In 1952 the Slidell Times published the text of a history talk given by local resident Mrs. C. F. Duham to a "study club" 16 years earlier in 1936. Here is the content of that Slidell Times article, which told the life story of John Slidell, the man after which Slidell is named.
The text from the article is presented below:
Paper Prepared in 1936 By Local Woman
for Presentation To Her Club
Slidell Times - June 13, 1952
The life and history of John Slidell, for whom the Town of Slidell was named, has been given piece-meal in The Slidell Times, with every "piece" interesting to present day readers.
John Slidell's personality, ability and drive is noted in many phases of his life, which are brought again to this newspaper through a biography mailed in by Mrs. C. F. Dunham of Slidell, who gave the story of his life in a program to the now extinct Slidell Study Club in 1936.
John Slidell was born in New York in 1793 and died in England, July 29, 1871. He came to New Orleans in 1819, where he established himself and became a bona-fide Southerner.
So much so, in fact, that he was selected as an ambassador to France by the Confederacy, along with John Mason, to seek financial aid from the French government in carrying on the War Between the States.
Slidell and Mason eluded Yankee blockaders and made the West Indies, from where they tailed on an English ship, the "Trent," for France. The English vessel was stopped on the high seas by a Yankee gunboat and Slidell and Mason were taken off and imprisoned at Boston.
Great Britain protested this outrage to her neutrality, and upon England's insistence, Slidell and Mason were released. They continued to France, but failed to secure a loan of $15,000,000. They did, however, get a ship, the "Stonewall," for use by the Confederacy.
They were arrested late in 1861 and were released sometime in 1862.
John Slidell was elected to the U. S., Congress from Louisiana In 1842 and during troubled times with Mexico in 1945, he was appointed as ambassador to that country. He failed to be received there due to the tension that grew out of Texas' secession from Mexico and that state's annexation' to the U. S. in 1845.
Slidell was a U. S. Senator from 1853 to 1861, when in the year the Civil War started, he threw his choice with the Confederacy.
Slidell was graduate of Columbia College in New York and later came to New Orleans at a time when the tide of adventure was moving to the west.
In 1835, at the age of 42, Slidell cemented himself to Louisiana by marrying into a proud old family, taking Matilda Des-Londe as his bride. She attended school in New York and had come in contact with the Slidell family there.
Slidell was a self-elected exile, moving to England after the South was defeated, for apparently he could never knuckle down to the post-war outrages the South suffered. He returned to this country only once, with special permission of the president of the states to settle affairs.
In her article, Mrs. Dunham related that "All I know of a certain little village named after that man was told me by one Brick Dunham, who In April, 1885, landed at Indian Village coming from Pearlington with his mother,. brothers and sisters, by way of small tug boat.
"An earlier settler, Fritz Salmen, had already established himself here In a brick-making industry. Some other names familiar to the section at that time, were Brakefield, Cooper, Cherry, Decker, Dr. Dubose, Dittman, Foster, Frederic, Guzman, Hufft, Innerairty, Lawler, Mayfield, McCoy, Mandeen, Roumeaux, Snider, Pichon, Dubuisson, Galatas, Faciane, Cousin and other which I do not recall at the moment.
"There was generous conservation of 'folks out at Apple Pie Ridge,' or 'down at the village' -'on Herwig's Bluff," up at "Brown's Switch," etc. Below the small bayou near the White Kitchen was a spot 'known as Salmen Town; north of that was Slidell.
"There were two small school houses built by the townspeople, one just north of the present Catholic school and the other near what is now the Halley home."
Mrs. Dunham's story indicates that a post office was established there in 1884 with Jacob F. Hufft as Postmaster. In the same year, a railroad station was established here.
She adds that it is likely the town was named for John Slidell because of his great services to his state, the South and to this area in particular.
Mrs. Dunham said rumor has it that John Slidell's banking firms in England and France were instrumental in obtaining large sums of money in organizing the New Orleans Northeastern Railroad Co.
"Whether or not this is authentic, I cannot say," Mrs. Dunham comments, "however, I do wish to state that I think it quite a singular occasion that I have been asked to present the life of John Slidell at this particular time, as January 7, 1936, will mark a golden jubilee is the history of our town, and I wish it were possible for this club to sponsor some event symbolic of that occasion."
Incidentally, the capture of Slidell and Mason aboard the HMS Treat created one of this country's really historical episodes and it is I referred to in virtually any worthwhile encyclopedia you may use for reference.
End of Slidell Times Article
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