Île-aux-Ruaux (Ile aux Réaux, Ile des Ruaux, Île au Ruau, and others) is one of the oldest concessions in the history of

New France New France (, ) was the territory colonized by Kingdom of France, 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 Kingdom of Great Br ...

. The whole island was granted to the

Jesuits The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

in 1638 by the

Company of One Hundred Associates The Company of One Hundred Associates ( French: formally the Compagnie de la Nouvelle-France, or colloquially the Compagnie des Cent-Associés or Compagnie du Canada), or Company of New France, was a French trading and colonization company ch ...

. The Jesuits took possession in 1639. Among these first arrivals was

François Byssot de la Rivière François Byssot de la Rivière (1612 or 1613 –1673) was an early figure in the New World, his presence being recorded at Île-aux-Ruaux in 1639 when the Jesuits took possession of the property. He married Marie Couillard in Quebec on 25 Octobe ...

. The island lies in the Saint Lawrence River and is within easy access of

Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

and

Île d'Orléans Île d'Orléans (; ) is an island located in the Saint Lawrence River about east of downtown Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. It was one of the first parts of the province to be colonized by the French, and a large percentage of French Canadians c ...

. It is approximately 3.5 miles by .75 miles in size and is part of the Archipelago of Isle-aux-Grues. It is also a part of the municipality of

Saint-François-de-l'Île-d'Orléans Saint-François-de-l'Île-d'Orléans (, ) is a municipality in the Capitale-Nationale region of Quebec, Canada, part of the L'Île-d'Orléans Regional County Municipality. The village is situated on the north-eastern tip of Orléans Island, and ...

, in

L'Île-d'Orléans Regional County Municipality L'Île-d'Orléans () is a regional county municipality in central Quebec, Canada, in the Capitale-Nationale region. Its seat is Sainte-Famille-de-l'Île-d'Orléans. The population in the 2016 census was 7,082 people. The RCM consists solely of ...

. Île Reaux is now a private hunting island, home to a half-century-old estate, “Le Club de Chasse aux Brigands”. In 1962 the island was purchased by William O’Brien, a Montreal businessman, who had different plans. Being an avid and experienced hunter, he was well aware of flight paths of game birds. Just north of the island on the shore of the St. Lawrence River, is Cap Tourmente, amongst the largest concentration of Snow Geese in the world. Many were confused why a Montreal Stock Broker would want a farm on the St. Laurence. William was not as puzzled. Thus began “Club de Chasse aux Brigands” It has hosted family, friends, Royalty, Heads of State, Fortune 500 executives and many more.

References

''Île-aux-Ruaux''

''Ile Réaux''
* Landforms of Capitale-Nationale Ruaux 1630s in Canada 1639 in New France Islands of the Saint Lawrence River {{Quebec-island-stub