Honoré Danis dit Tourangeau.

The Family in France.

Martin Danis and Étiennette Bodouille of Montlouis-sur-Loire, Touraine in France had one daughter and seven sons including a set of twins. Our ancestor Honoré Danis was their first child, born 07 July 1624. He trained in France to become a charpentier but his destiny lay in other lands.

To the Colony.

Paul de Chomedy, Sieur de Maisonneuve and governor of Montréal returned to France to recruit skilled men to build and defend the village of Montréal. Honoré Danis dit Tourangeau, 29, was one of 8 carpenters who signed up with la grand recrue. Other of our ancestors who made the arduous journey were Guillaume Chartier, Jeanne Soldé, and Hugues Picard. After many trials they at last arrived at their destination on 16 November 1653.

He assumed the dit name of Tourangeau which is derived from his beautiful homeland, Touraine. Men often took another name to distinguish themselves from others, or to clarify their origin or occupation.

Charpentier.

Carpenters built fortifications to keep the colonists safe from enemy attacks. Public buildings as well as homes were constructed of wood, often from trees felled after fields were cleared for farming. The men had to know the characteristics of various woods and possessed the physical strength needed to log and carve up the lumber. The style of the earliest French homes was columbage or half-timber construction. Squared lumber framed the walls which were then filled in with stones and mortar.

Honoré arrived in Montréal at a time when carpenters were sorely needed. It was not long before he became a maître charpentier, or master carpenter. The term master refered to one who employed and oversaw the work of others.

First Marriage.

To ensure the viability of the colony various religious communities encouraged women to move to New France by offering to fund their passage and house them until they found a husband. On 09 September 1658 Honoré Danis signed a contract before the notary Bénigne Basset of Montréal to marry the 23 year old Fille à marier Marie Bidard. They had two boys, Jean born 20 June 1660 and Jacques born 08 January 1662, before Marie's death on 17 June 1664.