Gaspard-Pierre-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière, born in 1798 in Frauenfeld and died in 1865 in Paris, was a French merchant and photographer born in Switzerland, married to a Canadian seigneuress. Famous for being the first to photograph the Acropolis and then the Egyptian Pyramids with Horace Vernet and Frédéric Goupil-Fesquet. He is also the father of sir Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière, premier of Quebec from 1878 to 1879.
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Born on February 5, 1798, in Switzerland, Gaspard-Pierre-Gustave Joly is the son of Antoine Joly de Marval, merchant and of Ursula Fehr de Brunner. His family settled down at Épernay, in Champagne, in the beginning of the 19th century where they specialized in wine trading. While the father and the eldest son, Moïse-Salomon, remained in Épernay, Pierre-Gustave visit European capitals to find new buyers. Saint Petersburg, Copenhague, Amsterdam, his travels carried his even in América where the merchant is introduce in New York and Montreal's society.
In Montreal, he married Julie-Christine Chartier de Lotbinière, daughter of Michel-Eustache-Gaspard-Alain Chartier de Lotbinière 2nd Marquis de Lotbinière December 17, 1828. The seigneurie de Lotbinière near Quebec City was her dowry. After his wedding, he unofficially added "de Lotbinière" to his name. He spent his time traveling between France and Canada, managing his wife's seigneurie and his investments in French Guyana and the Canadian railroad. He built his summer estate, the Platon Point in Ste-Croix-de-Lotibnière, known today as the Domaine Joly-De Lotbinière.
On August 19, 1839, he was in Paris when Jacques Daguerre showed the first photographic device to the scientific world. Organizing a trip to East, Pierre-Gustave acquires one of those device from Noël Lerebours Paymal and started his journey. After the Greece, it goes to the Egypt. On the spot, he met Horace Vernet and his nephew, Frédéric Goupil-Fesquet with whom he will continue his journey. He traveled also in Palestine, Syria and Turkey. On his return he published his photographs in Excursions daguerriennes and Panorama from Egypt and Nubia. No photo taken by him is known after this trip.
The couple had three children, one daughter and two sons. In 1861, after 33 years of marriage, Joly separated from his wife and gave his Canadian possessions to his eldest son, Sir Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière. He died in Paris on June 8, 1865 and was buried in the Montmartre Cemetery. His wife died in Quebec, October 24, 1887, having survived her husband for many years, aged 77 and her remains was buried at Vaudreuil.[1]
His son, Sir Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière assumed his mother's name by Act of Parliament, 1888. He entered public life, and was created a K.C.M.G. by Queen Victoria, 1895. He served as Lieutenant-Governor of British Columbia.
His daughter Amelie Joly married Captain H.G. Savage, R.E., and their daughter became the Vicomtesse de Coux.
His son Edmond Joly, entered the army, being gazetted to the 32nd Regiment. While on sick leave, he volunteered for service in the Crimea, and was present with the Connaught Rangers at the taking of Sebastopol. In 1857 he left for India, to rejoin his old regiment. Edmond Joly was with the Connaught Rangers at the Siege of Sevastopol (1854–1855), but was killed at the Siege of Lucknow September 25, 1857. [2]