The Estèbe House

The house built for Guillaume Estèbe and his wife, Élisabeth-Cécile Thivierge, in 1751 is one of the masterpieces of Québec’s architectural heritage. This large house, with its 21 rooms heated by eight fireplaces, probably made quite an impression on Estèbe’s fellow citizens when it was first built. Measuring roughly 20 metres in frontage by 15 metres in depth, it had vaulted cellars surmounted by two storeys and an attic comprising both living quarters and storage space. A wall ran lengthwise through the centre of the building, dividing each floor into two parallel rows of rooms. The Estèbe House is an excellent example of a wealthy urban residence of the first half of the 18th century. Its architectural style has been identified as classical French. Some of the main characteristics of this style are cut-stone stringcourses marking the separation between floors, staggered quoins at corners and carved cut-stone corbels.

History of the Estèbe House
Half of the Museum’s present-day site was formed through gradual human encroachment on the St. Lawrence between 1702 and 1751. When Guillaume Estèbe was granted two lots of land by the river in 1750, he too had to carry out landfill operations and build a wharf in order to be able to use the area in back of his house given that it was submerged at high tide. From 1758 to 1774, the Estèbe House was occupied by a succession of French-speaking owners. It survived the War of Conquest, probably because its slate roof prevented it from catching fire. This is almost a miracle given that most of the buildings in this area were destroyed or seriously damaged by fire during the conflict.

Guillaume Estèbe
Guillaume Estèbe was born in France in 1701 and died there sometime after 1779. He arrived in Québec prior to 1739. While he resided in the colony, he married Élisabeth-Cécile Thivierge, the daughter of a merchant from Beaumont, with whom he had 14 children. Like several other members of the colonial government, he held a number of different positions, sometimes simultaneously. Among other things, he served as a member of the Conseil supérieur, director and administrator of the ironworks the Forges du Saint-Maurice, keeper of the King’s store in Québec City, a seal fisheries entrepreneur in Labrador, a merchant-trader, and seigneur of Lagauchetière, a seigneury on the Island of Montréal. He moved into his house with his family in 1752, and left the colony with them after 1759. Once he had returned to France, Estèbe, like certain other members of the former colonial government, including Intendant Bigot, his protector, ran into problems with the French justice system.

Woodwork of the Estèbe House
The Estèbe House was long renowned for the quality of its woodwork. It was probably Peter Stuart who had the magnificent panelling done in 1789, when he owned the house, thus further confirming its status as a wealthy bourgeois residence. The woodwork is attributed to sculptors Pierre-Noël and François-Noël Levasseur, the first of whom designed the main altarpiece of the Ursulines Chapel in Québec City. The woodwork consisted of a series of panels embellished with moulding and asymmetrical and rocaille motifs in the Louis XV and Régence styles. The panelling covered six mantelpieces and the walls of nine rooms.

Over the years, the Estèbe House has served various functions
1752-1818
Served as a residence

1818-1838
Used for a combination of residential and commercial purposes

1838-1851
Used for commercial purposes

1851-1917
Commercial Chambers

1917-1934
Housed a branch of the Royal Bank

1934-1951
?

1951
Unoccupied

1959
Classified as an “historic monument”

1984
Incorporated into the Musée de la civilisation complex. The Estèbe House is now part of this museum complex, and since 1986, it has provided office space for some of the Museum’s staff. Its vaulted cellars currently house the Museum’s Boutique, which you are cordially invited to visit. You will find an old well in this part of the building. This stone house, which testifies to the history of Place-Royale, is the gateway to a fascinating journey back in time.