The CHEVIS BOYS and the MURDER at COULEE CROCHE! Using Newspapers and Genealogy to Investigate a Family Story

PART FOUR: MORE TRUTHS

In Part Three of this series, I used creative license to try to understand what the victims and witnesses involved in the Chevis incident may have experienced, based on newspaper reports. In this post, I share the perspectives of Dr. D.T. Courtney’s accused murderers and their mother.¹

Leontine Chevis

Leontine didn’t know how she was going to explain what happened.  She barely knew English, and Deputy Sheriff Gay barely knew French. She was beyond distraught, and all she could think about was her sons’ safety.  It happened so fast that it was hard to make sense of what happened; however, she knew it wasn’t like Alexandre Guilbeau described it.  

They had invited a few people over to enjoy a little food and music. Her children had begun arguing about something that didn’t really matter as much as they thought it did. As things started getting out of control, neither she nor her husband really could de-escalate the situation.  Seemingly out of nowhere, Dr. Courtney and Alexandre Guilbeau came into the yard threatening that if her family didn’t quiet down, Courtney would do it for them.  When she tried to interject, Dr. Courtney barked at her to shut up.  He lunged at her sons with the wooden picket he was carrying and began whisking it at them wildly.  He even tried twice to strike her before one of her sons, probably William, stopped him; Dr. Courtney began to beat him.  She was looking directly at the exchange when she saw Alexandre Guilbeau rush toward Dr. Courtney and drop him to the ground with a blow to the head.  Her shock and anguish-filled tears washed over her eyes, so she couldn’t tell who then came from behind to knock Guilbeau down at her feet.  A family friend named Louis Jackson had been there, and he swore that William had been the first to attack Dr. Courtney.

Coroner R.M. Littel summoned his inquest jury, which consisted of Adelma Guidry (one of the witnesses), Jack Guidry, Theo. Littell, Edgar H. Bloch, and James Darby.  They were charged with determining the cause, manner, and parties responsible for Dr. Courtney’s death.  Friday evening, Littel and his jurors took testimony from the witnesses, including Leontine. Leontine had told them what happened, but they didn’t believe her account.  They had tried to convince her that she had seen it all wrong, taunting that even William had admitted to killing Dr. Courtney.   They had insulted her and said that she was lying, but there was no denying what she had seen that fateful night. The inquest jury finished their work:

The autopsy was held on the body that [Friday], and the evidence taken in the courthouse [in Opelousas] Saturday evening and continued until Monday.  The verdict of the jury was that on the night of Sept. 19 Dr. D.T. Courtney came to his death by blows on the head at the hands of William and Jean Bte. Chevis.²

Jean Baptiste and William Chevis

Jean Baptiste was the oldest of Leontine’s children; he was born around 1866, only two years after slavery had been abolished and eradicated in St. Landry Parish.  His younger brother William was born around 1879.³  They grew up mingling with people who had never known the indignities of slavery, as well as people who had been well-acquainted with it their entire lives.  In addition to their friends of all races, the boys grew up with Whites and freed Blacks who resented the freedom the Chevis family always had, as well as Whites who resented the social and economic decline that any person of color (whether formerly enslaved or free) represented.  

Thus, the accusations against the Chevis boys fell on receptive ears, even more so because some form of the name John or John Baptiste Chevis had appeared several times in various newspapers in a negative light.  That is, at least one person with that name had a reputation of going beyond the bounds of the law, and that might have been enough to seal my uncles’ fate.  However, I’m inclined to believe that my uncles Jean Baptiste and William rather stumbled into the tragic and unfortunate circumstances of September 19, 1895.

Newspaper References to John or Jean Baptiste Chevis Mentioned in the St. Landry Parish, Louisiana Area

1881	Jean Bte. Chevis	Petit larceny (dismissed)4
October 29, 1887	J.B. Chevis	Assault (indicted)5
August 31, 1889	J.B. Chevis	Larceny (jailed and indicted)6
August 22, 1891	Jean Baptiste Chevis	Shooting father-in-law Emile Martin (arrested)7
December 05, 1891	John Chevis and others	Biting off an ear (indicted)8
December 05, 1891	John Bte. Chevis and others	Shooting with intent to commit murder (dismissed)9
1893	Mr. and Mrs. Jean Baptiste Chevis	Burning rough rice (arrested)10
February 1894; November 1895	J. Bte. Chevis	Striking and cutting with intent to commit murder (indicted); sentenced to serve three years in the state penitentiary for striking with intent to kill.11

It was hot, so hot and dry that their emotions could ignite a fire.  Yes, the conditions were just right for the Chevis’ snide remarks and bickering to explode out of the house and into the yard where the neighbors could gawk and judge them.  They didn’t really care until Dr. Courtney and Alexandre Guilbeaux showed up.  Maybe it was the alcohol that choked the air as Dr. Courtney swaggered onto their property carrying that jagged-edged paddle. Maybe it was the entitled look on his face when he asked what they were arguing about.  But, it probably was his arrogant sense of indignation when Jean Baptiste responded impudently that it was none of his business.  In any case, Jean Baptiste could feel his own rage alight from his feet and up his legs then radiate through his chest and down his arms into his hands.  So, when Dr. Courtney barked at his mother and started at her as if to make her flinch, it was an easy decision to pummel him.  It was truly unfortunate that William got to him first.  As Dr. Courtney turned to light his cigarette, William knocked him to the ground with a definitive blow to the head.  By the time Jean Baptiste made it over to get in his lick, Guilbeau had started to beat William; Jean Baptiste promptly dropped him to ground, too.  Guilbeau collapsed on top of a limp and almost lifeless Courtney, unconscious but breathing.   Me zhamé, what had they done?!

William was afraid now.  He often lost his temper, but he never had found himself in this much trouble.  He couldn’t understand how defending his mother and making sure that Dr. Courtney wouldn’t hit him again could get so out of hand.   Not many hours after the fight had occurred, on Friday morning, Deputy Sheriff Gay arrived.  Constable James Darby quickly took him and Jean Baptiste into custody as soon as he came to understand that they were responsible for the attack on Dr. Courtney and his impending death.  Now, William sat in the Opelousas jail, next to his brother.  He had learned that Dr. Courtney had died and a lynch mob was planning to storm the jail that night.  A renegade gang called the Lincoln County Regulators had developed in California some years before, and their notoriety and tactics spread as the news of their exploits reached other parts of the nation.  In fact, it inspired a group of white men in St. Landry Parish to form the Coulee Croche Regulators; the group included Celestin Levergne, Arvillion Beard, Joseph Smith, Maurice Smith, Lastie Smith, Cyphrozen Meche, Lastie Meche, Eugene Meche, Leoval Meche, Charles Melancon, Joseph Meche, Jerome Meche, Charles Aribi, Ursin Boudreau and Thelismar Bergeron.  This band of outlaws took it upon itself to exact justice that they believed duly elected law enforcement officials couldn’t or wouldn’t.  They were prosecuted in 1889 for some of their misdeeds, but perhaps their lingering influence helped to stoke talk of lynching the Chevis brothers.¹¹   

A man who valued the rules of order and law, Sheriff T.S. Fontenot determined that William and Jean Baptiste should be conveyed north to Alexandria as soon as possible. On the way there, Deputy Sheriff Putard D. Williams told them about the news that The Clarion was planning to publish Saturday morning:

Just as we go to press we learn of the murder of Dr. D.T. Courtney,  a prominent physician of Coulee Croché, Thursday night, by a negro named Chevis.  The latest news report Dr. Courtney in a critical condition.  He can not recover, his skull having been crushed with a club.  The negro is in jail here.  Great excitement prevailing, and there is talk of lynching the scamp.¹²

As the Deputy and the brothers traveled to Alexandria via Morgan Passenger train, William shook with fright.   He didn’t know what to expect besides death.  Jean Baptiste didn’t seem to be as bothered, but he was very quiet. When he did speak, it was in kouri vini, and in strained tones of comfort meant to disguise his anger and despair.  That night, they finally arrived at the railroad station and then headed to the jail.  J.J. Sullivan was Alexandria’s police chief at that time, and he immediately locked Jean Baptiste and William in the iron cell that held several other inmates, including Isadore Edwards, Fred Hall, J.G. Musgrove, George Woodard (white), and Lizzie Casson.  Fred Alexander was there, too, jailed for assault with a dangerous weapon.¹³  Knowing enough of the Chevis men’s mother tongue to get by, Fred interpreted for the fact-finding journalist who came Saturday morning to interview the two brothers.  Communicating in both his fluent kouri vini and broken English, William “acknowledged that he killed the Doctor with a stick.”¹⁴

Meanwhile, the Opelousas Courier reported that Judge Perrault was presiding over the 11^th District Court, which involved managing the large number of grand jurors, petit jurors, and witnesses who were summoned to Opelousas to review the circumstances concerning Dr. Courtney’s death.  The grand jury consisted of the following men:  Jacques Arnaud (foreman); Martin Leger; John Pierce; A.M. Godwin; M. Firnberg; Armand Stagg; Joachim Joubert; John C. Mills, Elmus Campbell; Adrien Fontenot; Valery Sonnier; Walter Pepper; John Childs; E.A. Bodemuller; Telismar Richard; and Fremont Fuselier.  Informed by the inquest jury’s conclusions about the witnesses’ testimonies, the grand jury determined that there was probable cause for an indictment, and a true bill was returned against both Chevis brothers.  They would be tried for the murder of Dr. Duchesne T. Courtney.¹⁵

Thanks for reading today’s post; check out Part Five, too. To be notified when new content is available, be sure to scroll to the bottom of the page and subscribe to the blog. If you want to learn more about how to use newspapers in your genealogy research, check out this post.

---

Footnotes

1. “The Murder of Dr. D.T. Courtney by Negroes,” St. Landry Clarion (Opelousas, Louisiana), 28 September 1895; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/image/63759640/); citing original, p. 3, cols. 2-3. 
2. There is no record of the Inquest Jury’s report available for comparison to the news reports. See Negative search results for D.T. Courtney Murder details:  “Coroner’s Inquest Book, 1895,” St. Landry Parish Clerk of Court (Opelousas, Louisiana), 07 August 2023.
3. 1880 U.S. Census, St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, population schedule, Police Jury Ward 2, enumeration district 2, p. 184B, family 1, John W. Chevis household; digital image, “1880 United States Federal Census,” Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/6375832:6742); citing NARA microfilm publication T9, record group 29, roll 469.
4. Action of the Grand Jury, St. Landry Democrat (Opelousas, Louisiana), 12 March 1881; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/st-landry-democrat-jn-bte-chevis-petit/126321933/); citing original, p. 3, col. 1. 
5. “District Court,” The Opelousas Courier, 29 October 1887; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-opelousas-courier-jean-baptiste-chev/126985582/); citing original, p. 1, col. 2. 
6. “Law and Order,” St. Landry Democrat (Opelousas, Louisiana), 31 August 1889; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/st-landry-democrat-jean-baptiste-chevis/126985823/); citing original, p. 1, col. 2. 
7. “District Court,” St. Landry Clarion (Opelousas, Louisiana), 22 August 1891; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/st-landry-clarion-jean-baptiste-chevis/126986474/); citing original, p. 2, col. 1. 
8. “District Court,” St. Landry Clarion (Opelousas, Louisiana), 05 December 1891; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/st-landry-clarion-john-chevis-biting/126982901/); citing original, p. 2, col. 5. 
9. ibid.
10. District Court, St. Landry Clarion (Opelousas, Louisiana), 11 February 1893; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/st-landry-clarion-j-b-chevis-burning-ri/126986963/); citing original, p. 2, col. 2. 
11. This Jean Baptiste Chevis was indicted in 1894 and sentenced in November 1895 at the same time the case against my uncles, Jean Baptiste and William Chevis, was being conducted. This man was conveyed to the Baton Rouge Penitentiary on November 04, 1895. See District Court, St. Landry Clarion (Opelousas, Louisiana), 17 February 1894; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/st-landry-clarion-jean-bte-chevis-tru/126987220/); citing original, p. 2, col. 3. Also, “District Court,” The Opelousas Courier, 12 October 1895; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/image/168363199/); citing original, p. 1, col. 2.  Also, “District Court,” The Opelousas Courier, 02 November 1895; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-opelousas-courier-2-jn-bte-chevis/126987549/); citing original, p. 1, col. 2. Also, “Gone Up Salt River,” St. Landry Clarion (Opelousas, Louisiana), 09 November 1895; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/st-landry-clarion-2-j-b-chevis/126987919/); citing original, p. 3, col. 2.
12.  “Law and Order,” St. Landry Democrat (Opelousas, Louisiana), 31 August 1889; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/st-landry-democrat-jean-baptiste-chevis/126985823/); citing original, p. 1, col. 2. 
13. “Murder!” St. Landry Clarion (Opelousas, Louisiana), 21 September 1895; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/image/63759640/); citing original, p. 3, col. 3. 
14. “The Jail,” Weekly Town Talk (Alexandria, Louisiana), 7 September 1895; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/weekly-town-talk-fred-alexander-in-alexa/127562424/); citing original, p. 3, col. 6. “The Jail,” Weekly Town Talk (Alexandria, Louisiana), 21 September 1895; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/image/210816780); citing original, p. 3, col. 6. Also. “Charged with Arson,” Weekly Town Talk (Alexandria, Louisiana), 21 September 1895; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/weekly-town-talk-in-jail-with-chevis-in/127565479/); citing original, p. 1, col. 6. Also, “Robbing the Mails,” The Daily Town Talk (Alexandria, Louisiana), 21 September 1895; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-town-talk-in-jail-with-chevis-in-ale/127565586/); citing original, p. 3, col. 3.
15. “A Mob After Them,” The Daily Town Talk (Alexandria, Louisiana), 21 September 1895; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/image/215880126); citing original, p. 3, col. 3.
16. When someone is indicted, or formally accused of a crime by a grand jury, at least nine of the jurors must agree to present a “true bill” in order for a trial to occur. See https://law.justia.com/codes/louisiana/2018/code-codeofcriminalprocedure/ccrp-383. Also, “District Court,” The Opelousas Courier, 28 September 1895; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/image/168362708); citing original, p. 1, col. 2.