 He was a member of the Senate of Canada for De Lorimier division from 1896 to 1897.He was born in Mount Johnson (now Mont-Saint-Grégoire), Lower Canada in 1830, the son of François Béchard and Clémence Gozette, and educated at the College of Saint-Hyacinthe.He served as a major in the local militia and was mayor of Saint-Grégoire.