Pierre-Étienne Fortin (December 14, 1823 – June 15, 1888) was a physician and political figure in Quebec, Canada. He represented Gaspé in the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada () is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of Ca ...

as a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

member from 1867 to 1874 and from 1878 to 1887, he also represented Gaspé in the

Legislative Assembly of Quebec A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the authority, legal authority to make laws for a Polity, political entity such as a Sovereign state, country, nation or city on behalf of the people therein. They are often contrasted with th ...

from 1867 to 1878. In 1887, he was appointed to the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada () is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons, they compose the Bicameralism, bicameral le ...

for Kennebec division.

Biography

He was born in

Verchères Verchères () is an off-island suburbs, off-island suburb of Montreal, in Montérégie, Quebec, located on the south bank of the Saint Lawrence River. The population as of the Canada 2021 Census was 5,759. History file:Verchères (Québec)-Pan ...

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada () was a British colonization of the Americas, British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence established in 1791 and abolished in 1841. It covered the southern portion o ...

in 1823, grew up in Laprairie and studied at the Petit Séminaire de Montréal. His uncle was

Ludger Duvernay Ludger Duvernay (January 22, 1799 – November 28, 1852), born in Verchères, Quebec, was a printer by profession and published a number of newspapers including the '' Gazette des Trois-Rivières,'' the first newspaper in Lower Canada outside ...

, Patriote and publisher of ''

La Minerve ''La Minerve'' (French for "The Minerva") was a newspaper founded in Montreal, Lower Canada (present-day Quebec) by Augustin-Norbert Morin to promote the political goals of Louis-Joseph Papineau's Parti patriote. It was notably directed by L ...

''. Fortin graduated from

McGill College McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

in medicine in 1845 and practiced at Laprairie. He helped treat patients during the typhus epidemic of 1847-48 at Grosse-Île. In 1849, he led a group of mounted constables that controlled riots after the passing of the

Rebellion Losses Bill The Rebellion Losses Bill (full name: ''An Act to provide for the Indemnification of Parties in Lower Canada whose Property was destroyed during the Rebellion in the years 1837 and 1838'') was a controversial law enacted by the legislature of ...

. From 1852 to 1867, he served as magistrate protecting fisheries in the

Gulf of Saint Lawrence The Gulf of St. Lawrence is a gulf that fringes the shores of the provinces of Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, in Canada, plus the islands Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, possessions of France, in ...

. Fortin also served as customs agent in the Gulf and, with his ship, ''La Canadienne'', was the sole guardian of law and order in this region. During this period, Fortin also published a list of fish found in the Gulf region and prepared descriptions of marine mammals found there. In 1867, he was elected to the federal and provincial legislatures for Gaspé. He was named commissioner of crown lands in the provincial executive council but resigned in 1874 after a scandal implicating the party in power. In the same year, he resigned from federal politics after it became illegal to hold seats in both houses. In 1875, he was named speaker for the provincial assembly; he was forced to resign in 1876 after allegations of improper procedures in his election. Although he was later exonerated, a replacement had already been chosen. While in office, he helped promote the development of the Baie de Chaleur Railway,

telegraph Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas ...

service connecting the

Gaspé peninsula The Gaspé Peninsula, also known as Gaspesia (, ; ), is a peninsula along the south shore of the St. Lawrence River that extends from the Matapedia Valley in Quebec, Canada, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence. It is separated from New Brunswick on it ...

to the rest of the province and the installation of

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...

s in the region. Fortin also helped to establish formal education in navigation in Canada. He opposed reciprocity with the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and was a strong defender of Canadian fishing rights. He helped found the Société de Géographie de Québec and served as its first president. He died in Laprairie in 1888, while still a member of the Senate. In 2002, the Quebec Ministère des Ressources naturelles et de la Faune named a wildlife reserve on the

Richelieu River The Richelieu River () is a river of Quebec, Canada, and a major right-bank tributary of the St. Lawrence River. It rises at Lake Champlain, from which it flows northward through Quebec and empties into the St. Lawrence. It was formerly kno ...

after Pierre-Étienne Fortin.

References

*''A life on the line : Commander Pierre-Étienne Fortin and his times'', W. Brian Stewart (1997)

External links

* * *
''USQUE AD MARE: A History of the Canadian Coast Guard and Marine Services'', Thomas E Appleton
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fortin, Pierre 1823 births 1888 deaths Canadian senators from Quebec Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942) MPs Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942) senators Conservative Party of Quebec MNAs Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Quebec Presidents of the National Assembly of Quebec Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada) People from La Prairie, Quebec People from Verchères, Quebec Politicians from Montérégie 19th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec 19th-century members of the Senate of Canada 19th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada