Show ContentsTherriault History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Therriault family

The surname Therriault was first found in Champagne, where this illustrious family was established in early times.

The members of this large family formed branches in other regions, as well. The branches Thierry du Boisorcant and de la Prévalaye were established in Brittany. The branch Thiry was established in Aunis, and the members of the branch Theriault settled in Burgundy.

Early History of the Therriault family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Therriault research. Another 53 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1514, 1669, 1696, 1714, 1720, 1739, 1763, 1772, 1780, 1795, 1805, 1812, 1813, 1816, 1856 and 1864 are included under the topic Early Therriault History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Therriault Spelling Variations

One can encounter great variation in the spelling of French surnames; in part, as spelling, and the spelling names was not yet standardized during the early development of the written French language. Later, there was much branching and movement of families, and spellings would change according to region. Variations of the name Therriault include Théry, Thery, Téry, Tery, Terry, Thérieau, Therieau, Térieau, Terieau, Terrieau, Thériau, Theriau, Tériau, Teriau, Terriau, Thériaud, Theriaud, Tériaud, Teriaud, Terriaud, Thériaut, Theriaut, Tériaut, Terriaut, Therriault and many more.

Early Notables of the Therriault family

Notable amongst the family during this period was Jean Thierry (1669-1739), a sculptor; Thiriot (1696-1772), who, in 1714, was a clerk with Voltaire for the same public prosecutor; Nicolas-Joseph Thiery de Menonville (1739-1780), a botanist; Jacques-Nicolas-Augustin Thierry (1795-1856), a historian; Amédée-Simon-Dominique Thierry. a historian and senator, the brother of the former; Joseph-François-Désiré Thierry, a painter, who was born in 1812 in Paris and received...
Another 63 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Therriault Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Therriault family

In the 1700s, land incentives were finally given out by France to 2,000 migrants. Early marriage was encouraged in New France, and 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, leaving French names scattered across the continent. The search for the Northwest passage continued. Migration from France to New France or Quebec, as it was now more popularly called, continued until 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 the treaty of Utrecht, Acadia were ceded by France to Britain in 1713. In 1755, 10,000 French Acadians refused to take an oath of allegiance to England and were deported. They found refuge in Louisiana. Meanwhile, in Quebec, the French race flourished, founding in Lower Canada, one of the two great solitudes which became Canada. Many of this distinguished family name Therriault were prominent in social, cultural, religious and political affairs in France and New France. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Therriault were Germain Terriot, who married Marie Poulin in 1713 in Ste-Famille; Pierre Terriot, who married Louise-Geneviève Gauvin in Rivière-Ouelle in 1766.


Contemporary Notables of the name Therriault (post 1700) +

  • Gene Therriault, American politician, Republican member of the Alaska Senate (2000-2009)
  • Patrick F. Therriault, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Maine, 1916 1
  • Gene P. Therriault (b. 1960), American Republican politician, Member of Alaska State House of Representatives; Elected 1992, 1994, 1996, 1998; Member of Alaska State Senate District Q, 2001- 1
  • Michael Therriault, Canadian Dora Award and Gemini Award nominated winning actor, known for his work at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival


  1. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 22) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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