USA > Louisiana > Louisiana; comprising sketches of counties, towns, events, institutions, and persons, Volume II > Part 48
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Rosa, a post-village in the northeastern part of St. Landry par- ish, is a station on the Texas & Pacific R. R., about 15 miles north-
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east of Opelousas, the parish seat. It has a telegraph office, and is a trading center for the neighborhood.
Rosati, Joseph, Ist Roman Catholic bishop of St. Louis, was born at Sora, Italy. Jan. 30, 1789. lle belonged to the Lazarists, and was educated at the House of Monte Citorio, Rome, where he studied under Father De Andreis, later the superior of Lazarists in America. Rosati studied English and it was because of his acquaintance with the language that he went to Baltimore with Bishop Dubourg, as a missionary in 1815. He spent one year near Bardstown, Ky., and from there went to St. Louis, arriving on Oct. 11, 1817. In 1820 Father Rosati succeeded Father Andreis, his former teacher, as superior of the Lazarists in America, a position which carried with it that of superior of the house and seminary at Barrens, Mo. The Lazarist house at this time was nothing but a number of log huts. In addition to building up the house, the superior was professor of logic and theology. In 1823 he was appointed coadjutor to Bishop Dubourg; was consecrated Bishop of Tenagre, at New Orleans, March 25, 1824, but continued to reside at St. Louis until Bishop Dubourg resigned, when he went to New Orleans, remaining there until 1827. Pope Leo XII made Rosati first bishop of St. Louis; he changed his residence to St. Louis, but continued his relations as bishop of New Orleans until the new bishop was appointed. Rosati assisted the Jesuits in various ways, and in 1829 he put the college (now the University of St. Louis) under their care. He was instrumental in establish- ing in his diocese the Sisters of St. Joseph, Sisters of the Visita- tion, Ladies of the Sacred Heart, Sisters of Charity, and other religious orders. It was under his care that the St. Louis hospital was established under the charge of the Sisters of Charity, one of the first institutions of its kind in America. He founded orphan asylums, a deaf and dumb asylum and other charitable institu- tions; consecrated the cathedral at St. Louis on Oct. 28, 1834; took an important part in councils of the church at Baltimore ; became well known as a writer; went to Rome in 1840. and was sent as apostolic delegate to Hayti to try and settle the dispute between the republic and the court of Rome, as well as to reor- ganize the church in Hayti. Having concluded satisfactory settle- ments with the Haytian government, he returned to Italy and was appointed assistant prelate to the pontifical throne. He died in Rome, on the eve of departure for America, Sept. 23, 1843.
Rosedale, a village of Iberville parish, is situated on Bayou Grosse Tete and is a station on the Texas & Pacific R. R., about 17 miles northwest of Plaquemine, the parish seat, in a cypress district, has sawmills and other lumbering industries, and is the supply town for a considerable district. Rosedale has a money order postoffice. telegraph station and express office, and in 1900 reported a population of 300.
Rosefield, a postoffice in the northern part of Catahoula parish. is situated on a confluent of the Black river, about 12 miles east
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of Standard, the nearest railroad station, and 15 miles northwest of Harrisonburg, the parish seat.
Roseland, one of the largest towns in Tangipahoa parish, is on the Illinois Central R. R., 3 miles north of Amite, the parish seat, in the great truck farming district that supplies the northern mar- kets with early vegetables and berries, hundreds of car loads of which are shipped from this town each spring. It has a money order postoffice, telegraph and express offices, good mercantile establishments and schools, and its population in 1900 was 1,320.
Roselius, Christian, lawyer, came to New Orleans as a redemp- tioner about the time Louisiana was admitted into the Union as a state. For some time he was compelled to work under the re- demptioner's contract to repay his passage money, but by his indomitable will and industry he finally became his own master. He then studied law, was admitted to the bar, and won distinction as an attorney. He was a delegate to the constitutional conven- tion of 1845, served as attorney-general of the state, and was the lawyer who drew the will of John McDonogh. (q. v.) Mr. Rose- lius was a Whig in his politics and was frequently called upon to serve his party as a campaign orator, being a clear and effective reasoner and a forcible speaker. A writer in the Bee in 1847 said of him: "In his disposition, he is munificent to a fault, and has given more, perhaps, to his friends than he has put into his pocket ; for though his business is heavy and extensive, yet he is far from being rich. * * He is one made to adorn any station how-
ever elevated."
Rosepine, a village of Vernon parish, is a station on the Kansas City Southern R. R., 4 miles north of the southern boundary of the parish and 15 miles south of Leesville, the parish seat. It is in the heart of the great long leaf pine forest between the Missis- sippi and Sabine rivers and has important lumber industries. It has a bank, a money order postoffice, telegraph and express offices, and is the principal trading and shipping point for the southern part of the parish. Its population in 1900 was 75.
Rosin .- (See Naval Stores.)
Rouquette, Adrien, author, was born in New Orleans, La., Feb. 13, 1813. He was educated at the College de Nantes, France, and then spent ten years in traveling over Europe. Returning to America and to his Louisiana home, he became interested in the Choctaw Indians in St. Tammany parish, settled among them and taught many of them to read and write. The Indians called him "Chata Ima." In 1845 he received the priestly orders of the Cathi- olie church, but continued among his Choctaw friends until 1886. when his health failed and he went to New Orleans. There he was tenderly cared for by the sisters of charity until his death, which occurred at the llotel Dieu on July 15, 1887. Father Rou- quette was the author of several prose and poetical works. (See Literature.)
Rouquette, François Dominique, poet, was born in the city of New Orleans, I.a .. Jan. 2, 1810. After attending the public and
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private schools of his native city he went to France and completed his education in the College de Nantes. In 1838 he returned to the United States and studied law with the celebrated William Rawle of Philadelphia, Pa. After his admission to the bar he found the practice of his profession uncongenial, so he gave up the law and returned to France, where he devoted the rest of his life to literary pursuits. A list of his principal poems will be found under the head of "Literature." Like his brother Adrien, he was a great friend of the Choctaw Indians, and he published in French and English a work on the Choctaw Nation.
Rousseau, Lovell H., lawyer and soldier, was born at Stanford, Lincoln county. Ky., Aug. 4, 1818; received a common school edu- cation ; studied law and began practice at Bloomfield, Ind .; served in both branches of the Indiana legislature; was a captain in the 2nd Indiana regiment during the Mexican war, distinguishing him- self by his bravery at Buena Vista; and after the war located at Louisville, Ky., where he attained prominence as a criminal lawyer. At the beginning of the Civil war he established Camp Joe Holt, near Jeffersonville, Ind .: was made brigadier-general on Oct. 6, 1861; fought at Shiloh, Perryville, Murfreesboro and in the Nash- ville campaign ; was elected as a Republican to Congress in 1864, and on Nov. 30, 1865, resigned from the army to take his seat. In June, 1866, he made a personal assault on Congressman J. B. Grinnell of Iowa, and his expulsion was recommended by a major- ity of a committee appointed to investigate, but the house adopted the minority report and voted to reprimand him. Gen. Rous- seau dodged the reprimand by resigning his seat. He was reelected to Congress in 1866; in 1867 President Johnson appointed him a brigadier in the regular army and he was assigned to duty in Alaska. On July 28, 1868, he was assigned to the command of the Department of Louisiana, succeeding Gen. R. C. Buchanan, and remained in Louisiana until his death in New Orleans on Jan. 7, 1869. Gen. Rousseau was neither better nor worse than the other commanders during the reconstruction days. He supported the metropolitan police with the U. S. forces at his command and carried out the policy of Congress in dealing with the Southern states. The Louisiana legislature, on Jan. 15, 1869, passed a reso- lution extending the sympathy of that body to Gen. Rousseau's family.
Routon, a post-hamlet in the central part of Catahoula parish, is situated on a branch of Bushley creek. 3 miles northeast of Jena, the nearest railroad station, and about 15 miles southwest of llarrisonburg. the parish seat.
Row Landing (R. R. name Wilhelm), a village and landing on the Mississippi river in the western part of West Feliciana parish, is a station on the line of the Louisiana Railway & Navigation company, about 12 miles northwest of St. Francisville, the parish seat. It is an important cotton shipping depot, has a money order postoffice. telegraph and express offices, and is a trading center for the neighborhood.
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Royal, a post-hamlet in the eastern part of Winn parish, is situ- ated on Beech creek, about 3 miles northeast of Ringwood. the nearest railroad station, and 10 miles northeast of Winnfield, the parish seat.
Ruby, a postoffice of Rapides parish, is situated 2 miles west of the eastern boundary, 5 miles northeast of Whittington, the nearest railroad station, and about 15 miles southeast of Alexandria, the parish seat.
Ruddock, one of the largest towns in the parish of St. John the Baptist, is on the west shore of Lake Pontchartrain and is a sta- tion on the Illinois Central R. R .. about 30 miles northwest of New Orleans. It is in one of the richest truck farming districts in the state and furnishes the nearby market of New Orleans with vege- tables and fruits. Ruddock has a money order postoffice, telegraph, express offices, good stores, and in 1900 had a population of 700. It is the shipping and supply town for all the northeastern part of the parish.
Rugg, a post-hamlet of Union parish, is located on the Bayou Corney, about 8 miles southeast of Farmerville, the parish seat and nearest railroad station.
Ruple, a post-hamlet in the western part of Claiborne parish, is about 5 miles southwest of Homer, the parish seat and nearest railroad town.
Russellville, the second seat of justice of Claiborne parish, was settled in the second decade of the 19th century. A rude court- house and still ruder jail were built for parish purposes and a store was opened. The town was named in honor of Samuel Russell, who donated the ground and urged this place as the proper loca- tion for the seat of justice of the new parish. Several desperadoes of this early period were confined in the rough old jail. In 1829 a road was opened between Russellville and Minden lower landing, at the head of navigation on Bayou Dorcheat. In 1836 the seat of justice was removed to Overton, and Russellville soon after fell into decay. The only evidences today that a village ever existed, is the old Kilgore house, which stands in an overgrown clearing.
Rust, a post-village of Iberia parish, is situated on the Bayou Petite Anse. 5 miles southwest of Burke, the nearest railroad sta- tion, and 9 miles west of New Iberia. the parish seat.
Ruston, the seat of government of Lincoln parish, is located in the southern part of the parish at the junction of the Vicksburg, Shreveport & Pacific and the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific rail- roads. It is one of the new towns that has grown since the Vicks- burg, Shreveport & Pacific R. R. was built. Vienna was the first seat of justice for the parish, but as it was not on the railroad the merchants there moved to the new town of Ruston. This gave the town a start and after the courthouse was moved there it became the center of trade for the parish. The building of the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific R. R., north and south through the parish . increased the shipping facilities and it developed into a railroad and wholesale center. The repair shops of the Vicksburg, Shreve-
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port & Pacific R. R. are located at Ruston, and it is the division headquarters for the trainmen. Located in the great long leaf pine forest of the northern part of the state, Ruston is the lumber cen- ter for the sawmills that have been built along the lines of railroad, and recently large mills have been built in the immediate vicinity of the town. Ruston is one of the foremost towns in the state with regard to municipal ownership, as it owns the electric light- ing and waterworks systems. The Ruston state bank was organ- ized in 1890 and the Lincoln parish bank was organized in 1901. The Protestant denominations are represented by Baptist, Meth- odist, Presbyterian and Episcopal churches. There are many fine business blocks and the parish courthouse is one of the finest in northern Louisiana. Ruston has fine graded schools and a high school and by an act passed by the state legislature in 1894, an industrial institute was located at Ruston. Today about 1,000 children attend the institute. The principal industries of the town are cotton presses, wood-working factories, cotton-seed oil mills, a fertilizing plant, brickyards, foundries and machine shops. The Louisiana Chautauqua is located at Ruston, where it has spacious grounds of about 15 acres and an auditorium that will seat 2,000 people. There is also a good hotel and a natatorium and bath house supplied from the mineral springs. Ruston is one of the inost progressive towns of northern Louisiana and has an esti- mated population of over 5,000.
Ruth, a post-hamlet and station in the western part of St. Martin parish, is on the Southern Pacific R. R., about 10 miles north of St. Martinville, the parish seat.
Ryswick, Treaty of .- (See Treaties.)
S
Sabine Expedition .- The formal transfer of Louisiana to the United States was made on Dec. 20, 1803, but for more than two years Spanish officers lingered in New Orleans, part of them as members of the "commission of the limits of the province of Lou- isiana," at the head of which was the Marquis of Casa Calvo, for- merly governor of the colony. In the summer of 1805 Baron Bastrop, owner of a large tract of land on the Ouachita, was indus- triously engaged in circulating the report that Louisiana would soon return to the possession of Spain. As Bastrop was a close friend of Casa Calvo, the prediction gained credence and caused Gov. Claiborne no little anxiety. This anxiety was increased by the reports he frequently received from Dr. Sibley and Capt. Tur- ner regarding the situation in western Louisiana, where, according to these reports. "the intrigues of the priests at Natchitoches have had an injurious tendency, inasmuch as they have weakened the allegiance of the citizens by giving currency to an opinion that they will soon become Spanish subjects, and exciting hatred against
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the American government by representing that it affords no pro- tection to religion." On June 6, 1805, Claiborne wrote to President Madison : "A character calling himself the bishop of one of the interior provinces of Mexico, lately made a visit to Natchitoches. He traveled with great dispatch and much pomp. He appeared to be a man of great literature and of considerable address. He kept a journal, and took latitude of many places through which he passed. His inquiries as to the geographical situation of Louisiana were very minute, and from his general conduct it would seem that his visit was rather with political than religious views." About ten days later Claiborne again wrote to the president, advising him of the fact that large sums of silver were coming to New Orleans from Vera Cruz, "ostensibly for the payment of pensions to Spanish officers allowed to reside in Louisiana, and to meet the expenses which the Marquis might have to incur as commis- sioner of limits."
Thus matters stood until December, when Claiborne made a visit to the western frontier "to examine the means of defense on which he could rely, should he be attacked by the Spaniards." While he was absent on this mission the affairs of the territory were administered by Sec. Graham, who wrote to Madison on Jan. 2, 1806: "This day we received the president's message of the 3d of December to the senate and house of representatives. A copy was immediately sent to the governor, and if he receives it, 1 am sure it will hasten his return to the city, unless he finds it expedient to remain a little longer where he is, to make some ar- rangements for the defense of our western frontiers. He may probably think this the more necessary, as a report has gone abroad that the Marquis of Casa Calvo has been tampering with the Indians in that quarter. *
* If we could get rid of every * Spaniard in the country, I should rejoice; for we should then be freed from our most dangerous enemies. From the report made to the mayor, there are about 230 of these people here. They are generally of that description who would be ready to seize any moment of disturbance to commit the vilest depredations; and. whether in peace or war, they are a nuisance to the country."
The president's message above referred to led Graham to believe "that a rupture with Spain is not an improbable event," a belief that was evidently shared by the governor, who returned to New Orleans on Jan. 5, 1806, and on the 7th wrote to Madison, express- ing his regret at the prolonged residence of Casa Calvo and other Spanish officers in the territory, adding that he received with pleasure the official communication of the president's determina- tion to urge them to a final departure, and that he would endeavor to convey this order in the same spirit with which it was sent to him, "so as to leave no room for discussion." After some rather spirited correspondence, the former intendant, Morales, and Casa Calvo left the territory, the latter taking his departure on Feb. 15. 1806.
This much has been written to show the feeling that existed
,
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between the United States and Spain and the causes that led up to the Sabine expedition. The peremptory dismissal of the Spanish officers increased the ill feeling that already existed. The question of the western boundary of Louisiana was still unsettled, and a body of Spanish troops had already crossed the Sabine and occu- pied the old post of Adaise (or Adayes) a short distance west of Natchitoches, while the governor of Texas had collected a force of 600 men on the Trinity river, where he was awaiting reinforce- ments and orders. Prior to this time Gov. Claiborne had used every argument to induce the United States government that troops were needed in the territory to check any demonstration on the part of the Spaniards along the western frontier. Shortly after Morales and Casa Calvo left New Orleans. Maj. Porter of the U. S. army received orders to move forthwith to the post of Adaise and, if the Spaniards declined to give a guaranty of good faith, to expel the force there from the territory. Don Rodriguez, the Spanish commander at Nacogdoches, replied to Maj. Porter's letter of inquiry as to the intentions of the Spanish authorities in occupying Adaise that no invasion was contemplated, and that the rights of American citizens would be fully respected, but at the same time refused to remove his patrols from the district east of the Sabine river. In addition to this attitude, he began to demand of the people there a strict allegiance to the king of Spain. As soon as this became known to Porter he ordered Capt. Turner to move immediately against the Spanish garrison at Adaise and to move it beyond the Sabine. Turner's victory was a bloodless one, for upon his approach the Spaniards evacuated the post and retired to the west side of the Sabine without offering resistance. Porter was then reinforced by three companies of infantry and a field battery of 4 guns from Fort Adams.
In the meantime the news of the Burr conspiracy (q. v.) had aroused the apprehension of the Mexican authorities, and in July Gen. Herrera, with an army of some 1,200 Spanish troops crossed the Sabine and took position on Bayou Pierre, a few miles from Natchitoches. Claiborne learned of this movement on Aug. 17, while at Natchez. and on the 26th wrote to Herrera a long letter complaining of several acts of hostility on the part of the Span- iards, not the least of which was this invasion of a territory which was considered neutral ground, pending the negotiations of Spain and the United States concerning the western boundary of Louisi- ana. In his reply Herrera defended his course and intimated that it was his intention to establish a garrison on Bayou Pierre. Clai- borne then began the work of strengthening himself by calling the militia to the assistance of the U. S. troops that were confronting the Spaniards. On Sept. 19 he met Gen. Wilkinson, to whom he reported that from 400 to 500 militia could be relied on in case of a conflict with Herrera. Wilkinson then began his preparations to drive out the Spaniards. Herrera announced his determination to give battle. but as the American forces approached he changed his mind and withdrew across the Sabine. In November an agree-
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ment was reached by which the Spaniards agreed to refrain from further hostile demonstrations, at least until the two nations failed in their efforts to effect an amicable settlement. "This is the first time," says Monette, "that the Sabine was ever considered as a limit of the Mexican province on the east." Wilkinson had accom- plished the object of his expedition-the withdrawal of Herrera's forces from the Territory of Orleans-but he held his position along the eastern bank of the Sabine river until the early part of Decem- ber, when his army was withdrawn to New Orleans. Monette says: "His troops retired indignantly from the Sabine, many of them fully convinced that they had been robbed of their antici- pated laurels by the cupidity of their commander, who had entered into dishonorable negotiations, and that money, and not the sword, had terminated the campaign."
Sabine Parish was established on March 27, 1843, during the administration of Gov. Alexandre Mouton, from the original terri- tory of Natchitoches parish. It lies in the valley of the Sabine river, from which its name is derived. It is bounded on the north by De Soto parish; on the east by Natchitoches parish; on the south by Vernon parish, and the Sabine river forms its entire west- ern boundary separating it from Texas. This region was explored by the French soon after they took possession of Louisiana, and the Spanish also desired to gain a foothold in what is now western Louisiana. French, in his Historical Memoirs, writes: "Notwithi- standing the settlements made by De la Salle in Texas, as carly as 1686, the Spaniards continued to push their claims in this coun- try, and established missions throughout Western Texas, as far as the banks of the Adayes, within a short distance of Natchi- toches." Stoddard says that, "The main object of the Spaniards was to penetrate to Red river, and in this way to circumscribe or weaken the claims of the French." The policy of this measure was understood by the French governors of Louisiana and "the more effectually to hold the country, established a mission and fort on the upper tributaries of the Sabine, which was held until the treaty of 1762, when Louisiana was ceded to Spain." Another French fort was established west of Natchitoches in what is now the northeastern part of Sabine parish, on "bayou Dupin, up which boats may go within one mile and a half from the old French fort, at the Adayes." Beyond the establishment of these posts and their explorations, the French did little or nothing to settle the country between the Red and Sabine rivers. The Indians in these river valleys were visited repeatedly after 1702 by Jesuit missionaries, who established a mission at the Adayes, but the country was known to traders and trappers for nearly a century before any permanent settlements were made. In 1816 some Americans lo- cated on the Sabine river near the Natchitoches-Texas trace, where they were joined by Spanish refugees from San Antonio and Nagodoches, but the country was almost a wilderness. Permanent settlement was not started until the second decade of the 19th century. In 1823, U. S. soldiers cleared the land for Fort Jesup
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cantonment, "situated half way between the Red river and the Sabine and on the highest ridge which separates the streams flow- ing into these rivers." This post soon became one of the most important on the western border. Limestone was discovered by the troops and at an early day a limekiln was built which supplied this section of the country with lime for years. In 1827 Martin wrote, "The country to the west of Red river, extending to the Sabine, furnishes but a small portion of even second rate land. It is generally covered with oak and pine. There are some choice spots of land, but of small extent. The land on the Sabine is unfit for cultivation to any extent. The part of it which is not subject to sudden overflow is high land of no value but for raising stock."
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