René-Arthur Fréchet (June 6, 1879[1] – May 28, 1950) was a Canadian architect who was active in
New Brunswick and
Nova Scotia, modern day Acadia. He designed many churches and public buildings, a number of which are now protected for their architectural significance.
Life
Born in
Montreal,
Quebec, Fréchet obtained a degree in architecture from
Laval University in 1898 and the same year he obtained a job with the
Intercolonial Railway as an architect. Two years later, in 1900, he moved to
Moncton, New Brunswick, for the railway, and resided at the Minto Hotel. In 1905, he opened his own architecture firm, developing a specialty in religious and domestic architecture.[2] However, he was not limited to these architectural fields. Notably, he designed the
Capitol Theater in Moncton in the mid-1920s.[3]
Fréchet became involved in the
Acadian community. In 1903, he married Elvina Cormier, daughter of local merchant Simon Cormier. Fréchet was a member of the provisional management team for the French-language Acadian newspaper
L'Évangéline [
fr], a founding member of the revitalized newspaper (1920s, see
Valentin Landry), a city councillor for
Moncton City Council for several years, and a member of Société Nationale l'Assomption.[2]
René-Arthur Fréchet died on May 28, 1950, in Moncton. Two days later, Émery Leblanc published a letter in L'Évangéline in memory of Frechet, highlighting his accomplishments.[4]
In 2012, a park in the
Sunny Brae neighbourhood of Moncton was named to recognize the legacy of René-Arthur-Fréchet. Fréchet had been virtually forgotten at the time of the park's naming, and in 2016 residents petitioned to have it given another name.[15][16] The publicity revitalized his memory.[1]
References
^
ab"Qui était René-Arthur Fréchet?" [Who was René-Arthur Fréchet?]. L'Acadie Nouvelle (in French). January 19, 2017.
Archived from the original on March 8, 2017. Retrieved March 7, 2017.
^
abRegis Brun, The Acadians in Moncton, a century and a half of French presence at the Coude, Moncton, 1999, p. 83.
^Mattie, Joan (7 February 2006).
"Theater Design to 1950". The Canadian Encyclopedia.
Archived from the original on 8 March 2017. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
^LeBlanc, Emery (May 30, 1950).
"M. René Arthur Fréchet". L'Évangéline (in French). Moncton, New Brunswick. p. 3.
^
abcHill, Robert G.
"Fréchet, René-Arthur". Biographical Dictionary of Architects in Canada, 1800–1950. Toronto, Ontario.
Archived from the original on 2017-03-08. Retrieved 2017-03-08.