Born in 1822, Charles-Odilon attended the Collège de Nicolet opposite Trois-Rivières before learning the printing trade. He moved to Montreal, where he joined the publishing house of John Lovell & Son to perfect his skills. In 1842, he founded the Librairie Beauchemin, which went on to become the most celebrated publishing house in French Canada.

The story of the founding of the Librairie Beauchemin deserves to be told. When Charles-Odilon was on his way to New England to sell books, an unfortunate incident happened in the port of Montreal: his entire stock ended up in the water. To avoid losing his merchandise, he decided to dry the salvaged books. He rented a warehouse on Rue Saint-Denis and set up an ingenious drying system. Taking advantage of the curiosity of passers-by, he managed to sell his entire stock.

The young man aspired to capture new markets for his books. Among his publications, he put out the famous Almanach du peuple from 1871, and later took up textbook publishing. He died in 1887, leaving his son Louis-Joseph-Odilon a thriving business that continued to rely on such fundamental values as family traditions, excellence, and ingenuity.

In the course of the 20th century, Beauchemin published the major francophone authors of Canada. In 2005, the company was acquired by Chenelière Éducation, which today continues the tradition of excellence and innovation by dedicating Odilon, an interactive learning tool designed for the college level, to Charles-Odilon Beauchemin.