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Hainaut-Louisiana

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Hainaut Colonists to Louisiana
Louisiana's first families

A Brief Genealogy history and links of the hainaut colonists to Louisiana.

Belgium-France: The Ancient County of Hainaut
The ancient County of Hainaut is now divided and is part of the modern day Province of Hainaut in Belgium with a smaller piece of the ancient countship lying in northern France, the latter which informally still carries the name of Hainaut.

The Mayflower of Louisiana: 1720
In 1720, over 100 colonists, many with their families, left Hainaut and migrated to Louisiana, where they became among the first families of Louisiana. These families have been likened to the Mayflower of Louisiana, according to Lambremont descendant Jack Pastorek, as they were among the very first permanent working families to stay in Louisiana.
These early colonists, who were born mostly in what is today Belgium, signed contracts in Maubeuge, Hainaut (now France) to come to Louisiana and work the land, according to Mr. Andre Haussy, a French Genealogist who rediscovered the original contracts about 1990 in archives in Lille, France and has published a book and several papers about these colonists. Originally at least some of these colonists were destined for St. Catherine Concession at present day Natchez, today only marked by St. Catherine Creek. The name also lives on in a nearby wildlife reguge, St. Catherine Creek National Wildlife Refuge. Sadly, many of the colonists lost thier lives, including the director Mr. Kolly, during the Natchez Massacre.
The first colonists spent their first year at Biloxi, according to George DeCoux, director of Parks at Gulfport, and descendent of two of the colonists, DeCuir and DeCoux.
After the first year, these colonist made their way to at least two farm concessions - one near New Orleans and the other at Pointe Coupee, both along the Mississippi River.
My ancestor, Albert DeCuir (deCuire) was among these colonist who left their European home for a new life in a new world. There were 60 engages (contractees) who signed who were from in what is now France, and 68 engages who were from what is now Belgium, and one each from Italy and Switzerland.




The 275th Anniversary Mass of the Hainaut Colonists in Louisiana
On the 275th anniversary of the arrival of the Hainaut Colonists to Louisiana, Father Leon Lybaert, Historian and Pastor of the Catholic Church of Macon, Hainaut, Belgium, made a trip to Louisiana to celebrate Mass at the historic St. Francis Chapel in Pt. Coupee on the Mississippi Rive, in honor of the first Hainaut Colonists, many whom established the first church of St. Francis in 1736. The Mass was celebrated in June, 1996, and included the 1719 ships's bell and 1696 chalice made in Belgium which has been part of St. Francis Church for as long as anyone can remember, according to Glenn Morgan and Brian Costello, who have studied the history and the architecture of the church. Over 400 descendants of colonists Albert deCuire, Jacques DeCoux, Phillip Lambremont, and Jean Baptiste Pouceau attended the historic event.
In the fall of 1999, Rev. Lybaert returned from Hainaut, Belgium to Louisiana, where he visited the site of the Natchez Massacre. He said a prayer for those colonists of Hainaut who died at the site where a marker marks the massacre on the bluffs of the Mississipppi River.


Other 275th anniversary year activities

Photo of 1719 bell with George DeCoux, Andre Haussy, and Randy DeCuir, photo courtsey of Brian Costello of Pt. Coupee

In 1995, Mr. Andre Haussy reviewed his findings of the Hainaut Colonists at Pt. Coupee, in a program organized by Glenn Morgan, Jack Pastorek, and the Pt. Coupee Historical Society
Also in 1996, a delegation of Hainaut Representatives were introduced to the Louisiana Legislature by Lt. Governor Katlhleen Babineaux Blanco and Rep. Charles Riddle, IIII. Mrs. Florein Pary-Mille, who is an elected official of the Belgian Parliament, addressed the Louisiana legislature regarding the Belgium immigrants who make up the ancestry of the Louisiana population


Among the Hainaut Colonists who signed contracts in 1719-1720 to come to Louisiana on the ship, La Loire, were these men and their birthhplaces researched by Andre Haussy:


BADOT, Guillaume, born at Maubeuge, now France)
BADOT, Pierre, born 1668, Thuin
BARBIER, Jean-Thomas, born 1692, at Seneffe (now Belgium)
BARBIOT, Philippe, born1689,at Boussoit, probably the same as Boussois, now in France
BOYAU, Pierre-Joseph, born 1697 at Avesnes-sur-Helpe, now in French Hainaut
BUCHIN, Guillaume, born 1700 at Estinnes-au-Mont
CALAY (known in Louisiana as Calais), Simon Francois, native of the Cateau Cambresis, Ploughman.
CAMBIER, Pierre, born 1694 at Maubeuge,(now France)
CASTAGNE, Nicolas, born 1697 at Beaumont (now Belgium)
CAUDERLIER, Antoine, born 1686 at Erquelines
DANSAIN, Bartholomé, born 1699 at Houdeng-Goegnies
DAUBLIN, Valentin-Joseph, born 1695 at Montbliart
DAUBLIN, Pierre-Francois, born 1698 at Montbliart
deCUIRE, Albert born 1673, Macon, Hainaut (Now Belgium)
DEMARAIS, Gilles, born 1700 at Maurage
DUBOIS, Louis, born 1678 at Namur (now Belgium)
DUMONT, Jean-Phillippe, born 1701 at Charleroi (now Belgium)
DUSART, Gabriel, born 1688 at Mons (ancient capital of Hainaut) (now Belgium)
FILLEUR, Adrien, born 1692, Feignes, (we assume which is the same as:Feignies, France
FONDER, François, born 1698 at Namur (now Belgium)
GRAUX, Albert, born 1683 at Jeumont
HANOTEAU, Antoine, born 1693 at Solre-le-Chateau
HAUSSY, Pierre Joachim, born at Pont-sur-Sambre (now France)
LAMBREMONT, Pierre-Phillippe, born 1693 at Maubeuge, Hainaut (now France)
LEBEGUE, Thomas, born 1687 at Mons (now Belgium)
LEBON, Jacq Amand, born 1700 at Ferriére-la-Grande
LECLERCQ, Pierre, born 1697 at Carnieres
LEGRAND, Albert-Joseph, born 1697 at Beaumont (now Belgium)(This is possibly the same person as Albert LeGros, noted as a native of the Bishopric of Chambery, living at Pointe Coupee, La, and married to the widow of Jacques Chalin, father of Marie Therese Chalin who married Jean Baptiste Pourceau , the latter being one of these Hainaut colonists, and also noted as a native of the Bishopric of Chambery. The census of 1724 shows LeGros living in the home of his step daughter and her husband, J. B. Pourceau. LeGros died Jan. 7, 1747, age 58, according to his funeral record)
LOIRE, Jean-Joachim, born 1700 at Namur (now Belgium)
LONGUEVILLE, Jean-Louis, born 1697 at Maubeuge (now France)
MAUFROID, Guillaume, born 1695 at Sars-Poteries
MOTTE, Antoine, born 1690 at Binche (now Belgium)
MULQUIN, Jean, born 1693 at Beaumont (now Belgium)
PENASSE, Jean-Lambert, born 1689 at Namur
PENASSE, Georges, born 1689 at Namur
PICQUERY, Pierre, born born 1693 at Tesniere-sur-Hon (now France)
POISSON, Louis, born 1680 at Beaumont (now Belgium)
POURCEAU, Jean Baptiste, born at Wamme(sp?) (prounounced as Haum, the way it was written on a document in Louisiana source: WNGremillion,Commentaries,Ch.1) possibly Wasne (spelling?) near Binche (now Belgium. Andre Haussy said he belives it may the same as Wasme Au Bac, located northwest of Cambrai, France.
RENAULT, Jean-Francois, born 1697 at Neuf-Mesnil
ROUSSEAU, Jean-Baptiste, born 1700 at Havay
TENRET, François, born 1700 at Sivry
TEV(E)LIN, Jean-Joseph, born 1693 at Beaumont (now Belgium)
TIERS, Jean-Charles, born 1697 at Charleroi(now Belgium)
TORDEUR, Jean-Baptiste, born 1697 at Saint-Aubin
VINCENT, J-B François, born 1696 at Maubeuge,(now France)
VIVIER, Guillaume, born 1694 at Marchiennes-au-Pont
WILLOT, Guillaume, born 1699 at Quiévelon



Contracts of Spouses signed in 1720

On January 13, 1720, before "the royal notories of Hainaut residing in the city of Maubeuge", contracts were signed by the some of the engages on behalf of their wives and children who would accompany the husbands to Louisiana. The following names appear on contracts which were made with Miss Marie Francois Movard, dit Lefevre, merchant of Maubeuge, on behalf of Monsieur Kolly the entrepeneur who helped organize the farming concession in Louisiana. This ancient document was found in 1996 in Lille archives by Andre Haussy and were on behalf of:

Wife of Joseph TERARD who has three children, 15 lives per month
Wife of Pierre BRION, who has four children, 18 lives per month
Wife of Albert deCUIRE, who has four children, 18 lives per month
Wife of Jean POURCEAU, who has four children, 18 lives per month
Wife of Jean Baptiste BOUILLET, who has three children, 18 lives per month


The Ship Log of La Loire in 1720

August 11, 1720 List of officials and engages for the Ste. Reince Conession embarked on the Loire bound for Louisiana from Lorient, France as trancribed by Dr. Glen Conrad of USL:

(partial list includes some of the same contractees above)
ENGAGEES
BADOT, Guillaume, Nail-maker
BARBIER, Thomas, Laborer
BONNET, Bastien, Founder
BOYAU, Pierre-Joseph, Hatter
BUCHIN, Guillaume, Mason
CASTAIGNE, Nicolas, Land clearer
CAUDERLIER, Jacques Antoine, Laborer
DeCUIRE, Albert, Miner, His son and daughter are with him
DUBOIS, Antoine, Mason
FILLEUR, Edrien, Metal worker
GRAUX, Albert, Laborer
HAUSSY, Pierre, Laborer. His wife is with him, also one child.
LAMBREMONT, Philippe, Nail-maker
Le GRAND, Albert, Shoemaker
LE JEUNE, Nicolas, laborer
LONGUEVILLE, Jean-Louis, Nail-maker
MULQUANT, Jean, Land clearer
POSSON, Louis, Land clearer
POUCEAU, Jean Baptiste, Miner, His son is with him. ROUSSEAU, Henry, laborer. His wife and 2 children are with him
RENAULT, Jean François, Marshal
ROUSSEAU, Jean Baptiste, laborer
THEVELIN, Joseph, Land clearer
TIERCE, Jean-Charles, Baker
TORDEUR, Jean-Baptiste, Laborer
VINCENT, Jean François, Laborer

WORKERS DAUBLIN, Jean Phillippe, Edge-tool maker
DeCOUX, Jacques, Cooper
DUBOIS, Louis, Carpenter, His wife is with him
LeCLERC, Pierre, Carpenter

DIRECTORS
CEARD, Pierre (Pierre Ceard, who died June 26, 1726, was listed as the director of the St. Reyne Concession. Historian Dr. Russ E. Williams, in his book Ouchita Valley in Colonial Louisiana, speculates that the well known waterway, Bayou DeSeard of Monroe, may have taken its name from Ceard....Dr. Williams thought Ceard may have recieved a land grant along the waterway, hence the bayou picked up his name. The Ouchita area, though far from Point Coupee, was under its jurisdiction, according to Dr. Williams, who also stated that if the bayou was not named after Ceard, perhaps it was a mutled version of DeCuir, since he had relations who later settled at Ouchita. We have no evidence that DeCuir was ever in Ouchita, and also we would like to note there was also a DuSart in the Hainaut colonists group, also a similar pronunciation)


According to the book, Old Families of Louisiana, published 1931, by Stanley Clisby Arthur and George Campbell Huchet de Kernion: Also on board the ship La Loire in 1720 was Jean Francois Huchet, ecuyer, Sieur de Kernion, mentioned on the ship's rolls as a staff officer destined for the Ste. Reyne Concession located in the Tchoupitoulas district. He was born in the parish of St. Mathieu, city of Quimper, Brittany, December 28, 1700, son of Pierre Guilliaume Huchet du Rest and Thomase Renee Guesdon de Keraval, both of ancient Breton families.


1729 Victims of the 1729 Natchez Massacre

Names of those killed, and some survivors of the Natchez Massacre


1745 Census of Pt. Coupee

The 1745 CENSUS OF PT. COUPEE (on the Mississippi River in Louisiana), lists the following surnames which match the Hainaut Colonists:

DAUBLIN, Jean
DeCUIR, Albert
DuBOIS, Marie Augustine
LeCLER(C), Louis
POURCIAUX, Jean Bapsiste
RENAULT, Louis

Complete 1745 Census of Pt. Coupee courtesy Cathy Lemoine Sturgell

List of Soldiers at Pt. Coupee in 1777 includes Hainaut names
1810 Census of Pt. Coupee courtesy of Shari Comfort
1820 Census of Pt. Coupee courtesy of Shari Comfort



email the manager of the Hainaut-Lousiana Web Page, at hainautcolonists@yahoo.com


Site Index

Surnames from Hainaut and famous people from Hainaut

Ancient Maps of the County of Hainaut 1582-1700s; and Modern maps of Hainaut in Belgium and France

Photos of towns now in French-Hainaut which were birthplaces of the Hainaut colonists

Photos of towns now in Belgian-Hainaut which were birthplaces of the Hainaut colonists

Links below lead to other websites relating to the Hainaut-Louisiana families:

Links to other sites on the Web

DeCuir family of Louisiana by Randy DeCuir
Genealogy of Chimay, Hainaut by Andre Deschamps
Description of the Coat of Arms and Flag or Hainaut Province
Map of Hainaut & Belgium
Genealogy page of Chimay, Belgium By Andre DesChamps
Belgian-American Heritage Page of Father Ducat which lists other Belgian migrations to otherparts of America.

(Father Ducat attended the Mass in Macon of the DeCuir family, and visited Louisiana in 1996, where he was among Hainaut representatives introduced to the Louisiana Legislature)

La Loire, the ship that brought the Hainaut Colonists from France to Louisiana,
Daublin- some descendants of Valentine Daublin by Winston Boudreaux
Pourciau family page by Larry Pourciau
Genealogy Page of Wallonia, the French Speaking Page of Belgium by Hubert Barnich
Map of the Portion of Hainaut in France with Blasons
Waasland (Flanders) Belgium immigrants in America, the French Speaking Page of Belgium by J. A. Georges PICAVET
First Families of Colonial Louisiana by Peggy Warren
The Prince of Chimay, ancient Lord of Macon, appointer of Albert's father, Simon DeCuir, as Mayor
The Royal Counts of Hainaut, Genealogy by Brian Tompsett
Pt. Coupee Parish, LA, GenWeb Page by Sharie Comfort
Louisiana Colonial Families, Natchitoches census of 1720s, 1730s.
Discover Hainaut, Belgium by Jean-Yves Staffe
Hainaut Towns onlineTowns in Belgium and France in Hainaut on line websites
Hainaut Provinces and TownsTowns, zips, districts in Hainaut on Genealogy Belgium Website.


Hainaut Guestbook/Queries

Please sign our guestbook and tell us your interest about the Hainaut-Louisiana colonists:

Sign Hainaut Guestbook
View Hainaut Guestbook





History of the province

History and Timeline of the province and area of Hainaut



"First Families of Louisiana"

by Dr. Glenn Conrad, lists the earliest passenger lists of colonists to Louisiana, including La Loire which carried most of the Hainaut Colonists.


Du Hainaut au Mississippi

is the title of a book written by Andre Haussy, written in French, detailing the recruitment and voyage of these Hainaut Colonists to Louisiana. Andre Haussy visited Pt. Coupee, Biloxi and New Orleans in 1995 to study the Hainaut colonists.

Andre Haussy
25, rue du Canougue
59600 Mairieux, France
telephone 33.3.27.64.98.56


The Sainte Catherine Colonists 1719 - 1720

Early Settlers of Natchez and Pointe Coupee in the French Province of Louisiana by Winston DeVille.


"Albert deCuire arrives in Louisiana"

details the family and the life of Albert DeCuir, published on the 275th Anniversary of the Hainaut Colonists to Louisiana, co-authored by the Rev. Leon Lybaert of Macon, Hainaut, Belgium, longtime pastor of St. Jean the Baptist Catholic Church of Macon, Haianut. Father Lybaert came to Pt. Coupee, Louisiana and celebrated the 275th Anniversary Mass of the Hainaut Colonists at the historic St. Frances Chapel near the site of the early settlement of the Hainaut colonists on the Missisippi River.

For Info About the DeCuir family and other Hainaut Colonists contact:
Randy DeCuir
PO Box 383
Marksville, LA, 71351
USA

or Send email to: decuir@writeme.com.


Lambremont

For info about the Lambremont Family, Send email to Jack Pastorek at Lambremont Genealogist.





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