Abraham Turgeon (February 14, 1783 – August 2, 1851) was a

notary A notary is a person authorised to perform acts in legal affairs, in particular witnessing signatures on documents. The form that the notarial profession takes varies with local legal systems. A notary, while a legal professional, is distin ...

and political figure in

Canada East Canada East () was the northeastern portion of the Province of Canada. Lord Durham's Report investigating the causes of the Upper and Lower Canada Rebellions recommended merging those two colonies. The new colony, known as the Province of ...

. He served as an officer in the Lower Canada militia in the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

, was a justice of the peace, and held other civil positions. He represented Bellechasse in the

Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada The Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada was the lower house of the Parliament of the Province of Canada. The Province of Canada consisted of the former province of Lower Canada, then known as Canada East (now Quebec), and Upper Canada ...

from 1842 to 1844, as a member of the French-Canadian Group. Turgeon was born in Saint-Michel, Bellechasse County, in the old

Province of Quebec Quebec is Canada's largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, New Brunswick to the southeast and a coastal border ...

. He was the son of François Turgeon and Geneviève Bauché. His sister Geneviève married their cousin Louis Turgeon, a

, who was elected three times to the

Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada The Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada was the lower house of the bicameral structure of provincial government in Lower Canada until 1838. The legislative assembly was created by the Constitutional Act of 1791. The lower house consisted of e ...

, and then was appointed to the

Legislative Council A legislative council is the legislature, or one of the legislative chambers, of a nation, colony, or subnational division such as a province or state. It was commonly used to label unicameral or upper house legislative bodies in the Brit ...

. Abraham apprenticed as a notary with Louis Turgeon, qualified to practise in 1804 and set up his practice in Saint-Gervais. In 1819, he married Monique Goulet. He served in the militia during the

, as a captain and adjutant in the Saint-Vallier division. He later reached the rank of lieutenant-colonel, commanding the 3rd battalion of the Bellechasse militia. In 1814, Turgeon was named a justice of the peace. He was appointed commissioner for roads in Hertford County in 1817. In 1825, he was named the census commissioner for Hertford County. Turgeon was elected to the assembly in an 1842 by-election held after Augustin-Guillaume Ruel accepted an appointment as district registrar. Turgeon was a supporter of

Louis-Hippolyte LaFontaine Sir Louis-Hippolyte Ménard '' dit'' La Fontaine, 1st Baronet, KCMG (October 4, 1807 – February 26, 1864) was a Canadian politician who served as the first Premier of the United Province of Canada and the first head of a responsible governme ...

and was part of the French-Canadian Group in the Assembly. He did not stand for re-election in 1844.Paul Cornell,
''Alignment of Political Groups in Canada, 1841–67''
(Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1962; reprinted in paperback 2015), pp. 9, 95–97. Turgeon died in Saint-Michel at the age of 68. He was buried from the parish church.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Turgeon, Abraham 1783 births 1851 deaths Canadian justices of the peace Canadian Militia officers Canadian people of the War of 1812 Lawyers in Lower Canada and Canada East Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada from Canada East People from Chaudière-Appalaches