Mystery Monday: Mystery photo, La. Legere or Leger family

This is a copy of a photo owned by P.J. Blanchard, my 3rd cousin once removed.  It was originally owned by his grandparents, Hypolite and Oza or Ozea (Landry) Blanchard, of Cameron Parish, Louisiana, and is captioned on the back "Alciae Legere, Cameron 18 miles east Grand Chanere [sic] Rd." ["Alciae" is hard to read but it's the closest spelling P.J. could determine.]

There is a Grand Chenier Rd. in Cameron Parish, and there is a Leger or Legere family in Cameron Parish in the 1920 census with a daughter Elza ("Elzea" in Southwest Louisiana Records) who was born in 1901 in or near Kaplan to Alcée Legere (possibly spelled Leger) and Ida Landry Legere.  Elza married Alva ("Alvy" or "Cap") Miller and lived in the community of Grand Chenier, in Cameron Parish.  She is related to both P.J. and I through the Legere family, but neither of us knew of her before P.J. was given this box of photos.  P.J. does remember that his father occasionally visited cousins in the Cameron area, though.

The photo mounting with what looks like a cardstock backing resembles one I have from North La. c. 1905. If it's from the same time period, the woman would probably be a generation older than Elza, perhaps her mother Ida Landry Legere or an aunt?  Is there an "Alicia" relative perhaps?  Or another "Elzea" or "Alcea" relative?  Or could it be from c. 1920 and be Elza?  Perhaps Ida Landry Legere is related to Oza Landry Blanchard, P.J.'s grandmother.  I'm still investigating this angle along with the Legeres in Cameron Parish.

Meanwhile, P.J. and I would like to know if anyone out there can help us identify the woman.  And while I'm asking, P.J. would also love to find a photo of his great-grandmother, Eve Legere Blanchard, wife of Romain Blanchard, of Kaplan, LA.  She was born in 1862 in St. Landry Parish to Hypolite "Paul" & Mary (Addison) Legere and died in Kaplan (Vermilion Parish) in 1920.  E-mail me at hallroots **at** sbcglobal **dot** net if you can help with either request.  Thanks!

"Friend of Friends" Friday: LEGER and other "LE" surnames, SW La.

"A friend of friends" was a password used on the Underground Railroad.  My "Friend of Friends" series was inspired by the essay posted by Sandra Taliaferro here.  I am posting slavery-related records occasionally as I come across them, in the hope that it might help other researchers find their ancestors. For more in the series, click here.

Rev. Donald Hébert's Southwest Louisiana Records series compiles church (mostly, but not exclusively, Catholic) and court records for southwestern parishes of Louisiana. (For tips on using the series, read my previous posts here.)

Volume 33 of the series is a supplement containing records from 1756-1904 not included in previous volumes, corrections, and "records of blacks" [the volume's term, not mine] from 1765-1886.  Hébert says that some records are mixed into the other volumes; check the entire series if you are researching African-Americans (most churches kept separate registers for slaves, which is probably why the records are separated in this volume).  The "records of blacks" section has many records of slaves without surnames, which are alphabetized by first name only, followed by the slaveowner's name.  Entries with surnames may refer to free people of color, slaves, or post-slavery records, depending on the date and the person's status.

I copied a page including Legers from the volume; I don't think they're connected with my Legeres (whose spelling is standardized to "Leger" in these volumes), but maybe it will help someone.  These aren't technically records from slavery, but I include them as they are church records from 1865-1879 and may help those doing African-American research (spellings are as in the book):

from volume 33, p. 223:
LEGER, Alexis (Narcus & Genevieve VALERY) bt. 1866 (CP Ch.: v. 2, p. 43) [Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Church Point, La.]
LEGER, Elizabeth (Michel & Pelcile) bt. 1865 (CP Ch.: v.2, p. 36)
LEGER, Henry (Narcisse & Genevieve VALLERY) bt. 1868 (CP Ch.: v. 2, p. 49)
LEGER, Marie m. 14 April 1879 William NED (GC Ch.: v. 4, p. 313) [St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church, Grand Coteau, La.]
LEGER, Narcise Michel m. 1866 Genevieve VALERY (CP Ch.: v. 2, p. 8)

Other surnames on the page include LEDE (Amelia through Valentin), LEDET (Jean only), LEDOUX (Louis Palemon only), LEIGH (Mrs., slaveowner on Bayou Boeuf), LEJEUNE (Louis only), and LEMELLE (partial, Alphred through Félicité), in records from 1801-1876.  I'm happy to do lookups; just drop me a line w/the given name/s or places for which you're looking at the address at the right side of my blog page under "about me."

p.s.  Some of my ancestors owned slaves, unfortunately.  Fortunately, I don't mind if you see a familiar surname in my blog and want to ask me about it.  I haven't researched all my ancestors' history with (or without) slavery, and I'm a bit new to that area of research, but ask me if you like, I'll look into it.  It's weird, it's awkward, but we can be weird and awkward together, and maybe help each other along the way. 

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

It's Official: I'm "Ancestor Approved."

Thank you bunches to Linda of "Flipside" and Dionne of "Finding Josephine" for honoring me with the blogger badge "Ancestor Approved" for doing my ancestors proud.  Genealogy bloggers are a supportive bunch, and I do appreciate the encouragement. 

As a recipient, I am to list 10 things I've learned about my ancestors that have surprised, humbled or enlightened me, and to pass the award along to other bloggers whom I feel are doing their ancestors proud.

I was surprised that:

• I have so many French-Canadian ancestors (I grew up in Cajun Southwest Louisiana, so the Acadians were a given, but I wasn't aware of my Quebecois heritage until a few years ago).  They're turning out to be some of my most interesting ancestors, as they were among the first settlers of Mobile, Biloxi and New Orleans.  (Cousins: This is through Marie Octavie McBride Legere's mom's family line.)

• A couple of my colonial Mobile ancestors entered into a business arrangement with the ancestor of one of my good friends from high school -- a mere 280 years or so before we met! 

• I dated my now-husband for 10 years before finding that we're 7th cousins once removed.

• I'm still adding new nationalities to my tree.  I have Dutch ancestors through my Acadian lines (!) and a possibly-Swiss soldier ancestor who came to La. -- but no, I'm not adding any more adjectives to the blog title! (There's also Welsh and French-Canadian -- and Scots-Irish, if you want to get technical.)

I was enlightened and/or intrigued to find:

• I'm related to two U.S. vice presidents, Adlai Stevenson (VP to Cleveland) and Alben Barkley (VP to Truman), and also to the VP Adlai's grandson Adlai (the more famous one) who was Illinois governor and Ambassador to the U.N, all related through Mom's Stevenson lines.

• My "mystery grandpa," Robert Bunyan Hall, was apparently married a couple of times before he married my grandma, which may help explain why he preferred that his earlier life (including his parents' names) remain a mystery to his own family (or may not -- this is my biggest brick wall).

• I have a couple of musician ancestors (I have a music degree): My 5th-great-grandfather Jacques Leger arrived in Acadia in the late 1600s as a drummer in the French military, and my 6th-great-grandfather Claude Desbordes was choirmaster at St. Louis Cathedral in New Orleans in the mid-1700s.

I am humbled by:

• finding that some of my ancestors held slaves.  Not a surprising find, given most of my ancestors lived in the South, but certainly sobering when one reads the actual names of human beings considered "property" on censuses or wills.  I am still not sure how to reconcile this fact with nonetheless being proud of some of the same ancestors' achievements.  I think it must probably require holding two opposing ideas and/or emotions in one's heart and mind at the same time, though it must be even more difficult for those who descend from both slaveowner and enslaved ancestors.

• the fact that my Acadian ancestors and their descendants in Louisiana, the Cajuns, have maintained much of their culture for more than 250 years, despite being forced from their homes by the British beginning in 1755 and "scattered to the wind" along the U.S. East Coast, in England, France, and elsewhere.

• the fact that whenever I reach out past my own shyness to meet a "new" cousin in person or by e-mail, it is invariably a good experience (whether or not we have much in common besides family), and several have become good friends as well as cousins.

I'd like to pass along the "Ancestor Approved" award to the following bloggers doing their ancestors and/or fellow researchers proud: Anne at The French Genealogy Blog, Felicia at Echoes of My Nola Past, "Hummer" at Branching Out Through the Years, Sandra at I Never Knew My Father, Ruth of Bluebonnet Country Genealogy and Tess of NOLA Graveyard Rabbit.

Surname Saturday: LEGERE from Acadia to La.

Today we have my LEGERE line - my main Cajun line, from my paternal grandmother, Elia Légère Hall, pictured below. Corrections, additions, and questions welcomed; this is a work in progress. Numbers refer to ahnentafel (pedigree chart) numbering. Sources available; e-mail me at hallroots **at** sbcglobal **dot** net.

Elia Légère, c. 1905, photographer unknown, probably photographed in Lafayette, La. Scanned photo owned by the Hall family, La., slightly edited by Liz Hall Morgan.

1. Liz HALL MORGAN - me.

2. Dad HALL.

3. Mom STEVENSON.

4. Robert Bunyan HALL. Born on 18 Mar (1877?) near Richmond, VA? Or possibly in Newton, Baker Co., GA? Robert died in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA, on 20 Nov 1952. Buried c. 22 Nov 1952 in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA (Roselawn Cemetery). (He married a Corrie or Connie or Carrie WILLIAMS and a Jessie [last name unknown] bef. Oct. 1918.)

On 26 Oct 1918 in Carencro?, Lafayette Parish, LA, he married:

5. Elia LÉGÈRE. Born on 18 Sep 1889 in Ossun, Lafayette, LA. Elia died in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA, on 18 Sep 1956. Buried in Sep 1956 in Sulphur, Calcasieu, LA (Roselawn Cemetery).

10. Constant LÉGÈRE. Born on 26 Oct 1837 in Opelousas, St. Landry, LA. Constant died in Rayne, Acadia, LA, on 19 May 1923. Buried in Carencro, Lafayette, LA (St. Peter Catholic Church Cemetery).

Constant married: 1. Estelle BABINEAUX; 2. Eudalie/Udalie or Idalie LANDRY; and 3. Marie Irma GUIDRY, all of whom died.

On 23 Feb 1889, in Carencro, Lafayette, LA, he married (his fourth wife):

11. Marie Octavie “Tavie” McBRIDE. Born on 31 Jan 1859 in Opelousas?, St. Landry, LA (to William McBRIDE and Melasie HOLLIER). “Tavie” died in Lafayette, Lafayette, LA, on 29 Mar 1946. Buried in Carencro, Lafayette, LA (St. Peter Catholic Church Cemetery; buried as "Mrs. Constant Legere." Her first husband, who died, was Cyprien STEMMANN.)

20. Hypolite Paul LÉGÈRE. Born on 10 Jan 1803 in St. Martinville, St. Martin, LA. Hypolite Paul died in Grand Coteau?, St. Landry, LA, on 29 Nov 1861. Buried in Grand Coteau, St. Landry, LA (St. Charles Borromeo Cemetery?)

On 20 Nov 1821 in Grand Coteau, St. Landry, LA, he married:

21. Marcellite LEBERT. Born on 15 Feb 1805 in of St. Martinville, St. Martin, LA (to Pierre Jean Joseph Joachin LEBERT and Marie Rose HEBERT). Marcellite died 29 Aug 1844? in Grand Coteau?, St. Landry, LA. (St. Charles Borromeo Cemetery?)

40. Paul LÉGÈRE. Born abt 1758 in CT? (family sent there in 1755 from Acadia) Also said to be "of NY." Paul died on 11 Mar 1818 in Grand Coteau, St. Landry, LA. Buried on 12 Mar 1818 in Opelousas, St. Landry, LA (St. Landry Catholic Church Cemetery?). On 28 Jul 1789 in St. Martinville, St. Martin, LA, he married:

41. Marie Constance POTIER. Born abt 1769, "of" Havre de Grace, Seine-Maritime, Normandie, FRANCE (to Pierre POITIER and Anne Marie BERNARD). Marie Constance died on 10 Jan 1844 in Grand Coteau?, St. Landry, LA. Buried in Opelousas, St. Landry Parish, LA (St. Landry Catholic Church Cemetery?).

80. François LÉGER. Born on 14 Oct 1714 in Port Royal, ACADIA.

On 25 May 1739 in Port Royal, ACADIA, he married:

81. Madeleine COMEAU. Born on 4 Sep 1720 in Port Royal, ACADIA (to Abraham COMEAU and Marguerite PITRE).

160. Jacques LÉGER dit [called] “La Rosette.” Born c. 1663. Jacques died on 27 Mar 1751 in Port Royal, ACADIA. Buried on 28 Mar 1751 in Port Royal, ACADIA.

Before the 1693 Acadian census, in Port Royal, ACADIA, he married:

161. Madeleine TRAHAN. Born in c. 1678 in Port Royal, ACADIA (to Guillaume TRAHAN and Madeleine BRUN). Madeleine died on 8 Dec 1742 in Port Royal, ACADIA. Buried on 9 Dec 1742 in Port Royal, ACADIA.