The small town of Mortagne-au-Perche has preserved some beautiful heritage from its past as the historic capital of the county of Le Perche.
Its places of interest include: Place du Général de Gaulle, the lively centre of town with a corn exchange; the narrow paved streets lined with old houses; the Flamboyant Gothic-style Notre-Dame church which contains 18th-century wood panelling; the charming garden of the town
hall with its formal flowerbeds; Saint-Denis gate, a vestige of the old fortifications; and the Maison des Comtes du Perche, which houses the
town library and Musée Alain. This museum is dedicated to philosopher
Emile-Auguste Chartier, known as Alain, who was born in Mortagne, and
has manuscripts, photos, objects and publications on display. Talks
about the philosopher (Les Journées Alain) are held there every first
weekend of October.
Mortagne au Perche is the birthplace of Pierre Boucher. Pierre (1622-
1717) was a French settler, soldier officer naturalist, official, governor
and ennobled aristocrat in Nouvelle France (now Canada). The town of
Boucherville, Quebec, Canada was named after Pierre Boucher.
Many early settlers of Bourbonnais emigrated from Boucherville in the
early 1800’s, and their ancestors had emigrated from Mortagne au
Perche in the late 1600’s.
The town is about two hours west of Paris, and one-and-one-half hours southeast of Omaha Beach.
