Isabella Carter
Louisiana's constitution has undergone several iterations, reflecting the region's complex colonial and racial history. The state's first constitution was influenced by the earlier Kentucky Constitution, with Louisiana achieving statehood in 1812. The early colonial era saw the emergence of free people of color, including African-born and native-born individuals with diverse racial backgrounds. While they enjoyed certain privileges, such as property ownership and freedom of movement, they also faced legal restrictions and discrimination. The Code Noir, a set of laws governing relations between Africans and Europeans, recognized the category of free persons of color but included measures to prevent a large free Black population. The Americanization of Louisiana and the adoption of stricter racial categories impacted the rights and opportunities of free people of color, leading to economic marginalization and residential segregation. The Civil War and subsequent constitutional changes in 1864 and 1868 abolished slavery, granted full citizenship to Black men, and ensured equal rights in education and public transportation.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Treatment of free people of color in Louisiana | Free people of color in Louisiana had a set of privileges denied to enslaved people, including property ownership, education, freedom of movement, and use of the legal system. |
| They were, however, denied political participation and were subject to legal restrictions and discriminatory treatment based on their race. | |
| The treatment of free people of color in Louisiana changed over time, becoming more restrictive in the nineteenth century after Louisiana became part of the United States. | |
| During the French and Spanish colonial periods, people with combined African and European ancestry enjoyed many privileges that were reserved for white people. | |
| After Louisiana became an American territory in 1803, the American concept of race led to the segregation and disempowerment of free people of color. | |
| The Louisiana Constitution of 1864 abolished slavery in the state, but only in the thirteen parishes under Union control during the war. | |
| The Louisiana Constitution of 1868 provided a formal bill of rights, eradicated the Black Codes, and secured full citizenship and equal civil and political rights for Black men. | |
| The Louisiana Constitution of 1974 is the cornerstone of the state's law, ensuring the rights of individuals and describing the distribution of power among state officials and local governments. |
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What You'll Learn
The 'free person of colour' label
The "free person of colour" label was a legal category indicating a racialised status. The individuals to whom this label applied were diverse. They could be African-born or born in the Americas, formerly enslaved or born free, and of African, European, and/or Native American ancestry. Most of Louisiana's free people of colour were French-speaking and referred to themselves as Creoles. A smaller proportion spoke English as their first language and were often referred to as "Americans", likely having come to Louisiana from another state.
The earliest record of a free Black person in New Orleans dates to 1722, three years after the first ship arrived with enslaved Africans to French Louisiana. Some of the earliest free Black inhabitants came to Louisiana as free people, such as Marie Baude, who travelled to New Orleans from Senegal in 1728 to reunite with her French husband. However, most free people of colour during the French colonial period experienced enslavement. For example, Louis Connard, his wife Catherine, and their four children were enslaved by Jacques Coustilhas, who later freed them in his will. Following Coustilhas' death, Connard successfully petitioned Governor Bienville to approve his family's freedom in 1739. Manumission records indicate that enslaved women and children gained their freedom more often than enslaved men, and some records suggest that male enslavers had relationships with the women and children they freed.
The number of free people of colour in Louisiana increased significantly under Spanish rule, which lasted from 1763 to 1800. By the end of the French period, there were 400 to 800 free people of colour in New Orleans and the surrounding area, and this number grew to more than 1500 within 40 years. Spanish policies encouraged the development of a free Black population, making it easier for enslavers to manumit an enslaved person and allowing enslaved people to initiate their own manumissions through a self-purchase process known as coartación. The Spanish also allowed enslaved people to own personal property, including money made from selling goods or services performed on their own time.
Despite legal recognition, free people of colour in Louisiana faced restrictions and discriminatory treatment based on their race. They were denied political participation and subjected to legal restrictions, such as being prohibited from marrying or having relationships with white people. Additionally, they faced competition in the labour market from the influx of European immigrants to New Orleans. As Louisiana became Americanised, the free population of colour faced increasing hostility from white supremacy, economic decline, and residential segregation.
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The Code Noir
Louisiana's version of the Code Noir included measures meant to discourage the development of a large free Black population. For example, manumission—when an enslaver legally freed an enslaved person—required approval from the Superior Council, colonial Louisiana's legislative body. The code also prohibited marriages and other relationships between white and Black people. Despite these restrictions, the number of free people of colour in New Orleans and the surrounding area grew slowly over time due to manumissions, natural increase, and immigration.
Under the French and Spanish, people with combined African and European ancestry enjoyed many of the privileges that white people did. These mixed-race Creoles of New Orleans were "famous for their wealth, culture, and education" until after 1830 when the American concept of race began to take over. The Spanish, who ruled from 1763-1800, largely continued French policies but also expanded opportunities for emancipation and accepted mixed-race relationships. This helped generate a growing population of free people of colour.
The Americanization of Louisiana, particularly New Orleans, brought a strictly polarized division of black and white. By 1850, the free population of colour was economically diminished and residentially segregated due to the hostility of white supremacy. The Louisiana Constitution of 1864 abolished slavery throughout the state, but only in the thirteen parishes under Union control during the war. It also provided for a free public school system for all children aged six to eighteen, but the legislature established whites-only schools. It is worth noting that the first constitution of Louisiana to provide a formal bill of rights was adopted in 1868, eradicating the Black Codes of 1865 and granting full citizenship and equal civil and political rights to Black men.
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The Civil War's impact
Louisiana's constitution has a complicated racial history, with the state having the largest number of free Black people in the Deep South before the Civil War. The impact of the Civil War on free people of colour in Louisiana was significant and multifaceted.
During the Civil War, free people of colour in Louisiana experienced both repression and opportunities for advancement. In the decade leading up to the war, they faced repressive laws, racially motivated violence, and vilification by the media. White "vigilante committees" shut down schools and used violence to drive free Black residents out of certain parishes. The influx of European immigrants also created competition in the labour market, further limiting opportunities for free people of colour.
However, during the Civil War, free men of colour were able to serve as officers and soldiers in the Union Army, fighting for their rights and equality. They established newspapers to express their political views and fought for the right to vote for all Black men. Their activism continued after the war, with individuals like Louis Charles Roudanez and Oscar J. Dunn working to ensure that all Black Louisianans enjoyed their rights as American citizens, marking the beginning of the civil rights movement.
The passage of the 13th Amendment during Reconstruction abolished slavery and dissolved the categories of "slave" and "free person of colour". However, cultural and class differences remained, and free people of colour continued to face discrimination and legal restrictions based on their race. Despite these challenges, some free people of colour in Louisiana were able to accumulate wealth and establish thriving communities, including planters, poets, artisans, musicians, teachers, farmers, and entrepreneurs.
The Civil War also impacted the social dynamics within the community of free people of colour. Before the war, under French and Spanish rule, people with African and European ancestry enjoyed many privileges that were denied to enslaved people, including property ownership, education, freedom of movement, and use of the legal system. However, with the Americanization of Louisiana, racial categories became more polarized, and free people of colour faced increasing discrimination and segregation as American concepts of race took hold.
In summary, the Civil War brought about significant changes for free people of colour in Louisiana. While they experienced repression and violence leading up to the war, they also gained opportunities for advancement during and after the war, playing a pivotal role in the struggle for Black civil rights and racial equality. Despite the abolition of slavery, free people of colour continued to navigate racial discrimination and legal restrictions, but they also built thriving communities and made significant strides towards equality and the realization of their rights as citizens.
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Political participation
The political participation of free people of colour in Louisiana was subject to various laws and restrictions, which changed over time.
Louisiana's free people of colour population developed during the colonial era. The earliest record of a free Black person in New Orleans dates back to 1722, three years after the first ship arrived with enslaved Africans to French Louisiana. During this period, the Code Noir, a set of laws enacted for the French Caribbean colony of Saint-Domingue (Haiti) and adapted to Louisiana in 1724, recognised the category of "free person of colour". However, Louisiana's version of the Code Noir included measures to discourage the development of a large free Black population. Manumission, the legal process of freeing an enslaved person, required approval from the Superior Council, the colonial legislative body.
During the Spanish rule from 1763 to 1800, policies were expanded to encourage the emancipation of enslaved people, and mixed-race relationships were accepted. This resulted in a growing population of free people of colour in Louisiana. By 1830, they made up nearly a quarter of New Orleans' population. Under French and Spanish rule, people with combined African and European ancestry enjoyed privileges similar to those of white people.
However, with the Americanization of Louisiana and the influence of American concepts of race, the situation changed. By 1850, the free population of colour faced hostility from white supremacy, economic decline, and residential segregation. The statehood of Louisiana in 1812 and the absorption of American definitions of race narrowed the racial structure and fluidity that had previously existed under French and Spanish rule.
During the Civil War and Reconstruction, free men of colour played a significant role in the struggle for Black civil rights and racial equality. They successfully pressed to serve in the Union Army and established newspapers to promote their cause. The Louisiana Constitution of 1864 abolished slavery in the state, but its impact was limited to the thirteen parishes under Union control. Voting rights for Black men who fought for the Union, owned property, or were literate, were authorised but not fully granted, and other persons of colour were excluded.
The constitution adopted in 1868 provided a formal bill of rights, eradicated the Black Codes, and removed property qualifications for holding office. It granted Black men full citizenship, equal civil and political rights, and access to state-funded public education without segregation. This marked a significant shift towards political participation and equal rights for free people of colour in Louisiana.
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Education and wealth
Free people of colour in Louisiana, also known as gens de couleur libres, had access to education, which was denied to enslaved people. In the decade before the Civil War, free Black children in St. Landry Parish attended the Grimble Bell School, which was shut down by white "vigilante committees". In rural areas, free people of colour built their own educational spaces.
In terms of wealth, free people of colour in Louisiana could own property, including land, homes, and enslaved people. They were often skilled property owners, with men working in carpentry, construction, ironworking, and the making of furniture, shoes, and clothes. Women worked as seamstresses, laundresses, midwives, tavern keepers, boarding house keepers, and retailers, among other jobs. They commonly invested their income in property, which provided financial security and a way to build multigenerational wealth. For example, when baker Francisca Montreuil died in 1803, her children and grandchildren inherited five enslaved people, a house in New Orleans, two plantations, farm animals, and furniture.
The growth in the number of free people of colour in Louisiana was partly due to manumissions, which were more common under Spanish rule than French. Enslaved people could initiate their own manumissions through a self-purchase process known as coartación under Spanish law, and they were also allowed to own personal property, including money made from selling goods or services performed on their own time. As a result, the number of free people of colour in New Orleans and the surrounding area increased significantly during the Spanish period.
By the mid-19th century, Louisiana had the largest number of free Black people in the Deep South, and some of the wealthiest. This was partly due to the economic growth in the first half of the century, which provided opportunities for free people of colour to increase their assets. For example, in 1861, merchant tailor François Lacroix had a real estate portfolio worth more than $200,000 (over six million dollars in 2022). However, it is important to note that most individuals owned small amounts of property, and the community as a whole faced competition in the labour market from an influx of European immigrants.
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Frequently asked questions
Free people of color in Louisiana were legally distinct from enslaved people of color and had a set of privileges including property ownership, education, freedom of movement, and use of the legal system. However, they were denied political participation and were subject to legal restrictions and discriminatory treatment based on their race.
The status of free people of color in Louisiana changed over time, with laws governing their rights and behaviors becoming more restrictive in the nineteenth century after Louisiana became part of the United States. During the French and Spanish colonial periods, free people of color enjoyed more privileges and there was a slow growth in their numbers due to manumissions, natural increase, and immigration. Following Americanization, the free population of color faced increased hostility, economic decline, and residential segregation.
The Louisiana Constitution of 1864 abolished slavery in the state, but only in the thirteen parishes under Union control during the war. It provided for a free public school system for all children but the legislature established whites-only schools, excluding persons of color. The Constitution of 1868 eradicated the Black Codes, granted full citizenship and equal civil and political rights to Black men, and established a state-funded public education system that prohibited segregated schools.
