Joseph-Edmond Roy

Joseph-Edmond Roy, born on December seventh, eighteen fifty-eight, in Pointe-Lévy, was a prominent figure in Quebec's historical and political landscape. The son of notary Léon Roy, he pursued his education at the Collège de Lévis and the Séminaire de Québec, ultimately studying law at the Université Laval. His career began in journalism when he became the editor of Le Quotidien in Lévis in eighteen seventy-nine.

In eighteen eighty, Roy was licensed as a notary and established his practice in Lévis. His political aspirations saw him run for a seat in the legislative assembly in eighteen eighty-three and again in eighteen eighty-six, though both attempts were unsuccessful. In eighteen eighty-five, he married Lucienne Carrier, marking a significant personal milestone in his life.

Roy's contributions to Canadian history were substantial. He was a member of the Royal Society of Canada, serving as president during two terms from eighteen ninety-seven to eighteen ninety-eight and from eighteen oh-five to eighteen oh-six. He also held the position of president of the Quebec Provincial Board of Notaries from nineteen oh-nine to nineteen twelve. His political career included a term as mayor of Lévis from eighteen ninety-six to nineteen hundred, after being elected to the city council in the same year.

Between eighteen ninety-seven and nineteen oh-four, Roy published the five-volume work Histoire de la seigneurie de Lauzon, and he contributed to the historical journal Bulletin des recherches historiques, edited by his brother Pierre-Georges. In eighteen ninety-eight, he took on the roles of editor and publisher for La Revue du notariat in Lévis. His scholarly work continued with the four-volume Histoire du notariat au Canada, published from eighteen ninety-nine to eighteen oh-two, detailing the history of the notarial profession in Canada.

In nineteen oh-seven, Roy transitioned to academia as a professor of Canadian geography at the Université Laval, and the following year, he was appointed head of the manuscript division of the archives in Ottawa. His life came to a close in Lévis in nineteen thirteen, leaving behind a legacy of dedication to history and public service.