User:Andrewmcullen/Jean-Baptiste Rousseaux

Jean-Baptiste Rousseaux (1758 – 1812), was a Canadian Fur Trader, Merchant, Interpreter, and Mill Owner.

Biography

Jean Baptiste Rousseaux is a figure associated with the pre-settlement history of Toronto, being recognised as the area's first shopkeeper and, arguably, the first white settler. Rousseaux's life spanned the change from the French to English rule in Canada, while his career evolved from wilderness adventurer and fur trader to settlement merchant and miller. Rousseaux was a landowner and mill owner in Ancaster, Kingston, and Toronto (York).

Rousseaux's early career as a fur trader gave him knowledge of the Indian languages and he later served the Indian Department from 1775 to 1779, acting as an interpreter and advisor on Indian affairs.

His home/trading post stood at the east edge of the Humber River near its mouth. Adjacent was the southerly terminus of the Toronto Carrying Place, the ancient Indian footpath that linked Lake Ontario to the Huronia region by way of the Holland River and Lake Simcoe. This route, long important to the fur trade under both French and English regimes, disappeared when settlement commenced in the Toronto area in 1793.

Active in the Upper Canadian militia, Rousseau participated in the Battle of Kingston. He died while on business at Fort George in 1812. Rousseaux's sons, George and Joseph Brant Rousseaux, continued to operate the family businesses after his death.

The Rousseaux Home on the Humber River

When the pioneer surveyors arrived at Toronto in the early 1790's, Rousseaux's home provided a welcomed stopping place. Rousseax was commonly identified by his sobriquet "St. John"or St. Jean, and for a time the Humber was refered to as "St. John's Creek". The dwelling was something of a landmark and, although abandoned by 1795, upon his removal to Ancaster, the structure survived until at least 1798, being illustrated on a surveyor's plan of that year.

The Ontario Government has placed a plaque near the Rousseaux Home, the text of which reads:

"Rousseaux was the first European to settle in the Toronto area. He and his father were interpreters for the Indian Department and were licensed to trade in this region. In 1787 Jean-Baptiste married Margaret Clyne, a ward of Mohawk chief Joseph Brant, and by 1791 he had built a trading post here at the Toronto Carrying Place. When Lieutenant-Governor Simcoe arrived by schooner to establish the provincial capital of York in 1793, Rousseaux piloted him into harbour. He served Simcoe's government as an interpreter thereafter. Intent on expanding his business activities, Rousseaux moved to Ancaster in 1795, where he prospered as a merchant and landowner. He fell ill and died while serving at Fort George during the War of 1812."

Rousseaux in Ancaster

In 1791, building upon his connections with Joseph Brant, he began trading with the Six Nations and erected a corn mill near Brantford, Ontario. In 1794 he purchased a half-share in a grist and saw mill in Ancaster Township, subsequently moving his family there. He opened a general store, ran an inn and blacksmith shop, and acquired sizeable land holdings in the Ancaster area.

Active in the Upper Canadian militia, Rousseaux participated in the Battle of Kingston. He died while on business at Fort George in 1812. Rousseaux's sons, George and Joseph Brant Rousseaux, continued to operate the family businesses after his death.

References

• Mika, et al: 1873 York County Historical Atlas, Original Publication date, 1873
• Daneils, William J: Locating the Rousseaux Home, Report commissioned by the Rousseaux Project, 1998