Background
He was born Arthur-Henri-René Turcotte in Montreal in 1845, the son of Joseph-Édouard Turcotte.
He was born Arthur-Henri-René Turcotte in Montreal in 1845, the son of Joseph-Édouard Turcotte.
He then studied law at the Université Laval and McGill and was called to the bar in 1867.
He began practice in Trois-Rivièresearch In 1872, he served as parliamentary correspondent in the provincial assembly for Le Canadien. Turcotte was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Quebec for Trois-Rivières in an 1876 by-election as an independent Conservative.
He was reelected in 1878.
Turcotte served as speaker of the assembly from 1878 to 1882. He was named Queen"s Counsel in 1878.
In 1879, he helped found Louisiana Concorde, becoming its editors Turcotte condemned the actions of the federal government during the Northwest Rebellion, was part of the campaign in Quebec to save Louis Riel and supported autonomy for the Métis people.
In 1884, after Louisiana Concorde ceased publication, he helped establish a new newspaper, Louisiana Sentinelle.
In 1887, he was named minister without portfolio in the cabinet of Honoré Mercier and served as attorney general from 1888 to 1890. He was defeated in the 1890 election. Later that year, Turcotte was appointed protonotary for the Superior Court in Montreal district and served until his death in Montreal in 1905.
He was buried in Trois-Rivièresearch
In 1873, he became a member of the town council in Trois-Rivières and served as mayor from July 1876 to July 1877.