Item 60: Letter from Michel Hyppolite Durand du Repaire and Jean Armand Grant [de Luxolière] de Bellussière to Harrison Wright, 1831 May 13
Item — Box: 2, Folder: 60
Dates
- Created: 1831 May 13
Creator
Disclaimer for Name and Subject Authorities
Some of the name and subject authority tags have been assigned by educated guessing and estimation of persons and subjects by region, age, profession, and familial relationships. They have been thoroughly researched by using primary and secondary sources available digitally, and named in each description, or in some cases linked directly to the person tag.
Access:
All series and subseries within this collection are open for research, with the exception of a few files within the Academia series that are restricted. The Academia series contains financial and sensitive institutional records from Wilkes College, and financial report records from Princeton University that will remain restricted for 80 years upon creation.
Extent
1 items
Language of Materials
From the Collection: English
Type of Material:
Letter
Condition Note:
Good.
Measurements:
10 ⅛ in. x 7 7/16 in. (letter closed); 10 ⅛ in. x 14 ¾ in. (letter open); 1 ⅛ in. x 3 9/16 in. (archivist note)
Title:
Mr Harrisson Wright attorney at Law at Wilkesbarre[sic] [Wilkes-Barre]
Description:
The following is a signed letter from Michel Hyppolite Durand du Repaire [Michel Hippolite Durand du Repaire] and Jean Armand Grant de Bellusière [Jean Armand Grant de Luxolière de Bellusière] to Harrison Wright of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, sent on May 13, 1831, from the “French Village.” The letter seems to be regarding the negotiation and payment of debt. Durand du Repaire and Grant [de Luxolière] de Bellussière recognize that Mr. Harrison Wright was successful in getting the debt reduced to $240 (worth approximately $8,760 in 2025), and the gentlemen state that they have enclosed a check of $100 (worth approximately $3,600 in 2025). They promise to pay the remaining balance. Although he does not provide his signature, Louis Francis de Roux is included in the list of responsible parties within the letter. The black ink on the back of the manuscript dated May 16, 1831, appears to have been written by a different hand. Durand du Repaire was a French lawyer and was named as the godfather of a child in Nontron, France, in 1823. Grant [de Luxolière] de Bellusière may have been a lieutenant of the cavalry and may have lived in Périgueux, France. Harrison Wright was a lawyer and a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for several months before his death on August 26, 1856. Louis Francis de Roux [Louis François de Roux] likely refers to the husband of Marie Celeste de Roux. There are no records of Durand du Repaire or Grant [de Luxolière] de Bellusière living outside of France, so it is possible that this letter is related to the affairs of de Roux. Marie Celeste de Roux was the niece of Stephen Girard, one of the wealthiest men in the United States at the time who owned significant tracts of land in Pennsylvania and opened his own bank in 1830. This letter may be related to deeds that were taken care of by Stephen Girard upon the closing of the First Bank of the United States. It is unclear where this letter was written from. French Azilum broke up in the late 1790s, however, a small number of settlers remained to build settlements of their own in the local area. “French Village” or “the West Branch” may refer to a settlement that broke off from the original French Azilum.
Location:
Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania; French Azilum; “French Village - West Branch”
Transcription:
[front]
Mr Harrisson Wright attorney at Law at Wilkesbarre[sic] [Wilkes-Barre]
Sir We have received your of 12th instant saying you have succeeded in getting the debt to be reduced to $240, with a delai[sic] [delay] of payment, for [the] greatest part of the Sum. We accept, and are glad to put [an] end to this case. We send you inclosed[sic] [enclosed] in this letter, a check of $100 on the bank of Pennsylvania. it will be cheaper for us than to send a commissioner. We will pay the balance of the change. For the deed our names are as follows, - Louis Francis de Roux - Jean Armand Grant de Bellussière - Michel Hyppolite Durand du Repaire We are very respectfully yours A G Bellussière [Signature] Hte.D. Du Repaire [Signature]
French village May 13 1831
[back]
Du Repaire + De Bellussiere. May 16, 1831 Ans[were]d
[paper note from former archivist] This was not Asylum but a settlement in the West Branch
Mr Harrisson Wright attorney at Law at Wilkesbarre[sic] [Wilkes-Barre]
Sir We have received your of 12th instant saying you have succeeded in getting the debt to be reduced to $240, with a delai[sic] [delay] of payment, for [the] greatest part of the Sum. We accept, and are glad to put [an] end to this case. We send you inclosed[sic] [enclosed] in this letter, a check of $100 on the bank of Pennsylvania. it will be cheaper for us than to send a commissioner. We will pay the balance of the change. For the deed our names are as follows, - Louis Francis de Roux - Jean Armand Grant de Bellussière - Michel Hyppolite Durand du Repaire We are very respectfully yours A G Bellussière [Signature] Hte.D. Du Repaire [Signature]
French village May 13 1831
[back]
Du Repaire + De Bellussiere. May 16, 1831 Ans[were]d
[paper note from former archivist] This was not Asylum but a settlement in the West Branch
Creator
Repository Details
Part of the Wilkes University Archives Repository
Contact:
84 W South St.
Wilkes-Barre PA 18701 US
570-408-2000
570-408-7823 (Fax)
ask.archives@wilkes.edu
84 W South St.
Wilkes-Barre PA 18701 US
570-408-2000
570-408-7823 (Fax)
ask.archives@wilkes.edu