On the 9th of October, 1905, Mr. Couture was married to Miss Mathilda Ida Lachapelle, a daughter of Alfred and Mathilde (Beauchamp) Lachapelle, the former in his life time a merchant of Montreal. Mrs. Couture died at Maisonneuve, at the age of twenty-seven years, on the 17th of December, 1913, leaving no issue. Mr. Couture is a member of the Roman Catholic church and in politics he was formerly a conservative but became a nationalist as he did not approve of the naval policies of either the liberal or conservative parties. He is still, however, a member of the Montreal Liberal-Conservative Club. He was for three years recording secretary of Court Gounod No. 3240, I. O. F., of which he is now deputy chief.
HON. J. O. VILLENEUVE.
The name of Hon. J. O. Villeneuve is inseparably interwoven with the history of Montreal and its progress. Modesty at all times characterized his bearing and simplicity his habits, yet the sterling worth of his character and the high order of his ability brought him to a position of leadership in connection with municipal and provincial affairs. He labored untiringly for the best interests of Montreal while acting as chief executive of the city and was equally faithful in his support of matters relating to the provincial welfare when serving as senator. A native of the county of Terrebonne, he was born at Ste. Anne des Plaines, on the 4th of March, 1837, and his life record covered the intervening period to the 27th of June, 1901, when he passed away at the age of sixty-four years. He was but a young lad at the time of the removal of his father, Octave Villeneuve, and the family to Montreal, so that he was indebted to the school system of this city for his educational opportunities. He started in the business world as clerk in a dry-goods store in 1853, when a youth of sixteen years, and his traits of loyalty and faithfulness were manifest from the beginning, as is evidenced by the fact that he remained with one establishment until 1865. Ambitious to engage in business on his own account, he carefully saved his earnings until his industry and economy had brought him sufficient capital to enable him to open a grocery store at Mile End. There he conducted business for some time and subsequently founded the wholesale grocery house of J. O. Villeneuve & Company, which rapidly gained patronage and a high and well merited reputation in commercial circles. He was a farsighted man and one who on recognizing a public need at once sought to meet it. Realizing the lack of communication between the extreme northern section of Montreal and the outlying parishes, he established an omnibus route in 1860 between Mile End, Terrebonne, Sault au Récollet and New Glasgow, which he later sold to the Montreal Street Railway when it seemed feasible to extend the railway lines into that section.
Mr. Villeneuve was frequently called to public office and it is a notable fact in his career that no public trust reposed in him was ever betrayed in the slightest degree. For more than seventeen years he was mayor of St. Jean Baptiste village and again, when the organization of the town took place, he served for four years more, carefully guiding the interests of village and town so as to bring about needed reforms and improvements. Following the annexation to the city in 1885 he represented St. Jean Baptiste ward from that date until 1894 in the city council and as a member of the finance committee his experience in financial matters was found to be of great service to the public. Higher official honors awaited him, however, for in 1894 he was elected Montreal’s mayor and filled that position for two years, proving a capable executive and one who most carefully and systematically safeguarded the public interests. For eighteen years he served as warden of the county of Hochelaga and in 1886 was elected to represent that county in the Quebec legislature, where his record was so commendable that he was reelected in 1890 and again in 1892. In 1888 he was made a member of the harbor commission and served for several years on that body. In January, 1896, he succeeded the late Hon. Joseph Tasse as senator for the De Salaberry division. All this, however, did not cover the many phases of his activity. For many years he was a member of the Board of Trade, and he had important business connections, serving as director of the Dominion Cotton Company, in addition to which he had other large manufacturing, mercantile and real-estate interests in the city. He was resident director of the Banque Nationale and a member of the harbor board and a governor of Laval University. He was also senior partner of the firm of L. Villeneuve & Company, wholesale lumber dealers.
In 1861 Mr. Villeneuve married Miss Susan Ann Walker, a daughter of Captain James Walker, of Sorel, Quebec, who survives together with their four children. Her father was a captain in the regiment stationed at Sorel and was a son of Dr. Edward Walker, surgeon of that regiment. Jacques Villeneuve, the eldest of the four children, residing at St. Jerome, Quebec, is proprietor of a stone quarry and brick manufacturing business there. He married Miss Lamontague and they had seven children, Jacques, Edgar, Charles Eugene, Lia, Adrienne, Marguerite and Jeanne. For his second wife Jacques Villeneuve wedded Miss Poitevin, and they have a son, Jean. Eugene W., the second member of the family, was born in Montreal in 1865 and was associated in business with his father until the latter’s death. He brought about the royal commission, giving a change of administration and management of the city by a board of control. In November, 1910, at a meeting held at St. Jean Baptiste market hall, he proposed that the centenary of the birth of Sir George Etienne Cartier should be appropriately commemorated and that steps should be taken for the erection of a monument to his memory. Since then the monumental enterprise has assumed not only national but empire scope and representatives of every portion of the empire will be present at the commemorative celebration September 6, 1914. Mr. Villeneuve has served faithfully as president of the executive committee in charge of the celebration and the erection of the monument. He married Miss Alice Crompton, and their children are James and Reginald. Frederic Villeneuve, the third member of the family, is a graduate of Laval University and was afterwards advocate in Montreal and in Edmonton, Alberta. For several years he was editor of Canadian West and for four years, from 1898 until 1902, sat for St. Albert in the legislature. In 1909 he was appointed librarian of the Montreal Civic Library. He married Miss Howie, of St. Johns. Rachel Villeneuve, the youngest of the family, married Alphonse Morin, protonotary of St. Johns. Their children are Josephine, Louise, Susan, Pierre Villeneuve, Lucie, Madeleine and Andre, and they reside at No. 629 Dorchester West.
The death of Hon. J. O. Villeneuve occurred on the 27th of June, 1901, at the family residence at 862 St. Denis Street. Editorially the Gazette said of him: “Senator Villeneuve is dead at the comparatively early age of sixty-four. His career was a typical one and included fully thirty years of public service, municipal and parliamentary. His straightforward conduct and good faith gained him general respect and for almost a generation he could count on election to whatever office in the gift of the county of Hochelaga or city of Montreal he aspired to. His municipal career was crowned by the mayoralty of Montreal and his political work by a senatorship. He was a thoroughly well meaning man, of modest bearing and simple habits, whose innate worth was behind his business and public success. In his death Montreal loses a good citizen and parliament a member of safe judgment and right purpose.” To thus win the merit and plaudit of the press shows that the life of Hon. J. O. Villeneuve was one of far-reaching usefulness and of importance in Montreal. He neglected no opportunity, slighted no duty nor passed unheedingly the chances to benefit city or province by helpful service on his part.