Chastangs and Chestangs in the United States trace their beginnings to two French brothers who settled in the Mobile, Alabama area around 1760. They were Joseph Pierre Chastang and his younger brother Jean Baptiste Chastang.
According to Ancestry.com World Tree 43203, Joseph (1736-1815), Jean Baptiste (1739-1813), and an older sister, Marie Elizabeth (b. 1733), were all born in New Orleans. Their parents were Francois Annibal Chastang and Marie Elizabeth Dauvergne Chastang. He was born in France and she in French Louisiana; they were married in New Orleans about 1730, and both died in New Orleans.
The families of Dr. John Chastang and fellow settler Simon Andry formed the nucleus of a Creole Catholic Community that still exists in the small town of Chastang, Mobile County, Alabama 27 miles north of Mobile. Some of Dr. John's descendants still live there. The town and the nearby Chastang Bluff on the Mobile River were both named for Dr. John. Across the county line is the little town of Chestang, Washington County, Alabama. It is also associated with the family of Dr. John, but Chastain Central is unsure of the precise connection. Chestang is 15 miles from Chastang and 34 miles from Mobile Airport. See MAP from Chastang to Chestang. Chastang and Chestang are also connected by railroad.
Not every Black or Creole Chastang is necessarily descended from Dr. John. Nordmann states that Simon Chastang, a descendent of Joseph Chastang, produced at least five children with Anastasia Andry of the Creole Andry family. And Sidoine Chastang, another descendent of Joseph, had children by Isabella Collins, a Creole granddaughter of Dr. John Chastang.
In addition, there was Pierre Chastang of Mobile, apparently unrelated by blood to the Chastang family. Pierre (1779-1848) was a slave owned by Dr. John Chastang, who sold him around 1810. During the War of 1812, Pierre Chastang provided extraordinary services to the American troops under Andrew Jackson. In addition, Pierre provided important services during the yellow fever epidemic of 1819. In appreciation for his brave civic contributions, the residents of Mobile took up a subscription to free Pierre. He continued to receive acclaim as a solid citizen of the city.
At this time, Chastain Central does not know whether Pierre Chastang left children with the Chastang name or whether any current Chastangs are descended from him.
American Chastangs may have been named for a French town. There are two such towns, some twenty miles apart, in Limousin, France--Le Chastang (map) and Gros-chastang (map). See also a map for directions from one to the other. Today, not far from these towns, is Chastang Dam. It is one of five major hydro-electric dams on the Dordogne River and generates the most electricity of the five. Chastang Dam was commissioned in 1951 and modernized in 2001 to increase output by 22%.
Chastang, Mobile County, Alabama Chastang is just east of Hwy 13/US 43 near the intersection of St. Peter Parish School Road and Chastang Bluff about 27 miles north of Mobile. Chastang Bluff road continues to the east toward the Mobile River and forms a loop to the bluff at the river and then comes back to meet itself. In 1856, a school was established for White and Creole children at Chastang Bluff. Two sons of Zeno Chastang, Zeno, Jr., and Francis, served as trustees for the school. (Nordmann, pp. 208-209). Chastang and the nearby Chastang Bluff are named for Dr. John Chastain, a settler and large land owner. Some of his Creole descendents still live in the area and belong to the historic Catholic Church in Chastang. Map.
From : http://www.chastaincentral.com/content/chastangs.html
4 comments:
I am Tiffany Padgett related to Dr. John Pierre Chastang who married Louison the freed slave. He is one of my great something grandfathers and found this quite interesting.
The interesting thing is that the Choctaw and Chickasaw Indians who didn't associate with other races than Indian and maintained a cohesive community used to send their children to Kindergarten to the St Peter's at Chastang up into the mid-1970's.
As a former student, in about 1974-1975 we had only 3 kids of African-American origin as I recall. The other children were Choctaw, these children continued on with my class to Calcedeaver, the Ancient Choctaw Academy Indian school that used to be the Calvert, Weaver, and Cedar Creek Schools until they united into one school so our Community which was almost totally deprived of any education at all could finally get an education up to maybe the 11th grade although up to the mid 1960's few actually got beyond the 3rd or 6th grades. Walking 5 miles and working in pine industry and home farms was a challenge to each family.
We had several groups of missionaries who confirm the same and numerous papers were written which confirm my own comments.
The Weaver Estate was almost immediately across the road and it is fully documented that Philip Chastang included Fontenay Weaver Reed (the wife of George Reed - the son of Hardy Reed known as Chinnubbee or else Apukshinnubbee depending on whether writers prefer he be known as Creek or Choctaw, but all accounts refer to him as Natchez and some Cherokee).
It turns out that while the entire Mobile County was violating Federal Law (The Non-Intercourse Act of 1790 to 1834 which has been made current by Congress until 2015) and violating every law of fraud imaginable to write in their own ancestors or else use other means to obtain Land of the Choctaw Nation of Indians, Peter J. Hamilton was working hard to divest George and Fontenay Reed of the Chastang Tract of the Reed Lots in downtown Mobile.
The OAKES (OKAY) are still here.
The Choctaw Nation is Rising.
A local historian from the Bienville Sociey and who was in charge of some records in Mobile appears to have been more than just a historian and might have been a designing person was well.
In any event, Gerome Chastang was the son of Cecile Weatherford Weaver - whose mother was married to the Lt. Colonel William Weatherford, who in turn is referred to as the "Red Eagle" and whom had at least one brother known as John Weatherford who was referred to a "Friendly Creek" in the American State Papers and whose own daughter referred to the men as Cherokee by her own testimony before the Guion Miller Rolls.
Andrew Jackson simply referred to William Weatherford as being of the Hickory Tribe of Indians in his letter to the Secretary of War which is the official record of the events from 1813 - 1815 and even battles were scarce while Jackson's little band of Choctaw Indians like John Johnston and others were busy cutting roads through the jungle of South Alabama along the old Natchez Trace and Military Roads.... history prefers the "more exciting tale of wars, battles, and noble Indians to slaughter"...
The truth we now know is that the Choctaw Nation of Indians did not remove.
We are still here and our land, property, and estates have been fraudulently divested from our rather huge Community which was the population exclusively of Indian Territory in the "OLD WEST" of Southwest Alabama.
The records show the same tale I now describe.
The United States Federal Constitution, Federal Acts of Law by Congress, and Supreme Court decree favors the Choctaw Nation of Indians and as a result we have no doubt that these COLOR OF LAW VIOLATIONS will not hold water.
The various land claims now held by others based on adverse possession, ad valorem taxation, and laches do not hold under the Non-Intercourse Act.
The Choctaw Nation of Indians are in Tribal Council and now that we know who and how our lands are divested... well the rest will soon be history.
Darby Weaver
The Tribal Leader
Informative, historical account for me to read as I'm part of the Andry descendants that are from Plaquemine's Parish. Also I've been informed that I'm also of Choctaw ancestry.
I am also a descendant through my grandmother.My name is Yvette Scott.My great grandmother's name was Delphine,and my grandmother was Annie Bell.It would be an amazing thing if someone would make a movie.A new "ROOTS",based on the story of Dr. John,and Louis on.
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