François Girouard (abt. 1621 - abt. 1693)

Born about 1621 in France

Husband of Jeanne Aucoin — married about 1647 in Acadie, Nouvelle-France

Descendants

Died about 1693 at about age 72 in Port-Royal, Acadie, Nouvelle-France

Problems/Questions Profile managers: Acadians Project WikiTree [send private message], Roland Arsenault [send private message], Jacqueline Girouard [send private message], and Annette Cormier [send private message]

François Girouard is an Acadian. Join: Acadians Project Discuss: ACADIA

Biography

NOTICE: This profile is protected by the Acadian Project because of frequent duplication, variant name spellings and attempts to add unsourced parents. Please contact the Acadian Project before making any substantive changes. Thanks for helping make WikiTree the best site for accurate information.

François Girouard migrated from France to Acadia.

François GIROUARD dit La Varanne was born in France around 1621 in a location unknown to us, but some assume La Chaussée in the present day département of la Vienne (ancient province of Poitou).^[1] However, there isn't any reliable source yet found to prove this claim.

François arrived in Acadie around 1640.

François (25) married Jeanne Aucoin (16) (born about 26 Nov 1630 in Cougnes, La Rochelle, Aunis, France; daughter of Martin Aucoin and Barbe Minguet) and sister of Michelle Aucoin (married to Michel Boudrot) in 1647 in Acadie, Nouvelle-France.^[2] Their known children were:

1. Jacques Girouard (abt. 1648–1703) .
2. Marie Girouard (abt. 1650–aft. 1714) .
3. Marie Madeleine Girouard (abt. 1654–aft. 1714) .
4. Germain Girouard (1657–bef. 1693) .
5. Anne Charlotte Girouard (abt. 1660–1742)

According to the 1767 depositions of their descendants, Jeanne came to Acadia with her husband, François, but it's unclear if that means they were already married when they came.^[3] He arrived in Acadie with d'Aulnay de Charnisay aboard the St. Jehan, as shown on the La Rochelle Admiralty Records. (needs clarification, he is not on the ship list of 1636 posted here Please post a source if one is available. NOTE: I could not find any other ship lists from that era.

Between about 1648 and 1660, the couple had five children: Jacques (dit Jacob), Marie, Marie-Madeleine, Germain, and Anne (Anne-Charlotte). ^[4]

Around the time of their daughter Marie-Madeleine's birth (1654), Port-Royal was captured by Robert Sedgwick, who led 300 British soldiers and volunteers.^[5] Although the commander of Port Royal left for France, most Acadians, including the Girouards remained in Acadia. They were permitted to retain their land and belongings, and they were guaranteed religious freedom. Dunn^[5] describes life in Acadia during the 16 years of nominal British rule:

"During the years of British rule, most of the Port-Royal population moved upriver away from the town. Using the agricultural practices initiated under D'Aulnay, the Acadians dyked and cultivated extensive salt marshes along the river and raised livestock. Through necessity, residents had reached an accommodation with New England traders who had become their sole source for the goods that they could not produce themselves... New England traders exchanged their goods for Acadian produce and furs... There were seventy to eighty families in the Port-Royal area in 1665."

When their youngest child Anne was 7 years old (1667), the British had ceded Acadie to France and French settlement resumed.^[6]

At the time of the first Acadian census in 1671, fifty-year-old François, listed as a plowman (laboureur), and forty-year-old Jeanne were living with their 5 children. Six arpents of their land were cultivated, and they had 16 cattle, 6 sheep.^[7] By 1678, their farmland had increased to 15 arpents and they owned 18 head of cattle. ^[8]

In 1686, at Port Royal, Francois GIROUARD, aged 70, was living with his wife, Jeanne AUCOIN, aged 55. They owned 1 gun and were living on 5 arpents of cultivable land with 13 cattle, 16 sheep and 8 hogs. Their daughter and 4 grandchildren were listed in the next entry: Charlotte GIROUARD, aged 26, an adult married to Julien LORD, aged 33; children: Alexandre, aged 10, Jacques, aged 8, Pierre, aged 5 and Marie, aged 1.^[9]

The family homestead was located about 15 km east of the Fort on the south shore of the Dauphin (Anapolis) River near present-day Tupperville, Nova Scotia.^[10][11]

François died before the census of 1693. ^{[4] [12]}

Timeline

c1621 birth, in France

1632 Treaty Saint-Germain-en-Laye cedes Acadia to France; Razilly brings ~300 elite men^[13]

1636 D'Aulnay brings the first French families to settle permanently^[14]

c1640 Arrival in Acadia

c1647 marriage to Jeanne Aucoin

c1648 birth, son Jacques (dit Jacob)

c1650 birth, daughter Marie

c1654 birth, daughter Marie-Madeleine

1654 British capture Port-Royal; French settlement ceases^[15]

c1656 birth, son Germain

c1660 birth, son Anne (Anne-Charlotte)

1667-70 Treaty of Breda cedes Acadia to the French; settlement resumes^[16]

b1693 death

Biographie

"Les Girouard en Acadie ont pour ancêtre François, né en France vers 1621, qui arriva ici vers 1640. François épousa vers 1647 Jeanne Aucoin, de qui il eut cinq enfants, dont Jacques (ou Jacob), né vers 1648."^[4]

Research Notes

Parentage In some trees François' parents are listed as François Girouard and Geraldine Marie Vienneau. Stephen White does not list them in his DGFA nor in the corrections. Until we have proof or a strongly substantiated theory, we will not enter parents on his profile.

Aboard the Saint Jehan:

This information is posted in his biography and is questionable. Please post anything that verifies he came with Aulnay on the Saint Jehan. Thanks!

"with d'Aulnay de Charnisay aboard the St. Jehan, shown on the La Rochelle Admiralty Records. (needs clarification, he is not on the ship list of 1636 posted here. Please post a source if one is available. NOTE: Could not find any other ship lists from that era."

Sources

1. ↑ Karen Theriot Reader François dit la Varanne at Geneanet citing:
   

   • Arsenault, H&G, p. 567 (Port Royal) : "Spelled GIROUARD, but under variants also listed GIROIR. Born in 1621, doubtlessly originally from La Chausse'e, department of Vienne in the Loudun region of France (footnote cites Massignon). He arrived in Acadia around 1640, married around 1647."

2. ↑ Stephen A. White, La généalogie des trente-sept familles hôtesses des Retrouvailles 94, online articles, Les Cahiers de la Société historique acadienne, vol. 25, nos 2 et 3 (1994), GIROUARD, page 1
3. ↑ Stephen A. White, Origins of the Pioneers of Acadia. According to the Depositions Made by Their Descendants at Belle- Ile-en-Mer in 1767

   Stephen White] "GIROUARD dit LA VARANNE, François, came from France with his wife Jeanne Aucoin, according to two depositions, one made by his great-grandson Pierre Richard (Doc. in?d., Vol. II, p. 191), and another made by Louis Courtin, husband of his great-great-granddaughter Marie-Joséphe Martin (ibid., Vol. III, p. 27). Both of these depositions erroneously call the Girouard ancestor Jacques instead of François, probably because the deponents presumed that he had borne the same first name as his elder son, to whom they were both connected. François is the name that one finds, however, in three Acadian censuses and in his younger son's marriage record in the register of Beaubassin (see DGFA-1, pp. 718-719).

4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2} Stephen A. White, Patrice Gallant, Hector-J. Hébert, Dictionnaire Généalogique des Familles Acadiennes (Moncton, N.-B.: Centre D'études Acadiennes, Université De Moncton, 1999) p.718-719
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1} Dunn, Brenda. A History of Port Royal/Annapolis Royal, 1605-1800. Halifax, N.S. : Nimbus Pub., 2004. 286 p
   

   • Pages 23-24 : (1654 Capture of Port-Royal)
   • Pages 25-27;29 : (the English period 1654-1670)

6. ↑ In collaboration, “MORILLON DU BOURG,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 1, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed November 20, 2013
7. ↑ Tim Hebert; Transcription of the 1671 Acadian Census, at Port-Royal, Acadie. 1671 Census Transcribed. The original census can be found at Census microfilm C-2572 of the National Archives of Canada “Acadie Recensements 1671 – 1752,” Images 3-14.

   (Note: There were discrepancies between the transcription and the original census. Transcription: 12 sheep, no land listed. Original census and DGFA : 6 sheep, 8 arpents of land.) Francois GIROUARD, 50, wife Jeanne AUCOIN 40; children (3 married): Jacob 23, Marie 20, Marie Magdeleine 17, (not married): Germain 14, Anne 12; cattle 16, sheep 12.

8. ↑ Tim Hebert; 1678 Port Royal Acadian Census noting that the correlations for this census were done by Rev. Clarence J. d'Entremont, Fairhaven, Massachusetts.1678 Census

   at Port-Royal : Francois Girouer & Jeanne Aucoin; 15 acres, 18 head of cattle; Germain Girouer 22 (1657)

9. ↑ Tim Hebert; Transcription of the 1686 Acadian Census, at Port-Royal, Acadie 1686 Census Transcribed. The original census can be found at Acadian Census microfilm C-2572 of the National Archives of Canada “Acadie Recensements 1671 – 1752,” Images 15-60;

   at Port Royal: Francoise GIROUARD 70, Jeanne 55; they had 5 children whom this census shows below; 1 gun, 5 arpents, 13 cattle, 16 sheep, 8 hogs. In the original 1686 census at Port Royal, Francois was listed as Francois but transcribed as Francoise.

10. ↑ 1707 homestead location of their son, Jacques Girouard. In Au Coeur de l'Acadie Acadian Settlement on the Annapolis River, 1707 Map Parks Canada
11. ↑ Circa 1609 Map of Port Royal showing rivière du Dauphin. Map originally published in Canada: the Empire of the North by Agnes C. Laut
12. ↑ Tim Hebert; Transcription of the 1693 Acadian Census, at Port-Royal, Acadie 1693 Census Transcribed. The original census can be found at Acadian Census microfilm C-2572 of the National Archives of Canada “Acadie Recensements 1671 – 1752,” Images 62-108;

    at Port-Royal: Jean AUCOIN (widow of Francois GIROUARD) 60, Julien LORD (son-in-law) 41, Charlotte GIROUD (wife) 33, Alexandre 17, Jacques 14, Pierre 12, Marie 6, Madeleine 1; 20 cattle, 40 sheep, 10 pigs, 20 arpents, 2 guns

13. ↑ George MacBeath, Biography – RAZILLY, ISAAC DE – Volume I (1000-1700) – Dictionary of Canadian Biography Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed November 20
14. ↑ Geneviève Massignon, Les parlers français d'Acadie, enquête linguistique (Paris: Librairie Klincksieck, 1962)
    

    • Page 32 : first French families in Acadia
    • Pages 36,67 : Girouard family

15. ↑ William I. Roberts, 3rd, “SEDGWICK, ROBERT,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 1, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed November 20, 2013
16. ↑ In collaboration, “MORILLON DU BOURG,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 1, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed November 20, 2013

See also:

• The Genealogy of the Thirty-seven Host Families of Homecoming 94
• http://www.francogene.com/genealogie-quebec-genealogy/085/085527.php
• https://dna-explained.com/2024/02/12/francois-dit-lavaranne-girouard-1616-1621-1686-1690-guns-farms-dikes-pioneering-acadia/
• FamilySearch