Dollier de Casson, Francois

Dollier de Casson, Francois

Dollier would arrive in Ville-Marie in autumn of 1666 weak from a poor bloodletting surgery. Despite this, he would go to help garrisoned soldiers stationed at Fort Sainte-Anne who were suffering from scurvy. He would be sent to Trois-Riviere but returned to Montreal in the summer of 1667. He would then begin the learn the Nissiping Algonkian language. Through his time with this Tribe, Dollier learned of the chief’s slave boy from a southern tribe. This led to the possibility to evangelize the Ottawa Tribe. He did get permission from the religious authorities in Quebec, where his mission led him as far as modern-day Hamilton. During his missionary work in the Great Lakes region, a war between the Algonkian and Iroquois began, but Dollier would help resolve the conflict. Dollier would return to Montreal in 1672, which had tripled in population. Dollier would become the first historian of Montreal through his Histoire de Montreal. Dollier would protect the church rights in Montreal, as seen through his protest when the governor of Montreal imprisoned a priest. He returned to France in 1676 but returned to Montreal in 1678. Dollier was well-liked and would often bring people together. Saint Vallier trusted Dollier very much and made him vicar-general. When he went back to France, Saint Vallier asked the vicar general of Quebec to get in touch with Dollier if the need arose. In his final years, Dollier would use his wealth to invest in the Lachine Channel, which he would not see finished, and the project would be abandoned shortly after his death in 1701.

Started 7 September 1666 Ended 27 September 1701

Person

Sulpicians, in Ville-Marie (Montreal), New France

Mathieu, J. (1982). Dollier de Casson, Francois. Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Vol 2. Univesity of Toronto/Universtie de Laval. retrieved from https://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/dollier_de_casson_francois_2E.html

1636

chateau of Casson-sur-l'Erdre, in the diocese of Nantes, Lower Brittany

1701

Montreal, New France

cavalry captain, Sulpician, military chaplain, explorer, Superior of the Sulpicians of New France, seigneur of Montreal Island, parish priest of Trois Riviere, then of Ville-Marie (Montreal), vicar general of the diocese of Quebec, architect, historian

French, Algonkian language: Nipissing

Dollier was born at the chateau of Casson-sur-l’Erdre, near Nantes, in the year 1636. He had two sisters and would begin his adult life in the military to uphold his knightly and martial ancestry. After three years in the military, Dollier would join the Sulpicians to continue his studies and become a priest. He would be chosen to be sent to the New World, an action in which he describes himself as a victim. He would gain high religious positions within New France and periodically return to France. He died on September 27th, 1701

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

Jarod Kernaghan