Defeat Of Iroquois By Champlain This media file is in the public domain in the United States. This applies to U.S. works where the copyright has expired, often because its first publication occurred prior to January 1, 1930, and if not then due to lack of notice or renewal. See this page for further explanation.

Compagnie de la Nouvelle France

Key Actors & the Types of Individuals Involved

The 100 Associates Company was not just about investors but also included settlers, soldiers, and clergy.

  • Investors/Backers: Individuals who were shareholders or backers in the Company of New France.
  • Governors and Officers: These figures would have been part of the initial governance of the colony.
  • Settlers/Colonists: Many of these early settlers were organized through the company and would have been involved in founding the first permanent settlements.
  • Missionaries and Clergy: Missionaries like Jean de Brébeuf were very involved in the establishment of the colony and its relationships with Indigenous peoples.
  • Soldiers and Navigators: Many military figures also played a significant role in the protection and expansion of French influence.
Plans des forts faicts par le Regiment Carignan salieres sur la Riviere de Richelieu dicte autrement des Iroquois en la Nouvelle france.

Plans des forts faicts par le Regiment Carignan salieres sur la Riviere de Richelieu dicte autrement des Iroquois en la Nouvelle france. No known restrictions on use. No known copyright restrictions.


What follows are a list of Key Individuals and Roles involved in the establishment of New France – Nouvelle France. You will find detailed information, footnotes and source lists. Hopefully, you will find the materials useful.

The Builders of New France

If you visit my research link The Builders of New France, you will get an idea of how I have categorized our information. Suffice it to say there were many roles and assignments that needed to be done in France’s new world colonies. Feel free to group yours in a way that makes sense to you.

Additional Internet Resources

To conduct further work you may wish to examine:

Primary Resources

Some primary sources that will be invaluable in your family research include:

  • Company records: These might include shareholder lists, records of land grants, and settlement documents.
  • Letters and Journals: Many of the early French settlers and explorers kept detailed journals. These can often be found in archives or in translated collections.
  • Colonial Archives: The Archives nationales d’Outre-Mer in France might contain original records, as well as Canadian provincial archives.

Secondary Sources and Scholarly Works

There are several well-researched books and articles on the topic, which would give you detailed narratives and background info on the early members of the company:

Collaborate with Existing Resources

Collaborating with other historians or genealogists working on early French settlers could be valuable. Since you’re already involved in genealogical research, this might be an area where you could extend your own work by tracing family lines of early settlers and providing that data in a user-friendly format.

Online Databases and Tools

Creating or contributing to an online database that maps these early figures, with cross-references to historical events and documents, could be extremely helpful for modern-day researchers. You could use a platform like Archive.org, Genealogy websites, or use our dedicated section on ManyRoads for these early figures (We have information on people within our family, but that’s quite a number! Hopefully our example will provide you with a good resource on how-to conduct your own research.).

Known Settler/Colonist Lists

Some of the earliest lists of settlers and colonists in New France come from various church records, ship manifestos, and early colonial archives. Here are some links to research I have been conducting for our family.

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