Henry Schuyler Thibodaux (September 24, 1769 – October 24, 1827) was a planter and politician, who served one month in 1824 as the fourth Governor of

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

. At the time that Governor Thomas B. Robertson resigned in 1824 to accept appointment as a federal judge, Thibodaux was President of the State Senate and succeeded him as Acting Governor, until Henry Johnson was elected.

Early life and family

Thibodaux's birth and parents are shrouded in mystery. He is thought to have been born either in

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York City ...

, or

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, to Alexis Thibodeaux and Marie Anne Blanchard of

Nicolet, Quebec Nicolet () is the county seat of Nicolet-Yamaska Regional County Municipality, Quebec, Canada. The population as of the Canada 2016 Census was 8,169. It is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Nicolet. The residents of the town pronounce t ...

Acadian The Acadians (french: Acadiens , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Most Acadians live in the region of Acadia, as it is the region where the de ...

refugee A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution.

s who were expelled from their homeland by the British after they defeated the French in the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

(known as the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...

in the United States).Family of Henry Schuyler Thibodaux & Felicite Bonvillain
Accessed April 10, 2015. Thibodaux was orphaned (his family was thought to have been deported from Pennsylvania) and adopted by General

Philip Schuyler Philip John Schuyler (; November 18, 1804) was an American general in the Revolutionary War and a United States Senator from New York. He is usually known as Philip Schuyler, while his son is usually known as Philip J. Schuyler. Born in Alba ...

, an

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

hero. Thibodaux spent his childhood in the United States and is believed to have been sent to

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

in the 1780s for his education. After returning to the United States, Thibodaux moved to Louisiana in 1794, while it was under nominal control of the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

for several more years. He first settled on what was known as the "Acadian coast" of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

, in St. James Parish.

Marriage and family

Thibodeaux (spelling changed to ''Thibodaux'') was married twice, first to a

Cajun The Cajuns (; French: ''les Cadjins'' or ''les Cadiens'' ), also known as Louisiana ''Acadians'' (French: ''les Acadiens''), are a Louisiana French ethnicity mainly found in the U.S. state of Louisiana. While Cajuns are usually described as ...

woman, Félicité Bonvillain, who bore him three children before she died a few years later. Then he married Bridgette Bélanger, with whom he had five children who lived to adulthood. Thibodaux had five sons in total. Among the sons was

Bannon Goforth Thibodeaux Bannon Goforth Thibodeaux (December 22, 1812 – March 5, 1866) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a member of the U. S. House of Representatives representing the state of Louisiana. He served two terms as a Democrat from 1 ...

, who was elected as a Democratic

Member of Congress A Member of Congress (MOC) is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The term member of parliament (MP) is an equivalen ...

in the 1840s. Before entering politics, Bannon practiced the trade of

shoemaker Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand, often by groups of shoemakers, or cobblers (also known as '' cordwainers''). In the 18th century, dozens or even hundreds of masters, journeymen ...

. Bannon G. Thibodeaux was later elected by the state legislature as a

United States senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...

Political career

The senior Thibodaux moved from St. James Parish to

Lafourche Parish Lafourche Parish (french: Paroisse de la Fourche) is a parish located in the south of the U.S. state of Louisiana. The parish seat is Thibodaux. The parish was formed in 1807. It was originally the northern part of Lafourche Interior Parish, whi ...

when he received a

land grant A land grant is a gift of real estate—land or its use privileges—made by a government or other authority as an incentive, means of enabling works, or as a reward for services to an individual, especially in return for military service. Grants ...

from Spanish Governor Baron de Carondelet. He developed a

plantation A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. The ...

he named for Ste. Bridget. Thibodaux was later elected

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

and to the Territorial Legislature after the United States acquired and organized the

Territory of Orleans The Territory of Orleans or Orleans Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from October 1, 1804, until April 30, 1812, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Louisiana. History In 1804, ...

. After Louisiana became a state, from 1812 to 1824, Thibodaux served as a

State Senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 U ...

representing Lafourche Parish and was elected as

President of the Senate President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the speaker in some other assemblies. The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's succession for its top executive office: for e ...

in 1824. When Governor Thomas B. Robertson resigned to accept an appointment as a

Federal judge Federal judges are judges appointed by a federal level of government as opposed to the state/provincial/local level. United States A US federal judge is appointed by the US President and confirmed by the US Senate in accordance with Article 3 of ...

, Thibodaux succeeded him, serving as Acting Governor for a month until Henry Johnson was elected. Thibodaux was campaigning for the elected seat of governor in 1827 when he died on October 24, while touring near

Bayou Terrebonne In usage in the Southern United States, a bayou () is a body of water typically found in a flat, low-lying area. It may refer to an extremely slow-moving stream, river (often with a poorly defined shoreline), marshy lake, wetland, or creek. They ...

. Thibodaux was interred at Halfway Cemetery in

Houma, Louisiana Houma ( ) is the largest city in, and the parish seat of, Terrebonne Parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is also the largest principal city of the Houma– Bayou Cane–Thibodaux metropolitan statistical area. The city's government ...

Legacy and honors

*The city of

Thibodaux, Louisiana Thibodaux ( ) is a city in, and the parish seat of, Lafourche Parish, Louisiana, United States, along the banks of Bayou Lafourche in the northwestern part of the parish. The population was 15,948 at the 2020 census. Thibodaux is a principal city ...

, was named for him. *His son

was elected as a US Representative and US Senator.

References

External links

Biography
State of Louisiana
Cemetery Memorial
by La-Cemeteries * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thibodaux, Henry S. 1769 births 1827 deaths People from Thibodaux, Louisiana Governors of Louisiana American people of French descent Louisiana Democratic-Republicans Louisiana National Republicans National Republican Party state governors of the United States