- Ernest Pacaud
Ernest Pacaud (
August 25 1850 –April 19 1904 )was aQuebec lawyer and journalist.He was born Philippe-Olivier Pacaud in Trois-Rivières,
Canada East in 1850, the son ofPhilippe-Napoléon Pacaud . He attended school in Trois-Rivières and then studied at the Séminaire de Nicolet. Pacaud articled in law with his uncleÉdouard-Louis Pacaud , was called to the bar in 1872 and set up practice in Arthabaska. He joined the local militia during theFenian raids .Pacaud is credited with convincing
Wilfrid Laurier to enter politics. Pacaud himself ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the Quebec assembly in an 1874 by-election. He married Marie-Louise, the daughter ofJoseph-Édouard Turcotte , in 1876. In 1877, he founded "Le Journal d'Arthabaska". In 1878, he was named protonotary in theQuebec Superior Court , clerk for the Circuit Court and crown clerk for the Trois-Rivières district. When the Conservatives came to power the following year, he was relieved of these appointments and he returned to the practice of law in Trois-Rivières. He became editor of a local newspaper, "La Concorde".In 1880, he helped found the Liberal newspaper "
L'Électeur " atQuebec City and became its editor and later its owner. He ran unsuccessfully in Bellechasse for a seat in the House of Commons in 1882. In 1886, he played an important part in the election victory of the Parti National ofHonoré Mercier . In December 1896, "L'Électeur" became "Le Soleil " when the Quebec Catholic bishops forbade the reading of Pacaud's newspaper after he had published several editorials critical of the church. In 1903, Pacaud fell seriously ill and the Compagnie de Publication Le Soleil was formed to take over the operation of the paper.He died at Quebec City in 1904.
His brother Gaspard was a newspaper editor and also served in the Ontario legislative assembly. His son Lucien Turcotte later served in the Canadian House of Commons.
External links
* [http://www.biographi.ca/009004-119.01-e.php?&id_nbr=6981 Biography at the "Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online"]
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