Carmel near Mansfield in De Soto Parish, Louisiana — The American South (West South Central)
Paul Boüet Laffitte
(1746-circa 1815)
Photographed by Cajun Scrambler, May 28, 2025
1. Paul Boüet Laffitte Marker
Inscription.
Paul Boüet Laffitte. (1746-circa 1815). The progenitor of the Laffitte family in northwest Louisiana was born in Pouyroquelaure, Gascony, France on March 4, 1746 to Francois Jean Boüet and Marie de Laffitte. He immigrated to Louisiana in 1764 and eventually settled here in the Bayou Pierre community. Laffitte was a prominent figure in local affairs and a respected trader with the Yatasi and other Caddo Indian groups in northwest Louisiana and northeast Texas. He established a cattle ranch in the Dolet Hills region of present-day DeSoto Parish and was appointed a justice in the Bayou Pierre settlement by the Spanish. In 1770 he married Marie Magdeleine Grappe (1754-1781), of French and Chitimacha Indian descent. Although contemporaries, their eldest sons, Pierre and Jean Baptiste, were not related to the pirates Pierre and Jean Laffite of Barataria fame. In 1782 Laffitte married Eulalie Marie Anne de Soto (1762-1833), of French and Spanish descent and granddaughter of Louis Juchereau de St. Denis, founder of Natchitoches. Paul Boüet Laffitte's name disappears from local records after 1815, with the date and place of his death being unknown.
The progenitor of the Laffitte family in northwest Louisiana was born in Pouyroquelaure, Gascony, France on March 4, 1746 to Francois Jean Boüet and Marie de Laffitte. He immigrated to Louisiana in 1764 and eventually settled here in the Bayou Pierre community. Laffitte was a prominent figure in local affairs and a respected trader with the Yatasi and other Caddo Indian groups in northwest Louisiana and northeast Texas. He established a cattle ranch in the Dolet Hills region of present-day DeSoto Parish and was appointed a justice in the Bayou Pierre settlement by the Spanish. In 1770 he married Marie Magdeleine Grappe (1754-1781), of French and Chitimacha Indian descent. Although contemporaries, their eldest sons, Pierre and Jean Baptiste, were not related to the pirates Pierre and Jean Laffite of Barataria fame. In 1782 Laffitte married Eulalie Marie Anne de Soto (1762-1833), of French and Spanish descent and granddaughter of Louis Juchereau de St. Denis, founder of Natchitoches. Paul Boüet Laffitte's name disappears from local records after 1815, with the date and place of his death being unknown.
Erected 2012 by
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the State of Louisiana.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical date for this entry is March 4, 1746.
Location. 32° 5.396′ N, 93° 36.577′ W. Marker is near Mansfield, Louisiana, in De Soto Parish. It is in Carmel. It is at the intersection of Smithport Lake Road and Mundy Road, on the left when traveling east on Smithport Lake Road. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Mansfield LA 71052, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in North Louisiana. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Deep South, and in the Piney Woods. Globally, it is in North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, the Louisiana Purchase, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 7 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Church of the Holy Apostles (within shouting distance of this marker);
Credits. This page was last revised on June 1, 2025. It was originally submitted on July 8, 2017, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. This page has been viewed 1,469 times since then and 44 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on May 31, 2025, by Cajun Scrambler of Assumption, Louisiana. 3, 4, 5. submitted on July 8, 2017, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.
