Étienne GENTES

(b. 10 February 1646 , Rouen, France d. 8 October 1726 , Varennes, Canada, New France )

Am I Your Ancestor?
GENTES Family Tree – Connecting the Past to the Present!

What started out as our family is now your’s too!

Étienne GENTES was born 10 February 1646 in Rouen, France

Étienne GENTES was the child of ? and ?

Étienne was an immigrant to Canada, arriving by 1678.

Immigration to New France: Shaping the Roots of Canada

Spouse(s)/Partner(s) and Child(ren):

Étienne married Catherine MESSIER dite ST-MICHEL 28 November 1678 in Montréal, Canada, New France . The couple had (at least) 3 children.
Catherine MESSIER dite ST-MICHEL was born 11 July 1659 in Montréal, Québec, Canada (Sault-au-Récollet) (Côte-St-Michel) (Côte-St-Paul). Catherine died abt. 1704 in Varennes, Québec, Canada (Sainte-Anne-de-Varennes). Catherine was the child of Michel MESSIER and Anne LEMOINE (LEMOYNE).

Étienne GENTES died 8 October 1726 in Varennes, Canada, New France .

Son of Pierre Gentes and Nicole Mequignon

Details of the family tree of Étienne appear below.

Occupation

Étienne GENTES was a Engagé, domestique d'Urbain Tessier .
The term domestique, or domestic servant, whether it was used in France or in New-France, was associated with: Servants working in a home; Agricultural servants; Personal servants; Any person at the service of another, without specifics.

Domestique also included all servants, of any type, working for religious communities and hospital staff, which represented an important group in the colony.
Source: tfcq.ca

A Day in the Life of a Domestique: Navigating 18th Century New France

Québec Généalogie - Over time, Québec has gone through a series of name changes
From its inception in the early 1600s until 1760, it was called Canada, New France.
1760 to 1763, it was simply Canada
1763 to 1791 - Province of Québec
1791 to 1867 - Lower Canada
1867 to present - Québec, Canada.

Thanks to Micheline Gadbois MacDonald for providing this information.

Québec Généalogie - The Seigneurial System (1627 - 1854)
The seigneurial system was a form of land settlement modeled on the French feudal system. It began in New France in 1627 with the formation of the Compagnie des Cent-Associés (or Company of 100 Associates), which was initially responsible for handing out land grants and seigneurial rights. The land was divided into five by 15 kilometer plots, usually along major rivers like the St. Lawrence. They were then further subdivided into narrow, but long lots for settlement. These lots were usually long enough to be suitable for faming, and they provided everyone who lived on them with equal access to neighbouring farms and the river. There were three main groups of people who lived off the land in this system: Seigneurs, Habitants and Engagés

Étienne GENTES was an engagé.
Engagés were indentured servants who came to New France for three-year contract periods to work as farmers.

Source: Canada in the Making (www.canadiana.ca/citm/index_e.html)

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