Louis Antoine Andry

Louis Antoine Andry. . Born November 25, 1727, in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France, Louis Antoine Andry (aka Don Luis Antonio Andry) sailed to New Orleans in 1746. In 1752, he married Louisiana native Marie Jeanne Lapierre (1732–1818), and they had nine children. Andry had an illustrious military career, first with the French and later with the new Spanish regime, serving as Engineer of the Colony, Royal Surveyor, Adjutant Major of the City of New Orleans, and Captain of the Infantry. His assignments capitalized on his engineering, mathematical, and mapmaking skills, greatly impacting the Louisiana colony., In 1777, Louisiana Governor Bernardo de Gálvez chose Captain Andry to map the Gulf Coast from the Mississippi River to Matagorda Bay. The mission was risky due to navigational dangers and conflicts between Texas coastal Karankawas and Spaniards. On December 13, 1777, Andry and his crew of 15 Spanish and French, including his 15-year-old son, Cadet Jean Constantin Silveré Andry, sailed from New Orleans on El Señor de la Yedra. Three months later, with mapping essentially completed and supplies running low, Andry’s schooner entered Matagorda Bay to retrieve supplies from Presidio La Bahía. They encountered Native Americans led by Joseph María, who deceitfully attempted to gain Andry's trust. Over several days, small groups of crewmembers went ashore in search of food, never to return., On March 20, 1778, Joseph María and 11 other Karankawas overran La Yedra, anchored in Matagorda Harbor. Using the ship's guns, they killed Andry, his son, and three sailors, looting and burning the schooner. Tomás de la Cruz, sole survivor of the Andry Massacre, was taken as a slave by Joseph María. The fate of Andry and his crew was unknown until 1779, when de la Cruz was rescued from slavery and informed Spanish authorities. This news raised Spain's concerns about the escalating threat posed by the Karankawas, resulting in the decade-long Karankawa-Spanish War.