Francisca Montreuil was a baker in Spanish New Orleans who bought herself and her children out of slavery one signature at a time, then built an estate that crossed into American rule. This is her documented record.
Genealogy
Rose Nicaud of the French Market: The Coffee Woman the Legend Could Not Hold
Rose Nicaud sold coffee in the French Market for forty years. Born enslaved and sold six times, she became a free woman of color named in the city’s own record. This is her full documented story, beyond the legend.
The Deed Before the Eulogy: Henriette Delille, the Free Woman of Color Who Bought Her Institution
In 1850 Henriette Delille, a free woman of color in New Orleans, signed a notarized act of sale and bought the land for the institution she founded. This is her documented record, anchored to the deed.
Titine of Opelousas: The Woman Who Ran the Old Bank Hotel
Celestine Perrault, known as Titine, ran a large hotel in Opelousas for at least a quarter century. Three generations of her family lived under that roof. A Justice of the Peace kept his office there. This is her documented record.
When You Are Not the First Researcher in the Room: Working from Compiled Records Without Inheriting Their Conclusions
Compiled records, published articles, and family historian notebooks are research maps, not source documents. A four-step method for using another researcher’s work without adopting their conclusions.
Aurelia Godfrey Mitchell: The Lafayette Parish Widow Who Built the South Liberty Oil Field
Aurelia Godfrey Mitchell was born in Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, in 1859 and died in Liberty County, Texas, in 1940. Between those two dates she built an oil and gas estate the Supreme Court of Texas construed twice. The wells still produce under her name today.
General Order No. 28 and the Women of Occupied New Orleans, May 15, 1862
On May 15, 1862, two weeks into the federal occupation of New Orleans, Major General Benjamin Butler issued General Order No. 28. The order disciplined gestures and ignited a propaganda war. This is the documented record.