USA > Pennsylvania > Bradford County > Asylum > Short history of Asylum, Pennsylvania founded in 1793 by the French exiles in America > Part 6
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"Adien. I love and embrace you as mother and friend."
(I have omitted the portions of his letter relating only to business, and giving directions about the lands he had bought and proposed to buy.)
The Duke de la Rochefoucauld says:
"M. W. Prevost, he had been a citizen of Paris, celebrated there for his benevolence and member- ship in benevolent societies. He came to America with considerable property, a considerable part of which he expended on a settlement which he at- tempted to establish on the banks of the Susque- hanna above Binghamton, but was not successful, and from thence came down to Asylum.". Mr. Craft says that "M. W. Prevost, while on horseback, attempted to ford the Loyal Sock, greatly swollen by recent rains, was drowned. His body was re- covered, brought to Asylum, and buried in the ceme-
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tery on Broad street." It is evident that Mr. Craft must be mistaken. Mrs. Murray, and the other writers, do not mention it. It was Boulogne who. was drowned in the Loyal Sock.
Charles Homet, Sr., had been a steward in the household of King Louis XVI, and fled when the misfortune came upon his sovereign. In the same vessel in which he crossed the Atlantic was a Miss Schillinger, who had been one of the waiting maids of the Queen, Marie Antionette. The King's stew- ard and the Queen's waiting maid had known each other in Paris, and became better acquainted during the voyage, and although she was ten years his senior, they were married soon after their arrival in this country. They lived in New Jersey for about one year, and then moved to Asylum and settled a few miles back from the river on a place near where the village of New Era is now located, and where preparations were being made for the reception of the dethroned King and Queen of France in case they were allowed to come. Mr. Homet remained one year at New Era, and then bought several lots of the Asylum Company and moved on them. When the settlement was abandoned, Mr. Homet and Bar- tholomew Laporte, Sr., bought a large part of the land which it occupied. Mr. Homet's first wife (Theresa Schillinger) ) died January 3rd, 1823. Their children were Charles, Francis X., Harriet and Joseph. In 1827, Mr. Homet married Cynthia Sickler, by whom he had one daughter, Lydia. Mr. Homet died in 1838, at the age of 70 years, and is buried with his first wife in the cemetery beside the Methodist Church at Frenchtown. Although most
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of the exiles at Asylum were Catholics and had a small chapel and services, Mr. Homet joined the Methodist Church at Wysox.
Bartholomew Laporte was born in Tulle, now in the province of Correze, France, in 1758. In 1776, he emigrated to Spain and settled at Cadiz, where he became a prosperous wine merchant, and had ac- cumulated a considerable fortune when the Spanish government issued a decree banishing all French residents, and confiscating their property, which left him almost penniless. At Marseilles, he became acquainted with Talon and came with him to America, as has already been related in another place. If he ever followed the sea as some accounts state, it must have been before he engaged in the wine business.
In 1797, he was married at Asylum to Elizabeth Franklin. Their only child, John Laporte, was born at Asylum, November 4th, 1798. At the break- ing up of the settlement, Mr. Laporte was empow- ered by the Asylum Company to lease the French holdings for one year, and eventually he became the owner of a large part of Asylum. He died Feb. 11th. 1836. His wife died May 5th, 1852. Their only child, the Hon. John Laporte, was twice elected to Congress, where he served for two terms of two years each, and afterwards served as Surveyor Gen- eral of Pennsylvania. He had previously served as County Auditor, been a member of the Legislature for five years, (being Speaker of the House one year.) He was also one of the Associate Judges of Bradford County. In person he was very large- about six feet high and weighing 300 pounds. He
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died in Philadelphia, August 22nd, 1862. His first wife, Matilda Chamberlain, daughter of Jabez Chamberlain, died August 5th, 1838. On Novem- ber 28th, 1840, he married Eliza Bendle. They had one child, Matilda Jane. By his first wife he had three children, Bartholomew, born January 5th, 1823, Elizabeth, born November 24th, 1825, Samuel Mckean, born February 25th, 1832.
The Hon. John Laporte built the brick house standing on the corner of Main and Lombard streets, Towanda, and later the property and residence of the late Dr. Henry C. Porter. Mr. Laporte had lived in the house for some time previous to his death. He had been a resident of Towanda for a number of years, being engaged in the banking busi- ness with Gordon F. Mason and B. S. Russell, and after the retirement of Mr. Russell, the firm's name was Laporte & Mason. There being no state banks in Towanda at that time, their business was very large. The writer attended Mr. Laporte's funeral in Towanda. The casket was placed on benches on the sidewalk in front of his house, and it seemed as if all the people of Towanda passed by to take the last look at their departed citizen. He was taken to Asylum for burial.
Antoine Lefevre was the keeper of a fashionable cafe in Paris, his wife being the sister of Madame d'Autremont. Besides his wife, his family consisted of one son and two daughters. Becoming alarmed at the condition of affairs in Paris, he disposed of his business and, in company with his sister-in-law, Madame d'Autremont, came to America. He was only allowed to bring a part of his family with him.
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FRANCIS X HOMET
Son of Charles Homet, Sr. a French refugee.
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The government authorities being desirous of stop- ping emigration by keeping a part of every family as hostages for the return of those who departed. His passport included himself and son as stated in preceding pages. While waiting at Havre for a ves- sel his son was taken sick and died: Hle then dressed one of his daughters in his son's clothes and cut her hair so that she answered the description in the pass- port so closely as to escape detection. His wife and. daughter soon after made their escape.
They first settled at The Butternuts, where Madame d'Autremont settled at first, and from there both families removed to Asylum, where during its continuance they kept an inn. After its abandon- ment they moved over the river to Lime ITill, Pa. ITere they kept an excellent house of entertainment, where clean beds, and cleanly kept chambers and well furnished tables, with finely cooked food, were long remembered by their guests who traveled up and down the river and always planned to make this their stopping place if possible. Both Antoine Lefevre and his wife are buried in the cemetery at Wyalusing.
Two of their daughters lived to maturity. One married John Prevost and lived on Russell Hill, Wyoming county. The other married John Huff and lived on Frenchtown mountain, east side of the river. Mrs. ITuff was the little girl whom her father brought over disguised in her brother's clothes. Both these ladies lived to be past 90 years of age, and could remember many of the events that trans- pired in the streets of Paris at the beginning of the Revolution.
السعر
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The continuance of the Asylum settlement was less than ten years, but the Frenchmen set their American neighbors about them the example of bet- ter houses and roads, better gardens and better til- lage, more careful surroundings with flowers and shrubs, fruit trees and nut trees, courage in adver- sity and polite, courteous manners.
In 1796 there were nearly fifty houses, twenty- nine names on the tax list, and from one hundred and fifty to two hundred inhabitants.
During the continuance of the colony, one person committed suicide, and several were killed by acci- dent, or died from sickness. When the French came to Asylum there was not a post route, or postoffice, in Bradford county. The publishers of newspapers distributed them by private express. The people at Asylum sent an express weekly to Philadelphia, the postman traveling on horseback, and this service was continued during the greater part of their stay.
Under the controlling influence of Robespierre, the National Assembly, had issued a decree com- manding all emigrants to return under penalty of having their estates confiscated. When the strong hand of Napoleon Bonaparte assumed power, all Frenchmen were invited to return, and the restora- tion of their estates was promised. The postman who brought the glad news to Asylum waved his hat and shouted the tidings to all he met until he be- came hoarse. The colonists were rapturous with joy. Men hugged and kissed each other to the pro- found astonishment of American beholders. Some days were spent in feasting and then most of them - commenced making preparations to leave the Penn-
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sylvania woods for their beloved France. They did not all go at once, but returned across the ocean as fast as they could dispose of their property and ob- tain the means. They returned on the same route by which they came-down the river in boats to Catawissa, and from thence by land to Philadelphia. Only two (Mr. Homet and Mr. Laporte) remained at Asylum. Mr. Lefevre moved across the river-to Lime Hill, as has already been stated. The last land company in which de Noailles, Talon and others were interested did not prove so successful, as had been anticipated and was dissolved in 1808, and the lands deeded to Archibald McCall, John Ashley and Thomas Ashley in trust for the Asylum Company.
On the 4th of March, 1843, the lands remaining unsold, amounting from ten to twenty thousand acres, were sold to William Jessup of Susquehanna county, who subsequently conveyed the same to Michael Meylert of Laporte, Pa.
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APPENDIX
CHAPTER XIII.
THE FORMATION OF ASYLUM TOWNSHIP AND THE FRENCH SETTLERS WHO REMAINED AS PERMANENT RESIDENTS.
N November, 1814, the township of Asylum was taken from the township of Wyalusing which,
up to that time, had extended on both sides of the river from the Sheshequin township line down to Wyoming county line, and southward to Sullivan county, at that time Lycoming county. When first formed, Asylum township comprised within its boundaries all the territory which now constitutes the townships of Towanda, Monroe, Terry, Asylum, Wilmot and Albany. The voting place was fixed at the house of Jonathan Terry, the first settler in Ter- rytown after the Indian ·invasion.
The name Asylum, or "Azilum," (as the French pronounced it) had been given by the French exiles to their settlement at Frenchtown as a place of refuge.
The township was not formed and named until about twelve years after their settlement had as a village been broken up and nearly all the residents departed.
BARTHOLOMEW LAPORTE, SR.
Unlike his friend and neighbor, Charles Homet, Senior, (who was very sedate) Bartholomew La- porte was talkative and inclined to be humorous.
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In describing his fall from a hay stack, he said: "Me slippee; me snatch-ee; me no catch-ee; me come down co-whop-pee; dam-me-me!"
The following was related by William Terry of Terrytown:
"I had an odd ox, and was desirous of obtaining a mate for him. I was told that Bartholomew La- porte, Sr., had an ox for sale, and went to see him. The old gentleman took me to the field where the ox was pasturing. He was a fine animal, in excellent coinlition, and the price was reasonable. I consid- ered myself a good judge of cattle. I asked no questions, counted out the money, and drove the ox . over to Terrytown. Just as I got home, I met my brother, Nathaniel, who said: 'Your ox has one blind eye, did you know it?' I replied: 'Do you suppose I would buy an ox without looking him over ?'
"The blind eye was on the right side of the ox's head, and I remembered that the old gentleman took me into the field on the left hand side of the ox, and as he fed along nipping off the grass and we follow- ing, the old gentleman kept him turned away from us so that I did not see his right side at all. The blind eye did not lessen his value for work or for beef."'
Bartholomew Laporte had a brother who was a sailor, and who visited him at Asylum, although there were no railroads or stage lines to bring him from New York.
Bartholomew Laporte, 1st; born in France 1758; died February 11, 1836. Married Elizabeth Frank- lin (born in England), December 11, 1797. They
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had an only child, John, born November 4, 1798, died August 22, 1862.
John Laporte was twice married; first to Matilda, daughter of Dr. Jabez Chamberlain and Irene Gil- bert, February 28, 1822.
Second wife, Eliza Bendle, by whom he had one daughter, Matilda Jane, born October 24, 1841, died 1871. The children of John Laporte and Matilda Chamberlain were:
Bartholomew, born January 5, 1823, died Septem- ber 15, 1889. Married Emily Terry, daughter of William Terry of Terrytown, July 31, 1845. Chil- dren of Bartholomew Laporte and Emily Terry, as follows:
George, born February 14, 1846.
John W., born July 25, 1856, died February 6, 1886.
Nancy M., born May 14, 1859, died February 18, 1896.
George Laporte, married Amanda Piatt, January 17, 1877. He died September 10, 1903. His chil- dren are as follows:
Emily G., born November 25, 1877.
Nellie M., born September 14, 1879.
Edith J., born October 24, 1881, died July 23, 1898.
Emily G. Laporte, married J. Garfield Kerrick Oc- tober 2, 1901, and to them were born children as fol- lows:
John Laporte, October 9, 1904, died November 8, 1904.
Eleanor R., August 6, 1908.
Nancy M. Laporte, daughter of B. Laporte, 2nd,
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married Sidney Bovingdon, July 25, 1889, and died February 18, 1896. She left children as follows:
John L., born June 29, 1890.
George B., born January 23, 1893.
Paul S., born March 20, 1894.
Nan, born January 23, 1896.
Elizabeth, daughter of John Laporte and Matilda Chamberlain, born November 24, 1825, died January . 25, 1885.
Samuel Mckean, born February 25, 1832, died April 14, 1896.
Elizabeth, married Charles F'. Welles, Jr., Novem- ber 27, 1843, at Asylum, lived at Athens; their chil- dren were:
Frederick Laporte.
Eleanor H.
John C.
Louise S., married Millard P. Murray.
Robert II., died February 12, 1903.
Elizabeth Franklin.
Henry Fuller.
Mary. Jessie.
Mrs. Louise Welles Murray has a fine literary taste and is the author of an excellent history en- titled "Story of Some French Refugees at Azilum." .
Bartholomew Laporte, 2nd, grandson of Bartholo- mew, Ist, was a man of more than ordinary ability. He was superior to his father as a public speaker. Hle and George Landon, when on the political stump, had no superiors as orators and debaters in the county. He was three times elected to the Pennsyl-
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vania Legislature, and was a candidate for Congress and was defeated by Joseph Powell, a Towanda mer- chant. Nothing was alleged against his ability or could truthfully be said against his integrity. The sole cause of his defeat was because being a farmer, he had joined the Patrons of Husbandry, or the Grange. The country merchants were. prejudiced against the Grangers because they bought a part of their supplies directly from the manufacturers at wholesale, and some of both political parties com- bined against him.
Charles F. Welles, Jr., was a large, fine looking man, and exceedingly able. Studied land survey- ing; made a tour in the west; returned and kept a store at Welles's Ferry, near Sugar Run; was at the same time owning a half interest in a store kept by John Morrow in Quick's Bend. He nearly lost his fortune in building a railroad, which could not pay him when the work was completed.
CHARLES HOMET, SR., AND DESCENDANTS.
Charles Homet, Sr., was born in Paris, 1769; mar- ried 1793, Maria Theresa Schillinger; died June 3, 1823.
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Children-Charles, born May 4, 1794; married Lucy Stevens, September 24, 1817. She was the daughter of Jonathan Stevens, and was born Aug- ust 20, 1799, and died March 3, 1851. To them were born eight sons and one daughter, Theresa, who married Philemon Stone of Wyalusing township. Charles, Jr., died in Asylum, August 20, 1864.
Harriet T., the only daughter of Charles, Sr., was born March 2, 1801, married Simon, son of the Hon.
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Jonathan Stevens, October 17, 1822, and lived in Standing Stone, where she died October 8, 1847. To them were born two sons and three daughters.
Francis X., second son of Charles Homet, Sr., was born on the old homestead in Asylum, April 5, 1798; married Lucy Jane Dodge, a grand-daughter of Major Oliver Dodge of Terrytown, June 24, 1828. They had no children. They lived and died on the old Homet homestead. She died April 19, 1884. Hle died January 27, 1890.
Joseph, third, and youngest son of Charles Homet, Sr., was born in Asylum, married Orice Brown, and for a while the owner of the Homet Mills, which he sold to his brother, Charles, and moved on a farm which he bought close to the village of Monroeton. Joseph Homet died at Monroeton, February 26, 1880. Ilis wife died July 2, 1865.
Charles Homet, Sr.'s first wife, Marie Theresa Schillinger, died January 3, 1823. Mr. Homet mar- ried a second time Cynthia Sickler, a young woman, by whom he had one child, (a daughter) Lydia, who married. Eleazer T. Fox of Towanda. Mr. Fox and his wife had an only child, who died young, and un- married. Mr. Fox died December, 1888. She died April 19, 1886:
Charles Homet, Sr., was a reserved man, but not distant. After his second marriage he moved into Wysox, where he died December 29, 1838. Judge Stevens says of him:
"By prudent management and industry, he soon acquired the means of comfort and ease. His integ- rity was never impeached, and with morals unblem-
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ished, he performed the pilgrimage of life and, like the righteous, met his death with the hope of immor- tality."
Most of the exiles were Roman Catholics, but Mr. Homet joined the Methodist Church.
Charles Homet, Jr., married Lucy Stevens Sep- tember 24, 1817. Their children were:
Francis, born July 8, 1820; married first, Mary .. Gilbert, daughter of Oliver Gilbert. They had no children .. His second marriage was with Ada Chamberlain. He was killed suddenly in 1867 by the fall of a derrick when building the creek R. R. bridge at the mouth of Wyalusing Creek. His chil -. dren were: Mary, George S. and Rachel.
Theresa, daughter of Charles F., Jr., and Lucy Stevens, born July 8, 1822; married Philemon Stone October 9, 1848.
Jonathan, born February 16, 1824; married Har- riet Donley March 24, 1851; he followed farming near Fairbanks; died July 1, 1905.
Edward, born May 3, 1826; married Maria Minnis, who was a well educated physician with an exten- sive practice. Mr. Ilomet followed farming, and everything about his premises was kept in neatest condition and excellent order. There was a place for everything and everything in its place. They had an only child, Lucy J., born 1858; died in 1909. He died November 8, 1908. His wife died February 4, 1892.
Milton, born May 24, 1828; married Mary Am Irvine. He followed farming and stock raising, and was prosperous. Their children were Irvine, born
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April 29, 1859; died in 1897. Theresa, born in June, 1872.
Milton Homet died in 1899. Ilis wife died in 1884. Hle was a very thrifty hard working farmer, and a man of great business ability and accumulated a. small fortune.
Charles S., (usually called Steven Homet), born May 20, 1830; married Julia Horton, June 11, 1861. She was the daughter of Dr. George F. Horton of Terrytown. They lived on Vaughan Hill. He was a good business man, followed farming, and was suc- cessful. In early life he studied surveying and en- gineering and did considerable land surveying.
Volney, born March 20, 1833; married Enuna A. . Ingham, daughter of Thomas Ingham of Sugar Run, April 30, 1861. Previous to his marriage he studied medicine with Dr. Horton and graduated from one of the Philadelphia Medical Colleges. He practiced his profession successfully at Sugar Run, Camptown and Wyalusing. At the breaking out of the Civil. War he was appointed an assistant surgeon, was sent to the Army of the Potomac, where he served' with ability during the war. After his return he practiced his profession in the village of Wyalusing umtil his death, which occurred December 27, 1906.
His wife was born November 25, 1840; died Feb- ruary 26, 1893. Their only child, Jessie, was born April 20, 1863. She is a fine musician, and in- structor of music.
Dr. Ilomet was a pure patriot, a public spirited citizen, an obliging neighbor, and a kind hearted gentleman.
Seth, son of Charles Homet, Jr., born March 13,
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1836; died December 19, 1904. Married Elizabeth Filenberger, March 4, 1864. He served as a soldier nine months in the Civil War, and lived all his life on the Homet homestead near Homets Ferry. Their children were:
Marietta, born March 5, 1865; married Dr. A. D. Nesbit, June 19, 1890, and resides in Tekamah, Neb. They have one child, Marguerite, born May 7, 1891.
Charles M., born October 6, 1867; married Carrie S. Chamberlain October 28, 1896. Their children are:
Elizabeth, born May 26, 1898.
Marietta, born March 24, 1900, died October 12, 1910.
Charles M. lives on the old homestead occupied by his father and his grandfather.
Cora, born October 21, 1869, died suddenly May 10, 1888, of fever just before she was to graduate at Collegiate Institute, Towanda, Pa.
Anna, born April 16, 1877, died April 18, 1877.
Geraldine M., born June 29, 1876; married March 24, 1906, to Frank D Vaughan.
Joseph A., (son of Charles Homet, Jr.,) born May May 18, 1840; married Adelia Gordon, June 8, 1865. Their children were:
Augusta, born August 26, 1867; married Finory Kerrick, December 24, 1891.
Fanny, born October 2, 1870; married Walter N. Wolcott, July 17, 1906.
Edward, born January 3, 1873; died November 26, 1911.
Minor, born May 2, 1875; died February 20, 1890. Elcazer, born June 3, 1877; died October 17, 1911. Mr. Joseph A. Homet was an active business man,
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owned and operated the Homet Mills for many years. Ile sold the mill, which later was destroyed by fire. He removed to Towanda, where he died December 1, 1905.
The children of Augusta (Homet) Kerrick:
Joseph Homet Kerrick, born February 20, 1893.
Dorothy F. Kerrick, born October 1, 1894; died December 15, 1894.
Ilelen A., born October 1, 1895.
Fanny (Homet) Wolcott has one child, Lydia Homet, born March 9, 1909.
The children of Charles., or "Steven" Homet, and Julia Horton, his wife, were:
William H., born March 22, 1862; married Adelia. I. Mitten October 17, 1889. She died March 18, 1910.
Eliza IL., born December 5, 1865; married John G. Black June 18, 1899.
Francis B., born August 27, 1869; married Lizzie Morrow October 9, 1895.
The children of W. H. Homet are:
Harold M., born August 1, 1890.
Roland S., born July 16, 1891.
Julia II., born December 5, 1892. Edna C., born December 27, 1893.
Marion W., born May 8, 1895.
Francis J., born March 20, 1898. Mildred, born July 14, 1899. Neva, born June 11, 1901.
Dorothy C., born December 29, 1902.
Alice M., born August 13, 1905.
Ruth G., born December 27, 1906.
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The children of Francis B. Homet are: Beatrice Frances, born October 4, 1896. Evelyn Ferieda, born December 3, 1898. Lida Hannah, born January 7, 1901.
Charles Emerson, born December 19, 1908.
Francis B. lives on the homestead built by his father near Wyalusing Borough. He is a farmer and an accomplished teacher of vocal music and president of the Farmers' Mutual Fire Insurance Company of Tuscarora.
The children of Theresa Homet (daughter of - Charles Homet, Jr.,) and Philemon Stone were:
Charles R., born May 27, 1849; died June 19, 1913.
Thomas Benton, born March 4, 1857; married Minnie ITillis, April 2, 1879.
Ulysses P., born March 5, 1859; married Augusta Hoffman, April 11, 1908.
Lucy, born November 9, 1865.
. The children of Thomas B. are:
William, born December 31, 1879. Susie, born April 14, 1888. One child died in infancy.
The children of Francis Homet were:
Mary, George S. and Rachel.
Mary married George W. Fell, and their children were:
Francis. Stella. Hugh. Paul. Joseph. Jean.
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George S. had no children.
Rachel married William Wells, June, 1876. Her children were:
Arthur, who married Cora Overfield.
Marian.
Arlene, who married Moses Sparks.
Francis N., married Emma Ruff.
The children of Jonathan Homet were:
Lucy, born May 21, 1853; married J. H. Howard, February 8, 1883.
Ida, born April 27, 1860; died September, 1863.
Ada, born April 23, 1863.
The children of Lucy Homet Howard are:
Brunetta, born January 31, 1884; married Ackley E. Blocher, August 30, 1912.
Harriet, born August 3, 1885; married J. Vinette Taylor, October 18, 1913.
Genevieve, born April 29, 1887; married Ernest F. Fox, August 30, 1912.
John, born June 15, 1892.
Brunetta Howard Blocher has one son, Howard N. Harriet Howard Taylor has one son, Justus V.
Genevieve Howard Fox has one daughter, Har- riet E.
DESCENDANTS OF ANTHONY LEFEVRE.
THE MIX FAMILY.
Anthony Lefevre was among the first exiles who settled in Asylum in 1793, where he remained during its entire existence, keeping an "inn" or licensed tavern. When the settlement broke up he was one
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of the three who remained on the ground, or only moved a mile or two from it. Bartholomew Laporte and Charles Homet remained where they were. Anthony Lefevre moved to a new home across the river, only a mile or two from the abandoned town, where he kept an excellent tavern for many years. flis locality, or neighborhood in which he lived, was sometimes called Standing Stone, and some times Lime Hill. His daughter, Cecelia, married John Prevost in 1815, and lived on Russell Hill, Wyoming County, Pa., and died there in 1876. John Prevost came from France in 1800, but was not one of the residents at Asylum. He and Cecelia Lefevre had a daughter, Angelique Mary, who married William Mix, one of the substantial and revered residents of Towanda, January 18, 1842. She died January 8, 1911, aged 92 years. Their children were: John W. Mix. and Mary E. Mix. John W. Mix married Bell Spalding, who died January 29, 1885. Mary E. Mix married Mahlon M. Spalding. She died Jan- uary 12, 1915, at Towanda, Pa., her husband and one son, William M. Spalding, surviving her.
William M. Spalding was born February 15, 1876; married to Sarah Gertrude Packer, March 9, 1907, and have three children, viz:
Marie Angelique Spalding, born January 10, 1908. Gertrude Jane Spalding, born May 23, 1910. William Mix Spalding, Jr., born March 18, 1915.
John W. Mix resides at Towanda, in the large, fine looking family homestead, surrounded with spacious grounds, shade trees, fruit trees and flow- ers. Mr. Mix has held the important and responsi- ble office of United States Commissioner for 46 years
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MRS. ANGELIQUE M. MIX
Granddaughter of Anthony Lefevre, a French refugee.
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under successive administrations, since August, 1869, which is proof of his ability and popularity.
THE D'AUTREMONT FAMILY.
Hubert d'Autremont was born in France and lost his life at the time of the French Revolution. On February 3, 1770, he married Marie Jane d'Ohet. She was born in 1745, and died at Angelica, N. Y., in 1810. She left France in 1792, with her three sons, viz: Louis Paul, born November 7, 1770, died in 1840 in Paris, leaving no male issue. He had one daughter who married a man named Bridet. She had two sons and in 1852, by decree of the Em- peror, Napoleon IH, they took their. mother's maiden name, d'Autremont, which their descend- ants bear to this day in France, said Louis Paul d'Autremont having returned to France with Talley- rand in the latter part of the 17th century.
The second son, Alexander Hubert d'Autremont, was born in Paris, March 12, 1776, and died at An- golica, N. Y., April 4, 1857. His wife was Abigail Dodge, daughter of Major Dodge of Towanda, Pa. Their third son, Augustus Francois d'Autremont, was born in Paris, France, June 7, 1783. He died at Ilume, N. Y., January 28, 1860.
Charles d'Autremont, son of Alexander Hubert d'Autremont , and of Abigail Dodge d'Autremont, one of nine children, was born November 19, 1822, at Angelica, N. Y., and died March 3, 1891, at An- gelica. ' In 1850, he married Sarah Collins at An- gelica, N. Y. They had two children, Charles d'Au- tremont, Jr., born June 2, 1851, at. Angelica, N. Y., now living at Duluth, Minn., and Mary d'Autremont,
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born October 16, 1864, at Angelica, N. Y., and still living there.
Charles d'Autremont, Jr., married on April 21, 1880, Hattie Hart, daughter of Erastus P. Hart of Elmira, N. Y. They have five children, as follows:
Antoinette, born July 10, 1881.
Louis Paul, born August 23, 1883. Charles Maurice, born August 6, 1887. Hubert Hart, born February 19, 1889. Marie Genevieve, born March 9, 1892. They live at Duluth, Minn.
99
A SHORT HISTORY OF ASYLUM.
THE TABLET.
Inscription on the Tablet marking the site of Asy- lum, erected and dedicated with appropriate cere- monies June 14, 1916.
THIS MONUMENT IS ERECTED . TO COMMEMORATE AND PERPETUATE THE MEMORY AND DEEDS OF THE FRENCH ROYALIST REFUGEES WHO ESCAPING FROM FRANCE AND THE HORRORS OF ITS REVOLUTION AND FROM THE REVOLUTION IN SAN DOMINGO SETTLED HERE IN 1793 AND LOCATED AND LAID OUT THE TOWN OF ASYLUM
UNDER THE AUSPICES OF THE VISCOUNT de NOAILLES AND MARQUIS ANTOINE OMER TALON IN 1796 LOUIS PHILIPPE, DUKE OF ORLEANS, AFTERWARDS KING OF FRANCE, VISITED HERE THE PRINCE de TALLEYRAND, THE DUKE de MONTPENSIER, COUNT BEAUJOLAIS, THE DUKE de la ROCHEFOUCAULD de LIANCOURT. AND MANY OTHER DISTINGUISHED FRENCHMEN WERE VISITORS OR RESIDENTS FOR A SHORT TIME AT ASYLUM. ERECTED IN 1916 BY JOHN W. MIX AND) CHARLES d'AUTREMONT, JR., DESCENDANTS OF FRENCH REFUGEE SETTLERS LAND DONATED BY GEORGE LAPORTE HEIRS.
.
THE BOOK "ASYLUM."
The interesting volume, "Asylum," by J. Washington Ingham, with numerous illustration and a beautiful bird's-eye view of the site of the French settlement, is now on sale at the book stores in Towanda. Reservations will be made and mail orders will be filled promptly while this edition lasts. Mr. Ingham was past four score years of age when this book was completed, and no person now living has probably known so many of the descendants of these French settlers or has been so familiar with the history and traditions of this settlement. The descendants of these families are named, down to the present time, in the appendix of this volume. The number of copies is limited. If it were possible to dispose of a thousand copies instead of a few hundred, it would have lessened the cost. The publishers are not seeking profit, but have made a price that will merely cover the cost of printing and distribut- ing a small edition of this valuable book.
Mailed post-paid on receipt of check or money order. Paper binding $1.00, cloth $1.50. Reservations made for future de- livery when requested.
The combined book, Wyalusing, Wilmot and Terry, now in press, should early be subscribed for. This work is the most complete history of the pioneers of Southern Bradford ever compiled; it contains much new matter, including the Indian towns of Gohontoto and Friedenshutten. The appendix con- tains the names of those descended from the pioneer families down to the present time.
Address communications to Geo. T. Ingham, Ontario Block, Towanda, Pa.
Hey bole gave me your address
Shall be pleased to hear from you Asylum Book is out
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