Louis Riel Sr.

Louis Riel Sr. (père) (July 1817 – January 21, 1864) was a farmer, miller, Métis leader, and the father of Louis Riel. Events March 4 - James Monroe succeeds James Madison as the President of the United States of America April – Earthquake in Palermo, Italy April 3 – Princess Caraboo appears in Almondsbury in Gloucestershire, England May - The General Convention of the Episcopal Church founded General Theological Seminary while meeting in New York City. ... January 21 is the 21st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1864 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... The Métis (pronounced MAY tee, IPA: , in French: or ) are an ethnic group of the Canadian prairies, Ontario, Quebec, Labrador, and the Canadian Northwest Territories. ... Louis Riel Louis David Riel (October 22, 1844 – November 16, 1885), was a Canadian politician and leader of the Métis people of the Canadian prairies. ...

Born in Île-à-la-Crosse, Saskatchewan, Riel was the eldest son of Jean-Baptiste Riel, dit L’Irlande, a voyageur, and Marguerite Boucher, a Franco-Ojibwa Métis. The Riel family moved back to Lower Canada while Louis was a child. He was educated in Quebec, learning the trade of carding wool. He joined the fur trade with the Hudson's Bay Company in 1838 and was stationed at Rainy River, Ontario for several years. He left the HBC in 1842 and returned to Quebec with the intention of joining the priesthood at the Oblates of Mary Immaculate at Saint-Hilaire, but withdrew a year later. He returned to the Canadian West, settling in the Red River Settlement on a river lot in in Saint-Boniface (now a district of modern Winnipeg, Manitoba). He married Julie Lagimodière, daughter of voyageur Jean-Baptiste Lagimodière and his wife, Marie-Anne Gaboury in January, 1844. Together they had eleven children, and by all accounts formed a devout and close-knit family. Motto: Multis E Gentibus Vires (From many peoples, strength) Other Canadian provinces and territories Capital Regina Largest city Saskatoon Lieutenant Governor Lynda M. Haverstock Premier Lorne Calvert (NDP) Area 651,036 km² (7th)  - Land 591,670 km²  - Water 59,366 km² (9. ... The coureurs des bois (runners of the woods) or voyageurs (travellers) is the name given to the men who engaged in the fur trade directly with the Amerindians in North America from the time of New France up through the 19th century, when much of the continent was still mostly... One Called From A Distance (Midwewinind) of the White Earth Band, 1894 The Ojibwa or Chippewa (also Ojibwe, Ojibway, Chippeway) are the third-largest group of Native Americans in the United States, surpassed only by Cherokee and Navajo. ... Lower Canada was a British colony in North America, at the downstream end of the Saint Lawrence River in the southern portion of the modern-day province of Quebec. ... This article describes the Canadian province. ... Carding Llama hair Carding is the processing of brushing raw fibers to prepare them as textiles. ... Long and short hair wool at the South Central Family Farm Research Center in Boonesville, AR Wool is the fiber derived from the hair of domesticated animals, usually sheep. ... The Hudsons Bay Company building in Montreal The Hudsons Bay Company (HBC) is the oldest corporation in Canada and is one of the oldest in the world still in existence. ... 1838 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... The town of Rainy River is situated on the Ontario-Minnesota border. ... Motto: Ut Incepit Fidelis Sic Permanet (Loyal she began, loyal she remains) Other Canadian provinces and territories Capital Toronto Largest city Toronto Lieutenant Governor James K. Bartleman Premier Dalton McGuinty (Liberal) Area 1,076,395 km² (4th)  - Land 917,741 km²  - Water 158,654 km² (14. ... 1842 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Seal of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, a religious order of the Roman Catholic Church. ... Western Canada normally refers to three or four Canadian provinces: British Columbia (a few exclude the coast) Alberta Saskatchewan Manitoba (possibly) Western British Columbia adjoins the Pacific Ocean but both Alberta and Saskatchewan are landlocked. ... The Red River Colony was a colonization project set up by Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk in 1811 on 300 000 km² of land granted to him by the Hudsons Bay Company under what is referred to as the Selkirk Concession. ... Saint Boniface is an area of the city of Winnipeg, home to the Franco-Manitoban community. ... {{Canadian City/Disable Field={{{Disable Motto Link}}}}} Motto: Unum Cum Virtute Multorum (One With the Strength of Many) City of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada Location. ... Motto: Gloriosus et Liber (Glorious and free) Other Canadian provinces and territories Capital Winnipeg Largest city Winnipeg Lieutenant Governor John Harvard Premier Gary Doer (NDP) Area 647,797 km² (8th)  - Land 553,556 km²  - Water 64,241 km² (14. ... Jean-Baptiste Lagimodière (25 December 1778 – 7 September 1855) was a French Canadian trapper employed in the fur trade by the Hudsons Bay Company in Ruperts Land. ... Meeting of Marie-Anne and Jean-Baptiste Lagimodière with First Nations people, c. ... 1844 was a leap year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ...

Louis Riel Sr. was an active participant in the Red River Métis community. Riel emerged as a Métis leader in the defence of Guillaume Sayer in his trial in May of 1849. This trial was a defining moment in the fall of the Hudson Bay Company's monopoly of the fur trade. Riel continued to fight for the rights of the Métis and was instrumental in them gaining representation on the Council of Assiniboia and for French to be used in the Assiniboia courts as well as English. Pierre Guillaume Sayer (c. ... 1849 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... The Hudsons Bay Company building in Montreal The Hudsons Bay Company (HBC) is the oldest corporation in Canada and is one of the oldest in the world still in existence. ... The Council of Assiniboia was from 1821 until 1870 the appointed administrative body of Ruperts Land. ... Assiniboia was the name of the proposed Métis province in Canada, notably during the Red River Rebellion. ...

Riel also established businesses in the Red River Settlement. In 1847, he opened a small mill on his farm with the support of chief factor John Ballenden with the hope of establishing a fulling mill operation in the settlement. But Riel had little success with his fulling mill. He also attempted to open and operate a carding and grist mill, hence his title of "miller of the Seine", but to little success. Finally, in 1857, Riel attempted to establish a textile industry in the settlement, but the venture failed. 1847 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Fulling is a step in clothmaking which involves the cleansing of cloth (paricularly wool) to get rid of oils, dirt, and other impurities. ... 1857 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ...

Although he was not a successful businessman, he showed great leadership within the Métis community. His son Louis was likely influenced greatly by his father's actions. Louis Jr. continued in his father's steps to become the most famous Métis leader and the "Father of Manitoba". When Louis Riel Sr. died January 21, 1864, his death was mourned by the entire settlement.

External links

• Biography at the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online (http://www.biographi.ca/EN/ShowBio.asp?BioId=38794)