François Havy
Encyclopedia
François Havy was a French
merchant
who operated in Quebec
. Havy managed the Quebec business of the French shipping firm Dugard et Cie. While the company's Quebec activities were modest when Havy first established the office in 1732, by 1741 he was handling a full fifth of the colony's imports. They oversaw the construction of six ships for the company.
His assistant was his cousin Jean Lefebvre
, with whom he formed a partnership to pursue other business opportunities while retaining their positions at Dugard et Cie. Eventually, Dugard et Cie's ships were lost to privateers or storms and the firm withdrew from Canada. Lefebvre and Havy's business grew steadily, as they personally handled cargos and eventually came to own a small ship of their own, the Parfaite Union.
They experienced a setback when they invested in a sealing station in Labrador
with Louis Bazil
and Louis Fornel
, and retained their interest in it until the 1745 capture of the Fortress of Louisbourg
by Anglo-Americans cut them off from it. They lost about a third of their original 100,000 livre investment.
In 1756, partly out of a desire to marry (as a Huguenot
, he could not do so in Quebec) and partly motivated by the looming threat of the Seven Years War, Havy returned to France to oversee the transfer of as much of the business as possible there. When the British captured Quebec in 1759 much of his and Lefebvre's assets in New France-- in mortgages, Canadian paper money, and bills of exchange -- were declared worthless by the new government. However, the pair joined with another cousin, François Levesque, as a partner to conclude what business remained, and Levesque carried on as a merchant in British Canada for some time.
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
merchant
Merchant
A merchant is a businessperson who trades in commodities that were produced by others, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be one of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...
who operated in Quebec
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
. Havy managed the Quebec business of the French shipping firm Dugard et Cie. While the company's Quebec activities were modest when Havy first established the office in 1732, by 1741 he was handling a full fifth of the colony's imports. They oversaw the construction of six ships for the company.
His assistant was his cousin Jean Lefebvre
Jean Lefebvre (merchant)
Jean Lefebvre was a French merchant in Quebec City. He came to Quebec City in 1732 to be the assistant of François Havy, at the trading company Dugard et Cie. Havy and LeFebvre formed a partnership and two became highly successful merchants in their own right...
, with whom he formed a partnership to pursue other business opportunities while retaining their positions at Dugard et Cie. Eventually, Dugard et Cie's ships were lost to privateers or storms and the firm withdrew from Canada. Lefebvre and Havy's business grew steadily, as they personally handled cargos and eventually came to own a small ship of their own, the Parfaite Union.
They experienced a setback when they invested in a sealing station in Labrador
Labrador
Labrador is the distinct, northerly region of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It comprises the mainland portion of the province, separated from the island of Newfoundland by the Strait of Belle Isle...
with Louis Bazil
Louis Bazil
Louis Bazil was a French merchant and militia officer in New France.Bazil traded between his home in Quebec and La Rochelle, as well as Martinique and Île Royale. He was well-connected and in 1736 was granted a concession to administer a sealing station in Labrador...
and Louis Fornel
Louis Fornel
Louis Fornel was a French merchant, explorer, and seigneur in New France. Involved in maritime trade and both born and married into prominent Quebec families, Louis Fornel was among the partners Louis Bazil convinced to invest in his ill-fated Labrador sealing station.Determined to claim a sealing...
, and retained their interest in it until the 1745 capture of the Fortress of Louisbourg
Fortress of Louisbourg
The Fortress of Louisbourg is a national historic site and the location of a one-quarter partial reconstruction of an 18th century French fortress at Louisbourg, Nova Scotia...
by Anglo-Americans cut them off from it. They lost about a third of their original 100,000 livre investment.
In 1756, partly out of a desire to marry (as a Huguenot
Huguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
, he could not do so in Quebec) and partly motivated by the looming threat of the Seven Years War, Havy returned to France to oversee the transfer of as much of the business as possible there. When the British captured Quebec in 1759 much of his and Lefebvre's assets in New France-- in mortgages, Canadian paper money, and bills of exchange -- were declared worthless by the new government. However, the pair joined with another cousin, François Levesque, as a partner to conclude what business remained, and Levesque carried on as a merchant in British Canada for some time.