Show ContentsCasseaux History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The surname Casseaux comes from the region of Gascogne in southwest France. It was a name for someone who lived in Gascoigne.

John de Caleto or Caux (d. 1263), Treasurer of England, was "probably a native of the Pays de Caux. By Matthew Paris he is called John of Caen (Johannes de Cadamo), and other writers give his cognomen in the various forms De Calceto, De Cauz, De Cauaz, De Caus, and De Chauce. The Peterborough chronicler, Walter of Whittlesea, who wrote in the fourteenth century, states that he was born in Normandy, of a noble family, being related to Eleanor of Provence, the queen of Henry III, and entered the monastic life when a child seven years of age. Coming over to England at an early age, he became a monk of the monastery of St. Swithhun, Winchester, of which he was chosen prior in 1247." 1

Early Origins of the Casseaux family

The surname Casseaux was first found in Gascony (French: Gascogne), an area of southwest France bordering Spain, that was part of the "Province of Guyenne and Gascony" prior to the French Revolution, where the family held a family seat in ancient times.

Antoine Casse, born in 1639, son of Noel and Michelle of St.Pierre, travelled from France to Canada in the 17th century. After arriving in Quebec he married Piloy De Pitie, born in 1639, daughter of François and Claudine, at Château-Richer on 14th October 1665. They remained together in Quebec until Antoine's death on 1st June 1709. Piloy passed away on 28th February 1713. 2

Early History of the Casseaux family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Casseaux research. Another 97 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1576, 1630, 1646, 1672, 1673, 1715, 1719, 1741, 1765, 1792, 1793, 1800, 1810 and 1820 are included under the topic Early Casseaux History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Casseaux Spelling Variations

French surnames were subject to numerous alterations in spelling because of the various cultural groups that inhabited specific regions. Eventually, each region possessed its own local dialect of the French language. The early development of the French language, however, was also influenced by other languages. For example, Old French was infused with Germanic words and sounds when barbarian tribes invaded and settled in France after the fall of the Roman Empire. Middle French also borrowed heavily from the Italian language during the Renaissance. As a result of these linguistic and cultural influences, the name Casseaux is distinguished by a number of regional variations. The many spelling variations of the name include Casse, Cassé, Cassée, Casset, Casser, Cassez, Casson, Cassonne, Casault, Casot, Caseau, Caseaux, Casseau, Casseaux, Cassaud, Cazeau, Cazeaux, Cazot, Cazotte, Cazault, Cazaud, Caze, Cazes, Lecasse, Lacasse, Lecassé, Lacassé, Lacassée, Lecasset, Lacasset, Lacaze, Lecasson, Lacasonne, Lecasault, Lacazeau, Ducasse, Ducassé, Ducasset, Ducasson, Ducasault, de Casson, de Cassonne, de Caze, de Cazes, Descaseaux, Deschaseaux and many more.

Early Notables of the Casseaux family

Notable amongst the family at this time was Jean Baptiste du Casse (1646-1715), a French buccaneer and admiral; Dollier de Casson, a prominent Quebec missionary, explorer, architect, engineer and writer, among whose works was "Histoire de Montréal" (1672-1673), the first local history of the Montreal area, and a very true picture...
Another 50 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Casseaux Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Casseaux family

In 1643, 109 years after the first landings by Cartier, there were only about 300 people in Quebec, in 1663 there were only 500, 2,000 migrants arrived during the next decade. Early marriage was desperately encouraged amongst the immigrants. Youths of 18 took fourteen-year-old girls for their wives. The fur trade was developed and attracted migrants, both noble and commoner from France. 15,000 explorers left Montreal in the late 17th and 18th centuries. Migration from France to New France or Quebec as it was now more popularly called, continued from France until it fell in 1759. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec. By the same year the Acadian presence in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island had reached 500. In 1755, 10,000 French Acadians refused to take an oath of allegiance to England and were deported to Louisiana. Meanwhile, in Quebec, the French race flourished, founding in Lower Canada, one of the two great solitudes which became Canada. Many distinguished contributions have been made by members of this family name Casseaux. It has been prominent in the arts, religion, politics and culture in France and New France. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Casseaux were W. Casse, who arrived in Bermuda in 1635 at the age of 19; Antoine Lacasse-Casse, who settled in Quebec in 1665; Valentin Casser, who settled in Philadelphia in 1748.



  1. Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
  2. Olivier, Reginald L. Your Ancient Canadian Family Ties. Logan: The Everton Publishers, Inc., P.O. Box 368, 1972. Print


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