Alabama Creole people

Origins Adventurers led by Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville moved from Fort Maurepas in Biloxi, Mississippi to a wooded bluff on the west bank of the Mobile River in early 1702, where they founded Mobile, which they named after the Maubilian Indians. The outpost was populated by French soldiers, French-Canadian trappers and fur traders, and a few merchants and artisans accompanied by their families. The French had easy access to the Indian fur trade, and furs were the primary economic resource of Mobile. Along with fur, some settlers also raised cattle as well as produced ships' timbers and naval stores. Woman from Mobile Indian nations gathered annually at Mobile to be wined, dined, and showered with presents by the French. About 2,000 Indians descended on Mobile for as long as two weeks. Because of the close and friendly relationship between colonial French and Indian peoples, French colonists learned the Indian Lingua franca of the area, the Mobilian Jargon, and intermarried with Indian women. Creoles in Mobile also continuously petitioned to join the war effort. In November 1862, Alabama's General Assembly passed legislation allowing Creoles to enroll in the state militia, and a unit of Alabama Creole Guards was raised. In November 1863, the general in command of Mobile, Dabney H. Maury, requested that the Confederate War Department immediately accept Creole state militia into Confederate service, with the idea of making them heavy artillerists to man Mobile's shore batteries. Confederate Secretary of War James A. Seddon denied Maury's request and stated that blacks could never be enlisted as Confederate soldiers. Nevertheless, in 1864, as Mobile needed defenders for the city, Creoles joined Confederate cavalry units, and a company of Creoles in Confederate service, the Native Guards, formed from a Creole firefighting battalion. After Federal forces defeated the Confederates in Mobile, the Creole Native Guards disappeared from service. Late 19th to 20th centuries The Civil War completely destroyed Mobile as it once was. Prior to the Civil War, Mobile was Alabama's most vital urban area, and it was the undisputed economic and social center of the state. In the years after the Civil War, Mobile's economy languished, and its population declined. Birmingham replaced Mobile in its economic development and became Alabama's largest city. For Creoles in Mobile, the following era was bleak. Poor economic conditions continued from reconstruction all the way until the first World War, and a rising tide of racism eroded many of the rights that Creoles once knew. A binary racial system took hold of Mobile; everyone was classified either as Black or white. An informal, but rigid segregation code restricted the social and economic activities of the Creoles. In 1901, racist forces moved to permanently disenfranchise the black population of Mobile through the state constitution. The Creoles of Mobile pleaded with the white leadership of the state, but it was of no use. Many Creoles turned inward, seeking solace in the glories of the past and their older social heritage. Creoles continued to maintain their own schools, churches, social clubs, and the fabled Creole Steam Fire Company Number I. Creoles worked as doctors, lawyers, educators, and businessmen. They mirrored the customs and practices of Mobile's white elite, and formed their own mystic societies, creating a "Colored Mardi Gras" celebration. At the end of the 1930s, Mobile was essentially a small town where most people were comfortable and satisfied with the community institutions available. However, the city was deeply divided by race, and the lack of economic opportunity hampered the economic development of the city. Mobile's Creole population was prevented from fully contributing its energy and talents towards building a better city. World War II changed the economic outlook of Mobile. New industry appeared, and Mobile became an important port once more. After World War II, racial tension became inflamed again leading to the protests and riots of the Civil Rights Movement that changed the situation of blacks in the United States. After the Civil Rights Movement, institutionalized segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement were finally abolished. Cajuns descended from prominent Mobile families continue to live in the district of Mobile. In 2024, Cajuns were crucial to the victory of Cajun Congressman Shomari Figures (D). ==Alabama Cajans==

In 1810, the initial reported spread of settlement in Alabama was along the lower Tombigbee and Mobile rivers, consisting of 500 whites and 250 black people, 59 of whom were free. Mixed-race descendants of these settlers intermarried and rapidly increased in quantity of households over the generations, according to census records, which typically labelled them as Black, mulatto, or free colored persons. The surname Chastang is shared among the Cajans and the Alabama Creoles. One of the progenitors of the Alabama Creole Chastangs was Jean Chastang, a Frenchman who settled outside Mobile. Like Alabama Creoles, the Cajans were also unrelated to the Louisiana Cajuns, who are of Acadian descent. They were noted to be starkly different from Alabama Creoles, and Cajuns, given that they were mostly Protestant and had English names. They received the name "Cajan" from the Alabama State senator, L.W. Mcrae. Being sensitive to the term "Cajan", they were observed to prefer referring to themselves simply as "Our people", a name also used by the Chestnut Ridge people. ==References==