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Antoine Bazinet dit Tourblanche (c. 1639-1692) & Françoise Janot (c. 1654-c. 1700s)

Antoine Bazinet dit Tourblanche: The Soldier-Settler

Origins and Military Service

Antoine Bazinet, known by the dit name "Tourblanche" (or "Tour Blanche"), was born around 1639 in France [^1]. Records suggest he originated from the province of Poitou in the diocese of Poitiers [^1].

He arrived in New France (Quebec) between 1665 and 1668 as a soldier in the Carignan-Salières Regiment, serving in the La Motte company [^2]. The regiment was dispatched by King Louis XIV to defend the colony against Iroquois attacks [^3].

After his military service, Antoine chose to remain in the colony, becoming a settler on Île d'Orléans [^5], [^20]. This area, known for its fertile soil, was key to the early agricultural development of New France.

Françoise Janot: The Colonial Daughter

Origins and Early Life

Françoise Janot was born around 1654 in New France, making her a rare native-born settler's daughter [^7]. Her parents were:

  • Father: Marin Janot dit Lachapelle (carpenter, originally from Paris) [^7], [^8]
  • Mother: Françoise Besnard (an early female settler) [^7]

Françoise grew up in the Montreal region, experiencing the challenges of frontier life. As the daughter of a settler, she was trained in the domestic and agricultural skills essential for survival in the colony [^10].

Marriage, Family, and Later Life

Antoine Bazinet and Françoise Janot were married on January 12, 1672, at Sainte-Famille, Île d'Orléans [^6]. Their marriage followed a common pattern, uniting an immigrant soldier with the daughter of an earlier settler, which was vital for the colony's growth [^12].

Children

The couple had several children, establishing the Bazinet lineage in New France:

  1. Marie-Anne Bazinet (bap. January 24, 1673, Sainte-Famille, Île d'Orléans) [^15]
  2. Jean Bazinet (born c. 1674)
  3. Antoine Bazinet (born c. 1677)
  4. François Bazinet (born c. 1679)
  5. Marguerite Bazinet (born c. 1681)
  6. Catherine Bazinet (born c. 1684)

Widowhood and Remarriage

Antoine Bazinet died on April 2, 1692, at Sainte-Famille, Île d'Orléans, at approximately 53 years of age [^21].

Left a widow with dependent children, Françoise Janot remarried quickly for economic security, as was customary [^17]. She married Jean Préchant on November 26, 1693, in Quebec City [^18]. Françoise is believed to have died in the early 18th century, though her exact death date is unconfirmed [^19].

Legacy

The descendants of Antoine Bazinet and Françoise Janot became widely established throughout the St. Lawrence Valley, with the surname often simplifying from "Bazinet dit Tourblanche" to simply Bazinet [^23].

  • Their eldest daughter, Marie-Anne Bazinet, married Jean Petitclerc on November 9, 1693, in Quebec City [^22].
  • Their sons—Jean, Antoine, and François—carried on the Bazinet name, contributing to the demographic growth and agricultural settlement of Quebec.

Antoine's military service and settlement, coupled with Françoise's role as a colonial wife and mother, exemplify the foundational patterns of family establishment that defined 17th-century French Canada.

Credits

Compiled by Mark Rabideau, Opa & Professional Genealogist.

References

[^1]: Jetté, René. (1983). Dictionnaire généalogique des familles du Québec des origines à 1730. p. 63. [^2]: Verney, Jack. (1991). The Good Regiment: The Carignan-Salières Regiment in Canada, 1665-1668. pp. 17-23. [^3]: Eccles, W. J. (1987). Essays on New France. pp. 45-48. [^4]: Lanctôt, Gustave. (1963). Histoire du Canada: Du régime royal au traité d'Utrecht, 1663-1713. pp. 89-92. [^5]: Dechêne, Louise. (1988). Habitants and Merchants in Seventeenth-Century Montreal. pp. 40-45. [^6]: PRDH (Programme de recherche en démographie historique). (1999). Marriage record of Antoine Bazinet and Françoise Janot, January 12, 1672. [^7]: Jetté, René. (1983). Dictionnaire généalogique des familles du Québec des origines à 1730. p. 594. [^8]: Langlois, Michel. (2001). Dictionnaire biographique des ancêtres québécois (1608-1700). Vol. 3, p. 105. [^9]: Dechêne, Louise. (1988). Habitants and Merchants in Seventeenth-Century Montreal. pp. 175-180. [^10]: Greer, Allan. (1997). The People of New France. pp. 64-68. [^11]: Cliche, Marie-Aimée. (1988). "Les filles à marier envoyées en Nouvelle-France (1634-1662): étude d'un cas." In Histoire sociale - Social History, Vol. 21, No. 41, pp. 127-150. [^12]: Landry, Yves. (1992). Les Filles du roi au XVIIe siècle: Orphelines en France, pionnières au Canada. pp. 154-160. [^13]: Noel, Jan. (1998). Women in New France. pp. 8-12. [^14]: Choquette, Leslie. (1997). Frenchmen into Peasants: Modernity and Tradition in the Peopling of French Canada. pp. 245-250. [^15]: PRDH (Programme de recherche en démographie historique). (1999). Baptismal record of Marie-Anne Bazinet, January 24, 1673. [^16]: Moogk, Peter N. (2000). La Nouvelle France: The Making of French Canada - A Cultural History. pp. 177-182. [^17]: Brun, Josette. (2006). Vie et mort du couple en Nouvelle-France: Québec et Louisbourg au XVIIIe siècle. pp. 130-138. [^18]: PRDH (Programme de recherche en démographie historique). (1999). Marriage record of Jean Préchant and Françoise Janot, November 26, 1693. [^19]: Tanguay, Cyprien. (1871-1890). Dictionnaire généalogique des familles canadiennes depuis la fondation de la colonie jusqu'à nos jours. Vol. 1, p. 32. [^20]: Harris, Richard Colebrook. (1984). The Seigneurial System in Early Canada: A Geographical Study. pp. 120-125. [^21]: PRDH (Programme de recherche en démographie historique). (1999). Burial record of Antoine Bazinet, April 2, 1692. [^22]: PRDH (Programme de recherche en démographie historique). (1999). Marriage record of Jean Petitclerc and Marie-Anne Bazinet, November 9, 1693. [^23]: Laforest, Thomas J. (1988). Our French-Canadian Ancestors. Vol. 8, pp. 33-36.