The Bouchers | Pioneers of Caraquet

These micro posts present the first generation of each of the families that established different surnames found in Caraquet, New Brunswick. Most of the information is drawn from Fidele Theriault’s genealogical dictionary “Les Familles de Caraquet”. His book is in French and offers a lot more information including family trees of the first generations (with precise dates) and in many cases explanations of how the first pioneers arrived in Caraquet and other fascinating anecdotes. If you don’t have access to the book you can contact me for extra information by leaving a comment underneath this post.

The first known Boucher couple in Caraquet are believed to have been the Quebecker Joseph Boucher and his wife Isabelle aka Elisabeth Martin from Kamouraska, Quebec. They had previously settled in the the region of Fredericton on the St. John’s River in about 1769 with several other Acadians and Quebeckers. After many Loyalists arrived in that region (1783-1784), Joseph emigrated to Couctouche with his family. His sons Firmin and Joseph settled in Caraquet. Joseph settled near the property of Hyacinthe LeBouthillier Jr.’s property. Firman married Thadee Blanchard’s widow and settled on her land at Pointe de Roche. Descendants of these lines settled in Grande-Anse, Shippagan and Inkerman.

Joseph Boucher and Elisabeth Martin had the following children:

Joseph (m. 1795, Catherine Marcel, daughter of Claude Marcel and Catherine Duval),
- Simeon (m.1838, Antoinette Doiron, daughter of Jean-Baptiste Doiron and Rose Bouthillier
- Desiree (m. 1823, Cleante Lanteigne, daughter of Pierre Lanteigne and Genevieve Chenard)
- Marie-Rose (m. Desiree David, son of Francois David and Catherine Denys)
- Jean-Baptiste
- Elisabeth (m. 1829, Joseph Foulem, son of Joseph Foulem and Marie Chamberland)
- Marguerite (m.1824, Alexandre David, son of Francois David and Catherine Denys)
- Marthe (m. 1828, Pierre Lanteigne, son of Louis Lanteigne and Marguerite Chapadeau)
- Martine
- Mathurin Marcel (m. 1837, Virginie Lanteigne, daughter of Julien Lanteigne and Therese Paulin)
Firmin (m. 1795, Judith Legere, widow of Thadee Blanchard, daughter of Olivier Legere and Marie-Joseph Hebert). Their children were:
- Joseph Urbain (m.1824, Marie-Madeleine Landry, daughter of Simon Landry and Genevieve Hache of Grande-Anse)
- Jean-Baptiste (d.1807)
- Augustin (d.1807)
- Marine (m. 1833, Felix Boudreau, son of Sylvain Boudreau and Judith Blanchard)
- Monique (m.1827, Joseph Paulin, formerly married to Francoise Noel)
- Pierre (d.1818)
- Jean-Baptiste (m. 1834, Barbe Robichaud, daughter of Joseph Robichaud, daughter of Joseph Robichaud and Venerande Vienneau of Inkerman)
- Charles Augustin (m. 1838, Sophie Desroches)
Anne (m. Jean-Baptiste Martin, daughter of Amand Martin and Agathe Briard),
Michel (m. 1808, Judith Vienneau, daughter of Jean-Baptiste Vienneau and Madeleine Lejeune),
Antoine (m. 1812, Edesse Caissie, daughter of Pierre Caissie and Rosalie Legere),
Jean-Baptiste (m. Marie Cormier), Francois (m. Venerande Girouard).
- Francis (m. Venerande Girouard)

Note: Les Familles de Caraquet has the following Boucher family pictures: [Nicolas Boucher, son of Pierre Boucher (b.1865), pg. 64]

Notes: Mgr Donat Robichaud Genealogical and Historical Research Collection (FR): [Boucher, Mrs. Augustine,1930, Berlin New Hampshire, Mr. and Mrs. Willie Breton and Mr. and Mrs Georges Godin of Hillsboro of this town but formerly of Caraquet, left on June 29th, for Augusta, Maine to visit Mrs. Philemon Dumont, sister of Miss Breton and Miss Godin. They also visited Georges Arthur and Napoleon Breton, brother of Willie Breton, and then Leominster, Mass.where they visited Mr. Frank H. Paulin, brother of Miss Breton and Godin home they had not seen for 18 years. Mr. Paul has twelve children. He then visited Mrs. Augustin Boucher and Mrs. Bourgeois and then went to Dover, New Hampshire to visit another cousin. Mrs. Jos Lamontagne.] [Boucher, Adelbert,1950, Philias Doucet of Bas-Caraquet was accused of involuntary manslaughter and will appear in court in May. he was found near the remains of Adelbert Boucher in November 1949 after a hit-and-run by a truck.] [Boucher, Lydia Mrs.,1953, Mrs. Lydia Boucher and her young son Pierre is visiting her brother Celestin Blanchard] [Boucher, Martin,1948, January 30th, Mrs. Olive Gionet, aged 103 years, widow of Honore Gionet who preceded her by thirty years, died. Mrs. Gionet was the mother of 14 children of which six are still living. They are: Mrs. Jacques Maillet (Ontario), Richard, Mrs. Martin Boucher et Mrs. Fred Doucet (Bas-Caraquet), Fabien (Dalhousie) et Lazare (Allardville)]