Langelier, Jacques (trader in furs, settler, and a donné of the Society of Jesus in Ottawa, New France; Explorer)

Langelier, Jacques (trader in furs, settler, and a donné of the Society of Jesus in Ottawa, New France; Explorer)

He initially journeyed "to the Ottawas" after signing a contract with Adrien Jolliet and Denis Guyon. He then travelled back a few years later, again with several other partners with the goal to partake in a trade with the “Indians” (Indigenous peoples) for fur as he was very skilled at the trade. Fur trading with Indigenous peoples was very common in this era as the fur trade began at the beginning of the 1600s and it was a way for citizens to trade various resources throughout the regions and build connections. About 3 years later, he returned to Quebec around the time his father passed with rich cargos of fur from his trades in Ottawa.

1666-1672

Person

Ottawa

AJQ, Greffe de Romain Becquet, 30 juillet 1675; Greffe de Pierre Duquet, 17 mars 1673; Greffe de Gilles Rageot, 1 oct. 1672, 19 oct. 1675. ASJCF, Fonds Rochemonteix, 4025, 10; 4026. JR (Thwaites), LXIV, LXVI, LIX, LXXI. Jug. et délib., I. 864. N. M. Belting, Kaskaskia under the French régime (University of Illinois studies in the social sciences, XXIX, no.3, Urbana, 1948). Sister Mary Borgias Palm, Jesuit Missions of the Illinois Country, 1673–1763 (n.p., 1933). Raymond Douville, “Jacques Largillier dit ‘le castor,’ coureur des bois et ‘frère donné’,” Cahiers des Dix, XXIX (1964), 47–63.

1644

Picardy, France

1714

Kaskaskia, in the Illinois country

Fur trader; settler; a donné of the Society of Jesus in Ottawa, New France; explorer

English; French

He was a companion of Father Jacques Marquette and his religious affiliation with Roman Catholicism. He journeyed quite often around New France. First, he travelled from Picardy to Quebec with his uncle, then to Ottawa, following with Sault Ste Marie to explore the copper mines in the community and help with the territory becoming possessed by his acquaintance. He then journeyed back to Ottawa to trade fur with Indigenous peoples. Next, Jacques left on an expedition to Mississippi, then travelled back to Illinois county with his father. Once those missions were completed, he trekked back to Quebec with the rich fur he collected and traded and then finished his life back in the Illinois country on a mission. He was not described as a missionary himself, however, he assisted many missionaries on their trips and was known and praised for his uniting devotion on missions. As he was a very skilled fur trader, he was given the nickname "Le Castor" by those around him.

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Unable to find portrait

Conflict and Change in Early Canadian History (Carleton HIST 1301)

Emma Weller