Pierre Tremblay- Anne Ochan Marriage

Ozanne (Anne) Achon and Pierre Tremblay

Founders of a Canadian Dynasty

Origins and Early Life

Ozanne (Anne) Achon was baptized on July 18, 1633, in Notre-Dame, Chambon, Saintonge (Rochefort district, Charente-Maritime) in France. She was the daughter of Jean Achon and HélÚne Regnaud (also recorded as Regnault or Regourde). Her baptismal record notes that her godfather was André Martin and her godmother was Ozanne Achon.[1]

Meanwhile, Pierre Tremblay was born around 1626 in a place called La Filonniùre in the parish of Saint-Malo in Randonnai (canton of Tourouvre, district of Mortagne) in the Perche region of France. He was the son of Philibert Tremblay, a plowman, and Jeanne Coignet (or Cognet) known as “Le Breuil.” His parents had married on October 3, 1623, in the parish of Saint-Firmin in Normandel (canton of Tourouvre).[2]

Journey to New France

Pierre Tremblay signed an engagement contract on April 9, 1647, before notary François Choiseau in Tourouvre. In this contract, he committed to work in Canada for three years at a salary of 75 livres per year for NoĂ«l Juchereau. The contract specified that he would be provided with food and paid passage for the transatlantic voyage both ways.[3] He was part of a group of 20 pioneers from Perche who migrated to Canada in 1647, departing from La Rochelle on the ship “La Marguerite.”[4]

Ozanne Achon arrived in New France in 1657 at the age of 24 as one of the Filles Ă  Marier (marriageable girls), women who came to the colony with the intention of finding a husband among the settlers.

Marriage and Family Life

On September 19, 1657, Pierre Tremblay and Ozanne Achon signed a marriage contract before notary Claude Auber in Quebec. Neither of them could sign their names, so the document was marked with an “X”. They were married on October 2, 1657, at Notre-Dame de QuĂ©bec. The religious ceremony was performed by Gabriel de Queylus, with MassĂ© Gravel, Pierre Mauge, and Mathurin Giraud present as witnesses.[5]

Their marriage contract states:

“In the presence of Claude Auber, notary and registrar in the coast and Seigneury of Beaupre and undersigned witnesses here present in person, Pierre Tremblay, habitant of this country, son and heir of Philibert Tremblay and Jeanne Coignet, his father and mother, of the parish of Randonnai, at Perche, bishopric of Chartres, on the one side; and Ozanne Achon, daughter of Jean Achon and Helene Regnaude, of the parish of Puyravault, bishopric of LaRochelle, in Aunis, on the other side
”

The couple had twelve children:

  1. Marie Madeleine (born July 9, 1658, baptized July 22 in Quebec) – married Nicolas Roussin on November 25, 1675, in L’Ange-Gardien
  2. Anonymous child (born August 17, 1659, died August 25, 1659) – lived only 8 days
  3. Pierre (born August 10, 1660, baptized August 12 in Quebec) – married Marie Madeleine Simard on November 3, 1683, in Ste-Anne-de-BeauprĂ©; became seigneur of Les Éboulements
  4. Michel (born September 6, 1662, baptized September 10 in Quebec) – married GeneviĂšve Bouchard on June 20, 1686, in Baie-St-Paul
  5. Jacques (born June 18, 1664, baptized June 23 in ChĂąteau-Richer) – married Agathe Lacrois on November 5, 1696, in Ste-Anne-de-BeauprĂ©
  6. Marguerite (born October 2, 1665, baptized October 4 in ChĂąteau-Richer) – married Jean Savar on April 14, 1687, in L’Ange-Gardien; died 1694
  7. Louis (born September 29, 1667, baptized September 30 in ChĂąteau-Richer) – married Marie Peron on November 27, 1691, in L’Ange-Gardien
  8. Louise (born October 20, 1669, baptized October 21 in ChĂąteau-Richer) – married Ignace Gagnier on November 6, 1689, in L’Ange-Gardien; remarried to Antoine Buteau on May 3, 1716, in Baie-St-Paul
  9. Jeanne (born around 1672, aged 9 in the 1681 census) – married Antoine Peron on January 15, 1691, in L’Ange-Gardien; died 1711
  10. Marie Anne (born March 9, 1673, baptized March 19 in L’Ange-Gardien) – married Jean Payement dit Laforest on February 10, 1698, in L’Ange-Gardien
  11. Jean (born April 20, 1675, baptized April 21 in ChĂąteau-Richer) – drowned July 30, 1684, buried August 1 in Baie-St-Paul at age 9
  12. Marie DorothĂ©e (baptized April 27, 1677, in L’Ange-Gardien) – married François Pelletier on April 30, 1703, in L’Ange-Gardien[6]

Settlement and Land Acquisition

On April 4, 1659, Pierre Tremblay became the owner of a land concession (identified as Land 35 by historian GariĂ©py) in L’Ange-Gardien.[7] The family initially settled in the seigneury of BeauprĂ©.

In December 1678, Pierre took a five-year lease to manage the Quebec Seminary’s farm at Baie-Saint-Paul.[8] In 1684, following the drowning of their son Jean, the family was recorded as living in Baie-St-Paul. Later that same year, Pierre moved to live with his son Michel on land granted to Michel on October 12, 1685. The following day, his son Pierre also received a land concession at Petite-Riviùre-Saint-François.

Census Records

The family appears in several census records:

1666 Census of Beaupré: Pierre Tremblé, 40, habitant; Ozanne Achon, 33, his wife; Marie, 7; Pierre, 5; Michel, 3; Jacques, 20 months; Marguerite, 4 months.[9]

1667 Census of CÎte de Beaupré: Pierre Tremblé, 40; Anne (Ozanne) Achon, his wife, 35; Marie, 9; Pierre, 7; Michel, 5; Jacques, 3; Marguerite, 2; 2 livestock, 9 arpents of arable land.[9:1]

1681 Census of Seigneurie de Beaupré: Pierre Tramblay, 60; Anne Achon (Ozanne), his wife, 40; children: Pierre, 20; Michel, 18; Jacques, 16; Denis, 17; Marguerite, 15; Louise, 10; Jeanne, 9; Jean, 7; Marie, 5; Dorothée, 3; Martin, domestic servant, 63; 1 gun; 16 livestock; 10 arpents of arable land.[10]

Later Years and Death

Pierre Tremblay died between April 14, 1687 (the date of his daughter Marguerite’s marriage, where he was not listed as deceased) and November 6, 1689 (the date of his daughter Louise’s marriage, where he was listed as deceased).[11] Some historians suggest he may have been a victim of the severe epidemic that struck Forts Niagara and Cataraqui in the fall of 1688 and eventually spread throughout the colony.

After Pierre’s death, on May 14, 1701, Madeleine Tremblay, widow of Nicolas Roussin, renounced the succession of Anne Achon, widow of Pierre Tremblay, in a document drawn up by notary Étienne Jacob.[12]

Ozanne Achon was buried under the name Anne Tremblay on December 24, 1707, in the cemetery of Notre-Dame de Québec. The burial record states she was almost 80 years old.[13]

Legacy: The Tremblay Dynasty

Pierre and Ozanne are unique in Quebec genealogy in that virtually all people with the Tremblay surname in North America can trace their lineage back to this single couple. By 1729, they had 333 descendants.[14]

Today, there are approximately 100,000 Tremblays in North America. While the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region has the highest absolute number of Tremblays (more than 25,000 according to the 1989 census), the highest concentration is found in Charlevoix, particularly in Baie-Saint-Paul (where Tremblays make up 13% of the population) and Les Éboulements (where one-third of residents are Tremblays). More than half of North America’s Tremblays live in Canada, with approximately 15,000 in the Quebec City region and 25,000 in the Montreal region.[15]

Origin of the Name

The surname Tremblay (or Du Tremblay) refers to a place covered with aspen trees (trembles in French).[16] Similarly, Tremblaye refers to a wood planted with aspen trees.[17]

Sources

Additional Reading

  • Laforest, Thomas J. & LaRochelle, Jeffrey. Our French-Canadian Ancestors. vol. 3. Chapter 26, pp. 233-242.
  • Gendreau-HĂ©tu, Pierre (December 9, 2016). La lignĂ©e Tremblay, ou l’aventure nord-amĂ©ricaine d’une signature ADN, Le Devoir, Montreal
  • JettĂ©, RenĂ© (1983). Dictionnaire gĂ©nĂ©alogique des familles du QuĂ©bec. Des origines Ă  1730. Montreal, Les Presses de l’UniversitĂ© de MontrĂ©al
  • Lemieux, Louis-Guy (2006). Grandes Familles du QuĂ©bec. Sillery, Quebec: Septentrion
  • PRDH: Le Programme de recherche en dĂ©mographie historique (Pionnier: 71097 Pierre Tremblay)
  • Association des Tremblay d’AmĂ©rique

  1. Baptismal record, Fichier Origine database ↩

  2. Fichier Origine 243978 Pierre Tremblay 2023, FĂ©dĂ©ration quĂ©bĂ©coise des sociĂ©tĂ©s de gĂ©nĂ©alogie/QuĂ©bec Federation of Genealogical Societies ↩

  3. Montagne, F. (1965). Tourouvre et les Juchereau – Un chapitre de l’émigration percheronne au Canada, pp. 57-64 ↩

  4. Lecointre-Montagne, D. Les Passagers de “La Marguerite” en 1647, Cercle de Recherches GĂ©nĂ©alogiques du Perche-GouĂ«t ↩

  5. Marriage record, Drouin Collection, Quebec Vital and Church Records, 1621-1997 ↩

  6. Quebec Vital and Church Records (Drouin Collection), 1621-1997 ↩

  7. GariĂ©py, R. (1974). Les seigneuries de BeauprĂ© et de l’Ile d’OrlĂ©ans dans leurs dĂ©buts, p. 120, map between pp. 120 & 121, p. 259 ↩

  8. BAnQ Notarial acts index, Inventory of notaries’ records from the French regime, by Pierre Georges Roy and Antoine Roy ↩

  9. Wikisource: 1666-1667 Census according to Benjamin Sulte, Histoire des Canadiens-français, Volume 4, chapter 4 ↩ ↩

  10. Wikisource: 1681 Census according to Benjamin Sulte, Histoire des Canadiens-français, Volume 5, chapter 4 ↩

  11. Quebec Vital and Church Records (Drouin Collection), 1621-1997 ↩

  12. BAnQ Notarial acts index, Inventory of notaries’ records from the French regime, by Pierre Georges Roy and Antoine Roy, Vol VII p. 242 ↩

  13. Burial record, Drouin Collection, Quebec Vital and Church Records, 1621-1997 ↩

  14. La MĂ©moire du QuĂ©bec, Pierre Tremblay ↩

  15. Les noms de famille au QuĂ©bec aspects statistiques et distribution spatiale, Quebec: Institut de la statistique du QuĂ©bec ↩

  16. Dionne, N-E. (1914). Les Canadiens-français: origine des familles Ă©migrĂ©es de France, d’Espagne, de Suisse, etc., p. 252 ↩

  17. Dionne, N-E. (1914). Les Canadiens-français: origine des familles Ă©migrĂ©es de France, d’Espagne, de Suisse, etc., p. 577 ↩

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