Rene Dupuis, son of Francois Dupuis and Georgette Richer, was baptized at Quebec on 26 June 1671. He married, for the first time, at Montreal on 18 October 1694, Angelique Marie dite St.Marie, daughter of Louis Marie and Mathurine Goard. Born in 1676, she died at La Prairie on 13 June 1714 and was buried on the 15th. The couple had 12 children, all born and baptized at La Prairie. Rene married, the second time, at La Prairie on 7 June 1718, Madeleine Clement, widow of Charles Deniau; they did not have any children. Rene was buried at La Prairie on 1 January 1739. His widow died on 11 February 1768.
More than one young man, intending to make himself a nest egg before settling down, left home to trade in the west near Lake Superior. They borrowed the necessary funds for the voyage, which could last up to two years, money they had to pay back with interest upon their return. Via rivers and lakes the route west was open to the voyageurs. They left with their cheap goods in their three man Indian canoes, which they maneuvered skillfully. But, what a life. At all the portages they had to shoulder their canoes and merchandise. On the Great Lakes danger lurked at all time when the winds would rise without warning. A thousand dangers accompanied the voyageurs.
Newly married, Rene Dupuis signed a contract to trade in the west on 3 June 1695. His father's last will and testament makes us aware that he was not very lucky in his endeavors and he lost money. He lived with his father, for whom his wife tended house. On 16 March 1702, Rene bought a farm consisting of 2 acres of frontage on the river and thirty acres in depth. (A farm situated to the west of the pumping station at Candiac). At the seigneurial census of 1733 he had 18 acres under cultivation, a house, a barn and a stable.
The militia is one of the most remarkable creations of the old regime. The militia consisted of all the males of the district between 16 and 60 years of age. Recruiting was done during the annual parade when they also chose their own captain. The function of the captain was to train all the men in the district in the use of arms for warfare. The captain also was in charge of all the public and municipal affairs. He conducted the annual census; he read the orders from the governor, who was the head of all the troops. The militia constructed and maintained the roads and bridges, the enclosures and the communal graves, under the direction of the captain or his lieutenant. At the age of 16, at the time of the annual parade, the young men were recruited into the militia.
One of the first settlers of the district of La Tortue, Etienne Deneau, was the captain. After his death in 1730, he was listed in the parish register as "major" of the militia of La Prairie. At his death, his brother-in-law, Rene Dupuis, became captain of the militia of the district of La Tortue.
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