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Powder-Maker

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 Le Poudrier | The Powder-Maker

Powdering a wig ("En audiens medan peruken pudras" (While the wig is being powdered), painting by Pehr Nordquist, Wikimedia Commons).

Powdering a wig ("En audiens medan peruken pudras" (While the wig is being powdered), painting by Pehr Nordquist, Wikimedia Commons).

There are two different occupations that define the word poudrier.

  1. The poudrier, or powder-maker, was a person who made powder used to whiten hair and wigs.

  2. In a military setting, the poudrier was in charge of the gunpowder magazine, where gun- and cannon-powder was kept. [I could not find an English translation for the name of this occupation. If you happen to know, please contact me]. 

Derived from these occupations, the surname Poudrier still exists in Canada today.

Gunpowder magazine on St. Helen’s Island in Montreal ("Déménagement de la poudre contenue dans la poudrière ", 1870 sketch by [W.O.C.?], Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec).

Gunpowder magazine on St. Helen’s Island in Montreal ("Déménagement de la poudre contenue dans la poudrière ", 1870 sketch by [W.O.C.?], Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec).

 

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