Joséphine Marchand-Dandurand (December 5, 1861 – March 2, 1925) was a journalist, writer and feminist activist in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

Early years and education

Joséphine-Hersélie-Henriette Marchand was born in Saint-Jean-d'Iberville. She was the daughter of

Félix-Gabriel Marchand Félix-Gabriel Marchand (January 9, 1832 – September 25, 1900) was a journalist, author, notary and politician in Quebec, Canada. He was the 11th premier of Quebec from May 24, 1897, to September 25, 1900. Born in what is Saint-Jean-sur- ...

, later Premier of Quebec, and Hersélie Turgeon. She was educated by the Sisters of the

Congregation of Notre Dame of Montreal The Congrégation de Notre Dame (CND) is a religious community for women founded in 1658 in Ville Marie (Montreal), in the colony of New France, now part of Canada. It was established by Marguerite Bourgeoys, who was recruited in France to create ...

and developed a love for reading at a young age.

Career

She began to write short stories for publication in 1879. Her work appeared in ''Le Franco-Canadien'', '' La Patrie'' and ''

L'Opinion publique ''L'Opinion publique'' was a weekly illustrated magazine published in Montreal from 1870 to 1883 by George-Édouard Desbarats. It is considered to be the first French-language illustrated newspaper in Canada. History ''L'Opinion publique'' was ...

''. In 1886, she married

Raoul Dandurand Raoul Dandurand, (November 4, 1861 – March 11, 1942) was a Canadian politician and longtime organizer in Quebec for the Liberal Party of Canada. Biography Dandurand graduated from the Faculty of Law at Université Laval, and worked as a c ...

; the couple had one daughter Gabrielle. In 1888, her play ''Quand on s'aime, on se marie'', a comedy in one act, appeared at the Académie de Musique de Québec. It was published as ''Rancune'' in 1896. In 1889, she published a collection of stories ''Contes de Noël'' under the name Josette''. She then published two children's plays: ''Ce que pensent les fleurs'' (1895) and ''La carte postale'' (1896). She founded the monthly magazine ''Le Coin du feu'' in 1893, the first periodical in

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

edited by a woman; the last issue was published in December 1896. In the last issue, she appealed for growth of women's publications. She continued to contribute to other publications 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 ...

such as ''

Le Monde illustré ''Le Monde illustré'' (title translation: ''The Illustrated World'') was a leading illustrated news magazine in France which was published from 1857–1940 and again from 1945 to 1956. It was in many ways similar to its contemporary English ...

'', '' Journal de Françoise'' and '' La Revue moderne''. In 1901, she published a collection of her articles as ''Nos travers''. Marchand was a speaker at the first congress of the

National Council of Women of Canada The National Council of Women of Canada (NCWC, french: Conseil national des femmes du Canada, (''CNFC'')) is a Canadian advocacy organization based in Ottawa, Ontario, aimed at improving conditions for women, families, and communities. A federati ...

, held in 1894. She served as Quebec vice-president of the Council and as vice-president of its Montreal branch. In 1898, she founded Œuvre des Livres Gratuits, which provided reading material for under-privileged people. In 1902, she became one of the founders of women's section of the Association Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Montréal. Marchand died in Montreal at the age of 63 after a lengthy illness and was buried in

Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery (french: Cimetière Notre-Dame-des-Neiges) is a rural cemetery located in the borough of Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Montreal, Quebec, Canada which was founded in 1854. The entrance and the grounds run a ...

. There is a Dandurand-Marchand collection at

Library and Archives Canada Library and Archives Canada (LAC; french: Bibliothèque et Archives Canada) is the federal institution, tasked with acquiring, preserving, and providing accessibility to the documentary heritage of Canada. The national archive and library is th ...

. A sub-series is dedicated to Joséphine Marchand.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Marchand, Josephine 1861 births 1925 deaths 19th-century Canadian women writers 19th-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Canadian non-fiction writers 20th-century Canadian women writers Canadian dramatists and playwrights in French Canadian feminists Canadian women journalists Canadian women dramatists and playwrights Canadian magazine editors Canadian activists Canadian women activists Journalists from Quebec People from Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu Writers from Quebec Canadian women non-fiction writers Women magazine editors Burials at Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery