Jean-Joseph Trestler (c. 1757 – December 7, 1813) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

-born businessman, land owner and political figure in

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada (french: province du Bas-Canada) was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence (1791–1841). It covered the southern portion of the current Province of Quebec an ...

. He represented York in the

Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada The Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada was the lower house of the bicameral structure of provincial government in Lower Canada until 1838. The legislative assembly was created by the Constitutional Act of 1791. The lower house consisted of el ...

from 1808 to 1809. His name also appears as Jean-Joseph Tröstler. He was born in

Mannheim Mannheim (; Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (german: Universitätsstadt Mannheim), is the second-largest city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg after the state capital of Stuttgart, and Germany's 2 ...

, the son of Henry Tröstler and Magdeleine Feitten. Trestler came to Quebec in 1776 as a member of a German mercenary unit. He was discharged from the army in 1783 or earlier and became a peddler in

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 ...

. Trestler was married twice: to Marguerite Noël in 1785 and then to Marie-Anne-Joseph Curtius in 1794. In 1786, he purchased a home in the

seigneury ''Seigneur'' is an originally feudal title in France before the Revolution, in New France and British North America until 1854, and in the Channel Islands to this day. A seigneur refers to the person or collective who owned a ''seigneurie'' (o ...

of Vaudreuil, where he operated a general store as well as a

potash Potash () includes various mined and manufactured salts that contain potassium in water-soluble form.

factory. He was also involved in the fur trade and transporting goods on the

Ottawa River The Ottawa River (french: Rivière des Outaouais, Algonquin: ''Kichi-Sìbì/Kitchissippi'') is a river in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. It is named after the Algonquin word 'to trade', as it was the major trade route of Eastern ...

. He was able to acquire a substantial amount of property with the proceeds from his business operations. Trestler did not run for reelection to the assembly in 1809. He died in Vaudreuil. His granddaughter Iphigénie Trestler married Antoine-Aimé Dorion and his granddaughter Marie Abby Victoria Hays married

Jean-Baptiste-Éric Dorion Jean-Baptiste-Éric Dorion (September 17, 1826 – November 1, 1866) was a journalist and political figure in Canada East. He was born in Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pérade, Lower Canada in 1826, the son of Pierre-Antoine Dorion. In 1842, he found w ...

. Trestler's home in Dorion, designated a

National Historic Site of Canada National Historic Sites of Canada (french: Lieux historiques nationaux du Canada) are places that have been designated by the federal Minister of the Environment An environment minister (sometimes minister of the environment or secretary of t ...

by the Canadian government and a historic monument by the Quebec government, is now a museum.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Trestler, Jean-Joseph 1813 deaths Members of the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada Year of birth uncertain