Julien de Lallande Poydras

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Poydras.png

Julien de Lallande Poydras (born April 3, 1740 in Nantes , France , †  June 14, 1824 in Pointe Coupee Parish , Louisiana ) was an American politician . Between 1809 and 1811 he represented the Orleans Territory as a delegate to the United States House of Representatives .

Career

Julien Poydras was born in France in 1740 during the Ancien Régime . After finishing school he became a soldier in the French Navy during the Seven Years' War . In 1760 he was taken prisoner by the British. In England he managed to escape to San Domingo, today's island of Hispaniola . From there he came to New Orleans, then Spanish, in 1768 . It was there in 1779 that he wrote the first poetic works printed in the area. He saw his new home fall to France in 1801 and then to the United States in 1803 through the Louisiana Purchase made by President Thomas Jefferson .

After the creation of the Orleans Territory in 1804, Poydras became the first President of the Territorial Government Council. It was then that he founded the first orphanage for women in New Orleans. In the congressional elections of 1808 Poydras was elected as a delegate of his territory to Congress in Washington, DC , where he succeeded Daniel Clark on March 4, 1809 . Until March 3, 1811 he was the last delegate of his territory to represent its interests in the US House of Representatives. Thereafter, the newly formed state of Louisiana sent regular Congressmen.

In Louisiana, Poydras was the first president of the state's constituent assembly. In the presidential election of 1812 he was one of the electors for President James Madison . He also founded the Poydras orphanage. He was also involved in building an educational system in Pointe Coupee Parish and died on June 14, 1824.

Web links