Nicolas was born in 1697 in a chateau at Saint Priest-Liguore in the province of Auvergne, France. He was motivated to leave France because he fell out of political favor, possibly due to killing a high political figure in a duel. Nicolas arrived in the colonies from France as a surgeon aboard a Man-Of-War in 1720. He resided for some time in or near New York City. Around 1748 or 1749 he moved to Washington (Hollow or Township), Duchess Co., NY. On 27 May 1749, he purchased 260 acres of land from Joshua Hunt (recorded in Poughkeepsie, NY).731