Translation © Donald E. Pusch 2000, Some Rights Reserved.

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. To view a copy of this license, visit
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, 171 Second Street, Suite 300, San Francisco, CA, 94105, USA.

Employees of the Marine in the

Colony of Louisiana, 17591
by Donald E. Pusch

Among the administrative records related to the French colony of Louisiana are
numerous muster rolls, pay lists, and items of correspondence related to military personnel
serving under the Ministry of the Marine.1 To augment the military, especially for tasks
involving maintenance, provisioning, and transport, the Marine also took under its employ
various technical personnel, tradesmen, and mariners—some holding military rank—and
applied them to specific, non-combat, support functions in the colony. The document
presented here, an annual pay summary for the year 1759,2 lists fifty-three employees who
were supporting port operations at New Orleans, the Balize,3 and Mobile. One additional
employee, the ship’s carpenter-calker Roy, is listed as being at the Illinois garrison.4
The port of New Orleans is located some 100 miles upriver from the passes at the far
southern tip of the Mississippi River delta. Unlike today, however, the lower river was
completely unimproved, and its outflow into the Gulf followed multiple, natural
distributaries, only a few of which were navigable. To transit the area below Head of
Passes,5 ships required the assistance of experienced river pilots who were familiar with
the area and knowledgeable in regard to the conditions and water depths within these
various passes. When an incoming ship arrived in the vicinity of the Balize, a pilot would
come aboard, advise the captain as to the condition of the passes, and assist with the
vessel’s upriver navigation.6 Found on the 1759 pay list are the names of two such pilots:
Roquigny and Colette. Also, the port captain, Jacques Livaudais, whose name appears
first on the pay list, was known to have been an experienced river pilot.7
Other specialties mentioned in the pay list include those of sail maker, pulley maker,
calker, and ship carpenter, ranging in skill levels from apprentice to master craftsman.
These were essential for the maintenance of vessels used in local port operations but were
also available, when needed, for the repair and maintenance of vessels transiting the
colony.8 To support general nautical operations, a number of boat masters, patrons,9 and
sailors were also employed. On the current pay list, mention is also made of one cabin boy.
Dated 31 December 1759, the pay list itemizes a total outlay of 26,810 livres for the
employees named therein. The scrivener is Alexis-Philippe Carlier, a Marine écrivain and,
according to his marriage record,10 the son of a financial officer of the Ferme générale.11
A note below the tally states that he was acting in the absence of a controller, there being
none in New Orleans at the time. Approving the list is Denis-Nicolas Foucault,12
performing the function of ordonnateur, the senior financial administrator in the colony.
The final page of the document contains a formal certification to the Crown that the
disbursements were actually made. According to that certification, receipts were obtained
whenever an employee received an incremental payment of 50 livres or more.

1
First published in The Louisiana Genealogical Register, vol. 47, no. 3 (September 2000).
 The list gives an interesting glimpse into the manpower used to sustain port operations
in the colony of Louisiana, but it also has significant genealogical value, as it places the
named individuals in the Marine’s employ, gives their annual salaries, and, in some cases,
lists their professions and places of assignment. We note also that there are implied father-
son relationships among some of the individuals listed.
To supplement the genealogical value of the list, the author has attempted to identify
each employee through the use of available primary and secondary sources. Principal
among the latter are the published abstracts of the Archdiocese of New Orleans
sacramental records and French Superior Council records. The resulting biographical
information is presented at the end of the list and all sources used are cited in the end
notes.
The author would like to thank staff members at The Historic New Orleans Collection
for providing copies from the collection’s microfilms of Colonies C13A documents. Thanks
are also extended to Mr. Robert de Berardinis, Houston, Texas, for locating several
Colonies D2C and D2D documents in the transcripts and microfilm collections of the Library
of Congress.

2
 The Pay List
“Appointements et Gages des officiers de Port, Pilottes, et autres Entretenus pour le
service de la Marine, à la Nouvelle Orleans,” 31 December 1759, AN, Colonies D2D 10,
documents arranged by year; Library of Congress microfilm, Louisiana Colonial Records
Project, reel 30.

New Orleans Colony of Louisiana

1759 Salaries and Wages of the Port
29150 # officers, Pilots, and others maintained for Service
26810 # of the Marine at New Orleans
25 Sep 1767 Account of the Sums paid to the Port officers, Pilots
25 Sep 1767 and others maintained in the colony of Louisiana for
1750 their Salaries and Wages of the year one thousand seven
hundred Fifty-Nine.
1769 To Wit:
# s d 13
to the Sieur Livaudais, port captain, for
his salary of the said year 1759, the sum of.............................1200. " "
to the named Roquigny, working pilot-in-training
(eleve pilotte pratique) of the river, for idem14 .......................1000. " "
to the named Loüis Colette idem for idem.........................................600. " "
to the named Duverge, ship master at New
Orleans, for his wages of idem ...............................................1200. " "
to Jean Cosset, master carpenter, à idem.........................................1200. " "
to Jean Veillon à idem ....................................................................1000. " "
to Jean Cosset fils ainé15 à idem .......................................................300. " "
to Jacque Cosset cadet16 à idem........................................................300. " "
to Julien Morin à idem......................................................................300. " "
to the named Jean-Baptiste Veillon fils ainé, apprentice
carpenter, à idem .....................................................................150. " "
to the named François Veillon cadet à idem ......................................150. " "
to the named Raimond Bardon, pulley maker,
à idem......................................................................................900. " "
to the named Mathieu Parent à idem .................................................900. " "
to the named Champion, master sail-maker, à idem...........................600 " "
17
to the named Negrier père, patron of transport
boats, à idem ...........................................................................720. " "
_____________
Total........10,580. " "
[end page 1]

3
 [From] the other part .....................10,580. " "
to the named Raimond Ferbosse, patron of transport boats,
for his wages of the said year 1759, the sum of.........................720. " "
to the named Jacques Allios à idem...................................................360. " "
to the named Loüis Coutass à idem...................................................600. " "
to the named Desmares à idem..........................................................300. " "
to the named La Clef à idem .............................................................180. " "
to the named Mathurin Le Gaud à idem ............................................300. " "
to the named Dupont à idem.............................................................360. " "
to the named Desrozier à idem..........................................................360. " "
to the named Pierre Martin à idem ....................................................360. " "
to the named Jean Bouton à idem .....................................................360. " "
to the named Jacques Valad, master calker (calfat)
at New Orleans, for his half
pay during idem .......................................................................300. " "
to the named Jean Perret, sailor at the Balize,
à idem of his wages of the said year .........................................400. " "
to the named Pierre Banel à idem......................................................400. " "
to the named Michel Le Grec à idem.................................................400. " "
to the named Michel Lair à idem.......................................................400. " "
to the named Pierre Geoffroy à idem.................................................400. " "
to the named Jacques Parmentier à idem ...........................................400. " "
to the named André Royer à idem.....................................................400. " "
to the named Joseph Mariette à idem ................................................400. " "
to the named Charles Roubeau à idem ..............................................400. " "
to the named Jacques Ledez idem of the ships
of the King the Cerf and the St Jean-Bte. à idem ......................400. " "
to the named Pierre Pellerin idem......................................................400. " "
to the named Barthelemy Robert à idem ...........................................400. " "
_____________
Total........19,820. " "
[end page 2]
As per contra (Cy Contre) .............19,820. [ " " ]
to the named Jean Brunet, sailors [sic] on the
ships of the King the Cerf and the St Jean-Bte.,
for his wages of the said year 1759 the sum of..........................400. " "
to the named Guillaume Boucher à idem...........................................400. " "
to the named Jean Gatineau à idem ...................................................400. " "

4
to the named Loüis Cholleau à idem .................................................400. " "
to the named Michel Leger à idem ....................................................400. " "
to the named François D’auphin à idem ............................................400. " "
to the named André Giraud à idem ...................................................400. " "
to the named Negrier fils18 à idem.....................................................360. " "
to the named Antoine Dorvalle à idem ..............................................360. " "
to the named Duvergé fils, cabin boy (mousse), à idem .....................150. " "
to the named Dubois, carpenter-calker
at Mobile, for idem ..................................................................720. " "
to the named Duvert, patron at the said place [Mobile], à idem.........480. " "
to the named Vadeboncoeur à idem ..................................................480. " "
to the named Miou à idem ................................................................480. " "
to the named Maire, guard of the ships of the
King at the said place [Mobile].................................................360. " "
to the named Roy, carpenter-calker in Illinois,
à idem......................................................................................800. " "
_____________
Sum total of the present account, twenty-
six thousand eight hundred ten livres, thus ...........................26810. " "
_____________
I, the undersigned écrivain of the Marine do, at the said place, without a
controller at Louisiana, certify the present accounting [to be]
true, amounting to the sum of twenty-six thousand eight hundred
ten livres. New Orleans, 31 December 1759.
Examined and finalized by us, acting in the function
of ordonnateur in Louisiana, the present
statement amounting to the sum of 26810 [livres]
Denis-Nicolas Foucault,19 etc.
It is ordered by Monsieur, etc., to the port officers, pilots, and
others attached for service of the Marine [who are] named
[end page 3]
in the above written account, the sums for which each
of them is employed, amounting altogether to 26810 livres, which
we ordained to them and do ordain for the payment
of their salaries and wages during the said year as
specified in the said statement, the reporting of which is certified
by Sieur Carlier, etc., [and] examined and finalized by us. Our present
order and the receipts of the receiving parties [were]
properly audited for sums of fifty livres and above,
amounting to 12160 livres; and the certification of the Sieur

5
controller [was obtained] for payments made in his presence of those [sums]
below [fifty livres], amounting to 14650 livres; [thus,] the said first sum
of 26810 livres will be reconciled, etc.
Executed at New Orleans, the [date missing]
I, the undersigned, etc., certify to the King, to our lords of the
Chambre des Comptes20 at Paris, and to all others to whom it
will pertain that Monsieur George-Nicolas Baudard de
Vaudesir, general treasurer of the colonies, in office the year 1759,
paid, in cash and in my presence, by the hands of his
clerk in this colony, to the petty officers and other
retainers enumerated in the above written statement, the
sums under fifty livres, for which each of them
was credited, amounting all together to 14650 livres. [Of the amounts]
ordered to them for their wages during the said year,
as specified in the statement, the amount
of 14650 livres is considered satisfied and fully paid.
Of this [outlay], my said Sieur general treasurer, his said
clerk, and all others were and are released. Executed at New
Orleans the day and year above mentioned.
[No signatures]
[end mss]

6
 The Employees
Livaudais. First on the list, at a salary of 1,200 livres per year,21 is the port captain
Jacques Esnoul de Livaudais, a former Company of the Indies employee who had held the
post of port captain from as early as 1734.22 He married, in 1733, Marie-Genevieve Babin
La Source and is described in the marriage record as a native of St. Malo in Brittany, the
son of Jacques Esnould de Livaudais and Marie Le Jaloux.23 Baptismal records of the St.
Louis Church in New Orleans are missing for the years 1733–1743,24 a period during
which several Livaudais children are likely to have been born.25 Records that survive show
the baptisms of six children born between 1746 and 1763.26
Livaudais had a long and distinguished career in Louisiana. In July 1734 he received a
brevet promotion to the rank of capitaine de port,27 and as early as 1736 his job
performance was worthy enough to warrant special mention by Governor Bienville in
correspondence to the comte de Maurepas, then minister of the Marine.28 An experienced
navigator, Livaudais was sent on several occasions to Veracruz to obtain supplies for the
colony. On one 1757 voyage, he successfully negotiated with the Spanish viceroy for the
procurement of 22,600 pounds of sulfur and 600 pounds of potassium nitrate, two of the
primary ingredients of gunpowder.29 In August of 1759, when in his mid sixties, Livaudais
was made a chevalier of the Order of St. Louis.30 A year later, living up to that distinction,
he proved his mettle in a naval encounter off the Balize, during which he successfully
outmaneuvered a British naval vessel and avoided the loss of his ship and cargo.31
Serving as port captain until 1763,32 Livaudais lived on another ten years in retirement,
dying in New Orleans at the age of seventy-eight on 6 May 1773.33
Roquigny. Next on the list is the river pilot Roquigny. This is, without doubt, Louis
Roquigny, son of former Company-of-the-Indies official Jacques Roquigny (sometimes
Rocquigny) and wife Marie Joly.34 Orphaned at age seventeen in December of 1745, the
younger Roquigny petitioned the French Superior Council the following month, seeking to
take control of the revenues produced by his inheritance and citing as his reason an
anticipated sea voyage.35 Roquigny married, ca. 1749, Catherine Buquoy,36 daughter of
Henry Buquoy and Charlotte Teuenar,37 and by her fathered four daughters, all baptized in
New Orleans.38 In the associated sacramental record abstracts he is described as a pilot at
the Balize (1751 and 1761)39 and as a royal pilot (1758).40 His career as a pilot, however,
ended prematurely. He died at about age thirty-three sometime between 13 May 1761 (the
baptism of his last daughter) and 19 July 1762 (the date of the marriage contract between
his widow and Abraham Guidroz41).
Loüis Colette. Following Roquigny, and apparently also a river pilot, is Louis Colette,
with an annual salary of 600 livres. At the time this list was prepared, there were two
Louis Colettes (sometimes Collet or Colet) in the colony—father and son. The younger
Colette, and the one we assume is the river pilot listed here, was born ca. 1725,42 the son
of Louis Colette and Suzanne Serolette.43 In 1758 he contracted marriage with Marie-
Roze Frédéric, daughter of Bastien Frédéric and Regina Rennes.44 In the marriage
contract, Colette is identified as a soldier in the company of Gâmon. A check of the rolls
for Gâmon’s company shows that Colette was still attached to the unit in May of 1759 and
was stationed at the Balize, an appropriate posting for a river pilot.45 He was discharged
from the detached infantry troops of the Marine on 15 September 1763.46

7
 Colette’s marriage with Marie-Roze Frédéric produced at least six daughters between
1760 and 1780, all apparently born in or near New Orleans.47 Nothing in the abstracts of
the baptismal records of these children mentions Colette’s employment with the Marine or
his profession.
Duverge. At the same pay as the port captain is boat master Guillaume Duvergé,
described variously in the baptismal record abstracts of his children as merchant ship
captain (1754), royal pilot (1759), royal first pilot (1757), royal ship captain (1760), and
pilot on the Mississippi River (1765).48 Born ca. 1718,49 he would have been about forth-
two years old at the time the pay list was prepared. His wife, and the mother of all of his
children born between 1754 and 1765, was Rose Busson, born ca. 1733,50 daughter of
Noël Busson (or Buisson) and Marie Bertin.51 The baptisms of seven children of the
Duvergé-Busson union are recorded at St. Louis Church, New Orleans.52 The baptismal
record of daughter Marie-Rose indicates that the family was at Fort Ste. Marie in
December of 1756.53 In 1770, the Duvergé family, consisting of Duvergé, his wife, and six
children, was living on the river below New Orleans on sixteen arpents of land. According
to the Spanish census of that area, his property included eleven slaves and forty-three head
of cattle.54
Jean Cosset. Following Duvergé, and at the same pay level, is master ship carpenter
Jean Fleuran Le Cosset. Born ca. 1706,55 Cosset was employed as a ship carpenter in New
Orleans as early as 1732.56 He married there in 1733 Marie Lissenne, daughter of Dider
Lissenne and Marie Tournelle57 (or Tournet58). According to the marriage record, Cosset
was a native of Orée, Diocese of Vannes, son of Pierre Cosset and Vinente Le Boilu.59 His
experience as a ship carpenter—more than 27 years—probably accounts for his pay level.
Records of the St. Louis Church, New Orleans, include baptismal sacraments for six of
Cosset’s children born between 1747 and 1759.60 There were apparently more. We note,
for example, that two other Cosset names appear on the pay list, those of Jean Cosset fils
ainé and Jacques Cosset cadet.61 In 1770, the elder Cosset, his wife, and four of his
children were living on fifteen arpents of land on the river below New Orleans.62
Jean Veillon. Next on the list is Jean Veillon, master ship carpenter. This is the Jean-
Baptiste Veillon who married, probably in New Orleans, Marie-Françoise Aubert ca.
1741.63 In a 1739 document,64 Veillon is described as a native of St. Martin of Rhen,
Diocese of La Rochelle. Although Veillon seems to have been based in New Orleans
throughout the 1740s and 1750s, he spent time at other locations in conjunction with his
trade as carpenter. It is known, for example, that he contracted to perform work at Pointe
Coupée in 1740.65 He was employed by the Marine as early as 1744.66
Baptismal records exist for six (and possibly seven) children born of the Veillon-
Aubert union between 1744 and 1763.67 In abstracts of the surviving sacramental records,
Veillon is described variously as royal carpenter (1750),68 royal employee (1762),69 and
employee of the royal warehouse (1763).70 It would appear that he transitioned from
French to Spanish civil service after the change of government, as in 1770 he is an
employee at the naval almacén (warehouse or arsenal).71
On the same page of the pay list, we find two other individuals of the same surname,
sons of the elder Veillon. These are Jean-Baptiste fils ainé, who is specifically identified as
an apprentice carpenter, and François cadet.

8
 Jean Cosset fils ainé. A son of Jean Cosset, the master carpenter mentioned earlier on
the pay list. In the January 1770 Spanish census taken below New Orleans, the elder
Cosset’s household includes a son, Jean Cosset, age 35.72 This places his age at the time
the pay list was prepared at about 25 years. No further data found.
Jacque Cosset cadet. Also apparently a son of master carpenter Jean Cosset. No
further data found.
Julien Morin. No data found.
Jean-Baptiste Veillon fils ainé. Eldest son of master carpenter Jean Veillon. St.
Louis Church records show a funeral sacrament for one Jean-Baptiste Veillon who died 10
June 1774 at age 27.73 Five years later, Juana Camus, widow of Juan-Baptiste Veillon, is
involved in a legal action before the court of Governor Galvez.74 She remarried in 1780
the ship captain Juan Batailhey (or Batailley).75
François Veillon cadet. Also a son of master carpenter Jean Veillon. In abstracts of
the St. Louis Church sacramental records, we find a son, François, born to the elder
Veillon in 1748.76 This child would have been 11 years old by 1759 and about the right
age to begin an apprenticeship with his father. He later married Helen Lafleur, daughter of
Jacques Lafleur and Marianne Fontenaut,77 and was living in the vicinity of Opelousas
Post by 1785. Of the Veillon-Lafleur union, at least eight children were born at or near
Opelousas Post between 1785 and 1802.78 Veillon died, probably in the Opelousas Post
area, sometime prior to 7 January 1806.79
Raimond Bardon. Employed by the Marine since at least 1744,80 Raimond Bardon
was a native of Bordeaux, the son of Jean Bardon and Marie St. Germain.81 He is
mentioned in the Superior Council records in 1743 in conjunction with a brawl with one
Beaupré, who, it was alleged, struck Bardon in the face with a spade.82 In 1747 Bardon
contracted marriage with Marie-Anne Verneuil, minor daughter of deceased Pierre
Verneuil and Marie-Anne Guillet.83 Sacramental records of St. Louis Church show the
baptisms of nine children born of this union between 1749 and 1771.84 Bardon died
sometime prior to 17 March 1778.85
Mathieu Parent. No correlated data could be found on this individual. One Mathieu
Parens, fusilier, appears on a 1770 list of New Orleans militia.86 In that document, his
place of residence is “on the dock.” Also, in 1793 one Matheo Parent, a native of
Rochefort, France, died in New Orleans at age fifty-five.87
Champion. Various references have been found to the sail-maker Champion, but no
family connections have been discovered. According to a declaration made in New
Orleans in June 1763, Mr. Champion, “sail-maker in active service,” had residing in his
household one Antoine Manier and wife Christine Lery.88 Two of the Manier-Lery
children were baptized in New Orleans in 175789 and 1759,90 and Louis Champion was a
sponsor at both baptisms. In September 1763, sail-maker Champion was living in “the
district of Martin” in New Orleans in a household that consisted of himself and one
women, probably his wife.91
Negrier père. At the bottom of the first page of the pay list is Negrier père, patron of
transport boats. This individual is Antoine Negrier whose marriage to Madelaine Rouger
was recorded at Mobile in 1737.92 In that record, he is described as a patron for the King,
son of François Negrier and Marie Bueribé, both of Saintes (the city of Saintes in the
modern department of Charente-Maritime, France). The baptisms of two daughters of the

9
Negrier-Rouger union were recorded at St. Louis Church, New Orleans, in 1745 and
1748.93 In the latter of those two records, Negrier is described as a royal shipmaster. On a
Marine pay list for 1744, he is listed under “Ship Masters and Patrons,” posted at New
Orleans with an annual salary of 400 livres.94
There is evidence to suggest that Antoine Negrier and Madelaine Rouger had previous
marriages. According to a record thought to have been made at Old Biloxi,95 Antoine
Negrier married Margueritte Beguine in 1721.96 Seven years later, Antoine Negrier and
wife are listed on a 1727 New Orleans census.97 Madelaine Rouger’s previous marriage
was to Guillaume Bural, as the two are named as the parents of Pierre Bural in Pierre’s
1762 marriage contract with Marguerite Frédéric.98 In that document, Sieur Antoine
Negrier is named as the stepfather of Pierre Bural.
Raimond Ferbosse. Listed after Negrier, and also a patron of transport boats, is
Raimond Ferbosse at a salary of 720 livres. In a petition made to the French Superior
Council in New Orleans on 5 January 1763, Raimond Ferbos is mentioned as having
married the widow of Thomas Lefevre.99 Lefevre had contracted marriage with Marie-
Jeanne Lambert, daughter of Honoré Lambert and Marie Blois, on 12 September 1747.100
Jacques Allios. Although his trade is not specifically stated on the pay list, we believe
this to be the same Jacques Allios named on a similar 1744 list,101 on which he appears as
a calker posted at New Orleans with an annual salary of 600 livres. We have been unable
to find any other information on Jacques Allois.
Loüis Coutass. No data found.
Desmares. No data found.
La Clef. This is likely the same individual listed by that name under “Ship Masters and
Patrons” on the 1744 list previously mentioned.102 According to that document, La Clef
was posted at New Orleans and drew an annual salary of 360 livres. We believe this to be
François La Clef whose daughter Marie-Jeanne La Clef married Jean Lavergne103
sometime prior to 1754.104 The ship carpenters Jean Cosset and Barthelemy Robert,
mentioned elsewhere in the current pay list, appear as godfathers to two of the Lavergne-
La Clef children, Jean Lavergne (born 1757)105 and Barthelemy Lavergne (born 1760).106
In 1765, following his wife’s death, Lavergne married Louise Roquigny,107 the 14-year-old
daughter of another Marine employee on the pay list, river pilot Louis Roquigny.108 In the
associated marriage contract, François La Clef acts as stipulator for Jean Lavergne, his
son-in-law.109
Mathurin Le Gaud. No data found.
Dupont. No data found.
Desrozier. No data found.
Pierre Martin. The surname Martin is common in Louisiana, and several families of
that name can be identified from the colonial record.110 Evidence suggests, however, that
the Pierre Martin listed here is the father of New Orleans resident François Martin, born
ca. 1735.111 François married Margueritte Denet in New Orleans in November 1762.112 In
the marriage record, the groom’s father is identified as Pierre Martin, laborer; the mother,
as Marie Flenet.113 A witness to the marriage is the pilot Duvergé, identified earlier in this
list. François Martin, according to the marriage record, was a native of St. Maigrin in
Saintonge, Diocese of Saintes.114 In 1770 François (age thirty-five), wife Margueritte (age
twenty-eight), and three children were living on fifty arpents of land on the eastern shore

10
of the Mississippi River below New Orleans.115 A five-year-old child in that household
also bears the name Pierre Martin.
Jean Bouton. No data found.
Jacques Valade. This is likely the same individual listed as Valade in the previously
mentioned 1744 pay list.116 In that document, he appears as a calker posted at Mobile with
an annual salary of 600 livres. Although we have found no conclusive evidence, this
individual may be related to the family of Jean-Baptiste Vallade dit Drapeau of Mobile.117
Jean Perret. No data found.
Pierre Banel. No data found.
Michel Le Grec. No data found.
Michel Lair. This is apparently the same Michel Laire whose name appears on the
1744 pay list.118 In that document, he is listed as a sailor posted at New Orleans with an
annual salary of 300 livres. No other data found.
Pierre Geoffroy. No data found.
Jacques Parmentier. No data found.
André Royer. No data found.
Joseph Mariette. No data found.
Charles Roubeau. This may be the same Charles Roubot, forty-year-old oarsman,
who is listed in the 25 January 1770 enumeration of the New Orleans militia.119 No other
data found.
Jacques Ledez. No data found.
Pierre Pellerin. The Pellerin family of New Orleans is a well known one, the
progenitor being one Gérard Pellerin, an early Louisiana concessionaire and an official of
the Company of the Indies.120 It is possible that the Pierre Pellerin listed here is a son or
grandson, although no conclusive evidence has been found. Widowed after his arrival in
the colony, Gérard Pellerine married again in 1729, at New Orleans, Françoise Ruelan.121
According to the marriage record, he was a native of Mezieres-sur-Meuse, Diocese of
Reims,122 the son of Robert Pellerin and Elizabeth Foulon. Gérard Pellerin died, probably
in New Orleans, sometime prior to 1 December 1733, leaving minor children.123
Barthelemy Robert. This is the same Barthelemy Robert identified in St. Louis
Church baptismal records as ship carpenter (1751),124 carpenter (1754),125 and royal
carpenter (1765).126 He was apparently still active in the trade after the colony’s transition
to Spanish rule and is listed as a ship carpenter in the 1770 Spanish census of New Orleans
enumerating “Captains, Marines, Fishermen and Voyagers.”127 His wife, and apparently
the mother of all of his children born between 1751 and 1768, was Jeanne Beaudemont
(sometimes Beaumond, Bodmont).128 In 1769 Robert petitioned the Spanish authorities in
New Orleans to initiate action on the succession of his deceased wife.129 In an associated
declaration, he lists six minor children of his union with Jeanne Beaudemont.130 He also
states that Jeanne Beaudemont had been married previously to one Nicholas Roy.131
Jean Brunet. Although listed among the sailors on the pay list, this is likely the Jean
Brunet, son of Jean Brunet and Marie Davie (or Davil),132 who appears in St. Louis
Church sacramental records as a ship carpenter (1765)133 and master carpenter (1768).134
He is also listed as a ship carpenter in the 1770 Spanish census of New Orleans.135 We
have found no link between this individual and others of this surname; however, it is
possibly he is a son of Jean-François Brunet, blacksmith, who was living in New Orleans

11
during the 1730s and early 1740s. This Jean-François Brunet, according to one record,
married three times and left heirs from all three unions.136 He died in New Orleans just
prior to 10 June 1743.137
Guillaume Boucher. No data found.
Jean Gatineau. No data found.
Loüis Cholleau. No data found.
Michel Leger. No data found.
François D’auphin. No data found.
André Giraud. This individual is the New Orleans cobbler André Giraud (sometimes
Geraud, Giraut, Girod) who married in 1759 Jeanne Negrier, daughter of Antoine
Negrier138 (the same Antoine Negrier père whose name appears earlier on the pay list).
Born ca. 1730,139 Giraud was apprenticed to Michel Meilleur in 1747 to learn the trade of
cobbler.140 In the apprenticeship contract, his parents are given as Estienne Giraud
(deceased) and Catherine Vlorvais, widow of Thomas Dayman.141 In the record of his
1759 marriage to Jeanne Negrier, his parents are listed as Etienne Giraut and Catherine
Ulvoy (or Alvoy).142 The Giraud-Negrier union produced at least fourteen children
between 1760 and 1788.143 In the 1770 Spanish census, the family is shown living on a 20-
arpent tract below New Orleans on the left bank of the river.144
Negrier fils. This individual is Antoine Negrier, son of the patron of transport boats
Antoine Negrier père mentioned on the first page of the pay list. No data found.
Antoine Dorvalle. No data found.
Duvergé fils. This individual is Guillaume Duvergé, son of the ship master Guillaume
Duvergé mentioned on the first page of the pay list. His job as cabin boy is consistent with
his relatively low pay, 150 livres. No data found.
Dubois. Although several Dubois families were in Louisiana by 1759, none could be
linked to the carpenter-calker Dubois.145
Duvert. No data found.
Vadeboncoeur. Several occurrences of the name have been found in early records;
however, no links could be found to the individual named here. The name itself, literally,
“goes of good heart” (good hearted or happy-go-lucky), is typical of the fanciful dit names
found in early Louisiana records.
Miou. No data found.
Maire. No data found.
Roy. Numerous Roy families were in both Louisiana and Illinois at the time this pay
list was prepared, but we have found no link between the carpenter-calker Roy listed here
and any of these families.146

12
 - NOTES -

1. By 1758, troops of the Marine were deployed in some thirty-six detached

companies throughout the colony and, according to one contemporary list, had a
strength—officers, cadets, and enlisted men—of 1,076. “Etat General par compagnie des
Troupes françoises actuellement dans la province de la Louisianne du 29 aoust 1758,”
Archives Nationales (hereinafter cited as AN), Colonies D2C 52, fols. 32–42; Library of
Congress microfilm, Louisiana Colonial Records Project (hereinafter cited as LCRP),
reel 29. A translation appears in Robert de Berardinis, “French Troops in the Province of
Louisiana: A Roster Dated 29 August 1758,” Mississippi Valley Mélange, vol. 4, Winston
De Ville and Donald E. Pusch, eds. (Ville Platte, La.: Provincial Press, 2000), 29–43.
2. “Appointements et Gages des officiers de Port, Pilottes, et autres Entretenus pour le
service de la Marine, à la Nouvelle Orleans,” 31 December 1759, AN, Colonies D2D 10, no
folio numbers; microfilm, LCRP, reel 30.
3. The Balize (sometimes Balise) post was located at the mouth of the old Southeast
Pass of the Mississippi River. The channel is now closed to navigation and is shown on
current maps as Old Balise Bayou. Powell A. Casey, Encyclopedia of Forts, Posts, Named
Camps, and Other Military Installations in Louisiana, 1700–1981 (Baton Rouge:
Claitor’s, 1983), 7–8.
4. The inclusion of this individual may be a double accounting. The carpenter-calker
Roy appears also on a list of employees supporting operations in Illinois the same year and
at the same salary. “Etat des Sommes dues à Mrs les officiers en Garnison aux illinois et
aux divers employes et ouvriers audt lieu pour leurs appts et gages pendant l’année mil
Sept Cent cinquante neuf,” 31 December 1759, AN, Colonies D2C 52, fols. 125–7;
microfilm, LCRP, reel 29. Photocopy and translation provided to the author by Robert de
Berardinis.
5. For a discussion of the river access channels below Head of Passes, see Marion
Bragg, Historic Names and Places of the Lower Mississippi River (Vicksburg: Mississippi
River Commission, 1977), 267–9.
6. Procedures followed by incoming vessels are described in ships’ logs of the period.
Entries from one such log, that of the transport ship Fortune, describe events following
that vessel’s arrival off the Balize on 16 August 1758. The commanding officer, Captain
Le Large, first dropped anchor off the entrance to Passe à la loutre, from which point
depth sounding were made of the bar. On the morning of August 17th, Le Large brought
the ship around to the entrance of East Pass where it was again anchored. He then
dispatched a lieutenant via the ship’s launch to the Balize, and on the morning of August
18th, the pilot Roquigny arrived and was taken aboard. The vessel’s transit through the
pass was delayed, however, until it could be lightered and its draft reduced enough to
clear the bar. “Journal de La Campagne de la flutte du Roy La fortune venant du
Mississippi Commandé par Moy Le Large Cap[itai]ne de Brulot Commancé...Le 25 de

13
Mars 1758 et fini Le 10 de May 1759...,” AN, Marine 4 JJ 19, item 81, fol. 18v;
microfilm, LCRP, reel 20.
7. Livaudais at New Orleans to unnamed recipient (minister of the Marine) describing
his performance as port captain, 5 October 1758, AN, Colonies C13A 40, fols. 262–3.
Photocopy from microfilm provided to the author by The Historic New Orleans
Collection, Williams Research Center, New Orleans.
8. There is one account of a brigantine that arrived off the Balize in 1741, storm
damaged and taking on water. Port captain Livaudais was dispatched immediately with a
crew of carpenters, calkers, and slaves in a futile attempt to save the vessel. Document 39,
Beauchamp to Maurepas, 25 January 1741. Translation (from transcripts) in Dunbar
Rowland and A. G. Sanders, eds. and trans., Mississippi Provincial Archives, French
Dominion, 1729–1748, revised and edited by Patricia Kay Galloway (Baton Rouge:
Louisiana State University Press, 1984), 172–7, citing AN, Colonies C13A 26, fols. 202–
5v.
9. Patron: The word can have various meanings. In the context of the current pay list,
patron is the term applied to a person who gives orders to the sailors of a vessel and is
responsible for the vessel’s servicing and maneuvering. Dictionnaire de l’académie
françoise, nouvelle édition (Paris: Moutardier, Imprimeur-Libraire; et Le Clere, Libraire,
1802), 2:276.
10. Marriage record of Alexis-Philippe Carlier and Marie-Joseph Poupart, 1 March
1745, Mobile. Transcription in Jacqueline Olivier Vidrine, trans. and ed., Love’s Legacy:
The Mobile Marriages...1724–1786 (Lafayette: Center for Louisiana Studies, Univ. of
Southwestern Louisiana, 1985), 238.
11. The Ferme générale was a near-monopolistic organization of wealthy capitalists
who bought tax collection contracts from the French Crown. For a further discussion see
Fernand Braudel, Civilization and Capitalism, 15th–18th Century, vol. 2, The Wheels of
Commerce, trans. by Siân Reynolds (Berkeley: Univ. of California Press, 1992), 540–2.
12. For details on Foucault and his tenure as ordonnateur in Louisiana, see Carl A.
Brasseaux, Denis-Nicolas Foucault and the New Orleans Rebellion of 1768 (Ruston, La.:
Department of History, Louisiana Tech University, 1987). Brasseaux indicates that
Foucault first arrived in Louisiana in 1762, (pp. 20–1); therefore, Foucault’s approval of
this 1759 pay list appears to pose a chronological dilemma. We note, however, that the
date 25 September 1767 appears in the left margin at the top of the pay list, indicating that
the document was handled in some manner—perhaps for purposes of audit—several years
after its creation. Foucault did, in fact, participate in such an audit in 1765–67 and
approved adjustments to the 1759 pay accounts of several military officers. “Exercise—
Appointments des Officiers attachés aux Compagnies françaises a la Loüisianne,” 3 March
1766, AN, Colonies D2C 52, fols. 83–8; microfilm, LCRP, reel 29. Photocopy and
translation provided to the author by Robert de Berardinis.

14
 13. The monetary units are livre (#), sol, and denier. The denier was valued at one
twelfth of a sol; the sol, one twentieth of a livre. A. B. McCullough, Money and Exchange
in Canada to 1900 (Toronto: Dunburn Press Limited, 1984), 29.
14. Throughout the list, the Latin idem is used to indicate repetition of words from
previous lines. The term also appears in the context, à idem, which can have multiple
English translations, including “to the same,” “at the same,” “in the same,” etc. For the
entries on the first page below that of ship master Duverge, the term refers apparently to
the place, i.e., “at New Orleans.” At other places in the list, the meaning is less clear. For
this reason, the author has chosen to leave the term untranslated.
15. Fils ainé: Older or oldest son.
16. Cadet: The younger of two individuals or the youngest of several. Frequently
applied to the younger of two brothers or to the youngest of several brothers.
17. Pére: Father. When affixed to a name, the term implies the existence of a son of
the same name.
18. Fils: Son. When affixed to a name, the term implies the existence of a father of the
same name.
19. This is not an original signature but is in the hand of the scrivener.
20. The Chambre des Comptes was a judicial body on the same level as the Parlement
of Paris and was the final authority in matters relating to the king’s finances. J. H.
Shennan, The Parlement of Paris, rev. paperback ed. (Phoenix Mill: Sutton Publishing
Limited, 1998), 79.
21. By comparison, this is the same annual salary (for 1759) paid to Pierre De Velle
and Barthelmy Makarty, commandants and majors of the departments of Mobile and
Illinois, respectively. De Velle’s annual salary is listed in “Officiers majors et Employés,”
31 December 1759, AN, Colonies D2C 52, fol. 72; microfilm, LCRP, reel 29. Makarty’s
salary is stated on the pay list cited at note 4.
22. “Liste générale alphabétique des Officiers militaires et de plume, etc. employés
dans les Colonies méridianales et septentrionales, 1627–1780,” AN, Colonies D2C 222,
fol. 365; French-language transcript, Manuscripts Division, Library of Congress;
photocopy provided to the author by Robert de Berardinis. This document gives the date
of Livaudais’ appointment to port captain as 18 July 1734. We note, however, that he is
described as “port captain” in the January 1732 census of New Orleans. “Recensement
General de La Ville de la N[ouve]lle Orleans...,” January 1732, AN, Colonies G1 464,
documents arrange by year; microfilm owned by the author. An abstract of this census
appears in Glenn R. Conrad, trans. and comp., The First Families of Louisiana, vol. 2
(Baton Rouge: Claitor’s, 1970), 68–75. Livaudais apparently served in the position of port
captain prior to his official appointment.
23. Marriage record of Jacques Esnoul de Livaudais and Marie-Genevieve Babin La
Source, 3 January 1733, St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstract in Earl C. Woods, ed.,

15
Sacramental Records of the Roman Catholic Church of the Archdiocese of New Orleans,
vol. 1, 1718–1750 (New Orleans: Archdiocese of New Orleans, 1987), 8, 97–8.
24. Woods, Sacramental Records, 1:viii.
25. One such child was son Jacque, who married in New Orleans in 1763. Marriage
record of Jacque Enoul Livaudais and Charlotte Chauvin Desillet, 10 May 1763, St. Louis
Church, New Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, vol. 2, 1751–1771 (New
Orleans: Archdiocese of New Orleans, 1988), 54, 117.
26. Baptismal records of Jeanne-Françoise Livaudais, 4 October 1746, and Marie-
Adelaith Livaudais, 5 October 1750, St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstracts in Woods,
Sacramental Records, 1:98. Baptismal records of Pierre Livaudais, 8 January 1752;
Eulalie-Marie Livaudais, 25 December 1752; Joseph Livaudais, 22 April 1754; and
Baltazar Livaudais, 25 December 1757; St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstracts in
Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:117–8.
27. “Liste générale alphabétique des Officiers militaires et de plume...,” cited at note
22.
28. Bienville to Maurepas (abstract), 29 June 1736, AN, Colonies C13A 21, fols.
181–6. Translation in Dunbar Rowland and Albert Godfrey Sanders, eds. and trans.,
Mississippi Provincial Archives, French Dominion, vol. 3, 1704–1743 (Jackson, Miss.:
Mississippi Department of Archives and History, 1932), 685 ff. Bienville described
Livaudais as an active, vigilant, and very intelligent officer.
29. Livaudais at New Orleans to unnamed recipient (minister of the Marine) describing
his performance as port captain, 5 October 1758, cited at note 7. It appears that Livaudais
had been making re-supply trips to Veracruze from as early as 1733. Livaudais at
Veracruz to Salmon, 7 March 1733 (copy), AN, Colonies C13A 17, fol. 109. Photocopy
from microfilm provided to the author by The Historic New Orleans Collection, Williams
Research Center, New Orleans.
30. Officiers Civils et militaires, Le Canada et La Louisiane, de 1692 à 1776,”
undated, AN, Colonies D2C 59, part 2, fol. 35; microfilm, LCRP, reel 30.
31. A highly romanticized accounts of this and other events in Livaudais’ life appear in
Grace King, Creole Families of New Orleans (New York: Macmillan Company, 1921),
212–20. See also Pamela D. Arceneaux’s biographical sketch of Livaudais (largely
undocumented) in Glenn R. Conrad, gen. ed., A Dictionary of Louisiana Biography, vol.
1 (Lafayette: Louisiana Historical Association, 1988), 514.
32. A replacement port captain, Sieur Faurés, was appointed by the king in March
1763; however, we have found no evidence that Faurés ever assumed that post in
Louisiana. “Ordre du Roy qui Etablis Le Sr. Faurés en qualité de Capitaine de Port à la
Louisianne,” Versailles, 6 March 1763, AN, Colonies D2D 10, no folio numbers; microfilm,
LCRP, reel 30. Photocopy provided to the author by Robert de Berardinis.

16
 33. Funeral record of Jacques Enoul de Livaudais, 6 May 1773, St. Louis Church,
New Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, vol. 3, 1772–1783 (New
Orleans: Archdiocese of New Orleans, 1989), 118.
34. Petition of Louis Rocquigny to Superior Council, 26 January 1746, Louisiana
State Museum, Records of the French Superior Council, document no. 1746012601;
Family History Library (hereafter cited as FHL) microfilm no. 1,302,046. An abstract
appears in Heloise H. Cruzat, “Records of the Superior Council of Louisiana,” Louisiana
Historical Quarterly (hereafter cited as LHQ), vol. 15, no. 1 (January 1932), 123.
35. Ibid. His request was granted the following April. Judgment in favor of Roquigny,
2 April 1746. Louisiana State Museum, Records of the French Superior Council,
document no. 1746040202; FHL microfilm no. 1,302,046. An abstract appears in Cruzat,
“Records of the Superior Council,” LHQ, vol. 15, no. 3 (July 1932), 526.
36. The likely place of marriage was St. Louis Church, New Orleans; however,
marriage records for the period 1734–1758 are no longer extant. Woods, Sacramental
Records, 1:viii and 2:viii.
37. Baptismal record of Catherine Buquoy, 13 June 1733, St. Louis Church, New
Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 1:37.
38. Baptismal records of Louise-Catherine Roquigny, 21 March 1751; Charlotte
Roquigny, 12 June 1754; Françoise Roquigny, 15 May 1758; and Cicile Roquigny, 13
May 1761; St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstracts in Woods, Sacramental Records,
2:243.
39. Baptismal records of Louise-Catherine Roquigny and Cicile Roquigny, cited at
note 38.
40. Baptismal record of Françoise Roquigny, cited at note 38.
41. Marriage contract of Abraham Guidroz and Catherine Buquoy, 19 July 1762, New
Orleans. Louisiana State Museum, Records of the French Superior Council, document no.
1762071901; FHL microfilm no. 1,302,297. An abstract appears in G. Lugano, “Records
of the Superior Council,” LHQ, vol. 24, no. 1 (January 1941), 229. Roquigny’s funeral
sacrament was likely recorded at St. Louis Church; however, the funeral records for this
period are no longer extant. Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:viii.
42. “1770 Census Below New Orleans,” left shore below the city, habitation 81,
prospective household of Louis Collet. Translation in Albert J. Robichaux, Jr., comp,
trans, and ed., Louisiana Census and Militia Lists 1770–1789, vol. 1, German Coast,
New Orleans, Below New Orleans and Lafourche (n.p., 1973), 105, citing Archivo
General de Indias, Papeles Procedentes de Cuba, legajo 188-1.
43. Marriage contract between Louis Colette and Marie-Roze Frédéric, 4 December
1758, New Orleans. Louisiana State Museum, Records of the French Superior Council,
document no. 1758120401; FHL microfilm no. 1,302,160. Cf. Alice Daly Forsyth and
Ghislaine Pleasonton, Louisiana Marriage Contracts (New Orleans: Polyanthos, 1980),

17
229, which indicates, incorrectly, that Colette’s father was a soldier in Gâmon’s company.
Although the elder Colette’s name is given as Louis in his son’s marriage contract, he is
enumerated as Pierre in his son’s 1770 household, cited at note 42.
44. Ibid.
45. “Extrait De la Reveue faitte par nous Garde Magazin du Roy, au poste de la
Balize, Du detachement des Trouppes De la Nouvelle orleans Engarnison au dit Poste
pour servir au payment de leurs subsistance Pendent le Present mois,” 1 May 1759, AN,
Colonies D2C 52, fol. 190; microfilm, LCRP, reel 29. Photocopy provided to the author by
Robert de Berardinis.
46. “Rolle General des Trouppes de La Loüisianne, commencé en 1744,” not dated,
AN, Colonies, D2C 54, no folio numbers; microfilm, LCRP, reel 30. This roll gives
Colette’s dit name as Leveillé. An abstract of this troop list, prepared from Library of
Congress transcripts, appears in Winston De Ville, Louisiana Troops, 1720–1770 (Fort
Worth: American Reference Publishers), no pagination.
47. Baptismal records of Marie Colette, 8 June 1760, and Marie-Therese Colette, 12
February 1771, St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstracts in Woods, Sacramental
Records, 2:59. Baptismal records of Mariana Colette, 11 March 1775; Marie-Louise
Colette, 27 March 1776; Rosalia Colette, 11 June 1778; and Maria-Charlota Colette, 4
April 1783; St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstracts in Woods, Sacramental Records,
3:61. In Colette’s 1770 household, cited at note 42, there are two additional children:
Louis, age six, and Pierre, age four.
48. Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:113–4.
49. “1770 Census Below New Orleans,” left shore below the city, habitation 37,
Guillaume Duvergé household. Robichaux, Louisiana Census and Militia Lists, 1:98.
50. Ibid.
51. Baptismal record of Rose Busson, 22 July 1733, St. Louis Church, New Orleans.
Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 1:37. See also the marriage contract of Jean-
Jacques Larchevesque and Marie Bertin, 18 July 1737. St. Louis Church, New Orleans.
Abstract in Forsyth and Pleasonton, Louisiana Marriage Contracts, 52.
52. Baptismal records of Jacques Duvergé, 1 December 1754; Marie-Rose Duvergé,
22 February 1757; Marie-Elisabethe Duvergé, 13 February 1759; Guillaume Duvergé, ca.
31 July 1760, Elisabeth Duvergé, 24 December 1763; Ann-Margueritte Duvergé, 19
November 1765; and Barthelemy Duvergé, 28 March 1769; St. Louis Church, New
Orleans. Abstracts in Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:113–4.
53. Baptismal record of Marie-Rose Duvergé, cited at note 52. Fort Ste. Marie was
located on the east side of the Mississippi River at the English Turn. Casey, Encyclopedia
of Forts, 203.
54. “1770 Census Below New Orleans,” Guillaume Duvergé household, cited at note
49.

18
 55. “1770 Census Below New Orleans,” left shore below the city, habitation 72, Jean
Floran household. Robichaux, Louisiana Census and Militia Lists, 1:103. Cosset’s
approximate birth year is derived from his age (64 years) given in this census.
56. Jean Cosset, marine carpenter, is listed (without family) among the residents of
New Orleans in the January 1732 census. “Recensement General de La Ville de la
N[ouve]lle Orleans...,” January 1732, cited at note 22.
57. Marriage record of Jean Fleuran Cosses [sic] and Marie Lissenne, 6 July 1733, St.
Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 1:57, 171.
58. Inventory in the succession of Marie Tournet, New Orleans, 18 August 1738.
Abstract in Cruzat, “Records of the Superior Council,” LHQ, vol. 10, no. 1 (January
1927), 116.
59. Marriage record of Jean Fleuran Cosses [sic] and Marie Lissenne, cited at note 57.
Woods speculates that the town name is “Auray” in the modern department of Morbihan,
France.
60. Baptismal records of Pelagie Cosset, 2 April 1747; and Marie-Jeanne Cosset, 12
July 1749, St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstracts in Woods, Sacramental Records,
1:57. Baptismal records of Marthe Cosset, 15 January 1752; Pierre Cosset, 15 September
1754; Louis Cosset, 13 September 1756; and Jacque-Joseph Cosset, 25 June 1759; St.
Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstracts in Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:180–1.
61. If the elder Cosset had sons old enough to be employed in 1759, they may well
have been born between 1734 and 1743, a period for which the baptismal records of the
St. Louis Church are no longer extant. Woods, Sacramental Records, 1:viii.
62. “1770 Census Below New Orleans,” Jean Floran household, cited at note 55.
63. The two are named as husband and wife in a 27 May 1742 agreement to close the
succession of Jacque Bigot. Abstract in Cruzat, “Records of the Superior Council,” LHQ,
vol. 11, no. 2 (April 1928), 301. It is known, however, that Marie-Françoise Aubert was
single on 9 June 1740, the date on which her marriage contract with Jean-Frédéric
Leonard was annulled. Forsyth and Pleasonton, Louisiana Marriage Contracts, 91
(abstract of the marriage contract) and 103 (abstract of the annulment). It is assumed,
therefore, that the Veillon-Aubert marriage took place between 9 June 1740 and 27 May
1742.
64. Marriage contract of Jean Veillon and Isabelle Livet, 26 December 1739, New
Orleans. Abstract in Forsyth and Pleasonton, Louisiana Marriage Contracts, 88. This
contract was annulled three months later. An abstract of the annulment (22 March 1740)
appears in Cruzat, “Records of the Superior Council,” LHQ, vol. 7, no. 3 (July 1924),
521. We note that both Veillon and his wife, Marie-Françoise Aubert, withdrew from
previous marriage contracts.

19
 65. Contract between Jean Veillon and Trenaunay de Chanfret, 28 May 1740, New
Orleans. Abstract in Cruzat, “Records of the Superior Council,” LHQ, vol. 10, no. 3 (July
1927), 416.
66. “Liste des Officiers mariniers, canoniers et outres entretenus a la louisiane au 1er
xbre 1744,” 1 December 1744, AN, Colonies D2D 10, documents arranged by year;
microfilm, LCRP, reel 30. Name appears under charpentiers at a salary of 720 livres.
67. Baptismal records of Nicolas Veillon, ca. 20 November 1744 (the parents’ names
are apparently not legible in this record); François Veillon, 23 June 1748; and Louis
Veillon, 25 August 1750; St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstracts in Woods,
Sacramental Records, 1:254. Baptismal records of Silvin and Margueritte Veillon, 11
September 1753; Pierre Veillon, 25 June 1758; and Joseph Veillon, 24 March 1763; St.
Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstracts in Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:272. There
may have been children born in the years 1741 to 1743, but the New Orleans baptismal
records for those years are no longer extant. Woods, Sacramental Records, 1:viii.
68. Baptismal record of Louis Veillon, cited at note 67.
69. Marriage record of Jean-Antoine Barbo [dit] Boisdoré and Françoise Veillon, 22
March 1762, St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records,
2:9, 272.
70. Baptismal record of Joseph Veillon, cited at note 67.
71. Bertran Dupuy v. Mr. Veillon, 19 October 1770, Court of Governor Unzaga, New
Orleans. Abstract in Porteous, “Index to the Spanish Judicial Records of Louisiana,” LHQ,
vol. 8, no. 1 (January 1925), 154. The case involved a claim against Veillon, employee of
“His Majesty’s Naval Arsenal,” who failed to make good on an agreement to pay Dupuy
to tutor Veillon’s eldest son in arithmetic.
72. “1770 Census Below New Orleans,” Jean Floran household, cited at note 55.
73. Funeral record of Jean-Baptiste Veillon, 11 June 1774, St. Louis Church, New
Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 3:292.
74. Testimony given at the request of Mrs. Veillon and Mrs. Bleignac concerning the
loss of cargo from the brigantine The Renown, 25 January 1779, Court of Governor
Galvez, New Orleans. Abstract in Porteous, “Index to the Spanish Judicial Records of
Louisiana,” LHQ, vol. 13, no. 3 (July 1930), 533.
75. Marriage record of Juan Batailhey and Janne Camus, 10 January 1780, St. Louis
Church, New Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 3:17, 44.
76. Baptismal record of François Veillon, cited at note 67.
77. Baptismal record of Ursin Veillon, 30 April 1797, St. Landry Church, Opelousas.
Abstract in Rev. Donald J. Hébert, Southwest Louisiana Records, vol. 1-A, 1750–1800
(Rayne, La.: Hébert Publications, 1996), 780.

20
 78. Baptismal records of Louise Veillon, 18 September 1785; François Veillon, 1
November 1789; Hiacinthe Veillon, 19 June 1790; Ursin and Valerien Veillon, 30 April
1797; Marie-Manette Veillon, 5 October 1800; and Celeste Veillon, 19 October 1800; St.
Landry Church, Opelousas. Abstracts in Hébert, Southwest Louisiana Records, vol. 1-A,
779–80. Baptismal record of Caroline Veillon, 18 April 1802, St. Landry Church,
Opelousas. Abstract in Hébert, Southwest Louisiana Records, vol. 1-B, 1801–1810
(Rayne, La.: Hébert Publications, 1996), 719.
79. Veillon is mentioned as deceased in the marriage record of daughter Hyacinthe.
Marriage record of André Guillory and Hyacinthe Veillon, 7 January 1806, St. Landry
Church, Opelousas. Abstract in Hébert, Southwest Louisiana Records, vol. 1-B, 348, 720.
80. “Liste des Officiers mariniers, canoniers et outres entretenus a la louisiane au 1er
xbre 1744,” cited at note 66.
81. Marriage contract of Raimond Bardon and Marie-Anne Verneuil, 25 November
1747, New Orleans. Louisiana State Museum, Records of the French Superior Council,
document no. 1747112501; FHL microfilm 1,302,050. We note that Jean Cosset,
mentioned previously, appears as a witness for Bardon in this contract. Cf. Forsyth and
Pleasonton, Louisiana Marriage Contracts, 193, in which Bardon’s trade is given
incorrectly as “baker.”
82. See abstracts of actions related to this case in Cruzat, “Records of the Superior
Council,” LHQ, vol. 12, no. 1 (January 1929), 149; no. 2 (April 1929), 328; and no. 3
(July 1929), 470.
83. Marriage contract of Raimond Bardon and Marie-Anne Verneuil, cited at note 81.
It is likely that the actual marriage was celebrated at St. Louis Church; however, the
marriage records for 1747 are no longer extant. Woods, Sacramental Records, 1:viii.
84. Baptismal record of Marie-Catherine Bardon, 5 October 1749, St. Louis Church,
New Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 1:11. Baptismal records of Jean
Bardon, 30 January 1752; Marie-Ann Bardon, 8 April 1753; Augustin Bardon, 30 March
1755; Catherine Bardon, 1 September 1757; Marie-Joseph Bardon, 31 October 1760;
Lucie Bardon, 13 November 1763; Jean-Antoine Bardon, 22 July 1766; and Ann Bardon,
17 March 1771; St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstracts in Woods, Sacramental
Records, 2:10–1.
85. On that date, two of Bardon’s daughters petitioned the Spanish judicial authorities
to appoint a curator to claim their paternal inheritance. Petition of Maria Catalina and
Luisa Bardon, 17 March 1778, New Orleans. Abstract in Laura L. Porteous, “Index to the
Spanish Judicial Records of Louisiana,” LHQ, vol. 13, no. 2 (April 1930), 338–9.
86. “List of Militia Companies in New Orleans Taken on the 12th of February 1770.”
Translation in Jacqueline K. Voorhies, Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians:
Census Records of the Colony, 1758–1796 (Lafayette: The USL History Series, 1973),
385, citing Archivo General de Indias, Papeles Procedentes de Cuba, legajo 188-1-2.

21
 87. Funeral record of Matheo Parent, surnamed Canon, 5 May 1793, St. Louis
Church, New Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, vol. 5, 1791–1795 (New
Orleans: Archdiocese of New Orleans, 1990), 295.
88. Declaration of Antoine Manier and his wife, 25 June 1763, New Orleans. Abstract
in G. Lugano, “Records of the Superior Council,” LHQ, vol. 25, no. 1 (January 1942),
252–3.
89. Baptismal record of Marie Maniere, 22 September 1757, St. Louis Church, New
Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:193.
90. Baptismal record of Louis-Antoine Maniere, 15 April 1759, St. Louis Church,
New Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:193.
91. “Census of the Colony of Louisiana Taken in September 1763.” Translation in
Voorhies, Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 37, citing Archivo General de
Indias, Audiencia de Santo Domingo, legajo 2593.
92. Marriage record of Antoine Negrier and Madelaine Rouger (Rougé, Rogé), 10
March 1737, Mobile. Transcription in Vidrine, Love’s Legacy, 140. In the marriage
record, Negrier acknowledges as his daughter Anne-Magdelaine, born of Madelaine
Rouger three months prior to the marriage.
93. Baptismal records of Jeanne Negrier, 18 January 1745, and Margueritte Negrier,
26 January 1748, St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstracts in Woods, Sacramental
Records, 1:198.
94. “Liste des Officiers mariniers, canoniers et outres entretenus a la louisiane au 1er
xbre 1744,” cited at note 66.
95. Old Biloxi was situated on the west side of the peninsula that separates Old Fort
Bayou and Biloxi Bay, in the present city of Ocean Springs, Mississippi. Jay
Higginbotham, Fort Maurepas: The Birth of Louisiana, 1699–1702, 2d ed. (Pascagoula,
Miss.: Jackson County Historical Records, 1971), 92.
96. Marriage record of Antoine Negrier and Margueritte Beguine, 4 June 1721, St.
Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 1:15, 197. Woods
indicates that the marriage took place at Old Biloxi.
97. “Recensem[en]t General des habitants, Negres Esclaves, Sauvages et Bestieaux du
Departement de la Nouvelle orleans qui Sy Sont Trouve au p[remi]er Juillet 1727,” 1 July
1727, AN, Colonies, G1 464, documents arranged by year; microfilm owned by the author.
98. Marriage contract of Pierre Bural and Marguerite Frederik, New Orleans, 13
November 1762. Louisiana State Museum, Records of the French Superior Council,
document no. 1762111303; FHL microfilm 1,302,298. An abstract appears in G. Lugano,
“Records of the Superior Council,” LHQ, vol. 24, no. 2 (April 1941), 572.
99. Petition of Joseph Bailly to Monsieur Foucault, 5 January 1763, New Orleans.
Abstract in G. Lugano, “Records of the Superior Council,” LHQ, vol. 24, no. 3 (July
1941), 785–6.

22
 100. Marriage contract of Thomas Lefevre and Marie-Jeanne Lambert, 12 September
1747, New Orleans. Abstract in Forsyth and Pleasonton, Louisiana Marriage Contracts,
188.
101. “Liste des Officiers mariniers, canoniers et outres entretenus a la louisiane au 1er
xbre 1744,” cited at note 66.
102. Ibid.
103. Marriage contract of Jean Lavergne (widower of Marie-Jeanne La Clef) and
Louise Roquigny, 26 January 1765, New Orleans. Abstract in Alice Daly Forsyth, comp.
and trans., Louisiana Marriage Contracts, vol. 2, Abstracts from Records of the Superior
Council of Louisiana, 1728–1769 (New Orleans: Genealogical Research Society of New
Orleans, 1989), 88.
104. The first child of Jean Lavergne and Marie-Jeanne La Clef mentioned in New
Orleans Sacramental records is daughter Marie-Catherine, baptized at St. Louis Church,
New Orleans,18 April 1754. Abstract is Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:174.
105. Baptismal record of Jean Lavergne, 2 February 1757, St. Louis Church, New
Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:174.
106. Baptismal record of Barthelemy Lavergne, 29 April 1760, St. Louis Church, New
Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:173.
107. Marriage record of Jean Lavergne and Louise Roquigny, 29 January 1765, St.
Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:174, 243.
108. Baptismal records of Louise-Catherine Roquigny, cited at note 38.
109. Marriage contract of Jean Lavergne and Louise Roquigny, cited at note 103.
110. For further information regarding the Martin surname, see Robert C. West, An
Atlas of Louisiana Surnames of French and Spanish Origin (Baton Rouge: Geosciences
Publications, Louisiana State University, 1986), 105–7.
111. The approximate date of birth is derived from Martin’s age (thirty-five years) in
1770. “1770 Census Below New Orleans,” left shore below the city, habitation 76,
François Martin household. Robichaux, Louisiana Census and Militia Lists, 1:104.
112. Marriage record of François Martin and Margueritte Denet, 8 November 1762,
St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:85, 198.
113. Ibid. Woods gives the groom’s mother’s name as “[F?]lenet,” indicating
uncertainty with respect to the first letter.
114. The village of St. Maigrin is in the modern department of Charente-Maritime,
southeast of the city of Saintes.
115. “1770 Census Below New Orleans,” François Martin household, cited at note
111.

23
 116. “Liste des Officiers mariniers, canoniers et outres entretenus a la louisiane au 1er
xbre 1744,” cited at note 66.
117. The family was living in the village of the “Fourches” in the vicinity of Fort Louis
in June 1721. “Recencement des habitants du fort Louis de la Mobile et des villages
Circonvoisins...,” 28 June 1721, AN, Colonies G1 464, documents arranged by year;
microfilm owned by the author. A translation of this census appears in Winston De Ville,
“Census of the Habitants of Fort Louis de la Mobile and the Surrounding Villages: June
28, 1721,” Deep South Genealogical Quarterly, vol. 1, no. 3 (February 1964),
136–9.
118. “Liste des Officiers mariniers, canoniers et outres entretenus a la louisiane au 1er
xbre 1744,” cited at note 66.
119. “Militia of New Orleans, January 25, 1770.” Translation in Voorhies, Some Late
Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 398, citing Archivo General de Indias, Papeles
Procedentes de Cuba, legajo 188-1-2.
120. The elder Pellerin and several members of his extended family—including one
unnamed son—came to the colony in late 1718 on the ship Comte de Toulouse. Passenger
list abstract in Glenn R. Conrad, The First Families of Louisiana, vol. 1 (Baton Rouge:
Claitor’s, 1970), 22–5.
121. Marriage record of Gerard Pellerein and Françoise Ruelan, 24 March 1729, St.
Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 1:202, 231–2.
122. The French town of Mézières-sur-Meuse is located to the northeast of Reims. On
modern maps, it is shown in combination with Charleville-sur-Meuse, forming the city of
Charleville-Mézières, department of Ardennes.
123. Marriage contract of Jean-Baptiste Dupart and Françoise Ruelan (widow of
Gerard Pellerin), 1 December 1733, New Orleans. Abstract in Forsyth and Pleasonton,
Louisiana Marriage Contracts, 8.
124. Baptismal record of Marie-Jeanne Robert, 26 Oct 1751, St. Louis Church, New
Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:241.
125. Baptismal record of Marie-Françoise Robert, 13 January 1754, St. Louis Church,
New Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:241.
126. Baptismal record of Marie-Anne Robert, 15 August 1765, St. Louis Church,
New Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:240.
127. “1770 Special Census of the Captains, Marines, Fishermen and Voyagers of New
Orleans,” Barthelemy Robert entry, no. 4 St. Louis Street. Translation in Robichaux,
Louisiana Census and Militia Lists, 1:2, citing Archivo General de Indias, Papeles
Procedentes de Cuba, legajo 188-2.
128. The baptisms of nine of their children are recorded: Marie-Jeanne Robert, 26
October 1751; Mary-Françoise Robert, 13 January 1754; Marguerite Robert, 31 July
1755; Anne-Magdelene Robert, 18 October 1756; Barthelemy Robert, 23 January 1759;

24
Marguerite Robert, 13 May 1761; Pierre Robert, 4 July 1763; Marie-Anne Robert, 15
August 1765; and Jean Robert, 19 July 1768; St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstracts in
Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:240–1.
129. Petition of Bartholomew Robert to Governor General O’Reilly, 18 September
1769, New Orleans. Abstract in Porteous, “Index to the Spanish Judicial Records of
Louisiana,” LHQ, vol. 6, no. 1 (January 1923), 146–7.
130. Named are François Robert (age sixteen), Nanette Robert (age twelve),
Bartholomew Robert (age ten), Marguerite Robert (age eight), Pierre Robert (age six),
and Marianne Robert (age four). Declaration of Bartholomew Robert before Joseph
Ducros, commissioner, 21 September 1769, New Orleans. Abstract in Porteous, “Index to
the Spanish Judicial Records of Louisiana,” LHQ, vol. 6, no. 1 (January 1923), 147.
131. Ibid. According to the declaration, there were two children of the Roy-
Beaudmont union: François Roy and Augustin Roy.
132. Marriage record of Jean Brunet and Magdeleine Boyez (or Boye), 19 March
1765, St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records,
2:32, 36.
133. Ibid.
134. Marriage record of Jean Brunet and Marie-Françoise Herou (or Heron), 10 May
1768, St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstract in Woods, Sacramental Records,
2:36, 148.
135. “1770 Special Census of the Captains, Marines, Fishermen and Voyagers of New
Orleans,” Jean Brunet entry, no. 1 Rear Street. Robichaux, Louisiana Census and Militia
Lists, 1:2.
136. Defense of Claude Chenier, husband of Marie-Louise Bonnet [sic], Claude
Chenier v. Widow Brunet, 13 July 1752, New Orleans. Abstract in Cruzat, “Records of
the Superior Council,” LHQ, vol. 21, no. 2 (April 1938), 587. We note, however, that the
judgment rendered in Chenier’s suit states that there were two marriages. Final decision,
Claude Chenier v. Widow Brunet, 4 October 1752, New Orleans. Abstract in Cruzat,
“Records of the Superior Council,” LHQ, vol. 21, no. 4 (October 1938), 1219.
137. Suit by J.-B. Le Gros for payment of debt owed by the succession of Brunet,
blacksmith, 10 June 1743, New Orleans. Abstract in William Price and Heloise H. Cruzat,
“Records of the Superior Council,” LHQ, vol. 11, no. 3 (July 1928), 500.
138. Marriage record of André Giraut (or Geraud) and Jeanne Negrie (actually
Negrier), 21 August 1759, St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstract in Woods,
Sacramental Records, 2:137, 214.
139. “1770 Census Below New Orleans,” left shore below the city, habitation 80,
André Jereau household. Robichaux, Louisiana Census and Militia Lists 1770–1789,
1:105.

25
 140. Contract of apprenticeship between André Giraud and Michel Meilleur, 20
February 1747, New Orleans. Abstract in Cruzat, “Records of the Superior Council,”
LHQ, vol 17, no. 2 (April 1934), 382.
141. Ibid.
142. Marriage record of André Giraut (or Geraud) and Jeanne Negrie (actually
Negrier), cited at note 138.
143. Baptismal records of Jeanne Giraud, 24 June 1760; Antoine Giraud, 6 May 1762;
Catherine Giraud, 18 March 1764; Marie-Margueritte Giraud, 18 Dec 1765, Marie
Giraud, 2 April 1769; and Pierre Giraud, 12 February 1771; St. Louis Church, New
Orleans. Abstracts in Woods, Sacramental Records, 2:137. Baptismal records of Marie-
Jeanne Giraud, 30 June 1772; Pelagia Giraud, 4 September 1775; Rosalia-Josepha Giraud,
15 May 1776; Simon Giraud, 1 June 1778; Luis Giraud, 30 March 1783; and Delay
Giraud, 31 March 1783; St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstracts in Woods,
Sacramental Records, 3:142. Baptismal records of Alexos and Maria Magdalena Giraud,
16 April 1789; St. Louis Church, New Orleans. Abstracts in Woods, Sacramental
Records, vol. 4, 1784–1790 (New Orleans: Archdiocese of New Orleans, 1989), 144.
144. “1770 Census Below New Orleans,” André Jereau household, cited at note 139.
145. For further references to this surname, see West, An Atlas of Louisiana
Surnames, 61–2.
146. Ibid., 132–3.

26