Pedro da Silva

Pedro da Silva ( * 1647 in Lisbon, Portugal, † August 2, 1717 in Canada ) was the first postman Canada.

Life

Pedro da Silva was born in 1647 in Lisbon. Occasionally, was also mentioned as a possible 1651 year of birth, but it is now generally referred to as a 1647 birth year. About his life little is known, until he arrived in the French colony of New France, probably in 1672 or not until 1673, and settled in what is now the Canadian province of Quebec. He worked as a messenger and has also since Sylva Pierre or Pedro Dassylva called. In 1677 he married Marie Jeanne Greslon, with whom he had 14 children. 1681 the family moved to Beauport and later to Sault -au- Malot (now municipalities or district of the city of Québec ), where da Silva increasingly operated in the transport of goods. About the nearby St. Lawrence River, he shipped goods in the entire colony and participated in broadcasts. He was doing an increasingly good reputation as a reliable transporter of goods and consignments.

Narrated is one of him at the price of 20 Sols in 1693 incurred Postal service from Montreal to Quebec, which is sometimes called the first regular mailing of Canada. In 1705 he was appointed by the government as the first postman of the colony, and he was officially commended for his punctuality and reliability, particularly in the delivery of official mail and government documents between the main towns of New France. He was the only one who transported across the St. Lawrence River during the Iroquois wars cargo and mail.

On August 2, 1717 died da Silva, probably in connection with the former fever epidemic in Quebec.

Reception

1938 a plaque commemorating Pedro da Silva was unveiled in the main post of Montreal, as the first postman in the country. On 6 June 2003, the Canada Post Canada Post brought out a stamp that da Silva and his appointment to the royal messengers of New France recalled Pedro.

Admirers and descendants da Silva's chat on Facebook a page for him.

On November 25, 2013, published in an English and a Portuguese-language version of documentary Canada 's first postman or O Primeiro carteiro do Canadá the Canadian television director Bill Moniz premiere. Also, a French-language version under the title of Pedro da Silva, le premier facteur du Canada was released shortly thereafter. The erection of a statue Pedro da Silva in Ottawa the Portuguese born director announced. Worked on the film have, inter alia, Francine Dassylva, a descendant da Silva, and Carlos Taveira, a Canadian researcher Portuguese descent, who already on a comprehensive book on Pedro da Silva worked (to be published in February 2014).