Nicolas Perrot

   Another name for Nicolas was Jean-Baptiste-Nicolas Perrot.

  General Notes:

Nicolas Perrot immigrated to New France as a boy, and in his work with Jesuit missionaries learned certain Indian tongues. Entering the fur trade about 1663, he came to know Indians and their ways in the country of the upper Mississippi River, and four years later he was a member of one of the first French trading parties to Indians around Green Bay. In 1670, he went to the upper Mississippi region as interpreter for an expedition sent to take the area for France. In 1684, he and Daniel Greysolon, Sieur Duluth, won the alliance of the western Indians in French operations against the Iroquois. The following year Perrot was appointed by the governor of New France as commandant of the area around Green Bay. Here, in 1686, Perrot opened trade with the Sioux and other tribes. On May 8, 1689, he made formal claim for France to the upper Mississippi country. When trading licenses were withdrawn (1696), Perrot returned to Lower Canada, where he worked from time to time as an indian intrepreter. Most of his writings were lost, but Memoire sure les moeurs, coutumes et religion des sauvages de l'Amerique septentrionale was published in a special edition in 1864. [source: Encyclopedia Americana, 1966]

Nicolas Perrot was in Canada as early as 1660, when he could be found as a donné of the Jesuits until 1663. In the 1666 census of Québec, Nicolas was the servant of Jacques Testard's widow at Montréal, where he can be found in the next year's census as the servant of the Sulpicians. He married Madeleine Raclos in 1671 and began a large family. Nicolas became a renowned explorer, interpreter and fur trader. He was commander at Green Bay for the Pays d'en Haut from 1684 to 1695 and enlisted fur traders for this region from 14 May 1688 to 21 Aug 1691. Nicolas wrote memoirs of his exploits in the West, published in 1864 in Paris as Mémoires sur les moeurs des Sauvages de l'Amériques Septentrionale. In 1687, he was called upon by Governor Denonville to use his influence with the natives to rally an army from the French-allied tribes to fight the Iroquois at Lake Ontario. Nicolas was back in Québec City in the fall of 1687, when he met with cartographer Jean-Baptiste Franquelin to give him an account of the area of the Mississippi that he visited. Franquelin's map of 1688 is based in large part on Nicolas' information. During his 18 months in the west, Nicolas amassed 40,000 francs worth of pelts (worth about $570,000 in the year 2000), which he left at the Jesuits' barn at Green Bay before heading off to fight the Iroquois. However, later in 1687, the natives of the Green Bay area were upset with the French and burned the Jesuits' residence, along with the church and barn --and all of Nicolas' furs. After hearing the news, Nicolas immediately began plans to resume trading. In 1690, he put his Iroquois war experience to use as militia captain of Bécancour. He died 13 Aug 1717 and was buried the next day at Bécancour. [source: Peter J. Gagné, King's Daughters and Founding Mothers: The Filles du Roi, 1663-1673; page 478-479]

Also seen in record as Jean-Baptiste-Nicholas Perrot (Confirmation record, 1666)

  Other Information:

• Immigration, 1659, Québec City, Québec, Québec, Canada.

• Occupation: fur trader, explorer, and interpreter of Indian languages, 1663-1700, New France.

• Census, 1666, Montréal, Québec, Canada. ⁶

• Confirmation, May 1666, Montréal, Québec, Canada. ⁶

• Census, 1667, Montréal, Québec, Canada. ⁶

• Census, 1681, Bécancour, Nicolet, Québec, Canada. ⁶

Nicolas married Madeleine Raclos, daughter of Godebon Raclos Squire and Marie Viennot, on 11 Nov 1671 in Cap-de-la-Madeleine, Champlain, Québec, Canada.^{1 2 3} (Madeleine Raclos was born about 1656 in Paris, France ³ and was buried on 8 Jul 1724 in Trois-Rivières, St-Maurice, Québec, Canada ^{6 7}.)

  Marriage Events:

• Marriage Contract, 11 Nov 1671, Cap-de-la-Madeleine, Champlain, Québec, Canada. The contract was drawn up by notary Larue. Madeleine had a dowry of 1,000 livres. Both spouses signed the marrriage contract, as did Madeleine's father. Her two sisters were also present at the signing.

  Marriage Notes:

Nicolas and Madeleine had 62 descendants as of 31 Dec 1729. ⁸