In the 1660s, the French government sent about 800 young women (single or widowed) called King's Daughters ("filles du roi").
They quickly found husbands among the predominantly male settlers, as well as a new life for themselves.
They came mostly from poor families in the Paris area, Normandy, and the central-western regions of France.
A handful were ex-prostitutes, but only one is known to have practised that trade in Canada.
As farm wives with very good nutrition and high birth rates, they played a major role in establishing family life and enabling rapid demographic growth.
They had about 30% more children than comparable women who remained in France.
Landry says, "Canadians had an exceptional diet for their time.
This was due to the natural abundance of meat, fish, and pure water; the good food conservation conditions during the winter; and an adequate wheat supply in most years."

Besides household duties, some women participated in the fur trade, the major source of cash in New France.
They worked at home alongside their husbands or fathers as merchants, clerks, and provisioners.
Some were widowed and took over their husbands' roles.
A handful were active entrepreneurs in their own right.

In the early 19th century down to the 1950s, upper-class Anglos dominated high society in Montreal, and their women constructed and managed their identity and social position through central events in the social life, such as the coming out of debutantes.
The elite young women were trained in intelligent philanthropy and civic responsibility, especially through the Junior Leagues.
They seldom connected with the reform impulses of the middle-class women, and for and were paternalistic in their views of the needs of working-class women.
In the 1660s, the French government sent about 800 young women (single or widowed) called King's Daughters ("filles du roi"). They quickly found husbands among the predominantly male settlers, as well as a new life for themselves. They came mostly from poor families in the Paris area, Normandy, and the central-western regions of France. A handful were ex-prostitutes, but only one is known to have practised that trade in Canada. As farm wives with very good nutrition and high birth rates, they played a major role in establishing family life and enabling rapid demographic growth. They had about 30% more children than comparable women who remained in France. Landry says, "Canadians had an exceptional diet for their time. This was due to the natural abundance of meat, fish, and pure water; the good food conservation conditions during the winter; and an adequate wheat supply in most years."
Besides household duties, some women participated in the fur trade, the major source of cash in New France. They worked at home alongside their husbands or fathers as merchants, clerks, and provisioners. Some were widowed and took over their husbands' roles. A handful were active entrepreneurs in their own right.
In the early 19th century down to the 1950s, upper-class Anglos dominated high society in Montreal, and their women constructed and managed their identity and social position through central events in the social life, such as the coming out of debutantes. The elite young women were trained in intelligent philanthropy and civic responsibility, especially through the Junior Leagues. They seldom connected with the reform impulses of the middle-class women, and for and were paternalistic in their views of the needs of working-class women.
History of Canadian women