APPENDICES

Acadians Who Found Refuge in Louisiana, February 1764-early 1800s

BERNARD

[bear-NAH, bear-NARD, bur-NARD]

ACADIA

The Acadian genealogist Bona Arsenault asserts that the progenitor of this family in Acadia was André Bernard, a mason from Beauvoir-sur-Mer, Poitou, France, who came to the colony in 1641, age 21, to work for Governor Charles La Tour at his fort on Rivière St.-Jean.  Arsenault does not record the name of André's wife but says that he fathered two daughters, Jeanne and Marie, and two sons, Nicolas and René.  Nicolas married an Indian and remained on Rivière St.-Jean.  René moved to Chignecto, where he established a family of his own and from which the Acadian Bernards are descended.  

Acadian genealogist Stephen A. White tells a different story:  André Bernard did indeed come to Acadia in 1641 to work for Charles La Tour, and André was one of the lucky survivors of the sieur d'Aulnay's assault on La Tour's fort in 1645.  White even suggests that Bernard may have been forced to serve as executioner for La Tour's men whom d'Aulnay ordered to be hanged after the fort was taken.  White maintains, however, that it was most unlikely, given what happened at Fort St.-Jean, that André Bernard would have remained in the colony to start a family; André probably returned to France.  White asserts that René Bernard was not the brother of Jeanne, Marie, or Nicolas and that none of them were fathered by André Bernard.  

This researcher follows White:

___, possibly André, Bernard married first to an Indian whose name has been lost (so says Bunnell, not White), and then to Andrée Guyon probably at Port-Royal in c1644.  They had two daughters, both born at Port-Royal, who married into the Landry and Chiasson dit La Vallée families.  __  died by c1651, when his wife Andrée remarried to fellow colonist Antoine Belliveau. 

~

Nicolas Bernard, born in France in c1662, probably no kin to the other Bernards of Acadia, married a woman named Marguerite, had a daughter by her, and was recorded on Rivière St.-Jean in 1693.  

~

Pierre Bénard, also called Bernard, born at St.-Malo, France, in c1686, settled on Île Royale, today's Cape Breton Island, where he married Cécile, daughter of Vincent Longuépée and Madeleine Rimbault, at Port-Toulouse in c1718, which would have made them early settlers on the island.  Pierre worked as a coaster.  In February 1752, a French official counted Pierre, Cécile, and their family on the north shore of Île Madame, off the southern coast of Île Royale.  The official noted in his census report that "The land on which he [Pierre] has settled since 1720 was granted to him verbally by Messieurs de St. Ovide and Le Normand [the first, Joseph Mombeton de Bouillon de Saint-Ovide, was a former governor of the colony, and the second, Jacques-Ange Le Normant de Mézy, was the colony's financial commissary]."  With Pierre and Cécile were eight unmarried children:  Anne, age 24; François, age 22; Nicolas, age 18; Geneviève, age 17; Françoise, age 15; Froisille, age 10; Charles, age 8; and Isaac, age 4.  Living nearby was son Jean, age 30, also a coaster, his wife Catherine Langlois, age 28, "native of Île Madame," and their 16-month-old daughter, Madeleine.  Their neighbors were François Langlois, age 42[probably 62], native of Paris and "settler in the colony 30 years," and his wife Madeleine Comeau of  Annapolis Royal, age 65, daughter of Pierre l'aîné dit L'Esturgeon and Jeanne Bourg; François and Madeleine probably were Catherine Langlois's parents.  The census taker noted that François Langlois's land also had been "given verbally by Messrs. de St. Ovide and Le Normand."

~

Louis, son of Jacques Bernard and Marie-Anne Gerberon, born at Ste.-Foy, Chartres, France, in c1710, probably was not kin to the other Acadian Bernards.  Louis came to Acadia by September 1736, when he married Marie-Madeleine, called Madeleine, daughter of Pierre Simon dit Boucher and Marie Pinet of Petit-Grat, Île Royale, now Cape Breton Island, at Havre-St.-Pierre, Île St.-Jean, today's Prince Edward Island.  Louis served as maître de grave and notaire royale on Île St.-Jean.  Madeleine gave him at least seven children on the island:  Louis, fils was born in February 1737, Dominique in June 1739, Marie-Anne in June 1741, Pierre in September 1743, Simon in July 1752, Marie-Charlotte in February 1754, and Jean in February 1757.  A French official counted Louis, addressed as Sr., Madeleine, and five of their older children at Havre-St.-Pierre in August 1752.  The entire family perished aboard the British transport Violet on the crossing to St.-Malo in December 1758.

~

Claude dit Léveillé, son of Jacques Bernard and Louse Rabier of Montamisé, Poitiers, France, also not kin to the other Bernards of greater Acadia, was a soldier in the company of de Rouville in Québec.  He married Angélique, daughter of Louis Coulombe, at Québec in c1713.  Later in the decade, probably after finishing his military service, Claude took his family to Port-Dauphin, Île Royale, where he worked as an inn-keeper.  Angélique gave him five children, including a son born in the mid-1720s who did not survive childhood.  Daughters Marie-Anne and Anne, both born at Port-Dauphin, married into the Lévesque and Martin families, the latter probably not an Acadian Martin. 

~

For the Bernards of Louisiana, the most significant family in Acadia was that of René Bernard, born probably in France in c1663, who came to Chignecto soon after the census of 1686, perhaps to work for the area's seigneur, Michel Le Neuf de La Vallière.  René married Madeleine, daughter of Pierre Doucet and Henriette Pelletret, probably at Chignecto in c1689.  They had eight children, including four sons who created families of their own.  Each of their sons was born at Chignecto and remained there.  René and Madeleine's three daughters married into the Girouard, Poirier, and Arseneau families.  

Oldest son René dit Renochet, born in c1690, married Anne, daughter of Jacques Blou and Marie Girouard, at Beaubassin in July 1713.  They had 10 children, including four sons who married into the Hébert, Richard, and Hubert families.  Renochet and Anne's four daughters married into the Bourgeois, Hébert, Mignot, and Richard families.  Renochet died at Québec in November 1757 during Le Grand Dérangement.  

Joseph l'aîné, born in c1692, died young.  

Jean-Baptiste, born in c1696, married Cécile, daughter of Claude Gaudet and Marguerite Blou, at Beaubassin in November 1719.  He died at Québec in December 1757 during Le Grand Dérangement.  Two of his sons, Michel le jeune and Pierre, emigrated to Louisiana. 

Joseph le jeune, born in the early 1700s, married Marie-Josèphe, another daughter of Claude Gaudet and Marguerite Blou, at Chignecto in c1729, and then in the early 1750s he remarried to Marguerite, daughter of Charles Arseneau and widow of Pierre Poirier.

Youngest son Michel, born in the early 1700s, also married twice, first to Marie, daughter of Mathieu Brasseur dit La Citardy and Jeanne Célestin dit Bellemère, at Grand-Pré in c1729, and then to Anne, daughter of Clément Babineau and Renée Bourg, probably at Halifax in c1763 during Le Grand Dérangement.  

[For more of this family in pre- and post-disperal Acadia and Canada, see Book Three]

By 1755, descendants of René Bernard could be found mostly at Chignecto, where René himself had settled.  

LE GRAND DÉRANGEMENT

[For the family's travails during the Great Upheaval, see Book Six]

LOUISIANA:  WESTERN SETTLEMENTS

Michel Bernard, age 31, reached Louisiana from Halifax via St.-Domingue, today's Haiti, with the Broussard dit Beausoleil party in February 1765.  With him were his wife Marie Guilbeau, age 31, and two sons--Jean-Baptiste, age 3, and Michel, fils, an infant.  Marie seems to have been with child when she reached New Orleans.  That spring, Michel followed his Guilbeau in-laws to Bayou Teche, and, even after an epidemic killed Marie's father, Michel, père and Marie remained on the Teche and created a western branch of the family. 

The unidentified author of the AGE article, quoted above, asserts that both Michel and his older brother Pierre settled in the Attakapas District and that Pierre's children settled at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques.  Not exactly.  A number of Spanish censuses are clear:  Pierre remained at St.-Jacques and did not cross the Atchafalaya Basin.  One of his sons, however, Pierre, fils, did cross the Basin and contributed his line to the western branch of the family founded by his uncle Michel.  Pierre, père and his other two sons remained at St.-Jacques.  

Descendants of Michel BERNARD (c1734-1809; René)

Michel, younger son of Jean-Baptiste Bernard and Cécile Gaudet and younger brother of Pierre, was born at Chignecto in c1734.  Like his brother, Michel escaped the British roundup at Chignecto in 1755 and took refuge on the Gulf of St. Lawrence shore.  He married Marie, daughter of Joseph dit L'Officier Guilbeau and Madeleine Michel, at Restigouche at the head of the Baie des Chaleurs in January 1761.  Michel and Marie reached Louisiana in February 1765 with the Broussard dit Beausoleil party.  In April, Michel was among the newly-arrived Acadians who appeared on a list of those who hoped to exchange Canadian card money for Louisiana funds.  Michel, Marie, and their two sons followed the Broussards from New Orleans to the Attakapas District, where they settled at "La Pointe Acadienne" on upper Bayou Teche near present-day Breaux Bridge.  They had more children in Louisiana, including two more sons.  Their daughters married into the Broussard, Préjean, and Thibodeaux families.  During the 1780s and 1790s, Michel's oldest son Jean moved from La Pointe to Carencro, at the northern edge of the Attakapas District, and his second son Michel, fils moved to Côte Gelée, near present-day Broussard.  His youngest son, François, moved down the Teche from La Pointe to Fausse Pointe in the 1810s.  Michel, père died at La Pointe in August 1809, a widower, age 74.  His succession was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse, St. Martin Parish, in March 1810.  During the late antebellum period, his descendants spread out along the Teche from Fausse Pointe near New Iberia all the way up to Port Barre, east of Opelousas; remained at Carencro and Côte Gelée in Lafayette Parish; or moved out into the prairies of Vermilion and St. Landry prairies.  His first son's line was especially prolific.  

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Oldest son Jean-Baptiste le jeune, called Jean, born probably at Halifax in c1762, married Marguerite, daughter of fellow Acadian Joseph-Grégoire dit Petit-Jos Broussard and his second wife Marguerite Savoie and a granddaughter of Joseph Broussard dit Beausoleil, at Attakapas in June 1782.  Jean and Marguerite settled on the upper Vermilion east of Carencro at a place the Acadians called quartier de Beau Bassin, named after the Chignecto settlement in Acadia where his father had been born.  Jean and Marguerite's son Jean, fils was born at Carencro in April 1783, François le jeune in January 1793, Ursin in c1795, and Éloi in August 1800.  They also had a son named Joseph.  Their daughters married into the Caruthers, Guilbeau, and Guidry families.  Jean, père died probably at Carencro in February 1833; the priest who recorded the burial said that Jean was age 79 when he died, but he was closer to 71; his succession was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse in 1834.  

1a

Jean, fils married Scholastique, daughter of fellow Acadians Firmin dit La Prade Girouard and Marguerite Cormier, at Attakapas in c1802.  Their son Jean Louis le jeune, called Don Louis, was born at Attakapas in October 1803, Louis Arvillien, called Arvillien, in April 1805, Ursin at La Pointe on the Teche in January 1806 but died at age 4 months the following April, Hilaire Nelson was born at Côte Gelée in April 1810, and Ursin Clairville, also called Ursin Jean, in December 1813.  They also had a son named Joseph Léon, sometimes called Léon.  Jean, fils, at age 60, remarried to Marie Modeste, daughter of fellow Acadian Jean dit Chapeau Mouton and his Creole wife Marie Marthe Borda and widow of Pierre Laurent Potier, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in February 1844.  In early September 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 26 slaves--15 males and 11 females, all black except for 1 mulatto, ages 60 to 1--on Jean Bernard's plantation in the parish's western district.  In July 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 14 slaves--8 males and 6 females, all black except for 1 mulatto, ranging in age from 48 years to 8 months--on John Bernard's farm next to Donlouis and Dupré Bernard, so this was probably Jean, fils, who would have been in his late 70s.  Jean, fils died in Lafayette Parish in April 1866; the Vermilionville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or even mention a wife, said that Jean died "at age 85 yrs.," but he was 83; his succession was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse four days after his death. 

Don Louis married Carmelite, daughter of fellow Acadian Jean Landry and his Creole wife Marie Louis Begnaud of Côte Gelée, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in September 1824.  Their son Louis Dupréville or Dupréville Louis, also called Louis Dupré or simply Dupré, was born at Côte Gelée in December 1825, and Jean Dema in February 1828 but died at age 13 months in March 1829.  Their daughter married a Landry cousin.  Don Louis remarried to cousin Euphrasie, daughter of fellow Acadians Charles Guidry and Caroline Landry, at the Vermilionville church in May 1858; Don Louis was 54 years old.  In July 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 5 slaves--3 males and 2 females, all black, age 40 to 3--on Donlouis Bernard's farm next to Dupré Bernard and near John Bernard.  Don Louis died in Lafayette Parish in July 1863; the Vermilionville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or even mention a wife, said that Don Louis died "at age 58 yrs."; he was 59; his successions were filed at the Vermilionville courthouse the following September and in August 1865.  

Dupré, by his father's first wife, married Marcellite, daughter of fellow Acadians Onesime Melançon and Marie Mélanie Prejean, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in December 1849.  Their son Eraste was born in Lafayette Parish in August 1852 but died at age 14 1/2 in June 1867, Albert was born in August 1854, Sigismond in May 1857, and Louis near Youngsville in August 1859.  In July 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 3 slaves--a 36-year-old male, a 35-year-old female, and an 11-year-old female, all black--on Dupré Bernard's farm, between Donlouis Bernard and John Bernard.  Louis Dupré's succession was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse in January 1866; he would have been age 41 that year. 

Joseph Léon married Marie Arthémise, daughter of fellow Acadians Aurelien Breaux and Marie Bernard of St. Martin Parish, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in July 1829.  Their son Jean Clémile, called Clémile, was born in Lafayette Parish in September 1835, Louis or Joseph Desparet, called Desparet and Despanet, was baptized at the Vermilionville church, age 2 months, in December 1837, twins Théodule, perhaps Joseph Théodule, and Théophile were born in February 1842 but Théophile died at age 5 1/2 in November 1847, Louis le jeune was born in April 1846 but died at age 15 months in August 1847, and Félix was born in January 1852.  Their daughters married into the Constantin, Judice, Neveu (Foreign French, not Acadian), and Patin families.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 4 slaves--2 males and 2 females, all black, ranging in age from 30 to 12--on Joseph L. Bernard's farm next to Mrs. Aurelien Breaux's plantation; she was Joseph Léon's mother-in-law.  

Clémile married Eugénie Celima or Celima Eugénie, daughter of fellow Acadians Melise Richard and Azéline Richard, at the Opelousas church, St. Landry Parish, in August 1857.  Their son Cleopha was born in Lafayette Parish in July 1860, Joseph le jeune in June 1862, and Octave in November 1867.  During the War of 1861-65, Clémile served as a corporal and then as a sergeant in the 18th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, raised in South Louisiana, which fought in Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana, and, with younger brother Desparet, in Company A of the Consolidated 18th Regiment and Yellow Jacket Battalion Infantry, which fought in Louisiana.  

Desparet married Julie or Julia, daughter of Alexandre Castille and Émelia Robin, at the Opelousas church, St. Landry Parish, in April 1860.  Their son Joseph Omer, called Omer, was born in St. Landry Parish in March 1864, Jean Clebert in June 1867, and Louis Albert in April 1870.  During the War of 1861-65, Desparet served as a sergeant in Company A of the Consolidated 18th Regiment and Yellow Jacket Battalion Infantry with his older brother Clémile.  Desparet died in St. Landry Parish in November 1905, age 68, a widower, and was buried in the St. Landry Catholic Cemetery in Opelousas. 

Omer, called Homer by the recording clerk, married French Creole Alma Louise or Louise Alma La Morandière in a civil ceremony in St. Landry Parish in October 1887.  Their son Joseph Louis Warren or Varnum, called Louis Varnum and L. V., was born near Port Barre, east of Opelousas, in November 1890.  L. V. married Agnes or Inez Marie Resweber.  Their son Louis Varnum married Irène Bordelon from Port Barre.  Their son Rodney Ronald Louis "Rod" of Opelousas and Lafayette, the swamp pop star of the late 50s and early 60s ("This Should Go On Forever") and a popular local disc jockey, married Jo Ann King of Magnolia, Mississippi.  Their son, Shane K., one of the pre-eminent scholars of the Cajun experience, lives in New Iberia and is the historian of the McIlhenny Company (the Tabasco sauce folks). 

Joseph Théodule may have married Cordelia Florentine, also called Marie Cordolia, Foreman at the Abbeville church, Vermilion Parish, in April 1861.  Their son Joseph Gaston was born in Lafayette Parish in August 1867. 

Arvillien married cousin Elisa or Lisa, daughter of fellow Acadian Simon Bernard and his Creole wife Cidalise Carmouche, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in May 1830.  Their son Pierre Vital was born in Lafayette Parish in April 1837, Jean Adrien in June 1839, François Éloi in February 1841, a child, perhaps a son, died a day after its birth in August 1843, François Anaïs was born near Grand Coteau, St. Landry Parish, in September 1844, Louis Ignace, called Ignace, in October 1846, Édouard Adolphe in January 1849, Jean Baptiste near Opelousas in January 1853, and Jacques Ambroise near Grand Coteau in September 1855 but died at age 14 months in December 1856.  They also had a son named Élie Arvillien who died in September 1843, age unrecorded.  Their daughters married into the Bernard, Carmouche, Estilette, and Guilbeau families.  In late August and early September 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 38 slaves--20 males and 18 females, all black, ages 40 years to 1 month--on Hervilien Bernard's plantation in the parish's western district; this was probably Arvillien.  Arvillien died at Carencro in December 1859, age 54; his succession was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse, Lafayette Parish, later that month.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 34 slaves--17 males and 17 females, all black except for 1 mulatto, ranging in age from 70 years to 6 months, living in 7 houses--on Mrs. L. Evilien Bernard's plantation; this was Arvilien's widow, Elisa Bernard.  The same census taker counted a single slave--an 8-year-old black female--in Cidalise Bernard's household nearby; Cidalise may have been Elisa's mother Cidalise Carmouche.  

In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted a single slave--a 15-year-old black female--in Pierre Bernard's household next to Mrs. L. Evilien Bernard's plantation.  Pierre Vital married cousin Eméranthe, daughter of fellow Acadian Valsin Bernard and his Creole wife Madeleine Nezat, at the Breaux Bridge church, St. Martin Parish, in April 1862.  

In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted a single slave--a 12-year-old black female--in John Bernard's household next to Pierre Bernard.  Jean Adrien married Hélène, daughter of fellow Acadians Rosémond Breaux and and Calixte Arceneaux, at the Grand Coteau church in November 1865. 

In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted a single slave--a 12-year-old black female--in "Ismene" Bernard's household near Mrs. L. Evilien Bernard's plantation; this probably was Ignace.  

Hilaire Nelson married Marie Arthémise, called Arthémise, daughter of fellow Acadian Henri Landry and his Creole wife Lize Begnaud, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in January 1832.  Their son Jean Nelson, called Nelson, was born in Lafayette Parish in October 1832, Désiré was baptized at the Vermilionville church, age 2 months, in May 1836, Sosthène at age 4 months in May 1838, Jean le jeune was born in August 1843, a "child of Côte Gelée," name unrecorded, perhaps a son, died at age 4 in January 1849, Hippolyte was born in April 1848, and Jean Marie in October 1853.  They also had a son name Luca or Lucas.  Their daughters married Landry cousins.  In August 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 8 slaves--5 males and 3 females, all black, ages 35 to 1--on Hilaire Bernard's farm in the parish's western district.  In July 1860, federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 15 slaves--6 males and 9 females, 10 blacks and 5 mulattoes, ranging in age from 40 to 1, living in 3 houses--on Hilaire Bernard's farm next to Ursin Jn. Bernard.  

Nelson married Clarisse, daughter of fellow Acadians Édouard Comeaux and Marguerite Granger, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in February 1854.  Their son Valéry was born in Lafayette Parish in December 1854, Jean Sevigne in October 1856, and Omer in February 1863.  During the War of 1861-65, Nelson, served in Company A of the Consolidated 18th Regiment and Yellow Jackets Battalion Louisiana Infantry, which fought in Louisiana.  Nelson remarried to Élisabeth, called Eliza, daughter of Armand Hulot and his Acadian wife Françoise Landry, at the Youngsville church, Lafayette Parish, in February 1866.  Their son Jean was born near Youngsville in September 1868, and Louis in June 1870. 

Désiré married Maria Ernina or Esmina, called Ernina, daughter of fellow Acadian Théodule Dugas and his Creole wife Anne Émilie Bossier, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in February 1857.  During the War of 1861-65, Désiré served in Company A of the 26th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, the Lafayette Prairie Boys, raised in Lafayette Parish, which fought at Vicksburg, Mississippi.  Désiré likely remarried to fellow Acadian Victorine Irène Landry in a civil ceremony in Lafayette Parish in April 1864.  They settled near Youngsville.  

Sosthène married cousin Émilie, daughter of fellow Acadians Norbert Landry and Émilia Landry, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in April 1860.  Their son Eucharis was born in Lafayette Parish in July 1864, and Norbert in March 1870.  During the War of 1861-65, Sosthène also served in Company A of the 26th Louisiana Infantry, which fought at Vicksburg, Mississippi. 

Jean le jeune married fellow Acadian Aspasie Mouton in a civil ceremony in Lafayette Parish in October 1860.  

During the War of 1861-65, Lucas served in the same company as his older brothers Désiré and Sosthène.  Lucas married Mélanie or Mélasie, daughter of Léon Montet and his Acadian wife Louise Broussard, at the Youngsville church, Lafayette Parish, in August 1865.  Their son Jean Azare was born near Youngsville in December 1868. 

Hippolyte married Philomène, daughter of fellow Acadians Evariste Trahan and Adélaïde Savoie, at the Youngsville church, Lafayette Parish, in January 1869.  Their son Arthur was born near Youngsville in January 1870. 

Ursin Jean married Marguerite or Marcellite, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Landry and Marie Rose Melançon, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in April 1833.  Their son Demas was baptized at the Vermilionville church, age 3 months, in May 1834, Euphémon was born in St. Martin Parish in January 1845, and Omer in Lafayette Parish in November 1855.  Their daughters married into the Duhon, Langlinais, and Reaux families.  In August 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 10 slaves--8 males and 2 females, all black, ranging in age from 30 to 3--on Ursin J. Bernard's farm in the parish's western eistrict; this was probably Ursin Jean.  In July 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 11 slaves--9 males and 2 females, all black except for 1 mulatto, ranging in age from 45 years to 7 months--on Ursin Jn. Bernard's farm next to Hilaire Bernard.  Ursin Jean, at age 52, remarried to Marie Azélie, daughter of fellow Acadians Édouard Comeaux and Marguerite Granger and widow of Pierre Landry, at the Youngsville church, Lafayette Parish, in February 1866. 

Demas, by his father's first wife, married cousin Bertille Victorine, called Victorine, daughter of fellow Acadians Éloi Jean Landry and Madeleine Sidalise Babin, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in June 1853.  They settled near Youngsville.  Their son Stanislas was born in January 1858, Ulysse in February 1861, and Robert Émile in October 1866.  During the War of 1861-65, Demas, probably a conscript, served as a corporal in Company A of the 18th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, raised in St. James Parish, which fought in Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana, and then in companies A and C of the Consolidated 18th Regiment and Yellow Jackets Battalion Infantry, which fought in Louisiana.  A daughter was baptized at the Gonzales church, Ascension Parish, in April 1870, so one wonders if they left the prairies during the late 1860s and resettled near the Mississippi. 

During the War of 1861-65, Euphémon, by his father's first wife, served with his cousins in Company A of the 26th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, raised in Lafayette Parish, which fought at Vicksburg, Mississippi.  Euphémon married Emma, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Baptiste Duhon and Euphémie Prejean, in a civil ceremony in Lafayette Parish in May 1866, and sanctified the marriage at the Youngsville church, Lafayette Parish, in July.  Their son Jean Numa was born near Youngsville in January 1869. 

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Joseph married Marguerite, another daughter of fellow Acadian Firmin Girouard, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in January 1810.  Their son Joseph Treville, called Treville, was born at Carencro in October 1810, Ursin Joseph at Côte Gelée in May 1812, Jean Baptiste Émile in May 1814, François Émilien or Émilien François in September 1816, Lucien in January 1821 but died at age 2 in April 1824, and Louis Euclide, called Euclide, was born in April 1823.  Their daughter married into the St. Julien family.  Joseph's succession was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse, Lafayette Parish, in January 1842; the parish clerk did not record Joseph's age.  In October 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 8 slaves--5 males and 3 females, all black, ages in 50 to 3--on W. Joseph Bernard's farm in the parish's western district; these probably were Marguerite Girouard's slaves.  In July 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 16 slaves--7 males and 9 females, all black, ranging in age from 60 to 2--on Mrs. Joseph Bernard's farm between Pauleon and Aurelien St. Julien; again, these probably were Marguerite Girouard's slaves.    

Joseph Treville married Célesie, daughter of fellow Acadians Augustin Comeaux and Céleste Sonnier and widow of Joseph Guidry, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish,  in July 1832.  Their child, perhaps a son, name unrecorded, died 8 days after its birth in July 1833, Fergus or Ferjus was baptized at the Vermilionville church, age 2 1/2 months, in August 1838 but died at age 2 in August 1840, and Joseph Émile, a twin, was baptized, age 4 1/2 months, in May 1840 and emancipated in April 1859.  Their daughters married into the Guidry family.  Joseph Treville died in Lafayette Parish in March 1858; the Vermilionville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or even mention a wife, said that Joseph Treville died "at age 50 yrs.," but he was 47; his succession had been filed at the Vermilionville courthouse the previous month.  

Ursin Joseph married Marguerite Sylvanie, called Sylvanie, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Baptiste Comeaux and Rosalie Prejean, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in January 1834.  Their son Louis Mozart, called Mozart, was baptized at the Vermilionville church, age 3 1/2 months, in June 1837, Adolphe was born in January 1841, Jules in June 1843, and a son, name unrecorded, died 13 days after his birth in August 1854.  Their daughters married into the LeBlanc family.  In November 1850, the census taker in Vermilion Parish counted 11 slaves--5 males and 6 females, all black, ages 30 to 4--on Ursin J. Bernard's farm in the parish's Fourth Ward.  In 1860, the federal census taker in Vermilion Parish counted 5 slaves--2 males and 3 females, all black, ranging in age from 50 to 16, living in a single house--on Uresan Bernard's farm in the parish's western district.  Ursin Joseph died by October 1866, when he was listed as deceased in a son's marriage record. 

Mozart married fellow Acadian Pélagie Idalie or Idolie Broussard at the Abbeville church, Vermilion Parish, in July 1861.  Their son Joseph Ursin was born near Abbeville in April 1862, Édouard Léonce, called Léonce, in September 1866 but died at age 2 1/2 (the recording priest said 4!) in January 1869, and Louis Philias, called Philias, was born in February 1869 but died the following June.  

Adolphe married fellow Acadian Adélaïde Broussard, perhaps kin to brother Mozart's wife, at the Abbeville church, Vermilionville Parish, in August 1862.  Their son Gilbert Adolphe was born near Abbeville in October 1862, and Louis Numa in August 1864.  Adolphe remarried to Marie Azelia, daughter of Sébastien Nunez and Clémence LaPointe and widow of Hippolyte Myrtile Abadie, at the Abbeville church in December 1869. 

Jules married Emetille, daughter of fellow Acadian Sevenne Boudreaux and his Creole wife Euphémie Roy, at the Abbeville church, Vermilion Parish, in October 1866. 

Jean Baptiste Émile married Marie Joséphine, another daughter of Jean Baptiste Comeaux and Rosalie Prejean, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in December 1837.  Their son Ermasse was born in Lafayette Parish in October 1839, and a child, name and age unrecorded, perhaps a son, died in January 1842.  Their daughters married into the Frank and LeBlanc families.  Jean Baptiste Émile remarried to Julie Émeline, daughter of Jean Pierre Allouard and Eléonore Jahoteau, at the Vermilionville church in November 1844.  Their son Edgard was born near Abbeville, Vermilion Parish, in September 1853.  Their daughter married into the Le Guennec family.  In August 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 9 slaves--4 males and 5 females, all black, ages 30 to 4--on Émile Bernard's farm in the parish's western district; this was probably Jean Baptiste Émile.  His succession record was filed at the Abbeville courthouse, Vermilion Parish, in 1869; he would have been age 55 that year. 

Euclide married Mavine, daughter of fellow Acadians Philippe de Saint-Julien Lachaussée and Hortence LeBlanc, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in April 1842.  Their son N. was born in Lafayette Parish in c1843, Ferjus in c1845, and Antoine in c1848.  In August 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 7 slaves--5 males and 2 females, all black, ages 55 to 3--on Euclide Bernard's farm in the parish's western district.  Euclide died in Lafayette Parish in May 1851; the priest who recorded his burial said that Euclide was 26 years old when he died, but he was 28; his succession record was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse the following month.  In July 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 5 slaves--2 males and 3 females, all black, ranging in age from 34 to 3--on Mrs. Euclide Bernard's farm, next to Raphaël Lachaussée; these were Mavine Lachaussée's slaves; Raphaël was her brother.  

During the War of 1861-65, Ferjus, called Ferguste L. in the Confederate records, likely served in Company E of the 7th Regiment Louisiana Cavalry, raised in Lafayette and St. Martin parishes, which fought in South Louisiana late in the war mostly against local Jayhawkers.  Ferjus married Élisabeth, daughter of Aristide Labbé, Labre, Labrie, or Labry and Caroline Taylor, at the Youngsville church, Lafayette Parish, in October 1866.  Their son Joseph Félix was born near Youngsville in March 1869. 

Émilien François married fellow Acadian Marguerite Guilbeau at the Grand Coteau church, St. Landry Parish, in December 1849.  Their son Franz Alexandre was born near Grand Coteau in September 1854.  Their daughter married a Bernard cousin.  In September 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 2 slaves--a 4-year-old black male and a 13-year-old black female--on Émilien Bernard's farm in the parish's western district; this probably was Émilien François.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 7 slaves--5 males and 2 females, all black except for 1 mulatto, ranging in age from 30 to 2--on Émelien Bernard's farm.  

1c

François married Louise, daughter of David Caruthers and Isabelle Dugas of Carencro, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in April 1812.  Even before the marriage, in October 1810, François le jeune, called François, Jr., had been named an heir in David Caruthers's will.  François le jeune and Louise's daughter married into the LeBlanc family.  François le jeune remarried to Marie Zélime or Zulime, also called Marie Julienne or Julie, daughter of François Carmouche, captain of the local militia, and his Acadian wife Françoise Arceneaux of Carencro, at the St. Martinville church in June 1815.  Their son François, fils was born probably at Carencro in February 1820 but died at age 3 months the following May, Joseph le jeune was born in February 1824, Émilien in March 1826, and Honoré was baptized at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, age 5 1/2 months, in November 1829.  Their daughters married into the Guilbeau and Prejean families.  In September 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 8 slaves--4 males and 4 females, all black, ages 40 to 3--on François Bernard's farm next to son Joseph, in the parish's western district.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 7 slaves--4 males and 3 females, all black, ranging in age from 45 to 7--on Françious Bernard's farm next to Joseph Bernard; François would have been in his late 60s that year.  

Joseph le jeune, by his father's second wife, married double cousin Marie Evelina, called Evelina, 20-year-old daughter of fellow Acadians Pierre Treville Bernard and Marie Euphrasie Arceneaux, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in November 1842.  They settled probably near Carencro.  Their son Joseph, fils was born in August 1843, and Émilien Homere, called Homere, in January 1845.  Their daughter married into the Guchereau family.  In September 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted a single slave--an 18-year-old black male--on Joseph Bernard's farm next to François Bernard in the parish's western district.  Joseph died probably at Carencro in November 1850; the Vermilionville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Joseph died "at age 30 yrs.," but he was 26.  

In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted a single slave--a 15-year-old black female--on Joseph Bernard's farm next to Françious Bernard; this probably was Joseph, fils.  Joseph, fils married cousin Clémentine, daughter of fellow Acadian Alexandre Guilbeau and Azélie Bernard and widow of Onésime Guilbeau, at the Grand Coteau church, St. Landry Parish, in July 1861; Clémentine's mother was an Acadian Bernard.  

Homere married cousin Azélie, daughter of fellow Acadians Émilien François Bernard and Marguerite Guilbeau, at the Grand Coteau church, St. Landry Parish, in June 1869.  They settled probably near Carencro. 

Honoré, by his father's second wife, married double cousin Marguerite Anastasie, called Anastasie, daughter of fellow Acadians Louis Arvillien Bernard and Elisa Bernard, in a civil ceremony in Lafayette Parish in October 1849.  Their son Louis Honoré was born near Grand Coteau, St. Landry Parish, in March 1853, and Pierre François in December 1854.  In September 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted a single slave--a 35-year-old black male--on Honoré Bernard's farm in the parish's western district.  Honoré remarried to Virginia or Virginie, daughter of Louis fellow Acadians Lebert and Marguerite Thibodeaux, at the Grand Coteau church in April 1856.  Their son Joseph Ambroise, called Ambroise, was born near Grand Coteau in October 1866 but died at age 18 months in April 1868.  In 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 28 slaves--15 males and 13 females, 16 blacks and 12 mulattoes, ranging in age from 61 years to 4 months, living in 8 houses--on Honoré Bernard's plantation.  

1d

Ursin married cousin Marie Éloise, called Éloise, daughter of fellow Acadians Pierre Bernard, fils and Anastasie Breaux, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in June 1815.  Their son Ursin Alexandre, called Alexandre, was born near Carencro in April 1818 but died at age 6 in March 1824, and Pierre Arvillien was born in December 1827 but died at age 2 in December 1829.  Their daughters married into the Francez and Guilbeau families.  In September 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 16 slaves--7 males and 9 females, all black except for 1 mulatto, ranging in age from 50 to 1--on Ursin Bernard's farm in the parish's western district.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 18 slaves--13 males and 5 females, 14 blacks and 4 mulattoes, ranging in age from 70 to 11--on Ursin Bernard's farm next to Pierre Cormier's plantation at Carencro  Ursin died in Lafayette Parish in March 1870; the Vermilionville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Ursin died "at age 75 yrs."  This family line, except for its blood, may have died with him.  

1e

Éloi married cousin Marie Céleste, daughter of fellow Acadians Simon Girouard and Adélaïde Broussard of Côte Gelée, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in August 1821.  Their son Théodule was baptized at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, age unrecorded, in February 1823 but died at age 4 in June 1826, Arvillien le jeune was baptized at the Vermilionville church, age 2 months, 18 days, in January 1830 but died at age 9 months the following July, Pascal was born in c1831 but died at age 5 in October 1836, Opar was baptized at age 3 months in January 1832, and Éloi, fils was born posthumously in March 1835.  They also had a son named Oscar.  Their daughters married into the Derouen, Lange, and LeBlanc families.  Éloi, père died in Lafayette Parish in January 1835, age 34.  

Éloi, fils married Adèle, daughter of Alexis Buteau and Marie Irma Lange, at the Charenton church, St. Mary Parish, in November 1855.  They settled in Lafayette Parish.  Éloi, fils died in Lafayette Parish in October 1856, age 21; his succession was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse the following January.  

2

Pierre le jeune, according to Bona Arsenault Jean-Baptiste dit Jean's twin, died before August 1763, age 1. 

3

Michel, fils, born probably aboard ship in January 1765, died in the Bayou Teche epidemic in October 1765, age 9 months.  Unfortunately, the priest who recorded the boy's burial did not give the parents' names, but who else could the boy have been but Michel, fils, infant son of Michel Bernard?  

4

Michel, fils, born probably at Attakapas in the late 1760s, was counted at Attakapas in December 1769.  The Spanish census taker noted that Michel, age 5, was living with Michel Bernard and his family.  One wonders if the census taker meant to say that this Michel, fils was age 5 months, not 5 years, and was a second son with that name.  This Michel, fils married Marguerite, daughter of fellow Acadians Simon Broussard and Marguerite Blanchard, at Attakapas in June 1788.  Their son Édouard was born probably at Côte Gelée in May 1796, and Alexandre posthumously in November 1801.  Michel, fils and Marguerite's daughters married into the Boulet and Mire families.  Michel, fils died probably at Côte Gelée in November 1801, age 36.  Despite having two sons who created families of their own, his line of the family, except for its blood, may not have survived.  

4a

Édouard married Marie Arthémise, daughter of fellow Acadians Nicolas Thibodeaux and Eléonore Prejean, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in May 1829.  Their son, unnamed, died at Grande Pointe shortly after his birth in November 1830, Raphaël Idamar was born in September 1835, and Joseph Timothée in May 1837.  Édouard's succession record was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse, St. Martin Parish, in March 1850; he would have been 54 years old that year.  In November 1850, the federal census taker in St. Martin Parish counted 3 slaves--a 58-year-old female, and two males, ages 34 and 27, all black--on Artémise Bernard's farm; these probably were Arthémise Thibodeaux's slaves. 

Joseph Timothée died in St. Martin Parish in September 1856, age 19, and probably did not marry.  This family line, except for its blood, may have died with him.  

4b

Alexandre married Céleste, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Breaux and Éléonore Landry, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in December 1840; Alexandre was age 39 at the time of the wedding.  In October 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 4 slaves--3 males and a female, all black, ranging in age from 37 to 5--on Alex Bernard's farm in the parish's Western District.  In July 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 8 slaves--3 males and 5 females, all mulattoes except for 1 black, ranging in age from 44 to 1, living in a single house--on Alex. Bernard's farm.  Alexandre died in Lafayette Parish in June 1869, age 68; his succession was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse a week after his death.  One wonders if he and his wife were that rare Acadian couple who had no children.  

5

Youngest son Jean-François, called François dit Micheau, born at Attakapas in c1769, married Madeleine, another daughter of Petit-Jos Broussard, at Attakapas in February 1790.  They remained at La Pointe on the upper Teche.  Their son François, fils was born at La Pointe in either May 1793 or January 1794, Pierre Arvillien, called Arvillien, in October 1804, Maurice Émile in March 1809 but died at age 7 months the following October, and François Joachim was born in September 1813 but died at age 3 months the following December.  Their daughters married into the Arceneaux, Huval, Martin, and Perrodin families.  According to family tradition, François, père was a veteran of the Battle of New Orleans in January 1815, though he would have been in his late 40s then.  François, père remarried to Constance, daughter of fellow Acadians Gilles LeBlanc and Théotiste Godin and widow of Louis Dugas, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in October 1816; François was in his late 40s at the time of the wedding.  Their son Ovide was born at Fausse Pointe in August 1817 but died at age 10 months in July 1818, Louis Valsin, called Valsin, was born in January 1821, and Jean Oscar, called Oscar, in February 1823 but died at age 11 1/2 in August 1834.  Their daughter married into the Broussard family.  François, père, in his early 60s, remarried again--his third marriage--to Euphrosine or Euphrasie, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Melançon and Rose Doiron and widow of Julien Breaux, at the St. Martinville church in November 1829.  Their son Joseph Damonville was born probably at Fausse Pointe in November 1830, and Pierre Vilmont in March 1833.  François, père died probably at Fausse Pointe in April 1834; the St. Martinville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that François died "at age 66 yrs."; his succession was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse later that month, and another one was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse, Lafayette Parish, the following August, so he evidently owned property in both parishes.  

5a

Arvillien, by his father's first wife, married Hortense, daughter of fellow Acadians Louis Dugas and Constance LeBlanc, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in November 1822.  Their son, name unrecorded, died at Fausse Pointe at birth in August 1823, and Jean Euclide, called Euclide, was born in March 1832.  Their daughters married into the Broussard and Bulliard families.  In November 1850, the federal census taker in St. Martin Parish counted 17 slaves--10 males and 7 females, all black except for 1 mulatto, ages 65 to 5 months--on Hervilien Bernard's farm; this was probably Arvillien.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in St. Martin Parish counted 16 slaves, 8 males and 8 females, 11 blacks and 5 mulattoes, ranging in age from 70 to 6, living in 6 houses--on Arvillin Bernard's farm next to Euclide Bernard.  

Euclide married cousin Ermine, daughter of fellow Acadians Placide Thibodeaux and Caroline Bernard, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in June 1854.  They settled near Arnaudville.  Their son Euclide, fils was born in c1855 but died at age 6 in June 1861, and Hervillien Davis was born in June 1861.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in St. Martin Parish counted 4 slaves--2 males and 2 females, all black, ranging in age from 20 years to 8 months--on Euclide Bernard's farm next to Arvillin Bernard.  During the War of 1861-65, Euclide served as a sergeant in Company H of the 7th Regiment Louisiana Cavalry, raised in St. Martin, St. Landry, and Vermilion parishes, which fought southwestern Louisiana Jayhawkers late in the war.  

5b

Louis Valsin, by his father's second wife, married double cousin Anne Hélène, called Hélène, daughter of fellow Acadians Pierre Broussard and Scholastique Broussard, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in January 1840.  Their son Ovide was born in St. Martin Parish in November 1840, Valéry Oscar, called Oscar, in December 1842 but died at age 3 1/2 in June 1846, Anatole was born near New Iberia in October 1851, Louis near St. Martinville in February 1854, and Charles in November 1857.  Their daughters married into the Dugas family; they married the same man, in fact.  In October 1850, the federal census taker in St. Martin Parish counted 9 slaves--5 males and 4 females, all black, ranging in age from 30 to 1--on Valsin Bernard's farm at Fausse Pointe.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in St. Martin Parish counted 9 slaves--4 males and 5 females, all black except for 1 mulatto, ranging in age from 40 to 4, living in 3 houses--on Valsin Bernard's farm; this could have been him or a distant cousin with the same name who also lived in the parish.  Valsin remarried to Cécilia, daughter of Louis Terence Boutte and Rosalie Judice, at the St. Martinville church in December 1865; Valsin was 44 years old at the time of the wedding.  Louis Valsin, at age 47, remarried again--his third marriage--to Marie Philomène, called Philomène, David, perhaps a fellow Acadian, in a civil ceremony in St. Martin Parish in March 1868.  Their son Calliste was born near New Iberia in May 1869. 

5c

In November 1850, the federal census taker in St. Martin Parish counted a single slave--a 21-year-old mulatto male--on Damonville Bernard's farm; this was Joseph Damonville, by his father's third wife, who married Susanne, daughter of French Creoles Félix Veillon Chachere and Éloise Lavergne, at the Grand Coteau church, St. Landry Parish, in November 1860.  During the War of 1861-65, Joseph Damonville served in Company F of 8th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, raised in St. Landry Parish, which fought in Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania--one of General R. E. Lee's Louisiana Tigers.  Joseph Damonville was a merchant when he enlisted in March 1862, in his early 30s.  He was promoted from private to third corporal the following April.  In July, however, he was reduced to the ranks, but his service record does not say why.  He was captured at Rappahannock Bridge, Virginia, in November 1863 along with many others in his company.  The Federals sent him to the prisoner-of-war camp at Point Lookout, Maryland, where he was paroled and exchanged in early 1864.  After his release, he returned home, probably on approved leave, but did not return to his unit.  After the war, Joseph Damonville resumed his trade as a merchant and planter along Bayou Queue de Tortue, was elected the first mayor of the incorporated town of Rayne, and represented Acadia Parish in the Louisiana House of Representatives in the 1880s.  

~

During the late colonial period, an Acadian Bernard moved from the river to the western prairies and settled among his kinsmen, descendants of his paternal uncle, already there: 

Descendants of Pierre BERNARD, fils (c1758-1820; René, Jean-Baptiste)

Pierre, fils, also called Pierrot Perret, second son of Pierre Bernard and his first wife Marguerite Arseneau and Michel's nephew, was born probably at Restigouche at the head of the Baie des Chaleurs in c1758 during Le Grand Dérangement.  He accompanied his family into imprisonment in Nova Scotia and then to Louisiana from Halifax via Cap-Français, French St.-Domingue, in 1764-65.  He married Anastasie, daughter of fellow Acadians Athanase Breaux and Marie LeBlanc, at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques on the river in c1785.  Anastasie had been born either aboard ship or at Cabanocé in c1765, her family also having come to Louisiana from Halifax.  In the late 1780s, they moved to the Attakapas District and settled at Carencro near his cousins.  Their daughter married a Bernard cousin.  Pierre, fils died "at his home" at Carencro in December 1820; the St. Martinville priest who recorded the burial said that Pierre dit Pierrot Perret died "at age about 70 years," but he was in his early 60s.  His descendants remained in the Carencro area of Lafayette Parish, drifted eastward into the upper Vermilion valley west of Breaux Bridge, or northward into the prairies of St. Landry Parish.  His second son's line was especially prolific.  

1

Oldest son Pierre III, born at St.-Jacques in December 1786, died at his parents' home at Carencro in November 1817, age 31, and probably did not marry.  The St. Martinville priest who recorded the burial noted that Pierre could not receive communion on his deathbed "because of the state of insanity which he suffered for 14 years," which may explain why Pierre III did not marry. 

2

Jean Louis, called Louis, born probably at Attakapas in the late 1780s, married Élisabeth or Isabelle Aspasie, called Aspasie and also Anastasie, daughter of fellow Acadian Pierre Dugas and Anne Thibodeaux of La Butte, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in February 1810.  Their son Pierre Gerasin, called Gerasin, was born at Carencro in July 1811, Louis Evariste in October 1813 but died at age 4 in October 1817, a son, name unrecorded, died at birth in March 1815, Adolphe was born in December 1818, Odile in May 1823, Ursin or Valsin in October 1824, Treville le jeune was baptized at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, age 1 year, 29 days, in September 1827, and Jean Louis, fils died a day after his birth in June 1836.  Their daughters married into the Caruthers, Delhomme, Guilbeau, Melançon, Peck, Roy (French Canadian, not Acadian), and Thibodeaux families.  In September 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 18 slaves--11 males and 7 females, all black, ages 50 to 1--on Jean Louis Bernard's farm in the parish's western district.  In November 1850, the federal census taker in St. Martin Parish counted 5 slaves--2 males and 3 females, all black, ages 28 to 4--on Caroline Bernard's farm; she was Jean Louis's daughter and was the widow of Placide Thibodeaux.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in St. Martin Parish counted 13 slaves--7 males and 6 females, all black except for 1 mulatto, ranging in age from 38 years to 4 months--on Louis Bernard's farm; this was probably Jean Louis.  Jean Louis died probably at Carencro in October 1867; the Grand Coteau priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Jean Louis died "at age 82 yrs."; his succession was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse in October 1870. 

2a

Pierre Gerasin, called Gerasin, married Eugénie, daughter of fellow Acadians François Mouton and Clémence Dugas, at the Vermilionville church, Vermilion Parish, in April 1831.  Their son Numa was baptized at the Vermilionville church, age 1 1/2, in January 1837, Ernest at age 4 months in August 1839, Louis Alcide was born in December 1842, Meunier died at age 2 1/2 months in October 1847, and Albert was born in July 1851 but died at age 1 in September 1852.  Their daughters married into the Couret, Estilette, Francez, and Guilbeau families.  In August 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 20 slaves--10 males and 10 females, all black, ranging in age from 45 to 1--on Gerassin Bernard's plantation in the parish's western district.  In July 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 37 slaves--21 males, 15 females, and 1 undetermined, all black except for 1 mulatto, ranging in age from 65 years to 3 months, living in 7 houses--on Gerossin Bernard's plantation.   Gerasin died in Lafayette Parish in October 1867, age 56; his succession was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse in December. 

Numa married Athanaise, daughter of Élisée Missonnier and his Acadian wife Lise Thibodeaux, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in August 1858.  Their son François Gabriel was born in Lafayette Parish in June 1859, and Joseph Paschali in September 1860.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 3 slaves--all males, all black, ages 24, 20, and 12--on Numar Bernard's farm next to Louis Misonnier.  During the War of 1861-65, Numa served as a sergeant in Company D of the Consolidated Crescent Regiment Louisiana Infantry, which fought in Louisiana.  

Ernest married Laure, another daughter of Élisée Missonnier and Lise Thibodeaux, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in February 1861.  During the War of 1861-65, Ernest served as a corporal and a sergeant in Company A of the 26th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, raised in Lafayette Parish, which fought at Vicksburg, Mississippi.  

2b

Adolphe married fellow Acadian Fanelie Guilbeau at the Grand Coteau church, St. Landry Parish, in December 1841.  Their son Adolphe, fils was born near Grand Coteau in September 1842.  

Adolphe, fils, who received his emancipation at age 18 in April 1861, died probably at Carencro in May 1864, age 21, and probably did not marry.  His succession was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse, Lafayette Parish, the following July.  One wonders if his death was war-related. 

2c

Valsin married Madeleine, daughter of Antoine Nezat and Emeranthe Gauthier, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in September 1842.  Their son Joseph Alcide, called Alcide, was born near Grand Coteau, St. Landry Parish, in June 1846, Pierre Auguste near Breaux Bridge, St. Martin Parish, in November 1857, and Louis Adolphe in December 1860.  They also had an older son named Anthenor.  Their daughters married into the Bernard, Gillard, and Richard families.  In November 1850, the federal census taker in St. Martin Parish counted 5 slaves--3 males and 2 females, all black, ranging in age from 60 to 15--on Valsin Bernard's farm.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in St. Martin Parish counted 9 slaves--4 males and 5 females, all black except for 1 mulatto, age 40 to 4, living in 3 houses--on Valsin Bernard's farm not far from Odile Bernard; this could have been him or a distant cousin with the same name who also lived in the parish.  Valsin, at age 45, remarried to Ordalie, daughter of Aurelien Angèle and his Acadian wife Julie Guidry, at the Breaux Bridge church, St. Martin Parish, in June 1869.  They settled near Arnaudville. 

Alcide, by his father's first wife, married fellow Acadian Emma Richard and died near Breaux Bridge, St. Martin Parish, in May 1868.  The priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or even mention a wife, said that Alcide died "at age 22 yrs."; Joseph Alcide would have been a month shy of that age; his succession, naming his wife, was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse, St. Martin Parish, in May 1869.  Did he father any sons?   

Anthenor, by his father's first wife, married Marie, daughter of Joachim Begnaud and Josette Guilbert, at the Breaux Bridge church, St. Martin Parish, in December 1867.  Their son Noe was born near Breaux Bridge in March 1869, and Jean Jacques near Arnaudville in December 1870. 

2d

Odile married Carmélite, daughter of fellow Acadian Nicolas Colin Broussard and his Creole wife Mélanie Sudrique, at the Breaux Bridge church, St. Martin Parish, in March 1851.  Their son Edgard was born in St. Martin Parish in December 1851 but died at age 10 in July 1862, Albert was born in December 1853, Odile, fils in October 1856, and Jean Adolphe or Odile near Breaux Bridge in April 1859 but died at age 6 in October 1865.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in St. Martin Parish counted 5 slaves--1 male and 4 females, all black except for 1 mulatto, ranging in age from 28 years to 10 months--on Odile Bernard's farm next to Widow Colin Broussard, his mother-in-law, and not far from Valsin Bernard.  Odile died near Breaux Bridge in February 1864; the priest who recorded the burial said that Odile was age 38 when he died, but he was 40.  One wonders if his death was war-related. 

2e

Treville le jeune married Anaïs, daughter of French Creoles Ulgère Roy and Zelia Nezat, at the Opelousas church, St. Landry Parish, in April 1854.  

3

Simon, born at Attakapas in November 1789, married Geneviève Cidalise, called Cidalise, daughter of French Creole François Carmouche of Carencro, captain of the local militia, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in December 1811.  Their daughter married a Bernard cousin.  Simon's succession record was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse, Lafayette Parish, in August 1826; he would have been age 37 that year.  He and Cidalise may have had no sons, so this family line, except for its blood, may have died with him. 

4

Eufroi or Leufroi, born at Attakapas in December 1796, died at Carencro at age 16 in December 1812.

5

Joseph-Maximilien, born at Attakapas in February 1799, died at Carencro at age 4 1/2 in October 1803.  

6

Youngest son Pierre Treville, called Treville, born at Carencro in April 1802, married 14-year-old Marie Euphrasie, called Euphrasie, daughter of fellow Acadian Pierre Arceneaux and Marie Josette Nezat, at the Grand Coteau church, St. Landry Parish, in January 1822.  They settled at Carencro.  Their son Pierre Bienvenu Anthéole, called Anthéole, was baptized at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, age 7 months, in November 1836.  Their daughters married into the Bernard and Mouton families.  In September 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 11 slaves--7 males and 4 females, all black, ranging in age from 40 years to 8 months--on Pierre T. Bernard's farm in the parish's western district.  Treville must have owned land in St. Landry Parish as well; in October 1850, the federal census taker in that parish counted 3 slaves--all males, all black, ages 50, 33, and 23--on Treville Bernard's farm.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 19 slaves--10 males and 9 females, 10 blacks and 9 mulattoes, ages 60 years to 3 months--on P. Treville Bernard's farm next to Anthéole Bernard.  Pierre Treville died in Lafayette Parish in September 1868; the Vermilionville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Pierre Treville died "at age 70 yrs.," but he was 66. 

In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted a single slave--a 68-year-old black male--on Anthéole Bernard's farm next to Pierre T. Bernard.  During the War of 1861-65, Anthéole may have been conscripted into Confederate service in the summer of 1862, served in either the 18th Regiment Louisiana Infantry or the Yellow Jackets Battalion Louisiana Infantry, which had been raised in St. Martin Parish, until November 1863, and then in Company D of the Consolidated 18th Regiment and Yellow Jackets Battalion Infantry, which fought in Louisiana.  In December 1863, he reported ill at the Taylor hospital somewhere in central Louisiana.  His Confederate service record loses track of him after that.  

~

A Bernard kinswoman and her family came to the western prairies 20 years after the first of her cousins settled there: 

Marie-Blanche, called Blanche and sometimes Anne, age 43, daughter of René Bernard of Chignecto, reached Louisiana in August 1785 aboard Le Beaumont, the third of the Seven Ships from France, which reached New Orleans in August.  With her were husband Jean-Baptiste Doiron, age 40, and five children, ages 17 to 2.  Instead of going to Baton Rouge with the majority of the passengers from their ship, they chose to go to the Attakapas District, where they settled at La Pointe on upper Bayou Teche, near present-day Breaux Bridge.  Although Blanche was middle-aged when she reached Louisiana, she bore several more children at La Pointe, where she died at home in May 1813, in her early 70s.  

~

Other BERNARDs on the Western Prairies

Area church and civil records make it difficult to link many Bernards on the western prairies with known Acadian and French Creole lines of the family.  One suspects that some of the Bernards who lived on the western prairies during the immediate post-war period were Afro Creoles once owned by Acadian or French-Creole Bernards:

François Bernard married, place and date unrecorded, Madeleine Gauthier, who died at Opelousas in 1804.  

Joseph Ursin Bernard married Émilite Broussard probably in Lafayette Parish in the early 1820s.  Their daughter Joséphine was born there in March 1825.  Was Joseph Ursin an Acadian? 

Victor Bernard married Barbe Lange probably at Grand Coteau, St. Landry Parish, in the late 1830s.  Their son Victor, fils was born near Grand Coteau in January 1839.  

Pierre Arvillien Bernard married fellow Acadian Colastie Thibodeaux, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Jean Léotai was born in Lafayette Parish in March 1841.

In August 1850, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 25 slaves--18 males and 7 females, all black, ages 50 to infancy--on Jean T. Bernard's plantation in the parish's Western District.  Who was this?

Zéphirin Bernard married Angèle Guilbeau, place and date unrecorded.  Their daughter Marie Louisiannais was born in St. Martin Parish in March 1852, and son Édouard in July 1854.   

Martin Bernard married Louise Bernard, place and date unrecorded.  Son Jean Baptiste was born in St. Landry Parish in January 1853. 

Lessin Bernard married Clarissa Thibodeaux, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Joseph Lucier was born in St. Martin Parish in March 1854.  Was he the Lessin Bernard who married--in this case, remarried to--Constance St. Julien and settled near Youngsville, Lafayette Parish, by the late 1860s?

Godefroi Bernard married Ophelia Thibodeaux, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Achilles Aristide was born in St. Martin Parish in December 1854.  

Marguerite Bernard died near Grand Coteau, St. Landry Parish, age 9 months, in April 1857.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give the girl's parents' names. 

In 1860, the federal census taker in St. Landry Parish counted 20 slaves--7 males and 13 females, 13 blacks and 7 mulattoes, ranging in age from 76 to 4 months, living in 5 houses--on Azélie Bernard's plantation.  In June, the same census taker counted 5 slaves--1 male and 4 females, 2 blacks and 3 mulattoes, ranging in age from 60 to 13, living in 3 houses--on Adélaïde Bernard's farm at Opelousas.  

In 1860, the federal census taker in Vermilion Parish counted 6 slaves--1 male and 5 females, all black, ranging in age from 65 to 7--on John Bernard's farm in the parish's Western District.  

In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted a single slave--a 40-year-old black male--on Homore Bernard's farm.  

In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafayette Parish counted 5 slaves--2 males and 3 females, 3 blacks and 2 mulattoes, ranging in age from 55 to 10--on John Louis Bernard's farm.  

In June 1860, the federal census taker in St. Martin Parish counted a single slave--a 22-year-old black male--on Diserver Bernard's farm.  

François Bernard died in St. Martin Parish in September 1862, age 4.  The priest who recorded the boy's burial did not give his parents' names.  

Hilaire Bernard, fils died in Lafayette Parish, age 8, in October 1862.  The Vermilionville priest who recorded the burial did not give the boy's mother's name. 

Émile B. Bernard died in New Orleans, dated unrecorded, but it probably was in late 1863, perhaps in Federal hands.  His succession record was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse, St. Martin Parish, in December 1863.  The priest who recorded his death did not give his parents' names. 

Joseph Bernard married Adélaïde Clerry, place and date unrecorded, and settled near New Iberia by the late 1860s. 

William Bernard married Rosalie Bernard, place and date unrecorded, and settled near Iota, then in St. Landry but now in Acadia Parish, by the late 1860s. 

Léonard Bernard married Félicienne Derouselle, place and date unrecorded, and settled near Breaux Bridge, St. Martin Parish, by the late 1860s. 

Alexandre Bernard married Célestine Green, place and date unrecorded, and settled near New Iberia by the late 1860s. 

Jean Bernard married Acadian Hélène Breaux, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Louis Gaudentius was born near Grand Coteau, St. Landry Parish, in August 1866, Albert Seymour in July 1868, and Jean Félix in January 1870. 

Ozémé Bernard married Acadian Celima Landry in a civil ceremony in Lafayette Parish in September 1866.  The parish clerk who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names.  Their son Edmond was born near Youngsville in March 1869. 

Noémi Gertrude Bernard married St. Cyr Romauld, son of fellow Acadian Désiré Dugas and widower of Aurore Ode Bernard, in a civil ceremony in St. Martin Parish in December 1866, and sanctified the marriage at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in February 1867.  Neither the parish clerk nor the priest who recorded the marriage gave the couple's parents' names.  Was Noemi Gertrude another daughter of Louis Valsin Bernard and her new husband's first wife's sister?

André Bernard died in St. Martin Parish, age 2 months, in January 1867.  The St. Martinville priest who recorded the boy's burial did not give any parents' names. 

Toledano Bernard married Acadian Léontine LeBlanc, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Julien Alfred was born in St. Martin Parish in January 1868. 

Gaspard Bernard died near New Iberia, Iberia Parish, "at age 20 days," in November 1868.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give the boy's parents' names. 

Octavie Bernard married French Creole Octave Bertrand.  His succession, naming his wife, was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse, Lafayette Parish, in February 1869. 

Uranie, daughter of Constant Bernard and Marcellite Guillauw, married Jules, son of Lawrence Sigur, at the Charenton church, St. Mary Parish, in May 1869. 

Camesile Bernard married Anglo American Peter Robertson at the New Iberia church, Iberia Parish, in December 1869.  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names. 

Célestine Bernard married James Manuel at the New Iberia church, Iberia Parish, in December 1869.  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names. 

Eugène, son of Joseph Bernard and Marie _____, married Clarisse, daughter of Martin Broussard, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in December 1869. 

Bélisaire Bernard married Acadian Élise Comeaux at the Youngsville church, Lafayette Parish, in February 1870.  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names. 

Ellen, daughter of Bill Bernard and Virginia Bernard, married Joseph, son of Anglo Creole Adolphe Andrus, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in May 1870. 

Marie Bernard married Alexandre Mathis at the Youngsville church, Lafayette Parish, in May 1870.  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names. 

Marie, daughter of Narcisse Bernard and Zoë Bernard, married Alexandre, son of Lucie St. Julien, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in May 1870. 

Mathilde, daughter of Sylvestre Bernard and Mélanie Bernard, married Treville, son of Louise St. Julien, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in May 1870. 

Pierre Bernard died in Lafayette Parish in June 1870.  The Vermilionville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or even mention a wife, said that Pierre died "at age 60 yrs." 

.

A Bernard family who lived on lower Bayou Teche cannot be linked by local church and civil records to any of the other Bernards in the area:

Descendants of Charles BERNARD (?-)

Charles Bernard married Céleste Roussel, place and date unrecorded.  In January 1850, the federal census taker in St. Mary Parish counted 4 slaves--a male and 3 females, all black, ranging in age from 40 to 25--in Charles Bernard's household in the town of Franklin.  Charles, père's succession was filed at the Franklin courthouse, St. Mary Parish, in September 1857. 

Charles, fils married Marie Aglaé or Aglae Marie, also called Adélaïde, daughter of German Creole Eugène Webre and his Acadian wife Marie Delphine Richard, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in September 1850.  Their son Abdon Ignace was born in St. Martin Parish in July 1851, and Paul in January 1855. 

LOUISIANA:  RIVER SETTLEMENTS

Two Bernard cousins, one from Rivière St.-Jean, the other from Chignecto, and both prisoners of war in Nova Scotia in the early 1760s, came to Louisiana from Halifax in 1765.  They settled at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques on the river above New Orleans where four Acadian families from Georgia had settled the year before:  

Marguerite Bernard, age 35, came with husband Jean-Baptiste Bergeron dit d'Amboise of Ste.-Anne-du-Pay-Bas, Rivière St.-Jean, age 43, and four children, ages 15 to 8.  Marguerite died in St. James Parish in November 1811, in her early 80s.  

Pierre Bernard, age 34, wife Marguerite Arseneau of Chignecto, age 30, and their three children--Jean-Baptiste, age 11, Pierre, fils, age 7, and Marie, age 5--also settled at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques, where Pierre established an eastern branch of the family in Louisiana.   

Descendants of Pierre BERNARD (c1731-?; René)

Pierre, elder son of of Jean-Baptiste Bernard and Cécile Gaudet and older brother of Michel, was born at Chignecto in c1731.  Pierre married fellow Acadian Marguerite Arseneau at Beaubassin in c1752.  They escaped the British roundup at Chignecto in 1755 and, with brother Michel, sought refuge at Restigouche on the Baie des Chaleurs.  After falling into British hands, they endured imprisonment at Halifax, Nova Scotia, in the early 1760s.  In late 1764, Pierre, Marguerite, and their three children emigrated from Halifax to Louisiana and settled at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques, on the river above New Orleans.  They had more children there.  Pierre remarried to Cécile, daughter of fellow Acadians Barthélemy Bergeron dit d'Amboise, fils and Marguerite Dugas widow of Joseph Dugas and Nicolas Lahure, at St.-Jacques in June 1770.  Cécile, a native of Ste.-Anne-du-Pays-Bas, Rivière St.-Jean, had come to Louisiana in February 1765 with the Broussard dit Beausoleil party but fled to Cabanocé in the fall of 1765 to escape the epidemic that killed her husband and other relatives.  She gave Pierre more children.  Their daughter married into the Poirier family.  By the 1810s, Pierre's sons and grandsons had left St. James on the river.  His oldest son moved to Bayou Lafourche, creating a third center of family settlement.  His middle son crossed the Atchafalaya Basin and joined his cousins at Carencro in the Attakapas District.  His youngest son remained on the river but seems to have produced no sons of his own.   This probably ended the Acadian Bernard presence on the Acadian Coast

1

Oldest son Pierre-Jean-Baptiste, called Jean-Baptiste and Baptiste, from his father's first wife, born probably at Chignecto in c1754, married Pélagie-Madeleine, called Madeleine, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Dugas and Cécile Bergeron, so she was his stepsister, at St.-Jacques in September 1776.  Their son Jean-Baptiste, fils was baptized at St.-Jacques, age unrecorded, in February 1778, Michel-Archange was born in December 1787, another Jean-Baptiste, fils in October 1789, Joseph in December 1792, Christophe or Destival in November 1795, and François-Eugène or -Eusèbe in March 1798 but died at age 14 months in May 1799.  They may have lived briefly at New Orleans, where two daughters, one born in December 1794, the other in March 1800, were baptized in March 1801.  Their daughters married into the Blanchard, Boyer, Dugas, Guillot, Mire, and Morvant families.  Probably in the 1810s, Pierre Baptiste moved his family from the river to upper Bayou Lafourche.  His succession was filed at the Thibodauxville courthouse, Lafourche Interior Parish, in October 1821; he would have been in his late 60s that year.  

2

Pierre, fils, also called Pierrot Perret, from his father's first wife, born probably at Restigouche in c1758, married Anastasie, daughter of fellow Acadians Athanase Breau and Marie-Josèphe LeBlanc, probably at St.-Jacques in c1785.  In the late 1780s, they moved to the Attakapas District and settled near his cousins at Carencro. 

3

Youngest son Louis, by his father's second wife, baptized at St.-Jacques, age unrecorded, in February 1774, married Rosalie, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Blanchard and Marie Dupuis, at St.-Jacques in April 1795.  Their daughters married into the Bernard, Breaux, and LeBlanc families, one of them on Bayou Lafourche in her late 50s.  Louis remarried to Marguerite, daughter of fellow Acadian Jean Poirier, at St.-Jacques in November 1798.  Louis died at St. James in April 1804, age 30.  He and his two wives evidently had no sons, so his line of the family, except for its blood, probably died with him.  

Other BERNARDs on the River

Area church and civil records make it difficult to link some Bernards on the river with known Acadian lines of the family there:

Térèse Bernard died in Ascension Parish in February 1845, age 80.  The Donaldsonville priest who recorded the burial did not give any parents' names or mention a husband. 

Treville Bernard married Arthémise, daughter of Acadian Eugène Gautreaux, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in September 1856.  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names, but he did note that Treville was "of Lafayette Parish in the Attakapas," so one wonders which Treville Bernard this might have been, and if he was Acadian.  Treville and Arthémise's son Louis Euphémon was born near Convent, St. James Parish, in August 1857.  In 1860, the federal census taker in Ascension Parish counted a single slave--an 8-year-old black male--on Traville Bernard's farm in the parish's Ward 8.  

LOUISIANA:  LAFOURCHE VALLEY SETTLEMENTS

During the early antebellum period, an Acadian Bernard moved from St. James on the river to Bayou Lafourche, where French-Creole Bernards also from St.-Jacques had settled.  Acadian Baptiste Bernard and his wife had no more sons on Bayou Lafourche, but four of their sons, all born on the river, created families there.  For the Acadian Bernards east of the Atchafalaya Basin, the Bayou Lafourche valley became the new center of family settlement.  By the end of the antebellum period, some of them had moved as far down bayou as Raceland in Lafourche Parish:   

Descendants of Michel-Archange BERNARD (1787-1862; René, Jean-Baptiste, Pierre)

Michel-Archange or Archangel, called Michel A., second son of Pierre-Jean-Baptiste Bernard and Pélagie-Madeleine Dugas, was born at St.-Jacques on the river in December 1787.  He married Justine, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Charles Arceneaux and Marie Josèphe Babin, at St. James in 1806.  They followed his family to Bayou Lafourche.  Their daughters married into the Bernard (French Creole), Bourg, Clément, and Lejeune families.  He died a widower in Lafourche Parish in March 1862, age 74; a petition for homologation of his will was filed at the Thibodaux courthouse the following June.  Michel also owned land in Terrebonne Parish. 

1

Oldest son Edmond, born near Convent, St. James Parish, in January 1810, married Marie, 20-year-old daughter of fellow Acadians François LeBlanc and Marie Pitre, at the Thibodauxville church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in September 1828.  Their son Michel Aubin, called Aubin, was born in Lafourche Interior Parish in March 1837 but died at age 9 1/2 in November 1846, and Élie was born in October 1841.  They also had a son named Achille or Aquila.  Their daughters married into the Adam and LeBlanc families.  Edmond died in Lafourche Interior Parish in July 1845, age 35; a petition for tutelage of his children was filed at the Thibodaux courthouse in December 1849.  

1a

During the War of 1861-65, Élie served probably in Company F of the Lafourche Parish Regiment Militia, commanded by his uncle, Captain Clotaire Bernard, was captured with most of his regiment at the Battle of Labadieville in nearby Assumption Parish in late October 1862, held by the Federals, and then paroled at Thibodaux in late November; his brother Aquila served in the same unit.  Élie married Adèle, daughter of fellow Acadians Isidore Guillot and Euphrosine Guillot, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Parish, in November 1865.  Their son Jean Élie was born in Lafourche Parish in September 1867, and Jean Myrtile in May 1869. 

1b

During the War of 1861-65, Aquila served in Company F of the Lafourche Parish Regiment Militia, the same unit as his older brother Élie.  He, too, was captured and paroled after the Battle of Labadieville.  Aquila married Joséphine, daughter of fellow Acadian Evariste Mire and his Creole wife Azéline Morvant, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Parish, in March 1867.  Their son Augustin Étienne was born in Lafourche Parish in August 1868.  

2

Michel Amédée, born in Lafourche Interior Parish in March 1821, died at age 12 in March 1833.  

3

Trasimond, born in Lafourche Interior Parish in June 1824, married Amelina Constance, 15-year-old daughter of fellow Acadian Marcellin Breaux and Azélie Dugas, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in June 1846.  Their son Trasimond Joseph or Joseph Trasimond was born in Lafourche Interior Parish in October 1849 but died at age 3 1/2 in February 1853, Michel Joseph Clotaid was born in September 1851, Joseph Michel in November 1853, Édouard Joseph Arthur in March 1858, Augustin Washington in February 1860, Marcellin Henri Adeoda in March 1862 but died at age 6 months the following September, Henri Edgard was born in July 1864, and Joseph Marcellin Rodolph in May 1868.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafourche Parish counted 2 slaves--a 45-year-old female and an 11-year-old male, both black--in Trasimond Bernard's household in the Seventh Ward of Thibodaux City next to Mrs. J. B. Bernard; Trasimond was listed as "employer," so he probably did not own the 2 slaves.  

4

Laurent, born in Assumption Parish in August 1826, married Urma Marcellite Zoë, called Zoë, daughter of fellow Acadian Basile Dugas and his Creole wife Eulalie Dies, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in June 1849.  In 1860, the federal census taker in Lafourche Parish counted 3 slaves--a 31-year-old black female, a 5-year-old mulatto male, and a 3-year-old mulatto female--on Laurent Bernard's farm in the parish's Seventh Ward.  Laurent died in Lafourche Interior Parish in April 1867, age 40; a petition for probate of his will was filed at the Thibodaux courthouse the following month.  He and his wife evidently had no sons, so his line of the family died with him.  

5

Youngest son Jean Baptiste Clotaire, called Clotaire, born in Lafourche Interior Parish in June 1828, married first cousin Phelonise, daughter of Joseph Morvant and his Acadian wife Élise Bernard, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in June 1848; Phelonise's mother was Clotaire's paternal aunt.  Clotaire became a school teacher.  He and Phelonise's son Julien Valcour was born in Lafourche Interior Parish in January 1849, Joseph Vallon in June 1851, Joseph Valday in April 1853, Félix Valse in March 1855, Joseph Valcour in May 1856, a second Joseph Valcour in December 1861, and Étienne Vick in December 1862.  In September 1860, the federal census taker in Lafourche Parish counted a single slave--a 16-year-old mulatto female--on schoolmaster J. Bte. Clotaire Bernard's farm in the parish's Sixth Ward.  During the War of 1861-65, Clotaire served as captain of Company F of the Lafourche Parish Regiment Militia.  He was captured at Thibodaux in early November 1862 a few days after the Confederate disaster at Labadieville in nearby Assumption Parish, held by the Federals, and then paroled and exchanged a short time later, perhaps in time to witness the birth of his son Étienne Vick on Christmas Eve.  Clotaire survived the war and fathered more children.  He died in Lafourche Parish in July 1878, age 50.  His burial site is unknown. 

Julien Valcour married Françoise Emelia, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Baptiste Mire and Adèle Guillot, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Parish, in February 1870. 

Descendants of Jean-Baptiste dit Peret BERNARD, fils (1789-1853; René, Jean-Baptiste, Pierre)

Jean-Baptiste, fils, dit Peret, third son of Pierre-Jean-Baptiste Bernard and Pélagie-Madeleine Dugas, was born at St.-Jacques on the river in October 1789, the second son who bore the name Jean-Baptiste, fils.  He married first cousin Marie Ester, called Ester, daughter of Louis Bernard and Rosalie Blanchard, his uncle and aunt, at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in April 1812.  Soon after their marriage, they followed his family to Bayou Lafourche.  Their daughters married into the Aubert, Ledet, Robichaux, and Williams families.  In December 1850, the federal census taker in Lafourche Interior Parish counted 34 slaves--19 males and 15 females, all black, ranging in age from 50 to 5--on J. B. Bernard's plantation along Bayou Lafourche; this probably was Jean Baptiste, fils dit Peret.  Peret died during a yellow fever epidemic in Lafourche Parish in November 1853; he was 64 years old; a petition for administration of his estate was filed at the Thibodaux courthouse the following month.  His widow Marie Ester remarried to fellow Acadian André LeBlanc, widower of Marguerite Luce Landry, at the Paincourtville church, Assumption Parish, in June 1856; she was 58 and he was 64 at the time of the wedding.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafourche Parish counted a single slave--a 25-year-old mulatto male--in Mrs. J. B. Bernard's household in the Seventh Ward of Thibodaux City; was this was Ester Bernard's slave?  If so, one wonders what happened to the other slaves the family had owned a decade before.  Were they given to Ester's children?  Jean Baptiste, fils youngest son, the only one, evidently, who created a family of his own, moved to lower Bayou Teche after the War of 1861-65. 

1

Oldest son Clitandro Bernardo, born in Assumption Parish in May 1816, may have died young.  

2

Evariste, born in Assumption Parish in April 1818, died at age 14 in August 1832.  

3

Louis Adolphe, born in Lafourche Interior Parish in April 1820, married Marie Victorine, daughter of Henri Ledée and his Acadian wife Marie Anne Delphine Levron, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in August 1840; Marie's mother was a Levron.  Louis and his wife evidently had no sons.  

4

Émile Eucher, born in Lafourche Interior Parish in November 1830, died at age 10 in March 1841.

5

Youngest son Jean Baptiste Miles Taylor, called Miles Taylor, Taylor, and M. J., born in Lafourche Interior Parish in December 1834, married Justine Émilie, called Émilie, daughter of Félix Adolphe Knobloch and Marie Héloise Gros, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in November 1854.  Their son Jean Baptiste Lauredan was born in Lafourche Parish in September 1856, and Louis Miles in November 1858.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in Lafourche Parish counted 4 slaves--3 males and 1 male, all black except for 1 mulatto, ranging in age from 41 to 15--on M. Taylor Bernard's farm in the Seventh Ward of Thibodaux City.  During the War of 1861-65, Taylor served in Company D of the 26th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, raised in Lafourche Parish, which fought at Vicksburg, Mississippi.  He fell sick in Mississippi in August 1862, a month before one of his daughters was born back in Lafourche Parish, and was left at a hospital at Edward's Depot.  He recovered from his illness, rejoined his regiment, was captured at Vicksburg along with his comrades in July 1863, and, like most of them, went home on a parole of honor to await exchange.  Taylor remarried to Azelia, daughter of Paul Price and his Acadian wife Azélie Martin, in a civil ceremony in Lafourche Parish in August 1867, and sanctified the marriage at the Thibodaux church the following December.  They were living in St. Mary Parish, on lower Bayou Teche, in 1870. 

Descendants of Joseph BERNARD (1792-?; René, Jean-Baptiste, Pierre)

Joseph, fourth son of Pierre-Jean-Baptiste Bernard and Pélagie-Madeleine Dugas, born at St.-Jacques on the river in December 1792, married Marie Constance, called Constance, daughter of fellow Acadian Amand Breaux and Madeleine Clouâtre and widow of Simonet Breaux, at the St. James church, St. James Parish, in December 1809.  They followed his family to Bayou Lafourche.  Their daughters married into the Cointment, Olivier, and Thibodeaux families. 

1

Older son Joseph Rosémond, called Rosémond, born in St. James Parish in August 1811, married Madeleine Eurasie, 15-year-old daughter of fellow Acadians François Achille Foret and Geneviève Bergeron, at the Thibodauxville church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in September 1829.  Their son Achille Livaudais, called Livaudais, was born in Lafourche Interior Parish in January 1834, Joseph Marcellin Lucien, called Lucien, in September 1835, Joseph E. in March 1838, and Joseph Rosémond in September 1843.  Their daughters married into the Badeau and Hoble families.  In August 1850, the federal census taker in Assumption Parish counted a single slave--a 16-year-old black female--on Rosémond Bernard's farm in the parish's Second Congressional District.  In 1860, the federal census taker in Assumption Parish counted 5 slaves--3 males and 2 females, 2 black and 3 mulattoes, ranging in age from 26 to 1, living in a single house--on Rosémond Bernard's farm in the parish's Fourth Ward.  

1a

Livaudais married Célestine, daughter of Norbert Courcier and Uranie Barrios,, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Parish, in April 1855.  Their son François Émile Arthur was born near Labadieville, Assumption Parish, in March 1857 but died at age 3 months, 13 days, the following July, and Joseph Clodius Sibilly was born in April 1863.  

1b

Lucien married Ellen, daughter of Joseph Walsh and Margaret Gallway, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Parish, in May 1855.  

2

Younger son Joseph Edmond, born in St. James Parish in October 1813, died in Lafourche Interior Parish in May 1834, age 20, and probably did not marry.  

Descendants of Destival BERNARD (1795-1838; René, Jean-Baptiste, Pierre)

Destival, also called Christophe, Estival, Élie, Elias, Stivane, and Stoval, fifth son of Pierre-Jean-Baptiste Bernard and Pélagie-Madeleine Dugas, born at St.-Jacques on the river in November 1795, married Henriette Eugènie, called Eugènie, daughter of fellow Acadians Sébastien Landry and Constance Landry of Iberville Parish, at the Thibodauxville church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in October 1821.  They lived briefly in St. Martin Parish, west of the Atchafalaya Basin, and returned to Bayou Lafourche in the late 1820s.  Their daughters married into the Johnson and Montet families.  Destival died in Lafourche Interior Parish in August 1838, age 43.  His two older sons, barely in their teens, died a month apart in 1841; only his youngest son created a family of his own.  Destival's widow Eugènie died in Lafourche Parish during a yellow fever epidemic in October 1853, age 60.  

1

Oldest son Joseph Vileor, called Vileor, born in St. Martin Parish in May 1827, died at age 14 in October 1841.  

2

Émile Joseph or Joseph Émile, born in Lafourche Interior Parish in July 1829, died at age 12 1/2 in November 1841.

3

Youngest son Pierre Evariste or Evariste Pierre, called Evariste, born in Assumption Parish in February 1836, married Adèle, daughter of François Leloret and his Acadian wife Augustin Richard, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Parish, in December 1853, and remarried to Amelia or Émelia, daughter of Léonce Walker and Aimée Price and widow of Auguste Babin, in a civil ceremony in Lafourche Parish in August 1858.  Their son Joseph was born near Raceland, Lafourche Parish, in August 1869. 

Other BERNARDs in the Lafourche Valley

Area church and civil records make it difficult to link some Bernards in the Bayou Lafourche valley to known Acadian and Creole lines of the family:

Élisée Léon Bernard married Élise Tricou, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Gustave died in Assumption Parish at age 18 months in September 1833.  

Jean Berniard, sometimes called Bernard, married Pamelise or Pamela Landry, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Désiré Octave was born in Assumption Parish in February 1845, and Jules in September 1852.  

Rodrique Bernard married Nanette Cavaliere, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Théophile was born near Lockport, Lafourche Interior Parish, in May 1852. 

Marguerite Bernard, widow of François Bernard, died in Lafourche Interior Parish in November 1852.  The Thibodaux priest who recorded the burial did not give any parents' names. 

Frédérick Bernard married Marie Roddy, place and date unrecorded.  Their daughter Emma married Mathias, son of Joseph Litz, in a civil ceremony in Lafourche Parish in April 1854.  

John A. Bernard's "petition for administration" was filed at the Thibodaux courthouse, Lafourche Parish, in April 1854.  Who was his father?

Adelina Bernard's daughter Marie died in Assumption Parish at age 18 months in July 1856.  The priest who recorded the girl's burial did not give the father's name.  

Lusien or Lusinien Bernard married Ellen Wulge, place and date unrecorded.  Daughter Philomena Rosina Jeanne was born near Labadieville, Assumption Parish, in February 1856, and son Émile Michel in c1859 but died at age 2 in December 1861. 

Valon Bernard married Adrienne Leonard, place and date unrecorded.  Daughter Marie Clothilde was born in Lafourche Parish in April 1860.

Céline Bernard's son John Denis was born in Terrebonne Parish in November 1864.  The Houma priest who recorded the boy's baptism that month did not give the father's name.  

Marie Bernard, wife of Simon Fonche, died near Lockporet, Lafourche Parish, in July 1867.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give her parents's names or her age at the time of her death.  Was she an Acadian? 

Célestin Bernard married Clarisse Cornalis, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Joseph Similien was born near Paincourtville, Assumption Parish, in January 1869. 

NON-ACADIAN FAMILIES in LOUISIANA

Bernard is a common surname in France, second only to Martin.  The name also is found in Germany, Switzerland, French Canada, and the West Indies.  It is no wonder, then, that a number of Bernards came to Louisiana before and after their Acadian namesakes arrived in 1765.  Most of these non-Acadian Bernards lived at New Orleans, on the German Coast, or in the French Creole enclave at Pointe Coupée.  Most of them quickly disappeared from the historical record, but a few of them established families that live in South Louisiana today:  

Louis-Jacques Bernard of Reims, France, a surgeon, age 24, reached the colony aboard  the ship Le Tilleuel in May 1720.  He was passenger number 257 on the ship's roll.  His wife, Marie-Madeleine Verderiague of Dunkirk, France, age 23, was passenger number 164.  

Samuel Bernard, "surnamed St. Cautin," son of Leon St. Cautin and Judith Baillard, married Marie-Geneviève, daughter of Pierre Gernier, at Old Biloxi, then part of French Louisiana, in May 1721.  

Jaque, "surnamed St. Jaques," son of Jaque Bernard and Françoise Splonzin, married Denise, daughter of Jaque Aliohme, at Old Biloxi in June 1721.  

According to a recent history of French colonial New Orleans and its people, Raphaël Bernard, "who called himself a 'nègre libre,'" or free man of color, "sued several Euro-Louisianans to collect on debts they owed him" in spring 1724.  Raphaël was well educated and "penned and signed his own petition" to the colony's Superior Council.

Jean Bernard, native of Calais, France, age 35, was serving as a naval clerk when he died at New Orleans in August 1725.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give Jean's parents' names or mention a wife.  

Pierre Bernard, native of Curzon, Poitou, France, died at New Orleans in January 1730.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give Pierre's age at the time of his death, give his parents' names, or mention a wife.  

Jacques, son of Jacques Bernard and Françoise Plonzain of Nantes, France, a resident of Illinois and widower of Louise Eliavine, married Renée, also called Renaude, daughter of Nicolas Salahun, at New Orleans in June 1730.  

Jacques Bernard, native of Ancenis, near Nantes, France, died at New Orleans in October 1731.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give Jacques's age at the time of his death, give his parents' names, or mention a wife.  

Antoine Bernard married Catherine Bethlerine, place and date unrecorded.  Their daughter Anne, a native of New Orleans, married Louis, son of Mathis Berner, at St.-Charles des Allemands on the Lower German Coast in August 1744.  

Jean Bernard dit L'Esperance, a soldier born in Bordeaux, France, died at Pointe Coupée in September 1752.  The priest who recorded his burial did not give Jean's age at the time of his death, his parents' names, or mention a wife.  

Michel, son of Hans Bernhard or Berenhardt , was an Alsatian German straw cutter and herdsman born at Languebeitenheim, Bouxweiller, and living at Schillersdorf, near Strasbourg, present-day Bas-Rhin, France, before he came to the colony in September 1753 aboard the Caméléon out of Rochefort, France.  He and a few dozen of his fellow Alsatian Protestants, having been caught in the act of fleeing France illegally, had to abjure their Lutheran faith in order to escape life imprisonment aboard the Mediterranean galleys, their sentences reduced to exile in Louisiana.  With Michel was his wife Anne-Marie or Marie-Anne, born at Vilzhoffen, Alsace, daughter of swine herder or shephard Hans Hess or Hessin of Kirrwiller, Alsace (Michel had married Anne-Marie at Schillersdorf in January 1726), and six daughters and a son, all born at Schillersdorf:  Anna Barbara born in October 1826, Anna Maria in June 1728 but died in November 1729, Johann Michel born in July 1730, Maria Anna in March 1733, Catharina in October 1735, Anna Margaretha in January 1738, and Maria Magalena in October 1741.  Wife Marie-Anne died on the German Coast in December 1754, not long after the reached Louisiana.  (A cattle brand for Michel Bernard appears in the brand book for the Attakapas District, dated 1761; one wonders if this was Michel Bernhard.)  In March 1765, Michel, who had not remarried, sold his three arpents of land "situated between Sieur Sabourdin and the property of Lips" on the east bank of the river "across from the original German settlements" at St.-Charles des Allemands, to Jean-Gaspart Normand, and then moved in with his son-in-law, Étienne Toups, who lived on the west bank of the river above the German Coast.  Marie Bernard, widow of Matthias Frederick, a pioneer settler along the river above the German Coast, died in St. James Parish in March 1804.  The priest who recorded her burial noted that she was age 74 at the time of her death; the priest did not give her parents' names or her place of birth, but she was Maria Anna, the second daughter of Michel Bernhard of Alsace.  She had married Mathias, son of Mathias Frederick and Agnès Klein, at St.-Charles des Allemands on the Lower German Coast in January 1754, four months after her family had reached Louisiana; the Fredericks, from Weilersheim, Alsace, had come to Louisiana decades earlier, in 1721.  Michel Bernhard's fourth daughter, Catharina, called Catherine, married Étienne Toups in April 1754, not long after the family's arrival, and died in St. James Parish in August 1804, age 70, only five months after her older sister Marie Anne died there.  One wonders what happened to Michel Bernhard's only son, Johann Michel, who would have been in his early 20s in 1753.  Was he still alive then?  If so, did he follow his family to Louisiana and create a family of his own there? 

Pierre Bernard, a cobbler and resident of New Orleans, married Toinette Duby, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Pierre, fils was baptized at New Orleans, age unrecorded, in October 1763. 

Pierre Bernard of Tuaset married Marie-Antoinette Dubiers of Geneva, Switzerland, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Jacque-Pierre was born at New Orleans in August 1765.  Their daughter Catherine married Pierre, son of Pierre Mioton of Vienne, France, at New Orleans in January 1785.  

Pierre, son of Pierre Bernard and Louse Gibouin of Vernueil-sur-Avre, Les Perches, Diocese of Evreux, France, married Marguerite, daughter of Joseph Tumerman, surnamed Des Lauriers, at New Orleans in April 1766.  

Anne Bernard, a native of New Orleans, widow of Jean-Baptiste Renard, married master carpenter Achille Courcelle at New Orleans in March 1768.  

Guillaume Benard, a soldier born in St.-Claude Parish, Rouen, France, died at Pointe Coupée in November 1769.  The priest who recorded his burial did not give Guillaume's age at the time of his death, his parents' names, or mention a wife.  

Jean-François, son of Jacque Bernard and Françoise-Marie Aubert of Marseille, France, married Genieuve, daughter of Jean-Baptiste Dubie of New Orleans, at St.-Jean-Baptiste des Allemands on the Upper German Coast in April 1780.  

Pierre Bernard married Marie-Françoise Schalan.  Their daughter Marie-Françoise was born at New Orleans in February 1781.  

Louis Bernard married Marie Mortal probably at New Orleans, date unrecorded.  Their daughter Marguerite was born in the city in November 1784, and their son Jean-Baptiste in December 1789.  

Jean-Baptiste, son of André Bernard and Marguerite Edelmeyer of St.-Charles des Allemands on the Lower German Coast, married Marguerite, daughter of André Edelmeyer and Marguerite Albert of St.-Charles des Allemands, at New Orleans in February 1786.  Notice that the groom's mother and the bride have the same name.  One wonders if Jean-Baptiste was actually a younger son of André Bernard, père and _____ Waguespack of St.-Charles des Allemands.  

Joseph, son of Joseph Bernard and Eugenia ____ of Chichester, County Sussex, England, married Eugenia, daughter of William O'Brien of North Carolina, at New Orleans in January 1788.  

Pedro Bernardo, age 60, died at New Orleans in July 1790.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give Pedro's parents' names or mention a wife.  

André Bernard of L'Île Dieu, France, died at New Orleans in October 1790, age 55.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give André's parents' names or mention a wife.  

Jean-Pierre Bernard of Mambrun, Dauphine, France, married Catherine Latill or Laty of Daidan, Provence, France, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Jean-Antoine was born in New Orleans in February 1792, Jean in January 1794, and Joseph Lazard in April 1799.  

André, son of Étienne Bernard and Marguerite Gaudin of St.-Nicolas Parish, Nantes, France, married Anne-Françoise, called Françoise, daughter of Laurence Sigur of Pont-à-Mousson, Lorraine, France, at New Orleans in August 1792.  Their son Laurence-André was born at New Orleans in February 1794 but died at age 15 months in May 1795.  Their daughter married into the Leroy family and settled at Baton Rouge.  André died at New Orleans in November 1802, age 38.  One wonders if André's mother was an Acadian Godin who in 1785 had chosen to remain in France with her French husband. 

Louis Bernard married Catarina Chalan, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Santiago died at New Orleans 4 days after his birth in September 1793.  Their daughter Maria Francisca married Jean-Baptiste, son of Pierre-Antoine Catoire of St.-Charles des Allemands, at New Orleans in July 1803.  

Bartolomé Bernard, a 30-year-old bachelor, native of Purcoregimento, Malaga, Spain, died at New Orleans' Charity Hospital in December 1792.  

Jean-Baptiste, son of Jean-Baptiste Bernard and Sali Vanivraa, married Marie-Anne, daughter of Jean-Baptiate Le Sage of the German Coast, place and date unrecorded.  Their daughter Marie-Madeleine-Adélaïde was born at New Orleans in August 1796, and son Maximilien in February 1799.  

Pierre-Mathurin Bernard married Antoinette-Louise-Victoire Ruby, place and date unrecorded.  Daughter Marie-Antoinette was born at St.-Jacques on the Acadian Coast in November 1802.  

Jean Bernard married Salomée Richerhien, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Jean, fils married Marie-Anne, daughter of Jean-Baptiste Lasage, probably at Pointe Coupée, date unrecorded.  Their daughter Adélaïde was born at Pointe Coupée in August 1802.

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A German Creole family established itself on the German Coast above New Orleans when the French controlled the colony.  During the Spanish period, they settled farther upriver at St.-Jacques on the Acadian Coast.  During the early antebellum period, they moved to Bayou Lafourche, creating a new center of Creole Bernard settlement among their Acadian namesakes already there:  

Descendants of André BERNARD, fils (?-1790s)

André, fils, son of André Bernard, père of Germany and Marguerite Edelmayer of the German Coast, was born probably at St.-Charles des Allemands on the Lower German Coast in the 1750s.  He married Anne, daughter of Acadian Charles Comeaux, at St.-Jacques in September 1781.  (His younger sister Marguerite married into the Acadian LeBlanc, Mouton, and Roy families, so André, père's children demonstrated an unusual preference for Acadian spouses.)  André, fils and his oldest son, who also married an Acadian and who does not seem to have produced sons of his own, remained at St.-Jacques, where André, fils died by August 1794, when his wife remarried there.  In the 1810s, however, André, fils's two younger sons, both of whom married Acadians, moved from the river to Bayou Lafourche, where, like at St.-Jacques, Acadians also lived in large numbers, including Acadian Bernards.  André, fils's grandchildren by his younger sons also favored Acadian spouses, and the Lafourche valley became the center of this prolific Creole family.  A great-grandson settled on lower Bayou Teche after the War of 1861-65. 

1

Oldest son André III, born probably at St.-Jacques in the early 1780s, married Marguerite, daughter of Acadian Joseph Richard and widow of Jean Theriot, at Assumption on upper Bayou Lafourche in April 1805, but they remained at St. James and Ascension on the river.  Their daughters married into the Bourgeois, Oubre, and Pertuit families.  André III and Marguerite do not seem to have produced any sons who survived childhood, so this line of the family, except for its blood, probably died with him.  In September 1850, the federal census taker in St. James Parish counted 9 slaves--5 males and 4 females, all black, ranging in age from 35 to 1--on Widow André Bernard's farm in the parish's eastern district; these were Marguerite Richard's slaves 

2

Jean-Baptiste dit Levert, born at St.-Jacques in May 1786, married Marie, daughter of Acadian Charles Melançon, at the St. James church, St. James Parish, in February 1807.  Their son Amand was born in St. James Parish in December 1807, and Ursin in September 1813.  Their daughter married into the Gaudet and LeBoeuf families.  Jean Baptiste remarried to Émilie Constance, daughter of Acadian Jean Boudreaux, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in November 1816.  Their son Jean Baptiste Hermogène, called Hermogène, was born in Assumption Parish in April 1817, Léon in Lafourche Interior Parish in February 1820, Lubin or Urbin Ursin in December 1821 but died at age 1 1/2 in May 1823, and Jean Baptiste Apollinaire, called Jean, was born in September 1829.  Their daughters married into the Knobloch, Tabor, and Webre families.  Jean Baptiste dit Levert died in Lafourche Interior Parish in September 1845, age 59; his succession inventories were filed at the Thibodaux courthouse that month and again in January 1849.  In November 1850, the federal census taker in Lafourche Interior Parish counted 2 slaves--a 21-year-old mulatto female, and a 16-year-old mulatto male--on Widow J. B. Bernard's farm at Thibodaux along the bayou; these probably were Émilie Constance Boudreaux's slaves. 

2a

Amand, by his father's first wife, married Clémence Rosaline, daughter of Acadian Basile Prejean, at the Thibodauxville church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in August 1833.  Their son Jean Baptiste Anaïse was born in Lafourche Interior Parish in October 1835.  Their daughters married into the Gaudet and Achée families.  Amand died in Lafourche Parish in August 1857, age 50; a letter of tutorship for his two minor daughters, Althée and Justilia, was filed in his name at the Thibodaux courthouse in September.  In September 1860, the federal census taker in Lafourche Parish counted a single slave--a 14-year-old black female--on Mrs. Amant Bernard's farm in the parish's Sixth Ward; this was Clémence Prejean's slave.  

Jean Baptiste Anaïse married Zulema or Zulma, daughter of Cyprien Keller, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Parish, in January 1856.  Their son Joseph Amand was born near Labadieville, Assumption Parish, in November 1858.  Jean Baptiste Anaïse remarried to Élise, daughter of Acadian Placide Richard, at the Houma church, Terrebonne Parish, in April 1866.  They settled near Chacahoula, near the boundaries between Terrebonne, Lafourche, and Assumption parishes.  Their son Louis Alcibiade was born in October 1869. 

2b

Hermogène, by his father's second wife, married Eugénie, 15-year-old daughter of German Creole Jean Webre of St. John the Baptist Parish, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in January 1838.  Their son Hermogène Victor or Victor Hermogène was born in Lafourche Interior Parish in July 1841.  Their daughters married into the Francioni and Himel families.  In December 1850, the federal census taker in Lafourche Interior Parish counted 7 slaves--1 males and 6 females, all black, ranging in age from 40 to 3--on Hermogène Bernard's farm along Bayou Lafourche.   In September 1860, the federal census taker in Lafourche Parish counted 4 slaves--1 male and 3 females, all black, ranging in age from 18 to 10--on Hermogène Bernard's farm next to Léon Bernard in the parish's Sixth Ward. 

During the War of 1861-65, Victor Hermogène served in Company E of the 4th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, raised in Lafourche Parish, which fought in Tennessee, Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, and Alabama.  Victor enlisted as a private in May 1861 but served in the regiment's band for much of the war.  Victor Hermogène married Floroilie, daughter of Acadian Lucien Landry, at the St. Gabriel church, Iberville Parish, in February 1867.  

2c

Léon, by his father's second wife, married Arcènne, another daughter of Jean Webre, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in January 1844.  Their son Jean Baptiste Clé was born in Lafourche Interior Parish in October 1844, Claiborne Anselme in April 1846 but died at age 28 days in May, and Léonard William was born in November 1850.  They also had a son named Henry Clay, or this may have been another name for Jean Baptiste Clé.  In September 1860, the federal census taker in Lafourche Parish counted 13 slaves--4 males and 9 females, 6 blacks and 7 mulattoes, ranging in age from 33 years to 10 months, living in 2 houses--on Léon Bernard's farm next to Hermogène Bernard in the parish's Sixth Ward.  

During the War of 1861-65, Henry Clay served as a sergeant in Company I of the 26th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, raised in Lafourche Parish, which fought at Vicksburg, Mississippi.  Henry Clay married Ezilda, daughter of Anglo American Onésime Aycock, in a civil ceremony in Lafourche Parish in April 1870.  

2d

Jean Baptiste Apollinaire, by his father's second wife, died in Lafourche Parish in September 1853, probably in a yellow fever epidemic.  The priest who recorded his burial said that Jean was age 22 when he died, but he was 24.  Jean probably did not marry.  

3

Youngest son François-Jean, born at St.-Jacques in June 1792, married Marie Clémence, called Clémence, daughter of Acadian Jean Roger, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in July 1812.  Their son Onésime was born in Assumption Parish in September 1813, Auguste Zénon, called Zénon, in May 1818, Jean Baptiste Éloi in Lafourche Interior Parish in June 1823 but died at age 1 1/2 in October 1824, Éloi Homer, called Homer or Omer, was born in October 1825, Aubin or Lubin Onésiphore in March 1828, and Valéry Treville in November 1830.  Their daughters married into the Achée and Robichaux families.  François Jean died in Lafourche Interior Parish in July 1847, age 55; a petition for the tutelage of his minor children was filed in his name at the Thibodaux courthouse in March 1848.  One of his sons moved to lower Bayou Teche soon after the War of 1861-65. 

3a

Onésime married Rosalie, 16-year-old daughter of Acadian Jean Hébert, at Thibodauxville church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in August 1836.  Their son Aristide Cléopha was born in Lafourche Interior Parish in May 1837.  Their daughters married into the Lejeune and Lyons families, one of them in St. Mary Parish.  In September 1860, the federal census taker in Lafourche Parish counted 6 slaves--2 males and 4 females, all black, ranging in age from 43 to 6--on Onézime Bernard's farm in the parish's Sixth Ward.  His only son and a daughter left Bayou Lafourche after the War of 1861-65 and settled on lower Bayou Teche. 

During the war, Aristide served as an orderly or first sergeant in Company B of the 30th Louisiana Infantry, raised from militia companies that fought in Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, and Alabama, first as a regiment and then as a battalion.  His service in the unit lasted only a few months longer than his uncle Valéry's.  Aristide fought in the Battle of Baton Rouge in August 1862 and was discharged for disability the following month, so he probably was wounded in action.  Despite his discharge, he fought in the Battle of Labadieville in nearby Assumption Parish in late October 1862, was captured, and paroled.  Aristide married cousin Amanda, daughter of Jean Deslattes, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Parish, in April 1864; Amanda's mother, also, was an Hébert.  Aristide remarried to Sylvanie Marie, daughter of Anglo American James H. Walker, at the New Iberia church, Iberia Parish, in July 1868.  They settled near Lydia. 

3b

Zénon married cousin Azèle or Azéline, daughter of Acadian Jean Baptiste Roger, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in May 1844.  Their son Théotime was born in Lafourche Parish in July 1855, François Jackson in January 1858, Joseph died 15 days after his birth in January 1865, and twins Adam Milton and Edgar were born near Charenton, St. Mary Parish in February 1867, but Edgar died near New Iberia the following December.  Their daughters married into the Mire, Richard, and Schexnayder families.  

3c

Omer married Ezépheline, called Zépheline, daughter of Acadian Valery Robichaux, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in January 1848.  Their son Omer Clet was born in Lafourche Interior Parish in August 1848, and a son, name and age unrecorded, died in December 1854.  

3d

Lubin or Aubin married Adèle, daughter of Acadian Isidore François Guillot, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in February 1848; Adèle's mother was an Acadian Bernard, so they were not cousins.  Their son Siméon was born in Lafourche Interior Parish in January 1849, Félicien Willis in June 1857, and Théophile Clet in March 1864.  

3e

Valéry married Victorine, daughter of Acadians Michel Archange Bernard and Justine Arceneaux, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in November 1851.  During the War of 1861-65, Valéry served in Company B of the 30th Louisiana Infantry, raised from militia companies that fought in Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, and Alabama, first as a regiment and then as a battalion.  He enlisted in March 1862, in his early 30s.  Probably because of his age, he was discharged for illness in June 1862, only two months after he enlisted.  Despite his discharge, he fought in the Battle of Labadieville in nearby Assumption Parish in late October 1862, fell into the hands of the Federals, and was paroled at Thibodaux the following month.  

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A French Creole family sprang from a young French nobleman who, despite his father's objections, took an Acadian bride and settled in the Baton Rouge area during the late colonial period:

Descendants of Félix-Gilles-Louis BERNARD du MONTIER (c1762-1843)

Félix-Gilles-Louis, called Louis, son of French nobleman Louis-Gilles Bernard du Montier and Perrine-Josèphe Cornen de Restiqouat of St.-Brieuc, Brittany, France, came to America in the early 1780s as a French naval midshipman and served in the Yorktown Campaign in Virginia during the American Revolution.  After the war, Louis returned to France and fell in love with an Acadian girl at Pleurtuit near St.-Malo, not far from his native St.-Brieuc.  According to family tradition, Louis's father refused to sanction his son's marriage to a lowly Acadian.  Louis persisted in his ardor, however, and when her family chose to emigrate to Louisiana in 1785, Louis became a crewman on La Ville d'Archangel, the ship his beloved took from St.-Malo to New Orleans.  Louis followed most of the passengers from his ship to the new Acadian community of Bayou des Écores, in the New Feliciana District north of Baton Rouge, where he married Marie-Victoire, called Victoire, daughter of Ambroise Bourg and his second wife Marie-Modeste Molaison of Cobeguit and Pobomcoup, in January 1787.  Perhaps after a series of hurricanes smashed the Bayou des Écores settlement in the early 1790s, Louis and Victoire joined the exodus out of the community and moved downriver to Baton Rouge, where they raised a large family.  Their daughters married into the Devall and Molaison families.  Félix-Gilles-Louis died at the residence of a son-in-law, Major James Devall, in West Baton Rouge Parish in August 1843, age 81.  Two of his sons and several of his grandchildren also married Acadians. 

1

Oldest son Louis-Robert, called Louis, born probably at Bayou des Écores in March 1789, married Rosalie, daughter of Pierre Viroso or Visotes, probably at Baton Rouge in the early 1810s.  Their son Louis, fils was born near Baton Rouge in August 1812, Félix Balthazar in July 1814, Théodore Gilles in January 1818, and Philippe Gilbert in May 1822.  Louis, père died at Baton Rouge in August 1825, age 36.  

Louis, fils married Eléonore, daughter of Acadian Ursin Landry, at the Baton Rouge church, East Baton Rouge Parish, in February 1834.  Their son Louis Gustave was born near Baton Rouge in January 1835 but died near Baton Rouge in June 1862, age 28, and did not marry.  One wonders if his death was war-related. 

2

Onésiphore, born at Baton Rouge in March 1795, married Marie Irène, called Irène, daughter of Acadian Jean Baptiste Hébert of Virgin Mary Parish, Baton Rouge, at the St. Gabriel church, Iberville Parish, in June 1818.  Their son Ange Alphonse was born near Baton Rouge in May 1827, Félix Edgar in December 1828, Antoine Dulud was baptized at the Baton Rouge church, East Baton Rouge Parish, age unrecorded, in January 1832, and a son, name and age unrecorded, died in July 1840.  Their daughter married into the Duval family.  Onésiphore, in his early 50s, remarried to Acadian Zelamie Blanchard probably in West Baton Rouge Parish in the 1840s.  Their son Edgar was born probably in West Baton Rouge Parish in c1847 but died near Brusly in April 1854, and Albert was born in May 1851.  In August 1850, the federal census taker in West Baton Rouge Parish counted 13 slaves--8 males and 5 females, all black, ranging in age from 45 to 4--on O. Bernard's farm; this was Onésiphore.  Later in the month, the same census taker counted a single slave--a 15-year-old mulatto male--on O. Bernard's farm in another part of the parish.  In July 1860, the federal census taker in West Baton Rouge Parish counted a single slave--a 50-year-old black female--on O. Bernard Sr.'s farm next to O. Bernard, Jr., who owned 2 slaves--a 55-year-old black female and a 50-year-old mulatto female.  Onésiphore, called Honisifor by the recording priest, died near Brusly in March 1864.  He would have been age 69 at the time of his passing. 

During the War of 1861-65, Félix Edgar served in Company H of the 4th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, The West Baton Rouge Tirailleurs, raised in West Baton Rouge Parish, which fought in Tennessee, Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, and Alabama.  Félix enlisted in May 1861, age 32.  He was reported present on company rolls to December 1862, so he probably survived the carnage at Shiloh, Tennessee, in April 1862 and the sharp fight at Baton Rouge the following August.  Nevertheless, he deserted his regiment in January 1863 when it was stationed at Port Hudson, Louisiana, across the river from his home in West Baton Rouge Parish.  

3

Agricole, born at Baton Rouge in March 1801, married Amaranthe, daughter of Acadian Mathurin Landry, at the Baton Rouge church, East Baton Rouge Parish, in January 1825.  They settled in West Baton Rouge Parish.  Their son Agricole Edmond, called Edmond, was born in October 1827 but died at 4 1/2 in August 1832.  Their daughter married a Landry first cousin.  Agricole remarried to French Creole Azélie or Zélie Allain at the Baton Rouge church in May 1838.  Their son Louis le jeune was baptized at the Baton Rouge church, age 3 months, in June 1839, Justin Félix was born near Brusly, West Baton Rouge Parish, in August 1848 but died at age 17 in November 1865 (was his untimely death war related?), Pierre Bertrand was born in May 1850, Émile Albert in December 1851, and Oscar Ulysse in April 1856.  In August 1850, the federal census taker in West Baton Rouge Parish counted 14 slaves--5 males and 9 females, 8 blacks and 6 mulattoes, ranging in age from 50 to 4--on Agricole Bernard's farm next to brother Félix.  Agricole died near Baton Rouge in April 1857; the priest who recorded the burial said that Agricole was age 50 when he died; he was 56.  In July 1860, the federal census taker in West Baton Rouge Parish counted 6 slaves--1 male and 5 females, all black, ages 40 to 11, living in 2 houses--on Widow Agricole Bernard's farm; these were Zélie Allain's slaves.  A daughter by his second wife married an Allain cousin and another married into the Elwill family. 

Louis le jeune, by his father's second wife, married cousin Augustine, daughter of French Creole Zénon Allain, fils, at the Brusly church, West Baton Rouge Parish, in April 1861; Augustine's mother was an Acadian LeBlanc; they had to secure a dispensation for third degree of consanguinity in order to marry.  Their son Louis, fils died in West Baton Rouge Parish at age 1 1/2 months in January 1862.  Louis le jeune died in West Baton Rouge Parish in September 1862, age 23.  

4

Angèl died at Baton Rouge at age 2 months in November 1803.  

5

Youngest son Lindor Félix, called Félix, fils, born at Baton Rouge in August 1805, married cousin Joséphine Adélaïde, daughter of François Seguin, at the Baton Rouge church, East Baton Rouge Parish, in January 1828; Josephine's mother, also, was a Bourg; they had to secure a dispensation for second degree of relationship in order to marry.  Their son Félix Louis, called Louis, le jeune, was born near Baton Rouge in April 1830, Gustave in February 1832, Philippe in September 1835, Baltazar in West Baton Rouge Parish in June 1845, and Gilbert in March 1848.  Their daughters married into the Aucoin and Blanchard families.  In August 1850, the federal census taker in West Baton Rouge Parish counted 2 slaves--a 44-year-old black male and a 24-year-old black female--on Félix Bernard's farm next to brother Agricole.  Félix died near Baton Rouge in December 1852; the priest who recorded the burial said that Félix was age 40 when he died, but he was 47.  

5a

Louis le jeune married Nathalie, daughter of Acadian Pierre Prosper Blanchard and widow of Désiré Richard, at the Brusly church, West Baton Rouge Parish, in October 1856; Louis's sister Cephalide married Nathalie's brother Anselme.  Louis le jeune and Nathalie's son Félix le jeune was born near Brusly in December 1857 but died at age 7 months the following July, and Benjamin Franklin was baptized at the Brusly church, age 2 months, in October 1859.  In July 1860, the federal census taker in West Baton Rouge Parish counted 5 slaves--3 males and 2 females, all black, ranging in age from 69 to 17, living in 2 houses--on Louis Bernard's farm.  

5b

Gustave died at Baton Rouge in July 1859, age 27.  He may not have married.  

5c

During the War of 1861-65, Philippe served in Company F of the 4th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, raised in West Baton Rouge Parish, which fought in Tennessee, Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, and Alabama.  He was captured at the Battle of Shiloh, Tennessee, in April 1862 and held at Cincinnati, Ohio, and Cairo, Illinois, before being exchanged the following November.  He was wounded in the Battle of Poor House, Georgia, in July 1864, and spent time in several hospitals, including one at Charlotte, North Carolina, before returning to duty in April 1865, a month before his unit surrendered at Meridian, Mississippi.  Philippe married Virginie, daughter of Acadian Pierre Blanchard and widow of W. Nolan, at the Brusly church, West Baton Rouge Parish, in September 1865.  

5d

Balthazar died at Baton Rouge in October 1867, age 22.  He probably did not marry.  

.

During the late colonial period, a French Creole family settled in the Attakapas District near Acadian Bernards already there:

Descendants of Pierre-Hyacinthe BERNARD (?-?)

Pierre-Hyacinthe, called Hyacinthe, son of merchant Pierre-François-Xavier Bernard of Marseille, France, married Catherine, daughter of Jean-Baptiste Laurendiny of Mobile, Alabama, probably at New Orleans in the early 1790s.  They moved to upper Bayou Lafourche, where Hyacinthe was one of the area's largest slaveholders; he owned 14 slaves in January 1791, and 13 in April 1797.  They returned to New Orleans in the late 1790s, and by the early 1800s were living on lower Bayou Teche.  Catherine died in late 1804, soon after giving birth to a daughter.  At least one son married, to "an Indian," probably a Chitimacha, and settled near that nation's settlement on lower Bayou Teche.  

1

Oldest son Hyacinthe-Bernard, born at Assumption on upper Bayou Lafourche in February 1793, died in St. Martin Parish in October 1804, age 11. 

2

Raymond or Rémond, also called Rosémond and Bernard, born at New Orleans in May 1797, probably remarried to Léocade Marie, daughter of Émilie Pellerin, "an Indian," at the Charenton church, St. Mary Parish, in June 1852, when Rémond was in his mid-50s.  Their son Gabriel Rosémond had been born near Charenton in March 1849, Pierre Théodore was born in March 1851, daughter Félicie in January 1853[sic], Lelia in February 1853[sic], Marie Cécile in February 1857, and Constance in May 1860.  Rémond died near Charenton in December 1862, age 65 (the recording priest said 24).  

Manuel, perhaps Rémond's son from a previous wife, married Marie Fohen in St. Mary Parish, date unrecorded.  Their daughter Françoise Philomène was born near Charenton in September 1852.    

3

Youngest son Honoré-François-Xavier was born at New Orleans in September 1799. 

~

During the antebellum period, non-Acadian Bernards could be found not only in New Orleans, but also in some of the river, bayou, and prairie parishes where Acadian Bernards settled, complicating the family's genealogical picture wherever they settled near one another: 

Guillaume Bernard married Françoise LeBoeuf probably at Natchitoches, date unrecorded.  Their son Guillaume, fils was baptized at the Natchitoches church, Natchitoches Parish, age 5 months, in August 1811.  The baptism also was recorded at the Opelousas church, St. Landry Parish.  

Cadet Bernard, native of Bordeaux, France and resident of Ouachita in north Louisiana, fell from a barge and drowned in the Mississippi near St. Gabriel, Iberville Parish, in September 1817, age 30.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give Cadet's parents' names or mention a wife.  

Bruno, son of François Bernard, died in Pointe Coupee Parish in September 1825, age 3.  The priest who recorded the boy's burial did not give the mother's name. 

Coralie Bernard married Charles Devenport of Iberville Parish at the Baton Rouge church, East Baton Rouge Parish, in September 1840.  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give any parents' names. 

Julie, daughter of French immigrants Michel Benard and Marie-Anne Deutour of France, married German immigrant Chretien or Christian, son of Joseph Mornhinweg or Mornhinveg and Dorothée Zinser of Wuerttemburg, Germany, in a civil ceremony at Opelousas in February 1842. 

George Bernhard, a 40-year-old farmer from France, Anne Bernhard, age 42, probably his wife, Marie Bernhard, age 14, Catherine Bernard]sic], age 9 1/2, Antoine Bernhard, age 8, Anne-Marie Bernhard, age 7, Élisabeth Bernhard, age 5, and Thérèse Bernhard, age 2, probably their children, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Nashville out of Le Havre in January 1846.  They were heading to Missouri.  

Joseph Simon, son of Pierre Bernard and Marie-Anne Lionce of Haute-Alps, France, married Vitalie, daughter of Acadian Florentin Bernard Templet, at the Brusly church, West Baton Rouge Parish, in November 1846.  

Azélie Bernard gave birth to son Joseph near Convent, St. James Parish, in August 1847.  The priest who recorded the boy's baptism did not give the father's name or the mother's parents' names. 

In July 1850, a federal census taker in Jefferson Parish counted a single slave--a 40-year-old black male--in A. Bernard's household in the city of Lafayette.  The next month, a different federal census taker in Jefferson Parish counted a single slave--a 21-year-old black female--in ____ Bernard's household in Lafayette.  The same census taker the following December counted a single slave--an 18-year-old black male--in ____ Bernard's household in Lafayette.  

In July 1850, the federal census taker in Ward 4, Municipality 1, Orleans Parish, counted a single slave--a 15-year-old black female--in Ls. Bernard's household.  The census taker in Ward 1, Municipality 3 of the parish, counted 4 slaves--1 male and 3 females, all black, ranging in age from 33 to 3--in E. L. Bernard's household, and a single slave--an 18-year-old black male--in L. Bernard's household.  Another census taker in Orleans Parish counted a single slave--a 20-year-old black female--on John Bernard's farm on the right bank of the river, and a single slave--a 13-year-old black male--on Justin Bernard's farm also on the right bank.

In August 1850, the federal census taker in Ward 3, Municipality 1, Orleans Parish, counted 3 slaves--all females, 2 blacks and a mulatto, ages 35, 22, and 1--in J. Bernard's household.  The census taker in Ward 1, Municipality 3 of the parish, counted a single slave--a 20-year-old black male--in another L. Bernard's household.  The census taker in Ward 4, Municipality 3 of the parish, counted 2 slaves--a 35-year-old black female and a 5-year-old black male--in H. Bernard's household.  Another census taker in Orleans Parish counted 11 slaves--4 males and 7 females, 7 blacks and 4 mulattoes, ages 65 to 4--on J. B. Bernard, Sr.'s farm on the right bank of the river, 2 slaves--a 27-year-old black female and a 9-year-old black male--on J. B. Bernard, Jr.'s farm next door, and a single slave--a 17-year-old black female--on Léon Bernard's farm also on the right bank of the river.  

In September 1850, the federal census taker in Ward 7, Municipality 1, Orleans Parish, counted a single slave--a 30-year-old black female--in Devin Bernard's household.  The census taker in Ward 3, Municipality 3 of the parish, counted 3 slaves--a 32-year-old black female, and 2 mulatto males, ages 9 years and 6 months--in Jean Bernard's household.  

In October 1850, the federal census taker in Orleans Parish counted a single slave--a 17-year-old black female--in Ellen Bernard's household in the parish's Third Representative District, a single slave--a 20-year-old black female--in Ante Bernard's household, and a single slave--a 20-year-old mulatto female--in Jos. Bernard's household in the parish's Ward 5, Municipality 1. 

In November 1850, the federal census taker in Ward 6, Municipality 1, Orleans Parish, counted a single slave--a 38-year-old black female--in Rosette Bernard's household.  

In November 1850, the federal census taker in East Baton Rouge Parish counted 61 slaves--27 males and 34 females, all black, ranging in age from 60 to 1--on Joseph Bernard's plantation in the parish's Twelfth Ward.  He was probably an Anglo-American Bernard.  In June 1860, the federal census taker in East Baton Rouge parish counted 71 slaves living in 18 houses on Joseph Bernard's plantation.  

Rodrigue Bernard married Nanette Cavalière, place and date unrecorded.  Son Théophile was born near Lockport, Lafourche Interior Parish, in May 1852. 

Peraut Bernard married Marie Bonaventure, place and date unrecorded.  Their daughter Julie was baptized at the Pointe Coupee church, Pointe Coupee Parish, age 1 1/2 years, in February 1855.  

Aristide Bernard of Angers, France, married Élise, daughter of Diogène Bossie, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in September 1856.  

Clarti Bernard died near Charenton, St. Mary Parish, in November 1856, age 65.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give any parents' names or mention a spouse.  Could he have been a son of Pierre-Hyacinthe, called Hyacinthe, Bernard and Catherine Laurendiny of Mobile, Alabama, who settled on the lower Teche in the early 1800s?

Marie Euphémie Bernard's son Andrew Jackson was baptized at the Plaquemine church, Iberville Parish, age 6 months, in March 1857, Charles Adolphe at age 13 1/2 months in August 1859, and Marie Madeleine born in October 1861.  The priest who recorded the children's baptisms did not give the fathers' name(s).  

In June 1860, the federal census taker in Orleans Parish counted a single slave--a 39-year-old black female--belonging to ____ Benard in the New Orleans City Police Jail in the city's Fifth Ward.  That same month, the census taker in the city's Sixth Ward counted 2 slaves--a 30-year-old mulatto female and a 12-year-old mulatto female--in Jos. Bernard's household.  The census taker in the city's Seventh Ward counted 3 slaves--all female, all black, ages 35, 22, and 6--in E. T. Bernard's household.  The census taker in the city's Eighth Ward counted 3 slaves--all females, all black, ages 40, 25, and 25--in Mrs. E. S. Bernard's household.  The census taker in the city's Tenth Ward counted a single slave--a 30-year-old black male--in A. Bernard's household.  

In June 1860, the federal census taker in Pointe Coupee Parish counted 29 slaves--17 males and 12 females, all black except for 1 mulatto, ranging in age from 54 years to 9 months, living in 9 houses--on Jean Bte. Bernard's plantation.  

In July 1860, the federal census taker in Iberville Parish counted 2 slaves--a 22-year-old male and a 10-year-old male, both mulattoes--in Jos. Bernard's household in the town of Plaquemine.  

In July 1860, the federal census taker in Orleans Parish counted 5 slaves--3 males and 2 females, 3 blacks and 3 mulattoes, ranging in age from 40 to 3--on John B. Bernard, Sr.'s farm at Algiers.  The same census taker counted a single slave--an 18-year-old mulatto male--on John B. Bernard, Jr.'s farm.  That same month, the census taker in the Seventh Ward of the city of New Orleans counted a single slave--a 24-year-old female mulatto--in Gilbert Bernard's household, and a single slave--a 26-year-old mulatto male--in T. B. Bernard's household.  

Jean Berniard married Pamelise Landry, place and date unrecorded.  Son Adolphe Albert was born in Assumption Parish in September 1860. 

Barthe Bernard married Joséphine Labat, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Louis Charles was born near Convent, St. James Parish, in April 1864.  

Omer Bernard died near St. Gabriel, Iberville Parish, in March 1866.  The priest who recorded his burial at St. Raphaël cemetery, on the west side of the river, did not give Omer's age at the time of his death, his parents' names, or mention a wife. 

Augustin Bernard married Eucharis _____, place and date unrecorded.  They were living at Bernard Fabre's in Pointe Coupee Parish when their daughter Marie was born in October 1866. 

Other Bernards, a French Creole and a French Canadian, probably no kin to the others, established families in the Natchitoches area at Grand Écore, and on the Avoyelles prairie north of the Opelousas District.  In September 1850, the federal census taker in Avoyelles Parish counted a single slave--an 11-year-old black male--on Jn. Bh. Bernard's farm.  

.

A French-Creole family moved from New Orleans to Bayou Lafourche in the early 1800s and created another, much smaller line of Creole Bernards in the area.  They settled near Raceland and Lockport on the lower Lafourche, at the edge of the coastal marshes.  Some of them married Acadians:

Descendants of Maximilien BERNARD (c1798-?)

Maximilien, son of Bernard Bernard and Marianne Rambeau, born at New Orleans in c1798, married Marcellite, 22-year-old daughter of French Creole Louis Augeron, in a civil ceremony in Lafourche Interior Parish in June 1823, and sanctified the marriage at the Thibodauxville church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in June 1825.  Their daughter married into the Loupe family. 

1

Oldest son Dominique Émilien or Maximilien, also called Milien, born probably in Lafourche Interior Parish in the early 1820s, married Tarsile, 20-year-old daughter of Acadian François Doucet, in a civil ceremony in Lafourche Interior Parish in April 1845, and sanctified the marriage at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in October 1848.  Their son François Théophile was born near Thibodaux in March 1850, Sylvain Adam François near Lockport in December 1851, Léandre Oleus, called Oleus, in May 1852, and Maximilien, fils in January 1856.  Their daughter married into the Ledet family

1a  

François Théophile died near Lockport, Lafourche Parish, in November 1868, age 18 (the recording priest said 17).  He probably did not marry.  

1b

Oleus married Amanda, daughter of Léon Lessard and his Acadian wife Rosalie Foret, at the Lockport church in May 1869.  Their son Joseph Léon was born near Lockport in February 1870.  

2

Jean Baptiste Rémond, called Rémond and Bernard Ramond, born in Lafourche Interior Parish in June 1826, married Ella or Rosalie Loupe probably in Lafourche Parish in the early 1850s.  Their son Rémond, fils was born near Raceland in December 1860.  Their daughter married into the Guidry family. 

3

Maximilien, fils, also called Emilien and Milien, born probably in Lafourche Interior Parish in the late 1820s, married Hélène Loupe or Toups probably in Lafourche Interior Parish in the late 1840s.  Their son Léandre Oleus, called Oleus, was born near Lockport in May 1852.  Their daughters married into the Augeron and Ponce families.  

4

Marcellin, born in Lafourche Interior Parish in August 1829, died at age 5 months in January 1830.  

5

Joachim, perhaps another son, married French Creole Adeline Augeron in a civil ceremony in Lafourche Parish in July 1857.  They settled near Raceland and then near Lockport, where their son Raphaël Olewan was born in June 1865 but died at age 2 in September 1867.

.

Throughout the antebellum period, Bernards, some of whom spelled their surname Bernhard, emigrated to New Orleans from France and the Caribbean Basin.  Native Louisianians would have called them Foreign French:   

P. Bernard, a 56-year-old planter from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Missouri out of Bordeaux, France, in February 1820.  

_____ Bernard, an 18-year-old clerk from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Warrington out of Bordeaux in February 1820.  

James Bernard, a 25-year-old cooper from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Ennore Transit out of Le Havre, France, in October 1821.

Léon E. Bernard, a 38-year-old merchant from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Jérôme out of Bordeaux in February 1822.  

A Mr. Bernard, a 37-year-old merchant from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Amiable Matilda out of Bordeaux in July 1825.  

Peter Bernard, a 25-year-old wig weaver from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Pearl out of Le Havre in November 1829.  

L. Bernard, a 23-year-old farmer from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Level out of Marseille, France, in February 1831.  

Jean Fouga or Friga Bernard, a 25-year-old surgeon from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship St. Paul out of Le Havre in May 1835.  

A. Bernard, a 22-year-old farmer from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Marengo out of Le Havre in July 1836.  

L. Bernard, a 45-year-old distiller from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Creole out of Tampico, Mexico, in October 1836.  

_____ Bernard, first name and age unrecorded, a merchant from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Lady Stopes out of Tampico in November 1836.  

A Mrs. Bernard, age 28, from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Wufran out of Marseille in November 1836.  

_____ Bernard, a 15-year-old merchant from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Eugene & Amelie out of Marseille in November 1836.  

A Mrs. Bernard, a 27-year-old merchant from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Grace Brown out of Le Havre in January 1838.  

_____ Bernard, a 45-year-old thespian from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Garonne out of Le Havre in October 1838.  He was soon employed at the Orleans Theatre.  

Ant. Bernard, age and occupation unrecorded, from the Department of Seine, France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Andelle out of Le Havre in November 1839.  

Jeanne Bernard, a 29-year-old servant from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Union out of Bordeaux in January 1840.  

Jean François Bernard, a carpenter from Paris, France, age unrecorded, and two Bernards, ages and occupations unrecorded, also natives of Paris, perhaps brothers, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Caroline out of Le Havre in February 1840.  

Amand Bernard, a 24-year-old merchant from France, and Dupeche Bernard, a 23-year-old merchant also from France, perhaps brothers, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Union out of Bordeaux in May 1840.  

Joseph Bernard, a 40-year-old farmer from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Mr. Creuleau out of Le Havre in May 1840.  

Another Joseph Bernard, a 47-year-old farmer from France, and Mary Bernard, age 40, probably his wife, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Ville de Bordeaux out of Le Havre in May 1841.  

Charles Bernard, a 28-year-old merchant from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Apalachicola out of Tampico in July 1841.  

D. Bernard, a 25-year-old merchant from France, and C. Bernard, a 23-year-old merchant also from France, perhaps brothers, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Empresario out of Havana, Cuba, in January 1842.  

Jean Bernard, a 47-year-old native of France, occupation unrecorded, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Columbiana out of Le Havre in May 1842.  

J. Bernard, a 57-year-old planter from France, Mrs. Bernard, age 57, and Alphonsine Bernard, age 8, Marie Bernard, age 7, Alexis Bernard, age 1, perhaps their grandchildren, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Amerika out of Bordeaux in March 1843.  

Célina Bernard, a 26-year-old servant from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Vesta out of an unrecorded port in December 1843.  

Célestin Bernard, a 30-year-old farmer from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Mary Kingsland out of Le Havre in December 1843.  

François Bernard, a 43-year-old native of France, occupation unrecorded, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Francis de Pau out of Veracruz, Mexico, in October 1844.  

_____ Bernard, a 31(?)[sic]-year-old merchant from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Juanita out of Matamoros, Mexico, in May 1845.  

_____ Bernard, a 75-year-old farmer from Lorraine, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Vesta out of Le Havre in November 1846.  

Charles Bernhard, a 24-year-old farmer from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship South Carolina out of Le Havre in May 1847.  He was going to Mississippi.  

Jacob Bernhard, a 45-year-old farmer from France, Catharine Bernhard, age 43, probably his wife, Jacob Bernhard, age 18, Georg Bernhard, age 15, Michel Bernhard, age 13, Catharine Bernhard, age 6, Margaretha Bernhard, age 3, and Maria Bernhard, age 3 months, probably their children, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Tuskina out of Le Havre in June 1847.  

Célestin Bernard, a 24-year-old farmer from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Viola out of Le Havre in August 1847.  

Adolf Bernard, a 32-year-old druggist from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Rome out of Le Havre in March 1848.  

Henri Bernard, a 29-year-old farmer from France, Julie Catherine Bernard, age 26, probably his wife, Leonie Bernard, age 4, Aglaie Bernard, age 3, and Amelie Bernard, age 2, probably his daughters, and Marie Henriette Bernard, age 62, perhaps Henri's mother, reached New Orleans aboard the ship James Corner out of Marseille in May 1848.  

Georg Bernard, a 26-year-old farmer from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Anna out of Le Havre in November 1848.  

Phillip Bernard, a 30-year-old farmer from France, and Elemore Bernard, age 28, probably his wife, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Ferrière out of Le Havre in December 1848.  

Philippe Bernard, a 51-year-old farmer from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Gironde out of Le Havre in February 1849.  

Philipp Bernard, a 26-year-old farmer from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Lorena out of Bordeaux in March 1849.  

Anselme Bernard, a 43-year-old dyer from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Sea Lion out of Le Havre in March 1849.  

L. Bernard, a 24-year-old female farmer from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship La Foi out of Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadaloupe, in June 1849.  

Madame Bernard, a 74-year-old native of France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Creole out of Le Havre in October 1849.  

Marie Bernard, a 62-year-old native of France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Ferrière out of Le Havre in November 1849.  

T. Bernard, a 26-year-old merchant from France, and M. Lory Bernard, age 22, probably his wife, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Emma Watts out of Bordeaux in May 1850.  

Martin Bernhard, a 36-year-old farmer from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Pyramid out of Le Havre in November 1850.  

______ Bernardo, a 20-year-old merchant from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Cornelia out of Havana in February 1851.  

P. Bernard, a 30-year-old male native of France, occupation unrecorded, reached New Orleans aboard  the ship Falcon out of Havana and Chagres in October 1851.  

Constance Bernard, a 23-year-old female farmer from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Zanons or Zazons out of Le Havre in December 1851.  

Séraphin Bernard, a 50-year-old native of France, occupation unrecorded, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Ferrière out of Le Havre in February 1852.  

_____ Bernard, a 38-year-old merchant from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Mary Ellen out of Tampico in February 1852.  

Sarah Bernard, age 17, and Pauline Bernard, age 14, natives of France and probably sisters, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Edward Everett out of Le Havre in April 1852.  

François Berhnard, a 32-year-old native of France, occupation unrecorded, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Belle Anaise out of Le Havre in May 1852.  

Auguste Bernard, a 25-year-old farmer from France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Brunswick out of Le Havre in June 1852.  

Sébastien Bernard, age 30, occupation unrecorded, and Anette Bernard, age 24, probably his wife, both natives of France, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Venice out of Le Havre in June 1852.  They were heading to Texas.  

Jean-Baptiste Bernard, a 38-year-old native of France, occupation unrecorded, reached New Orleans aboard the ship Niagara out of Le Havre in July 1852.  

.

Bernards who lived in South Louisiana during the antebellum and immediate post-war periods were free persons of color who may have been owned, and freed, by members of the family, or whose progenitor was named "Bernard," a common given name.  Area church and civil records do not always reveal their ethnicity, but the record keepers often provided tantalizing clues:

Hippolyte Bernard was baptized at the Grand Coteau church, St. Landry Parish, in August 1845.  The priest who recorded the baptism did not give Hippolyte's parents' names, but he did record the sacrament in the parish's "Black Bk."

The succession of Modeste Bernard, a free woman of color, married to _____ Narcisse, a free man of color, was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse, St. Martin Parish, in February 1855.  

Onezia Bernard, freedwoman, married Gabriel Alexander, freedman, in a civil ceremony in St. Landry Parish in January 1866.  The parish clerk who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names. 

Louiza Bernard, freedwoman, married Philosin Bouley, freedman, in a civil ceremony in St. Landry Parish in November 1868, and sanctified the marriage at the Youngsville church, Lafayette Parish, on the same day.  Neither the parish clerk nor the priest who recorded the marriage gave the couple's parents' names. 

Carmélite Bernard married Valière William at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in April 1869.  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names. 

Charles Bernard, freedman, married Félicité Mouton, freedwoman, in a civil ceremony in Lafayette Parish in June 1869.  The parish clerk who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names. 

Emérande, daughter of Narcisse Bernard and Célestine _____, married Pierre, son of Basile Bazile, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in May 1870. 

CONCLUSION

Bernards settled early in Acadia, and they were among the earliest Acadians to find refuge in Louisiana.  Two brothers came to the colony from Halifax via St.-Domingue in 1765, one, Michel, with the Broussard dit Beausoleil party, the other, Pierre, with a later party.  Although descended from only two immigrant progenitors, the Acadian Bernards created a substantial branch of the family in South Louisiana.  Michel remained on the western prairies, where two of his sons, Jean and François dit Micheau, created vigorous lines at Carencro and Côte Gelée in the old Attakapas District.  Their descendants spread out along the Teche from Fausse Pointe near New Iberia all the way up to Port Barre, east of Opelousas; some remained at Carencro and Côte Gelée in Lafayette Parish; and others moved out into the prairies of Vermilion and St. Landry parishes.  Pierre's descendants did not remain on the river.  His oldest son Baptiste settled on Bayou Lafourche, creating an important center of family settlement there.  His second son, Pierre, fils, joined his cousins on the prairies, where one of his sons created a vigorous line in Lafayette and St. Landry parishes.  

Bernard is a common surname in France and French Canada as well as in other parts of Europe, so it should be no surprise that members of the family came early to Louisiana.  An Alsatian-German family and a French-Creole family were living in the colony by the 1750s and settled on the river above New Orleans.  During the antebellum period, dozens of Foreign-French Bernards and Bernhards came to New Orleans from ports in Mexico and the Caribbean Basin as well as from France.  By the end of the antebellum period, non-Acadian Bernards could be found on the Avoyelles prairie south of Red River, on the Mississippi River from Pointe Coupée and Baton Rouge all the way down to New Orleans, and on Bayou Lafourche and lower Bayou Teche near their Acadian namesakes.  One French-Creole family at Baton Rouge sprang from French nobility.  

Judging by the number of slaves they held during the late antebellum period, some of the Bernards of South Louisiana lived well on their holdings along the river, the bayous, and especially on the western prairies.  ...  The majority of the Bernards who owned slaves, however, owned fewer than the 20 needed to qualify as planters.  And many members of the family held no slaves at all, at least none who appeared in the federal census slave schedules of 1850 and 1860. ...

Dozens of Bernards--Acadians, French and German Creoles, Anglos, and even Afro Creoles--served Louisiana in uniform during the War of 1861.  Amazingly, despite the hard service of many of them, none seem to have died in Confederate service.  ...

The family's name also is spelled Benard, Bernar, Bernardo.  [See Book Ten for the Acadian family's Louisiana "begats"]

Sources:  1850 U.S. Federal Census, Slave Schedules, Assumption, Avoyelles, East Baton Rouge, Jefferson, Lafayette, Lafourche Interior, Orleans, St. James, St. Landry, St. Martin, St. Mary, Vermilion, & West Baton Rouge parishes; 1860 U.S. Federal Census, Slave Schedules, Ascension, Assumption, East Baton Rouge, Iberville, Lafayette, Lafourche, Orleans, Pointe Coupee, St. Landry, St. Martin, Vermilion, & West Baton Rouge parishes;  AGE, Oct 2005, 64; Arsenault, Généalogie, 428-29, 846-58, 1654, 2011, 2066, 2421-23; Brasseaux, Foreign French, 1:44-45, 2:29-30, 3:24, 25, 26; BRDR, vols. 1a(rev.), 1b, 2, 3, 4, 5(rev.), 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11; Bunnell, French & Native North American Marriages, 22; Conrad, ed., The French Experience in Louisiana, 167, source for info. on Michel Bernhard; Dawdy, Devil's Empire, 179, 192n, source of quotes about Raphaël Bernard; De La Roque, "Tour of Inspection," Canadian Archives 1905, 2A:23-24, 42, 136, quotations from 24; Griffin, Attakapas Country, 241; Hébert, D., Acadians in Exile, 27-28, 406; Hébert, D., South LA Records, vols. 1, 2, 3, 4; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, vols. 1-A, 1-B, 2-A, 2-B, 2-C, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, CD; Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 232, 236, 251-52; Milling, Exile Without End, 40; NOAR, vols. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7; Oubre, Vacherie, 44-46; Perrin, W. H., SW LA, pt.2:253-54; Robichaux, Acadians in Châtellerault, 35, 58-59; Robichaux, German Coast Families, 110-15, 434, 436;  <raymondjohnson.net/genealogy/getperson.php?personID=I1595&tree=stewart>; Robichaux, Acadians in Nantes, 57, 95; Robichaux, Bayou Lafourche, 1770-98, 93, 175; West, Atlas of LA Surnames, 27-28, 151-52; White, DGFA-1, 124-30; White, DGFA-1 English, 28-29; Shane K. Bernard, Ph.D., descendant.

Settlement Abbreviations 
(present-day civil parishes that existed in 1861 are in parenthesis; hyperlinks on the abbreviations take you to brief histories of each settlement):

For a chronology of Acadian Arrivals in Louisiana, 1764-early 1800s, see Appendix.

The hyperlink attached to an individual's name is connected to a list of Acadian immigrants for a particular settlement and provides a different perspective on the refugee's place in family and community. 

NOTES

01.  Wall of Names, 11 (pl. 1R), calls him Jean-Baptiste BERNARD; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-A:56 (SM Cte.Hse.: OA-vol.3, #177; SM Ch.: v.2, #76), his marriage record, calls him Jean-Baptiste BERNARD, "from the parish of Acadie," gives his & his wife's parents' names, & says the witnesses to his marriage were François BROUSSARD, Claude BROUSSARD, Silvain BROUSSARD, Simon LEBLANC, Alexandre Chevalier DECLOUET, Jean-Baptiste BERNARD, Marguerite BROUSSARD, Jean-Gilhopre MERTERTIGO, Baptiste LAVOR, & Pierre BERNARD.

02.  Wall of Names, 11 (pl. 1R), calls him Jean-Baptiste BERNARD; Arsenault, Généalogie, 2421, says he was born in 1753; BRDR, 2:84, 258 (SJA-1, 38), his marriage record, calls him Jean-Baptiste BERNARD, gives his & his wife's parents' names, says his wife's father was deceased at the time of the marriage, & that the witnesses to his marriage were Jean ROGER & Joseph ARCENEAU; Hébert, D., South LA Records, 1:62 (Thib.Ct.Hse.: Succ.: 1821), his succession inventory record, calls him Jean Baptist BERNARD m. Magdalen DUGAT, & lists his children as Henriette m. Ptere MIRE, Heloise m. Joseph MORVAN, Maria Francisca m. Peter BLANCHARD, Michel Archangel, John Baptiste, Joseph, Maria Eugenia 21 yrs., Maria Feliciana m. Isidor GUILLOT, Elias, Maria Adele 19 yrs.  See also Bourgeois, Cabanocey, 167; De Ville, St. James Census, 1777, 13.

The Cabanocé census of 1766 & the St.-Jacques census of 1777 do not agree with Arsenault's birth year.  

04.  Wall of Names, 11 (pl. 1R), calls her Marguerite BERNARD; BRDR, 3:93 (SJA-4, 35), her burial record, calls her Marguerite BERNARD age about 83 yrs., nat. Acadia, wid. Jean Baptiste BERGERON, but does not give her parents' names.  See also Voorhies, J., Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 445.

05.  Wall of Names, 11 (pl. 1R), calls her Marie BERNARD.  

Why is she not in subsequent Cabanocé/St.-Jacques censuses (1769, 1777) with her family?  Did she die in childhood?

06.  Wall of Names, 33 (pl. 8L), calls her Marie-Blanche BERNARD, & lists her with her husband & 5 children; Arsenault, Généalogie, 2472, her husband's profile in the LA section, says his parents probablement were Joseph [DOIRON] & Marguerite TILLARD of Cobequid, calls her Marie-Blanche BERNARD, does not give her parents' names, says they were married in c1765 but gives no place of marriage, & that her husband died at St. Martinville on 22 Mar 1809; Robichaux, Acadians in Châtellerault, 35, Family No. 71, calls her Marie-Blanche BERNARD, says she was born in c1747 but gives no birthplace, does not give her parents' names, details her marriage, says they were married in c1765 but gives no place of marriage, does not give her husband's parents' names, provides the birth/baptismal record of son Jean-Baptiste-Cesar DOIRON, baptized 12 May 1775, Cenan, Vienne, whose godparents were Jean-Baptiste DUGAST & Marie-Appolitte DOIRON, & details the family's participation in the Poitou settlement of the early 1770s; Robichaux, Acadians in Nantes, 57, Family No. 106, calls her Marie-Blanche BERNARD, says she was born in c1747 but gives no birthplace, does not give her or her husband's parents' names, details her marriage, saying they were married in c1767 "probably at LeHavre," includes the birth/baptismal & death/burial records of son Jean-Louis DOIRON, baptized 5 Mar 1777, St.-Nicolas, Nantes, died age 9 mos. & buried 19 Dec 1777 at St.-Nicolas, Nantes, daughter Amable-Ursule DOIRON, baptized 11 May 1779, St.-Nicolas, Nantes, son Louis-Toussaint DOIRON, baptized 2 Nov 1781, St.-Martin de Chantenay, & son Jean-Charles DOIRON, baptized 1 Jul 1784, St.-Martin de Chantenay, & details the family's participation in the Poitou settlement of the early 1770s as well as their voyage to LA in 1785; Hébert, D., Acadian Families in Exile 1785, 34-35, calls her Marie-Blanche BERNARD, sa [Jean DOUAISON's] femme, age 43, on the embarkation list, Maria Blanca RAINARD, su [Juan Bautista LOUARON's] muger, on the debarkation list, & Marie-Blanche BERNARD, his [Jean-Baptiste BERNARD's] wife, age 43, on the complete listing, says she was in the 15th Family aboard Le Beaumont with her husband & 5 children, with the note "this family went on to Attakapas," says they married in c1765 but gives no place of marriage, does not include her or her husband's parents' names, says daughter Émelie was born 26 Oct 1766 but gives no birthplace, & that daughter Marie-Hyolithe-Honoré was born 13 Jul 1768 but gives no birthplace; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 2-A:64 (SM Ch.: v.4, #828), her burial record, calls her Anne BERNARD, "widow of Jean Baptiste DOIRON, native of Acadie and residing at La Pointe," says she died "17 May 1813 at age 64 years at the home of Jean LANDRY at L'ance du Vermilion," & was "buried ... in the parish cemetery," but does not give her parents' names.  See also Voorhies, J., Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 497.

Why did daughter Émilie, born at Le Havre in Oct 1766, not come to LA with them?  She would have been 19 in 1785.  Did she die young, or did she marry a fellow Acadian or a Frenchman who refused to emigrate to LA?  Note that the Robichaux volumes cited above do not include her with the family in their Poitou venture in the early 1770s, so she probably died young; she would have been age 7 when her family went to Poitou in 1773, & they certainly would have taken her with them.  For Émilie's baptismal record, see Hébert, D., Acadians in Exile, 113.  

Note that son Jean-Baptiste-Cesar, born in Poitou in May 1775, also did not go to LA with the family.  He would have been only age 10 in 1785, so he, too, must have died young.

Why does her burial record call her Anne?  Because her middle name was Blanche? 

07.  Wall of Names, 11 (pl. 1R), calls him Michel BERNARD.  See also Arceneaux, D. J., Attakapas Post in 1769, 7, 18, 37; <thecajuns.com/cardmoney.htm>.

08.  Wall of Names, 11 (pl. 1R), calls him Michel BERNARD, & lists him with his family.  See also Arceneaux, D. J., Attakapas Post in 1769, 18. 

Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-A: 58, 141 (SM Ch.: v.4, #15), a marriage record, calls the groom Michel [BERNARD], gives his & his wife's parents' names but no ages, & says the witnesses to the marriage were Michel TRAHAN, François BERNARD, Pierre VERRET, & Joseph MODENA.  Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-B: 50 (SM Ch.: v.4, #249), dated 17 Nov 1801, a burial record, calls the deceased Michel [BERNARD] "of Acadia," gives his parents' names, his wife's name, & says he was buried "at age 34 yrs. more or less."  However, Hebert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-A:58 (SM Ch.: v.1, p.15; SM Ch.: Slave Funeral Register v.1, #31), a burial record for a Michel BERNARD, dated 28 Oct 1765, says he was buried at age 9 mos. but does not give his parents' names.  Who else could this have been but Michel BERNARD's infant son?  Yet a Michel BERNARD, fils appears in the Attakapas census of 1769, age 5, with his family.  Was this son named Michel, fils actually age 5 months in Dec 1769, when the census likely was taken?  See D. J. Arceneaux.  Note that the 17 Nov 1801 burial record, cited above, says Michel BERNARD, fils was "of Acadia," though the age given at the time of his death gives him a birth year of c1767, "more or less."  So was the Michel, fils of the census record a second son of that name, born soon after the death of the first Michel, fils?  This researcher suspects so.  See Book Ten.  See also "Ristigouche, 24 Oct 1760"

09.  Wall of Names, 11 (pl. 1R), calls him Pierre BERNARD; BRDR, 2:74, 84a,  (SJA-1, 42a), the record of his second marriage, calls him Pierre BERNARD, gives his & his wife's parents' names, says "both parties Acadian by nationality," & that the witnesses to his marriage were Simon LEBLANC & Bonaventure GODEN.  See also "Ristigouche, 24 Oct 1760." 

The date & location of his first marriage come from AGE, Oct 2005, p. 64, an undocumented secondary source that should be used with caution.

10.  Wall of Names, 11 (pl. 1R), calls him Pierre BERNARD; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 2-B:71 (SM Ch.: v.4, #1431), his death/burial record, calls him Pierre BERNARD dit Pierrot Perret, native of Acadie, inhabitant of "'au quartier du Carencros' [the Carencro area]," died ... at age about 70 years at his home," "buried ... in the cemetery of PERET (PERRY) of Vermillion."

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