Armand Foucher

J.-Armand Foucher (1898–1976) was a businessman and local politician in Shawinigan, Quebec. He was the 14th Mayor of Shawinigan from 1957 to 1963.[1]

J.A. Foucher

Biography

Joseph Armand Foucher was born November 20, 1898, in Saint-Paulin, Mauricie. He was the youngest son of Joseph Foucher and Herménégilde Leblanc.[2]

In 1921, he married Estelle Frigon (daughter of Joseph-Auguste Frigon). The family lived in the village of Sainte-Flore, then moved in 1929 to the neighboring city of Shawinigan Falls.[3]

In 1938, he began the publication of the small weekly newspaper Les Chutes de Shawinigan, which he published for 30 years, until 1968.[4] He also published six other weekly newspapers in as many cities, including Grand-Mère, Louiseville and La Tuque. In 1949, he started his own printing business.[3]

He independently owned a service station in the Christ-Roi neighborhood, at the corner of boulevard Saint-Sacrement and avenue St-Prosper (across from Alcan's #2 aluminum plant), and was an advocate of buying locally. Foucher would use his newspaper to advertise lower prices on gas.

He ran for mayor in the special election that was held in February, 1957 to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of mayor Gaston Hardy and won. He was re-elected as mayor in the regular election of November, 1957. He ran unopposed in the election of November, 1960, but resigned in August, 1963 before the end of his second term.[1][3] The city council appointed Henri Désaulniers to succeed him.

Under his administration, the annexation of Shawinigan-Est was completed[5] and the following facilities were established:

• The federal Post Office (395, avenue de la Station);
• The Shawinigan Bridge, dedicated on Sunday, September 2, 1962, in the presence of Premier Jean Lesage and Roman Catholic Bishop Georges-Léon Pelletier;[6]
• The Marc-Trudel Bridge (another link between Shawinigan and Shawinigan-Sud across the Saint-Maurice River);
• Several playgrounds.

He died May 15, 1976,[3] in Shawinigan.

Rue Foucher in the Shawinigan-Nord neighbourhood was named to honour him. The Parc industriel J.-Armand-Foucher was also named after him in 2008.[3]

Footnotes

1. Fabien LaRochelle, Shawinigan depuis 75 ans, 1976
2. Ascendance de J.-ARMAND FOUCHER (1898-1976), Société d'histoire et de généalogie de Shawinigan, 2009 "Archived copy". Archived from the original on April 30, 2012. Retrieved 2012-01-06.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
3. J. Armand Foucher (1898-1976), Société d'histoire et de généalogie de Shawinigan (accessed 18 October 2016) "Archived copy". Archived from the original on September 21, 2009. Retrieved 2009-10-01.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
4. A complete collection of the newspaper Les Chutes is available at the municipal library of Shawinigan.
5. "Shawinigan East Approves Annexation With City". The Shawinigan Standard. D.R. Wilson. 29 May 1957.
6. "Premier Lesage Inaugurated Shawinigan Bridge Sunday". The Shawinigan Standard. D.R. Wilson. 5 September 1962.

See also

• Mayors of Shawinigan