The history of Detroit and Michigan; or, The metropolis illustrated; a chronological cyclopedia of the past and present, Vol I, Part 69

Author: Farmer, Silas, 1839-1902
Publication date: 1889
Publisher: Detroit, S. Farmer & co
Number of Pages: 1096

USA > Michigan > Wayne County > Detroit > The history of Detroit and Michigan; or, The metropolis illustrated; a chronological cyclopedia of the past and present, Vol I > Part 69

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

His signature, made at Castelsar- rasin in 1729, at the time of the mar- riage of his daughter, harmonizes closely with his signature, written a quarter of a century before, in the records of St. Anne's Church in Detroit. The name Lamothe, appended to the registry of marriage at Quebec in 1687, is unlike his

later signatures, but changes in form of letters are not at all unusual. The chief trouble with the record of Quebec is that the statement it contains in regard to his father and mother does not harmonize with the facts obtained from France. This, how- ever, may be accounted for by the probability that the record was carelessly taken down, or hurriedly written.

Possibly the intimation which we find in one old manuscript, that Cadillac left France on account of personal difficulties, is true, and if so, this may have been the reason for his change of name. The body of the marriage record gives the name of Cadillac as " Antoine de la Mothe." The name he signed was Lamothe Launay. The record, however, states that he married Marie Thérèse Guyon, and this name accords with all the information obtained elsewhere concerning the name of his wife.

It was not at all uncommon, at that day, or even in later times, for the same person to be designated by two or more names, entirely different from each other. Laumet was undoubtedly his family name ; it was used both by him and his wife, as was also the name La Mothe; and sometimes both names were used in the same document.

When Cadillac's granddaughter was married to Bartholomew Gregoire, at Castelsarrasin, she was styled Marie Thérèse de Laumet de Cadillac. In 1741 and 1742 the French records of transfers of land titles give the name of Cadillac's wife as Madame Thérèse de Guyon, wife of Antoine Lau- met de la Mothe Cadillac.

Lamothe cueille

SIGNATURE OF LAMOTHE CADILLAC.

The foregoing evidences of identity are conclusive, but if it were desirable, similar proofs could be almost indefinitely multiplied.

[326]

327

BIOGRAPHY OF CADILLAC.

Of the early life of Cadillac we have no direct information. That he received a more than ordi- nary education, for that period, is abundantly evi- denced by the style of his numerous letters and memoirs, by the difficult feats of navigation that he performed, and by the various positions of responsi- bility which he was called to occupy.

He had evidently received a religious training, was in sympathy with the Franciscan order, and his writings teem with illustrations from and allu- sions to Bible narratives. He was a close observer, and his papers give evidence of exact knowledge. Almost without exception, his plans, as detailed in his letters, evince a statesmanship born of love for France and loyalty to the king. He thought out his work, and planned like a general. He aimed to provide for all contingencies, and in their business details, many of his letters exhibit rare commercial foresight. Those who criticized his actions found him keen and cautious in his retorts and resolute in maintaining his ground. He would neither yield his right of judgment nor his prerogatives as com- mandant. To quote his own words, he was " like a traveler, and did not propose to stop because all the curs barked at him."

Wherever he was stationed, he studied the place and the people, and in every case made detailed reports concerning both, analyzing the character and needs of each and suggesting plans for the future. Some of his descriptions of scenery are full of poetic feeling.

He was opposed in many of his plans, not only by the trading companies, but by the Jesuits as well. The latter order, for many years, was the dominant political force in the New World, as well as the strongest religious power. That the order hindered Cadillac's project is clearly shown in the correspon- dence of the period, which is still preserved in France and Canada. While yielding the Jesuit fathers all deference in religious matters, Cadillac would not yield to their dictation in matters per- taining to the civil state. He not only knew his rights, but was able to maintain them, even against large odds, and did so with spirit and determina- tion. He had rare penetration, could discern motives and plans, and as nothing escaped his observation, the members of that order found "a foeman worthy of their steel." As a scholar, Ca- dillac was nearly equal to the best of them; and whether wielding pen or sword, he grasped it with no uncertain hand. His history is certainly a remarkable one. During twenty years or more, he was a prominent figure in many sections of the con- tinent.

In gathering material for his history, I have been literally compelled to trace his footsteps in France and then in Canada. He was at Nova Scotia, on the

coast of Maine, at Mackinaw, at Detroit, at Mobile, and on the Illinois, and then the Old World claimed his thought and time, and near the place of his birth his grave was made.

The most dilligent search in France, Canada, and the United States has failed to discover any portrait of Cadillac. There is in existence but one description of his personal appearance, and that is entirely fic- titious, and without historic foundation for a single feature. Indeed, the author of it says, "I never intended it should be received as resting on any other foundation " than that of imagination. Any representation, therefore, of the founder of our city is only of value as it helps to honor the name of Cadillac. A picture of the old church where his bones repose has been obtained, and is deemed an appropriate frontispiece for the history of the city which he founded.

The date of his arrival in the New World is unknown. It is said that he had previously served in the army, and he seems to have held the rank of lieutenant when he came. In 1688 he was styled, in official documents, a Knight of the Royal and Military Order of St. Louis. Our history of him in America begins with his marriage at Quebec, on June 25, 1687, to Marie Thérèse Guyon, a native of that city, daughter of Denis Guyon and Elizabeth Boucher. In 1689 Governor Menneville designated him as a resident of Acadia, and said he had a habitation there; Quebec at that time was within the limits of what was styled Acadia. That his marriage was a happy one is evident. In Septem- ber, 1701, when Madame Cadillac was about setting out from Quebec to join her husband at Detroit, several ladies said to her, "It might do if you were going to a pleasant country where you could have good company, but it is impossible to conceive how you can be willing to go to a desert country where there is nothing to do but to die of ennui." She replied, "A woman who loves her husband as she should has no stronger attraction than his company, wherever he may be; everything else should be indifferent to her."

Madame Cadillac was accompanied on the trip by the wife of Lieutenant Tonty. They came by way of Niagara. So toilsome was the journey that it is no wonder that Father Germain, on August 25, 1701, wrote to Cadillac, " Everybody here admires the nobleness of the two ladies, who have had the courage to undertake such a painful voyage to join their husbands."

Ladies of the present day, imagine it if you can,- a journey of one thousand miles in an open canoe, with Indians and rough canoe-men, in many respects worse than Indians, as companions. It was at a time, too, when winds and rains might be looked for, and we may be sure that their resting places en

328

BIOGRAPHY OF CADILLAC.

route were far from being equal to the poorest hotels of to-day.

Surely there was occasion to admire their courage, endurance, and devotion. Cadillac's wife left their two daughters with the Ursulines to be educated. Her little boy, Jacques, born March 16, 1695, came with her. Their oldest son, Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac, fils, born April 26, 1692, an ensign in 1707, was already here. He came with his father. A son named Pierre Denis was born June 13, 1699, and died July 4, 1700. A daughter, Marie Anne, born June 7, died on June 9, 1701. The records of St. Anne's Church show that in 1706 there was a daughter here named Magdaline, old enough to act as godmother. The same records also show the names of five other children, as follows: Marie Thérèse, baptized February 2, 1704; Jean Antoine, baptized January 19, 1707 ; he died April 9, 1709; Marie Agathe, baptized on December 29, 1707 ; François, baptized on March 28, 1709; and René Louis, baptized on March 18, 1710, he died October 7, 1714. The names of two sons, Joseph and Fran- çois, are contained in the records of Castelsarrasin, and an old deed, elsewhere referred to, shows that they were both living in 1738. We have therefore the names of eleven children; adding the two daughters left with the Ursulines, we find that Ca- dillac had at least thirteen children.

The oldest son was alive in 1730, but died before his father's property was divided in 1731. The daughter, Marie Thérèse, was married at Castel- sarrasin, February 16, 1729, to Noble Francis de Pouzargues. She died on February 1, 1753, and was buried the next day in the same church where her father had been laid. She left two sons; one, named Joseph, was born October 14, 1730; the name and date of birth of the other have not been found. Joseph Lamothe Cadillac, who afterwards became an advocate in Parliament, was married on June 5, 1732, to Mademoiselle Marguerite de Gré- goire, and had two children, Marie Thérèse, born April 29, 1733, and Marguerite Anne, born July 19, 1735. François, the last named of the sons of Ca- dillac, was married on September 10, 1744, at Castel- sarrasin to Demoiselle Angélique Furgole, widow of Pierre Salvignac. They had no children.

All of Cadillac's children, except Marie Thérèse, Joseph, and François, were dead in 1731, when his estate was divided.

His wife, after his death, continued to live at Castelsarrasin, and died in the parish of St. Sauveur, in Castelsarrasin, in 1746.

Joseph Lamothe Cadillac was living as late as 1748, and François in 1741, but both were dead in 1798. Marie Thérèse, daughter of Joseph and granddaughter of Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac, married her cousin, Bartholomey de Grégoire, son

of Noble Bartholomey de Grégoire, in May, 1761, at Castelsarrasin. They lived there until they came to America, to prosecute, in person, their claims to the lands granted to Cadillac on the coast of Maine. The history of this grant is as follows: In 1688, Cadillac petitioned the Marquis de Denonville, Gov- ernor of Canada and Acadia, for the grant of a " place called Douaquec, near Mageis " (Machias), to consist of "two leagues on the sea shore, with two leagues in depth, within the land, the Douaquec River to divide the said two leagues in depth, one league to be taken on the west side and one league on the other side of said river," with the island of Mount Desert and other islands, which are on the fore part of the said two front leagues, "to hold in fief and lordship with high mean and low jurisdiction, he being desirous to promote an establishment there." The petition, and a concession made by the governor on July 23, 1688, were presented to Louis XIV. at Versailles for confirmation, and on May 24, 1689, he confirmed the grant of the lands to Cadillac. The grant was recorded at Quebec on April 20, 1691. The lands lay in what was then Acadia, all that part of Maine east of the Penobscot River being then included in the territory made famous by the story of Evangeline. They afterwards formed part of the Territory of Penobscot, or Dis- trict of Maine, in the Commonwealth of Massachu- setts, the State of Maine not having been created until 1820.

At the time the Grégoires made their claim, the lands were in the County of Lincoln, and the River Douaquec was then called Taunton. The Gre- goires claimed two leagues on the sea shore with two leagues in depth, one league in depth to be on the main land, and the other league to include Mount Desert and the neighboring islands, named A, Beans, Prebbles, Bragdons, Burnt, and Black, the six small islands known as the Porcupines, to- gether with Island B, and the islands known as Jordens, Red, Slave or Stave, Nicholas or Iron Bound, Turtle, and Heron or Seamwells islands. The entire grant included 184,272 acres. While the Grégoires were still in France, on June 15, 1785, the French consul made an application to Massa- chusetts on their behalf. His communication was referred to the Committee on Unappropriated Lands, and their report was referred to the Com- mittee on Sale of Eastern Lands. They, however, made no report until the matter was again brought to their attention after the arrival in Boston of Monsieur and Madame Grégoire. In anticipation of going to America to prosecute this claim, Ma- dame Grégoire made her will at Castelsarrasin on February 13, 1784, and she and her husband, on their way to America, were in Paris on August 26, 1786. They arrived in Boston a few days prior

329

BIOGRAPHY OF CADILLAC.

to November 6, 1786, coming from France via New York. On the date last named their second petition was presented. It set forth the facts above named, and also stated that, from the date of the grant, De la Mothe Cadillac was styled "Lord of Douaquec 1 and Mount Desert."

The records of St. Anne's Church, in Detroit, abundantly bear out their assertion. He so styles himself in many places in those old records. The petition set forth that Cadillac granted leases to lands on Mount Desert, the originals of which were in their possession, and also that he took possession of the lands, and continued to occupy and claim jurisdiction over them until his death in 1730, and that after the treaty of Utrecht, about 1712, the actual possession of the lands could not be proven, as the English usurped possession of the territory, but that as the owner could not be barred of his rights until sixty years' time had elapsed, the peti- tioners believed their claim to be good. They stated that the marriages, minority, and death of various heirs prevented them from prosecuting their claims earlier, especially as they had no hope of getting justice from England. They brought a letter from La Fayette, recommending them and their claim to consideration, and the petition stated that Thomas Jefferson thought favorably of their claim. The governor brought their petition before the General Court of the Senate and House of Representatives in a special message, dated November 7, 1786, and on the same day a joint committee was appointed to consider the claim. The committee reported that the lands were in part occupied, and the Legis- lature, in order to ascertain the equities of the case, sought an opinion from the Supreme Court, but the court declined to give an opinion on a case not actually before it. The subject was then referred to the attorney-general, and the Grégoires remained in Boston awaiting a decision.

This was so long delayed that in May, 1787, the French consul again called the attention of the Legislature to the subject, and on June 6, 1787, it was referred to a Joint Committee of the Legisla- ture. On June 29 the Senate reported favorably on the claims of the Gregoires, and on July 5, 1787, the House of Representatives concurred in the decision. All of the lands they claimed, then possessed by the commonwealth, either by original title, confiscation, or forfeiture, were to be given up to the Grégoires, provided they would, within one year, make terms with such of the then possessors of any of the lands as the Committee on Sale of Eastern Lands should deem entitled to consideration. The Legislature also, by special Act, provided for their naturaliza- tion ; and on October 29, 1787, they and their three

children, Pierre, Nicholas, and Marie, were natural- ized.

The conceding of the claim of the Grégoires was really a graceful act, but the good feeling then entertained towards the French nation, on account of services rendered in the Revolutionary War, un- doubtedly had much to do with the favor with which the claim was received.

The lands were actually within the limits claimed by Massachusetts at the time Louis XIV. made the concession. Cadillac's selection of the locality did credit to his judgment. Mount Desert Island is the largest on the coast. It has an area of 6,000 acres, is fifteen miles long and from eight to twelve broad. On it there are thirteen mountains, with large and beautiful lakes far up their sides, and the entire island is remarkable for picturesque and beautiful scenery. It now forms part of Hancock County, Maine, and to this day the land titles of the eastern half of the island are all traced from the Grégoires as the first owners.

After obtaining the grant, the Grégoires made their home on Mount Desert Island for several years. On August 4, 1792, they sold their interest to Henry Jackson, and removed to Boston, where they were in August, 1798. They afterwards re- turned to Mount Desert. Mrs. Clara Barnes Mar- tin, in her account of the island, says that they died about 1810, and that their graves are shown just outside of the present cemetery, near Hull's Cove, on the east side of the island. When the cemetery was enclosed, their graves were left outside by mis- take. In 1874 a white wooden cross was erected to mark their site.

In 1882 there was living at Lille, in France, a Madame Grégoire, née de Fremiot, probably the only remaining descendant of the Grégoires.

In the time of Cadillac, the French colonies were under the control of the Naval Department, conse- quently Cadillac and other soldiers engaged in the service of the colonies belonged, not to the army, but to the navy, and were rated as marines. Ca- dillac may be said to have been both sailor and soldier, and seems to have been equally at home on water and on land. His courage is undoubted ; he went fearlessly among the savages, and was always ready to brave the dangers of a new post. Imme- diately after his marriage he went to Port Royal in Acadia, remaining there between one and two years, and in 1689 going to France, probably to secure the grant of Mount Desert. At this time he seems to have been a captain of infantry, but without much means. When he went to France, he left his wife in Acadia, whither he returned in seven months. Soon after we find him in command of a vessel. A letter from Count Frontenac to the colonial minister, dated October 20, 1691, states that La

1 Spelled also Donagoet and Donaquec.

330

BIOGRAPHY OF CADILLAC.

Mothe's vessel had been captured by a Boston "cor- sair."

In February, 1692, Count Frontenac, the gover- nor-general, proposed to send him to- France to give intelligence as to the condition of the Province. Pontchartrain, in reply, asks that he be sent "by the first ship," so that he might give minute informa- tion to aid in the proposed attack on New York and New England, as he is considered to be the "best instructed on plans, soundings, and all observations." In fulfilment of this request, Cadillac returned to France. While there, or soon after his return to Canada, he made other suggestions, which are indi- cated in a letter from the king to Count Frontenac, written in March, 1693.

In this letter the king approved of Cadillac's plan of having vessels of light draft to defend the rivers and lakes of Canada from the English, and author- ized Frontenac to give the command to Cadillac. It is doubtful if this was done, for on October 24, 1693, Frontenac wrote to the French colonial min- ister that an officer named Mome, having been guilty of insolent and unbecoming behavior, he had given the company lately under his command to La Mothe Cadillac.

In 1694 he was at Quebec, and on September 16 Count Frontenac appointed him commandant of Michilimackinac and of all the country beyond. Frontenac says, "We have thought that we could not make a better choice than to appoint Lieutenant de Lamothe Cadillac, Captain of the troops of the detachment of the Marine, whose valor. wisdom, experience, and good conduct have been manifested on several occasions."

On his way to his new command, Cadillac left Quebec September 24, and arrived in November or December at Mackinaw, where he succeeded M. de Lovigny. He remained there until 1699, when he asked to be relieved, and returned to Quebec. His chief motive in asking to be relieved was to further the project he had formed of establishing a post at Detroit.

In order that there may be no break in the his- tory of this post, we temporarily pass over Cadillac's establishment here, and trace his subsequent career.

The date of his leaving Detroit is not definitely known. He was certainly here as late as May 7, 1710, for on that day he certified to the records of St. Anne's Church. He had been appointed the day before to the governorship of Louisiana, but knowledge of the fact could not have reached him for several months, and he was probably at Detroit until the summer of 1711, when there are some in- dications that he went to France. It is certain that his oldest son and daughter were here until August 19, 1711, for on that day they registered at St. Anne's as godfather and godmother at a baptism.

On September 14, 1712, Antoine Crozat was granted the exclusive commerce of the Province of Louisiana for fifteen years, together with all the lands that he should establish himself upon, and the proceeds of any mines. Cadillac was now newly commissioned by Crozat, and is said to have been promised a portion of the profits from the province.

If Cadillac was in France at this time he proba- bly returned to Acadia before going to Louisiana, for the vessel that carried him there had on board twenty-five Breton girls, who, the record particu- larly mentions, " came of their own free will."

He arrived at Dauphin Island, near Mobile, on May 17, 1713, in the frigate Baron de la Fosse, of forty guns, commanded by M. de la Jonquière. His wife, sons, and daughters came with him, together with several servants. The vessel also brought a large quantity of munitions of war and provisions for the settlement.

During the year Cadillac caused a number of houses to be built, and the settlement prospered. The colony had originally been located further north, but a short time prior to the arrival of Cadillac it was established on the present site of Mobile.

Cadillac sought to obtain supplies for the colony from Mexico, and sent out expeditions in various directions to examine the resources of the country, and discover the mines which almost every one be- lieved to be in existence. He visited the Illinois Country, explored the lead mines near what is now Dubuque, and returned to Mobile in October, 1715. The following month he sailed for France, pos- sibly to report his discoveries. He returned in 1716.

On March 9, 1717, three French frigates arrived at Mobile, bringing M. de l' Epinay, who was com- missioned to succeed Cadillac. The Dudlow, one of the vessels, returned to France in June with Ca- dillac and Duclos, the king's commissary, as passen- gers. Disputes between Cadillac and his associate officers were undoubtedly the occasion of his recall. It is evident that his principal accusers were not trusted by the Government, for M. Duclos, one of the chief defamers of his administration, was re- called by the same order which relieved Cadillac. La Harpe says that the arrival of Cadillac would cer- tainly have produced a good effect in Louisiana but for the jealousy existing between him and Bienville.

It was manifestly Cadillac's clear judgment and strong will that aroused the dislike of his associates. The old records contain abundant evidence of their jealousy and of parties formed against him. M. de Bienville was especially his enemy. He asserts that Cadillac wanted him to marry his daughter, but it is quite as probable that he was a rejected suitor. In view of the judgment and ability dis- played elsewhere by Cadillac, some portions of his

331

THE FOUNDING AND GROWTH OF DETROIT.

dispatches from Louisiana seem weak and ill- advised. That he was dissatisfied with the country, with the position he was placed in, and the shabby support he received from the mother country, is clearly apparent. It has been claimed that in Louisiana he showed himself weak in character, childish in spirit, and utterly without capacity for the position he occupied; but careful examina- tion will show any candid mind that such represen- tations are founded on a partial and imperfect knowl- edge of the man. It should be remembered that in Cadillac's time, New France, as well as the mother country, was governed by cabal and intrigue. Offi- cials, priests, and traders vied with each other in- crafty schemes for personal and churchly aggran- dizement. Hundreds of witnesses, in the shape of old letters, can be produced, showing that these different parties were divided by jealousy and dis- trust, and the evidence is now abundant and con- clusive that Louisiana historians have hitherto failed to study Cadillac's doings and statements in the light of his previous life and of the society and cir- cumstances that surrounded him.

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

The history of Detroit and Michigan; or, The metropolis illustrated; a chronological cyclopedia of the past and present, Vol I, Part 69

Author: Farmer, Silas, 1839-1902 Publication date: 1889 Publisher: Detroit, S. Farmer & co Number of Pages: 1096

Author: Farmer, Silas, 1839-1902
Publication date: 1889
Publisher: Detroit, S. Farmer & co
Number of Pages: 1096