François Baby (businessman)
Encyclopedia
François Baby was a Canadian
businessman
, militia
officer
, and politician
.
François Baby was born in Montreal
to Raymond Baby and Thérèse Le Compte Dupré. He came from a family of fur traders
. His father was a fur trader who had been sufficiently successful before his death, four years after François’s birth. His grandfather, Jacques Babie
, had been successful in the business, and his eldest brother Jacques
and other family members were active in the same business. He received his formal education at the Jesuit College at Quebec
.
His mother’s family being deeply involved in the fur trade, and his eldest brother Jacques Baby
, being engaged in it by 1753, François too became active in what had become a family profession; another brother, Louis, was also a fur trader. By 1757 François was in partnership with Jacques and the youngest brother, Antoine, under the name of Baby Frères. His two brothers conducted the field operations while François ran the Montreal operation; importing trade goods and exporting furs and dealing with their contacts in France.
During the Seven Years' War
François shared to some extent in his brothers’ military glories. He may have been at the battle of the Monongahela
(near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
) in 1755 under Daniel Liénard de Beaujeu
, and he undoubtedly served under François de Lévis at the siege of Quebec
in the spring of 1760. He thus merited with Jacques, Louis, and Antoine the applause of Governor Pierre de Rigaud Vaudreuil
.
In February 1760, well before the capture of Montreal by the British, Simon Jauge of Bordeaux advised François by way of England
, no doubt in response to queries from him, that he might make contact in London
with the firm of Thomas, Thomas and Son, Jauge’s correspondent there. Taken prisoner to England in September, François likely did call on the London firm before obtaining a passport to go to France
.
He settled in La Rochelle
, probably with the intention of remaining in France if Canada was not recovered, since, like Jacques, he had refused to swear allegiance to the king of Great Britain. The Babys, nevertheless, were selling their furs on the London market and importing English trade goods by 1762. From France, François endeavored to ensure the supply of trade goods to his brothers and maintained contacts with British and French trading houses. When it became clear that the conquered colony would remain a British possession, he liquidated most of the family’s French assets and oversaw the transfer of commercial relations to London in order to be of consequence in the reconstituted trade. Through his French correspondents he was put in touch with a number of London firms, including Joseph and Henry Guinaud, which soon became his principal supplier.
Baby returned to Montreal late in 1763 and once again acted as intermediary
for Antoine and Jacques, who were based at Detroit. However, he soon established his own wholesale
business at Quebec, importing British spirits and manufactures; by 1765 he had taken up residence there.
Baby was appointed to the Legislative Council for the Province of Quebec
in 1778 by Governor Haldimand
who also made him part of his unconstitutional privy council around that time. (This appointment placed him on the Legislative Council of Lower Canada
when it was formed in 1792.) His joining of the governing class lessened the time he spent on commercial activities.
In 1786, he married Marie-Anne Tarieu, the daughter of seigneur
Charles-Gaspard Tarieu de Lanaudière
.
He suffered from ill health later in life and became less active in politics. Baby died at Quebec City in 1820.
His son Charles François Xavier later served as a member of the legislative council for the Province of Canada. His daughter Monique-Ursule married Thomas Ainslie Young
, a member of the legislative assembly.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
businessman
Businessperson
A businessperson is someone involved in a particular undertaking of activities for the purpose of generating revenue from a combination of human, financial, or physical capital. An entrepreneur is an example of a business person...
, militia
Militia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
officer
Officer (armed forces)
An officer is a member of an armed force or uniformed service who holds a position of authority. Commissioned officers derive authority directly from a sovereign power and, as such, hold a commission charging them with the duties and responsibilities of a specific office or position...
, and politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
.
François Baby was born in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
to Raymond Baby and Thérèse Le Compte Dupré. He came from a family of fur traders
Fur trade
The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...
. His father was a fur trader who had been sufficiently successful before his death, four years after François’s birth. His grandfather, Jacques Babie
Jacques Babie
Jacques Babie was the patriarch of Canadian family . He moved to Canada from France in 1665 as part of a French regiment to fight the Iroquois. After a peace agreement was reached in 1666 by Alexandre de Prouville Marquis de Tracy, Babie obtained his discharge from the army...
, had been successful in the business, and his eldest brother Jacques
Jacques Baby
Jacques Baby, dit Dupéron was a Canadian fur trader and an employee of the British Indian Department.He was born in Montreal in 1731. He was a trader and Indian agent at Logstown, near the current location of Ambridge, Pennsylvania. After the fall of New France in 1760, he refused to swear...
and other family members were active in the same business. He received his formal education at the Jesuit College at Quebec
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
.
His mother’s family being deeply involved in the fur trade, and his eldest brother Jacques Baby
Jacques Baby
Jacques Baby, dit Dupéron was a Canadian fur trader and an employee of the British Indian Department.He was born in Montreal in 1731. He was a trader and Indian agent at Logstown, near the current location of Ambridge, Pennsylvania. After the fall of New France in 1760, he refused to swear...
, being engaged in it by 1753, François too became active in what had become a family profession; another brother, Louis, was also a fur trader. By 1757 François was in partnership with Jacques and the youngest brother, Antoine, under the name of Baby Frères. His two brothers conducted the field operations while François ran the Montreal operation; importing trade goods and exporting furs and dealing with their contacts in France.
During the Seven Years' War
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War was a global military war between 1756 and 1763, involving most of the great powers of the time and affecting Europe, North America, Central America, the West African coast, India, and the Philippines...
François shared to some extent in his brothers’ military glories. He may have been at the battle of the Monongahela
Battle of the Monongahela
The Battle of the Monongahela, also known as the Battle of the Wilderness, took place on 9 July 1755, at the beginning of the French and Indian War, at Braddock's Field in what is now Braddock, Pennsylvania, east of Pittsburgh...
(near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
) in 1755 under Daniel Liénard de Beaujeu
Daniel Liénard de Beaujeu
Daniel Hyacinthe Liénard de Beaujeu was a French officer during the Seven Years War. He participated in the Battle of Grand Pre . He also organized the force that attacked General Edward Braddock's army after it forded the Monongahela River. The event was later dubbed the Battle of the Monongahela...
, and he undoubtedly served under François de Lévis at the siege of Quebec
Battle of the Plains of Abraham
The Battle of the Plains of Abraham, also known as the Battle of Quebec, was a pivotal battle in the Seven Years' War...
in the spring of 1760. He thus merited with Jacques, Louis, and Antoine the applause of Governor Pierre de Rigaud Vaudreuil
Pierre François de Rigaud, Marquis de Vaudreuil-Cavagnal
Pierre François de Rigaud, Marquis de Vaudreuil-Cavagnal was a Canadian-born French colonial governor in North America...
.
In February 1760, well before the capture of Montreal by the British, Simon Jauge of Bordeaux advised François by way of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, no doubt in response to queries from him, that he might make contact in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
with the firm of Thomas, Thomas and Son, Jauge’s correspondent there. Taken prisoner to England in September, François likely did call on the London firm before obtaining a passport to go to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
He settled in La Rochelle
La Rochelle
La Rochelle is a city in western France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department.The city is connected to the Île de Ré by a bridge completed on 19 May 1988...
, probably with the intention of remaining in France if Canada was not recovered, since, like Jacques, he had refused to swear allegiance to the king of Great Britain. The Babys, nevertheless, were selling their furs on the London market and importing English trade goods by 1762. From France, François endeavored to ensure the supply of trade goods to his brothers and maintained contacts with British and French trading houses. When it became clear that the conquered colony would remain a British possession, he liquidated most of the family’s French assets and oversaw the transfer of commercial relations to London in order to be of consequence in the reconstituted trade. Through his French correspondents he was put in touch with a number of London firms, including Joseph and Henry Guinaud, which soon became his principal supplier.
Baby returned to Montreal late in 1763 and once again acted as intermediary
Intermediary
An intermediary is a third party that offers intermediation services between two trading parties. The intermediary acts as a conduit for goods or services offered by a supplier to a consumer...
for Antoine and Jacques, who were based at Detroit. However, he soon established his own wholesale
Wholesale
Wholesaling, jobbing, or distributing is defined as the sale of goods or merchandise to retailers, to industrial, commercial, institutional, or other professional business users, or to other wholesalers and related subordinated services...
business at Quebec, importing British spirits and manufactures; by 1765 he had taken up residence there.
Baby was appointed to the Legislative Council for the Province of Quebec
Province of Quebec (1763-1791)
The Province of Quebec was a colony in North America created by Great Britain after the Seven Years' War. Great Britain acquired Canada by the Treaty of Paris when King Louis XV of France and his advisors chose to keep the territory of Guadeloupe for its valuable sugar crops instead of New France...
in 1778 by Governor Haldimand
Frederick Haldimand
Sir Frederick Haldimand, KB was a military officer best known for his service in the British Army in North America during the Seven Years' War and the American Revolutionary War...
who also made him part of his unconstitutional privy council around that time. (This appointment placed him on the Legislative Council of Lower Canada
Legislative Council of Lower Canada
The Legislative Council of Lower Canada was the upper house of the bicameral structure of provincial government in Lower Canada until 1838. The upper house consisted of appointed councillors who voted on bills passed up by the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada. The legislative council was...
when it was formed in 1792.) His joining of the governing class lessened the time he spent on commercial activities.
In 1786, he married Marie-Anne Tarieu, the daughter of seigneur
Seigneurial system of New France
The seigneurial system of New France was the semi-feudal system of land distribution used in the North American colonies of New France.-Introduction to New France:...
Charles-Gaspard Tarieu de Lanaudière
Charles-Gaspard Tarieu de Lanaudière
Charles-Gaspard Tarieu de Lanaudière was a seigneur and political figure in Lower Canada.He was born Charles Tarieu de La Naudière in Quebec City in 1769, the son of seigneur Charles-François Tarieu de La Naudière, and studied at London. He inherited the seigneury of Saint-Vallier from his father...
.
He suffered from ill health later in life and became less active in politics. Baby died at Quebec City in 1820.
His son Charles François Xavier later served as a member of the legislative council for the Province of Canada. His daughter Monique-Ursule married Thomas Ainslie Young
Thomas Ainslie Young
Thomas Ainslie Young was an official and political figure in Lower Canada.He was born at Quebec City in 1797, the son of John Young and grandson of Thomas Ainslie, and studied in Lower Canada and at London...
, a member of the legislative assembly.