Jean Carrere and his wife, Linotte, were free people of color who took refuge from the unrest in Haiti and came to New Orleans circa 1908. No vital records have been
found for Jean Carrere. Linotte was born c. 1776 in St. Domingue and died in New Orleans 11 Jun 1851. They had at least five children:
Etienne, Pierre and Mary were born in St. Domingue. The birthplace of Ernest and Louis has not been determined.
Etienne, Sr. married Justine Mederick (1803-6 Jul 1831). They had three children before Justine's death in August 1831. They were Miliace Etienne, Elodie and Melion. Justine's mother was Julia Soniat. On 16 Feb 1833, Etienne Carrere married Antoinette Vial (1818 N.O. - 19 Nov 1908), the daughter of Antoine Vial and Louise Charles and grand daughter of Jean Baptiste Vial and Marie Jeanette Sact, refugees from St. Domingue.
Etienne and Antoinette had eleven children.
There is a scarcity of vital records because this family lived in Jefferson City, Jefferson Parish, until about 1880 when they moved to the 100 block of Union Street in New Orleans. Jefferson Parish did not maintain vital records, and I have been unable to determine which church they attended.
Marie Carrere married Manuel Leal, fils, c. 1869. They had five children:
Manuel (Emile) Leal, fils, had a daughter, Edna, by a previous marriage. He and Bertha divorced c. 1876, and he married Theresa Du Bois. They had several children.
Manuel Leal, fils, was the son of Manuel Leal, a white policeman, and Marie Holland, a free woman of color. Manuel, père, and Marie Holland had two additional children, Frederick and Julie.
It is believed that Manuel, père was the son of Don Fernando Leal and Donna Ramona Santilla who died in 1811.
Marie Holland was the daughter of Daniel and Patsy Holland, free people of color, who were born in Natchez, Miss. and came to New Orleans c. 1840.
Ferdinand Montégut, pere, first married Louisa Antoine. They had three children, including Andrew and Louise before Louisa's death.
Ferdinand Montégut, père, then married Bertha Leal, the daughter of Manuel Leal and Marie Carrere on 11 Aug 1897. They had six children:
Bertha Leal died on 15 Dec 1943.
The oldest child of Ferdinand Montégut, père, and Bertha Leal is treated in the following biographical account: