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Title
Legal documents concerning the inventory of the estate of Jean Nicollet 1642 Nov. 27-1643 April 30
Creator
Nicollet, Jean, 1598-1642
Date
1642-1643
Place
Canada
,
Quebec (Quebec)
,
Québec--Québec
Language
French
Subjects
Compagnie de la Nouvelle France
,
Inheritance and succession
,
Inventories of decedents' estates
,
Property
,
Real property
Description
Filing information on recto and verso of first and last leaves, respectively.
Forms part of the Edward E. Ayer Manuscript Collection (Newberry Library)
Summary
Documents, dated between Nov. 27, 1642 and April 30, 1643 at Fort St. Louis, concerning appraisal, storage, and division of Nicollet's assets. Following Nicollet's death, and in the absence of his brother, Pierre Nicollet, a seaman in the service of the Compagnie, property of the deceased was inventoried, appraised, and stored in the Compagnie's warehouse. Parties to the dispute, whose signatures and marks appear throughout the documents, include Pierre Nicollet, legal guardian for Jean Nicollet's infant daughter, Marguerite; Nicollet's widow, Marguerite Couillard, her brother, Guillaume Couillard, and two representatives of the Compagnie, Jean Guitot and Martin Prevost. The widow protests that she was never allowed to see the inventory, although her brother-in-law did so, and claims the inventory to be null and void for the false signatures used by Nicollet and Couillard. The documents include an inventory of 48 items of clothing, furniture, and housewares, along with estimated values; a list of six additional items of silverplate and jewelry omitted from the initial inventory; and finally an itemization of land titles, including a grant of May 23, 1637 of 160 arpents of land outside Québec in co-ownership with his brother-in-law, Olivier Letardif; a marriage contract with Marguerite Couillard from Oct. 1637; contracts for service, including one with Champlain; and outstanding debts owed the deceased. Also signing was notary clerk, Martial Piraube.
Biographical/Historical Note
Interpreter and clerk for the Compagnie de la Nouvelle France, explorer, and liaison officer between the French and the Indians. Nicollet arrived in Canada in 1618, and, at the request of Champlain, spent two years at Allumette Island in the Ottawa River, learning the Huron and Algonkin languages. After nine years among the Nipissings, and four years in Huron country, he settled in Trois-Rivières and Québec in 1633 as a clerk of the Compagnie. Between 1634 and 1635, he explored the Ottawa and French Rivers to Lake Huron, Michilimackinac, and Green Bay, and the Fox River to Mascoutens. Until his death by drowning in 1642, Nicollet lived in Trois-Rivières, well-respected for his services to the colony, and for his knowledge of Indian languages and customs.
Extent
[8] leaves, sewn (last [3] leaves blank) ; 35 cm
Format
Inventories
Archival Collection Title
Edward E. Ayer Collection
Rights Status
No Copyright - United States
Newberry Open Access Policy
The Newberry makes its collections available for any lawful purpose, commercial or non-commercial, without licensing or permission fees to the library, subject to
these terms and conditions.
Contributing Institution
Newberry Library
Link to Catalog
View record
Call Number
Ayer MS 651
BibID
172750
Size
2634px × 3844px 29.00 MB
IIIF Resource Type
Canvas
Filename
991727508805867_Ayer_MS_651_00001.tif
Unique Identifier
NL11E8VK
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