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Le Tisserand | The Weaver  

The tisserand, or weaver, knew how to weave fabrics, by hand or machine. The female equivalent was called a tisserande.

Alternatively, the weaver was an artisan who worked on a loom, a device used to weave cloth and tapestry. The basic purpose of any loom is to hold the warp threads under tension to facilitate the interweaving of the weft threads.

In the early 17th century, the French settlers who arrived in New France and knew how to weave did so very simply, and out of necessity—spinning yarn at home and weaving for very basic clothing and bed coverings. Eventually, looms started making their appearance in homes, and young girls were taught the craft. The pieces they created could then be used for barter for the family. The loom used in New France was very simple, and the cloth woven very plain. For bed coverings, two simple techniques were used: à la planche, in which a narrow board was used to open a pattern shed for a coloured weft to form simple block designs; and boutonné, in which multicoloured wefts were pulled up in loops to make motifs (like stars or pine trees).

There have also been documented cases of itinerant, or travelling, weavers. These female tisserandes would travel to nearby homes or villages with their spinning wheel, where they were hired to complete specific weaving tasks. Some would take less than a day, and others could take weeks. The weaver was often hired on a seasonal basis, where she would spend a few days in her client's home repairing or mending clothing for the upcoming season. She would transport her wheel in a wheelbarrow or a sled, depending on the season.

In town, some weavers went door-to-door, showing residents their cloth, taking measurements, returning with sewn clothing, and make adjustments if necessary.

Known persons who had the occupation of master weaver: Pierre Greffin

Known persons who had the occupation of weaver: James Adams, Joseph Aubuchon, Pierre Auger dit Desnoyers, Antoine Bonnin, François Cadieux, Antoine Charpentier, Demers Chefdeville, Joseph Cusson, André de Lamarre, Charles Deviss, Pierre Fontigny dit St-Jean, Alexis Hébert, Jospeh Kougel, Pierre Labarrière, Guillaume Lemaître dit Villeneuve, Pierre Martin, Pierre Paquet, Pierre Perrin, Julien Pérusie dit Baguette, Charles Pimparé dit Tourangeau, Jean Pineau dit Deschatels, François Poitevin dit Laroche, Jean Regnier dit Brion, Jean Romain dit Sanscrainte, Jacques Roy, Jean Roy, René Sabourin, Balthazar Simon, Mathurin Tessier dit Maringouin

This video by the Textile Museum of Canada demonstrates the basics of weaving on a floor loom

Sources:

• Dorothy K. Burnham, "Woven Textiles", The Canadian Encyclopedia (8 Jun 2016); electronic edition, Historica Canada (https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/woven-textiles).

• Jeanne Pomerleau, Métiers ambulants d'autrefois (Montréal, Québec: Guérin, 1990), 343-346.