Charles Henry's grandfather, Nicolas Jean Gatien Tabareau (Tours 1725-Lyon 1803), was the director of the postal and lottery services in Lyon and corresponded with Voltaire.

Baron Rambaud, mayor of Lyon, entrusted Tabareau in 1825 with the mission of founding the school envisioned by Major General Martin.

Lacroix-Laval tasked Tabareau with setting up and directing a temporary school that lasted five years before the permanent establishment was put in place.

According to Louis David He can rightfully be considered the true initiator of La MartinièreHe was elected on 2 December 1823 as a full member of the Académie des sciences, belles-lettres et arts de Lyon, and on 3 August 1824, he delivered his inaugural speech, which dealt with geology and particularly the inner composition of the globe and mineral wealthDict.

Académiciens de Lyon, p. 1245 harvnb error: no target: CITEREFDict._Académiciens_de_Lyon (help)Tabareau is renowned for his pedagogical method for teaching mathematics.