Page:History of Southeast Missouri 1912 Volume 1.djvu/157

 HISTORY OF SOUTHEAST MISSOURI' 9T Another of the early French settlers was Etienne Bogliolo who had been a resident of St. Louis, but early moved to New Madrid and engaged in trading. He secured some large grants of laud from the Spanish au- thorities, but lost his property and died poor. Another of the French settlers was John B. Olive. He left numerous descendants who still live in New Madrid county. Still an- other was John LaValle. He came to New Madrid direct from France and w^as a man of education and of superior intellect. Of his descendants, many still live in the eouuty. Of the men who came with Morgan, one of the most prominent was Doctor Richard Jones Waters. Waters was a native of Mary- land, he came to New Madrid about 1790 and began the practice of his profession. Besides being a physician he was also a trader, mill owner, and land speculator. He married the widow of Louis Vaudenbenden. The Waters family of New Madrid are de- scendants of Richard Jones Waters. He left a large estate and was an energetic, enterpris- ing man. De Lassus rated him as a good officer, but referred to his somewhat extrava- gant disposition. Barthelemi Tardiveau was a Frenchman .who came to New Madrid with Morgan. He was a native of France and lived in Holland and had been a merchant in Louisville. He was a very able, energetic man, and was probably the most cultured man in the early settlement. He was a master of several dif- ferent languages including French, Eng- lish, and Spanish, as well as a number of Indian tongues. The company with which he was associated was, perhaps, the most ex- tensive trading company in New Madrid district. He came to New Madrid after some experience east of the river which satisfied him that if the French in America were to prosper they must remove to the west side of the Mississippi. While living in the east he had interested himself in securing large grants of land from Congress for the benefit of French settlers and in satisfaction of their claims which had originated from Indian grants. He was fairly successful in this matter, but he soon saw that the very land he had been granted slipped out of the hands of the French and into the possession of the Americans. This convinced him that the French people would not prosper unless they got further away from the Americans. This conviction led him to give his assistance and influence to the .support of Morgan's scheme. He not only followed Morgan to New Madrid, but he induced others of his friends and ac- quaintances to do the same. Steinbeck and Reinecke, the traders whom we have noted as being established in Cape (jrirardeau, had a trading post at New Ma- drid also, they were further interested at Little Prairie. Bogliolo was also a trader as was the firm of Derbigny, La Forge & Com- pany. About 1804 Robert Goah Watson, a Scotch- man by birth, but who had resided in Vin- cennes, Indiana, and also in Nova Scotia moved to New- Madrid. He engaged in trade and acquired a large fortune. He was a man of great energy and ability and had the re- spect and confidence of all the people of the community. He was noted for his kind and charitable disposition and rendered such ser- vice to the community that he was aifection- ately referred to as the Father of the Coun- try. Watson Avas killed on his farm near Point Pleasant. He left a large family of children, consisting of four sons and five daughters. One of his daughters married John Nathaniel Watson, another Doctor Ed-