Pierre Foretier (January 12, 1738 – December 3, 1815) was a

fur trade The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of a world fur market in the early modern period, furs of boreal ecosystem, boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals h ...

seigneur A seigneur () or lord is an originally feudal title in France before the Revolution, in New France and British North America until 1854, and in the Channel Islands to this day. The seigneur owned a seigneurie, seigneury, or lordship—a form of ...

and official in

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada () was a British colonization of the Americas, British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence established in 1791 and abolished in 1841. It covered the southern portion o ...

. He was born in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

in 1738, the son of a shoemaker who died when Pierre was nine. He became a merchant supplying goods to fur traders. In 1764, he married Thérèse Legrand, daughter of a Montreal merchant. He owned his own store and operated a store for his father-in-law. He partnered with Joseph Périnault in several fur trading expeditions. In 1765, with Périnault, he purchased a large part of the sub-fief of Closse and the seigneury of Île-Bizard, later buying out his partner and purchasing the remainder of these properties. After 1767, he operated on his own before taking on Jean Orillat as a partner in 1774. Foretier also purchased property in the faubourg Saint-Laurent in Montreal. During the

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

invasion of 1775–6, he helped supply Canadian forces, despite having his home occupied by an American colonel and his entourage. He was named a justice of the peace in 1779. Foretier was among those who lobbied for constitutional reform in the province; he ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the legislative assembly in 1792. Foretier later served in the militia, serving as colonel from 1804 until his death at Montreal in 1815. His daughter Marie-Amable married

Denis-Benjamin Viger Denis-Benjamin Viger (; August 19, 1774 – February 13, 1861) was a 19th-century politician, lawyer, and newspaper publisher in Lower Canada, who served as joint premier of the Province of Canada for over two years. A leader in the Patri ...

; his daughter Marie-Élizabeth married judge Louis-Charles Foucher. His grandson

Hugues Heney Hugues Heney (September 9, 1789 – January 13, 1844) was a lawyer and political figure in Lower Canada. He was born in Montreal in 1789, the grandson of Pierre Foretier, and studied at the Collège Saint-Raphaël. Heney articled with Jos ...

later represented Montreal East in the legislative assembly and served in the province's Executive Council.

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Foretier, Pierre 1738 births 1815 deaths Canadian fur traders