1	ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST CATHOLIC CHURCH CEMETERY BRUSLY, LOUISIANA
2	"HISTORY" HISTORY With the historian it is an article of faith that knowledge of the past is a key to understanding the present. Kenneth Stampp History cannot give us a program for the future, but . . . a fuller understanding of ourselves, and of our common humanity, so that we can better face the future. Robert Penn Warren History . . . is an analysis of the past in order that we may understand the present and guide our conduct into the future. Sidney E. Mead
3	FATHER LESAICHERRE Father Lesaicherre – died 5/20/1899 at age 34 We chose Father’s grave site because he was a native of France, sent to minister to the congregation of St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Brusly. He was only 34 years old when he died in 1899. We know little about his life; there is an inscription in French on the marker of his grave.
4	JEAN BAPTISTE HEBERT Jean Baptiste Hebert –5/15/1761 – 2/9/1838 The son of exiled Acadians, he was born in Baltimore. He is important to us because he donated land on June 28, 1833 to be used as a cemetery. Interesting facts about his life can be found in the introduction of the cemetery book and in The Chronicles of West Baton Rouge.
5	CORA HEBERT Cora Hebert – Died 11/14/1894 aged 15 years We selected this young person to show that childhood deaths from diseases may have been more prevalent in the 19th century than they are today. Cora’s family was important in the history of our church community. The daughter of Raphael Hebert, Sr. and Julia LaBauve Hebert, her death at a young age must have saddened her family. Raphael Hebert and his descendants were prominent residents of West Baton Rouge and Iberville Parishes, Louisiana. His father, Alexander Alexis Hebert, was an original land-grant recipient in what is now the town of Brusly, Louisiana. Cora’s sister, Marie Marguerite taught for 50 years in public schools in Brusly area. See Special Collections LSU Libraries for more information on Hebert family
6	DR. EUGENE BOURGEOIS AND MRS. EVA SARRADET BOURGEOIS Dr. Eugene Bourgeois 9/16/186611/17/1932 Eva Sarradet Bourgeois – 7/23/1871 – 6/28/1961 Eugene Bourgeois, a native of St. James Parish, came to Brusly in 1893 to serve as a physician. We chose him because he was a “transplant” to our community who made significant contributions to the quality of life. In early Town records, Dr. Bourgeois is listed as the Health Officer and had strenuous responsibilities during times of yellow fever and other contagious epidemics. He was a graduate of Jefferson College (now Manresa) and Tulane. He was also an excellent musician who played several instruments, was Choir Director at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church and composed music for the choir. His wife, Eva, also musically inclined played the piano and organ. He had a printing press to compose funeral notices that were posted throughout the community to announce dates of services for the deceased. Eva Sarradet’s family came directly from France, not from “Acadie” ( Nova Scotia).
7	GUSTAVE KNOBLOCH Gustave Knobloch – Died 10 Dec. 1906, aged 54 yrs., 2 mos, 9 days We chose Gustave Knobloch because he was not of Acadian descent. In the 1880 census, he is listed as living with the Vaughan household, presently the home of John Bres in Brusly. He is listed as being a teacher, 28 years old. In 1900, his wife and children are listed, stating that he had been married 17 years and previously lived in Ascension Parish. We know that he was principal of the Eureka School which was located on E. Main Street, across from the present post office. The house which was built for him and his family still stands on E. Main St.
8	THEOPHILE (TEOPHILE) LEJEUNE Theophile (Teophile) LeJeune – 9/19/1842 – 3/1/1920 Theophile LeJeune was the grandson of Acadian exiles who were sent to France where they spent one generation. Severin, Theophile’s father, was born while the family was in France. The family traveled to Louisiana on Le Bon Papa, one of the seven ships which sailed to America from France in 1785; Theophile was a first generation American who later fought in the Civil War. He was a farmer who lived in Back Brusly, near where Allene Street is today. Mrs. Natalie Aillet Levert, the last resident of the Aillet House, shared a memory from her childhood. in which Theophile would drive in a buggy to the Aillet home on the River Road, from Back Brusly, to deliver honey to her father. He brought his daughters with him and she remembered the girls were called the “Honey Girls.”
9	WILLIE LEJEUNE Willie LeJeune – 2/17/1887 – 5/20/1954 Son of Theophile, we chose Willie because he was a WWI veteran and a well-known Brusly resident during his lifetime. After returning from the war, he lived in a “shotgun” house on East Main Street, built by his brother-in-law, Heno Hebert. Willie resided there until his death in 1954. He cooked a special turtle sauce piquante for card parties, political suppers and other events.
10	URSIN LANDRY Ursin Landry – 5/4/1791 – 11/16/1841 We chose Ursin Landry because he was a common ancestor of many area residents with the Landry name or those who have the Landry name in their genealogy. Additionally, his headstone is unique because of the material of which it is made and it is written in French. Ursin was born in Iberville Parish, the grandson of Acadians who settled around Manchac in 1767. He became a successful planter in this area.
11	LOBDELL CEMETERY – TRANSFERRED FROM LOBDELL GRAVEYARD 16 FEB. 1932 Gertrude Mayers, Leon Lemoine, Joseph Bourg, Joseph Pourciau, Marcelin Lemoine, Paul Chiasson, James Daudmon, Joshua Blanchard, Joseph DiBenedetto and others unidentified This gravesite is of interest because the remains of many people had to be transferred to this cemetery from Lobdell when a new levee was built in 1932. An insightful lesson could be developed for students concerning the Great Flood of 1927 which gave rise to the need of a better levee system for the entire Mississippi River; comparisons could be made to the flooding during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The levee project in West Baton Rouge took many homes and much property, including the church and cemetery at Lobdell.
12	JEAN BAPTISTE DOIRON Jean Baptiste Doiron - 5/30/1783 – 7/4/1851 This is one of the oldest headstones in the cemetery. It is of interest because it is inscribed in French. Jean Baptiste was born in France and came to America with his parents aboard the Le Bon Papa, arriving in New Orleans when he was 2 years old. Some of his descendants still live in the Brusly area.
13	PAUL AND MARY BOBB Paul and Mary (Marie) Bobb – Paul Bobb died 12/12/1909 Mary Bobb died 12/21/1929 Buried together, these two individuals are among the few known African- Americans buried in the cemetery. In oral interviews conducted in 1996, older Brusly residents recalled that “Marie” Bobb worked for the church, dug graves and unloaded cargo from riverboats which stopped at Brusly Landing. Some recalled that she could “work like a man.” Others recalled that she attended mass in the church and that Paul Bobb, her father, had also worked for the church. Little else is known about them; the inscription is on the grave itself and appears to have been crudely written in cement.
14	FRECHOU FAMILY Frechou Family Pascal Frechou 1833 – 1901; Mrs. Pascal Frechou (nee Achelle Debas) born in France 9/10/1833 – 3/7/1901; Mrs. Pascal Frechou (nee Eugenia Hebert) 1844 – 1928. This family is interesting because they migrated from France, not from “Acadie.” Members of the family married Acadian descendants living in Brusly and became part of the community. In the 1930s or so, family members moved to New Orleans. The last known sons of Eugenia Hebert Frechou still visited Brusly in the early 1960s, usually coming on All Saints Day to bring flowers to the cemetery and to visit relatives.
15	FRECHOU FAMILY
16	HECK FAMILY Heck Family – John Henri Heck, born Germany Nov. 24, 1815, died in Brusly July 3, 1856 This family also was not of Acadian descent. We chose them because the Hecks owned and operated a blacksmith shop near the intersection of East St. Francis Street and River Road. Many older residents described the blacksmith shop and the Heck brothers working there. Some stated that some of the iron crosses in the cemetery were made in the blacksmith shop. A great deal of the Heck property was lost to the levee construction in the early 1930s. Members of the Heck family married Acadian descendants in the Brusly area; some family members reside here today.
17
18