Étienne Duchesnois was a merchant and political figure in Lower Canada

Lower Canada

The Province of Lower Canada was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence...

. He represented Surrey in the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada

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...

 from 1814 to 1824.

He was born in Berthier

Berthierville, Quebec

Berthierville is a Canadian town located between Montreal and Trois-Rivières on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River in the province of Quebec. Berthierville is the seat of D'Autray Regional County Municipality, and is served by Autoroute 40, and is the junction of Routes 138 and 158...

, the son of Étienne Duchesnois and Catherine-Françoise Leroux. Duchesnois established himself in business at Varennes

Varennes, Quebec

Varennes is an off-island suburb of Montreal, in southwestern Quebec, Canada on the Saint Lawrence River in the Regional County Municipality of Lajemmerais. The city is approximately 15 miles from Downtown Montreal. The population as of the Canada 2006 Census was 20,950...

. He was also a justice of the peace

Justice of the Peace

A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...

 and a major in the militia. In 1797, he married Josette Massue, the daughter of the seigneur

Seigneurial system of New France

The seigneurial system of New France was the semi-feudal system of land distribution used in the North American colonies of New France.-Introduction to New France:...

 of Varennes, Gaspard Massue, and the sister of Aignan-Aimé Massue

Aignan-Aimé Massue

Aignan-Aimé Massue was a seigneur and political figure in Lower Canada. He represented Surrey in the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada from 1824 to 1827 as a supporter of the Parti patriote....

 and Louis Massue

Louis Massue

Louis Massue was a businessman and political figure in Canada East.He was born Louis-Joseph Massue in Varennes in 1786, the son of the co-seigneur of Varennes. He became a prosperous merchant in the import and dry goods trade at Quebec City. In 1818, he was named to the board of governors for the...

. Duchesnois did not run for reelection in 1824. He died two years later in Varennes at the age of 61.