Robert Francis Prevost, the Cardinal, born in Chicago chosen on Thursday as the new pope, comes from the color of the color from New Orleans.
The grandparents of the Pope’s mother, both of whom are described as black or Mulatto in various historical records, lived in the seventh chamber of the city, an area that is traditionally Catholic and a melting of people with African, Caribbean and European roots.
Grandparents, Joseph Martinez and Louise Baquié, eventually moved to Chicago in the early 20th century and had a daughter: Mildred Martinez, Pope’s mother.
The discovery means that Leo Xiv, as the Pope will be known, is not just the ground that breaks up to the first Pontiff to be born in the US. It also comes from a family that reflects the many threads that make up the complex and rich web of American history.
The Pope’s background was discovered on Thursday by a New Orleans General Jari C. Honora, and confirmed by the New York Times by Pope’s oldest brother John Prevost, 71 years old, living in the suburbs of Chicago.
“This discovery is just an additional reminder of how intertwined we are as Americans,” Mr Honora said in a text message late Thursday. “I hope it will emphasize the long history of black Catholics, both free and enslaved, in this country, which includes the St. Father’s family.”
It is not clear whether the new Pope has ever dealt with the Creole’s origin to the public, and his brother said the family did not recognize as black. The announcement of his elections in Rome focused on his early life in Chicago and decades of service in Peru.
Mr. Honora, who works in the Historic New Orleans collection, a museum in the French district, began to explore the Pope’s background due to the French name, prevost, but quickly found connections to the south.
The path of evidence connecting Leo to New Orleans includes the grandparents’ wedding certificate from the seventh Wedding in 1887, a photo of Martinez Family Grave Marker in Chicago and an electronic birth record of Mildred Martinez showing that he was born in Sikago in 1912.
The birth record lists Joseph Martinez and “Louis Baquiex” as Mildred’s parents. The father’s birthplace is listed as a Dominican Republic. The mother, the New Orleans.
Mr Honora also found records of the 1900 census that listed Mr Martinez as “black”, his birthplace as “Hayti”, and his profession as a “cigar manufacturer”. Mr Martinez’s details appear in the sixth line of a page of the census shared by Mr. Honora with the Times.
“Both Joseph Norval Martinez and Louise Baquié were people of color, no doubt about it,” Mr Honora said.
Joseph Martinez’s precise birthplace remains a little mystery – Mr. Honora also found an 1870 census record that says the Pope’s grandfather was born in Louisiana. But he said it was not uncommon for people to change their answers to officials’ records.
Joseph Martinez and Louise Baquié got married to Our Lady of the Holy Heart in New Orleans. Until it was destroyed by a hurricane in 1915, the church building was on Annette Street in the seventh chamber of the city, a historic center of the Afro-Creole cultivation.
Creoles, also known as “Creole People of Color”, have a story almost as old as Louisiana. While the word Creole may refer to people of European descent born in America, usually describes people with a mixed race.
Many Louisiana Creoles were known in the 18th and 19th centuries as “Gens de Couleur Libres”, or free people of color. Many were well educated, French and Roman Catholic.
During the decades, they established a place in business, building transactions and arts, especially music, with significant contributions to jazz development. They continue to be an important part in the famous heterogeneous culture of the city.
The revelation of the new Pope’s heritage is a huge time for the story of Louisiana Creles, said Lolita Villavasso Cherrie, co -founder with Mr. Honora of the Creole Genealogical and Historical Association.
“I hate to say it, but we feel, many of us, that our story was hidden by us,” said Villavasso Cherrie, 79, a retired teacher. In part, he said, this is due to the fact that many Creans have managed to “go” as white over the years.
Only with the arrival of the internet, he said that many people began to explore their family history and knew their roots. He noted that a significant number of Louisiana Creoles migrated to the Chicago area in the 20th century.
John Prevost, Pope’s brother, said their grandparents were from France and that his father was born in the United States. He said that he and his brothers did not discuss their roots.
“It was never a matter,” John Prevost said.
What means all this, when it comes to the Pope’s racial identity, touches some of the most thorny questions in American society, but also reflects the rich diversity of American experience.
“We are all a few points (or less than a few points) move away from each other,” said Honora, the genealist.
Julie Bossman References from Chicago contribute. Susan C. Beachy He contributed research.
