| Abraham (Martin) Martin dit L'Écossais lived in Canada, New France, now Québec, Canada. Join: Quebecois Project Discuss: quebecois |
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Abraham MARTIN dit l'ÉCOSSAIS[1]
Naissance:
Né de parents inconnus en France vers 1589, Abraham Martin dit l'Écossais, aurait résidé sur la rue de l'Écosse à Dieppe, d'où son nom dit l'Écossais. Selon d'autres spéculations, il aurait des ascendances écossaises.
Mariage:
Autour de 1615, Il épouse Marguerite Langlois à un endroit indéterminé en France, présumément à Dieppe où son fils Jean sera baptisé en 1616.[2] Deux enfants sont baptisés à Dieppe (Saint-Jacques) : Jean, le 23 septembre 1616 (Jehan Filie, parrain et Colette Chignart, marraine) ; et Pierre, le 1er août 1630.[2]
Enfants connus / Known children: Marguerite Langlois & Abraham Martin
Migration en Nouvelle-France:
Vers 1620, Abraham Martin dit l'Écossais débarque au Canada avec sa famille.
Le fils Eustache de Marguerite Langlois et d'Abraham Martin serait le premier garçon « Canadien » né à Québec; c'est le premier baptême qui est inscrit sur le registre de la paroisse Notre-Dame de Québec, en date du 21 octobre 1621. Il devait cependant décéder la même année.[3]
En 1629, Hélène Martin, Marguerite Martin, Marguerite Langlois et Abraham Martin dit l'Écossais résident à Québec.
Après la prise de Québec par les frères Kirke, Abraham et sa famille retournent en France en 1629 puis reviennent au pays en 1633.[2] Selon ses dires le 27 décembre 1647, au contrat de mariage de sa fille Marie Martin (1635-1699), [4] devant le notaire Claude Le Coustre, il fut pilote royal en ce pays (Nouvelle-France). [5][6]
En 1635, concédée par la Compagnie de la Nouvelle-France, Abraham Martin obtient une terre de 12 arpents sise sur le versant nord du Cap-aux-Diamants; le plateau qui la domine sera appelé « plaines d'Abraham » en conséquence de son prénom et site de la future bataille des plaines d'Abraham de 1759, entre Montcalm et Wolfe. La terre allait de la Côte-Sainte-Geneviève, l’actuelle Grande-Allée, vers le bas, jusqu’à la Côte-d’Abraham elle-même et vers l’ouest, jusqu’à la rue Clairefontaine, sous l’actuel Grand Théâtre. Sa terre ne couvrait donc pas les Plaines d’Abraham mais site de la bataille de 1759 qui s’est déroulée sur les Plaines d’Abraham et aussi sur l’ancienne propriété d’Abraham Martin.[7], document original.
Le 17 novembre 1635, Samuel de Champlain le couche sur son testament en ces termes: 600 livres à Abraham et sa femme « à la charge qu'ils les emploiront à défricher la terre en ce päis de la Nouvelle-France; il ajoute: 600 livres à Marguerite, fille d'Abraham, pour l'aider à se marier en ce päis de la Nouvelle-France à un homme qui sera résident en ce dit päis et non autrement; puis, "à Hélène son autre fille et ma filleule, 300 francs. »
Adrien Duchesne[8] donne sa terre à Abraham Martin dit l'Écossais, et le 15 août 1646 ceci est attesté par Jacques de Launay; Robert Giffard, seigneur de Beauport; Guillaume Tronquet; Jean Guitet; François Bissot, sieur de la Rivière, et Olivier Le Tardif de Honnefleur.[9] (pg 4) :« Nous soussignés certifions à qui il appartiendra que l'an dernier mil six cent quarante six le sieur Adrien Duchesne, chirurgien dans le navire de M. de Repentigny, estant à Québec, nous a dict qu'il avoit donné la terre qui lui a été donnée en la ville de Québec; à Abraham Martin, pilote de la rivière Saint-Laurent, et qu'il y pouvait faire travailler en toute assurance. Si le temps lui eust permis d'en passer contract de donation, il l'auroit fait. Ce que nous attestns être véritable, faict ce quinzième jour d'août mil six cent quarante six.
Pilote royal?: Le 27 décembre 1647, Abraham se dit pilote royal pour le Saint-Laurent, tel qu’enregistré au greffe du notaire Le Coustre lors du contrat de mariage de Jean Cloutier avec sa fille Marie. Avec ses gendres, il allait souvent à la pêche aux marsouins (loups marins) pour en extraire l’huile. Ils se rendaient jusqu’au golfe du Saint-Laurent. Il appert qu’il était habile en navigation sur le Saint-Laurent. Il ne faut pas l’imaginer comme pilote d’un grand navire mais plutôt d’un petit bateau. Cependant. Premier pilote du roi Certains ont prétendu qu'il le fut. Il n'existe aucun document permettant de l'établir de façon probante qu'il fut le tout premier pilote du Saint-Laurent, qu'il fut même le premier « pilote royal » ou «pilote du roi». Il le fut peut-être ou peut-être pas, mais la légende l'a transmis.
Le 27 décembre 1647, Abraham ne reçut pas le titre de pilote royal pour le Saint-Laurent tel qu'il apparait au greffe du notaire Le Coustre, ce ne fut qu'une mention d'occupation. L’entrée notariale est pour le contrat de mariage de sa fille, Marie, à Jean Cloustier. Abraham Martin a dit ou était connu être un pilote du roi. Ce n’était pas un acte de nomination.
Il ne fait aucun doute qu’Abraham Martin était un marin compétant. Il semble juste de penser qu’Abraham ait pu gagner salaires et honoraires comme guide et pilote à la navigation sécuritaire des navires marchands sur le Saint-Laurent. Le fait qu’il n’y ait pas eu de déclaration officielle qui a fait de lui un ««pilote du roi»» ne ternit pas sa place dans l’histoire.
Accusé de viol:
Le 19 janvier 1649, l’exécution d’une jeune fille âgée d’environ quinze ans, a lieu à Québec. Le 15 février suivant, Abraham Martin est accusé du viol de cette fille et il est emprisonné dans le cachot. Le procès est différé, jusqu’à l’arrivée des bateaux. Cette accusation ne semble pas avoir de suite.[10] Le rapport indique « conduite incorrecte envers une jeune fille », ce qui lui vaut une peine d'emprisonnement du 15 février 1649 jusqu’à l’arrivée des bateaux. Il est intéressant de noter que sa victime, une jeune voleuse de 16 ans, est accusée formellement le 19 janvier 1649 et devient la première personne à être exécutée en public en Nouvelle-France.[10] Les actes originaux sont manquants pour la plupart pour pouvoir déterminer ce qui se passa alors et par la suite.
Testament:
Le 6 septembre 1664, il teste par devant le notaire Pierre Duquet.[5][11][12]
Décès
Dans les acte de Notre-Dame de Québec on trouve: L'an 1664, le 8 septembre, a été enterré dans le cimetière de cette paroisse Abraham Martin, âgé d'environ 75 ans, ancien habitant de ce pays, après avoir reçu les sacrements. [13][14]
L'inventaire des biens d'Abraham Martin, dit l'Écossais, est fait le 7 octobre 1664 par le notaire Pierre Duquet.[5][15]
Monument: Le chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique a érigé un mémorial à la mémoire d'Abraham Martin face au fleuve Saint-Laurent, à Québec. Il a été conçu par Henri Hébert, le sculpteur canadien-français bien connu. Il est en granit et montre un pilier couronné d'un globe du monde soutenu par des chardons. Sculpté en bas-relief, le Lys de France émerge de la mer. L'inscription est en français et en anglais, se lisant comme suit :
Abraham MARTIN dit l'ÉCOSSAIS[1][16][17]
Abraham Martin dit L'Écossais, or maître Abraham, pilot; b. about 1589 in France from unknown parents; d. September 8, 1664 at Québec, his dit name apparently comes from his having lived in Dieppe's «rue d'Écosse» per some speculations, others speculate he had Scottish ancestry.
He arrived in New France with his wife, Marguerite Langlois, her sister Françoise and brother-in-law Pierre Desportes (the parents of Hélène Desportes) about 1620.
Kown children of Marguerite Langlois & Abraham Martin
Death
In the records of Notre-Dame de Québec we find (translated): The year 1664, the 8 September, was buried in the cemetery of this parish Abraham Martin, aged around 75, old inhabitant of this country, after having received the sacraments. [13]
Original lot 1635
The original document of an official report of a land survey and setting of boundaries of 12 arpents of land given to Abraham can be viewed at BAnQ. Which land is involved needs to be determined. [18], original document.
First pilot?
Anne Martin m. Jean Côté n'est pas la fille d'Abraham Martin: [20] indique présentement comme fausses trois sources qui à l'origine appuyait l'ascendance d'Anne Martin comme étant fille d'Abraham Martin et / ou Marguerite Langlois.[21][22][23]
There is no evidence that Anne Martin, born in France and married November 17, 1635 to Jean Côté, was Abraham Martin's daughter.
Plains of Abraham
Excerpted from Hale 1920, p. 254.[24]
It is presumed that the Plains (or Heights) of Abraham are named after Martin. It is picturesquely said that the "Côte d'Abraham" was the path that Martin used to descend to the St Charles River to water his animals. His property amounted to 32 acres in all, 12 received from the Compagnie de la Nouvelle-France in 1635 and 20 as a gift from Sieur Adrien Du Chesne, ship's surgeon to Pierre Legardeur de Repentigny in 1645. This land was sold by the Martin family to the Ursulines in 1667. It is possible that this is the same Martin who was employed by Jean de Biencourt and Du Gua de Monts as navigator on the coast of Acadia, although he would have been very young at that time. When David Kirke captured Québec in 1629 and left his brother Lewis as governor until 1632, Martin and his family left the colony, their son Pierre being born in dieppe in 1630. In his later years Martin fell in the estimation of his fellow citizens when he was accused of improper conduct (rape) with regard to a young girl in Québec. He was imprisoned for this on February 15, 1649. The girl was executed as a thief the month before his imprisonment.
Abraham Martin, for thirty-two years the original owner of the historic plains bearing his name, now known as the Battlefields' Park, which he cultivated and which was sold to the Ursuline nuns in 1667, arrived in New France shortly after Champlain, was the first pilot named by the king of France to navigate the St. Lawrence river. In the Jesuits' Relations, Abraham Martin is referred to as "dit l'Ecossais" or "called the Scot", so that in addition to being the first pilot of the king he was also possibly the first known Canadian of Scottish descent. No evidence is available to substantiate this however.
The Canadian Pacific Railway, through the efforts, doubtless, of that lover of ancient lore, Mr. John Murray Gibbon, President of the Canadian Authors' Association, have erected an artistic memorial to Martin on the river front at Quebec. It was designed by Henri Hebert, the well known French Canadian sculptor, is of granite and shows a pillar crowned by a globe of the world supported by thistles. Carved in low relief is the Lily of France rising out of the sea. The inscription is in French and English, the latter reading:
This week's featured connections are World War II Heroes: Abraham is 16 degrees from Sarah Baring, 19 degrees from Virginia Goillot, 17 degrees from Christina Granville, 17 degrees from Bill Halsey, 19 degrees from Hedy Lamarr, 16 degrees from George Marshall, 20 degrees from Ron Middleton, 15 degrees from Frank Pickersgill, 16 degrees from Mary Reid, 22 degrees from Charles Upham, 26 degrees from Bram Vanderstok and 35 degrees from Waverly Woodson on our single family tree. Login to see how you relate to 33 million family members.
M > Martin | M > Martin dit L'Écossais > Abraham (Martin) Martin dit L'Écossais
Categories: Migrants de Normandie au Canada, Nouvelle-France | Québec, Canada, Nouvelle-France | Quebecois Project
That one is rather old, and unsourced to boot. It's a tree. Blends Galeran Martin into Jean Martin. ie conflated. Not at all trustworthy.
edited by Jane (Cournoyer) McNicol
However, on another note, I see the possibility of learning further information in regards to Abraham.
Tanguay indicates that Abraham had been to the New World earlier, in 1610. Others indicate he may have been in New France in 1614 working as a ship's navigator for Jean de Biencourt, who was trying to set up a settlement in what later became Acadia. https://historyandnovelty.wordpress.com/2014/07/02/abraham-the-scot-martin-he-helped-found-quebec/
Coupled with this, there are some vague online references to the fact that Abraham had been married before the marriage to Marguerite. Given that Marguerite was the mother of Charles Amador, b. 1648, the references which give Marguerite’s birth date as 18 Feb 1592 must be wrong, in favor of ca.1602. This would make her too young to give birth to Judith and Anne, below, making a second marriage or partner probable. Judith and Anne are rarely mentioned in most sources, but, again, they do appear infrequently in some files (they appear on some trees in Ancestry, for instance),
Abraham therefore may have had two children with an unknown native woman, possibly a Huron or Wendat, who he would have taken with him back to France, as that is where the two children were born: • Judith Forestier, b. 31 Jul 1611 at Champagne; m. Pierre Charon; d. 20 Apr 1652 at Champagne. Forestier indicates “of the forest,” also leading to a likely native spouse for Abraham. Interestingly, the similar Sylvestre name was given by the French to Roch Manitouabeouich's daughter. • Anne Matchochon, b. 1614 at La Rochelle; m. 17 Nov 1635 to Jean Côté; d. 4 Dec 1684 at Québec. “Matchochon” also appears to be a native word
edited by Michael Nyquist
First off, there is no evidence whatsoever that Abraham is father of Anne Martin married to Jean Côté. I know, Tanguay puts him as her father, but this is not based on any evidence, Tanguay did have the habit sometimes of plugging people into families. BAnQ (PDF): Tanguay, Cyprien, Dictionnaire Généalogique des Familles Canadiennes depuis la fondation de la colonie jusqu'à nos jours; Montréal, 1887 (7 volumes) Vol 1 pg 415. Tanguay makes no reference to Abraham's presence in the colony earlier.
As for the Wordpress blog you linked, I see numerous errors in there. For one thing, she is giving Abraham the name Montpellier, which is not at all the same man, if you look on the page in Tanguay below Abraham's entry you will see Antoine Martin dit Montpellier. She is stating Anne married to Jean Côté is Abraham's daughter, and includes an image of Anne Martin's baptism. Except that the baptism included is for this Anne Martin, who married Jacques Ratté. This lady cites few sources for her writings. She states most sources accept him as having been born about 1589 in Montpellier, LaRochelle, France. His father was Jean Galleran Martin, known as “The Merchant of Metz”, and Jean was likely born at Metz, Lorraine, France. His mother was Isabel Cote. Excuse me? Based on what source? Those are Antoine Martin's parents. Not Abraham's. And the geography is rather mixed up, Montpellier is far from La Rochelle.
I would personally discount this blog. Too many errors.
Abraham's first known child is Jean Martin, born in 1616 in Dieppe, Normandie (again far from La Rochelle and Montpellier.) There is no way he is father to a Judith Forestier in Champagne, not even the same name, and quite far inland.
Thanks for your quick response. Yes, I have learned to use caution with Tanguay, and have learned long ago to use several sources. And another highly questionable source viewed in this case is GenealogieOnLine Trees.
This possibility just seemed interesting to me, and so I thought I'd throw it out there.
I tried to go back and determine where I found the middle names Forestier and Matchochon, with no success.
Several trees make the mistake of stating Judith was born in Champagne, Dordogne, when the death information indicates this is more likely Champagne de Seine et Marne, Ile de France, where she died. And Upper Brittany Births shows a Judith Martin Bp. 1616 at Rennes, closer to the coast, without further detail.
As for Anne, I have a Drouin Collection record of her marriage to Jean Cotte. And RINGUETTE, ADRIEN L. "From the Province of Perche to New France, and from the Province of Quebec to New England," In French Canadian and Acadian Genealogical Review. Vol. 8 (1980), pp. 39-109, shows a daughter Anne arriving at Quebec in 1620 with parents Abraham and Marguerite Langlois.
As for the possibility of Abraham being with Jean de Biencourt, see eg: http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/martin_abraham_1E.html
So it goes. Back this long ago, I find I usually have to terminate further searches: the information is just not out there, conflicting, or unsubstantiated.
Thanks again!
Anne Martin's marriage with Jean Côté is before 1640. ALL the records from Québec prior to 1640 are clerical reconstructions after a fire which burned all the existing records. The clergy of the time reconstructed the records from memory and whatever other records they may have had, none of them name parents on the marriages. So we're stuck with no way to get evidence. Martin is extremely common as a last name, so all these people all over the place bearing this name, well, it means nothing. https://french-genealogy.typepad.com/.a/6a01156f3ad8b4970c01bb09b1ead2970d-pi this is a map showing the old provinces of France. When someone could travel by ship, not too bad, but inland? Most people had to walk or go on slow carts. So when I see someone being all over the map, I scratch my head. Champagne is far from modern-day Dordogne, which was then Guyenne.
GenealogieOnLine Trees, if it's what I think it is, totally not trustworthy, someone mentioned once that that site had been subject of several merges of databases, with the result that it became a mishmash. See https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Space:Quebecois_Project_Reliable_Sources Québécois Project reliable sources page.
Abraham Martin dit l'Écossais was accused of rape but it remains unclear what his culpability was. In any case WikiTree should not be in the macabre business of ruling on such contested crime allegations.
No more that Louis Riel (whose mother is a Gaboury) should be included in WikiTree's Outlaws Category. See G2G discussion about Louis Riel profile's removal from Assasins Category.
Even Antoine Gaboury / Gaboury-2 should likely not be included in Rapists Category though he was condemned of rape and sentenced to 9 years of galley service. After serving his sentence my ancestor Aubin Lambert became a next-door neighbor of Antoine Gaboury. A descendant, Étienne Gaboury is a famous architect based in St. Boniface / Winnipeg, Manitoba where I was born.
WikiTree should stay away from this macabre business of showcasing for living people their distant ancestor's crimes or alleged crimes.
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