Political Villains

General Andrew Jackson Statue In New Orleans, Louisiana

[Andrew] Jackson *wrote to the Army quartermaster [William Berkeley Lewis]: ...is this the reward of a virtuous administration, to its patriotic sons, or is it done by a wicked monster, to satiate the vengeance, of a combination of hypocritical Political Villains, who would sacrifice the best blood of our Country, to satiate the spleen of a villain who their connections with in acts of wickedness they are afraid to offend...?  Jackson made it clear that one of the villains to whom he referred was Wilkinson. [Source: The Devils Backbone...]

*Transcription of Andrew Jackson's letter below:

"Kaintuck" Man

Mural Of Kentuckians At Paducah

From The Devil's Backbone, The Story of the Natchez Trace...:

"Already (in March, 1806) 'Kaintuck' described a kind of man and not merely a place of habitation.  General Jackson at the Battle of New Orleans described only their mildest marks of identification."  'I never met a Kentuckian,' he (General Andrew Jackson) said, 'who did not have a rifle, a pack of cards and a bottle of whiskey."

Old Creole Families Of New Orleans

In The New Orleans Gardens

Creole Families Of New Orleans:

Exploring Florida

Northern Florida

Pioneers of the Old Southwest:...

Boone's party explored Florida from St. Augustine to Pensacola, and Daniel became sufficiently enamored of the tropical south to purchase there land and a house. His wife, however, was unwilling to go to Florida, and she was not long in convincing the hunter that he would soon tire of a gameless country. A gameless country! Perhaps this was the very thought which turned the wanderer's desires again towards the land of Kentucky.  The silencing of the enemy's whisper in the Cherokee camps had opened the border forests once more to the nomadic rifleman.

Boone was not alone in the desire to seek out what lay beyond. His brother-in-law, John Stewart, and a nephew by marriage, Benjamin Cutbirth, or Cutbird, with two other young men, John Baker and James Ward, in 1766 crossed the Appalachian Mountains, probably by stumbling upon the Indian trail winding from base to summit and from peak to base again over this part of the great hill barrier. They eventually reached the Mississippi River and, having taken a good quantity of peltry on the way, they launched upon the stream and came in time to New Orleans, where they made a satisfactory trade of their furs.

A LA Nouvelle Orleans

Source

Tom Cringle's Log

Tom Cringle's Log :

At New Orleans....

General Wilkinson And The Louisiana Purchase

Jim's Photo From Downtown New Orleans

From the History of New Orleans, Volume 3, by John Smith Kendall:

On November 9, 1803, he [William Charles Cole Claiborne]  received an appointment by President Jefferson as a commissioner, with Gen. James Wilkinson, to receive from France the Louisiana Purchase, and to succeed the Spanish governor until a government for the new territory be established.

More about the colorful character, General James Wilkinson, here.

The Strength Of New France

From The Plains of Abraham by Brian Connell, a book about the French-Indian War:

"Strategically, French America occupied a position of almost impregnable strength."
"New France was more than Canada. It stretched more than three thousand miles from the mouth of the St. Lawrence to New Orleans at the mouth of the Mississippi."

Source Of An Early Map Ca. 1664 (McGill University)- Virginia And Florida Were Included

My In Deeds blog included another early map in a post entitled McGill University's Map Collection Online, remembering that Michigan was once part of Canada.

Clotel Was Authored By A Former Slave

Clotel; or, The president's daughter, A Narrative Of Slave Life, by William Wells Brown, published in London in 1853, was written to "...aid in bringing British influence to bear upon American slavery...".

The first several pages contain an account of the author's life:

William Wells Brown, the subject of this narrative, was born a slave in Lexington, Kentucky, not far from the residence of the late Hon Henry Clay.  His mother was a slave of Dr. John Young and his father was a slaveholder.  After the doctor moved to Missouri his slaves were under the control of an overseer named Cook.  When William was 12, the doctor moved to St. Louis; William was sent to work for an innkeeper named Freeland.  After running away, he was captured and returned to the "monster" Freeland.  William was later lent to Elijah P. Lovejoy, an editor of an abolition newspaper who was later murdered at Alton, Illinois, by a gang of slaveholders from Missouri.

William W. Brown then worked on a steamer until he was hired by slave trader James Walker.  "Here subject of our memoir was made superintendent the gangs of slaves that were taken to the Orleans market. In this capacity William had opportunities far greater than most slaves of knowledge of the different phases of the institution."

Eventually William was sold to Captain Enoch Price, owner of the steamboat St. Louis.  He managed to escape again and was helped by a Quaker named Wells Brown; that's how William became William Wells Brown.  William Wells Brown continued on his way to Canada.

William Wells Brown then went to Monroe, Michigan, where he opened a barber shop.  After a few more twists and turns in his life, he became a lecturer.  His wife died in Buffalo, New York, in 1851.

Mr. Brown remarried in 1860; there's a reference to his wife, Anna Elizabeth (Gray) Brown "who later published Brown's work under the imprint A.G. Brown."

A summary of Clotel can be found here.

A Girl's Life In New Orleans

Once On Esplanade by Frances Parkinson Keyes details events in the life of Marie Louise (Villere) Claiborne, who lived on Esplanade Avenue in New Orleans, Louisiana. The author attended a tea in New Orleans given by Mrs. Alfred Grima [nee Clarisse Claiborne] on St. Charles Avenue and met Mrs. Grima's mother, Mrs. Fernand Claiborne who was "receiving" with her.

In 1900, still living on Esplanade Avenue, were Ferdinand Claiborne (b. Aug 1854), his wife, Marie Louise (b. Nov 1869), whose life story is told in "Once On Esplanade," their children Omer (b. Sept. 1893) and Clarisse (b. Jan. 1895), as well as Marie Louise's father, Alcee Villere (b. Apr 1831) and a servant. Ferdinand (the grandson of Governor Claiborne) & Marie Louise had been married 8 years in 1900.

The book began as Marie Louise Villere's older sister, Helmine, married James Dupas who had come from Paris to serve as French vice counsul in New Orleans. The famous caterer Lopez supervised the wedding feast.

Marie Louise was given special attention by "Tante," who was "...papa's only sister and who also lived at the pleasant home on the Esplanade, [and] was by far the most pious member of the family... ." Her brothers, especially and Omer, doted on Marie Louise. Brother Georges, whom Marie Louise adored, gave the family a scare when he was wounded in a duel; and that was not the last time Georges Villere was involved in a duel. Was it this Villere family involved in this court case? Probably.

Cousins Arcadie, Regine and Anatole also lived in the Villere household; their father was Alcee Villere's brother and their mother was Madame Villere's sister who died in childbirth. Arcadie and Regine moved to Chicago to teach at the Kirkland School and Tante was already in Chicago staying with other relatives.

The Cenas Institute, where Madame Cenas and four of her five daughters taught school, was attended by Marie Louise Villere. The fifth daughter had married Rene Beauregard, the son of the General. "Her (Alice Beauregard's) mother-in-law had been a cousin of Marie Louise's father...".

Marie Louise attended the French Opera at the corner of Bourbon and Toulouse Streets "...from the time she was a very little girl." "In many ways the French Opera was the social center of the city...". "Moreover, when a young lady was presented to society, she sat for the first time in the front of a box, with her bouquets around her, and this counted as a formal debut; and the captains of the various Krewes, ostensibly present to enjoy the music, made a careful survey of the debutantes thus presented, with their suitability for future Carnival queens more or less secretly in mind."

Winnie Davis, the daughter of Jefferson Davis, was a member of a sailing party near Biloxi, Mississippi, along with Marie Louise Villere. During their venture, their boat capsized. After they were rescued, Marie Louise spent the night at the Davis Home where she and Winne became good friends.

The Villere Family in the 1880 census in New Orleans:

Alcie VILLERE Self M W 49 LA Lawyer LA LA
Delphine VILLERE Wife M W 45 LA Keeping House LA LA
George VILLERE Son S W 26 LA Clerk In Store LA LA
Homer VILLERE Son S W 24 LA Lawyer LA LA
Elinnior VILLERE Dau S W 21 LA LA LA
Sydney VILLERE Son S W 19 LA Clerk At French Consul LA LA
Septoim VILLERE Son S W 16 LA l LA LA
Octave VILLERE Son S W 14 LA LA LA
Louise VILLERE Dau S W 12 LA l LA LA
Gaston VILLERE Son S W 8 LA LA LA

The cousins in 1880:

A. VILLERE Self W Male W 46 LA Rice Broker LA LA
Artardee VILLERE Dau S W 21 LA LA LA
Rigina VILLERE Dau S W 15 LA LA LA
Anatole VILLERE Son S W 19 LA LA LA
Jas. DUPAS Nephew S W 23 LA LA LA
Eda DUPAS Niece S W 14 LA LA LA
Luticia DUPAS Niece S W 17 LA LA LA

A history of the Villere family from France to Canada to Louisiana can be found here; some of the Villere history is recounted in the "Esplanade" book.

Once on Esplanade reminded me of two houses; the Beauregard-Keyes House where Mrs. Keyes wrote the novel and the Jefferson Davis House (Beauvoir) where once again we were thwarted from a tour. The first time we got as far as the gift shop in Beauvoir and decided to come back later because there were umpteen tour buses there. Katrina then ravaged the house so we waited until this year (2009) to visit. We were chased out of Biloxi by Hurricane/Tropical Storm Ida, and didn't get to Beauvoir again. It is still on our Bucket List; a visit to the Beauregard -Keyes House is "Mission Accomplished."

Madame Castel's Lodger - General Beauregard

Madame Castel's Lodger, by Frances Parkinson Keyes, was one of two books I had in mind when I started this blog. This book had a surprise ending for me when I first read.

A piece in the "Author's Notes," states:

"My friend Mrs. Kenneth T. Price, whose late husband was for many years District Manager of the Freeport Sulphur Company at Port Sulphur and was therefore a long-time resident of Plaquemines Parish, who was also fully familiar with this work, made the arrangements for the visit (to Fort Jackson) and took me to Fort Jackson in her car, with a stop for lunch at the Sulphur guest house, long one of my favorite haunts; the oyster pies, corn puddings and steak with "rusty" gravy... ." "This excursion was so delightful and so successful that, a week or so later, Mrs. Price and I undertook the trip to the even more isolated Fort Livingston on Grande Terre Island... ."

This historical novel, based on the life of Confederate General Pierre (P.G.T.) Beauregard, initially grabbed my attention because of the Civil War affiliation and the colorful General himself. Literally, in the midst of reading it, I asked my sister about her husband Frank's family background for my genealogical research. Two seemingly unrelated events, that is until I read the author's notes and realized that the Mrs. Kenneth Price referenced therein was none other than Frank's grandmother. The confluence of genealogical research and reading for pleasure was wonderful and inspiring.

After learning more about the Price family from Frank, he put me in touch with his mother, Joan. Joan grew up as an only child in Port Sulphur, south of New Orleans, Louisiana. She related that her mother, Lois (Blunt) Price, met Mrs. Keyes, a most formidable woman, when she (Lois) as president of the local PTA contacted Mrs. Keyes, asking her to speak to students in Port Sulphur. After the speaking engagement, Mrs. Price and Mrs Keyes became friends.

The house where General Beauregard lodged with Madame Castel is real, is now known as the Beauregard-Keyes house and is open for tours. The house itself becomes a supporting character in the book and was where Beauregard honeymooned with his second wife, Caroline Deslondes, before the start of the Civil War. After the war, General Beauregard, a widower for the second time, returned to the house in New Orleans, destitute, and living in the house's former slave quarters where he spent time organizing his papers and reminiscing about the past.

"Simone Castel had been on the rear gallery when he found her. Now, after that startled moment of silence, he turned and looked across the neglected patio toward the building which had once been the slave quarters and which was in a sad state of dilapidation. He had never been in it, but Caroline had; she had gone there to see a sick slave and she had described it to him. Now he asked a question, as surprising to himself as to his hearer. 'This quarters--they're empty now, aren't they?' '...but I thought, if the quarters were empty, perhaps you'd let me move out there.' 'General Beauregard---in the slave quarters!'

I was even more surprised when Joan (my sister's mother-in-law) told me that as a newlywed, she and her husband also lived in the slave quarters of the Beauregard-Keyes House. She was Madame Keye's lodger!

Madame Castel's Lodger is also a novel that includes an authentic genealogical chart, a family history and the Beauregards as they were listed in the 1830 Census taken in St. Barnard Parish. There is also an excerpt from a plantation expense journal, gumbo recipes, an explanation of Southern and Louisiana customs, a glimpse into the lives of planters and New Orleans.

Madame Castel's Lodger is a novel that illustrated, through the life of P.G.T. Beauregard, the cultural differences experienced by a French-speaking Louisiana planter's son who furthers his education at a New York City military school and how he adapted to being part of both worlds.

Beauregard experienced the bureaucracy of the American Army after graduating from West Point. When there were slights, real or imagined, from the Army or otherwise, he found great comfort with his wife, his beloved Laure, and was thrown into despair when she died in childbirth.

Madame Castel's Lodger provided the impetus to visit New Orleans and especially the Beauregard-Keyes house, which we did. Reading it a second time, years later, after becoming familiar with various landmarks mentioned in the novel, is even better. The plantations of Beauregard's friends and family were located in St. Bernard's Parish and Plaquemines Parish; we've camped in St. Bernard's State Park and travelled the length of Plaquemines Parish, after first crossing over in a ferry boat, visiting Port Sulphur and destinations south. We've visited Fort Jackson, for which "Captain" Beauregard was responsible as an Army engineer.

The War of 1812's Battle of New Orleans, was part of the Beauregard family's oral history. P.G.T. Beauregard's Uncle Joseph had "...taken part in the Battle of New Orleans and had commanded a band of young Creole planters at Proctor's Point on Lake Borgne...". A plantation belonging to the Villeres family, to which Laure belonged, was central to the Chalmette Battlefield, as were plantations of other Beauregard friends.

The patriarch of the Villeres family, Jacques Philippe Roy Villeres, held "court;" "...every morning the old man seated himself in the shade of a great tree, situated in what seemed to him an ideal meeting place, and awaited the arrival of his six sons. Only the gravest type of emergency would excuse their absence and, as soon as they were gathered around him, he gave his orders for the day...".

While the Villeres followed the customs of the older generation, P. G. T. Beauregard was one who made when he deemed it necessary. The "...Creole custom was for a newlywed couple to remain confined in a room at the bride's home for several days (or longer); ...that, in Beauregard's opinion, was nothing sort of barbarous. That opinion was one of the 'American' ideas which he had formed in the north...". He borrowed a friend's garconniere and opted for an 'American' honeymoon instead.

The Spanish Beauregard learned as a boy as a result of the Canary Island natives who lived in the area helped him once he participated in the Mexican War. He stated that "I was called on, quite often, to interpret for others when I was the only Spanish-speaking officer around."

Beauregard returned home as a hero from the Mexican War. Some time after being narrowly defeated in the election for Mayor of New Orleans, he returned to West Point where he taught until he resigned when Louisiana seceded from the Union.

After P. G. T. Beauregard was summoned to Montgomery, Alabama, the capital of the new Confederacy, he told Caroline, "...I won't be gone long...I've only been asked to attend a conference." As he later related to Madame Castel, "I've been gone four years. I never saw her again." The Civil War had intervened as had General Beauregard's triumphs in that war as well as his ultimate surrender.