Gordon M. Sayre - The Memoir of Lieutenant Dumont, 1715–1747: A Sojourner in the French Atlantic

The project of editing and translating Dumont de Montignys memoir has continued for almost a decade and has involved a team of friends and colleagues who have all shared, in smaller or larger parts, the excitement of rediscovering not just a document but a life from the eighteenth-century French Atlantic.

Preparation of this translation was supported by a Collaborative Research grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

A separate NEH grant supported preparation of the French edition, published in 2008 by Les ditions du Septentrion of Quebec. Shannon Lee Dawdy, of the University of Chicago, was the third member of the editorial team for the French edition, and her expertise in New Orleans history and archaeology, as well as her contributions to the introduction and notes, were invaluable. We also wish to thank historian and publisher Denis Vaugeois and editor-in-chief Gilles Herman at Septentrion.

Other colleagues in Quebec, Thomas Wien and Stphanie Charland of the Universit de Montral and Catherine Desbarats and Allan Greer of McGill University, provided valuable assistance with research on aspects of Dumonts time in Canada.

At the Newberry Library in Chicago, James Grossman provided guidance for the project in numerous ways, Karen Christianson assisted with editing, and Emily Kelley drew the maps of Dumonts travels. Chicago-area scholars also pitched in, notably Lydia Cochrane and Ellen McClure, who reviewed drafts of the translation, and Lisa Meyerowitz, who assisted with editing.

Many colleagues working on colonial Louisiana history and archaeology took an interest in Dumont and contributed expertise and hospitality. These include Jim Barnett and Smoky Joe Frank of Natchez and Vincas Steponaitis of the University of North Carolina, who has conducted many seasons of archaeology there. Jordan Kellman and Carl Brasseaux of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette hosted a talk about Dumonts narrative there and a visit to the Atchafalaya Basin. George Milne shared some of his work on the Natchez Indians. Erin Greenwald of the Historic New Orleans Collection shared some of her valuable research connected with her translation of the manuscript by Marc-Antoine Caillot, a contemporary of Dumonts, which will appear shortly after this volume.

Colleagues in France who contributed to the project include historians Gilles Havard and Gilles-Antoine Langlois and archivists Roseline Claerr and Yoann Brault, who found documents connected with Dumonts family and career. Brigitte Nicolas assisted with the archives in Lorient. A special thanks to Arnaud Balvay for generous help with research on Dumont and Natchez.

At the University of Oregon, Emily Thomas provided research assistance, and Fabienne Moore helped with the translation. James Walker of Eugene shared his comprehensive knowledge of early American cartography. A large part of the translation was carried out during a sabbatical leave from the University of Oregon in 20072008.

At the Omohundro Institute, we would like to thank editors Nadine Zimmerli and Fredrika J. Teute, manuscript reviewers Catherine Desbarats and Andreas Motsch, as well as research fellow Alexandre Dub and copy-editor Kathy Burdette.

Map 1. Dumont Voyages: Atlantic,

Map 2. Dumont Voyages: North America,

Figure A. Dumont Family Tree,

Figure B. Facsimile of the first page of the memoir,

Figure 1. Map of Cap Franois (Gulf of Mexico),

Figure 2. Massacre Island (Dauphin Island),

Figure 3. Plan of Pensacola,

Figure 4. Plan of Old Fort Biloxi,

Figure 5. Fort St. Louis; or, New Biloxi,

Figure 6. Plan of the Fort at Yazoo,

Figure 7. Plan of New Orleans,

Figure 8. The Authors Farm,

Figure 9. Map of Fort Rosalie at French Natchez,

Figure 10. Encampment of the Army at Tombigbee,

Figure 11. Encampment of the French Army (at the Chickasaws),

Figure 12. Map of Polduc,

Figure 13. The Chaouachas Concession,

Figure 14. An Indian Hunting,

Figure 15. Indian with His Former Weapons; Indian Dancing; Indian Tattooed,

Figure 16. Musical Instruments,

Figure 17. Indian Woman Chief; Indian Woman; Young Woman,

Figure 18. Method and Representation of a Square Frame on Which the Indians Burn Their Prisoners,

Figure 19. Instruments of War,

Figure 20. Wild Buffalo,

Figure 21. Home of the Author in New Orleans,

Figure 22. Crocodile, or Cayman,

Figure 23. Rattlesnake,

A section of color plates follows page .