Early New Orleans

 

New Orleans is so rich in Creole history, with its ancient landmarks, . . . that it is difficult to delve into the rich and romantic background of the Creole without including . . . the city itself.

 

New Orleans used to be called Vieux Carré (Old Square). It was the capital of the area which now includes the states of Louisiana, Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, and Minnesota

 

New Orleans was a Creole city founded in 1718 by Sieur de Bienville. The Spanish helped build it.The Americans came in 1803 and took it     The city is divided into three sections: Vieux Carré (Old Quarter) the “bastion of the established Creole families,” the Faubourg St. Mary, a growing American district; the Faubourg Marigny built by the Creole Bernard de Marigny on land across from the Esplanade on the banks of the Mississippi   The river was deep here and docks could be built for boat traffic. Marigny wanted to make his area the center of the town but merchants didn’t want to move their businesses, so this area became the home of the poorer Creoles and French.

 

The Vieux Carré as the heart Of New Orleans was composed of eight streets in a square. As new streets were added, the square became a rectangle surrounded by a wall. After a while the walls were removed and three large avenues bordered the city.

Fifteen streets left Rampart Street and ended at the river, and seven streets went from Canal Street to the Esplanade. In the center was the Place d’Armes surrounded by an intricate wrought iron fence. The streets were straight and wide, with brick sidewalks called banquettes. The houses sported decorative balconies and iron grillwork.

The Cathedral, City Hall, and the Presbytery were all magnificent buildings located here. To the southeast was found a levee which served as a port of export for products for the West.

Between Levee and Bourbon Streets was located the best commercial and residential area. The houses had court-yards with fountains and tropical plants. The main entrance or porte cochEre was a wide gate behind which was kept the family carriage. Beyond the gate was a wide staircase that led to an upper apartment. Wide windows opened to the patio. There were iron balconies. There was no cellar. The first floor was raised above street level and was used for storage.

 

 

From Bourbon to Rampart Street the houses were low and made of mixed brick and woods There were some simple wooden houses as well The roofs were made of tile or shingles and extended over the sidewalks. The two front rooms opened into the street with French glass doors. One room was the dining room and the drawing room. The other was bedrooms.

There were excellent street lights in New Orleans dating from 1796. Oil lamps hung on chains at every street corner. They were lit at sundown and extinguished at dawn. The lights were financed by an annual chimney tat of nine reales per chimney per owner.

The Saint Louis Cemetery was originally Catholic. Eventually it allowed Protestants and Blacks to be buried there in their own sections of the cemetery The cemetery was established during the early days of the Spanish settlement. The tombs were placed above the ground because of the water level.

The marketplace was located near the Place d’Armes-. All kinds of food was sold there. A little something extra, lagniappe, was given with every purchase: a rose, a bunch of radishes, etc. There were makeshift stands selling refreshments like gumbo, or flowers. There were street vendors too.

Creole Architecture Mansions in and near Natchez are representative of Creole architecture, in particular ”Bontura” at Natchez and “Cottage Gardens.” They had large spacious rooms with high vaulted ceilings, arched doorways, overhead fanlights, and wrought-iron railings.

There were tall white columns, broad galleries, and large entrances on the outside of the houses In back of the mansion was the kitchen and further back were the slave quarters. The mansion’s grounds were gorgeous with magnificent old trees and Spanish moss, tons of flowers, and gracious lawns.

The inside of the mansions reflected the plantation owner’s wealth; hand-carved rosewood furniture, mantles, stairs, etc.; winding mahogany staircases, decorated ceilings, etc.

 

In Creole Society There were three general groups that made up Creole society: 1).... White Creoles, Americans, and inhabitants of European origin made up the highest class *** 2)......Free Blacks Creoles, emancipated slaves and their descendants made up the middle class *** 3).... slaves who were household property, were the lowest class.   The Creoles were the majority of the white population. They had a complex social organization which included foreign groups such as Germans, Irish, and Spaniards whose names were given a French accent. The people who could trace their noble ancestors called themselves “Creole.” Others were “chacas” or tradesmen, “chacalatas” or countryfolk (peasants), or “chacumas” for anyone with Black blood. All Creoles, no matter what level of society they were in, including slaves, looked down on the Americans. *** Both Black , White and mixed Race People were considered Creoles

 

 

 

The Life and Culture of the Early New Orleans White Black and Mixed Race Creoles

 

The people who could trace their noble ancestors called themselves “Creole.” Others were “chacas” or tradesmen, “chacalatas” or countryfolk (peasants), or “chacumas” for anyone with Black blood. All Creoles, no matter what level of society they were in, including slaves, looked down on the Americans.

The Creole Family In the Creole family the father was dominant. His word was law. He was not always a faithful spouse, but he was an indulgent parent. If he was a planter, he ruled his estate like a king. He had a large house, large crops, and a large family. He was a dutiful husband and accompanied his wife to balls, the theatre, and social events. He would go to the cafes to discuss business, play dominoes, and have a drink.

Young men were given their own quarters for entertainment purposes. They had mistresses who were Black or mulatto, but they couldn’t marry them. Having a mistress was an accepted custom because marriages were usually business arrangements, not for love, and the men expected their wives to be passive and innocent lovers.

A gentlemen took fencing lessons, went horseback riding, dancing, or played cards. He would fight duels if necessary and preferred to die rather than be dishonored.

 

 

Creole Marriages

 

Girls needed a dowry and had to marry before they were twenty-five years old. They usually had a “coming out” during an evening at the Theatre d’Orleans which marked the beginning of their search for a husband. The whole family attended the performance and sat in a box. Young men who were interested in the girl stopped by the box to pay their respects.

They had intermediaries talk to the father that they would be permitted to call on the girl at home. The first formal visit was brief, with the girl's mother and perhaps other relatives in attendance who would find out the young man’s intentions. After four home visits the father asked the young man if he was serious about his daughter.

If the young man wanted to marry the girl the two fathers negotiated the dowry. A notary came to write a list of the couple’s possessions and drew up the marriage contract. Once the contract was signed, the families announced the engagement.

The girl’s family gave a big dinner at her house where the young man gave her an engagement ring. As a fiancee the young man could visit the girl whenever he wanted and take her out, but they were always chaperoned.

 

A few days before the wedding, the young man gave his fiancee a wedding basket with lacework (handkerchiefs, mantilla, fan), a cashmere shawl, gloves, jewelry. She could not wear the jewelry before the wedding, nor could she leave the house for three days before the wedding.

The Creoles liked to have weddings on Mondays or Tuesdays in Saint Louie Cathedral in New Orleans in the late afternoon. The bride wore a silk dress with pearls and lace. The veil was held in place with a crown of orange blossoms. The bride carried the same flowers in her bouquet. Later she left the bouquet in the church, put it on a relative’s grave, or sent it to the convent where she studied.

After the ceremony the members of the family signed the register. The guests then went to the bride’s home for the banquet. The bride cut the cake and gave pieces of it to single girls to put under their pillows. When the guests began to dance, the bride and her mother went to the bridal chamber where she took Off her wedding clothes and changed into her nightgown. The bride and groom spent their honeymoon in her parents’ house. They were expected to stay in the bedroom for five days or more.

 

Creole Dress Style

 

Creole Clothing For ordinary people, their clothing was made of cotton, wool, or linsey-woolsey (a mix of linen and wool). Women wore simple “dresses of homespun cloth, sunbonnets reinforced with split-cane ribs, and crudely made shoes. The men wore pants of cottonade cloth, sewed with alternating blue and white thread, shirts and jumpers; heavy shoes; and straw, split-cane, or reed hats.” (Davis, p. 187)

Wealthy planters and townspeople dressed as if they lived in London or Paris. “The men wore tightfitting pants, waistcoats, high and pointed shoes, and high hats. The women were dressed in full skirts with hoops, tight bodices, fragile shoes, and well-trimmed hats. Their accessories included ribbons, parasols, and much jewelry.”

 

 

Creole Entertainment

 

Pleasures and Pastimes The Creoles loved to dance and they attended many balls. Society balls were usually sponsored by a group of bachelors and young married men. There were different committees for various aspects of the ball: renting the hall, selling tickets, etc. Tickets were sold by subscription. A subscriber would by a series of tickets for a certain number of balls for himself and his family. Balls were held for holidays or in honor of a famous person’s visit to the area.

The King’s Ball opened the Carnival season. It was held on January 6, Epiphany. Special pastries were made. A King and Queen were chosen. Admission to this ball was limited to the elite. The people who were left out ran their own balls.

Public dances were very frequent. They were inexpensive and lasted long into the night. From January 1 through Mardi Gras masked balls and costume balls were held often.

Two other kinds of dances were incorporated into the social season. Black and White balls were held with the lowest elements of society. Dance hall girls, call girls, and kept women, usually dark or lighter skinned, would attend to dance with the white men. The Quadroon’s Ball or Blue Ribbon Ball was held for Black women and white men.

Other social evenings included the soirée dansante or dinner dance which was held quite often. At-homes on Sunday evenings included a big dinner and dancing. On plantations the guests stayed for several days after the balls.

 

Other entertainments included attending the opera or the theatre, vaudeville shows, concerts and parades. The men liked to gamble, play billiards, backgammon, checkers, dominoes, or attend cockfights, horse races, dogfights, and bullfights.

 

 

Creole Music

 

Most of the songs of the Creole show a definite influence of the Latin regime of the Spanish and French colonists of Louisiana, and are not dissimilar in origin from the spirituals of the Negro race, which form a part of what we know as American folk music.

 

Songs sung in Creole patois came from the plantations and the French Quarter of New Orleans. They included lullabies, love songs, songs about unhappiness or loneliness, and humorous songs about everyday life. The majority of Louisiana music is Cajun and has been discussed in my 1991 unit as well as two important books:

The Makers of Cajun Music by Barry Jean Ancelet (Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press), 1984, and Cajun Music A Reflection of a People Vol. 1, edited by Ann Allen Savoy (Eunice, Louisiana: Bluebird Press, Inc.), 1984.

 

 

Creole Customs

 

Customs Creole customs can be divided into two kinds: religious and non-religious. Religious customs focus on holidays : All Saints Day, Mardi Gras and Easter, for example.

On All Saints Day Creoles bring flowers made of white, black, or purple tissue paper to place on graves in the cemetery. The week before this holiday shops display crowns and crosses with black beads and immortelles, which might be pictures of saints (I couldn’t find the definition of immortelles in Magruder’s book).

Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday is celebrated on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday which is the beginning of Lent.

 

 

The custom of masking on Mardi Gras was brought from France by the early settlers. During the period when Louisiana was a French, and later a Spanish province, the maskers went from house to house, but there was no regular street parade until after the Americans came into the State.

The Americans thought Mardi Gras might become a business enterprise, and be made attractive as to draw visitors to New Orleans. There is now a fixed programme. Rex, the King of the Carnival, who is some wealthy citizen, comes up the river on Monday, and is royally welcomed.

Early Tuesday morning the merry children, noisy with tinkling bells and dressed in masks and gay dominoes, come out of their houses and visit from door to door in their neighborhood. Later in the day there is a street parade, and another one at night. . . . The Mardi Gras gayeties end with the most brilliant ball of the season

 

At Easter, rabbits come out at night. The children try to stay up as late as possible, but they don’t see the rabbits. The rabbits nests are found filled with colored eggs both outside and inside the house. When the children find all the eggs, they have a contest of egg-breaking. The child who breaks the egg takes it. The child with the most eggs at the end of the game, is the winner.

Non-religious customs of the Creoles can be illustrated by two activities: 1) lagniappe, which comes from the Spanish word la napa meaning a sweetening. Grocery stores in Louisiana give a small addition to one’s purchase, such as candy or small cakes as a token of appreciation to a customer; and 2) chiavari, which is a kind of cerebration of the remarriage of a widow or widower.

 

. . . A man ran around screaming Spire e Fire!’ Men, women and children then gathered before the house of the newly married couple, shouting, beating on old kettles, tin pans, drums, clashing shovels and tongs together, blowing on combs, tooting horns, and making every loud noise imaginable. . . .

The chiavari lasted until the bride and groom made their appearance. They were usually sensible enough to come out on the gallery and invite the people in to have a glass of wine. When this was done, the noise suddenly ceased, and after drinking the health of the newly wedded pair, the crowd went quietly home. (Magruder, pp. 345-346

 

Gombo Culture The Blacks in Louisiana created their own culture combining elements of their African and Caribbean heritage with elements of the European culture to which they were exposed. George Washington Cable, Lafcadio Hearn, and Alcée Fortier preserved the Black cultural heritage in the gombo songs, folktales, and proverbs the Blacks told and retold to their children.

 

 

The Creole Language

 

The language spoken by the Blacks, according to Alcée Fortier was not a broken-down French but their own language.

It is the transformation by African slaves of the French language into a speech concise and simple,language but at the same time soft and musical. The tendency is to abbreviate as much as possible, both in the form and in the construction of the sentence. All parts of speech not absolutely necessary to the meaning, are thrown out of the sentence. There is hardly any distinction of gender and the verb is simplified. . .

 

Some examples of this language are: lˆ-dedans became “ladan,” (over there), monsieur became “michié,” (sir or mister), Petit ma”tre became “timaite,” (young master).

 

 

Creole Literature

 

The literature of the Blacks, such as their proverbs and folktales were African in origin, used animals as heroes, had a humorous tone and contained elements of surprise and the supernatural. They showed a good understanding of human nature.

The music of the Blacks contained the flavor of eighteenth century Branch because as slaves, they were exposed to minuets, waltzes, polkas, operas, concerts, and ceremonial music. The African and Caribbean rhythms of their recent past also influenced their music.

 

Creole Music

 

Creole music lacks the emotional depth of the spirituals and blues, those outshoots of the Afro-American experience. But although Creole music occupies a different emotional plane, it also shares a bond with the music of American blacks: the bond of all blacks transported to American shores. . . Music and religion are intimately linked in black culture. . .

Afro-Christian music was virtually unknown among Creole slaves. No attempt was made to ‘Africanize’ the Catholic liturgical music, and the voodoo chants retained their original African character. . . The disassociation between sacred and profane music that we find among the Creole slaves is unique and surely attributable to their French Catholic heritage. (Crété, p. 139)

 

In addition, Black Creole music consisted of rounds, love songs, ballads, and laments. Improvisation was extremely important in this music.

Voodoo or všdum was a form of religion brought to this hemisphere by slaves from Dahomey and the Guinea Coast. Immigrants from Santo Domingo settled near New Orleans in the 1820’s and brought their worship of voodoo with them. It was a matriarchal institution giving much power to women. Even though the slaves were baptized and considered to be Catholics, they continued to worship their African gods. Catholic saints and the African gods coexisted peacefully.

 

The slaves worshipped the gods of the sea, thunder, iron, trees, mountains, fire, wind, and rivers. A loa was a divinity-which could have a double nature. There were three kinds of gods: good spirits like Moses and the Catholic saints; spirits of death and overlords of cemeteries; and evil gods who used magic. “Because they look’ ed on natural phenomena as supernatural forces, they made a place in their pantheon for Saint Sun, Saint Moon, Saint Earth, and the Sainted Stars.” (Crété, p. 169)

The followers of voodoo met at night for their ceremonies. They worshipped the snake god or gran zombi. Free Blacks were the priests and priestesses. The ceremony usually began “with the snake ritual, presided over by a voodoo ‘king’ and ‘queen.’

The bow containing the snake was placed on the ground, and the voodoo queen climbed upon it and began to ‘writhe about, possessed by the snake’ 8 Spirit 2 and to give tongue to oracular pronouncements.’ The voodoo king then ‘traced a large circle with some black substance, and beckoned the candidates for initiation to enter the circle. A small bundle containing herbs, horsehairs, fragments of horn and other strange substances was placed in his hands.’

The king then tapped the initiate on the head with a wooden paddle, meanwhile intoning an African chant that was taken up by the crowd. Gradually the entire group of spectators fell into a trance.” (Crété, pp. 167-168) Some participants fainted, others moved in a frenzied manner.

Creole Cooking

 

Creole Cuisine Creole cooking i8 different from Cajun cooking even though both Of them use ingredients found in southern Louisiana. In the book Cajun-Creole Cooking by Terry Thompson (see Bibliography); he says that both cuisines have “French roots, livened with Spanish spices, inspired by African vegetables and general magic, ‘Caribbeanized’ by West Indian hands, laced with black pepper and pork by the Germans, infiltrated with potatoes by the Irish, blasted with garlic and tomatoes by the Italians, and even touched in some ways by the Swiss, Dutch, Malagans and Malaysians.” (Thompson, p. 8)

The difference between Cajun and Creole cooking is that Cajun cooking is hearty country fare with a very dark roux or type of broth which is the basis for most dishes, along with an extremely spicy flavor, using a lot of animal fat. Creole cooking on the other hand, is citified, using a great deal of cream and butter. The seasoning of food is the key to its authenticity.

Creole cooks use everything they have in their dishes. Leftovers combine to make heavenly new taste sensations, especially when combined with green onions, celery, bell peppers, and parsley.

Coffee is extremely important to Creole cuisine. When combined with chicory, Creole coffee leaves an indescribable taste in a person’s mouth! Café BrHlot is served for special occasions. It is coffee served in demitasse Cups after it has been mixed with cinnamon, orange and lemon zest, coriander seeds, bay leaf, cloves, pecan halves, sugar cubes, and two different kinds of brandy. Café au Lait is hot black coffee and hot milk served with carmelized sugar.

Rice is an important staple in the Creole kitchen. It forms the base for several typical Creole dishes.

Rice is a main ingredient in Creole gumbo a kind of stew made of meat and rice and seasoned after cooking with sassafras leaves or file (ground sassafras leaves). It is used in jambalaya, a mixture Of meat or fish, vegetables and rice. Beignets are small cakes of rice combined with vegetables and poultry. Calas is a rice patty made with a heavy syrup and eaten for breakfast.

Many dishes have fish as their main ingredient: shellfish, crayfish, oysters, trout, redfish, swordfish, etc. Bouillabaisse is a fish chowder containing at least two fish with one being a shellfish. It is highly seasoned, and similar to French bouillabaisse made in Marseille or Paris.

Creole pastries come from French pastry: cream puffs, éclairs, Napoléons, Duchesses, Vol-au-vent. The best-known pastry from Creole country is petite fours, small cakes, thickly iced, with candied violets or other delicacies on top.

 

The Creole Language

 

One can find three kinds of French in Louisiana;

traditional French,

Acadian,

Black Creole.

Louisiana natives are definitely considered to be francophone, French-speaking.

According to Griolet, there is enough linguistic evidence in the language spoken in Louisiana of Old French, regional or provincial French, and Canadian French to warrant more research than is possible in this unit. There is an excellent explanation of Creole or Acadian French in his book, Cadjins et Créoles en Louisiane (see Bibliography).

Griolet speaks about “franglais” (Frenchified English or Americanized French), as it appears today in Louisiana. This “franglais” is “le sympt™me de leur dissolution progressive: introduction de mots anglais francisés (électer) accolés et prononcés ˆ la franCaise (Ftre smart, revenir back, Ftre gone, faire friend) puis ˆ l’américaine, changements de langue continuels ˆ l’intérieur du récit, voire de la phrase, traduction mot ˆ mot d’une pensée américaine.”

(the symptom of their progressive dissolution: introduction of Frenchified English (to elect) coupled with and pronounced in French (to be smart, to come back, to be gone, to make friends) then like in American English changes in the structure of the speech, in truth of the sentence, translation word by word of an American thought. (author’s translation- H.J.B.)

 

Creole Literature

 

It is very difficult to find Creole literature outside of Louisiana. Griolet presents stories in Cajun or Creole French as they have been told generation by generation in the following categories: contes creux (hearty stories), Lee docteurs (doctors and ailments), histoires éthniques (ethnic stories), chroniques villageoises (villchronicles), les niches (jokes), la nature et les animaux (nature and animals), le djab et le bon djeu (the devil and God), and contes créoles (Creole stories). These stories could be used in class for a study of Creole folklore, literature, and language.

Another book, New Orleans Stories, edited by John Miller and Genevieve Anderson, contains a variety of stories by famous authors with the setting and/or theme being New Orleans. Many, if not all of these stories can be used in class for students to experience Creole culture and life.

Source

French Creoles in Louisiana: An American Tale

by
Harriet J. Bauman