... -
Champlain in Ontario, 1615
In April 1615, Samuel de Champlain (c.1574-1635) embarked from Honfleur, upon his seventh voyage to New France. Upon arrival in Quebec, Champlain was informed of increasing tensions with the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) the traditional rival of his Anishinabe (Algonquian) and Wendat (Huron) allies. He travelled west to Huronia on a diplomatic and military expedition where he visited several villages including Cahiagué, a large and important Wendat settlement. With a mixed force of 400-500 First Nations warriors... -
Fort Rouillé
The last French post established in what is now southern Ontario, Fort Rouillé was built in 1750-51 to help strengthen French control of trade in the Great Lakes region. It was a palisaded fortification with four bastions and five main buildings. -
de Puisaye Settlement 1799, The
In the fall of 1798, some 40 exiled French Royalists under the leadership of Joseph-Genevieve, Comte de Puisaye (1754-1827), emigrated from England to Upper Canada. The following year, they were given rations and agricultural implements and settled along Yonge Street in the townships of Markham and Vaughan. However, these members of the nobility and their servants were unable to adapt themselves to a pioneer existence and, by 1806, their settlement, known as Windham, was abandoned. De Puisaye lived for a time on an estate near Niagara, but returned to England in 1802.
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Louis Hennepin 1626 - c. 1705
Born and educated in Belgium, Hennepin was ordained a Recollet (Franciscan) friar in France. He was an adventurer at heart and undertook priestly duties in several European countries before being sent to New France as a missionary in 1675. In 1679-80, he accompanied Cavelier de La Salle on his exploration of the Mississippi River. Back in France, Hennepin published a lively account of his travels, Description de la Louisiane (1683), which enjoyed widespread popularity in... -
Joseph-Geneviève, Comte de Puisaye
Soldier, politician, diplomatist and colonizer, de Puisaye was born at Mortagne-en-Perche, France, about 1755, and enlisted in the French Army at 18. Elected to the States General in 1789, he supported reform but, alarmed by the course of the Revolution, later organized resistance on behalf of the Royalists. Outlawed, he sought refuge in England and in 1795, as Lieutenant-General, led an ill-fated expedition to Quiberon, Brittany. Three years later, with some forty other émigrés, he... -
Moose Factory
The second oldest post of the Hudson's Bay Company was built at the mouth of the Moose River by Governor Charles Bayly in 1673. That early fortified establishment was captured in June 1686 by a French expedition from Montreal under the Chevalier de Troyes and renamed St. Louis. Though restored to Britain in 1713 by the Treaty of Utrecht, the post was not re-established until 1730-32. Largely destroyed by fire in December 1735, it was... -
Laurentian University of Sudbury
Higher education in northern Ontario originated with the founding of Sacred Heart College in 1913, which later became the University of Sudbury. In 1960, Laurentian University was incorporated and the University of Sudbury, Huntingdon University, and subsequently Thorneloe University were federated with the new bilingual institution. -
Sacred Heart College
Founded in 1913 by the Jesuits, exclusively French after 1916, Sacred Heart College was the centre of education for young Franco-Ontarians for decades. In 1957, it became the University of Sudbury, which a few years later formed the Catholic component of Laurentian University. -
Sainte-Anne des Pins
Established as a mission by the Jesuits in 1883, Sainte-Anne des Pins played a prominent role in the development of Franco-Ontarian culture in the region. Until 1917, it was the only Roman Catholic congregation in Sudbury. -
Jesuit Mission to Manitoulin 1648-50, The
In 1648, Father Joseph Poncet, then serving at St. Marie in Huronia, was placed in charge of the Jesuit mission of St. Pierre by his superior Father Paul Ragueneau. This newly created mission was formed to serve the Algonkian-speaking Indians of Manitoulin Island and the north shore of Lake Huron. Poncet, the first known European resident of Manitoulin (called Ile de Ste. Marie by the missionaries and Ekaentoton by the Hurons), served on this island...