The Great Storm Timeline
Isle Dernière’s THE GREAT STORM of 1856 Friday, August 8 2 Days Before High waves and higer than usual tides. Saturday, August 9 1 Day Before Marshes around the island were submerged, animals were unsettled and The Star had difficulty sailing down the Atchafalaya through Four League Bay into Caillou Bay. Sunday, August 10 Morning […]
The Great Storm
By Michael Gros Brand & Visual Editor The four Muggah brothers were riding high at the opening of the 1856 summer season on Isle Dernière. In February of that year, a deal was struck with investors from the St. Charles Hotel in New Orleans to improve the hotel. Construction was set to begin at the […]
An Island Timeline
a timeline Isle Dernière 1800 Untamed Land A raw, natural island oasis 1830s Rustic Getaway Small fishing huts existed on the island. 1840s Land Purchased Developers began to purchase land from the US government. 1848 Resort Established The four Muggah brothers along with financers from St. Mary Parish developed the Ocean House Hotel. 1856 Bigger […]
The Island Today
By Kia Singleton Photo Editor After the 1856 hurricane that destroyed the resort of Isle Derniere, all that was left on the island were seabirds. Over time, the remainder of the island was separated into five smaller islands known as the Isle Dernieres Barrier Islands. These barrier islands are Wine Island, East Island, Whiskey Island, […]
Island’s Long-Battled Ownership
By Payton Suire Managing Editor Eight years before Last Island was destroyed by a hurricane, the Voisin family began a land dispute that wouldn’t end for almost two centuries. In 1848, people began to question who owned Last Island when the State Land Office began selling tracts of land on Isle Derniere. Jean Joseph, J.J., […]
Fortunes Lost and Stolen
By Kia Singleton Photo Editor The Last Island Hurricane of 1856 is one of the worst storms to hit Louisiana with the impact destroying the whole island and causing over 200 deaths – the majority of the island’s population. Valuables remained scattered on the island, some still in the possession of the rich, powerful vacationers’ […]
John Charlton Beatty
John Charlton Beatty Died 1808-1856 ORANGE GROVE PLANTATION, TERREBONNE PARISH Background Beattie and his wife Charlotte Reid were born in Kentucky. Beattie’s ancestors were originally from Scotland, settling in the United States as early as 1690. Job/Occupation John Carlton Beatty was a lawyer and sugar planter. Why On The Island John and his wife Charlotte […]
Rev. Robert Samuel McAllister
Rev. Robert Samuel McAllister Survived 1830 – 1892 Thibodaux, Louisiana Background Born in Abbeville, South Carolina, McAllister was serving as the third minister of the Presbyterian Church in Thibodaux from 1856-1859. Job/Occupation Presbyterian minister. Storm Experience Rev. McAllister left one of the most detailed accounts of the storm: August 10, 1856“On Sunday, Aug. 10, the […]
Michael Schlatre
Survived 1819 – 1900 Enterprise Plantation, Plaquemine Background Michael Schlatre was born on April 10, 1819 on Homestead Plantation in Plaquemine, Louisiana. Job/Occupation Michael worked on his father’s sugar plantation; during this time, he learned carpentry work and blacksmithing; later he became the owner of Enterprise Plantation. Why On The Island The Pughs had been […]
Modeste G. Rentrop
Died 1822 – 1856 Belle Rivière, Louisiana Background After her husband, D.L. Rentrop, died in 1853, Modeste and their daughter Marguerite, born in 1851 who also died in the hurricane, continued their family plantation. Job/Occupation Sugar planter. Storm Experience Unknown. Interesting Fact Her husband, Dorsino Louis (D.L.) Rentrop, died of yellow fever on October 25, […]