Isidore Thibaudeau

Who was Isidore Thibaudeau?

Isidore Thibaudeau was a Quebec businessman and political figure. He represented Quebec East in the Canadian House of Commons as a Liberal from 1874 to 1877.

He was born Pierre-Isidore Thibaudeau in Pointe-aux-Trembles, Lower Canada in 1821; his father was a merchant of Acadian origin. He worked as a clerk in the Quebec City branch of a firm based in Montreal. In 1847, he became a partner in the branch and, in 1856, a partner in the Montreal operation. Thibaudeau brought his brothers and later his son into the company. He helped establish two banks, the Caisse d’Épargnes de Notre-Dame de Québec and the Banque Nationale, serving as president of the latter from 1879 to 1889. In 1863, he was elected to the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada for Quebec-Centre. In the same year, he was named president of the Executive Council, serving until 1864. He opposed Confederation. Thibaudeau served as a member of the Legislative Council of Quebec from 1867 to 1874, when he was elected to the federal parliament. He resigned his seat in 1877 to give Wilfrid Laurier a seat in the house and left politics in 1878 after running unsuccessfully for another federal seat. By 1889, he had become a millionaire.