Jean Guyon du Buisson (1592–1663) & Mathurine Robin dit Boulé (c. 1593–1662)

Founding Pioneers of New France

Jean Guyon and Mathurine Robin are recognized as foundational ancestors of French Canada, with their descendants forming a major part of the French Canadian population today.

Early Life in France

Jean Guyon was baptized on September 18, 1592, in Saint-Aubin de Tourouvre in the Perche region (now Orne, Normandy) [1, 2, 3]. He was the son of Jacques Guyon and Marie Huet [4].

By 1614, at the age of 22, Jean had established himself as a successful master mason and had accumulated enough savings to act as a moneylender. A surviving record notes one loan of 84 pounds to Pantaleon Bigot, delivered in "a small gold pistol, fifty-two sol pieces, quarter écus and other white money" [12, 13].

Mathurine Robin was born in France around 1593 [5, 6, 7, 8]. She was the daughter of Eustache Robin dit Boulé and Mathurine Avrard [9], though some sources suggest Thomas Robin and Madeleine Avard [10]. She originated from Mortagne in the diocese of Sées in Perche (now Mortagne-au-Perche, Normandy) [6, 7, 8, 11].

Marriage and Family Life in France

• Marriage: On June 2, 1615, Mathurine (c. 23) married Jean Guyon (22) in the church of Saint-Jean-et-Saint-Malo in Mortagne [6, 14].
• Commissioned Work:
  • In 1615, Jean was commissioned by the community of Tourouvre to build a stone staircase with 31 steps leading to the church tower [15, 16]. This staircase still exists today.
  • On July 21, 1625, he was hired to restore the town walls of Mortagne after the Wars of Religion [19]. This project proved difficult due to payment delays; he had to demand payment and threaten to abandon the work [20, 21].
• Apprentices: Jean took on his first apprentice, Pierre Hayes, on April 22, 1626, to teach him the mason's trade over three years [22]. In 1632, he took a second apprentice, Jacques Patard, for one year [24].
• Residences: After his father's death in 1623, Jean sold the family house in Tourouvre in 1624 and moved to Mortagne [17]. Following his mother's death in 1626, they moved to the Notre-Dame parish in Mortagne, where Jean acquired a larger house [18].
• Family Connection: On May 13, 1620, Jean became the godfather of Jean Cloutier, the son of Zacharie Cloutier, with whom Jean would later partner extensively in New France.
• Land Sale before Departure: On March 14, 1634, just before departing, Jean sold a small plot of land near Mortagne for 45 livres. He kept his primary house in Mortagne, which he would donate to a charitable brotherhood in 1653 [28]. This house was later sold in 1645 by his daughter Barbe to Pierre Le Bouyer [29, 30].

Children

Mathurine and Jean had a total of fifteen children, with ten surviving to adulthood [10, 25]:

Journey to New France

Jean Guyon was recruited by Robert Giffard, who was establishing his seigneury at Beauport, Quebec.

• Contract: On March 14, 1634, in Mortagne, Jean Guyon, as master mason, and his son Jean signed a three-year contract with Robert Giffard before notary Mathurin Roussel [27, 32].
  • The contract specified that Jean and his son would clear and cultivate lands, would be fed and maintained, would receive two cows, a house built at Giffard's expense, the Du Buisson fief (1,000 arpents), and the right to trade [32, 33].
  • Giffard promised to bring the rest of the Guyon family (wife and children) over in 1636 if they lacked the means [33].
• Departure: There are discrepancies in the historical record regarding the family's exact arrival:
  • Jean Guyon and his son Jean migrated to Canada in 1634, arriving in Quebec on June 4, 1634 [38, 39, 40]. They were part of Giffard's first contingent of 35 Percheron recruits [40].
  • One account suggests the entire family left on April 6, 1634, (except Barbe), requiring "exceptional courage" as Mathurine had given birth to Michel just a month earlier [34].
  • Other sources indicate Jean and his son left in 1634, with Mathurine following in 1636 with children Simon, Marie, Claude, Denis, and Michel [36].
  • Daughter Barbe arrived later, in 1652, with her husband Pierre Paradis and their seven children [36].

Life in New France

Upon arrival, Jean Guyon and the other recruits were lodged in barracks before moving to Beauport [41].

• Construction: Jean Guyon and master carpenter Zacharie Cloutier (his former associate and son-in-law's father) immediately began building the seigneur’s manor, the parish church, and Fort Saint-Louis [42]. Giffard’s dwelling was a two-story construction, 32 feet by 16 feet, and was called the "Beauport Manor" [42].
• The Du Buisson Fief: On February 3, 1637, Robert Giffard granted the Dubuisson rear-fief in the seigneury of Beauport to Jean Guyon [44, 45].
• Legal Disputes: Jean Guyon and Zacharie Cloutier quickly became known for being "rebellious and proud" [48], entering into numerous legal disputes with their former friend, Robert Giffard, their "Lord and Master" [10, 52]:
  • The Arpent Mistake: Their joint contract mistakenly recorded that each man would receive 2,000 arpents of land instead of 1,000. They tried to hold Giffard to the written document, but Governor Montmagny intervened in Giffard's favor [10, 46].
  • Fealty and Homage: Giffard initiated multiple lawsuits because Guyon and Cloutier refused to present fealty and homage for their fiefs. On July 30, 1646, Guyon was finally condemned by Governor Montmagny to comply [49].
  • The Humiliation: Guyon, vexed at being forced to comply, performed the ritual before Giffard's servant, François Boullé, instead of Giffard himself. The elaborate details of this humiliating ceremony were recorded by notary Guillaume Tronquet [50].
• Education: Jean Guyon was well-educated and prioritized the education of his children, sending his sons to the Jesuit College and his daughters to the Ursuline nuns [10].
• The First Marriage Contract: On July 27, 1636, Jean Guyon, using a private signature, drafted and signed what is believed to be the oldest and first marriage contract in Canada for Anne Cloustier (daughter of Zacharie) and Robert Drouin [43].

Death and Legacy

• Mathurine Robin's Death: Mathurine Robin died on April 16, 1662, at approximately 70 years of age in Beauport. She was buried the following day at the parish of Notre-Dame de Québec [6, 7, 8, 55].
  • She is recognized as one of “Les Mères d’Immigré” (Immigrant Mothers) and a significant founding mother of French Canada [10, 60].
• Jean Guyon's Death: Jean Guyon died on May 30, 1663, at the age of about 71 [56, 57]. He was buried the next day in the parish of Notre-Dame, Quebec [58].

Legacy

• By 1729, Jean Guyon and Mathurine Robin had 2,150 descendants in North America [26, 59].
• At the beginning of the 21st century, Mathurine had approximately 123,800 descendants [60].
• Jean Guyon is the progenitor of the Guyon, Yon, and Dion families in North America. The surname also evolved into Desportes, Dumontier, Lemoine, and Derbanne in Louisiana [62, 63].
• A 1921 study noted that the Guyon family, in nine generations, had given the Canadian church: a cardinal, seventeen archbishops and bishops, more than 450 priests, and a multitude of religious men and women [61].

Sources and References

1. Fichier origine 241993 Jean Guyon / Buisson 2021 Fédération québécoise des sociétés de généalogie.
2. PRDH: Le Programme de recherche en démographie historique (membership): Individu: 29007 Jean Guyon.
3. BAnQ (PDF): Tanguay, Cyprien, Dictionnaire Généalogique des Familles Canadiennes... (Vol 1 pg 294 Jean Guyon).
4. perche-quebec.com: Jean Guyon.
5. Carpin 1999, Annexe D, p. 572 ↩︎
6. Fichier Mathurine Robin 2017 Fédération québécoise des sociétés de généalogie/Québec Federation of Genealogical Societies ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
7. Tanguay, vol. 1, p. 294 ↩︎ ↩︎
8. Généalogie Québec 3800 ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
9. Carpin 1999, Annexe D, p. 572 ↩︎
10. http://www.oocities.org/weallcamefromsomewhere/Kebec/mathurine_robin.html ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
11. Mortagne is today known as the French commune of Mortagne-au-Perche (INSEE 61293) located in the department of Orne in the Normandy region. ↩︎
12. 1592 registre de baptême Archives départmentale de l’Orne, État civil (1527 – XXe siècle). ↩︎
13. “Canadian and Acadian Genealogical Review”, Spring 1968. Page 16-26. ↩︎
14. 1615 Marriage Record Archives départmentale de l’Orne, État civil (1527 – XXe siècle). ↩︎
15. Copies of photos from the perche-quebec.com site. ↩︎
16. Carpin 1999, Annexe D, p. 571. ↩︎
17. Dufresne 1977, p. 10. ↩︎
18. Carpin 1999, p. 493. ↩︎
19. Carpin 1999, p. 493: Jehan Ailleboust is the father-in-law of Pierre Juchereau. ↩︎
20. Carpin 1999, p. 494. ↩︎
21. Prévost 1993, pp. 47-48. ↩︎
22. Carpin 1999, p. 493. ↩︎
23. Lesperance 2002 citing Jetté 1983, p. 548. ↩︎
24. Langevin 1860, p. 6 (16 juillet 1636) Notes sur les archives de Notre-Dame de Beauport – BANQ. ↩︎
25. BAnQ (PDF): Tanguay, Cyprien, Dictionnaire Généalogique des Familles Canadiennes... ↩︎
26. La Mémoire du Québec, Mathurine Robin ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
27. Carpin 1999, Annexe D, p. 571. ↩︎
28. Lemieux 2006, p. 147. ↩︎
29. BAnQ, Pistard: Signification à Jean Guyon de rendre foi et hommage à Robert Giffard pour son arrière-fief de Dubuisson – 3 [sic] juillet 1646. ↩︎
30. Langevin 1860, p. 6-7 (30 juillet 1646). ↩︎
31. Couillard-Després 1906, p. 311. ↩︎
32. BAnQ Notarial acts index Inventaire des greffes des notaires du régime français. ↩︎
33. 26 mars 1697 Cote : TP1,S28,P5003 Fonds Conseil souverain – BAnQ Québec Id 405092. ↩︎
34. Dufresne 1977, p. 10. ↩︎
35. Carpin 1999, Annexe D, p. 572: According to Carpin, the year of departure is assured. ↩︎
36. Lesperance 2002 citing Jetté 1983, p. 548 ↩︎ ↩︎
37. [^37] Jesuit relations.
38. [^38] Fichier origine 241993 Jean Guyon / Buisson 2021.
39. [^39] PRDH: Le Programme de recherche en démographie historique (membership): Individu: 29007 Jean Guyon.
40. [^40] Dufresne 1977, p. 10.
41. [^41] Carpin 1999, p. 493.
42. [^42] Carpin 1999, p. 495.
43. [^43] BAnQ notarial acts index Inventaire des greffes des notaires du régime français (July 27, 1636).
44. [^44] BAnQ notarial acts index Inventaire des greffes des notaires du régime français (Feb 3, 1637).
45. [^45] La Mémoire du Québec, Jean Guyon.
46. [^46] Prévost 1993, p. 50.
47. [^47] Langevin 1860, p. 6.
48. [^48] Couillard-Després 1906, p. 308.
49. [^49] Prévost 1993, p. 51.
50. [^50] Langevin 1860, p. 6-7.
51. [^51] Tanguay, Cyprien. Dictionnaire Généalogique des Familles Canadiennes (Vol 1, p. 294).
52. [^52] Prévost 1993, p. 48.
53. [^53] Guérin 1980, p. 26.
54. [^54] Lemieux 2006, p. 147.
55. [^55] Sépulture (Burial) Mathurine Robin.
56. [^56] Sépulture (Burial) Jean Guyon.
57. [^57] perche-quebec.com.
58. [^58] BAnQ: Tanguay, Cyprien, Dictionnaire Généalogique des Familles Canadiennes (Vol 1, p. 294).
59. [^59] La Mémoire du Québec, Jean Guyon.
60. [^60] Fichier Mathurine Robin 2017.
61. [^61] BAnQ (PDF): L’Action Catholique de Québec, 30 Nov 1921.
62. [^62] Fichier origine 241993 Jean Guyon.
63. [^63] perche-quebec.com.

Key

Credits and Licensing

Compiled by Mark Rabideau, Opa & Professional Genealogist.

All materials licensed: CC BY-ND 4.0 by eirenicon llc.