Fronting The Church Of "Notre Dame Des Victoires," And On The Site Now
Occupied As Blanchard's Hotel, The Ladies Of
The Ursulines, in 1639, found
a refuge in a humble residence, a sort of shop or store, owned at that
Period by the Sieur Juchereau des Chatelets, at the foot of the path
(sentier), leading up to the mountain (foot of Mountain street), and
where the then Governor, M. de Montmagny, as is related, sent them their
first Quebec meal.
The locality possesses other pleasant memories: the good, the youthful,
the beautiful Madame de Champlain, about the year 1620, here catechised
and instructed, under the shade of the trees, the young Huron Indians, in
the principles of Christianity. History has related their surprise and joy
on seeing their features reflected in the small mirror which their
benefactress wore suspended at her side, "close to her heart," as they
said, according to the then prevailing custom.
In 1682 a conflagration broke out in the Lower Town, which, besides the
numerous vaults and stores, reduced into ashes a considerable portion of
the buildings. Denonville, on the 20th August, 1685, wrote to Paris,
asking His Most Christian Majesty to contribute 200 crowns worth of
leather fire-buckets, and in 1691 the historical Dutch pump was imported
to throw water on fires. At a later period, 1688, "Notre Dame de la
Victoire" Church was begun on part of the ruins. Let us open the second
volume of the "Cours d'Histoire du Canada," by the Abbe Ferland, and let
us read:
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