Hubert LaRue

François Alexandre Hubert LaRue (March 24, 1833 – September 25, 1881) was a French-Canadian writer and medical doctor.

Biography Born in Saint-Jean-de-l'île d'Orléans on March 24, 1833, son of notary Hubert Casimir Nazaire Larue and Adélaïde Roy, he married Alphonsine Panet, daughter of Judge Philippe Panet and Luce Casgrain. Together they raised ten children.

He attended the Petit Séminaire de Québec and went on to study medicine at the Laval University in Montreal. Briefly attending a university in Louvain, Belgium he transferred to the École de Médicine in Paris where he furthered his scientific training. When he returned to Quebec he began teaching at Laval in a variety of subjects including forensic medicine, inorganic chemistry, histology and toxicology.

LaRue was also interested in educational and agricultural reforms. In an article, De l’éducation dans la province de Québec, he describes steps to improve education at the elementary and secondary levels. He also advocated for teaching of agriculture in specialized schools. As well, he tried to improve farming on depleted soils. He did this through the publication of manuals such as Petit manuel d’agriculture à l’usage des cultivateurs and Petit manuel d’agriculture à l’usage des écoles élémentaires.