Charet History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
France

The name Charet is an ancient French name that was given to a person from Brittany who was a cart driver. Tracing the origin of the name further, we found the name Charet was derived from the Old French word "charetier," which means "carter."

Early Origins of the Charet family

The surname Charet was first found in Brittany, where this illustrious family was anciently seated.

At the end of the 14th century, the family settled in the region of Nantes. Louis de Charette, the marquis of La Gacherie, was born in Nantes in 1712 and died in 1787. Louis-François Charette, the lord of La Colinière, a nephew to Louis, was born in 1739. Several branches of the family were also formed in other regions. The branch Charest was established in Poitou, in a village of Vienne, in the district of Poitiers. The members of the branch Charette branched to a village in the department of Isère, in the district of La-Tour-du-Pin.

Etienne Charest, born in 1631, son of Pierre and Renée (née Merle), arrived in Canada from Sainte-Radégonde, France. He married Catherine Bisson on 27th November 1670. Etienne passed away in Lévis, Quebec but he left many descendents. 1

Early History of the Charet family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Charet research. The years 1796, 1832, 1848 and 1911 are included under the topic Early Charet History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Charet Spelling Variations

French surnames were subject to numerous spelling alterations depending on the region and time it was used. The early development of the French language relied heavily on borrowing elements and grammar from 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 Charet is distinguished by a number of regional variations. The many spelling variations of the name include Charest, Charrest, Charet, Charret, Charets, Charrets, Charette, Charrette, Charettes, Charrettes, Charais, Charrais and many more.

Early Notables of the Charet family

Notable amongst this name at this time was

Athanase-Charles-Marin de Charette de la Contrie, a politician, who was born at the chateau La Trémissière in 1796, and who died in 1848

Charet migration to the United States +

In 1643, 109 years after the first landings by Cartier, there were only about 300 people in Quebec. Migration was slow. The fur trade attracted migrants, both noble and commoner. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec. By the same year the French Acadian presence in the Maritimes had reached 500. The French founded Lower Canada, thus becoming one of the two great founding nations of Canada. The family name Charet has made many distinguished contributions in France and New France to the world of science, culture, religion, and education. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Charet were

Charet Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Valentin Charet, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1773 2
Prudent Brice Charet, who settled in Charleston, South Carolina, in 1796

Charet migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Charet Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

James Charet, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1749

Contemporary Notables of the name Charet (post 1700) +

Charles-Eugène Charet (1870-1950), French general

Citations +

Olivier, Reginald L. Your Ancient Canadian Family Ties. Logan: The Everton Publishers, Inc., P.O. Box 368, 1972. Print
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)