Abbé Gabriel Souart ( 1611 – 8 March 1691) was a Sulpicien priest and the nephew of Father

Joseph Le Caron Joseph Le Caron, O.M.R., (c. 1586 near Paris – March 29, 1632 in Gisors, France) was one of the four pioneer missionaries of Canada, (together with Father Denis Jamet, Father Jean Dolbeau, and Brother Pacifique du Plessis, all Recollect friar ...

. He is most often remembered in Canadian history as the first parish priest of

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

. Souart entered the priesthood later in life, having previously studied and practiced medicine. He became a priest in 1650 and was sent to

New France New France (french: Nouvelle-France) was the area colonized by France in North America, beginning with the exploration of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Great Britain and Spai ...

to help found the Séminaire de Montréal. At the same time he began to organize the parish which had previously been ministered to by the Jesuits as a group since 1642. He also acted as an able replacement for his superior, Abbé Queylus, chaplain of the Notre-Dame congregation and

Hôtel-Dieu de Montréal The Hôtel-Dieu de Montréal (founded in 1645) was the first hospital established in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. ''Hôtel-Dieu'', literally translated in English as ''Hotel of God'', is an archaic French term for hospital, referring to the origi ...

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
1691 deaths Roman Catholic priests in New France Year of birth uncertain Year of birth unknown {{NewFrance-stub