Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

Château Bouchet is a 19th-century building located in the heart of Fareins, in the department of Ain, near the church of Notre-Dame-de-l'Assumption. It was built on the foundations of a former bourgeois house, which was profoundly remodeled by Albert Bouchet (1835–1915), a lawyer from Lyon, Mayor of Fareins and MP for Ain. The latter gave him his name, while his descendants adopted the surname Bouchet de Fareins to distinguish themselves from another family branch at Beauregard Castle.

The castle changed hands several times: sold in 1954 by the Bouchet de Fareins family to the City of Paris, it served first as a holiday centre, then as a musical centre from the 1980s. In 2011, the commune of Fareins bought it with its 5.5-hectare park, housing nearly 180 tree species. Since then, the site has hosted special events, such as the school festival in 2013, while being the subject of reflections for a new vocation.

Three fires marked his history, the last of which was on November 2, 1910. Among the figures related to the castle are Colonel Pierre Bouchet de Fareins and the writer Serge Bouchet de Fareins, descendants of the builder. The family also owned the Bataillard mansion in Saint-Paul-de-Varax, highlighting its local anchor.

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