Zacharie Cloustier & Sainte (Xainte) Dupont

Zacharie Cloustier (c.1590 – 1677)

Zacharie Cloustier was the lord of la Clousterie.[1][2][3][4][5]

Birth and Family Background

• Birth: Born in France around 1590, the son of Denis Cloustier and Renée Brière.[6][7][8][9] One source suggests his birth was on February 2, 1589, in St. Jean, Perche, France.[10]
• Origin: He originated from the parish of Saint-Jean de Mortagne, located in the diocese of Sées in the former province of Perche.[6][7][8][9]
• Family Tension: Following his mother, Renée Brière's, death (May 1, 1608) and his father's remarriage to Jeanne Rahir-Gaultier (November 3, 1608), family tension arose. On March 2, 1633, a notary recorded Zacharie Cloutier, as the eldest son, promising to help settle claims against his stepmother, Jeanne Gaultier, on behalf of the heirs of Renée Brière.[10]

Marriage

On July 18, 1616, in the church of Saint-Jean in Mortagne, Zacharie Cloustier, aged 25, married Sainte Dupont, aged about 20.[11] She was the daughter of Paul-Michel DuPont and Perrine Roussseau (uncertain).[12][6][7][13]

The concise record of their marriage reads:

“On the eighteenth day of the said month and year of July one thousand six hundred and sixteen, Zacarie Cloustier and Saincte Dupont were married.”[11]

Children

Zacharie Cloustier and Sainte Dupont had the following children:

• Zacharie (1617 – 1708); married to Madelaine Esmard in 1640
• Jean (1620 – 1690); married to Marie Martin in 1648
• Xainte (1622 – 1632)
• Anne (1626 – 1648); married to Robert Drouin in 163?
• Charles (1629 – 1709); married to Louise Morin in 1659
• Louise (1632 – 1699); married to François Marguerie in 1645, to Jean Mignot in 1648, to Jean Mataut in 1684

Migration to New France

• First Attempt (1619): Zacharie and his father, Denis, were on the passenger list of 80 colonists who arrived at Tadoussac on July 7, 1619, aboard the St. Etienne, but they did not remain in Quebec long.[10]
• Contract with Robert Giffard (1634): Seeking a better life and avoiding potential military service, Zacharie signed a three-year contract on March 14, 1634, in Mortagne with Robert Giffard (Seigneur of Beauport).[14]
  • As a master carpenter, Zacharie and his son would receive half of the cleared lands, be fed and maintained (along with other family members), receive 2 cows, have a house built at Giffard's expense, receive a grant in fief (La Clousterie—1000 arpents), and have the right to trade furs.[14]
• Arrival: Zacharie Cloustier Jr. migrated with his father in 1634, landing in Quebec on June 4, 1634.[14][15]
• Family Joined: The rest of the family—his wife Sainte Dupont and four children (Louise, Charles, Anne, and Jean)—joined them in Canada in 1635 or 1636.[16][4][15]

Life in New France

• Dispute with Giffard: In 1637, after the contract ended, Zacharie Sr. and Jean Guyon (another engaged master craftsman) refused to render faith and homage to Robert Giffard, arguing their lands were assigned as a fief, not a censive (which would require the homage). The dispute dragged on until 1646, when Governor Charles Huault de Montmagny ruled in favor of Giffard.[17][18][19][20]
• Census Records (Beaupré):
  • 1666: Zacharie Cloustier, father, 76, inhabitant; Xainte Dupont, 70, his wife.[21]
  • 1667: Zacharie Cloustier, 77; Xainte du Pont, his wife; 2 livestock.[22]
• Family Agreement: On January 19, 1668, Zacharie and Xainte signed an agreement and transaction with their children (Jean, Charles, and Louise's husband Jean Mignault Sr.) and grandchildren.[23][24]
• Sale of La Cloutière: Zacharie Sr. sold the fief of La Cloutière to Nicolas Dupont de Neuville on December 20, 1670.[25]

Death

At the age of 87, Zacharie Cloustier died and was buried in Château-Richer on November 18, 1677, the burial taking place in the cemetery of the church of Notre Dame de La Visitation.[26]

Notes

• Origin of Name: Cloustier / Cloutier is an occupational name designating one who manufactures and sells nails (clou).[27]
• Legacy: Zacharie Cloutier is "probably, still today, the French settler with the most descendants" in North America, with 2,090 descendants counted in 1729.[28][29]

Sainte (Xainte) DUPONT (1596 – 1680)

Biographical Details

• Birth: Born around 1596 in France, daughter of Paul-Michel Dupont and Perrine ?.[1][3][4][6][11]
• Origin: She originated from the parish of Saint-Jean de Mortagne, diocese of Séez, province of Perche.[1][3][4][6][11]

Marriages

• First Marriage: On February 26, 1612, in the parish of Saint-Jean in Mortagne au Perche, Sainte Dupont, aged about 16, married Michel Lermusier. The husband died not long after the wedding, and they had no known children.[12][3]
• Second Marriage: On July 18, 1616, Sainte Dupont, aged about 20, married Zacharie Cloutier in the church of Saint-Jean de Mortagne.[1][2][13][14]

Migration to New France

She migrated to Canada in 1635 to join her husband and eldest son, who had arrived in 1634.[16][17][18] She brought four children with her: Louise, Charles, Anne, and Jean.[16][18]

Life in New France

Sainte Dupont and her husband Zacharie Cloutier lived in the Beaupré area. They appear in the enumerations for Beaupré in the 1666 and 1667 censuses:

• 1666: Zacharie Cloutier, father, 76, inhabitant; Xainte Dupont, 70, his wife.[21]
• 1667: Zacharie Cloustier, 77; Xainte du Pont, his wife; 2 livestock.[22]

Death

On July 14, 1680, aged 84 (the record states 97), Sainte du Pont died and was buried the following day, July 15, in Château-Richer.[26]

• Legacy: She had 2,090 descendants in 1729, and at the beginning of the 21st century, she had approximately 85,500 descendants.[29][30]

Sources

1. [1], [6], [7], [8], [9], [11], [13] Fichier Origine 240944: Zacharie Cloutier (Cloustier); Fichier Origine 241403: Sainte Dupont, n. vers 1596. PRDH: Le Programme de recherche en démographie historique (free): Pionnier: 39453 (Date & place of birth according to PRDH: Date – c. 1590. Place – St-Jean, Mortagne, Diocese of Sees, Perche (ar. Mortagne, Orne)); PRDH Individu 39454: Sainte Dupont, n. vers 1595.
2. [2], [7], [13] Tanguay, vol. 1, p. 132: Zacharie Cloutier; perche-quebec.com: Xainte ou Sainte Dupont, n. vers 1595.
3. [3], [4], [8] Carpin 1999, Annexe D, p. 571; Généalogie Québec 3048: Sainte Dupont, n. vers 1596.
4. [4] Numéroté #1 dans la liste de Carpin et dans la liste qu’on peut voir à la page Percheron Immigration Category.
5. [5] La Mémoire du Québec: Sainte Dupont.
6. [10] Clouthier, Raoul 2003, Les CLOUTIER de Mortagne-au-Perche en France et leurs descendants au Canada, pages 20 et suite.
7. [11], [12] Mariage / Marriage – Zacharie Cloustier & Sainte Dupont, Archives du département de l’Orne, registres paroissiaux de la commune de Mortagne-Au-Perche, Saint-Jean et Saint-Malo (page 198, 3ème sur la droite). Prévost (1993), p. I-48, cité par Généalogie Québec: « Cette dernière était veuve de Michel Lermusier, originaire de Feing, un bourg du Perche. »
8. [15], [16] Lesperance 2002 citant Jetté 1983, p. 259: “CLOUTIER, Zacharie (Carpenter) with wife Sainte DUPONT and children Zacharie, Jean, Anne, Charles, & Louise departed Mortagne 1634.”; Généalogie Québec 3048; Kyber Les Cloutier de Mortagne-au-Perche page 20.
9. [17], [18] Provost 1966/2015: « Depuis au moins l’année précédente, leurs familles les avaient rejoints au Canada puisque les deux ménages figurent au contrat de mariage de Robert Drouin et d’Anne Cloutier, le 27 juillet 1636. »; Provost (1986, 1986); Carpin 1999, Annexe D, p. 571: Selon Carpin, l’année du départ est assurée.
10. [19] Provost 1966/2015.
11. [20] Tremblay, Jomphe & Vézina 2009.
12. [21] Senécal, Recensement de 1666.
13. [22] Senécal, Recensement de 1667.
14. [23], [24] 1668 Accord familial, Roy, Pierre-Georges, Inventaire des greffes des notaires du Régime français, 1942, V2P102); 1668 Accord familial Dossier, Family Search, Canada, Québec, Québec – Notarial records, Actes de notaire, 1660-1688, Film # 008125037, Image 1700/2056.
15. [25], [26] Sépulture / Burial Sainte du Pont; Sépulture / Burial Zacharie Cloustier FamilySearch.
16. [27] Cloutier (Origin of the name).
17. [28] Duchesne 2006, p. 14, citant Charbonneau 1997, p. 52.
18. [29] La Mémoire du Québec.
19. [30] Additional information from the second part of the original document.

Historical Geography

• Mortagne is today known as the French commune of Mortagne-au-Perche (INSEE 61016) located in the arrondissement of Mortagne-au-Perche in the department of Orne in the Normandy region.

Credits and Licensing

Compiled by Mark Rabideau, Opa & Professional Genealogist.

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