Thomas Mille

Died

1800 – 1856

Plaquemine, Louisiana
Born on January 11, 1800, in Cassis, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, France. He married Pauline Dupuy in Saint Gabriel, Louisiana.
Sugar plantation owner.
Owned a summer cottage and vacationed at Isle Dernière with his family.

Sugar planter Thomas Mille’s slaves fled their timber shack as it began to blow apart, and they ran to Mille’s house. One slave, Richard, tried to convince Mille to move his family and slaves into a stable built with sturdy, deeply driven pilings. Mille refused.

Mille’s slave Richard hid out in the stable, the only building the storm didn’t level.

After the storm, he was missing and presumed dead, but Michael Schlatre and Thomas Mille were separated from the others on the Last Island and were able to reach New Orleans after five days on a makeshift raft.

They were found by Captain Charles W. Brien’s crew, who loaded the men onto Brien’s boat and took them back to his home.

Mille died four days after he was taken to safety.

Interesting Fact

Mille was rescued by a passing ship five days after the storm, but died two days later due to dehydration and starvation.