Jean François Gaultier

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Jean François Gaultier (born October 6, 1708 in La Croix-Avranchin , † July 10, 1756 in Quebec ) was a French doctor and naturalist .

Life

Gaultier was born in La Croix-Avranchin in Normandy to René Gaultier and Françoise Colin. Little is known of his youth and education; What is certain, however, is that he studied medicine and practiced as a doctor in Paris from 1734/35 . In 1741 Gaultier already enjoyed a high reputation among members of the Académie royale des sciences and with a recommendation from Henri Louis Duhamel du Monceau , he applied for the post of royal doctor for New France . This had remained vacant for a few years after the death of Michel Sarrazin in order to keep it free for his son, who was studying medicine in Paris. However, after he died unexpectedly in 1739, a successor was sought and Gaultier's application was successful. After his appointment, he studied the treatment of various diseases in Paris for some time before he took up his position in Québec in April 1742.

In addition to his official position as royal doctor for New France, Gaultier also worked at the Hôtel-Dieu de Québec , the first hospital in North America north of Mexico founded in 1639. In addition, immediately after his arrival, he took law lectures with Louis-Guillaume Verrier, the public prosecutor of New France. This enabled him to be appointed to the Conseil supérieur in 1744 and to work as an assessor . In 1745 Gautier was elected a corresponding member of the Académie royale des sciences and was then a correspondent for Henri Louis Duhamel du Monceau , with his contributions also from Jean-Étienne Guettard (1715–86) and René-Antoine Ferchault de Réaumur (1683–1757) , two other academicians, were used.

When Pehr Kalm , a Swedish naturalist and Linnaeus disciple , came to Québec on a research trip in 1749, Gaultier welcomed him as an official guest and supported him during his two-month research in Canada. In recognition of the support he received, Kalm named the pseudo-berries plant genus , whose scientific name is Gaultheria , after him.

In addition to his official salary, Gautier also earned money in the fur trade . This allowed him an annual income of several thousand livres , which made him a wealthy man. On March 12, 1752 he married the widow Madeleine-Marie-Anne (1707–76). He died at the beginning of the Seven Years' War in Québec, presumably of typhoid fever brought in by troops arriving from France under the command of Louis-Joseph de Montcalm .

Works

  • Histoire du sucre d'érable ( ca.1750 )
  • Maniere de retirer le suc résineux du pin, et d'en faire le brai-sec et la résine jaune suivant les pratiques qu'on suit au Canada (1755)
  • Observations botanico-météorologiques faites in Québec

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Neil S. Forkey: Canadians and the Natural Environment to the 21st Century . University of Toronto Press, 2012, ISBN 978-0-8020-4896-7 , pp. 18-19 ( excerpt (Google) )
  2. ↑ Slonosky, Victoria C., 2003: The Meteorological Observations of Jean-François Gaultier, Quebec, Canada: 1742-56. J. Climate, 16, 2232-2247. doi : 10.1175 / 1520-0442 (2003) 16 <2232: TMOOJG> 2.0.CO; 2
  3. ↑ a b c d e Bernard Boivin: Jean François Gaultier . In: Dictionary of Canadian Biography . 24 volumes, 1966–2018. University of Toronto Press, Toronto ( English , French ).
  4. ^ Bernard Boivin: Gaultier, Jean-François . In: The Canadian Encyclopedia
personal data
SURNAME Gaultier, Jean François
BRIEF DESCRIPTION French botanist and physician
DATE OF BIRTH October 6, 1708
PLACE OF BIRTH La Croix-Avranchin
DATE OF DEATH July 10, 1756
Place of death Quebec