This collection is made up of 2 items related to Louis Vilemont: a journal that he composed while traveling in North America around 1795, with related essays; and a letter by the Baron de Carondelet dated June 28, 1795.
Vilemont titled his 169-page volume Journal De Mes Voyages, Depuis mon Débarquement à Philadelphie jusqu'à mon arrive à la Nouvelle-Orléans; avec quelque notes topographiques Et un Examen Rapide, naturel Et Politique Des Productions Et Peuples que j'ai Rencontrés. The first 2 pages contain introductory remarks. A 100-page account of his travels beings with his departure from Madrid, Spain, to America, where he visited Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; he described the city and its residents in detail. On his trip to New Orleans, Vilemont wrote about the landscapes and people he saw along the way; for example, he encountered Daniel Boone while traveling through Kentucky (p. 34).
The second part of the volume (pp. 101-169) contains essays about multiple subjects, such as the Louisiana fur trade and Native Americans' involvement in local commerce. One essay includes a chart of various tribes, with the numbers of armed men, and primary locations (p. 99). Other essays concern unidentified Native American tribes' religious beliefs and political organizations. Vilemont wrote marginal notes throughout the volume.
The Baron de Carondelet's letter, dated June 28, 1795, pertains to political issues within Louisiana. He shared his enthusiasm about the recent capture of "Vexerano," who had been accused of murder the previous year, and expressed concern about Vilemont's unauthorized travels in the area.
Louis Vilemont traveled from Madrid, Spain, to Louisiana in the mid-1790s. He visited Philadelphia, Louisiana, and Kentucky on his journey.
Francisco Luis Héctor Carondelet was born in Noyelles, Flanders, around 1747, the son of Jean Louis Nicolas de Carondelet, baron de Carondelet et Noyelles, and Marie-Angélique Bernard de Rasoir. The family retained its loyalty to the Spanish crown, and Luis Héctor Carondelet served in a Spanish guard regiment and in the Knights of Malta during the 1770s. In 1777, he married Maria de Castaños y Aragorri. Carondelet fought in the American Revolution, served as intendant of San Salvador in the late 1780s, and became governor of Louisiana and West Florida in 1791. He held the governorship until 1797. The Baron de Carondelet died in Quito, Ecuador, on August 10, 1807.