Sir Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau was born on November 9, 1840, in Sainte-Thérèse de Blainville, Quebec.

He was a French-Canadian lawyer and politician. He studied at Collège Masson in Terrebonne and Séminaire de Saint-Hyacinthe. He was admitted to the bar of Lower Canada in 1861 and was created Queen’s Counsel in 1873. He served as president of the Institut Canadien and editor of the tri-weekly Le Colonisateur. In 1878, he received an honorary degree of D.C.L. from Laval University, Montreal. He practiced law in Montreal and became a Professor of Criminal Law (1878-1885) and International Law (1885-1898) at Laval University. In 1867, he was elected a Conservative representative to the Legislative Assembly for the district of Terrebonne. He served as the 5th Premier of Quebec (1879-1882), federal Cabinet minister (1882-1892), and the 7th Lieutenant-Governor of Quebec (1892–1898). In 1881, he received the Roman decoration of St. Gregory the Great, in 1882, that of the Legion of Honour of France, and in 1896, he was nominated K.C.M.G.

In 1874, he married Mary Louise King (1855-). He died on June 13, 1898, in Montreal, Quebec.