Urbain Tessier dit LaVigne

Why do some say "dit Duchateau" ? Most sources say Lavigne i.i.PRDH

http://www.fichierorigine.com/detail.php?numero=243904

TESSIER / LAVIGNE, Urbain 243904

Statut Marié

Date de naissance Vers 1625

Lieu d'origine Château-la-Vallière (Notre-Dame) (Indre-et-Loire) 37062

Parents Arthur et Jeanne Meine

Première mention au pays 1648

Occupation à l'arrivée Scieur de long

Date de mariage 28-09-1648

Lieu du mariage Québec (Notre-Dame)

Conjoint Marie Archambault

Décès ou inhumation Montréal, 21-03-1689

Remarques Sa mère est inhumée à Château-la-Vallière (Notre-Dame) le 13-03-1648.

Identification DGFQ, p. 1066

Chercheur(s) Denis E. Amyot

Référence DGO, supplément 1, p. 30

---

3/24/1661 - Urbain Tessier , pere de famille age 37 ans est enleve por les Iroquois et l'on ne saint s'il vit encore (1) et le 18 Juin de cette meme annee Michel Messier age de 21 ans epoux d'Anne Lemoyne fut asissi enleve pas les Iroquois et au bapteme de sa fille Jeanne l'om ignorait s'il vivait encore [Register de Montreal].

Ces deaus braves citoyens purent revenie au sein de leut famille ils comptent tous deaux une tres nombreuse posterite

(voir le dict, gen., p. 427 & 561).

[A Travers Les Registres by C. Tanguay (Editions Elysee 1978 C P 188 Stations Cote-Ste.-Luc, Montreal, Canada H4V 2Y4 9 Cohen, ed. 1978, p. 42].

Another translation : Urbain Tessier dit Lavignie was an example of the pioneers and colonists of whom is built the fabric of legend. He was born between1624-1627 in the village of l'Anjou and arrived in Nouvelle France at an unknown date. He was perhaps recruited by Jerome Le Royer de la Dauversiere to come to improve and reclaim new land at Ile de Montreal. If this is the case, he would have left either Dieppe or LaRochelle before the start of 1641, the same time as Paul de Chomeday, Sieur de Maisonneuve.

French Canadian and Acadian Genealogical Review, Vol. I, No.3 : Urbain Tessier dit Lavigne was certainly one of the most prominent among Montreal's pioneers and citizens. Remarkable for his courage in defending the newly built town against the ceaseless attacks of the Iroquois, he deserved to see his name appear on the old maps which indicate the Place Lavigne, and the Bastion Lavigne. The Rue Ste-Urbain would further recall the location of the grant, situated outside the town, which Urbain Tessier had received in 1651 from the Company of Montreal.

According to the censuses, Urbain Tessier must have been born between the years 1624 and 1627. His marriage act designates him as "son of Artus Tessier and of Jeanne Meine" and indicates that he came from Chateau, in Anjou.

The first mention of Urbain Tessier in Canada is in a grant which was accorded him at Montreal by M. de Maisonneuve, January 10, 1648.

He appears to have been a recruit of M. de la Dauversiere; he presumably been living at Montreal for several years. If Tessier had accepted a piece of land, it was because he intended to settle. One of his fellow workers, established at Montreal since 1644, Michel Chauvin, had gone to Québec and found a charming wife in the person of Anne Archambault. The latter had left at Québec two marriageable sisters: Jacquette and Marie. It is not unreasonable to suppose that Dame Chauvin mentioned them to Tessier. In any case, in the autumn of that same year, September 28, 1648, the two sisters were married at Québec....Jacquette to Paul Chalifou and Marie to Urbain Tessier.

Tessier may have been between 21 to 24 at that time, but his little wife was only twelve years and seven months old, having been baptized at Dompierre-sur-Mer, in Aunis, February 24, 1636. Such a precocious marriage did not affect Marie Archambault's health in the least, inasmuch as she did not die until the age of 83, after having borne her husband 16 children.

Tessier was a sawyer by trade. In the 17th century, when saw mills did not yet exist, the rude trade of pit sawyer was in great demand and highly appreciated. The Montreal registries show many colonists engaged in this rough work. We must attribute, in part, to the muscular exercise which his work required, Urbain Tessier's remarkable vigor, which made him a formidable enemy of the Iroquois. He successfully constructed several houses. Expert in handling the lumberman's saw, the handles of a plow and above all the musket - we shall see how, later on -- Tessier could not write; on several occasions, he stated he was unable to sign his name. This was probably the reason which prevented him from occupying prominent positions at Villemarie (original name of Montreal), like his brothers-in-law, Jean Gervaise and Gilles Lauzon.

On May 6, two Montrealers of eminent virtue Jean Boudart and his wife, were victims of an Iroquois raid; the former was killed on the spot, and the latter was led away to be burned. Four days afterwards, at two o'clock in the morning, the same aggressors tried to burn the brewery and they set fire to the houses of Michel Chauvin and Urbain Tessier dit Lavigne.

Ruined but undefeated, Tessier more than once took glorious revenge on his barbarous enemies.

Here is what Fr. Lauzon has to say: On June 18, 1651, four Frenchmen were attacked by a great number of Iroquois between the fort and Point-Saint-Charles. These Frenchmen, in such small numbers were unarmed, but they found no other protection but a miserable stronghold situated in the midst of a large quantity of felled wood, and there, resolved to cling dearly to life, they started to briskly fire on their assailants. On hearing this noise, one of the oldest colonists, Urbain Tessier dit Lavigne, being the nearest to the place where the attack was being made, was the first to run there in all haste, with as much audacity as good fortune, passing through without accident, with unparalled agility and speed, over the felled wood; he got into four Iroquois ambushes, was in the line of fire without being wounded, finally arrived in the hut where he joined the besieged, and cheered them by his couragous act. Having heard these shots, one said, Shall we let them perish? and they all ran to the combat as to the feast.

Urbain Tessier was a brave man in the full sense of the word. It was not without reason, we believe, that the place where the first combat was fought with the Iroquois was called by his name: Lavigne and that the small fort located there on the old maps is designated by these words bastion Lavigne."

There were many massacres of Montreal's inhabitants from 1651 to 1665 when the Carignan troops arrived. Tessier was always in the forefront, with his father-in-law (Jacques Archambault) and Francois Bailly dit Lafleur, to guard and defend the stronghold known as L'Enfant-Jesus. It was guarded day and night. If it was taken, demolished or burned, they were obliged to reconstruct it at the same place at their expense.

We can read in the first registry of the Montreal parish an act which presupposes the most poignant moral sufferings. It reads: On June 7, 1661 was baptized Urbain, son of Urbain Tessier, inhabitant, taken by the Iroquois, March 24 last, and it is not known whether he is dead or alive, and of Marie Archambault. The godfather was Gilles Lauzon, coppersmith; the godmother, Catherine Gauchet, daughter of nobleman Claude Gauchet and of Susanne Du feu. And eleven days later (the 18th), in the same reigistry: was baptized Jeanne Messier, daughter of Michel taken by the Iroquois March 24, and again the terrible formula: it is not known whether he is dead or alive.

Three months of mortal anguish, which still drags on. News arrives, it is true, June 22, by four prisoners brought back by the Goyogoins, but to let Tesser's sorrowing wife know that Messier, his companion in activity was burned by the Oneweronnons. And as for Tessier, what had become of him?

There is no doubt at all that he was conducted to a barbarous tribe. The cruel reception which ordinarily awaited the unfortunate captive is well-known. On his arrival in a village, he was forced to pass between two rows of savages who, armed with rods and sticks, vied with each other in beating him. He was sometimes stopped, to have his fingernails torn out, or to smoke the ends of his fingers in a calumet pipe, when cruelty was not pressed to the extent of removing a few of his phalanges. Urbain tessier had to undergo this latter torture, according to the evidence of Blessed Marguerite Bourgeois. Actually, she spoke of Lavigne, from whom the Iroquois have detatched a finger in her autobiographical writings.

Meanwhile, the months went by at Montreal, and Tessier's wife, Marie Archambault, was still harrowed by the same worries. On June 22, two months therefore after the capture of March 24, four French prisoners had returned, but without furnishing definite news. On July 21, Pere Simon Lemoyne, a Jesuit, had no fear in leaving for Onhontague for the purpose of negociating the exchange of the prisoners. The emissary turned out to be very successful. On October 1, the first contingent arrived, composed of nine men.

Urbain Tessier had formed part of the group of French captives which the generous Garakontie had assembled in his village. There, a small group of veritable Christians, French and savage, had been formed under the sponsorship of Pere Lemoine. The unfortunate captive was able to find peace there, and above all, the comfort of religious exercises.

The day of liberation finally dawned for the last nine captives of the Iroquois. On August 31, 1661, Urbain Tessier and his companions, led by their liberator, Pere Simon Lemoine, returned to Montreal, in the midst of tears of joy and shouts of gladness. Their first act was to kneel at the foot of the altar to thank God for their deliverance. It was exactly one year, 5 months, and one week since the ancestor of the Tessier-Lavignes had been snatched away from his family and from his second country.

Once freed, Urbain Tessier resumed his peaceful labors of land clearing and cultivation of the soil. He enrolled, it is true, in 1663 as a soldier in the 8th squadron of the Sainte-Famille militia, but his warlike ardor abated; thus it was also during this year that he disposed of his stronghold of L'Enfant-Jesus to Francois Bailly.

If it can be said that a large family is a blessing of God, Urbain Tessier fully received this blessing. He left 16 children, of whom 10 (7 boys and 3 girls) contracted marriage, all among the good bourgeoisie of Montreal. Raised in the shadow of the parish church, they had received from Pastor Souart, school-master at Villemarie, and from Blessed Marguerite Bourgeois, a solid instruction. Louise, Paul, Laurent, among others, signed their name very well.

The Angevin Urbain Tessier dit LaVigne expired at Montreal at the age of about 65 and was buried May 21, 1689. July 28, 1690 (Adhemar registry): Inventory of the property of Urbain Tessier and division, among Marie Archambault and her children, of the land amounting to 30 arpents (2x15) situated near the town. The mother received half of this land contiguous to the l/5 received from her parents. The other half is divided into 10 lots allocated to the children, who were: Anne Lemire, widow of Laurent Tessier, Ignace, Jean, Nicolas, Louise, Jacques, Agnes, Jean-Baptiste, Petronille, and Paul Tessier.

Marie Archambault, widow of Lavigne, survived her husband by 30 years. It was not until August 6, 1719 that she died, and was buried at Pointe-aux-Trembles.

[NOTE: You see on this page a depiction of the Carignan regiment mentioned in this biography. Before 1645, French soldiers did not wear uniforms. That of the soldiers of the Carignan-Salieres regiment scarcely differs from civilian clothing. Under a maroon coloured jerkin is a short blue jacket and breeches whose legs are covered by stockings. To adapt the uniform to the climate of New France, the soldiers would cover the stockings with woollen or leather leggings and replace their French shoes with fur-lined boots.]

---

He was a Sieur de Lavigne. He was also known as Urbain Tessier dit Lavigne

---

Dit Lavergne Lord de Long

---

Urbain Tessier LaVigne was born on month day 1626, at birth place, to Arthur Tessier and Jeanne Tessier (born Meme). Arthur was born in 1590, in France. Jeanne was born circa 1602, in France. Urbain married Marie Tessier LaVigne (born Archambault) on month day 1648, at age 22 at marriage place. Marie was born on February 24 1636, in St-Pierre, Dompierre, hameau L'Ardilliere, ev. La Rochelle, Aunis (auj. St-Xandre, ar. La Rochelle, Charente-Maritime), France. They had 16 children: Marie Louise Payet (born Tessier Lavigne), Charles Tessier LaVigne and 14 other children. Urbain passed away on month day 1689, at age 63 at death place.

---

GEDCOM Source

@R-1147410111@ Quebec, Genealogical Dictionary of Canadian Families (Tanguay Collection), 1608-1890 Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Operations Inc 1,2177::0

GEDCOM Source

Volume: Vol. 1 Sect. 2 : Hem-Zap; Page: 561 1,2177::129373

GEDCOM Source

@R-1147410111@ Quebec, Genealogical Dictionary of Canadian Families (Tanguay Collection), 1608-1890 Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Operations Inc 1,2177::0

GEDCOM Source

Volume: Vol. 1 Sect. 2 : Hem-Zap; Page: 561 1,2177::129373

GEDCOM Source

@R-1147410111@ Quebec, Genealogical Dictionary of Canadian Families (Tanguay Collection), 1608-1890 Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Operations Inc 1,2177::0

GEDCOM Source

Volume: Vol. 1 Sect. 2 : Hem-Zap; Page: 561 1,2177::129373

GEDCOM Source

@R-1147410111@ Quebec, Genealogical Dictionary of Canadian Families (Tanguay Collection), 1608-1890 Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Operations Inc 1,2177::0

GEDCOM Source

Volume: Vol. 1 Sect. 2 : Hem-Zap; Page: 561 1,2177::129373

GEDCOM Source

@R-1147410111@ Ancestry Family Trees Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com. Original data: Family Tree files submitted by Ancestry members.

GEDCOM Source

Ancestry Family Tree http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/AMTCitationRedir.aspx?tid=70627862&pid...

---

GEDCOM Source

@R1050710867@ Millennium File Heritage Consulting Ancestry.com Operations Inc

GEDCOM Source

1,7249::10968863

GEDCOM Source

@R1050710867@ Canada, Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.

GEDCOM Source

1,60527::3378953

GEDCOM Source

@R1050710867@ Canada, Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.

GEDCOM Source

1,60527::3378953

GEDCOM Source

@R1050710867@ Canada, Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.

GEDCOM Source

1,60527::3378953

GEDCOM Source

@R1050710867@ Millennium File Heritage Consulting Ancestry.com Operations Inc

GEDCOM Source

1,7249::10968863

GEDCOM Source

@R1050710867@ Millennium File Heritage Consulting Ancestry.com Operations Inc

GEDCOM Source

1,7249::10968810

GEDCOM Source

@R1050710867@ Millennium File Heritage Consulting Ancestry.com Operations Inc

GEDCOM Source

1,7249::10968863

GEDCOM Source

@R1050710867@ Canada, Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.

GEDCOM Source

1,60527::3378953

---

GEDCOM Note

[roy ancestors.FTW]

1666 Census, Montreal, Canada

Urbain Tessier, dit Lavigne 42 Habitant Marie Archambault 30 'c9pouse Paul Tessier 15 Fils Laurens Tessier 11 Fils Louise Tessier 9 Fille Agnesse Tessier 7 Fille Urbain Tessier 4 Fils Jean Tessier 3 Fils Claude Tessier 7 sems Fils Estienne Gentes 18 Domestique,engag'e9 Jacques Hurtaut 25 Domestique,engag'e9

http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Estates/4162/recensm.htm

Urbain Tessier fought the Indians at Place des Armes in Montreal, PQ There is a plaque Commemorating Urbain on the Place des Armes building in Montreal. The Place des Armes is built on the Concession land that is the heritage of the Tessier descendants. It is a long story and it seems that none of the descendants got anything from this inheritance. My great grandmother was part of a court case for this land and was deemed not part of it.

Text: C-002, Joe Collette, 9000 Zuni Road, SE., W-111, Albuquerque,NM USA 87123-3175 His E-mail is 'Monty1jeepS1301S1343S1343S1301S1343S1343S1301S1343S1343S1301S1343@

GEDCOM Source

Volume: Vol. 1 Sect. 1 : A-Hel; Page: 11 Page Volume: Vol. 1 Sect. 1 : A-Hel; Page: 11

---

Urbain had the 8th land grant on the Ile de Montreal. He performed many acts of bravery from constant attacks by the Iroquois.A building and Monument in Montreal is dedicated to his memory. Info from Quebec geneological Dictionary #362680 Urbain was captured by the Iroquois in March of 1661. Data Tanguay as translated bu Armand Demers Jr

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

A Prisoner of the Iroquois – Urbain Tessier dit Lavigne By: Laura M.
http://ancestorbios.blogspot.com/2017/12/a-prisoner-of-iroquois-urb...

B. about 1624 in Breil, Anjou, France M. 28 Sep 1648 in Quebec City, New France Wife: Marie Archambault D. 21 Mar 1689 in Montreal, New France

Urbain Tessier dit Lavigne was one of the rugged pioneers who helped establish what would one day become the city of Montreal. He was born in about 1624 in Breil, France, a town about 60 miles east of La Rochelle. His parents were Artus Tessier and Jeanne Mesme. Artus was a carpenter and likely taught the trade to his son. Urbain was illiterate, suggesting he didn't attend school as a boy.

The exact date of Urbain's arrival in New France isn't known, but it was some time after 1641 and before 1648. He may have been recruited while still in France to help settle a new post in the west, Ville-Marie (later renamed Montreal), and on January 10, 1648, he was granted a tract of land there. The post was set up for the purpose of fur trading, but needed men with skills like Urbain to help construct buildings. Urbain was a "long sawyer," which meant he used the kind of saw that turned raw timber into planks of wood. He was known to have built many early houses in Montreal, and he also supplied wood to other settlers in the community.

After he received his grant of land, Urbain looked to find a wife, and on September 28, 1648, he married Marie Archambault in Quebec City. He may have connected with her through a friend, Michel Chauvin, who had earlier married her sister Anne. Another sister named Jacquette was married on the same day as Urbain and Marie. When Marie married, she was not yet 13 years-old, and the following year, she gave birth to twins who didn't survive. Marie and Urbain would go on to have a total of 17 children.

The challenges of living in a place like Montreal in the mid-17th century went beyond just carving out a home in the wilderness — the greatest threat came from the Iroquois tribe across the river to the south. During 1651, two Montreal settlers were brutally murdered in an Iroquois raid. On May 10th, the attackers came back, said to be 40 men, and set fire to Urbain's house, as well as his friend Michel Chauvin's house. The following month, on June 18th, Urbain had another encounter with the Iroquois. He heard four men who were being attacked in a vulnerable spot away from the settlement, and he rushed to their aid, avoiding being shot as he navigated to their location. The settlers were barricaded in a hut, and after Urbain joined them, they fought off the attack together.

Urbain was known to be fearless against Iroquois attackers, but on March 24, 1661, he was captured with some other settlers and became a prisoner for several months. The men were taken to a village of the tribe located in present-day New York State. The Iroquois were notorious for torturing their captives, and while a prisoner, one of Urbain's fingers was cut off. He had no contact with his family during his time with the Iroquois, and his wife Marie didn't know he if he was dead or alive.

There's no doubt that Urbain suffered during his captivity; he later admitted becoming so desperate, that he nearly joined his captors when they went off to battle another tribe. It was the Jesuits who negotiated for his release, and he was handed over to them in August along with eight other people. The Jesuits noted that his hand where his finger had been cut off was in pretty bad shape, but it healed enough six months later so that he could use it again.

Even after all he had been through, Urbain wasn't afraid to fight off the Iroquois yet again. A short time after he had returned home, he woke up in the middle of the night and saw a group of warriors sneaking into town, looking to kill more settlers. He was said to have "silently awakened his companions, and having the rest of the night for consultation they arranged their plan well, so that some of them sallied from the rear of the house, came cautiously upon the Iroquois, placed them between two fires and captured them all."

As the years passed, the threats in Montreal became less and less as it became more populated. The presence of military in the area also helped, and Urbain lived out the rest of his life in a safer community. He died in Montreal on March 21, 1689; his wife Marie survived him by many years, passing away in 1719.

Urbain Tessier dit Lavigne left a legacy in Montreal that is evident to this day. Saint Urbain Street was said to have been built by him — today, it's a major street in Montreal. Much of the downtown area was originally part of his land. On the Royal Trust Company building that faces the Notre-Dame Basilica, there are plaques in both French and English that read:

"This building was built on a piece of land initially granted to Urbain Tessier dit Lavigne. This was the 8th concession made to a citizen of the island of Montreal."

Urbain was the ancestor of Pierre and Justin Trudeau.

Children: 1. Baby Girl Tessier – B. 19 Jul 1649, Montreal, New France; D. 19 Jul 1649, Montreal, New France

2. Charles Tessier – B. 19 Jul 1649, Montreal, New France; D. 24 Jul 1649, Montreal, New France

3. Paul Tessier – B. Feb 1651, Montreal, New France; M. Marie-Madeleine Cloutier, 13 Oct 1681, Chateau-Richer, New France

4. Madeleine Tessier — B. 19 Jul 1653, Montreal, New France

5. Laurent Tessier — B. 3 Jun 1655, Montreal, New France; D. 27 Sep 1687, Montreal, New France; M. Anne-Geneviéve Lemire, 20 Oct 1681, Quebec City, New France

6. Louise Tessier – B. 26 Mar 1657, Montreal, New France; M. Pierre Payet dit St-Amour, 23 Nov 1671, Montreal, New France

7. Agnés Tessier dite Lavigne – B. Mar 1659, Montreal, New France; M. Guillaume Richard dit Lafleur, 26 Nov 1675

8. Urbain Tessier – B. Jun 1661, Montreal, New France; D. Mar 1685, Montreal, New France

9. Jean Tessier — B. Jun 1663, Montreal, New France; M. (1) Jeanne LeBer, 16 Jan 1686, La Prairie, New France; (2) Louise Caron, 21 Apr 1688, La Pairie, New France; (3) Marie-Catherine De Poiters, 27 aug 1703, Montreal, New France

10. Claude Tessier — B. Dec 1665, Montreal, New France

11. Jacques Tessier — B. May 1668, Montreal, New France; D. 23 Jun 1670, Montreal, New France

12. Pétronille Tessier — B. Mar 1670, Montreal, New France; M. Pierre Janot dit Lachapelle, 31 Jan 1684

13. Jean-Baptiste Tessier — B. Jan 1672, Montreal, New France; M. Élisabeth Renault, 4 Nov 1698, Montreal, New France

14. Pierre Tessier — B. Feb 1674, Montreal, New France; D. 23 Feb 1674, Montreal, New France

15. Jacques Tessier — B. Mar 1675, Montreal, New France; M. Marie Adhémar dite St-Martin, 10 Mar 1699, Montreal, New France

16. Ignace Tessier — B. Mar 1677, Montreal, New France; D. 1747; M. Marguerite Luissier, 23 May 1703, Repentigny, New France

17. Nicolas Tessier — B. Jun 1679, Montreal, New France; M. Marie-Genevieve Augé, 27 Jan 1716, Montreal, New France

Sources: Généalogie du Quebec et d'Amérique française (website) Quebec Catholic Parish Registers, 1621-1979, FamilySearch.org The Old Regime in Canada, Francis Parkman, 1874 French Canadian and Acadian Genealogical Review, Volume I, No. I, Spring 1968, Rev. Archange Godbout, 1968 Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Volume 36, Reuben Gold Thwaites, 1899 Saint Urbain Street (Wikipedia article)

---

GEDCOM Note

Urbain Tessier dit Lavigne is one of the original settlers of Ville Marie (now Montreal). He was born abt. 1625 in the Province of Anjou, France.It seems he was a determined man who would not allow the Iroquois to squash his dream of settling in New France. He was a worker on the stockade surrounding the fort and helped to build houses and other community buildings from the rough land of bush. He was a sawyer by trade. He was given a land grant in January 1648 in Ville Marie.

GEDCOM Note

Urbain Tessier dit Lavigne is one of the original settlers of Ville Marie (now Montreal). He was born abt. 1625 in the Province of Anjou, France.It seems he was a determined man who would not allow the Iroquois to squash his dream of settling in New France. He was a worker on the stockade surrounding the fort and helped to build houses and other community buildings from the rough land of bush. He was a sawyer by trade. He was given a land grant in January 1648 in Ville Marie.

1652-Urbain Tessier is granted a large plot of land in what is now called Place de Armes near the Basilica Notre Dame.

1661-King Louis XIV is now in power. The colony pleaded for new troops to be sent to help with the Iroquois.Urbain Tessier is captured by the Iroquois on March 24, 1661 and is taken from his family. one account states that Urbaine was arduousy working with 15 men on their land outside the walls of Ville Marie,[the original name for Montreal] they were pounced on by 250 Iroquois.The struggle was violent and very disproportionate.After the conflict 4 Frenchmen remained on the field, Urbain was among the others who were taken captive.They were blindfolded and had to march a long distance. They did not know where they were taken but it was among the barbarians.They were tortured! A person reporting later told of a Frenchman named Lavigne who had his finger detached by the Iroquois. The release of the Frenchmen was negotiated by father Simon Lemoyne-a Jesuit. Another account states that Urbain had rescued several of his peers with an audacious attack. During this time his son Urbain Tessier was born and baptized on June 7, 1661. No one knew weather Urbain was dead or alive. Marie Archambault knew that his fate, if he was still alive, might be nearly worse than death.

1662-Urbain Tessier is released by the Iroquois after 17 months of captivity and returns to his family. There is no doubt at all that he was held by a barbaric tribe. The cruel reception which awaited captives was widley known. On his arrival he was forced to pass between two rows and he was beaten as he moved down the row. He might be stopped to have his fingernails torn out or his fingers burned in a pipe. One Marguerite Bourgeouis actually wrote of Levigne "from whom the Iroquois have detached a finger", in her autobiography.