APPENDICES

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

MELANÇON

[muh-LONH-sonh, mell-onh-sonh]

ACADIA

In spring of 1657, as part of the occupying English force under the command of Sir Thomas Temple, Pierre Laverdure arrived in Acadia with his English wife Priscilla ____, whom he had married in England in c1631.  With them were their three children, all sons: Pierre, fils, born in c1632 probably in England; Charles dit La Ramée, born in c1643; and Jean or John.  The family lived at former Governor Charles La Tour's fort at the mouth of Rivière St.-Jean before crossing to Port-Royal, where Pierre, père may have served as tutor to the children of the deceased former governor, Charles de Menou de Charnizay, sieur d'Aulnay. 

The Melansons, as they came to be called, were an unusual Acadian family, at least in the beginning.  Pierre, père was not the typical French peasant or petit-bourgeois who came to the colony as a farmer, worker, or skilled craftsman, escaping whatever it was in France that compelled him to settle in a colonial wilderness.  Pierre, père was French, but he was a Huguenot, not Roman Catholic.  His wife was a Protestant Englishwoman, and his three sons were born in England and raised as Protestants.  Pierre, père came to Acadia during the second English occupation of the colony.  His two older sons married during the occupation, and their wives were typical Acadians--Roman Catholics whose religion required a spouse to be of the same faith so that a priest could sanctify the marriage.  And so Pierre, fils and Charles abjured their Protestant faith and, for reasons yet unexplained, called themselves Mellanson, not Laverdure, though Pierre, fils used his father's surname as a dit.  When the Treaty of Breda of 1667 retroceded the colony to France, the married sons' parents and youngest brother retreated to Boston to avoid religious persecution in a Catholic-controlled colony, but Pierre, fils and Charles remained at Port-Royal with their Acadian wives.  In the decades that followed, despite the unusual history of their family, these former Protestants and their Catholic descendants became typical Acadians: 

Pierre, fils, born in England in c1632, married Marie-Marguerite, called Marguerite, daughter of  Phillipe Mius d'Entremont, a chief lieutenant of former governor Charles La Tour and the seigneur of Pobomcoup near Cap-Sable, and Madeleine Hélie, in c1665, probably at Port-Royal.  Pierre, fils, a tailor as well as a farmer, became one of the most prosperous settlers at Port-Royal.  During the early 1680s, he pioneered the Acadian settlement of Grand-Pré in the Minas Basin and served as captain of militia as well as procureur fiscal, or seigneurial agent, for that community.  In his final days, he also served as a deputy from Minas to the new British colonial council at Annapolis Royal.  He and Marguerite had 11 children, five sons and six daughters.  Pierre, fils died at Grand-Pré after 1714, in his early 80s.  His daughters married into the Landry, Bourg dit Bellehumeur, Bugeaud, LeBlanc, Le Poupet de Saint-Aubin de La Boularderie, and Jacau de Fiedmont families.  Two of the older daughters' husbands served as officials at Minas, one of them as a surgeon, and the two younger daughters' husbands were French army officers stationed in the colony whose families were a part of the lesser nobility.  Four of Pierre, fils's five sons also created families of their own. 

Oldest son Philippe, born at Port-Royal in c1666, married Marie, daughter of Claude Dugas and Françoise Bourgeois, probably at Grand-Pré in c1695.  They had 11 children, including three sons who married into the LeBlanc and Trahan families.  Their daughters married into the Babin, Hébert, Landry, Thibodeau, and Trahan families.  Philippe died at Grand-Pré in June 1744, in his late 70s.

Pierre dit Pedro, born at Port-Royal in c1670, married Marie, daughter of Martin Blanchard and Françoise LeBlanc, in c1695.  They had 11 children also, including two sons who married into the Thériot and Hébert families.  Their daughters married into the Bourg, Coupiau dit Desaleur, Hébert, Landry, Naquin, Pichot, and Thériot families. 

Jean, born probably at Port-Royal in c1681, married Marguerite, another daughter of Claude Dugas and Françoise Bourgeois, probably at Grand-Pré in January 1701.  They had 10 children, including five sons who married into the LeBlanc, Blanchard, Gautrot, Hébert, Broussard, and Launay families.  Their daughters married into the Boudrot, Hébert, Richard, Thériot, and Thibodeau families. 

Youngest son Paul, born probably at Grand-Pré in c1691, married Marie, daughter of Germain Thériot and Anne Richard, at Grand-Pré in November 1712.  They had nine children, including four sons who married into the Benoit, Breau, and Brun families.  Their daughters married into the Bergeron dit d'Ambroise, Bonnevie dit Beaumont, Brun, Cormier, LeBlanc, and Thébeau families. 

The great majority of the Melansons who emigrated to Louisiana came from this branch of the family.  Jean's descendants are especially numerous there.

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

.

Charles dit La Ramée, born in England in 1643, married Marie, daughter of Abraham Dugas and Marguerite Doucet, at Port-Royal in c1663.  Unlike his older brother Pierre, fils, who moved to the Minas Basin, Charles remained at Port-Royal, where he died in either 1700 or 1701, in his late 30s.  He and Marie had 14 children, nine daughters and five sons, all born at Port-Royal and all of whom created families of their own.  Their daughters married into the Basset, St.-Étienne de la Tour, Robichaud, Boudrot, Belliveau dit Bideau, Bourg, Cyr, and Landry families.    

Oldest son Charles, fils, born in c1675, married Anne dite Jeanne, daughter of François Bourg and Marguerite Boudrot, probably at Port-Royal in c1700.  They had eight children, including three sons who married into the Granger and Lanoue families.  Their daughters married into the Godin dit Bellefontaine and Landry families.  Charles, fils died at Québec in September 1757, in early 80s.

Ambroise, born in March 1685, married first to Françoise, daughter of Bernard Bourg and Françoise Brun, at Port-Royal in November 1705, and then to Marguerite, daughter of Jean Comeau l'aîné and Françoise Hébert, at Annapolis Royal in January 1719.  Ambroise and Françoise had nine children, including two sons who married into the Aucoin and Hébert families.  Their daughters married into the Boudrot and Thibodeau families.  Marguerite gave him 12 more children, including three sons who married into the Melanson, Trahan, and LeBlanc families.  Their daughters married into the Bastarache, Dugas, Lanoue, Morisset, Moulaison, Rivard dit Dufresne, and Thibeau families.  Ambroise died at Québec in August 1757, in his early 70s.

Ambroise's twin Pierre married Anne, daughter of Laurent Granger and Marie Landry, at Annapolis Royal in November 1712.  They had five children, including a son who married into the Richard family.  Their daughters married into the Doucet dit Mézange and Dugas families.  Pierre died at Port-Royal in August 1725, age 40. 

Claude, born in c1688, married Marguerite, daughter of Jean Babineau and Marguerite Boudrot, at Annapolis Royal in January 1714.  They had seven children, including two sons who married into the Bourg and Robichaud families.  Their daughters married into the Berier dit Mâchefer, Dugas, and Savoie families.  Claude died at Port-Royal in July 1737, in his late 40s.

Youngest son Jean dit Jani, born in c1690, married Marie-Madeleine, daughter of Denis Petitot dit Saint-Seine and Marie Robichaud, at Annapolis Royal in January 1714.  They had ten children, including three sons who married into the Breau, Landry, and Langlois families.  Their daughters married into the Belliveau, Breau, Granger, and Part families.  Jean died at Cherbourg, France, in February 1760, in his early 70s.

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

In 1755, descendants of Pierre Laverdure the Huguenot and his Melanson sons could be found at Annapolis Royal, Grand-Pré, Chignecto, Petitcoudiac in the trois-rivières area west of Chignecto, and on Île St. Jean.

LE GRAND DÉRANGEMENT

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

LOUISIANA:  RIVER SETTLEMENTS

Melansons were among the earliest Acadians to find refuge in Louisiana.  The first of them--six members of the family--arrived from Halifax in 1765.  They settled at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques on the river above New Orleans where 20 Acadians from Georgia had settled the year before:

Françoise Melanson of Minas, age 56, widow of Joseph Thériot, came with four sons, ages 20 to 12.  One of her sons moved to the Opelousas District, but the others remained with her on the river. 

Marie-Josèphe Breau, age 34, widow of Paul-Honoré Melanson, came with five children--Joseph, age 13; Marie, age 12; Jean-Baptiste, age 9; Anastasie, age 6; and Dominique-Jean or Jean-Dominique, age 3.  During the 1770s, they crossed the Atchafalaya Basin to the Attakapas District and created a western branch of the family, but one of Marie-Josèphe's sons returned to the river during the 1790s:

Descendants of Jean-Baptiste MELANÇON (c1756-1825; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Paul)

Jean-Baptiste, called Baptiste, second son of Paul-Honoré Melanson and Marie-Josèphe Breau, born in Acadia in c1756 during Le Grand Dérangement, ended up with his family as a prisoner at Halifax in the early 1760s.  He followed his widowed mother and siblings to Louisiana from Halifax via Cap-Français, St.-Domingue, in 1765 and settled with them at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques on the river.  Spanish authorities counted them on the left, or east, bank of the river at St.-Jacques in 1766 and on the other side of the river, still at St.-Jacques, in 1769.  By 1777, he, his siblings, his mother, and his stepfather, François Moreau, had moved from the river to the Attakapas District, where Jean-Baptiste married Marguerite, daughter of fellow Acadians Charles Bergeron and Isabelle Arceneaux, in c1786.  Marguerite also had come to Louisiana from Halifax in 1765 and had gone to Cabanocé.  They lived at Attakapas until the early 1790s and then returned to St.-Jacques.  Their daughters married into the Richard family on the river.  Baptiste died in St. James Parish in July 1825, age 68.  None of his sons seems to have created a family of his own, so this family line, except for its blood, may not have survived in the Bayou State. 

1

Their oldest son, name unrecorded, born probably at Attakapas in c1789, died there in November 1763, age 4. 

2

Paul-Eugène, born at St.-Jacques in September 1797, may have died young. 

3

Youngest son Séverin, born at St.-Jacques in February 1800 and baptized there the following April, remained in St. James Parish, where he became a successful farmer.  He died in St. James Parish in April 1883, age 83.  He never married.  

~

The largest group of Melansons--23 individuals, most of them part of an extended family from Grand-Pré that ended up at Snow Hill, Maryland--reached Louisiana in September 1766 after a three-month voyage from Baltimore--the first contingent of Acadian exiles from that British colony.  Three of the families were headed by widows, and two of them were orphans without parents.  Spanish authorities sent them to Cabanocé/St.-Jacques, where they settled near their cousins already there: 

Madeleine LeBlanc of Grand-Pré age 54, widow of Jean-Baptiste Melanson, came with three unmarried children--Jean-Baptiste, age 25; Charles, age 23; and Marie-Rose, age 21.  Marie-Rose married a LeBlanc cousin, remained on the river, and died at Ascension, upriver from St.-Jacques, in December 1781, in her late 30s.  Her older brothers also married and remained on the river. 

Paul Melanson, age 36, Madeleine LeBlanc's oldest son, came with wife Marie Thériot, age 30, and four children--Philippe, age 16; Marie-Madeleine, age 10; Jean-Baptiste, age 7; and Marie-Anne, age 5.  They had no more children in Louisiana.  Paul died probably at Ascension by August 1770, when his wife was listed as a widow in the census there.  Marie remarried to Amand, daughter of fellow Acadian Joseph Préjean, of Chepoudy and widower of Madeleine Martin, at Ascension in c1773 and followed him to the Attakapas District.  Her Melançon daughters married into the Breaux and Landry families; one of them settled at Attakapas, but the other remained on the river.  Son Philippe remained on the river, but younger son Jean-Baptiste settled at Attakapas. 

Osite Melanson, age 34, Madeleine LeBlanc's oldest daughter, came with husband Jean-Pierre LeBlanc, age 39, his widowed mother Madeleine LeBlanc, age unrecorded, and three children, ages 5 to 1.  Osite was pregnant when she reached Louisiana and gave birth to a son in early 1767.  Jean-Pierre died probably at St.-Jacques in the 1770s, and Osite remarried to Jean-Baptiste, called Baptiste, son of fellow Acadian Pierre Bourgeois and widower of Marie-Madeleine Bourg, at St.-Jacques in February 1776.  She gave him more children at St.-Jacques and died there in February 1803, in her early 60s. 

Joseph Melanson, age 31, Madeleine LeBlanc's second son, came with wife Anne Landry, age 26, and two children--Olivier, age 6; and Marguerite, age 3.  Anne gave him another son, Simon, at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques in 1768.  Anne remarried to fellow Acadian Augustin Broussard at St.-Jacques in c1769 or 1770 and followed him to the Attakapas District, where her Melançon children also settled. 

Alexandre Melanson, age 49, Madeleine LeBlanc's brother-in-law, came with second wife Osite Hébert, age 32, and five children--Madeleine, age 17; Pierre-Jacques, age 16; Joseph, age 12; Étienne, age 10; and Paul-Olivier, age 4.  Alexandre died probably at Cabanocé before July 1769, in his early 50s.  Daughter Madeleine Melançon married into the Godin dit Bellefontaine family and remained on the river.  Most of Alexandre's sons remained on the river.  The exception was Charles, born in Louisiana, who moved to the western prairies in the 1790s. 

Marguerite Broussard of Port-Royal, age 46, widow of Jacques Melanson, Alexandre's younger brother, came with three unmarried daughters--Madeleine, age 22; Anne-Élisabeth, age 20; and Marguerite, age 19.  Marguerite Broussard did not remarry.  Her daughters married into the Louvière, Mire, and Part families and remained on the river.  Daughter Marguerite, widow of Pierre Part III, died near Convent, St. James Parish, in April 1841; the priest who recorded her burial said that she died at "age 98 yrs.," but she was closer to 94. 

Orphan Marguerite Melanson of Grand-Pré, age 19, niece of Marguerite LeBlanc, came with younger brother Joseph, age 11.  Marguerite married Pierre-Amand, called Amand, son of fellow Acadians Chares Landry and Marie LeBlanc, probably at Cabanocé in c1768 and followed him to the Attakapas District.  Brother Joseph, who was given the dit Dios Rose in Louisiana, also married a Landry but remained on the river. 

Descendants of Alexandre MELANÇON (1717-late 1760s; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils)

Alexandre, fourth son of Jean Melanson and Marguerite Dugas, born at Minas in 1717, married Marie-Josèphe, daughter of Jean Gautrot and Anne LeBlanc, in c1740 probably at Minas.  Between 1741 and 1748, Marie-Josèphe gave Alexandre four children, two sons and two daughters.  She died at Minas in March 1748, probably from the rigors of childbirth.  Alexandre remarried to Osite Hébert probably at Minas in c1749.  Between 1750 and 1754, Osite gave Alexandre three more children, a daughter and two sons.  The British deported the family to Maryland in the fall of 1755.  Between 1756 and 1762, Osite gave Alexandre two more sons in the Chesapeake colony.  The family emigrated to Spanish Louisiana in 1766, reaching New Orleans in September of that year.  They followed other exiles from Maryland to Cabanocé on the river above New Orleans.  Melanson also says the family appears "on the list of Acadians at New Orleans, in July 1767," but they do not; Alexandre and his family would have been settled at Cabanocé by then.  Osite gave him another son probably at Cabanocé in early 1768--10 children in all, seven sons and three daughters, by two wives.  Alexandre died in his late 50s or early 60s probably at Cabanocé before September 1769, when Osite was counted in a census there as a widow.  Only one of Alexandre's daughters married, into the Godin family on the river.  Five of his seven sons, all by second wife Osite, also created families in the Spanish colony.  Four of them settled on the river, but the youngest son, born in Louisiana, settled on the western prairies. 

1

Third son Pierre-Jacques dit Santiago, called Jacques, from his father's second wife, born probably at Minas in c1750, was exiled to Maryland in 1755.  Colonial officials counted him with his family at Snow Hill in July 1763.  He came to Louisiana in 1766 with his widowed mother and siblings and followed them to Cabanocé/St.-Jacques, where Spanish officials counted them on the left, or east, bank of the river in 1769.  He married Élisabeth, or Isabelle, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Landry and Ursule Landry, at St.-Jacques in July 1773.  They were still living on the east bank of the river there in 1777.  Their son Joseph was baptized at St.-Jacques, age unrecorded, in July 1774; Paul-Hippolyte or Hippolyte-Paul, age unrecorded, in December 1776; Emanuel- or Manuel-Maurice, called Maurice and Marius, was born at St.-Jacques in April 1787; Simon in November 1791; Rosémond in June 1794; and Édouard in January 1798 but died at age 4 1/2 in August 1802.  Their daughters married Gautreaux brothers.  Jacques, in his late 60s, remarried to Marie Christine, called Christine, daughter of fellow Acadians Augustin Landry and Anne Marie Forest and widow of Grégoire Melançon, at the St. Gabriel church, Iberville Parish, in January 1817.  She evidently gave him no more children.  Jacques died near St. Gabriel in February 1829; the priest who recorded the burial said that Jacques was "age 75 yrs." when he died; he was closer to 79.  Four of his six sons created families of their own.  One of his sons by his first wife settled on upper Bayou Lafourche.  The others remained on the river, in St. James and Ascension parishes. 

1a

Joseph, by his father's first wife, married Apolline, daughter of fellow Acadians Marcel LeBlanc and Marie-Josèphe Breaux, at St.-Jacques in November 1796.  Their son Joseph, fils was born at St. James in December 1803, Paul in June 1808, Joseph Sylvère, called Sylvère, in December 1812, and Paul Trasimond, called Trasimond, in April 1817.  Their daughters married into the Babin, Champagne, Delanoir, and LeBlanc families.  Joseph died near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in September 1844, age 70, a widower.  He had either led or followed his four sons to upper Bayou Lafourche. 

Joseph, fils married cousin Marie Henriette, called Henriette, daughter of fellows Acadian Amand Gautreaux and Françoise Landry, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in February 1827; they had to secure a dispensation for fourth degree of consanguinity in order to marry.  They settled on upper Bayou Lafourche. 

Joseph Sylvère married Céleste or Célesie, daughter of fellow Acadians Simonet Boudreaux and Céleste Babin, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in April 1837.  They remained on upper Bayou Lafourche. 

Paul Trasimond married Eulalie, daughter of Jean Martinez and Constance Plaisance, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in November 1840.  They also remained on upper Bayou Lafourche. 

Paul died near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in April 1841, age 32.  He probably did not marry. 

1b

Paul-Hippolyte, by his father's first wife, married Euphrosine, daughter of fellow Acadians Pierre Lanoux and Catherine LeBlanc, at St.-Jacques in January 1798.  Their son Paul-Roman or -Romain was born at St.-Jacques in October 1798, Joseph le jeune in February 1801 but died at age 6 months the following August, and Simon le jeune, also called Simon George, was born in October 1809.  Their daughters married into the Grignon and Mulheinrick families. 

Paul Romain married Élisabeth, called Betze, daughter of Charles Hymel and his Acadian wife Émélie Prejean of Ascension Parish, at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in August 1825.  Their son Sosthènes, baptized as Paul Romain, was born near Convent in August 1826, Joseph Ulgère or Ludgère, called Ludgère, in February 1832, and Adam in December 1834 but died the following January.  One of his sons moved to the western prairies after the War of 1861-65 but may have returned to St. James Parish. 

Sosthènes married Laurenza, daughter of Martin Isaac Bernier and his Acadian wife Domithilde Gautreaux, at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in February 1847.  Their son Joseph Holestang or Olestan was born in Ascension Parish in October 1847 but died at age 15 1/2 in January 1863, Joseph Ludgère le jeune was born in October 1849, and Paul Justilien in March 1852, age 25.  Sosthène died in Ascension Parish in March 1853, age 25.

Ludgère married Marie Scholastique, called Scholastique, daughter of fellow Acadians Noël Richard and Marie Joséphine Babin and widow of Dumesnil Mire, at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in May 1862.  Their son Noël Joseph Ludger was born in St. Landry Parish in December 1866.  A daughter born in May 1869 was baptized at the Convent church in May 1870, so they may have returned to the river. 

Simon le jeune married cousin Marie Émilie, Eunice, Émeline, or Mélanie, daughter of fellow Acadians Élie Lanoux and Marie Poulonne Gautreaux, at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in February 1833.  Their son Arsène Bruno was born near Convent in October 1835, Élie Evariste, called Evariste, in March 1837, Hippolyte Lésiphore or Onésiphore, called Onésiphore, in June 1839, Simon Buren or Darine in June 1841 but died at age 4 1/2 in December 1845, Aristide was born in January 1845 but died at age 2 1/2 in November 1847, Richard was born in April 1847, Joseph Edmond, called Edmond, in July 1851 but died at age 4 in October 1855, Joseph Villeore was born in January 1855, and a child, name and age unrecorded, perhaps a son, died in April 1858.  Their daughter married into the Theriot family.  Simon le jeune remarried to Anaïse, daughter of fellow Acadian Michel Gaudin and Scholastique Hébert and widow of Trasimond Lanoux, his first wife's brother, at the Convent church in February 1863; Simon was 52 years old at the time of the wedding.  They remained near Convent.  Their son Simon, fils died 10 days after his birth in April 1866, and George Jean Baptiste was born in June 1868. 

Evariste, by his father's first wife, married M. L. Eudoxie, called Eudoxie, daughter of Victor Letullier and Berthilde Legendre, at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in February 1860.  Their Joseph Ernest was born near Convent in May 1864, Louis Henault in November 1865, Evariste Élie in September 1868, and Joseph Ulysse in August 1870. 

Richard, by his father's first wife, married Marie, daughter of fellow Acadians Sosthène Breaux and Carmelite Guidry, at the Gonzales church, Ascension Parish, in April 1866. 

Onésiphore, by his father's first wife, married Estelle, also called Élisabeth, daughter of fellow Acadians Eugène Gaudin and Adèle Bourgeois at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in February 1867.  They had a daughter who died in January 1868, 10 days after her birth; Estelle probably died also.  Onésiphore remarried to Delphine, another daughter of Eugène Gaudin and Adèle Bourgeois, at the Convent church in February 1869. 

1c

Marius from his father's first wife, married Marie Marceline, called Marceline, daughter of fellow Acadians Simon Gautreaux and Marie Josèphe Duhon, at the Donaldson church, Ascension Parish, in April 1811.  They settled on upper Bayou Lafourche. 

1d

Simon, by his father's first wife, married Émélite, called Melite, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Clouâtre and Marie Poirier, at the St. James church, St. James Parish, in February 1813.  Their son Simon, fils was born in St. James Parish in January 1814, and Théodule in December 1814.  Simon, père died near Convent, St. James Parish, in March 1840; the priest who recorded his burial said that Simon died at "age 50 years"; he was 48.  Neither of his sons married, so his family line died with him. 

1e

Rosémond, by his father's first wife, died in Ascension Parish in February 1834, age 39.  He did not marry. 

2

Joseph, by his father's second wife, born probably at Minas in c1754, was exiled to Maryland as an infant in 1755.  Colonial officials counted him with his family at Snow Hill in July 1763.  He came to Louisiana in 1766 with his widowed mother and siblings and followed them to Cabanocé/St.-Jacques, where Spanish officials counted them on the left, or east, bank of the river in 1769 and 1777.  He married Anastasie, teenage daughter of fellow Acadians Alexis Breaux and Madeleine Trahan, at St.-Jacques in May 1779.  Anastasie's father was one of the Breau brothers who led the third expedition of Acadian exiles from Maryland in 1768 and gave Spanish Governor Ulloa so much trouble that year.  Their son Pierre-Paul was baptized at St.-Jacques, age unrecorded, in October 1780 and may have died young.  Anastasie was only age 20 when she died in January 1783, probably from the rigors of childbirth.  Joseph remarried to Marie-Josèphe, daughter of fellow Acadians Marcel LeBlanc and Marie-Josèphe Breaux, sister of his younger brother Paul's wife, at nearby Ascension in September 1784.  Their son Hippolyte-Paul was born at St.-Jacques in October 1786; Joseph, fils in July 1788; Blaise-Alexandre in February 1791 but may have died young; and Lucien was born at Ascension in March 1803 and also may have died young.  Joseph and Marie-Josèphe's daughters married into the Landry and LeBlanc families.  Only one of Joseph's five sons created a family of his own, and settled in St. James Parish.  Several of his grandsons moved the western prairies. 

2a

Hippolyte-Paul, called Paul, from his father's second wife, died near Convent, St. James Parish, in June 1814, age 27.  He may not have married. 

2b

Joseph, fils, by his father's second wife, married cousin Constance, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph LeBlanc and Pélagie Doiron, at the St. James church, St. James Parish, in February 1809.  Their son Joseph III was born in St. James Parish in February 1813, Marcellin in July 1818, a son, name unrecorded, died at "age about 15 days" in August 1821, Constant Paul was born in March 1824, Marcellin Camille, called Camille, in October 1829, Simon Rosémé or Osémé, also called Osémé Simon, in June 1830, Robert Flegier or Phlegie Robert in May 1831, and Pierre Ernest in February 1832.  Their daughters married LeBlanc and Melançon cousins.  Joseph, fils died in St. James Parish in June 1833; the priest who recorded his burial said that Joseph was 47 years old when he died; he was 44.  Six of his sons married.  Two of them married sisters, and one of them settled on the western prairies before returning to the river.  Before and after the War of 1861-65, two more sons also moved to the prairies. 

Joseph III married Marguerite Uranie, called Uranie, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Louis Bernard and Aspasie Dugas, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in September 1836.  They lived on the river for a few years and then returned to the western prairies, where Joseph III remarried. 

Marcellin married Eulalie, daughter of Étienne Gabriel de la Morandière and his Acadian wife Elisa Richard, at the Opelousas church, St. Landry Parish, in April 1844.  They remained on the prairies, where Marcellin remarried. 

Phlegie Robert married Marie Eulalie, called Eulalie, another daughter of Jean Louis Bernard and Aspasie Dugas, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in June 1854.  They lived briefly in Ascension Parish before returning to the western prairies, but they were back in St. James Parish in the early 1860s.

Pierre Ernest died "at his mother[']" in St. James Parish in September 1854, age 22.  He did not marry. 

Constant Paul married Hélène Félicité Élodie, called Élodie, daughter of Joseph Paul Fabre and Amélie Perrette, at the St. James church, St. James Parish, in May 1855.  Their son Joseph Louis Charles was born in St. James Parish in May 1856. 

Camille, at age 36, married Marie Philomène, daughter of Jean Baptiste Dejean and Julie Nezat, at the Opelousas church, St. Landry Parish, in January 1866.  One wonders if this was his first marriage.  They evidently had no children. 

Osémé Simon married first cousin Marie Aurelia, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Jacques LeBlanc and Marie Landry, at the St. James church, St. James Parish, in April 1867; they had to secure a dispensation for second and third degrees of consanguinity in order to marry.  They settled in Ascension Parish, perhaps near the boundary with St. James.  Their son Joseph Lullus was born in Ascension Parish in October 1870. 

3

Étienne, by his father's second wife, born probably in Maryland in c1756, was counted with his family at Snow Hill, Maryland, in July 1763.  He came to Louisiana in 1766 with his widowed mother and siblings and followed them to Cabanocé/St.-Jacques, where Spanish officials counted them on the left, or east, bank of the river in 1769 and 1777.  He married Ludivine, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean-Charles Breaux and Marie Benoit, at St.-Jacques in April 1780.  Their son Jean-Henri, called Henri, was baptized at St.-Jacques, age unrecorded, in August 1781; Étienne, fils, was born at St.-Jacques in the early 1780s; and Alexandre le jeune in October 1786.  Étienne, père died by January 1789, in his early 30s, when his wife remarried to an Arceneaux at St.-Jacques.  His three sons settled in St. James Parish.  A grandson moved to upper Bayou Lafourche in the early 1840s. 

3a

Henri married cousin Marguerite, daughter of fellow Acadians Joachim dit Bénoni Mire and Madeleine Melançon, at St. James in February 1804.  Their twin sons François Étienne, called Étienne le jeune, and Pierre Alex or Henri were born at St. James in March 1806, Joseph Adrien in July 1808, and Jean Hermogène, called Hermogène, in January 1811.  Henri died near Convent, St. James Parish, in November 1817, age 36.  His oldest son moved to upper Bayou Lafourche, but a younger son remained in St. James Parish. 

Étienne le jeune married Marie Reine or Irène, daughter of fellow Acadians Paul Olivier LeBlanc and Émélie Lalande, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in February 1833.  They lived near Convent, St. James Parish, before moving to upper Bayou Lafourche in the early 1840s.  He remarried twice there. 

Pierre Henri married cousin Pélagie, daughter of fellow Acadians Éloi Landry and Madeleine Melançon, at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in November 1834; they had to secure a dispensation for third degree of consanguinity in order to marry.  Their son Pierre Henri, fils was baptized at the Convent church, age 2 months, 2 days, in November 1835 but died at age 11 1/2 in May 1847, and Joseph Bienvenu, called Bienvenu, was born in August 1839.  Pierre may have died near Convent in October 1855; the priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Pierre died at "age 45 yrs."; this Pierre would have been age 49. 

Bienvenu married Aglae, daughter of fellow Acadians Zénon Arceneaux and Euphémie LeBlanc, at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in June 1856.  They settled near the boundary between St. James and Ascension parishes.  Their son Joseph Henry was born in June 1857, Louis Alfred in September 1858, Joseph Bienvenu in April 1863, and François Clément in January 1868. 

Youngest son Hermogène was an unmarried farmer living on the east bank of the river in St. James Parish in 1850.  In his household was 19-year-old Oscar Breaux, probably an engagé.  Hermogène died in Ascension Parish in April 1853, a month shy of age 40.  He did not marry. 

3b

Étienne, fils married Marie-Louise, called Louise, daughter of fellow Acadians Pierre Lanoux and Catherine LeBlanc, at St.-Jacques in April 1803.  Their son Zéphirin was born near Convent, St. James Parish, in February 1808, Victorin or Victor in May 1812, Marcellin in September 1814, and Egesippe Dorestan or Dorestan Egesippe in c1824.  Their daughters married into the Boudreaux, Bourgeois, Chase, Landry, and LeBlanc families.  Étienne, fils died near Convent in December 1825; the priest who recorded the burial said that Étienne was "age 33" when he died, but, judging by his marriage date, he probably was in his early 40s.   His four sons settled in St. James and Ascension parishes.  In the early 1860s, one of his grandsons moved to Pointe Coupee Parish, where few Acadians lived. 

Zéphirin married Marie Faralie, called Faralie or Foralie, daughter of fellow Acadians Pierre Paul Bourgeois and Scholastique Babin, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in June 1828.  They lived on the river near the boundary of Ascension and St. James parishes before settling near the boundary between Ascension and Assumption parishes.  Their son Étienne Esteve, called Esteve, was born near Convent, St. James Parish, in March 1831, an infant son, name unrecorded, died 6 days after his birth in August 1833, Pierre Cleopha was born in Ascension Parish in September 1843, and Joseph Optime near Paincourtville, Assumption Parish, in May 1846.  Their daughters married into the Bergeron, Crochet, and Melançon families.  Zéphirin died in Ascension Parish in January 1852, age 44. 

Esteve married Ethelvina, daughter of fellow Acadian Landry Babin and Marie Louise Landry and widow of Aulime LeBlanc, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in July 1852.  Their son Hippolyte Franklin was born in Ascension Parish in August 1854, and Étienne Timothée in January 1857. 

Joseph Optime died in Ascension Parish in August 1865, age 19, before he could marry.  One wonders if his death was war-related. 

Victorin married Marie Sylvanie, daughter of fellow Acadians Michel Boudreaux and Théotiste Bergeron, at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in September 1834.  They had a son named Victorin, fils.  Victorin, père remarried to Catherine, daughter of Christophe Webre and Félicité Rome, at the Convent church in May 1848.  Their son Louis was born in Ascension Parish in August 1856, Étienne le jeune in December 1858, and François Xavier in October 1861 but died at age 2 in September 1863.  Their daughter married into the Landry family before 1870. 

Victorin, fils, by his father's first wife, married first cousin Félicie, also called Perpétué, daughter of fellow Acadians Zéphirin Melançon and Marie Farelite Bourgeois, his uncle and aunt, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in May 1858; they had to secure a dispensation for second degree of consanguinity in order to marry.  Their son Constant Michel was born in Ascension Parish in March 1859, Pierre Gustave in Pointe Coupee Parish in November 1861, Joseph Edmé in Ascension Parish in April 1864 but died the following August, and Casimir Léo was born in March 1866. 

Marcellin married cousin Marie Élisabeth or Élisabeth Marie, daughter of fellow Acadians Léger Landry and Anne Élise Babin, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in April 1847; they had to secure a dispensation for third degree of consanguinity in order to marry.  Their son Stanislas Marcellin was born in Ascension Parish in May 1848, and Étienne Léger in December 1860. 

Egesippe Dorestan married cousin Marie Désirée, called Désirée, daughter of fellow Acadians Pierre Comeaux and Hortense LeBlanc, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in May 1847; they had to secure a dispensation for fourth degree of consanguinity in order to marry.  Their son Étienne Nemorin was baptized at the Donaldsonville church, age 2 months, in January 1850, Pierre Emau or Edmond, called Edmond, was born in November 1853 but died at age 11 in October 1864, Egesippe Désiré was born in August 1857, Paul Théophile, called Théophile, in August 1859 but died at age 6 in October 1865, Joseph Beauregard was born in September 1861 but died at age 6 in October 1867, and Joseph Arthur was born in September 1866.  Their daughters married into the Mollere and Rodrigue families by 1870.  Dorestan died in Ascension Parish in September 1867, age 43.  One can only imagine wife Désirée's suffering during the early autumn of 1867. 

3c

Alexandre le jeune married Héloise or Éloise, also called Louisa, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Charles Arceneaux and Marie-Josèphe Babin, at St. James in February 1807.  A child, name and age unrecorded, died near Convent, St. James Parish, in July 1810, another child, name and age unrecorded, died in August 1810, Hermogène was born in c1813, Marcel or Marcellus in February 1814 but died at age 3 1/2 in September 1817, Florentin was born in March 1816, Faustin in May 1819, Félix in March 1825, Joseph Romain or Ramire in June 1829, Valmire or Volmir in October 1832, and Victorin le jeune in May 1835.  Their daughters married into the Bertaud (French Creole, not Acadian) and LeBlanc familiesby 1870.  Alexandre died near Convent in June 1844; the priest who recorded the burial said that Alexandre died at "age 52 yrs."; he was 57.  Six of his sons settled in St. James Parish. 

Florentin married Élize, Lise, or Lize, daughter of fellow Acadians Alexis LeBlanc and Parosine LeBlanc, at the St. James church in June 1853.  Their son Joseph Florentin was born in May 1854, and Joseph Octave in November 1869.  In February 1860, Célestine Moncelle, a mulatto and wife of Joseph Prescott, a slave, gave Florentin a son, Adolphe.  Florentin died in St. James Parish in June 1870.  The Convent priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Florentin died at "age 53 years"; he was 54. 

Faustin married Carmélite, also called Marie Marcelline, daughter of fellow Acadians Paul LeBlanc and Cécolise Gautreaux, at the Convent church in January 1839.  Carmélite gave him a daughter soon after the marriage.  Faustin died near Convent in March 1841; the priest who recorded his burial said that Faustin died at "age 23 yrs."; he was 21.  His daughter married into the Peytavin family, so the blood of this family line survived. 

Hermogène married Marcelline, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Baptiste Louvière and Marguerite LeBlanc, at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in January 1843.  Their son Jean Jacques Avit was born near Convent in June 1844, and Louis Gérard in October 1846.  Hermogène died in Ascension Parish in April 1853; the Donaldsonville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give his parents' names or mention a wife, said that Armogène, as he called him, died at "age 40 years."

Félix married Mélodie, daughter of fellow Acadian Benjamin Dugas and his Creole wife Mélissere Fulcher, at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in January 1847.  Their son Joseph Félix was born near Convent in March 1852, Jean Baptiste in June 1853, Paul Ulysse in March 1855, Mirille in February 1857, and a child, name unrecorded, died at birth probably in May 1858.  Their daughter married a LeBlanc cousin.  Félix remarried to Marie Constantine Eulalie or Marie Eulalie Constantine, called Constantine, daughter of fellow Acadians Augustin Hervillien Bourgeois and Marie Adorestine Bourgeois, at the Convent church in June 1864.  They settled near the boundary between St. James and Ascension parishes.  Their son Joseph Henry was born in December 1866, Paul Stanislas in January 1869, and Luc Alexandre in October 1870. 

Joseph Ramire married cousin Ophelia, daughter of Evariste Blouin and his Acadian wife Félicité Arceneaux, at the St. Gabriel church, Iberville Parish, in January 1851.  Their son Joseph Alexandre was born near Convent, St. James Parish, in November 1851, Joseph Septime in September 1854 but died in October, and Alexis Joseph was born in June 1857. 

Valmire married Lesida, daughter of fellow Acadians Amand Bourgeois, fils and Hortense Gaudin, at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in January 1852.  Their son Augustin Forentoire was born near Convent in September 1853, Aloysius in February 1855, Joseph René, called René, in March 1859 but died at age 2 in June 1861, Michel Alcide was born in September 1864, Joseph Septime in June 1866, and Faustin probably posthumously in 1867.  Valmire died near Convent in December 1866; the priest who recorded the burial said that Valomir, as he called him, died at "age 40 years"; he was 34. 

4

Paul-Olivier, by his father's second wife, born probably at Snow Hill, Maryland, in c1762, was counted with his family there in July 1763.  He came to Louisiana in 1766 with his widowed mother and siblings and followed them to Cabanocé/St.-Jacques, where Spanish officials counted them on the left, or east, bank of the river in 1769 and 1777.  Paul-Olivier married Osite-Barbe, daughter of fellow Acadian Marcel LeBlanc and Marie-Josèphe Breaux and sister of his older brother Joseph's second wife, probably at St.-Jacques in the 1780s.  Their son Julien was born at St.-Jacques in August 1787 but probably died young; Jean-Baptiste was born in August 1796 but died in September; Paul-Olivier, fils was born in November 1797; Gilbert in October 1799; and Joseph in July 1806.  Their daughters married into the Arceneaux, Babin, Breaux, Daigle, LeBlanc, and Theriot families, and perhaps into the Thibodeaux family as well.  In his late 50s, Paul remarried to Marie, daughter of fellow Acadian Athanase Broussard and widow of Bonaventure Gaudin dit Bellefontaine, at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in May 1821.  She evidently gave him no more children.  Paul Olivier died near Convent in June 1847; the priest who recorded his burial said that Paul was age 89 when he died; he probably was closer to 85.  Three of his five sons created families of their own.  Two remained in St. James Parish, and the other settled on Bayou Lafourche. 

4a

Paul-Olivier, fils, by his father's first wife, married cousin Adélaïde, daughter of fellow Acadians Sylvain LeBlanc and Marguerite Gaudin, at the St. James church, St. James Parish, in October 1815.  Their son Paul Olivier III, also called Paul Rome, was born near Convent in November 1818, Victor in October 1823, Apollinaire in July 1827, and Joseph in May 1833 but died the following October.  Their daughters married into the Bertaud (French Creole, not Acadian) and LeBlanc families. 

Paul Rome died near Convent, St. James Parish, in October 1843, age 24.  He probably did not marry. 

Apollinaire married cousin Azélie, daughter of fellow Acadians Alexis LeBlanc and Parosine LeBlanc, at the St. James church, St. James Parish, in July 1850.  Their son J. Arthur was born in September 1853. 

4b

Gilbert, by his father's first wife, married Céleste Emeranthe, called Emérante, daughter of Pierre Champagne and Marie Chauvin, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in June 1819.  They remained on Bayou Lafourche. 

4c

 Joseph le jeune, by his father's first wife, born at St. James in July 1806, married Marcelline, daughter of fellow Acadians Luc Gaudin and Henriette Landry, at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in July 1824.  Their son Joseph Valsin, called Valsin, was born near Convent in May 1825, and Paul Étienne in September 1829 but died at age 6 months in March 1830.  Joseph le jeune died near Convent in March 1854, age 47. 

Valsin married cousin Carmélite, daughter of fellow Acadians Douradou Landry and Marie Félonise Dugas, at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in July 1845; they had to secure a dispensation for third degree of consanguinity in order to marry.  They lived near the boundary of St. James and Ascension parishes.  Their son Joseph Paul was born in January 1848, and Mathurin Douradou in November 1849.  Their daughters married into the LeBlanc and Poché families.  Valsin died near Convent in January 1856; the priest who recorded his burial, and who did not give his parents' names or mention a wife, said that Valsin died at "age 33 yrs."; he was 30. 

5

Youngest son Charles, by his father's second wife, born probably at Cabanocé in March 1768, was the only one of his father's many sons born in Louisiana.  He may have been born posthumously.  Spanish officials counted Charles with his widowed mother and siblings on the left, or east, bank of the river at St.-Jacques in 1769; he was 17 months old.  Spanish officials counted him with his mother and siblings on the east bank of the river at St.-Jacques in 1777.  Charles married Claire, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph-Charles Breaux and Marie-Josèphe Landry and widow of Pierre Comeaux, at St.-Jacques in January 1790, and remarried to Scholastique, called Colastie, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Bourgeois and Marie Giroir and widow of Nicolas Picou, probably at St. Jacques in  August 1803.  They lived on the river before moving to Grande Pointe on upper Bayou Teche later in the decade. 

Descendants of Paul MELANÇON (1730-c1770; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean)

Paul, eldest son of Jean-Baptiste Melanson and Madeleine LeBlanc, born at Grand-Pré in October1730, married Marie Thériot probably at Minas in c1750.  They were exiled to Maryland in 1755.  Colonial officials counted them at Snow Hill, Maryland, in July 1763, near his widowed mother and siblings.  They came to Louisiana with his mother and siblings in 1766 and settled at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques, where they had more children, including a son.  Their daughters married into the Breaux, Landry, and Parr families.  Paul died at either St.-Jacques or nearby Ascension by August 1770, when his wife was described as a widow in the census there.  She remarried to fellow Acadian Amand Préjean, widower of Madeleine Martin, and followed him with most of her Melançon children to the Attakapas District in the late 1770s.  Only one of Paul's sons created a family of his own, and he settled on the western prairies, so this line did not continue on the river. 

1

Oldest son Philippe, born probably at Minas in c1750, was counted with his widowed mother and siblings at Ascension in 1770.  He remained on the river when his mother followed her second husband to the Attakapas District and may not have married. 

2

Jean-Baptiste, born probably at Snow Hill, Maryland, in c1759, married his stepsister Marie-Madeleine, daughter of fellow Acadians Amand Préjean and his first wife Madeleine Martin, at Attakapas in May 1785.  They remained on the western prairies. 

3

Youngest son Paul-Olivier, born probably at Ascension, perhaps posthumously, in May 1770, died there at age 5 in May 1775.

Descendants of Jean-Baptiste MELANÇON, fils (1736-?; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean)

Jean-Baptiste, fils, third son of Jean-Baptiste Melanson and Madeleine LeBlanc, born at Grand-Pré in December 1736, was exiled to Maryland in 1755 when he was a young man.  He came to Louisiana in 1766 perhaps with his widowed mother and younger siblings.  He followed them to Cabanocé/St.-Jacques, where he married Osite, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Dupuis and Élisbeth LeBlanc of Minas, in May 1768.  Spanish officials counted them on the left, or east, bank of the river at St.-Jacques in 1769 and 1777.  Jean-Baptiste, fils, at age 51, may have remarried to fellow Acadian Anne Babin, age 26, at St.-Jacques in April 1787.  His daughters by his first wife married into the Bourg and Landry families; one of them settled on upper Bayou Lafourche.  His two sons, also by his first wife, settled in what became St. James and Ascension parishes.  Most of his grandsons settled on upper Bayou Lafourche. 

1

Older son Pierre-Eusèbe, called Eusèbe, from his father's first wife, born probably at St.-Jacques in spring of 1769, married Adélaïde, daughter of fellow Acadians Marcel LeBlanc and Marie-Josèphe Breaux, at St.-Jacques in January 1795.  They settled on the river near the boundary of what became St. James and Ascension parishes.  Their son Jean-Baptiste was born at St.-Jacques in December 1800, Marcel in October 1803, Ursin in September 1805, Edmond in Ascension Parish in October 1809, Augustin in St. James Parish in January 1812, Éloi in August 1814, and Pierre Martin in November 1816.  Their daughters married into the Moïse and Templet families.  Was Eusèbe the "Pierre Michel" Melançon who died in St. James Parish in August 1827, age 60?  Six of his seven sons created families of their own.  Five of them settled on upper Bayou Lafourche, victims, perhaps, of the consolidation of river-front property by the growing sugar industry.  The family line of the son who remained on the river, except perhaps for its blood, did not survive. 

1a

Jean Baptiste married Séraphine, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Michel Daigre and Madeleine LeBlanc, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in August 1825.  They settled on upper Bayou Lafourche. 

1b

Edmond married cousin Euphémie, daughter of Hippolyte Carmouche and his Acadian wife Madeleine LeBlanc, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in February 1830; they had to secure a dispensation for fourth degree of consanguinity in order to marry.  They settled on upper Bayou Lafourche near the boundary between Ascension and Assumption parishes.

1c

Ursin married cousin Marcelline or Marcellite, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Melançon and Constance LeBlanc, at the St. James church, St. James Parish, in July 1831; they had to secure a dispensation for third degree of consanguinity in order to marry.  Ursin remarried to first cousin Doralise, daughter of fellow Acadians Olivier LeBlanc and Émélie Lalande, at the St. James church in November 1835; they had to secure a dispensation for second degree of consanguinity in order to marry.  They settled on upper Bayou Lafourche, where Ursin remarried again to one of Doralise's younger sisters.

1d

Éloi married cousin Rosalie Édesse or Edesie, called Desie, daughter of fellow Acadians Paul Dugas and Clémence LeBlanc, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in December 1837; they had to secure a dispensation for fourth degree of consanguinity in order to marry.  Their son Hilaire Amilgar was born in Ascension Parish in January 1841 but died at age 7 in March 1848, and Pierre Edmond, called Edmond, was born in June 1844 but died at age 3 1/2 in March 1848.  Their daughter married into the Thibaut family. 

1e

Augustin married Mélanie, daugher of fellow Acadians Timothée Hébert and Rosalie Comeaux, in c1843 and settled on upper Bayou Lafourche. 

1f

Pierre Martin married Célestine, daughter of fellow Acadians Florentin Templet and Clarisse Blanchard, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in June 1841.  They remained on upper Bayou Lafourche. 

1g

Marcel died in Ascension Parish in December 1844, age 41.  He probably did not marry. 

2

Younger son David, by his father's first wife, baptized at St.-Jacques, age unrecorded, in April 1778, married Madeleine, daughter of fellow Acadians Marin Landry and Pélagie Landry, at St.-Jacques in December 1801.  Their son, name unrecorded, "recently born," died at St.-Jacques in November 1802, Paul Valéry, called Valéry, was born in February 1804 but died at age 3 in March 1807, and Joseph was born in April 1806.  David remarried to Modeste Marie or Marie Modeste, daughter of fellow Acadians Charles Gautreaux and Marie Richard, at the St. James church, St. James Parish, in February 1814.  Their son Jean Marcellin was born in St. James Parish in March 1815 but died at age 5 1/2 in September 1820, Simon Norbert was born near Convent in October 1816 but died at age 3 1/2 in September 1820, David Jules or Jules David was born in November 1826 but died at age 6 in October 1832, Simon Amédée, called Amédée, was born in August 1829, Pierre Léopold in September 1831, and Pierre Paul posthumously in September 1832 but died at age 1 1/2 in May 1834.  Their daughters married into the Lucenty and Marchand families.  David died near Convent in August 1832, age 54.  Despite his fathering many sons, this line of the family, except for its blood, may not have survived. 

2a

Joseph, by his father's first wife, married Carmélite, daughter of French Canadian André LeBlanc and his Acadian wife Marie Lanoux, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in November 1830.  Their daughter married into the Gravois family.  Joseph died near Convent, St. James Parish, in October 1836, age 30.  Did he father any sons? 

2b

Amédée, by his father's second wife, died in Ascension Parish in March 1859, age 29.  He probably did not marry. 

Descendants of Charles MELANÇON (1743-1787; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean)

Charles, fourth and youngest son of Jean-Baptiste Melanson and Madeleine LeBlanc, born at Grand-Pré in 1743, was exiled to Maryland in 1755.  Colonial officials counted him with his widowed mother and siblings at Snow Hill in July 1763.  He came to Louisiana with them in 1766 and followed them to Cabanocé/St.-Jacques.  He married Félicité, daughter of fellow Acadians René Landry and Marie Thériot, at nearby Ascension in February 1768.  Spanish officials counted them on the left, or east, bank of the river at St.-Jacques in 1769.  A year later, they were living on the east bank of the river at nearby Ascension and were still there in 1777, when they were affluent enough to hire a private tutor for their children.  Their daughters married into the Bernard (German Creole, not Acadian), Capdeville, Louvière, and Richard families.  Charles died at Ascension in May 1787, age 34.  Four of his five sons created families of their own, but none remained on the river.  A younger son settled on the western prairies, and two sons settled on Bayou Lafourche.  A grandson returned from the bayou to the river in the 1830s, and another grandson settled in Pointe Coupee Parish, where few Acadians lived. 

1

Oldest son Joseph, born probably at St.-Jacques in c1769, may have died young. 

2

Simon, born probably at Ascension, died there at age 1 in September 1772. 

3

Jean-Baptiste-Allain or Allain-Jean-Baptiste, born at Ascension in June 1775, married Marguerite Élisabeth, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Orillion dit Champagne, fils and Marie Rose Breaux, at St. Gabriel in October 1805.  Their son Jean Baptiste, fils was born near St. Gabriel in July 1806, Joseph Norbert, a twin, in July 1808, Joseph Eugène, called Eugène, a triplet, in August 1810 but died the following October, Joseph Pellerin was born in January 1816, and André was born in c1816 but died at age 3 in October 1819.  Their daughter married a Babin cousin.  Jean Baptiste Allain died in Ascension Parish in March 1841; the Donaldsonville priest who recorded Jean Baptiste's burial said that he died at "age 70 years"; he was 65. 

4

Charles, fils, a twin, baptized at St.-Jacques, age unrecorded, in November 1777, married Adélaïde, daughter of fellow Acadians René LeBlanc and Marguerite Trahan of Bayou Vermilion, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in September 1808.  They settled on the lower Vermilion. 

5

Éloi, Charles, fils's twin, married Constance, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Baptiste Bergeron and Marie Babin, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in April 1815.  They remained on upper Bayou Lafourche. 

6

Youngest son Olivier-Pierre, born at Ascension in July 1785, married Marie, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Gaudet and Marguerite Poirier, at the St. James church, St. James Parish, in May 1808.  Their son Joseph was born near Convent, St. James Parish, in March 1809 but died at age 4 1/2 in July 1814, Éloi le jeune was born in October 1814, Jean Délard or Adélard, called Adélard, in July 1817, and Marcellin in March 1820.  Olivier died in Assumption Parish in August 1824, age 38.   Two, perhaps three, of his sons remained on the river and settled in St. James and Pointe Coupee parishes. 

6a

Éloi le jeune married Marguerite, called Mirza, daughter of Olivier Schexnayder and Adélaïde Chenet, at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in February 1839.  Their son, name unrecorded, died near Convent a day after his birth in October 1839, Éloi Fargeau was born in June 1842, Adam Alcée in October 1843, Pierre Elphége, called Elphége, in September 1845 but died at age 10 1/2 in June 1856, Jules Marcellin was born in September 1847, Joseph Numa in August 1849, and Alphonse Audry in June 1852.  Éloi le jeune died near Convent in August 1852; the priest who recorded his burial, and who did not give his parents' name or mention a wife, said that Éloi died at "age 39 yrs."; he was 37. 

6b

Adélard married Augustine, daughter of Desolives Decoux and Émélie Joffrion, at the Pointe Coupee church, Pointe Coupee Parish, in June 1859.   Adélard was among the few Acadians who settled in Pointe Coupee Parish.  Their son Adam Edgar was born there in May 1861, Olivier Luc in January 1863, Basile Elfer near Convent, St. James Parish, in January 1866, and Jean Joseph in Pointe Coupee in February 1869.  Adélard died by May 1869, when he was listed as deceased in a son's baptismal record at the Pointe Coupee church. 

6c

Marcellin may have died in Pointe Coupee Parish in December 1867.  The priest who recorded his burial, and who called his mother Anne Poirlier, said that Marcellin died at "age ca. 48 years."  Was he the Marcellin Louis Melançon who married French Creole Eulalie De La Morandière at the Opelousas church, St. Landry Parish, in April 1843 or 1844?  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names.  Marcellin Louis settled at the northeastern edge of St. Landry Parish near Washington, west of the upper Atchafalaya River, which forms the boundary between St. Landry and Pointe Coupee parishes. 

Descendants of Joseph dit Dios Rose MELANÇON (c1756-1808; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean)

Joseph, son of Pierre Melanson and Rosalie Blanchard, born in Pennsylvania in c1756, was counted in that colony with six of his orphaned siblings in June 1763.  He followed older sister Marguerite and perhaps other siblings to Maryland, came to Louisiana with her in 1766, and followed her to Cabanocé/St.-Jacques.  Spanish officials counted him with his sister and brother-in-law on the right, or west, bank of the river at nearby Ascension in 1770.  Joseph married Marguerite-Gertrude, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Landry and Marie-Josèphe Bourg  and widow of Augustin Licara or Sierra, at Ascension in February 1779.  Their daughters married into the Landry and Picou families.  Joseph died in Ascension Parish in August 1808, age 52.  His four sons settled in St. James, Ascension, and Iberville parishes, but only two of their lines survived. 

1

Oldest son Jérôme, born probably at Ascension in c1780, married Madeleine, daughter of fellow Acadians Isaac LeBlanc and Marguerite Babin, at Ascension in April 1804.  Their son Guillaume died at Ascension the day after his birth in February 1805, and a son, name unrecorded, also died the day after his birth in January 1815.  Their daughters married into the Babin, Hébert, and Landry families.  Jérôme remarried to fellow Acadian Rosalie Bourgeois in c1816.  Their daughter married into the Poché family.  Jérôme died in St. James Parish in September 1817; the St. James priest who recorded the burial said that Jérôme, "nat. Lafourche parish [Lafourche des Chitimachas was the original name of Ascension]," died at "age about 37 yrs."   Jérôme's line of the family, except for its blood, died with him. 

2

Joseph, fils, born probably at Ascension in c1783, married Marie, Marine, or Marianne, daughter of fellow Acadians Sylvain LeBlanc and Marie-Josèphe Babin, at Ascension in February 1802.  Their son Lucien was born at Ascension in May 1803, Neuville in October 1804, Louis Godefroi in August 1806 but died at age 5 in August 1811, Marcellin was born in November 1808, and Narcisse in June 1812.  Their daughter married into the Landry and Sarites or Zurita families.  Joseph, fils died in Ascension Parish in February 1823; the Donaldsonville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Joseph died at "age 40 yrs."  Two of his five sons married in Ascension Parish. 

2a

Neuville married Marie Constance, daughter of fellow Acadians Nicolas Orillion and Marie Reine Foret, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in February 1826.  Their son Achille Neuville died in Ascension Parish at age 3 weeks in September 1828.  Their daughter married into the Hébert family.  Neuville remarried to fellow Acadian Marie Cléonise, Éléonise, or Léonise Hébert probably in Ascension Parish in c1830.  Their son Napoléon Neuville, called Neuville, fils was born in Ascension Parish in July 1834, Joseph Aristide, called Aristide, in November 1836, and Genot Arnes or Ernest, called Ernest, in April 1844.  Their daughters married into the Bujole and Dominique families.  In 1860, Neuville held 50 slaves in 14 houses on his plantation in Ascension Parish.  Neuville, père died in Ascension Parish in September 1865, age 61. 

Neuville, fils, by his father's second wife, died in Ascension Parish in December 1852, age 18.  He did not marry. 

Aristide, by his father's second wife, married fellow Acadian Cecilia Landry probably in Ascension Parish during the late 1850s.  Their son Miroque Sylvère, called Sylvère, was born in Ascension Parish in December 1860 but died at age 3 1/2 in October 1864, Daniel Adélard, called Adélard, was born in December 1862 but died at age 1 1/2 in September 1864, Barthélémy Adam, called Adam, was born in August 1865, and Obierge Aristide in July 1867. 

Ernest, by his father's second wife, married Susan or Susanne, daughter of Harry G. Waterman and Sara Norwood, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in August 1862.  Their son Ernest, fils died in Ascension Parish 9 days after his birth in May 1863, and Henry Gilbert was born in September 1867. 

2b

Marcellin married first cousin Mathilde, daughter of fellow Acadians Louis Melançon and Rosalie or Rose Landry, his uncle and aunt, at the Donaldsonville church in April 1834.  Their son Joseph Dernon was born in Ascension Parish in March 1835, Aristide in September 1837, Alfred Prosper in January 1839, and Firmin Alphret in October 1842.  Their daughter married into the Guidry family.  Marcellin died in Ascension Parish in July 1847, age 38. 

Aristide married Euphrasie, daughter of fellow Acadians Arsène Hébert and Rosalie Euphrasie Babin, at the Donaldsonville church in March 1859.  Their son Ulgère Elphége was born in Ascension Parish in February 1860.  Aristide remarried twice, to a Babin and a Dupuis, in Ascension Parish in c1872 and 1890. 

During the War of 1861-65, Alfred Prosper served in the Donaldsonville Artillery, which fought in Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania--one of General R. E. Lee's Louisiana Tigers.  A 22-year-old clerk from New River, Ascension Parish, Alfred enlisted in the company at Donaldsonville on 13 September 1861.  He was mortally wounded at Sharpsburg, Maryland, on 17 September 1862, when his leg was shot off.  Left in a Confederate hospital at Shepherdstown, Virginia, after Lee's army withdrew to the Shenandoah Valley, the Federals paroled him on September 30, and he died from his terrible wound soon after. 

2c

Narcisse died in Ascension Parish in November 1847, age 35.  He evidently did not marry. 

3

Pierre-Louis, called Louis, baptized at Ascension, age unrecorded, in March 1788, married cousin Rosalie or Rose, daughter of fellow Acadians Hyacinthe Landry and Marguerite Landry, at the Donaldson church, Ascension Parish, in December 1808.  Their son Louis Camille was born in Ascension Parish in September 1809, Louis Treville, called Treville, in December 1813, and Jean Valentin, called Valentin, in November 1816 but died at age 6 1/2 in September 1823.  Their daughters married into the Bruyère, Melançon, and Regouffe families, one of them to a first cousin.  Louis died in Ascension Parish in August 1839; the Donaldsonville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parent's names or mention a wife, said that Louis died at "age 33 yrs."

3a

Treville married Judith, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Éloi Hébert and Angélique Hébert, at the St. Gabriel church, Iberville Parish, in August 1836.  They lived on the river near the boundary between St. Gabriel and Ascension parishes before moving to the west side of the river near Bayou Goula, Iberville Parish.  Their son Louis died at age 11 months in August 1840, Sylvestre was born in December 1840 but died the following June, Christin was born in November 1843, Athanais in March 1845 but died at age 1 in March 1846, Oscar was born in September 1846 but died at age 13 in October 1849, Mathieu Adonis was born in September 1851, Jean Baptiste Treville in June 1853, Joseph Éloi in February 1856 but died the following June, and Jean Adoue was born in June 1858.  Their daughter married into the Gaudin family. 

3b

Louis Camille, called Camille by the recording priest, married, at age 46, cousin Marie Arthémise, called Arthémise, 36-year-old daughter of fellow Acadians Jérôme Rivet and Marie Élise Melançon and widow of Hippolyte Adolphe Babin, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in February 1856.  She gave him a daughter in November. 

4

Youngest son Paulin, born probably at Ascension c1790, married Adélaïde, daughter of Frenchman Pierre Gaillard, also called Denoux, and Lucille Lagrange, at the St. Gabriel church, Iberville Parish, in January 1816.  They lived on the river near the boundary between St. Gabriel and Ascension parishes.  Paulin died in Ascension Parish at "age ca. 40 yrs." in May 1830.  His line of the family probably died with him. 

~

Seven more Melansons reached New Orleans from Maryland in July 1767 and hoped to join their cousins at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques, but they did not go there.  Spanish Governor Antonio de Ulloa insisted that the recent arrivals settle at St.-Gabriel d'Iberville, a new Acadian community on the river above Cabanocé.  The Melansons and their fellow refugees consented to the arrangement because St.-Gabriel was so close to Cabanocé:

Marguerite-Josèphe Melanson of Grand-Pré, age 49, came with husband Paul Hébert, age 55, seven children, ages 22 to 3, and orphan Marie Blanchard, age 13.  Marguerite-Josèphe died at St. Gabriel, Iberville Parish, in December 1811, in her early 90s. 

Amand Melanson of Grand-Pré, age 39, came with wife Anne Babin, age 37, and five children--Joseph, age 15; Anne, age 7; Simon, age 4; Mathurin, age 2; and infant Olivier.  Amand and Anne had more children in Louisiana, including a son:

Descendants of Amand MELANÇON (1728-1781; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Philippe)

Amand, son of Joseph Melanson and Marguerite LeBlanc, born at Grand-Pré in October 1728, married Anne Babin probably at Grand-Pré before Le Grand Dérangement.  The British exiled them to Maryland in 1755.  Colonial officials counted them at Baltimore in July 1763.  They came to Louisiana in 1767 and settled at St.-Gabriel, where they had more children, including a son.  Spanish officials counted them there on the "left bank ascending," or west bank, in 1777.  Their daughters married into the Landry and LeBlanc families.  Amand died near St.-Gabriel in December 1781, age 53.   Three of his five sons settled in what became Iberville Parish.  His oldest son's line, except perhaps for its blood, did not endure.  His youngest son had many sons of his own, but, except for the blood, none of the lines endured. 

1

Oldest son Amand-Joseph, called Joseph, born probably at Grand-Pré in c1752, may have, in his late 30s, married Marie-Anne, daughter of fellow Acadians Alexandre Godin dit Lincour and Anne Bergeron of Rivière St. Jean and widow of Antoine-Alexandre Dupré dit Terrebonne and Jean Villeneuve, at Ascension in February 1790.  Their daughter married into the Villeneuve family.  Did Joseph father any sons? 

2

Simon, born probably at Baltimore, Maryland, in c1763, married Madeleine, daughter of fellow Acadians Vincent Landry and Suzanne Godin, at Ascension in February 1790.  Their son Grégoire le jeune was born near St.-Gabriel in March 1790, Jérôme in December 1792, and Thomas in November 1795.  Their daughter married into the Robichaux family.  Simon died near St. Gabriel, Iberville Parish, in January 1810; the priest who recorded the burial said that Simon was age 48 when he died. 

Jérôme married Marguerite Domitille, daughter of fellow Acadian Jean Baptiste Hébert and Anne Marie Dupuis and widow of Henry Comeaux, at the St. Gabriel church, Iberville Parish, in February 1825.  Their son Joseph le jeune was born near St. Gabriel in March 1827 but died at age 1 1/2 in October 1828.  Their daughter married into the Tullier family.  Only the blood of the family line survived. 

3

Mathurin, born probably at Baltimore, Maryland, in c1765, may have died young. 

4

Olivier, born probably at Baltimore, Maryland, in c1767, also may have died young. 

5

Youngest son Louis-Grégoire, called Grégoire, born at St.-Gabriel in September 1772, married Marie-Christine, called Christine, daughter of fellow Acadians Augustin Landry and Anne-Marie Forest, at St.-Gabriel in April 1792.  Their son Joseph-Simon or -Zénon was born near St.-Gabriel in July 1793, Édouard in March 1797, Pierre in August 1803, Joachim Grégoire in July 1805 but died at age 9 1/2 in March 1810, Maximilien Norbert, called Norbert, was born in December 1807, and Joseph Théophile in August 1810.  Their daughters married into the Landry and Rivet families.  Grégoire died near St. Gabriel, Iberville Parish, in July 1812; the priest who recorded the burial said that Grégoire was age 44 when he died; he was 39.  His wife remarried to Pierre Jacques dit Santiago Melançon, a much older cousin.  Four of Grégoire's sons settled in Iberville, Ascension, and West Baton Rouge parishes, but, except for the blood, none of their lines seems to have survived. 

5a

Zénon married Hortense, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph LeBlanc and Marie Corrantine Longuépée, at the St. Gabriel church, Iberville Parish, in February 1819.  She gave him no children.  Zénon remarried to Marie Cléonise, called Cléonise, daughter of fellow Acadians Charles Breaux and Rosalie Landry and widow of David Landry, at the St. Gabriel church in November 1824.  Their older daughter married into the Lacroix family.  Joseph Zénon died near St. Gabriel in November 1858, age 65.  His family line, except for its blood, died with him.   

5b

Édouard married Marie Élisabeth or Élize, daughter of Santiago dit Jacques Hernandez and his Acadian wife Anne dite Mannon Rivet, at the St. Gabriel church, Iberville Parish, in April 1828.  Their daughters married into the Lambremont and Hamiliton families at Plaquemine, across the river from St. Gabriel, so the blood of the family line endured. 

5c

Pierre married Marie Adeline, called Adeline, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Charles Hébert and Martine Breaux, at the St. Gabriel church, Iberville Parish, in October 1831.  Their infant son Jean Baptiste died near St. Gabriel, age unrecorded, in December 1833, Pierre Joseph Joachim was born in March 1834 but died at age 10 1/2 in August 1844, and Jean Baptiste Noël was born in December 1840 but died the following April.  They were living near Brusly, West Baton Rouge Parish, by the late 1840s.  Their daughter married into the Templet family, so the blood of the line endured. 

5d

Norbert married cousin Marie Barbe, daughter of fellow Acadians François Landry and Constance Babin, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in May 1832.  They lived on the river near the boundary between Ascension and Iberville parishes.  Their son Jean Baptiste was born in August 1836, Grégoire Euphéma in September 1840, and a newborn, name unrecorded, perhaps a son, died in September 1842.  Their daughter married into the Breaux family.  Norbert remarried to cousin Marie Mathilde, daughter of fellow Acadians Louis Melançon and Rosalie Landry, at the Donaldsonville church in March 1851.  Norbert died in Ascension Parish in October 1855; the Donaldsonville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Norbert died at "age 40 years"; he was 47. 

~

The arrival dates of three Melansons who came to Louisiana from Maryland during the late colonial period cannot be determined: 

Joseph Melanson, born at Grand-Pré in c1716, widower of Madeleine Hébert and Marguerite Hébert, was exiled to Maryland in 1755.  Colonial officials counted him, his second wife, and nine children at Annapolis in July 1763.  He does not appear in Louisiana records until his burial at St.-Gabriel in December 1786, age 70.  He came to the colony perhaps with two of his younger daughters, Geneviève, born at Baltimore in c1761, wife of John Baptiste, called Baptiste, Fellen, whom she married at Baltimore in May 1784; and Marguerite, born in Maryland in c1766, wife of Laurent Lazare.  Geneviève and Marguerite died at New Orleans in October 1796, in their early 30s, within 11 days of one another.  One wonders what motivated them to leave Maryland and go to Louisiana decades after their fellow Acadians had left the British colony.  Joseph brought no sons to Louisiana, so his line did not take root there. 

~

In 1785, only two of the many Melansons who had been exiled in France came to Louisiana on the Seven Ships.  One settled along the river, the other on upper Bayou Lafourche:

Joseph Melanson, age 64, came with second wife Ursule Hébert, age 69, aboard La Ville d'Archangel, the sixth of the Seven Ships, which reached New Orleans in December.  They followed most of their fellow passengers to the new Acadian settlement of Bayou des Écores in the West Feliciana District on the east side of river north of Baton Rouge.  Needless to say, they had more children in the colony, so no new Melançon family line appeared at Bayou des Écores. 

~

Other MELANÇONs on the River

Local church and civil records make it difficult to link many Melançons on the river with known lines of the family there.  The priests at Donaldsonville were especially remiss in their record keeping:

Joseph-Paul Melançon married Marie LeBlanc, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Paul was born at St.-Jacques in February 1787.  No church record gives a hint of who Joseph-Paul's and Marie's parents were. 

Charles Melançon married Françoise Arceneaux at St.-Jacques in August 1787.  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names.

Jeanne Melançon died in Ascension Parish, age 10 months, in August 1807.  The priest who recorded her burial did not give her parents' names. 

Leufroi Melançon died near St. Gabriel, Iberville Parish, age 9 months, in July 1814.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give the boy's parents' names. 

Marcellin Melançon died near Convent, St. James Parish, at age 2 in May 1864.  The priest who recorded the boy's burial did not give the parents' names. 

Basile Melançon's son Owkes died near Convent at age 3 days in May 1836.  Who were Basile's parents?  Who was his wife? 

Joseph Melançon married Spanish Creole Rosalie Suarez, place and date unrecorded.  Son Joseph, fils was born in Ascension Parish in December 1840. 

Édouard Melançon married German Creole Marguerite Schexneider, place and date unrecorded.  Son Éloi Fergeau was born near Convent in June 1842. 

Lussin Melançon died in Ascension Parish in November 1846.  The Donaldsonville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Lussin died at "age 54 years."  Who was he? 

Narcisse Melançon died in Ascension Parish in November 1847.  The Donaldsonville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Narcisse died at "age ca. 38 years."  Who was he? 

Mélanie Melançon, "wife of Valmond Villeneuve," died in Ascension Parish, age 25, in October 1849.  The Donaldsonville priest who recorded her burial did not give her parents' names. 

____ Melançon, widow of Joseph Melançon, died in St. James Parish, age 80, in December 1851.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give the widow's full name; she may not even have been a Melançon. 

Domitille, daughter of Edward Melançon and Marguerite Elise Melançon, perhaps cousins, married Joseph Aimé, son of Anglo Creole Dava Hamilton and his Acadian wife Rosalie Dugas, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in January 1853.  One wonders who were Domitille's paternal grandparents. 

Adrien Melançon died near Convent, St. James Parish, in April 1854.  The priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Adrien died at "age 22 years." 

Colonie Melançon married Antoine Raldo at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in May 1857.  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names. 

Joseph Melançon married Spanish Creole Félicie Placencia, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Liman Camille, called Camille, was born in Ascension Parish in August 1861 but died at age 6 in July 1867. 

Joséphine Melançon married François Valfrois at the Donaldsonville church in March 1864.  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names. 

Modeste Melançon died in Ascension Parish, age 64, in June 1864.  The Donaldsonville priest who recorded the burial died not give her parents' names or mention a husband.  Was there a husband? 

Rosalie Melançon married Noël Breaux at the Convent church, St. James Parish, in October 1866.  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names. 

Camille, son of Joseph Melançon, died in Ascension Parish, age 6, in July 1867.  The Donaldsonville priest who recorded the burial did not give the boy's mother's name.  One wonders which Joseph Melançon was the father. 

Célestine Melançon married Anglo American Benjamin Franklin at the St. James church, St. James Parish, in November 1867.  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names. 

Marcellin, son of Olivier Melancçon and Anne Poirlier, died in Pointe Coupee Parish in December 1867.  The priest who recorded the burial said that Marcellin died at "age ca. 48 years."

Estelle Melançon died near Convent, age 7, in January 1868.  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names. 

Angélique Melançon married Claiborn Ross at the St. James church in April 1868.  The priest who recorded the marriage, true to form, did not give the couple's parents' names. 

Jules Melançon married Elizabeth Heurt, place and date unrecorded.  Their son William was born near Convent, St. James Parish, in May 1869. 

Arthémise Melançon died near Convent, age 8, in August 1869.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give the girl's parents' names. 

Caroline Melançon married Octave Lauve at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in August 1869.  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names. 

LOUISIANA:  WESTERN SETTLEMENTS

Beginning in the mid-1770s, Melançons from the river, including a set of brothers, crossed the Atchafalaya Basin and settled in the Attakapas District, creating a western branch of the family.  One family returned to the river during the early 1790s, but the others remained on the prairies in what became St. Martin and Lafayette parishes:

Marguerite Melançon, wife of Jean-Anselme Thibodeaux, died at Attakapas "at age 30 yrs." in July 1786. 

Marguerite Melançon, wife of Amand Landry, died "at age a little over 40 yrs." at Attakapas in February 1788. 

Marie-Anne Melançon, widow of Joseph Landry and wife of Thomas Parr, died at her home on the lower Vermilion River "at age 45 yrs." in November 1805.  Her succession was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse, St. Martin Parish, in September 1818. 

Anastasie Melançon, widow of Joseph Babin, died "at la pointe," St. Martin Parish, in May 1828, age 70, a widow.  Her succession was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse in June. 

Descendants of Joseph MELANÇON (c1752-1807; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Paul)

Joseph, eldest son of Paul-Honoré Melanson and Marie-Josèphe Breau, born probably at Minas in c1752, followed his parents to the Gulf of St. Lawrence shore in 1755 and to a prisoner of war camp at Halifax in the early 1760s.  In 1765, he followed his widowed mother and siblings to Louisiana from Halifax and settled with them at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques on the river.  Spanish authorities counted them on the left, or east, bank of the river at St.-Jacques in 1766 and on the other side of the river at St.-Jacques in 1769.  By 1777, he, his siblings, his mother, and his stepfather, François Moreau, had moved from the river to the Attakapas District.  At Attakapas, Joseph's dit, Petit Moro, probably referred to his stepfather.  Joseph married Anne-Barbe, called Barbe, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Babin and Ursule Landry, at St.-Jacques in 1778.  They lived at St.-Jacques for a few years before moving to L'Anse, probably Anse La Pointe, on upper Bayou Teche.  Their daughters married into the Babineaux and Wiltz families.  Joseph dit Petit Moro died at his home at L'Anse in January 1807; the priest who recorded the burial said that Joseph died "at age 60 yrs.," but this Joseph would have been in his mid-50s; his succession was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse, St. Martin Parish, in June.  Four of his six sons married and settled in St. Martin Parish, but one line did not survive. 

1

Oldest son Alexandre, born at Attakapas in January 1784, fathered "natural" children by Marie Éloise, called Éloise, daughter of fellow Acadian Charles dit Charlitte Trahan and his French wife Marie Landro of Île des Cyrpes, and wife of Jean Baptiste Cluseau or Clusiaux, who she had married at Attakapas in September 1806.  At age 62, after the death of Éloise's husband Jean Baptiste, Alexandre married her at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in November 1846.  Between 1825 and 1831, she had given him four "natural" children, three sons and a daughter.  Their son Alexandre-Lucien was born in St. Martin Parish in May 1825, Joseph Clairville le jeune in July 1829, and Charles in August 1831 but died at age 2 in May 1833.  Alexandre, père died in St. Martin Parish in September 1850; the St. Martinville priest who recorded the burial said that Alexandre died "at age 76 yrs."  He was 66.  His succession was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse the following February. 

1a

Alexandre-Lucien married Marie Clarence, Cloraine, Cléomène, or Loraine, daughter of François Desroujeaux or Domengeaux and Catherine Champagne, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in June 1847.  Between 1848 and 1860, Marie gave Alexandre-Lucien four daughters, two of whom married into the Laviolette and Gillespie families, so the blood of this family line endured. 

1b

Joseph Clairville le jeune married Marie Aminthe or Amynthe, Agathe, or Annette, daughter of Jean Baptiste Barras and Joséphine Wiltz, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in October 1850.  Their son Joseph Adam was born in St. Martin Parish in March 1857, Paul Despulière in May 1862, and Julien in July 1865.  Joseph Clairville, at age 40, remarried to Émilie, daughter of fellow Acadian Louis Savoie and Cémentine Barras and widow of Alcide Barras, at the St. Martinville church in December 1869.

2

Joseph-Clairville, born at Attakapas in August 1786, married Marie Madeleine, daughter of Antoine Ledoux and his Acadian wife Marguerite Gaudet of St. James Parish, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in March 1813.  They settled at La Pointe on upper Bayou Teche.  Their son Joseph Zénon was born in May 1814, and Osémé in c1818 but died at age 4 in November 1822.  Their daughter married into the Cormier family.  Joseph Clairville died "at his home at l'ance" in October 1819, age 33. 

Joseph Zenon married Céleste, daughter of Anglo Creole James Caruthers or Credeur, Jr. and his Acadian wife Carmélite LeBlanc, in a civil ceremony in Lafayette Parish in May 1836.  They settled probably near Carencro in Lafayette Parish.  Their son Charles le jeune was born in July 1841, Joseph IV in August 1843 but died at age 6 in September 1849, and Onésime was born in February 1849.  Their daughter married into the Quebedeaux family. 

Charles le jeune married Zéline, Hélène, or Elena, daughter of Denis Quebedeaux and his Acadian wife Éloise Trahan, at the Grand Coteau church, St. Landry Parish, in August 1863; Hélène's brother Joseph Stainville married Charles le jeune's sister Angèle.  Charles le jeune and Hélène settled near Church Point, then in St. Landry but now in Acadia Parish.  Their son Joseph was born in July 1864, and Charles, fils in February 1866. 

Onésime married cousin Marie Philomène, called Philomène, daughter of fellow Acadian Joseph Trahan and his Creole wife Marie Caroline Caruthers, at the Grand Coteau church, St. Landry Parish, in October 1869; the marriage also was recorded at the Church Point church, then in St. Landry but now in Acadia Parish, in November.  They settled near Church Point.  Their son Onésime, fils was born in May 1870. 

3

Charles, born in c1787, married Marie, daughter of fellow Acadians Thomas Theriot and Agnès Daigre of St. James Parish, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in June 1809.  Charles died "at the home of Alexandre Broussard at la fausse pointe" on Bayou Teche in December 1823; the priest who recorded the burial said that Charles died "at age about 30 years."  His family line probably died with him. 

4

Louis, born at Attakapas in January 1789, died "at the home of his sister, Ozite Melançon [wife of David Babineaux] on Bayou Teche" in March 1824.  The priest who recorded the burial said that Louis died "at age about 30 years"; he was 35.  He probably did not marry. 

5

Jean-Baptiste, called Baptiste, born probably at Attakapas in c1797, married Clémence, daughter of Jean Baptiste Ringuet and Marie-Anne Bourgeois of La Pointe, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in November 1816.  They settled at La Pointe.  Their son, name and age unrecorded, died at his parents' home in October 1817, Jean Baptiste, fils was born in May 1819 but died at age 4 1/2 "at the home of Julien Melançon on Bayou Teche" in February 1824, Théodule was born in July 1821, Terence in March 1824 but died the following November, Désiré was born in August 1826, a son, name unrecorded, died at age 10 months in November 1829, and Joseph Aladin, called Aladin, was born in March 1833.  Their daughters married into the Pelletier and Richard families.  Baptiste may have died near Breaux Bridge, St. Martin Parish, in November 1866; the priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Jean Baptiste died "at age 80 yrs.," so this may have been another Jean Baptiste Melançon. 

5a

Théodule married Elisa or Lysa, daughter of fellow Acadians Louis Chiasson and Marie Sonnier and widow of Paul Bertrand, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in December 1845.  Their son Olidon was born in St. Martin Parish in October 1850.  Their daughter married a Chiasson cousin. 

5b

Joseph Aladin married cousin Julie, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Théodore Babineaux and Marie Azélie Melançon, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in April 1854.  Joseph Aladin remarried to Philomène, daughter of fellow Acadians Narcisse Guidry and Emérante Blanchard, at the Breaux Bridge church, St. Martin Parish, in May 1859.  Their son Désiré was born near Breaux Bridge in February 1860. 

6

His youngest son, name unrecorded, died at Attakapas, age 2 1/2 months, in July 1797. 

Descendants of Dominique-Jean dit Minique MELANÇON (c1762-1849; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Paul)

Dominique-Jean dit Minique, third and youngest son of Paul-Honoré Melanson and Marie-Josèphe Breau, was born probably in Nova Scotia in c1762.  He followed his widowed mother and siblings from Halifax to Louisiana in 1765 and settled with them at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques on the river.  Spanish authorities counted them on the left, or east, bank of the river at St.-Jacques in 1766 and on the other side of the river at St.-Jacques in 1769.  By 1777, he, his siblings, his mother, and his stepfather, François Moreau, had moved from the river to the Attakapas District, where Dominique-Jean married Rose-Luce, called Luce, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean-Baptiste Doiron and Marie-Blanche Bernard, in May 1789.  Rose-Luce had come to Louisiana in 1785 aboard Le Beaumont, the third of the Seven Ships from France.  They settled at La Pointe on upper Bayou Teche.  Their daughters married into the Bernard, Breaux, and Cormier families.  Dominique Jean dit Minique, called Jean by the recording priest, died near Breaux Bridge, St. Martin Parish, in January 1849; the priest said that Jean died "at age 90 yrs.," but he probably was in his late 80s; his succession was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse, St. Martin Parish, in March 1854.  His three sons settled in St. Martin Parish and created vigorous family lines. 

1

Oldest son Julien, also called Guérin, born probably at Attakapas in c1790, married Céleste, daughter of fellow Acadians Sylvain Broussard and Félicité Guilbeau of La Pointe, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in February 1808.  They settled at La Pointe.  Their son Émile was born in March 1809, Pierre Émilien in October 1812, Théogène in January 1815, a son, name unrecorded, died at birth in December 1816, Julien, fils, also called Méance, was born in April 1818, and a son, name unrecorded, died at birth in July 1820.  Julien died in St. Martin Parish in April 1866; the St. Martinville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Julien died "at age 86 yrs.," but he probably was in his late 70s. 

1a

Émile married Marie Victoire, called Victoire, daughter of fellow Acadians François Xavier Theriot and Apollonie Broussard, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in February 1833.  Their son Onésiphore was born in St. Martin Parish in July 1840, Joseph Numa near New Iberia, then in St. Martin but now in Iberia Parish, in February 1842 but died at age 1 1/2 in August 1843, and Jacques Euphémon was born July 1854.  They also had a son named Sevigne François.  Their daughters married into the Poirier and Guilbeau families. 

Onésiphore married Anaïs, daughter of fellow Acadian Élisée Guilbeau, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in October 1860.  Their son Arthur was born in St. Martin Parish in September 1861 but died at age 8 months in June 1862, and Joseph Olidon was born in February 1867. 

Sevigne François married Irma, daughter of Jean Baptiste Romero and his Acadian wife Mélissère LeBlanc, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in January 1867.  Their son Alcée was born in St. Martin Parish in July 1869, Joseph Arthur in October 1870, and Willie in January 1873. 

1b

Pierre Émilien married Joséphine, another daughter of François Xavier Theriot and Apollonie Broussard, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in January 1838.  Their son Eugène was born in St. Martin Parish in February 1851.  The family line did not endure. 

1c

Julien, fils married cousin Marie Uranie, called Uranie, daughter of fellow Acadians Raphaël Cormier and Carmélite Melançon, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in August 1842.  Their son Jean Numa, called Numa, was born near Breaux Bridge in March 1848.  Their daughter married into the Castille family. 

Numa married first cousin Louisianaise or Louisianisine, daughter of fellow AcadiansThéogène Melançon and Arthémise Babin, his uncle and aunt, at the Breaux Bridge church, St. Martin Parish, in December 1867.  Their son Jules was born near Breaux Bridge in December 1870. 

1d

Théogène married fellow Acadian Marie Arthémise, called Arthémise, Babin at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in July 1845.  Their two daughters married into the Gauthier, Guilbeau, and Melançon families, one of them to a first cousin.  Théogène remarried to Marie Cléophine, called Cléophine, daughter of Joseph Allegre and his Acadian wife Marcellite Cormier, at the St. Martinville church in May 1853.  Their two daughters married into the Sonnier and Trahan families.  Théogène died near Breaux Bridge, St. Martin Parish, in October 1867; the priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Théogène died "at age 40 yrs."; he was 42; his succession, identifying his second wife, was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse in November.  He fathered no sons. 

2

Marcellin, born at Attakapas in February 1792, married Scholastique dite Colastie, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Baptiste Guidry and Marie Breaux of La Grand Pointe, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in April 1813.  They settled at La Pointe.  Their son Pierre Treville was born in March 1815, Pierre Terville in December 1819, Arvillien, Ervillien, or Hervillien, also called Adrien and Émilien, in February 1823, Jean Clairville, called Clairville, in February 1826, Jean Stinville, called Stinville, in July 1827, Émile in February 1829 but died at age 13 1/2 in September 1842, Jean Vilmont or Valmont was born in July 1830, and Cyprien in November 1832.  Their daughters married into the Courville, Guidry, Melançon, and Semere families.  Marcellin died in St. Martin Parish in March 1848, age 56; his succession was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse a few days later. 

2a

Pierre Treville married Julie, daughter of fellow Acadians François LeBlanc and Marguerite Dugas, at the St. Martinville church in December 1835.  Their son Pierre Désiré, called Désiré, was born in St. Martin Parish in February 1840, Joseph Clairville in November 1842, and Aladin in c1856 but died near Breaux Bridge, age 4, in August 1860.  Their daughters married into the Allemand and Huval families. 

Désiré married first cousin Scholastique, called Colastie and also Célestine, daughter of fellow Acadians Placide Semere and Marie Zéolide Melançon, his uncle and aunt, at the Breaux Bridge church, St. Martin Parish, in January 1860.  They settled near Breaux Bridge.  Their son Joseph was born in July 1866, and Jean Derville in November 1868. 

2b

Pierre Terville married cousin Domitille, daughter of fellow Acadians Alexandre Melançon and Mathilde Doucet, at the St. Martinville church in July 1846; Terville's sister Marie Olive married Domitille's brother Alexandre, fils.  Terville's succession was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse in May 1848; he would have been age 28 at the time.  Domitille's succession was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse in December 1850; she would have been age 26 that year. 

2c

Arvillien/Hervillien/Émilien married Caroline, daughter of Charles Jean Baptiste Huval and his Acadian wife Marguerite Guilbeau, at the Breaux Bridge church, St. Martin Parish, in July 1848.  Their son Jean was born in St. Martin Parish in March 1856, and Luca near Breaux Bridge in January 1860.  Their daughters married into the Champagne and Hollier families. 

2d

Jean Clairville married cousin Eugénie, daughter of Onésime Patin and his Acadian wife Adélaïde Guidry, at the Breaux Bridge church, St. Martin Parish, in December 1850.  They settled near Breaux Bridge.  Their son Arcade was born in September 1851, Joseph Ervillien in December 1853, Joachim in December 1858, Adelin in February 1861, and Cyprien in January 1864.  Jean Clairville remarried to Félicia, daughter of fellow Acadians Léonard Thibodeaux and Madeleine-Ordalie Cormier, at the Breaux Bridge church in December 1868.  Jean Clairville remarried again, to a Guilbeau, in December 1874. 

2e

Jean Vilmont married Marie Célesie, Celisa, Célima, or Célina, daughter of Jacques Doré and his Acadian wife Marie Virginie Blanchard, at the Breaux Bridge church, St. Martin Parish, in January 1851.  They remained near Breaux Bridge.  Their son Jean Sevigne was born in January 1853, a son, name and age unrecorded, died in September 1857, and Alcée was born in September 1866.  Jean Vilmont remarried into the Duplechin family in August 1879, but his second wife gave him no more children. 

2f

Jean Stenville married Erasie or Urasie, daughter of fellow Acadians Étienne Bourgeois and Célesite Landry, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in February 1853.  They settled near Breaux Bridge.  Their daughter married into the Thibodeaux family.  Jean Stenville remarried twice, into the Latiolais and Calais families in June 1874 and June 1880, and fathered more children, including a son who does not seem to have married.  His younger daughters married into the Guidry and Meaux families, so the blood of this family line endured in the Bayou State. 

2g

Cyprien married Félicie, daughter of fellow Acadian Jacob Sosthène Broussard and his Creole wife Marie Marcellite Begnaud, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in September 1853.  Their son Joseph, also called Clébert, was born in St. Martin Parish in October 1856. 

3

Youngest son Pierre-Maximilien or -Maxilien, born at Attakapas in July 1798, married Marie Azélie, Azéline, Zéline, or Céline, daughter of fellow Acadians Hippolyte Savoie and Victoire Guilbeau of La Pointe, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in July 1816.  They settled at La Pointe.  Their son, name unrecorded, died at age 1 month in August 1817, Pierre Dolein, Dassin, Dolcin, Dolsin, or Dorsin was born in January 1825, Pierre Dolzé, called Dolzé, in June 1828, Alfred in November 1834, and Joseph in December 1841.  Their daughters married into the Alexandre, Babineaux, Bertrand (French or German Creole, not Acadian), and Cormier families.  Pierre Maximilien's succession record was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse, St. Martin Parish, in March 1844; he would have been age 46 that year. 

3a

Pierre Dolsin married Marie Athanaise, called Thanaise, daughter of fellow Acadians Maximilien Babineaux and Clémence Breaux, at the Breaux Bridge church, St. Martin Parish, in April 1848--the first marriage recorded at the new Breaux Bridge church.  Dolsin died in St. Martin Parish in January 1867; the St. Martinville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Dorsin, as he called him, died "at age 41 yrs."; he was 42; his succession, calling him Dolsin and identifying his wife, was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse later in the month.  They had three daughters, one of whom married, but no sons. 

3b

Pierre Dolzé married Amelie or Émilie, daughter of fellow Acadians Michel Onésime Cormier and Céleste Dupuis, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in April 1851.  Their son Alfred le jeune was born in St. Martin Parish in March 1852, and Sylvain in August 1853 but died the following October.  Dolze died in St. Martin Parish in October 1853, age 25.  His older son perpetuated the family line.

3c

Alfred married Mathilde, daughter of fellow Acadian Aurelien Bijeaux and his Creole wife Marie Collins, at the St. Martinville church in May 1854.  They settled near Breaux Bridge.  Their son Adam was born in July 1856, Félix in October 1858, and Joseph Dolze in January 1863. 

Descendants of Jean-Baptiste MELANÇON (c1760-1813; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean)

Jean-Baptiste, second son of Paul Melanson and Marie Thériot, born probably in Maryland in c1759, was counted with his family at Snow Hill, Maryland, in July 1763.  He followed them to Louisiana in 1766.  Spanish officials counted them on the left, or east, bank of the river at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques in 1769.  His father died in c1770, and his mother remarried to fellow Acadian Amand Préjean, a widower.  In the late 1770s, Jean-Baptiste followed his mother, stepfather, and some of his siblings to the Attakapas District, where he married his stepsister, Marie-Madeleine, called Madeleine, daughter of fellow Acadians Amand Préjean, his stepfather, and his first wife Madeleine Martin, in May 1785.  They settled at Carencro.  Their daughters married into the Babineaux and LeBlanc families.  Jean Baptiste, père died "at his home" at Carencro in October 1813; the St. Martinville priest who recorded the burial said that Jean Baptiste was age 50 when he died, but he probably was closer to age 54; his first succession was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse, St. Martin Parish, the month of his death, and a second one at the Vermilionville courthouse, Lafayette Parish, in January 1825.  His sons settled in Lafayette Parish.  A grandson settled near New Iberia on lower Bayou Teche. 

1

Oldest son Jean-Baptiste, fils, also called Jean and Louis, born probably at Carencro in December 1788, married Susanne or Suzette, daughter of fellow Acadians Amand Landry and Élisabeth Landry, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in October 1808.  They settled at Carencro and then at Côte Gelée.  Their son Jean Baptiste or Achille was born in September 1811, Joseph Osémé in April 1816, Pierre Bélisaire, called Bélisaire, at Côte Gelée in February 1821, Louis died 8 days after his birth in October 1826, and Eugène, also called Théogène, was baptized at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, age 3 months, in February 1831.  Their daughters married into the Comeaux, Giroir, Mire, and Richard families.  Jean died in Lafayette Parish in September 1858; the Vermilionville priest who recorded her burial said that Jean died "at age 68 yrs."; he was 69; his succession was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse in October. 

1a

Jean Achille married Marie Euphrosine, daughter of fellow Acadians Dominique Prejean and Marie Marguerite Savoie of Lafourche and St. James, at the Grand Coteau church, St. Landry Parish, in July 1832.  Their son Jean Théomile, called Théomile, was born near Grand Coteau in May 1833 but died in Lafayette Parish, age 7 1/2, in October 1840, Napoléon was born in March 1836, and an unnamed infant died an hour after its birth in December 1838.  Jean Achille died in Lafayette Parish in March 1857; the Vermilionville priest who recorded the burial said that Achille died "at age 43 yrs."; he was 45; his succession was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse in May. 

Napoléon married Cléonide, daughter of fellow Acadian Don Louis Broussard and Anastasie Landry, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in November 1855.  They settled near Youngsville.  Their son Jean Achille le jeune was born in March 1858, André Bienvenu in November 1859, Euphémon in June 1864 when his father was waiting for his unit to be exchanged, Alphonse in August 1867, and Paul in March 1869.  During the War of 1861-65, Napoléon served in Company A of the 26th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, raised in Lafayette Parish, which fought at Vicksburg, Mississippi.  He survived the war, returned to his family, and remarried twice after 1870. 

1b

Joseph Osémé married Carmélite, also called Amelie, Émelie, Émilite, and Mélite, daughter of fellow Acadians Nicolas Broussard and Adélaïde Broussard, at the Vermilionville church in December 1839.  Their son Onésiphore was born in Lafayette Parish in December 1840, and Joseph in February 1843.  Their daughters married into the Addison, Girouard, and Melançon families.  Joseph Osémé died in Lafayette Parish in March 1869; the Vermilionville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Ozémé, as he called him, died "at age 57 yrs."; he was only a month shy of 53; his succession was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse, Lafayette Parish, later in the month. 

Onésiphore married Marie, daughter of Alexandre Victor Aube and Élisabeth Meaux, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in February 1862.  They settled near Youngsville. 

1c

Pierre Bélisaire married Delphine, daughter of Delphin Leleux and his Acadian wife Anastase Landry, at the New Iberia church, then in St. Martin but now in Iberia Parish, in February 1843.  Their son Pierre Onésime was born near New Iberia in September 1844 but died in Lafayette Parish, age 5 1/2, in August 1850, and Nicolas was born in December 1858. 

1d

Eugène, called Théogène by the recording priest, married Julie, daughter fellow Acadians Édouard Comeaux and Marguerite Granger, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in February 1851.  Eugène died in Lafayette Parish in February 1854, age 23; his succession was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse in April.  Did he father any sons? 

2

Émilien, born probably at Carencro in August 1796, married Marie Cléonise, called Cléonise, daughter of fellow Acadians Éloi Benoit and Eugénie Louvière, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in February 1828.  Their son Éloi was baptized at the Vermilionville church, age 2 months, in November 1835, Honoré in August 1838, Émilien, fils in March 1842, and a child, name and age unrecorded, perhaps a son, died in November 1848.  Their daughter married into the Chautin family.  Émilien died in Lafayette Parish in September 1859, age 63. 

Éloi married cousin Mathilde, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Osémé Melançon, his first cousin, and Émélise Broussard, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in April 1860.  They settled probably near Carencro.  Their son Joseph was born in March 1862, and Éloi, fils in March 1870. 

3

Youngest son Onésime, a twin, born probably at Carencro in October 1803, married cousin Marie Mélanie, called Mélanie, daughter of fellow Acadians Célestin Prejean and Marie Marcellite Landry, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in January 1828.  Their son Désiré was born in Lafayette Parish in February 1829 but died at age 4 1/2 in October 1833, Jean Baptiste Sosthène was born in January 1831, a child, name unrecorded, died at age 3 in April 1837, Portalis was born in January 1833, Edmond died 6 days after his birth in September 1838, Marcel was born in December 1839, Alcide in January 1842, and Onésime, fils in November 1845.  Their daughters married into the Bernard, Boudreaux, and Comeaux families.  Onésime died in Lafayette Parish in March 1865; the Vermilionville priest who recorded the burial said that Onésime died "at age 60 yrs."; he was 61; his succession was filed at the Vermilionville courthouse the following November. 

3a

Jean Baptiste Sosthène married Marcellite, daughter of fellow Acadians Philippe de Saint-Julien Lachaussée III and Hortense LeBlanc, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in September 1849.  They evidently were that rare Acadian couple who had no children. 

3b

Marcel married Philomène, daughter of fellow Acadians Pierre Arvillien Broussard and Colastie Thibodeaux, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in June 1860.  They settled near Youngsville.  Their son Romain was born in October 1862. 

3c

During the War of 1861-65, Alcide served in Company A of the 26th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, raised in Lafayette Parish, which fought at Vicksburg, Mississippi.  Alcide married Noémi, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Guidry and Oliva Landry, at the Youngsville church, Lafayette Parish, in August 1865.  Their son Edmond was born near Youngsville in December 1867.  Alcide remarried into the Hébert family in December 1885. 

3d

Onésime, fils married Adélaïde, daughter of fellow Acadians Drosin Boudreaux and Adélaïde Duhon, at the Youngsville church in October 1866. 

Olivier MELANÇON (c1760-?; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Jean-Baptiste)

Olivier, son of Joseph Melanson and Anne Landry, born probably at Snow Hill, Maryland, in c1760, came to Louisiana with his widowed mother and a younger sister in 1766.  He followed them to Cabanocé/St.-Jacques on the river, where Spanish officials counted them on the left, or east, bank of the river in 1769.  They were living on the same side of the river at nearby Ascension in 1770.  By then, his mother had remarried to fellow Acadian Augustin Broussard, who took them to the Attakapas District by 1777.  If he survived childhood, Olivier probably did not marry. 

~

During the antebellum period, more Melançons, including another set of brothers, left the river and joined their cousins on the western prairies.  One line did not survive, and another returned to the river:

Descendants of Charles dit Migouin MELANÇON (1768-1818; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean)

Charles, fifth and youngest son of Alexandre Melanson and his second wife Osite Hébert, born probably at Cabanocé in March 1768, was the only one of his father's many sons born in Louisiana.  Charles was counted with his widowed mother and siblings on the left, or east, bank of the river at St.-Jacques in 1769; he was 17 months old.  Spanish officials counted him with his mother and siblings on the east bank of the river at St.-Jacques in 1777.  Charles married Claire, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph-Charles Breaux and Marie-Josèphe Landry and widow of Pierre Comeaux, at St.-Jacques in January 1790.  Their daughters married into the Guidry and Semere families and settled on the western prairies.  Charles remarried to Scholastique dite Colastie, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Bourgeois and Marie Giroir and widow of Nicolas Picou, probably at St. Jacques in  August 1803.  They lived on the river before moving to Grand Pointe on upper Bayou Teche later in the decade.  Their daughter married into the Martín (Isleño, not Acadian) family.  Charles, called Charles dit Migouin, "native of Acadie," by the St. Martinville priest who recorded the burial, died at his home at Grand Pointe in December 1818; the priest said that Charles was age 54 when he died; his succession was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse, St. Martin Parish, the following February.  Three of his four sons created families of their own in St. Martin Parish. 

1

Oldest son, Alexandre le jeune, by his father's first wife, born at St.-Jacques in August 1792, married Mathilde, daughter of fellow Acadian Firmin Maurice Doucet and Marie Doucet of Iberville Parish and Grand Pointe, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in June 1823.  Their son Alexandre, fils was born in St. Martin Parish in July 1827, and Eugène le jeune in August 1838.  Their daughters married into the Landry and Melançon families.  Alexandre Martin may have died in St. Martin Parish in January 1844; the St. Martinville priest who recorded the burial said that Alexandre died "at age 45 yrs."; this Alexandre would have been 39.  His sons settled near Breaux Bridge. 

1a

Alexandre, fils married cousin Marie Olive, Oliva, Octavie, or Célina, daughter of fellow Acadians Marcellin Melançon and Scholastique dite Colastie Guidry, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in November 1846; Alexandre, fils's sister Domitille married Marie Olive's brother Pierre Treville.  Alexandre, fils and Marie Olive settled near Breaux Bridge.  Their son Firmin was born in July 1849, Onésiphore in November 1856, Adam in July 1860, Alcée le jeune in February 1865, and Alfred in February 1867.  Their daughter married into the Dupuis family.  Marie Olive, called Marie Octavie by the recording priest, died near Breaux Bridge in December 1868, age 43; her succession, calling her Oliva, was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse in January 1870.  Alexandre, fils remarried to French Creole Eulalie Latiolais, place and date unrecorded.  He died near Breaux Bridge in November 1870; the priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names or mention a wife, said that Alexandre died "at age 45 yrs."; he was 52; his succession, identifying both of his wives, was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse two weeks after his death. 

Firmin, by his father's first wife, married Emma, daughter of fellow Acadians Léonard Thibodeaux and Madeleine Ordalie Cormier, at the Breaux Bridge church, St. Martin Parish, in December 1870. 

1b

Eugène le jeune married Marie Uranie, called Uranie, daughter of fellow Acadians Alexandre Dupuis and Marie Semere, at the Breaux Bridge church in March 1859.  Their son Julien was born near Breaux Bridge in December 1859, Ignace in August 1861, and Théophane in October 1870. 

2

Anaclet, born probably at St.-Jacques in c1797, married Anne Doralise, called Doralise, daughter of fellow Acadians Nicolas Thibodeaux and Eléonore Prejean, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in January 1820.  They settled at Grand Pointe.  Their son Telesphore was born in October 1820 but died the following April, and a child, name unrecorded, died on the day of its birth in February 1825.  Their daughters married into the Daigle and Thibodeaux families.  Anaclet died "in the morning at his home on Bayou Teche" in September 1827; the St. Martinville priest who recorded the burial said that Anaclet died "at age about 30 years"; his succession was field at the Opelousas courthouse, St. Landry Parish, in October.  His line of the family, except for its blood, died with him. 

3

Charles-Eugène, called Eugène, from his father's first wife, born at St.-Jacques in June 1795, "died suddenly ... at the home of Agricole Braud at La grand-pointe" in August 1822.  The priest who recorded the burial said that Eugène died "at age about 22 years"; he was 26.  He probably did not marry. 

4

Victorin, by his father's second wife, born at Attakapas in April 1807, married Marie Antoinette, "natural" daughter of Casimir dit Gayard Pellerin, homme de couleur libre, and Denise Trahan, an Acadian, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in December 1841.  Their son Joseph was born in St. Martin Parish in December 1844, Charles in November 1846, Alcide in July 1855, Louis near Breaux Bridge in September 1858, Hippolyte in May 1859, Adolphe in March 1861, Benjamin in April 1863, and Ernest in April 1867.  Local church records insist that they also had sons named Clairville, Jean Baptiste, and Joseph, who died near Breaux Bridge at ages 3, 3, and 2, respectively, in July 1862. 

5

Youngest son Eugène, by his father's second wife, the second with the name, born in St. Martin Parish in c1815, was, in 1850, at age 35, living on the plantation of his sister-in-law Mathilde Doucet, widow of his half-brother brother Alexandre le jeune, at Grande Pointe.  He evidently did not marry. 

Charles MELANÇON, fils (c1777-1810; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Jean-Baptiste)

Charles, fils, a twin, son of Charles Melançon and Félicité Landry, baptized at St.-Jacques, age unrecorded, in November 1777, married Adélaïde, daughter of fellow Acadians René LeBlanc and Marguerite Trahan of Bayou Vermilion, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in September 1808.  They settled on the lower Vermilion River.  Charles died at his home on the lower Vermilion in February 1810; the priest who recorded the burial said that Charles died "at age 30 yrs."; he was closer to 33; his succession was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse, St. Martin Parish, in August.  He and his wife had a daughter, born posthumously, but no sons, at least none who appear in area church records.  The daughter died at age 16 months, so this family line did not survive. 

Descendants of Joseph MELANÇON III (1813-?; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Alexandre, Joseph)

Joseph III, eldest son of Joseph Melançon, fils and Constance LeBlanc, born in St. James Parish in February 1813, married Marguerite Uranie, called Uranie, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Louis Bernard and Aspasie Dugas, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in September 1836.  They lived on the river before returning to the western prairies in the 1840s.  They settled probably near Carencro, at the northen edge of Lafayette Parish.  Joseph III remarried to Cidalise, daughter of fellow Acadians Anaclet Cormier and Madeleine Richard and widow of Marcellin Patin, at the Grand Coteau church, St. Landry Parish, in January 1865. 

1

Oldest son Joseph IV, by his father's first wife, was born in Ascension Parish in August 1837. 

2

Joseph Séverin Jessner, called Jessner, by his father's first wife, was born in Ascension Parish in February 1839.   

3

Jean Dracos, by his father's first wife, was born in Lafayette Parish in May 1851. 

4

Joseph Alphares, by his father's first wife, was born near Grand Coteau, St. Landry Parish, in October 1855. 

5

Youngest son Louis Yorick, by his father's first wife, was born probably near Grand Coteau in February 1858. 

Descendants of Marcellin Louis MELANÇON (1818-) Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Alexandre, Joseph)

Marcellin Louis, second son of Joseph Melançon, fils and Constance LeBlanc, born in St. James Parish in July 1818, married Eulalie, daughter of Étienne Gabriel de la Morandière and his Acadian wife Elisa Richard, at the Opelousas church, St. Landry Parish, in April 1844.  They remained on the prairies, where, at age 62, Marcellin Louis remarried to Marie Marcellite, daughter of John F. Smith and his Acadian wife Olivia Guilbeau, in October 1881.  She gave him no children.  His only daughter may have married into the Barry family after 1870.  His older son, also by his first wife, married by 1870, and the younger son married into the Bird and Landry or Greenly families after 1870.

1

Older son Louis Étienne, by his father's first wife, born in St. Landry Parish in October 1845, married Amelie, daughter of Alexandre Castille and Emilia Robin, at the Washington church, St. Landry Parish, in April 1870. 

2

Alexis Joseph, perhaps his son, by his father's first wife, died near Port Barre, St. Landry Parish, age 3, in June 1860.  The Opelousas priest who recorded the boy's burial did not give the mother's name but called the father Ranni.  Was this Marcellin Louis? 

Marcellin Camille MELANÇON (1829-1898; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Alexandre, Joseph)

Marcellin Camille, called Camille, fourth son of Joseph Melançon, fils and Constance LeBlanc, born in St. James Parish in October 1829, married, at age 36, Marie Philomène, daughter of Jean Baptiste Dejean and Julie Nezat, at the Opelousas church, St. Landry Parish, in January 1866.  One wonders if this was his first marriage.  He and his wife evidently were that rare Cajun couple who had no children. 

Descendants of Phlegie Robert MELANÇON (1831-; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Alexandre, Joseph)

Robert Phlegie or Phlegie Robert, sixth son of Joseph Melançon, fils and Constance LeBlanc, born in St. James Parish in May 1831, married Marie Eulalie, called Eulalie, another daughter of Jean Louis Bernard and Aspasie Dugas, at the Vermilionville church, Lafayette Parish, in June 1854.  They lived in Ascension Parish before returning to the western prairies, but they were back on the river by the late 1860s. 

1

Older son Marc Camille was born in Ascension Parish in April 1855. 

2

Adolphe was born perhaps on the prairies in January 1859. 

3

Gabriel was born near Breaux Bridge, St. Martin Parish, in December 1861. 

~

Other MELANÇONs on the Western Prairies

Area church and civil records make it difficult to link some Melançons in the western parishes with known lines of the family there.  One suspects that some of the Melançons who lived on the western prairies during the post-war period were Afro Creoles once owned by Acadian Melançons: 

Alexandre Melançon's last will was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse, St. Martin Parish, in July 1835.  Which Alexandre was this? 

Émilie Melançon died in St. Martin Parish in May 1844, age 3.  The St. Martinville priest who recorded the girl's burial did not give her parents' names.

Charles Melançon's succession was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse, St. Martin Parish, in September 1851.  Which Charles Melançon was this?

A "boy" fathered by Alexandre Melançon died, age unrecorded, near Breaux Bridge, St. Martin Parish, in October 1857.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give the boy's mother's name.  One wonders which Alexandre Melançon may have been the father. 

Joseph, son of Raphaël Melançon, died near Breaux Bridge, St. Martin Parish, age 2, in February 1860.  The priest who recorded the boy's burial did not give the mother's name.  Who was Raphaël, and who did he marry? 

Alexandre Melançon married Marie Olymphe, daughter of fellow Acadian Joseph Theriot, in a civil ceremony in St. Martin Parish in December 1860.  The parish clerk who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names. 

Clairville, son of Victorin Melançon, died near Breaux Bridge, age 3, on 12 July 1862.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give the boy's mother's name.  Oddly, Jean Baptiste, son of Victorin Melançon, also died near Breaux Bridge at age 3, on 14 July 1862.  The priest who recorded the burial, again, did not give the boy's mother's name.  Were Clairville and Jean-Baptiste twins?  Moreover, Joseph, son Victorin Melançon, died near Breaux Bridge at age 2 on 22 July 1862, and, again, the priest who recorded the burial did not give the boy's mother's name.  Which Victorin Melançon was their father? 

Arista, daughter of Joseph Melançon, died at Washington, St. Landry Parish, age 17, in March 1863.  The Opelousas priest who recorded the burial did not give the young woman's mother's name, so one wonders which Joseph Melançon her father may have been. 

Charles Melançon married Mrs. Felonise McGee, widow of Louis Miller, in a civil ceremony in St. Landry Parish in July 1863.  The parish clerk who recorded the marriage give the couple's parents' names. 

Joséphine Melançon, wife of Don Louis Guidry, died near Breaux Bridge, age 30, in February 1864.  The priest who recorded the burial gave no parents' names. 

Jean Joseph Melançon died near Breaux Bridge, St. Martin Parish, in November 1864.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give any parents' names, mention a wife, or give Jean Joseph's age at the time of his death. 

Élise Melançon died near Breaux Bridge, age 10 months, in December 1864.  The priest who recorded the burial did not give any parents' names. 

Eulalie Melançon married fellow Acadian Gédéon Doiron at the Breaux Bridge church, St. Martin Parish, in June 1866.  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names. 

Angèle Melançon married Jules, son of fellow Acadian Onésime Gautreaux, in a civil ceremony in St. Landry Parish in May 1867.  The parish clerk who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names. 

Ludger Melançon died in St. Martin Parish in August 1867.  The St. Martinville priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parents' names, said that Ludger died "at age 17 yrs."  His succession, calling him Lusher, was filed at the St. Martinville courthouse the following November. 

Amelia Melançon died in St. Martin Parish, age 2 months, in April 1858.  The St. Martinville priest who recorded the burial did not name the girl's parents' names. 

Camilia Melançon died near Grand Coteau, St. Landry Parish, age 12 months, in June 1868.  The priest who recorded the burial did not name the girl's parents' names. 

Drascasse Melançon died "at Wash.," that is, Washington, St. Landry Parish, age 16, in November 1868.  The Opelousas priest who recorded the burial did not give the young man's parents' names. 

Alexandre Melançon married Eliza Melançon, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Joseph was born near Abbeville, Vermilion Parish, in June 1869. 

Alexandre Melançon married Philomène Guidry, place and date unrecorded.  Daughter Lésida was born near Breaux Bridge, St. Martin Parish, September 1869. 

Cécilia, daughter of Marcellite Melançon, was born near Abbeville, Vermilion Parish, in September 1869.  The priest who recorded the baptism did not give the girl's father's name.  Was he also a Melançon?  Who were the mother's parents? 

Carmélite Melançon died near New Iberia, Iberia Parish, age 50, in December 1869.  The priest who recorded the burial did not mention a husband or give any parents' names. 

Joséphine Melançon gave birth to son Joseph Léodice near Youngsville, Lafayette Parish, in December 1869. 

Joseph Melançon married Émilie Savoy, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Émile was baptized at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, age 6 months, in January 1871. 

LOUISIANA:  LAFOURCHE VALLEY SETTLEMENTS

Only two Melansons came to Louisiana from France in 1785.  One of them chose to settle on upper Bayou Lafourche, but no new family line came of it:

Marie-Madeleine Melanson, age 49, came with husband Charles Gautrot, age 49, and two children, ages 14 and 5, aboard La Caroline, the last of the Seven Ships, which reached New Orleans in December 1785.  They went to upper Bayou Lafourche, where their older son Joseph-Benoît had settled after crossing on La Bergère, the second of the Seven Ships.  Marie-Madeleine died on the bayou by January 1788, when her husband remarried there.  Her Gautreaux children settled on the upper bayou. 

~

Not until the early antebellum period did Melançons from the Acadian Coast, including two sets of brothers, settle on upper Bayou Lafourche, creating a third center of family settlement.  By the eve of the War of 1861-65, this center of settlement stretched down bayou from the Ascension/Assumption parish line into lower Lafourche Interior Parish: 

Descendants of Éloi MELANÇON (c1777-1850; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Jean-Baptiste)

Éloi, a twin, son of Charles Melançon and Félicité Landry, baptized at St.-Jacques, age unrecorded, in November 1777, married Constance, daughter of fellow Acadians Jean Baptiste Bergeron and Marie Babin, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in April 1815.  Their daughters married into the Meguet or Mequet, Pierce, and Savoie families.  Éloi died in Ascension Parish in May 1850; the Donaldsonville priest who recorded the burial said that Éloi died at "age 75 years." 

1

Oldest son Édouard, born in Lafourche Interior Parish in January 1815, may have died young. 

2

Victor, born in Lafourche Interior Parish in April 1820, married Farelie, 18-year-old daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Savoie and Marie Françoise Bergeron, in a civil ceremony in Lafourche Interior Parish in June 1841, and sanctified the marriage at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in September 1849.  They settled near Raceland and Lockport.  Their son Alfred was born in December 1845, and Alcide in April 1850.  Victor's older daughters married into the Arceneaux, Perrin, and Raymond families before 1870. 

Alfred married Élizabeth, daughter of George W. Leonard and his Acadian wife Mélanie Daigle, at the Lockport church, Lafourche Parish, in June 1867. 

3

Youngest son Éloi Gilles was born in Lafourche Interior Parish in September 1824. 

Descendants of Emanuel-Maurice dit Marius MELANÇON (1787-1854; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Alexandre)

Emanuel- or Manuel-Maurice, called Maurice and Marius, third son son of Pierre-Jacques Melançon and his first wife Élisabeth Landry, born at St.-Jacques in April 1787, married Marie Marcelline, called Marcelline, daughter of fellow Acadians Simon Gautreaux and Marie Josèphe Duhon, at the Donaldson church, Ascension Parish, in April 1811.  They settled on upper Bayou Lafourche by the early 1820s.  Their daughters married into the Barbier and Blanchard families.  Marius died near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in March 1854; the priest who recorded the burial said that Marius died at "age 58 years"; he was 66.  Two of his four sons created families of their own and remained on the upper bayou. 

1

Oldest son Simon, born in Ascension Parish in November 1815, married Euphémie, daughter of fellow Acadians Lubin LeBlanc and Mélanie Aucoin, in c1848.  They settled near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, by the late 1840s.  Their son Simon Saba was born near Plattenville in February 1852.  Simon remarried to Marie Zulmée, daughter of Jean Martinez and Constance Plaisance, at the Plattenville church in August 1856.  Their son Jean Simon, called Simon, fils, was born near Plattenville in June 1862 but died at age 3 in August 1865, Thomas Jackson was born in July 1864, and Joseph Simon or Simon Joseph in Ascension Parish in November 1866 but died near Plattenville, age 8 months, in July 1867. 

2

Joseph Lessin, called Lessin, born in Ascension Parish in February 1817, married Marie, daughter of Manuel Martinez and Marguerite Plaisance, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in February 1841.  Their son Joseph Désiré Enoé or Noé was born near Plattenville in December 1841, Arthur Simon in February 1843, Michel in January 1850, Désiré Ilere near Labadieville in March 1854, Victor Oscar in February 1860, and Osémé Joseph in August 1865.  Their daughters married into the Allemand, Himel, and Vicknair families before 1870. 

During the War of 1861-65, oldest son Noé served in Company C of the 26th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, raised in Assumption Parish, which fought at Vicksburg, Mississippi.  He married Marie Éloise or Héloise, daughter of fellow Acadians Basile Talbot and Marie Henry, at the Labadieville church in April 1864 while he was waiting for his unit to be exchanged.  After the war, they settled near Labadieville. 

3

Emanuel, fils, born in Lafourche Interior Parish in February 1822, may have died young. 

4

Youngest son Joseph Paul, called Paul, born in Lafourche Interior Parish in July 1829, died at age 3 in August 1832. 

Descendants of Gilbert MELANÇON (1799-; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Alexandre)

Gilbert, fourth son of Paul-Olivier Melançon and his first wife Osite-Barbe LeBlanc, born at St.-Jacques in October 1799, married Céleste Eméranthe, called Emérante or Méranthe, daughter of Pierre Champagne and Marie Chauvin, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in June 1819.  Their children were baptized both in St. James Parish and on Bayou Lafourche in the 1820s, but they settled on the bayou.  Their daughters married into the Bourgeois, Landry, Pitre, and Richard families.

1

Oldest son Jules or Julien Gilbert, called Gilbert, fils, born in Lafourche Interior Parish in April 1825, married Marie Louise, called Louise, daughter of Jacques Matherne and Marie Rémilie Sevin, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Interior Parish, in April 1850.  Their son Gilbert Ozémé was born near Lockport in February 1851, Jacques Faustin in February 1853, and Isidore Marcel in December 1857.  They were still living near Lockport a decade later.  

2

Pierre Théodule, called Théodule, born in Lafourche Interior Parish in September 1833, married Marguerite, daughter of Pierre Ledet and his Acadian wife Marie Céleste Molaison and widow of Eugène Bourgeois, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Parish, in January 1856; Marguerite's mother was a Molaison.  They settled near Raceland.  Their son Pierre Alexandre was born in September 1866. 

3

Youngest son Paul Aimée, called Aimée, born in Lafourche Interior Parish in January 1835, married Marie Elvina, called Elvina, daughter of Jean Perilloux and Marcellite Ledet, at the Thibodaux church, Lafourche Parish, in March 1865.  Their son Paul Cléonas was born near Thibodaux in September 1866. 

Descendants of Jean-Baptiste MELANÇON (1800-1833; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Jean-Baptiste, Jean-Baptiste, fils)

Jean-Baptiste, eldest son of Pierre Eusèbe Melançon and Adélaïde LeBlanc, born at St.-Jacques in December 1800, married Séraphine, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Michel Daigle and Madeleine LeBlanc, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in August 1825.  They settled on upper Bayou Lafourche.  Their daughter married a LeBlanc cousin.  Jean Baptiste died in Assumption Parish in October 1833, age 32. 

1

Older son Marcelle Cléopha, called Cléopha, born in Ascension Parish in April 1831, married Malvina LeBlanc probably in Assumption Parish in the early 1850s.  They settled near Plattenville. 

2

Younger son Jean Baptiste Valière, born in Assumption Parish in January 1833, died at age 2 in March 1835.

Descendants of Ursin MELANÇON (1805-1875; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Jean-Baptiste, Jean-Baptiste, fils)

Ursin, third son of Pierre Eusèbe Melançon and Adélaïde LeBlanc, born at St. James in September 1805, married second cousin Marie Marcellite, daughter of fellow Acadians Joseph Melançon and Constance LeBlanc, at the St. James church, St. James Parish, in July 1831; they had to secure a dispensation for third degree of consanguinity in order to marry.  Marie Marcellite died in St. James Parish in June 1833, age 21.  Ursin remarried to first cousin Doralise, daughter of fellow Acadians Olivier LeBlanc and Émélie Lalande, at the St. James church in November 1835; they had to secure a dispensation for second degree of consanguinity in order to marry.  They settled on upper Bayou Lafourche near the boundary between Ascension and Assumption parishes and had at least six sons, most of whom died young.  Doralise died giving birth to the sixth son.  Ursin, at age 55, remarried--his third marriage--to first cousin Pélagie Fanny, another daughter of Olivier LeBlanc and Émélie Lalande, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in August 1861; they had to secure a dispensation for first degree of affinity and second degree of consanguinity in order to marry. 

1

Oldest son Nichols Théolin or Théolin Nichols, by his father's second wife, born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in September 1836, married cousin Pamela, daughter of fellow Acadians Godefroi Templet and Carmélite Bourg, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in April 1858; they had to secure a dispensation for third degree of consanguinity in order to marry.  During the War of 1861-65, Théolin Nichols, called T. N. in Confederate records, served in Company H of the 29th (Thomas's) Regiment Louisiana Infantry, raised in Assumption Parish.  In April 1862, at age 22, T. N. enlisted as a private in the company probably at Napleonville and followed his regiment to Vicksburg, Mississippi.  Along with 29,000 other Confederates captured by Grant's army in the river citadel in July 1863, T. N. was paroled and sent home to await exchange.  Like many of his fellow Confederates, he evidently did not report to his exchanged regiment's camp at Alexandria, Louisiana, in the summer of 1864 but remained at home.  The Federals captured him probably at home in October and exchanged him at Red River Landing, Louisiana, later in the month.  T. N. surrendered and was paroled again in June 1865 at war's end.  He registered as an end-of-war parolee at Napoleonville the following November.  His son Timothée Émile was born near Plattenville in December 1866.  Théoline Nichols died near Plattenville in October 1867, age 31.  His son survived childhood and married. 

2

Augustin Melon, by his father's second wife, born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in May 1840, died near Paincourtville, age 4 1/2, in September 1844. 

3

Joseph, a twin, by his father's second wife, born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in April 1842, died the day after his birth. 

4

Pierre Flegi, by his father's second wife, born near Donaldsonville, Ascension Parish, in January 1844, died at age 5 1/2 in September 1849.   

5

Joseph Amilcar, called Amilcar, from his father's second wife, born near Paincourtville, Assumption Parish, in December 1847, married Noémi, daughter of fellow Acadians Lazare Guillot and Ernestine Aucoin, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in February 1868.  Their son Ursin Eugène was born near Plattenville in December 1868.  Amilcar remarried in the 1890s. 

6

Youngest Émile, by his father's second wife, born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in January 1851, died near Paincourtville, age 11 months, in December 1851.  His mother, age 44, died giving him birth. 

Descendants of Edmond MELANÇON (1809-1845; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Jean-Baptiste, Jean-Baptiste, fils)

Edmond, fourth son of Pierre Eusèbe Melançon and Adélaïde LeBlanc, born in Ascension Parish in October 1809, married cousin Euphémie, daughter of Hippolyte Carmouche and his Acadian wife Madeleine LeBlanc, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in February 1830; they had to secure a dispensation for fourth degree of consanguinity in order to marry.  They settled on upper Bayou Lafourche near the boundary between Ascension and Assumption parishes.  Edmond remarried to cousin Carmélite, daughter of fellow Acadians Rosémond LeBlanc and Clothilde Bujole and widow of Robert Scott, at the Donaldsonville church in December 1843.  Edmond died in Ascension Parish in October 1845; the Donaldsonville priest who recorded the burial said that Edmont, as he called him, died at "age 38 years.  He was 36.  His only son settled on the upper bayou and served as sheriff of Assumption Parish. 

Edmond Osémé, called Osémé, from his father's first wife, born in Assumption Parish in January 1831, married Pauline Reullan or Ruela probably in Assumption Parish in the early 1850s.  Their son Edmond Auguste was born near Plattenville in April 1854, and Joseph Albert or Albert Joseph near Labadieville in October 1855 but died at age 2 1/2 in January 1858.  In 1860, E. O., as he was called, was living with his family in Napoleonville and serving as sheriff of Assumption Parish. 

Descendants of Augustin MELANÇON (1812-1877; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Jean-Baptiste, Jean-Baptiste, fils)

Augustin, fifth son of Pierre Eusèbe Melançon and Adélaïde LeBlanc, born in Ascension Parish in January 1812, married Mélanie, daughter of fellow Acadians Timothée Hébert and Rosalie Comeaux, in c1843 and followed his brothers to upper Bayou Lafourche.  Augustin died in Assumption Parish in November 1877, age 65.  Their daughter married a Blanchard cousin. 

1

Older son Gustave Timothée, born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in May 1844, died in July 1858, age 14.  

2

Younger son Elphége, born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in November 1846, married Cécile or Cécilia, daughter of Louis Paranthon, Parenton, Parenthon, or Parenthan and his Acadian wife Céleste Moïse, at the Plattenville church in May 1867.  Their son Louis Gustave was born near Plattenville in August 1869. 

Descendants of Pierre Martin MELANÇON (1816-; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Jean-Baptiste, Jean-Baptiste, fils)

Pierre Martin, called Martin, seventh and youngest son of Pierre Eusèbe Melançon and Adélaïde LeBlanc, born in Ascension Parish in November 1816, married Célestine, daughter of fellow Acadians Florentin Templet and Clarisse Blanchard, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in June 1841.  They remained on upper Bayou Lafourche.  Most of their sons died young. 

1

Oldest son Pierre Aristide, called Aristide, born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in July 1843, died at age 11 months in June 1844. 

2

François Adam René, called René, born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in July 1847, died in October 1861, age 14.

3

A son, name unrecorded, died an infant near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in June 1852. 

4

Edgard Oscar, born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in December 1854, was the only son who married. 

Descendants of Joseph MELANÇON, fils (1803-1842; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Alexandre, Pierre-Jacques)

Joseph, fils, eldest son of Joseph Melançon and Apollinie LeBlanc, born at St. James in December 1803, married cousin Marie Henriette or Osite, daughter of fellow Acadians Amand Gautreaux and Françoise Landry, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in February 1827; they had to secure a dispensation for fourth degree of consanguinity in order to marry.  They settled on upper Bayou Lafourche near the boundary between Ascension and Assumption parishes.  Joseph, fils died near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in November 1842; the priest who recorded the burial said that Joseph, Jr., as he called him, died at "age ca. 30 years"; he was 38. 

1

Older son Joseph Narcisse Valcour, called Valcour, born in Assumption Parish in December 1827, married Constance, daughter of Jean Martinez and Constance Plaisance, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in March 1851.  Their only son Jean Albert was born near Plattenville in March 1855.  A daughter married into the Ruiz family before 1870. 

2

Younger son Joseph Albert, perhaps called Albert, born in Assumption Parish in February 1837, may have married Anglo American Mary Walker, place and date unrecorded.  Their son Mathias was born in Ascension Parish in August 1861. 

Descendants of Joseph Sylvère MELANÇON (1812-1869; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Alexandre, Pierre-Jacques)

Joseph Sylvère, called Sylvère, third son of Joseph Melançon and Apolline LeBlanc, born in St. James Parish in December 1812, married Céleste or Célesie, daughter of fellow Acadians Simon Pierre dit Simonet Boudreaux and Céleste Babin, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in April 1837.  They, too, settled near the boundary between Ascension and Assumption parishes.  Their daughter married into the Gaspard family.  Sylvère died near Plattenville in August 1869; the priest who recorded the burial, and who did not give any parent's names or mention a wife, said that Silvère, as he called him, died at "age ca. 50 years"; he was 56. 

1

Oldest son Joseph Gabriel was born near Donaldsonville, Ascension Parish, in February 1846. 

2

Joseph Césaire, called Césaire, born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in August 1848, married Marie Alida, daughter of fellow Acadians Trasimond Aucoin and Azélie Hébert, at the Plattenville church in February 1869. 

3

Nazaire Clair was born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in July 1852. 

4

Séverin Clairville was born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in January 1856. 

5

Monique Aimée was born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in May 1862. 

Descendants of Paul Trasimond MELANÇON (1817-; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Alexandre, Pierre-Jacques)

Paul Trasimond, called Trasimond and also Rosémond, fourth and youngest son of Joseph Melançon and Apolline LeBlanc, born in St. James Parish in April 1817, married Eulalie, daughter of Jean Martinez and Constance Plaisance, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in November 1840.  They lived on the upper Lafourche near the boundary between Assumption and Ascension parishes.  Their daughters married into the Acosta, Lacoste, and Ruiz families. 

1

Oldest son Adélard dit Taylor, born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in January 1843, died at age 6 1/2 in August 1849. 

2

During the War of 1861-65, Jean Sylvère, called Sylvère, born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in November 1844, served as a private in Company H of the 29th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, raised in Assumption Parish.  Silver, as he was called in Confederate records, enlisted probably at Napoleonville in April 1862, age 17, and followed his unit to Vicksburg, Mississippi, where it fought in several battles later in the year and in the Siege of Vicksburg the following spring and summer.  Unit records show him present for duty from late August 1862 through late February 1863.  Sylvère and his regiment, along with the rest of the Confederate army at Vicksburg, surrendered to Federal Major General Ulysses S. Grant on 4 July 1863.  Sylvère likely was sent home with his fellow parolees soon after the surrender.  Was he wounded in any of the fighting at Vicksbourg?  Did his 15 months on active duty wreck his health?  Confederate records say nothing more about him after his parole.  He died in November 1864, perhaps at home, three days after he turned 20, his early death most likely war-related.  He did not marry. 

3

Narcisse Natole was born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in March 1852. 

4

Augustin was born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in December 1853. 

5

Ovile, born in c1860, died near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, age 2, in November 1862. 

6

Joseph Vives, called Vives, was born in Ascension Parish in December 1862. 

Descendants of François Étienne MELANÇON (1806-1865; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, Jean, Alexandre, Étienne)

François Étienne, called Étienne le jeune, a twin son of Jean Henri Melançon and Marguerite Mire, born at St. James in March 1806, married Marie Reine or Irène, daughter of fellow Acadians Olivier LeBlanc and Émélie Lalande, at the Donaldsonville church, Ascension Parish, in February 1833.  They lived near Convent, St. James Parish, before moving to upper Bayou Lafourche in the early 1840s.  Their daughters married into the Breaux, Duplessis, and Kling families.  Étienne le jeune remarried to Aureline Geneviève, daughter of Norbert LeBoeuf and Ursule Rodriguez, at the Paincourtville church, Assumption Parish, in March 1848.  Aureline died the following November, probably from the rigors of childbirth, and Étienne remarried again--his third marriage--to Adeline, daughter of fellow Acadian Simon Babin and Marguerite Landry and widow of Ursin Hébert, at the Donaldsonville church in February 1851.  The remained in Ascension Parish.  Étienne le jeune died near Gonzalez, Ascension Parish, in December 1865; the priest who recorded the burial said that Étienne died at "age ca. 61 years"; he was 59; he was buried in the cemetery at "la prairie." 

1

Older son Étienne Arms or Amos, called Amos, from his father's first wife, born near Convent, St. James Parish, in June 1839, died near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, age 3 1/2, in October 1842. 

2

Younger son Pierre Félix, called Félix, from his father's first wife, was born near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in January 1842. 

~

Other MELANÇONs in the Lafourche Valley

Church and civil records make it difficult to link some Melançons in the Bayou Lafourche valley with known lines of the family there:

William Melançon married Madeleine Arthémise Gros, place and date unrecorded.  Daughter Émelie was born in February 1832, probably in Lafourche Interior Parish, and baptized at Thibodauxville in April 1837.  One wonders why the couple waited so long to baptize their daughter and whether she and her father were Acadians. 

Joseph Melançon, Jr., died in Assumption Parish "age ca. 30 years" in November 1842.  The Plattenville priest who recorded the burial did not say which Joseph Melançon would have been his father, nor did he give Jr.'s mother's name or mention a wife. 

Manuel Melançon died near Plattenville, Assumption Parish, in August 1846, age 40 days  The Plattenville priest who recorded the boy's burial did not give the parents' names. 

Cécilia Marie, daughter of Joseph Melançon, died in Assumption Parish, age 1, in October 1846.  The Plattenville priest who recorded the burial did not give the girl's mother's name. 

Manette, daughter of Thérèse Melançon, died in Assumption Parish in July 1847, "age 6 years, 3 months."  The Plattenville priest who recorded the girl's burial did not give the father's name or the mother's parents' names. 

Ursin Melançon married Helena Melançon, place and date unrecorded.  Daughter Marie Anaïs was born in Assumption Parish in April 1863. 

Marceline Melançon married Orestile Vicknair in a civil ceremony in Lafourche Parish in January 1870.  The parish clerk who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names.

.

Two Melançon families in Lafourche Parish cannot be linked by local church records to any of the other Melançons in the area:

Descendants of Roland MELANÇON (?-; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, ?)

Roland, also called Laurent, Melançon married Clémentine LeBlanc, widow of Félix Carlin, in a civil ceremony in Lafourche Interior Parish in October 1849; the parish clerk who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names.  They settled near Raceland. 

1

Older son Jules, born probably in Lafourche Interior Parish in the early 1850s, married Célestine, daughter of fellow Acadian Léon Thibodeaux, in a civil ceremony in Lafourche Parish in September 1869.

2

Arthur Mathias was born near Raceland, Lafourche Parish, in February 1855. 

Descendants of Jules MELANCON (?-; Pierre dit La Verdure, Pierre dit La Verdure, fils, ?)

Jules Melançon married Aglaé, daughter of Jean Bruce, Brusse, or Bruzze, in a civil ceremony in Lafourche Interior Parish in December 1852; the parish clerk who recorded the marriage did not give the groom's parents' names.  They settled near Raceland and Lockport.   Their daughter married into the Danos family. 

1

Older son Aurestile Magloire was born near Raceland, Lafourche Parish, in October 1853. 

2

Jules, fils was born near Lockport, Lafourche Parish, in January 1867. 

NON-ACADIAN FAMILIES in LOUISIANA

Louisiana was, from the day of its founding, a bastion of Roman Catholicism.  Protestants, including French Huguenots, were not supposed to settle there (early German settlers sent to Louisiana by the Company of the Indies in the early 1720s were the exception, and they were persistently pressured to convert to Roman Catholicism, which most of them did).  When the colony reverted to Spain in the late 1760s, this policy of denominational exclusion was if anything tightened.  As far as Louisiana church records reveal, when the first Acadian Melansons reached New Orleans in 1765 there were no other members of the family in the colony, nor had there been, and only Acadian Melansons appear in Louisiana church records of the late colonial period. 

~

A resident of the Bayou Lafourche/Bayou Terrebonne valley who some antebellum church and civil records insist was a Melançon was actually from Malta.  He was no kin, at least on his father's side, to the Acadian Melançons.  Phelipe or Philippe, son of Lorenzo Lancon of Malta and Acadian Anne Josèphe Michel of St.-Servan-sur-Mer, near St.-Malo, France, married Marie Marianne, daughter of Acadians Jean Louis Hébert and Marie Doiron, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in October 1814.  They moved down bayou to Lafourche Interior Parish and then to Terrebonne Parish, where church and civil records call their descendants Lancon and Lancan as well as Melançon. 

During the early antebellum period, a Melançon who cannot be linked to any Acadian family line appears, of all places, on the Acadian Coast.  Thomas Melançon, "a soldier," died in Ascension Parish in February 1815.  The priest who recorded his burial did not give Thomas's parents' names, mention a wife, or give his age at the time of his death.  Judging by the record keeping of the priests at Ascension, one wonders if Thomas was even a Melançon.  If he was a member of the family, was he a descendant of one of many Melansons who remained in France in 1785? 

~

Some South Louisiana Melançons were neither Acadians nor Frenchmen but Afro Creoles who had been owned, and in some cases freed, by members of the family.  Area church and civil records do not always reveal their ethnicity, but the record keepers sometimes provided clues:

Marie Alphonsuire, daughter of Marie Eugène, slave of Julien Melançon of St. Martin Parish, was baptized in March 1846.  The St. Martinville priest who recorded her baptism did not give Marie Alphonsuire's father's name but described her as a femme de couleur libre, or free woman of color. 

Marie Melançon, "affranchi," daughter of Coralie Melançon, was born in St. Martin Parish in August 1866.  The St. Martinville priest who recorded the baptism did not give the father's name. 

Élisabeth, daughter of Élodie Melançon, married Isidore, son of Telet Faustin, at the Plattenville church, Assumption Parish, in June 1867.  Though the recording priest did not say it, the names of the couple's parents gives a hint that Élisabeth and Isidore may have been freed persons. 

Alexandre Melançon, free man of color, married Rosalie Deunan, actually Derouen, free woman of color, in a civil ceremony in St. Martin Parish in December 1867.  The parish clerk who recorded the marriage did not give the couple's parents' names.  Their son Clément was born in St. Martin Parish in November 1870. 

Tresille, daughter of Joe Melançon and Adeline ____, married Baptiste, son of Céleste Broussard, in a civil ceremony in Lafayette Parish in February 1868.  

Célina Melançon, daughter of Thérèse Sem, perhaps Semere, married Joseph, son of Zénon Zénon and Katy ____, at the St. Martinville church, St. Martin Parish, in May 1870.  The priest who recorded the marriage did not give the bride's father's name, but he did note that the groom's father was deceased. 

CONCLUSION

Melansons settled early in Acadia and were among the earliest Acadians to find refuge in Louisiana.  The first of them--a wife and a widow and her five children--came to the colony from Halifax via St.-Domingue in 1765 and settled at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques on the river.  In 1766 and 1767, dozens more Melansons came from exile in Maryland and settled near their cousins at St.-Jacques and St.-Gabriel on what became known as the Acadian Coast.  Not until the late 1770s did Melançons leave the river for Bayou Teche and establish a western branch of the family.  They and their descendants settled in what became St. Martin and Lafayette parishes.  Two more Melansons came to Louisiana from France in 1785 and settled at Bayou des Écores, north of Baton Rouge, and on upper Bayou Lafourche, but no new family lines came of it.  Beginning in the 1810s, Melançons from the river moved to upper Bayou Lafourche and created a third center of family settlement there.  Later in the antebellum period, a few more Melançons moved from the river to the western prairies, but most of their cousins remained on the river along the old Acadian Coast. 

By the end of the antebellum period, Melançon family settlement patterns mirrored those of their ancestors back in old Acadia.  Beginning at their original base on the lower Acadian Coast, Melançons in Louisiana created three widely dispersed centers of family settlement:  along the river, out on the western prairies, and on Bayou Lafourche.  On the river, they lived along both banks in St. James, Iberville, and Ascension parishes, and several families settled in West Baton Rouge and Pointe Coupee parishes.  West of the Atchafalaya Basin, they lived along Bayou Teche in St. Martin Parish from Breaux Bridge down to New Iberia, along the upper Vermilion and at Carencro in Lafayette Parish, and around Grand Coteau in southeastern St. Landry Parish.  On Bayou Lafourche, they settled from the Ascension/Assumption parish line down to Lockport in Lafourche Parish and were especially numerous around Plattenville in Assumption Parish.  A few more Melançons from St. James Parish moved to the western prairies after the War of 1861-65, but the largest center of family settlement remained along the river. 

Church records show no non-Acadian Melansons living in Louisiana during the colonial period.  A Melançon, described as "a soldier," lived in Ascension Parish during the early antebellum period but cannot be linked, even by inference, to any line of the family.  Afro-Creole Melançons, once owned, and in some cases freed, by members of the family, settled in the Lafourche valley and, especially, on Bayou Teche during the late antebellum and immediate post-war periods.  But the great majority of the Melançons of South Louisiana are descendants of French Huguenot Pierre Laverdure. ...

In Louisiana, the spelling of the family's surname evolved from Melanson to Melançon.  The family's name also is spelled Bulenson, De Mason, Lanson, Melansson, Melanzon, Melason, Melencon, Melenson, Mellancon, Mellansson, Menançon, Menanson.  Unfortunately, antebellum church records in Lafourche and Terrebonne parishes confuse the Melançons with the Lancons, whose progenitor was from Malta, not Acadia, and who settled in Terrebonne Parish, where few Melançons lived.  [For the Acadian family's Louisiana "begats," see Book Ten]

Sources:  Arsenault, Généalogie, 686-87, 1262-72, 1662, 2246, 2371-73, 2553-57; Baudier, The Catholic Church in LA, 387; BRDR, vols. 1a(rev.), 2, 3, 4, 5(rev.), 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11; Clark, A. H., Acadia, 148-49, 189; De La Roque, "Tour of Inspection," Canadian Archives 1905, 2A:83, 114, 123-36; Hébert, D., Acadians in Exile, 323-25; 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; Melanson, Melanson-Melançon; NOAR, vol. 6; <perso.orange.fr/froux/St_malo_arrivees/5bateaux.htm>, Family No. 143; Robichaux, Acadians in Châtellerault, 75-77; Robichaux, Acadians in St.-Malo, 613-19; White, DGFA-1, 1145-67; White, DGFA-1 English, 247-50; Wood, Acadians in Maryland, 166-73.  

Settlement Abbreviations 
(present-day parishes that existed during the War Between the States 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, 23, calls him Amand MELANSON; BRDR, 1a(rev.):156 (SGA-2, 87), his birth/baptismal record, calls him Amand MELANSON, gives his parents' names, & says his godparents were Joseph LEBLANC, who signed the baptismal record, & Anne TERRIOT; BRDR, 2:533 (SGA-5, 54), his death/burial record, calls him Amand MELANÇON, but does not give his parents' names, mention a wife, or give his age at the time of his death.  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 158. 

02.  Wall of Names, 23, calls her Anastasie MELANSON; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-A:27, 561-62 (SM Ct.Hse.: OA-Vo.1, #93), her marriage record, calls her Anastasie MELANÇON "of the Post of Atakapas," calls her husband Joseph BABIN, "resident of Atakapas," gives her & his parents' names, says his father was deceased at the time of the wedding, & that the witnesses to her marriage were François MOREAU, Joseph LANDRY, & Claude MARTIN; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 2-C:548 (SM Ch.: v.4, #1904), her death/burial record, calls her Anastasie MELANÇON, "spouse of Joseph BABIN," says she died "at age 70 years at la pointe," that she was buried "in the parish cemetery," but does not give her parents' names; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 2-C:548 (SM Ct.Hse.: Succ.: #599), her succession, calls her Anastasie MELANÇON "wid. of Joseph BABIN."  See also Voorhies, J., Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 445.

03.  Wall of Names, 23, calls her Anne MELANSON; BRDR, 3:618 (SGA-8, 64), probably her death/burial record, calls her Anne MELANÇON, "age 50." but does not give her parents' names or mention a husband.  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 158. 

Did she marry?  If not, why not?

04.  Wall of Names, 23, calls her Anne-Élisabeth MELANSON.  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 151. 

05.  Wall of Names, 23 (pl. 5L), calls him Charles MELANSON, & lists him with his widowed mother & a sister; Arsenault, Généalogie, 2555, calls him Charles MELANÇON, says he was born in 1743, gives his parents' names, says he married Félicité, daughter of René LANDRY & Marie THÉRIOT at Ascension on 5 Feb 1768, that he occupied lot number 142 on the east side of the Mississippi at St.-Jacques in 1769, that his mother, Madeleine LEBLANC, born in c1710, lived with him, that he settled at Ascension, & lists his children as Marie-Isabelle, born in 1773, Jean-Baptiste in 1775, Charles & Éloi in 1777, Marie-Élise in 1781, Marie-Madeleine in 1783, Olivier-Pierre in 1785, & Marie-Isabelle in 1787; Bourgeois, Cabanocey, 171, & Voorhies, J., Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 425, his marriage record, calls him Charles MELANÇON/MELENÇON, calls his wife Magdelaine/Magdeleine LE BLANC, says they married on 7 Feb 1768, & gives no witnesses to his marriage; BRDR, 1a(rev.):157 (SGA-3, 20a), his death/burial record, calls him Charles MENANCON (sic), gives his parents' names, says he was born on 22 (omitted) 1743 & baptized 22 (omitted) 1743, & that his godparents were Aman BUJAO, who signed the baptismal record, & Marg. BROSSARD; BRDR, 2:534 (ASC-1, 201d), his death/burial record, calls him Charles MELANCON, but does not give his parents' names, mention a wife, or give his age at the time of his death.

I follow Arsenault for the name of his wife because, strangely, the marriage record in Bourgeois & Voorhies, J., cited above, gives his mother's name for his wife.  The Ascension censuses back up Arsenault.  As to the location of the marriage, I follow Bourgeois & Voorhies, J., not Arsenault, who may have assumed that because Charles lived at Ascension he married there.  See Voorhies, J., 424-25, for proof that the marriage took place at "Kabahanosse," not Ascension, on 7 Feb 1768.   

I am confident that he was the Charles MELANÇON who died at Ascension in May 1787 because his wife remarried at Ascension in Nov 1788.  See BRDR, 2:43, 423 (ASC-2, 15).

06.  Not in Wall of Names, 22 (pl. 5L), with his family, though he is mentioned there in the context of his second wife's widowhood.  The researchers at the Acadian Memorial evidently assumed that, because his wife Osite HÉBERT was called a widow in the Sep 1769 census at Cabanocé--see Voorhies, J., Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 475, which calls her Ozitte HÉBERT, widow MELANÇON--she was a widow when she reached the colony, most likely in Sep 1766 since she settled at Cabanocé.  Family genealogist/history Michael B. Melanson says, erroneously, that the family "appeared on the list of Acadians at New Orleans, in July 1767."  See Melanson, Melanson-Melançon, 61, for the quotation; & Voorhies, J., 426-27, for the Jul 1767 listing, which contains no MELANÇON or even an HÉBERT.  However, Melanson also states, probably correctly, that Alexandre "died in Louisiana, before 14 September 1769, when his widow was recorded at Cabannocé (St. James Parish)."  See Melanson, 61 (italics added).  Evidence that Alexandre "died in Louisiana" is contained in the Sep 1769 census.  Among the 5 sons of Osite HÉBERT, widow MELANÇON, counted in that census--Pierre, 19; Joseph, 15; Étienne, 13; Paul, 7--is Charles, also called Migouin, age "17 months."  This given age places the widow's youngest son's birth in about Mar 1768!  That means he was conceived no earlier than ... Jun 1767.  This places Alexandre in LA 9 months after his family had reached the colony in Sep 1766.  That they reached the colony then is predicated on the assumption that an immigrant from MD who settled at Cabanocé arrived in the first expedition from Baltimore, which left that city in Jun 1766 & reached New Orleans the following Sep.  If the family had come to LA in the second expedition from Baltimore, which left that city in Apr 1767 & reached New Orleans in Jul, they would have settled not at Cabanocé but at St.-Gabriel.  And even if the family had been a part of the second expedition, young Charles would have been conceived on the voyage from Baltimore via Cap-Français, French St.-Domingue, making it likely that his father had not died in MD but reached LA.  All of this assumes, of course, that the Spanish census taker in Sep 1769 listed the boy's age accurately.  No matter, the record seems clear enough that (1)Alexandre MELANÇON reached LA, so he should be added to the commemorative wall at the Acadia Memorial, & (2)his seventh & youngest son was born in LA.  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 151; Melanson, 48; White, DGFA-1, 1156-57. 

As for Alexandre's youngest son, who cannot, because of the circumstances of his birth, be a part of this listing:  Wall of Names, 22 (pl. 5L), includes Charles MELANSON with his widowed mother & siblings; BRDR, 2:144, 533-34 (SJA-2, 9), the record of his first marriage, calls him Carlos MELANSON (MELANÇON), calls his wife Clara BRAUX, gives his & her parents' names, says her parents were "of New England," & that the witnesses to his marriage were Thomas THERIAUT & Escolastica BRAUX; BRDR, 2:138, 534 (SJA-2, 70), the record of his second marriage, calls him Charles MELANÇON, calls his wife Scholastique BOURGOIS, "widow of Nicolas PICOU," gives his & her parents' names but not his first wife's name, & says the witnesses to his marriage were Joseph BOURGOIS, Simon BOURGOIS, Jean BOLARD, & Jean DICHARRY; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 2-A:675-76 (SM Ch.: v.4, #1228), his death/burial record, calls him Charles dit Migouin MELANÇON, "native of Acadie," says he died "at age 54 years at his home at La Grand Pointe," that he was buried "in the parish cemetery," but does not give his parents' names or mention a wife; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 2-B:673 (SM Ct.Hse.: Succ. #317), his succession record, calls him Charles MELANÇON m. Claire BRAUX, child: Marcelite.   See also Bourgeois, Cabanocey, 177; De Ville, St. James Census, 1777, 10; Melanson, 62, .

Compared to the age found in his burial record, which gives an estimated birth year of c1764, the ages given in the Cabanocé/St.-Jacques censuses of 1769 & 1777 seem grossly understated.  The age from the burial record is followed here because it makes more sense in light of the fact that his mother was a widow when she reached the colony in Sep 1766.  If Charles had been born in the spring of 1768, as each census suggests, then it is unlikely that he was the son of Alexandre MELANÇON, & we will not go there.  The only other possibility is that Charles came to LA with his widowed mother & siblings not in Sep 1766 but in Jul 1767, but even that would not work; the Acadians who reached LA in Jul 1767 left Baltimore in Apr.  This means that Charles's father would have conceived him towards the end of the 3-month voyage & then promptly died, which is not likely.  Charles's mother and her children do not appear on any of the Spanish reports of Jul & Aug 1767 that detail the Acadians who came from MD that year, hence their placement here among the Sep 1766 arrivals.  See Voorhies, J., Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 426-27, 428-34. 

Charles's first wife was born probably in MD--what the Spanish priest at St.-Jacques in 1790 no doubt considered a part of "New England."  She died at St.-Jacques in Jan 1802, age 38.  This gives an idea of when Charles left the river & moved to Attakapas. 

07.  Wall of Names, 23, calls him Jean MELANSON; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-A:249, 562 (SM Ch.: v.4, #28), his marriage record, calls him Jean MELANÇON, calls his wife Rose-Lucie DOIRON, gives his & her parents' names, says his father was from Boston "in America," her father was "of Havre de Grace," & that the witnesses to his marriage were Joseph MODENA, A. COIRIN, & Pierre BROUSSARD; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 5:394 (BB Ch.: v.1, p. insert-2), his death/burial record, calls him Jean MELANÇON, does not give his parents' names or mention a wife, but says he died "at age 90 yrs."; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 5:394 (SM Ct.Hse.: Succ. #1414), probably his succession record, calls him Jean MELANÇON.  See also Bourgeois, Cabanocey, 163, 173; De Ville, St. James Census, 1777, 8; ; De Ville, Southwest LA Families, 1777, 11; Melanson, Melanson-Melançon, 66, 90; Voorhies, J., Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 445.

His dit can be found in the baptismal record of grandson Pierre Dolzin MELANÇON, dated 13 Mar 1825, in Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 2-B:675-76 (SM Ch.: v.7, #1567).  It is short for Dominique of course.  Melanson insists that the Jean MELANÇON who married Rose-Luce DOIRON at Attakapas & died at Breaux Bridge in Jan 1849 was Dominique's older brother Jean, born at Minas in c1756 & also counted with the family at Halifax in Aug 1763.  Melanson, 66, calls Dominique-Jean dit Minique simply Dominigue &, citing only the age given in the Cabanocé census of Jan 1777, says he was born in c1759.  Why doesn't Melanson cite the age given for Dominique in the Attakapas census of May 1777, which gives him an estimated birth year of c1763?  Or the Cabanocé census of Sep 1769, in which the age given for Dominique gives an estimated birth year of c1762?  Most importantly, note the names of the 3 sons of Marie BRAUD, widow MELANÇON, in the Sep 1769 census:  Joseph, age 17; Baptiste, age 13; & Dominique, age 7.  There is no son Jean, as there had been in the Cabanocé census of Apr 1766, when son Jean was listed as age 4 (estimated birth year c1762).  This researcher contends that the Jean in the census of Apr 1766 was the widow's youngest son Dominique-Jean, not her older son Jean; that the census taker in Sep 1769 was referring to Paul-Honoré MELANSON & Marie-Josèphe BREAU's youngest son, not their second son; & that the older son Jean, like his father, did not make it to LA.  If Melanson's estimated birth year for the older son Jean is correct, he would have been age 7 in Aug 1763 & age 9 when his widowed mother & siblings reached New Orleans in 1765.  If the older Jean did not remain with relatives in NS, unlikely at his age, he likely died between Aug 1763 & 1765, still a child--the only 1 of his parents' 6 children who did not survive the Great Upheaval. 

08.  Wall of Names, 22, calls him Étienne MELANSON; BRDR, 2:149, 534 (SJA-1, 50), his marriage record, calls him Éstienne MELANZON "of Acadia," calls his wife Ludovinne BREAU "of Acadia," gives his & her parents' names, & says the witnesses to his marriage were Joseph MYR & Charles BREAU.  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 151. 

09.  Wall of Names, 25, calls her Françoise MELANSON veuve Joseph TERRIOT 2; White, DGFA-1, 1153, calls her Françoise [MELANSON], & gives her parents' names.  See also De La Roque "Tour of Inspection," Canadian Archives 1905, 2A:81. 

Her younger brother Joseph & his second wife were exiled to MD in 1755. 

10.  Wall of Names, calls him Jean-Baptiste MELANSON; Arsenault, Généalogie, 2556, the LA section, says Jean-Baptiste was born in 1756; BRDR, 4:401 (SJA-4, 54a), his death/burial record, calls him Baptiste MELANÇON, "68 yrs.," but does not give his parents' names or mention a wife.  See also Bourgeois, Cabanocey, 163; De Ville, St. James Census, 1777, 8; Melanson, Melanson-Melançon, 90-91; Voorhies, J., Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 445. 

Melanson, 90, says Jean-Baptiste married Marguerite in c1786 & implies that the wedding occurred on the river.  LA records tend to disagree with the date & location.  The baptismal records of daughters Modeste and Susanne, dated 11 Apr 1790 & 22 Apr 1793, in Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-A:564 (SM Ch.: v.4, #406, #578), show that the family had returned to the prairies by then.  Unfortunately, these baptismal records do not include the girls' maternal grandparents' names, but a clue to Marguerite's parentage is in Modeste's record, which says her godfather was Théodore BERGERON, tio (uncle).  Théodore was son of Acadians Charles BERGERON & Isabelle ARCENEAUX.  Melanson, 90, confirms this parentage for her.  Théodore, sister Marguerite, & their older brother Simon had come to LA with their parents in 1765 & settled at Cabanocé.  They lived on the same side of the river as Jean-Baptiste & his family, so Marguerite & Jean-Baptiste probably knew one another when they were young.  After her father died at Cabanocé in the late 1760s, Marguerite, left the river & moved to the western prairies, where she may have lived with ARCENEAUX kin until she married Jean-Baptiste.  His moving there with his family in the 1770s may have prompted her to move there, too.  Arsenault, 2556, says Jean-Baptiste married Rose-Lucie DOIRON, but that was his brother Jean.  An unnamed daughter died at Attakapas "at age 8 yrs." in November 1788, so that gives an idea of when Jean-Baptiste & Marguerite married.  See the burial record, dated 22 Nov 1788, in Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-A:562 (SM Ch.: v.4, #35).  Church records reveal that they returned to St.-Jacques in the 1790s.  See, for instance, the baptismal record of son Paul-Eugène, dated 6 May 1798, in BRDR, 2:539 (SJA-3, 166). 

11.  Wall of Names, 23 (pl. 5L), calls him Jean-Baptiste MELANSON, & lists him with wife Osite DUPUIS & son Uzèbe; Arsenault, Généalogie, 2555, the LA section, calls him Jean-Baptiste MELANÇON, says he was born in 1744 but gives no birthplace, says he probablement was son of Jean-Baptiste MELANÇON & Madeleine LEBLANC, that he married Osite DUPUIS, born in 1745, in c1768 but gives no place of marriage, says he occupied lot number 147 on the east bank of the Mississippi at St.-Jacques in 1769, & lists his children as Eusèbe, born in 1769, Marie in 1771, Rose in 1772, Geneviève in 1774, & David in 1778, but gives no birthplaces; BRDR, 1a(rev.):159 (SGA-2, 158), perhaps his birth/baptismal record, calls him Jean-Baptiste MELANÇON, calls his parents Jean-Baptiste MELANÇON & Magdeleine LEBLANC, & says his godparents were Jean-Baptiste DOUSAY, who signed the baptismal record, & Cécile HÉBERT; Bourgeois, Cabanocey, 171, & Voorhies, J., Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 425, the record of his marriage, dated 2 May 1768, calls him Jean-Baptiste/Jean-Bte. MELANÇON, calls his wife Ozitte DUPUIS, & gives no witnesses; BRDR, 2:42, 536 (SJA-2, 3), perhaps the record of his second marriage, calls him Juan-Baptista MELANSON "of Acadia," calls his wife Ana BABEIN "of Acadia," gives no parents' names, & says the witnesses to his marriage were Joseph LEBLANC & Pélagia DUARON "of this parish."  See also Bourgeois, 177; De Ville, St. James Census, 1777, 11; Jenh, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 151; Melanson, Melanson-Melançon, 60, 81-82, 778n705.

Why was he not with his widowed mother & siblings in the count at Snow Hill, MD, in Jul 1763?  See Jehn. 

Thanks to sloppy record keeping by the priest(s) at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques, I have found no LA church record that links him to Jean-Baptiste MELANÇON & Madeleine LEBLANC of Grand-Pré.  Note that Arsenault uses qualifying language to make the connection.  Melanson, 778n705, citing, & correcting, an Acadian record, makes the connection. 

Despite what is found in Wall of Names, the record of his first marriage shows that he did not marry Osite DUPUIS until after he reached the colony.  Note that in the Cabanocé census of Sep 1769, his son Uzèbe was only 4 months old, which means the boy was born in LA. 

Also thanks to the shoddy record keeping by the priest at St.-Jacques in Apr 1787, his remarriage to Anne BABIN is pure guesswork based on process of elimination.  If he did marry the Anne BABIN who came to LA as an orphan in 1768, he would have been twice her age.  Melanson, 81, does not include the marriage. 

12.  Wall of Names, 23, calls him Jean-Baptiste MELANSON; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-A:562-63, 638 (SM Ch.: v.3, #61), his marriage record, calls him Jean-Baptiste MELANÇON "'de la Province de Mariland de la Nouvelle Angleterre (in the Province [State] of Maryland in New England)," calls his wife Magdelaine PRÉJEAN "de Lafourche," gives his & her parents' names, says his father was deceased at the time of the wedding, but gives no witnesses to his marriage; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 2-A:676 (SM Ch.: v.4, #854), his death/burial record, calls him Jean Baptiste MELANÇON, "native of Acadie, residing at Carencros," says he died "in the morning at age 50 years at his home," that he was buried "in the parish cemetery," but does not give his parents' names or mention a wife; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 2-A:677 (SM Ct.Hse.: Succ. #141), his first succession, calls him Jean Baptiste MELANÇON, "widr. of Magdeleine PREJEAN"; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 2-B:673 (Laf. Ct.Hse.: Succ. #54), his second succession, calls him Jean Baptiste MELANÇON m. Magdeleine PREJEAN.

13.  Wall of Names, 23, calls him Joseph MELANSON; Arsenault, Généalogie, 2556, says il s'est établi à Ascension; BRDR, 2:42, 535 (ASC-1, 135), his marriage record, calls him Joseph MELANSON, calls his wife Anna Barbara BABEIN, gives his & her parents' names, says his parents were Acadians, & that the witnesses to his marriage were Joseph BABEIN, Maturin LANDRY, Michael DUGAST; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-B:513 (SM Ct.Hse.: Succ. #203), one of his succession records, dated Apr 1806, calls him Joseph B. MELANÇON m. Barbara MELANÇON; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-B:512 (SM Ch.: v.4, #455), his death/burial record, calls him Joseph MELANÇON, "native of Acadia, now of l'Anse," says he died "at home ... at age 60 yrs.," that he was buried next day, but does not give his parents' names or mention a wife; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-B:512 (SM Ct.Hse.: Succ. #4), one of his succession records, dated 30 Jun 1807, calls him Joseph MELANÇON, "wid. is Barbe MELANCON, His 'beaufrère' (brother-in-law) is Joseph BABINGUE (BABIN)."  See also Bourgeois, Cabanocey, 169, 178; Voorhies, J., Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 445; De Ville, Southwest LA Families, 1777, 11.

No other source corroborates Arsenault's claim that Joseph settled at Ascension.  He married there, but he settled at St.-Jacques & on the western prairies. 

His inclusion here in the Cabanocé censuses of 1766 & 1769 is pure guess work based on his estimated birth year; there were a number of Joseph MELANÇONs at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques in the late 1760s. 

LAMON, in the Attakapas census of 1777, is probably a clumsy rendition of MELANÇON.  

14.  Wall of Names, 22, calls him Joseph MELANSON; BRDR, 2:142, 536 (SJA-1, 49a), the record of his first marriage, calls him Joseph MELANZON, calls his wife Anastasie BREAU, gives his & her parents' names, says all parents were Acadians, & that the witnesses to his marriage were Étienne MELANZON [his brother] & Joseph CLOITRE; BRDR, 2:476, 535 (ASC-1, 157), the record of his second marriage, calls him Josef MELLANSSON, "widower of Anastasia BRAUD," calls his wife Maria-Josefa LE BLANC, gives his & her parents' names, says her parents were "of St. James," & that the witnesses to his marriage were Josef MIRE & Pablo MELLANSON [his brother].  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 151. 

His first wife was a native of MD & was only 20 years old when she died.  Her father was one of the BREAU brothers who led the Acadian exiles from Port Tobacco, MD, to LA in 1768 & gave Spanish Gov. ULLOA so much trouble that year. 

Was he the Joseph MELANÇON who clashed with Commandant Louis JUDICE of Ascension over the spread of smallpox there in Oct 1787?  If so, Spanish Gov. MIRÓ was forced to punish him for insubordination.  See Brasseaux, Founding of New Acadia, 173-74. 

15.  Wall of Names, 23 (pl. 5L), calls him Joseph MELANSON with older sister Marguerite, & Joseph MELANSON dit Dios Rose, listed separately, & shows both of them without wives or children; Arsenault, Généalogie, 2555, the LA section, calls him Joseph MELANÇON, says he was born in 1756, gives his parents' names, & says he married Marguerite-Gertrude, daughter of Joseph LANDRY & Marie-Josèphe BOURQUE, & widow of Augustin BUJEAUX, at L'Ascension on 8 Feb 1779; Melanson, Melanson-Melançon, 83, followed here, shows that the 2 Joseph MELANSONs listed in Wall of Names, 23, were the same person; BRDR, 2:435; 535-36 (ASC-1, 135), his marriage record, calls him Joseph MELANSON, calls his wife Margarita LANDRY, "widow of Augustin LICARA (sic)," says they married on 8 Feb 1779, gives his & her parents' names, says his parents were Acadians, & that the witnesses to his marriage were Joseph LANDRY & Michael JUDICE; BRDR, 3:621 (ASC-4, 81), his death/burial record, calls him Joseph MELANÇON, "age 52, Acadian, spouse Marguerite LANDRY," but does not give his parents' names.  See also Melanson, Melanson-Melançon, 61, 83. 

For his sojourn in PA, see Melanson, who says he & his siblings, after the Jun 1763 counting, "were sent to Louisiana," implying from PA.  However, LA records are clear that only he & his older sister came to the Spanish colony, in the first expedition from MD in 1766, thus requiring them to move from PA to MD between Jun 1763 & Jun 1766.  One wonders what happened to the rest of his siblings.  Did they remain in PA or go from there to Canada or the French Antilles?  Did they also move to MD but stayed there, or chose to go from MD to French St.-Domingue?  Melanson does not say. 

How could Arsenault be correct about the name of Joseph's wife's first husband (see 2555) when, according to Arsenault himself, Augustin BUJEAUX, husband of Anne-Gertrude, daughter of Joseph LANDRY & Marie BOURQUE, whom he married at St.-Jacques on 7 Feb 1774, remarried at St.-Martinville in Jan 1801?  See Augustin BUJEAUX's profile in the LA section, Arsenault, 2456-57.  I will follow the Ascension marriage record here, despite its sic, & ignore Arsenault, who evidently mixed up his Gertrude LANDRYs.  Melanson, 83, followed here, gives the Joseph MELANÇON of Ascension only 1 wife--Marguerite, daughter of Joseph LANDRY & Marie-Josèphe BOURG & widow of Augustin SIERRA. 

16.  Wall of Names, 23, calls him Joseph MELANSON; Arsenault, Généalogie, 2554, the profile of his father in the LA section, calls him Joseph & says he was born in 1758 but give no birthplace; BRDR, 2:312, 536 (ASC-2, 31), his marriage record, calls him Joseph MELANÇON, calls his wife Mariana GODIN, "widow of VILLENEUVE," gives his & her parents' names, calls his parents Armand MELANÇON & Maria Magdalena LEBLANC, says her parents were deceased at the time of the wedding, & that the witnesses to his marriage were Charles GODIN & Joseph BABIN.  See also De Ville, St. Gabriel Census, 1777, 9; Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 158; Melanson, Melanson-Melançon, 78; Voorhies, J., Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 434.

His estimated birth year is taken from the age given in the Spanish report of 1767, not the St.-Gabriel census of 1777 or Arsenault. 

The baptismal record of daughter Marie-Cléonise, dated 8 May 1791, in BRDR, 2:537 (ASC-5, 53), calls him Amand-Joseph.  Was that his full name?  I have seen it in no other record. 

Where in the world did the Ascension priest who recorded his marriage get his mother's name, Marie-Madeleine LEBLANC?  Joseph's father had been dead for 9 years.  His mother, Anne BABIN, not Maria-Magdalena LEBLANC, was still alive!  Is there a possibility that (1) the Amand MELANÇON who came to LA in 1765 had 2 wives, & (2) this Joseph MELANÇON may be the son of a different Amand?  Or did the priest simply get the mother's name wrong, based on bad information from the family?  This confustion may be why Michael Melanson does not record the marriage in his family genealogy. 

Sad to say, Joseph wasn't married long.  His wife died at Ascension in Aug 1791, only a year & a half after they married.  Was this Joseph's first marriage?  Note how old he was when he married Mari-Anne GODIN.  Could he have been the Joseph MELANÇON who married Barbe BABIN in Oct 1778?  See the baptismal record of Osita/Osite MELANÇON, dated 30 Dec 1780, in BRDR, 2:538 (ASC-1, 68).  He would have been in his late 20s in 1778, an ideal time to marry. 

17.  Not in Wall of Names.  Arsenault, Généalogie, 2554, the LA section, calls him Joseph MELANÇON, says he was born in 1721, son of Joseph MELANÇON & Marguerite LEBLANC of Grand-Pré, & that he died at St.-Gabriel d'Iberville in 1786; White, DGFA-1, 1153-54, calls him Joseph MELANSON, gives his parents' names, calls his father Pierre dit Pedro, says Joseph was the youngest of 11 children, that he was born at St.-Charles en Acadie in c1716, details his 2 marriages, says he had to secure "disp 4-4 cons" for the first marriage & "disp 4-4 cons, 3-3 aff," for the second marriage, that he was counted at Annapolis, MD, in 1763, & died at St.-Gabriel d'Iberville on 29 Dec 1786, age 70; BRDR, 1a(rev.):97, 159 (SGA-2, 185), the record of his first marriage, dated 20 Jan 1738, calls him Joseph MELANÇON, "age ca 22," calls his wife Magdeleine HÉBERT, "age ca 20," gives his & her parents' names, says they had to secure a dispensation for 4th degree of consanguinity, that the witnesses to his marriage were A. BOURG, who signed "(priest writes Alexandre BOURG, notaire)," Jacques HÉBERT, who put his mark, Philipe MELANSON, who signed, Jean MELANSON, who signed, François HÉBERT, who put his mark, Pierre MELANSON, who signed, Jean DOUSAIT, who signed, & that the bride & groom put their mark on the marriage document; BRDR, 1a(rev.):98, 159 (SGA-3, 52a-52b), the record of his second marriage, dated 19 Aug 1748, calls him Joseph MELANÇON, "age ca 32," calls his wife Marguerite HÉBERT, "age ca 20," gives his her parents' names, says they had to secure a dispensation for 3rd degree of consanguinity, that the witnesses to his marriage were René HÉBERT, who made his mark, Germain HÉBERT, who made his mark, J. B. MELANÇON, who made his mark ("priest writes Jean-Baptiste MELANÇON)," Bernard DAIGRE, who signed, & A. BOURG, who signed "(priest writes Alexandre BOURG)," & that the bride & groom made their mark on the marriage document; BRDR, 2:535 (SGA-8, 6, #22), his death/burial record, calls him Josef MELANÇON, "age 70 years, bn. & bt. in St. Charles Parish, Acadia," but does not give his parents' names or mention a wife.  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 153; Melanson, Melanson-Melançon, 59; Wood, Acadians in Maryland, 168.  

Wood says Joseph & his family "Remained in Maryland," but, in light of the burial record of a Joseph MELANÇON whose age matches his perfectly, is there any doubt that he was the one who came to LA before 1786 & lived at St.-Gabriel?  Arsenault, White, & Melanson do not doubt it, & neither do I.  Perhaps as a result of this confusion, & despite his burial record, this Joseph MELANÇON is not on the Acadian Memorial's Wall of Names.  When colonial officials counted Joseph & his family at Annapolis, MD, in July 1763, he was with his second wife Marguerite HÉBERT and nine children.  Two of his daughters, Marguerite & Geneviève, came to LA, & they, too, are not on the Acadian Memorial's Wall of Names.  Their burial records, dated 11 Oct 1796 & 22 Oct 1796, respectively, can be found in NOAR, 6:192 (SLC, F4, 38 & 42).  Marguerite died at age 30 (estimated birth year c1766), Geneviève at age 31 (estimated birth year c1765), 11 days apart.  Each burial record states that the woman's parents were Joseph MELANZON & Margarita MELANZON [actually HÉBERT] & that each of the deceased was "native of Baltimore."  But what happened to the rest of Joseph's family?  Did they all remain in MD, as Wood claims?  Surely they did not all die there.  Did his wife die there, & his older children went to Canada or back to NS while Joseph & 2 of his younger daughters went on to LA?  If so, why?  Were Joseph & his family among the Acadians who went from the English colonies, including MD, to the French colony of St.-Domingue, today's Haiti, in the early 1760s?  That could explain why he came to LA without a wife & only 2 children--the death rate among the Acadians in St.-Dominuge, especially in the early & mid-1760s, was horrendous.  The Acadians who came to LA from MD in 1766, 1767, & 1768 came thru Cap-Français, now Cap-Hatien, before continuing on to New Orleans.  Did Joseph, having lost most of his family in the sugar colony, join his fellow Acadian exiles on their way to LA?  Probably not, since his daughter Geneviève was married at Baltimore in May 1784, & she probably went to LA with him.  This would put the family in LA no earlier than the late 1780s (Joseph died in Dec 1786, remember), though this does not preclude their coming to LA from St.-Domingue on their own hook.  However, one searches Father Hébert's Acadians in Exile in vain for a record of any MELANÇON baptisms, marriages, or burials in St.-Domingue/Haiti.  Is it possible that Joseph & his daughters came to LA from France aboard one of the 7 Ships in 1785?  Melanson, a solid source, says nothing of their going to St.-Domingue or France, only that "They were later sent[sic] to Louisiana [from MD], where they were settled at St. Gabriel," implying that they were among the refugees from MD who chose to go to LA in 1767.  So why don't they appear on the lists of Acadians from MD who settled at St.-Gabriel that year or in subsequent LA church records before 1786?  See Voorhies, J., Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 426-37. 

Joseph's older sister Françoise & her husband were on Île St.-Jean when Joseph & his family were exiled to MD in 1755.  Françoise & her family escaped the British roundup on Île St.-Jean in 1758 & found refuge probably on the Gulf of St. Lawrence shore, but they ended up as prisoners in NS in the early 1760s.  They came to LA in 1765 & settled at Cabanocé/St.-Jacques, so Joseph would have known that members of his family had settled in LA. 

19.  Wall of Names, 46, calls him Joseph MELANSON; Arsenault, Généalogie, 2554; White, DGFA-1, 1151; BRDR, 1a(rev.):159 (SGA-2, 22), his birth/baptismal record, calls him Joseph MELANSSON, gives his parents' names, & says his godparents were Philippe MELANSSON & Anne LEBLANC; <perso.orange.fr/froux/St_malo_arrivees/5bateaux.htm>, Family No. 143, shows that in the crossing to St.-Malo in 1758-59 only he & 2 of his 6 children--daughter Josèphe, age 12, & son Germain, age 10--survived, that his wife Anne, age 30, died in the hospital probably at St.-Malo on 21 Feb 1759, a month after they reached France, sons Joseph l'aîné, age 4 & Joseph le jeune, age 2, & daughter Ozite, age 3, died at sea, & daughter Marie, age 7, died on 8 Mar 1759 probably from the rigors of the crossing; Robichaux, Acadians in St.-Malo, 616-17, Family No. 710, calls him Joseph MELANSON, & says he was born in c1723 but gives no birthplace.

His parents were married in c1720, & he was born early the following year, so the age given on the passenger list of La Ville d'Archangel, which gives him an estimated birth year of c1717, is incorrect. 

He & his second wife came to LA "alone."  The 2 children from his first wife who survived the crossing of 1758 remained in France, as did the great majority of MELANSONs exiled there.  One wonders why. 

20.  Wall of Names, 23, calls her Madeleine MELANSON; Bourgeois, Cabanocey, 172, & Voorhies, J., Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 425, her marriage record, calls her Marguerite BROUSSARD [her mother's name], calls her husband Joachim MIRRE, & gives no witnesses to her marriage.  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 151; Bourgeois, Cabanocey, 176.  

There can be no doubt that Joachim dit Bénoni MIRE's wife was Madeleine MELANÇON, not Marguerite BROUSSARD. 

21.  Wall of Names, 22, calls her Madeleine MELANSON.  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 151. 

22.  Wall of Names, 23, calls her Marguerite MELANSON; BRDR, 6:467 (SMI-4, 154), her death/burial record, calls her Marguerite MELANSON, "age 98 yrs., widow of Pierre PART," but does not give her parents' names.  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 151. 

Where is her marriage record?  Her husband died near Convent in Oct 1826.  She did not remarry. 

23.  Wall of Names, 23, calls her Marguerite MELANSON; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-A:563 (SM Ch.: v.4, #20), her death/burial record, calls her Marguerite MELANÇON, "of Canada, living in this parish, wife of Amand LANDRY," says she died "at age a little over 40yrs.," but does not give her parents' names.  See also Melanson, Melanson-Melançon, 61.

For her sojourn in PA, see Melanson, who says she & her siblings, after the Jun 1763 counting, "were sent to Louisiana," implying from PA.  However, LA records are clear that only she & her youngest brother came to the Spanish colony, in the first expedition from MD in 1766, thus requiring them to move from PA to MD between Jun 1763 & Jun 1766.  One wonders what happened to the rest of her siblings.  Did they remain in PA or go on from there to Canada or the French Antilles?  Did they also move to MD but stayed there, or chose to go from MD to French St.-Domingue?  Melanson does not say. 

I am assuming, through process of elimination, that this is the wife of Amand LANDRY.  See Arsenault, Généalogie, LA section, 2553, 2555.

24.  Wall of Names, 23, calls her Marguerite MELANSON; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-A:563, 745-46 (SM Ct.Hse.: OA-vol. 2, #15), her marriage record, calls her Marguerite MELANÇON, "native of Snoyde in New England," calls her husband Anselme THIBAUDAU, "native of Acadie," gives her & his parents' names, & says the witnesses to her marriage were Brognier (DECLOUET), Firmain BRAUD, & Alexandre Chevalier DECLOUET; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-A:563 (SM Ch.: v.3, #127), her death/burial record, calls her Margueritte LANCON m. Anselme THIBAUDO, says she died "at age 30 yrs.," but does not give her parents' names.  

Her parents & older brother Olivier were counted at Snow Hill, MD, in Jul 1763, so that was probably her birthplace.  See Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 151. 

25.  Wall of Names, 18, calls her Marguerite MELANSON; Arsenault, Généalogie, 2508, calls her Marie-Josèphe; White, DGFA-1, 835, calls her Marguerite-Josèphe [MELANSON], & gives her parents' names; BRDR, 3:425 (SGA-8, 54), her death/burial record, calls her "Paul Madame HÉBERT, age 97, a widow," but does not give her actual name or her parents' names.  

She was the paternal great-grandmother of first cousins Paul Octave & Louis HÉBERT of antebellum & War of 1861-65 fame.  

26.  Wall of Names, 23, calls her Marie MELANSON; Arsenault, Généalogie, 2554, says she was born in 1753 but gives no birthplace; BRDR, 2:163, 538 (SJA-1, 38), her marriage record, calls her Marie MELANZON, calls her husband Pierre BRUSARD, gives her & his parents' names, says her parents were Acadians & his parents "of Acadia," & that the witnesses to her marriage were Jean-Baptiste BRUSARD & Ephreme ROBISCHO; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-A:563-64 (SM Ch.: v.4, #104), her death/burial record, calls her Marie MELANÇON m. Pierre BROUSSARD "of this parish," says she died "at age 36 yrs. ... of 'hidropsia (dropsy)," gives her parents' names, & says they were "all of Acadia."  See also Bourgeois, Cabanocey, 163; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 2-C:551 (SM Ct.Hse.: Succ. #611); Voorhies, J., Some Late Eighteenth- Century Louisianians, 445.

The age in her burial record gives her an estimated birth year of c1761, which, in the light of other primary sources, seems off the mark. The estimated birth year used here is based not on her burial record but on the Cabanocé censuses of 1766 & 1769; Arsenault, cited above, agrees.  Had she been born in c1761, she would have married at age 15--young even for Acadians. 

How did she hook up with a BROUSSARD from Attakapas, especially a Beausoleil BROUSSARD, at St.-Jacques?  Is the date of her marriage an indication of when her family--that is, her mother, stepfather, & brothers--moved to Attakapas?  Did they follow her & her husband there in late 1776 or early 1777?  They were all counted at Attakapas in May 1777. 

27.  Wall of Names, 23, calls her Marie MELANSON; Arsenault, Généalogie, 2529, the LA section, says Joseph LANDRY married Marie-Anne MELANÇON in c1775; Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-B:513 (SM Ch.: v.4, #415), her death/burial record, calls her Marie MELANÇON, "wid. of dec. Joseph LANDRY and m. (2) to Thomas SPARR, of lower Bayou Vermilion," says she died "at home ... at age 45 yrs.," but does not give her parents' names.  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 151; Melanson, Melanson-Melançon, 80.

The Attakapas census of May 1777 says Joseph, son of Firmin LANDRY was still living with his parents, with no mention of a wife.  Arsenault claims that Joseph & Marie-Anne's first child was born in 1778, so they probably were married after the 1777 census, maybe the same year.  Wall of Names does not list a Marie-Anne MELANÇON, only 2 Marie MELANÇONs, but Melanson is certain that this is the Marie-Anne MELANÇON who married Joseph, son of Firmin LANDRY.  The Marie-Anne who was daughter of Paul MELANÇON & Marie THÉRIOT was called Anne in a colonial report in MD in Jul 1763.  See Jehn.  The age given in the burial record of the Marie MELANÇON who married Joseph LANDRY & Thomas SPARR [PART] conforms nicely to the Marie, daughter of Paul MELANÇON. 

When, & where, did she marry her second husband, who was son of Thomas PARR, sometimes called PART, & probably an Anglo Creole, not an Acadian?

28.  Wall of Names, 23, calls her Madeleine MELANSON; Arsenault, Généalogie, 2556, calls her Marie-Madeleine MELANÇON, says she was born in 1756 but gives no birthplace, gives her parents' names, details her marriage, including her husband's parents' names, but says she married at Baton Rouge; BRDR, 2:147, 536-37 (SJA-1, 45), her marriage record, calls her Magdelaine MELANZON, calls her husband Joseph BREAU, gives her & his parents' names, says his parents were "of Acadia," & that the witness to her marriage was Firmain BROUSARD.  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 151; Bourgeois, Cabanocey, 174. 

Where did Arsenault get the idea that she & Joseph married at Baton Rouge?  The marriage record, cited above, makes it clear that they married at St.-Jacques.  Their marriage record also can be found in Hébert, D., Southwest LA Records, 1-A:563, with the notation BRDA: SJ: v.1, p.45, so perhaps this is what drew Arsenault's attention to Baton Rouge.

29.  Wall of Names, 47, calls her Marie-Magdelaine MELANSON; Robichaux, Acadians in St.-Malo, 341, Family No. 412; Robichaux, Acadians in St.-Malo, 616, Family No. 709; Hébert, D., Acadians in Exile, 561.   

Did she survive the crossing from France in 1785?  La Caroline lost 1 passenger in the crossing, & another 1 at New Orleans.  See Winzerling, Acadian Odyssey, 151, which gives no names.   Or did she die at Lafourche between early 1786, when her family settled there, & Jan 1788, when the census was taken in which she does not appear? 

She evidently was the only direct descendant of Charles MELANSON dit La Ramée of Port-Royal to go to LA.  All the other MELANSONs who went there were descendants of Charles's older brother Pierre dit Laverdure, fils of Minas. 

30.  Wall of Names, 23, calls her Marie-Rose MELANSON; BRDR, 1a(rev.):162 (SGA-3, 33b), her birth/burial record, calls her Marie-Rose MELANÇON, gives her parents' names, & says her godparents were Jacque LEBLANC, who signed the baptismal record, & Marguerite LEBLANC; Bourgeois, Cabanocey, 171, & Voorhies, J., Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 425, her marriage record, calls her Marie LAUDRY (LANDRY)/Marie LANDRIE, calls her husband Isaac LE BLANC, & gives no witnesses to her marriage; BRDR, 2:537 (ASC-1, 185d), her death/burial record, calls her Maria MELANÇON, "spouse of Ysaac LEBLANC," but does not give her parents' names or her age at the time of her death.  See also Bourgeois, Cabanocey, 171, 178; Robichaux, Bayou Lafourche, 1770-98, 6, 16. 

Why did the Cabanocé marriage record of 7 Feb 1768 call her a LANDRY when the woman who married Isaac LEBLANC was, according to other records, Marie MELANÇON?  See the census records cited above & the baptismal record of Isaac's son Jean-Baptiste, dated 11 Oct 1778, in BRDR, 2:467 (ASC-1, 42), which calls the boy's mother ... Marie MELANÇON. 

31.  Wall of Names, 23, calls him Mathurin MELANSON.  

What happened to him in LA?

32.  Wall of Names, 23, calls him Olivier MELANSON.  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 151. 

What happened to him in LA?

33.  Wall of Names, 23, calls him Olivier MELANSON.  See also Melanson, Melanson-Melançon, 78. 

Melanson says Olivier "was born in Louisiana, about 1767," & notes correctly that in the count of Acadians newly arrived at St.-Gabriel in July-Aug 1767, the boy was age 3 months.  His family left Baltimore aboard the English vessel Virgin that Apr, spent 17 days at Guárico, that is, Cap-Français, French St.-Domingue, & reached New Orleans on Jul 12.  The count at St.-Gabriel was made in early or mid-Aug, so that gives Olivier a birth month of May, making it likely that he was born on the voyage down from Baltimore, perhaps at Cap-Français, not in LA. 

 What happened to him in LA?

34.  Wall of Names, 22, calls her Osite MELANSON; BRDR, 1a(rev.):162 (SGA-2, 121), her birth/baptismal record, calls her Osithe MELANÇON, gives her parents' names, & says her godparents were Paul LANDRY & Marie-Josèph[e] MELANÇON; BRDR, 2:132, 538 (SJA-1, 55a), the record of her second marriage, calls her Osite MELANZON, "widow of Jean-Pierre LEBLANC," calls her husband Jean-Baptiste BOURGOIS, "widower of Magdelaine BOURGE," gives no parents' names, & says the witnesses to her marriage were Joseph BOURG, François LANDRY, Pierre FORET, Olivier PART, & Joseph FORET; BRDR, 2:538 (SJA-4, 22), her death/burial record, calls her Ositha MELANÇON, "age 65 years, spouse of Juan Bautista BOURGEOIS," but does not give her parents' names. 

35.  Wall of Names, 23, calls him Paul MELANSON; BRDR, 1a(rev.):163 (SGA-2, 103), his birth/baptismal record, calls him Paul MELANÇON, gives his parents' names, & says his godparents were Paul LEBLANC, who signed the baptismal record, & Dorothée BOURG.  See also Wood, Acadians in Maryland, 172.   

36.  Wall of Names, 22, calls him Paul MELANSON; BRDR, 4:106, 405 (SMI-2, 87), the record of his second marriage, calls him Paul Olivier MELANSON, "widower Ozite Barbe LEBLANC," calls his wife Marie BROUSSARD, "wid. Bonaventure GAUDIN," gives no parents' names, & says the witnesses to his marriage were Cenac LANDRIE, Étienne DUGAS, & Medard DELATTRE; BRDR, 6:468 (SMI-4, 190), his death/burial record, calls him Paul Olivier MELANÇON, "age 89 yrs.," but does not give his parents' names or mention a wife.  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 151. 

37.  Wall of Names, 23, calls him Philippe MELANSON. 

Was Paul his first or middle name?  Arsenault, Généalogie, 2554, lists another son of Paul MELANÇON & Marie THÉRIOT, named Paul, born in c1761, so Philippe may be just ... Philippe.  If so, why was he not listed with his family at Snow Hill, MD, in Jul 1763?  He would have been 13 at the time, so perhaps at the time he was someone's indentured servant.  See Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 151.

What happened to him in LA?

38.  Wall of Names, 22 (pl. 5L), calls him Pierre-Jacques MELANSON; Arsenault, Généalogie, 2555, the LA section, says he was born in 1750; BRDR, 2:422, 539 (ASC-1, 124), the record of his first marriage, calls him Pierre-Jacques MELANSON, calls his wife Élisabeth LANDRY, gives his & her parents' names, says his parents were "of St. James" & hers "of St.-Gabriel at Manchac," & that the witnesses to his marriage were Juan MELANÇON & Pierre LANDRY; BRDR, 3:484, 620 (SGA-14, 130), the record of his second marriage, calls him Jacques MELANÇON, "widower of Élizabeth LANDRY," calls his wife Christine LANDRY, "wid. Grégoire MELANÇON," give her but not his parents' names, & says the witnesses to his marriage were Joseph LEBLANC, Zenon MELANÇON [his stepson], & Deny LANDRY; BRDR, 4:402 (SGA-8, 163), his death/burial record, calls him Jacques MELANÇON, "age 75 yrs.," but does not give his parents' names or mention a wife.  See also Bourgeois, Cabanocey, 177; De Ville, St. James Census, 1777, 10; Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 151.

He was 24 years older than his second wife & remarried at age 67! 

39.  Wall of Names, 23, calls him Simon MELANSON; BRDR, 2:434, 539 (ASC-2, 29), his marriage record, calls him Simon MELANÇON "of St.-Gabriel of Manchac," calls his wife Magdalena LANDRY, gives his & her parents' names, calls her mother Susana GODEAU, & says the witnesses to his marriage were Joseph MELANÇON/MELANSON [his brother] & Charles HÉBERT; BRDR, 3:626 (SGA-8, 48), his death/burial record, calls him Simon MELANÇON, "age 48," but does not give his parents' names or mention a wife. 

He is not in the report on Acadians at Baltimore, MD, in Jul 1763 with the rest of his family, so he was born either later that year or the following year.  See Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 158. 

40.  Not in Wall of Names.  NOAR, 6:192 (SLC, F4, 39), her death/burial record, calls her Geneveva MELANZON, "native of Baltimore, 31 yr., sp. Baptista FELEN," & calls her parents Josef MELANZON & Margarita MELANZON.  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 153; Melanson, Melanson-Melançon, 59; Wood, Acadians in Maryland, 168. 

Wood says:  "We do know that the marriage between Geneviève [daughter of Joseph MELANÇON] and John FELLEN took place at St. Peter's, Baltimore, on 16 May 1784."  This means that she did not come to LA until the mid-1780s (her father died at St.-Gabriel in Dec 1786), hence her not being on the Acadian Memorial's Wall of Names. 

See her father's profile, above, for a discussion of her family's fate. 

41.  Not in Wall of Names.  NOAR, 6:192 (SLC, F4, 38), her death/burial record, calls her Margarita MELANZON, "native of Baltimore, 30 yrs, sp. Lorenzo LAZAR," & calls her parents Josef MELANZON & Margarita MELANZON.  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 153; Melanson, Melanson-Melançon, 59; Wood, Acadians in Maryland, 168.

Was she the Margte. MELANSON in the colonial report for Acadians at Annapolis, MD, in Jul 1763?  See Jehn.  The age found in her burial record gives an estimated birth year of c1766, so she may have been her parents' second child named Marguerite, or, more likely, the New Orleans priest who recorded her burial understated her age, & she was the Marguerite counted at Annapolis in 1763.  Melanson lists no other Marguerite among her father's 12 children by 2 wives. 

Wood says:  "In addition, a Lawrent LAZARE, waterman, resided at 53 Charles Street, Baltimore, in 1796."  If the waterman was her husband, did he remain in MD when his wife accompanied her father & older sister to LA in the mid-1780s?  She is not on the Acadian Memorial's Wall of Names because of the unusual way in which she came to LA. 

See her father's profile, above, for a discussion of her family's fate. 

42.  Not in Wall of Names, 23 (pl. 5L), with his wife & son though he is mentioned there in the context of his wife's widowhood.  The researchers at the Acadian Memorial evidently assumed that, because his wife Anne LANDRY was called a widow in the Sep 1769 census at Cabanocé--see Voorhies, J., Some Late Eighteenth-Century Louisianians, 479--she was a widow when she reached the colony, most likely in Sep 1766 since she settled at Cabanocé.  Melanson, Melanson-Melançon, 80-81, hints that husband Joseph was still very much alive when the family came to the colony in 1766.  The proof of it is in the census of Sep 1769, which counts Anne LANDRY, widow MELANÇON, age 29, with son Ollivier MELANÇON, age 9, daughter Margueritte [MELANÇON], age 7, & son Simon [MELANÇON], age "16months."  This gives Simon a birth date of May 1768, nearly 2 years after the family reached the colony in Sep 1766.  Simon likely was conceived at Cabanocé in Aug 1767, 11 months after the family's arrival.  Even if they had come to LA in the second contingent from Baltimore, which reached New Orleans in July 1767, Simon would have been conceived in the Spanish colony.  That Anne & her children were counted at Cabanocé, not St.-Gabriel, in Sep 1769, hints strongly that the family reached the colony in the first contingent from Baltimore, who were not counted at Cabanocé for 3 years.  The only way that Simon MELANSON could have been conceived in MD in Aug 1767 is if his mother came to LA in the third contingent from the Chesapeake colony, which left Port Tobacco in Dec 1767 & reached New Orleans in Feb 1768.  The Spanish forced these exiles to settle far upriver at San Luís de Natchez, & the exiles remained there until released on order from Gov.-Gen. O'Reilly in late Dec 1769 or early Jan 1770, too late for these Acadians to be counted at Cabahannocer in Sep 1769.  Although several LANDRY families came to LA in the third contingent from MD, none of them had been counted at Snow Hill, & Anne LANDRY, even if she had been a widow in 1766, would have been expected to go to LA with her in-laws, headed by her widowed mother in-law Madeleine LEBLANC.  The researcher concludes, then, that Joseph MELANSON's name should be added to the commemorative wall at the Acadian Memorial.  See also Jehn, Acadian Exiles in the Colonies, 151.  

[top of page MELANÇON]

Copyright (c) 2007-24  Steven A. Cormier