Discovering Cat Island: Photographs and History

DISCOVERING CAT ISLAND

DISCOVERING CAT ISLAND

Photographs and History

John Cuevas | Photography by Jason Taylor

University Press of Mississippi / Jackson

www.upress.state.ms.us

The University Press of Mississippi is a member

of the Association of American University Presses.

Designed by Todd Lape

All photographs taken by Jason Taylor unless otherwise noted.

Copyright © 2018 by John Cuevas

Photographs copyright © Jason Taylor

All rights reserved

Manufactured in China

First printing 2018

∞

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Cuevas, John, 1942– author.

Title: Discovering Cat Island: photographs and history / John Cuevas ; photography by Jason Taylor.

Description: Jackson : University Press of Mississippi, Jackson, 2018. | Includes bibliographical references and index. |

Identifiers: LCCN 2017032088 (print) | LCCN 2017042740 (ebook) | ISBN 9781496816085 (epub single) | ISBN 9781496816092 (epub institutional) | ISBN 9781496816108 (pdf single) | ISBN 9781496816115 (pdf institutional) | ISBN 9781496816078 (cloth : alk. paper)

Subjects: LCSH: Historic sites—Mississippi—Cat Island—Guidebooks. | Historic sites—Mississippi—Cat Island. | Cat Island (Miss.)—Buildings, structures, etc. | Cat Island (Miss.)—History. | Cat Island (Miss.)—Biography.

Classification: LCC F347.H3 (ebook) | LCC F347.H3 C845 2018 (print) | DDC 976—dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017032088

British Library Cataloging-in-Publication Data available

For the descendants of Juan de Cuevas

It is beyond my power to describe the scenes about me today with sufficient vividness to transport my casual reader hence. But it is quite easy for me, sitting on a lofty elevation as white and barren as the driven snow, to imagine myself in the wintry North rather than the summery South. Cat Island, as a whole, has more verdure (vegetation) upon it than any of the others in the gulf. There are beautifully green live-oak trees and feathery pines, upon whose tops one can look down dreamily from the great sand hill in the center of the island, and the dead, starchy whiteness is intensified by the contrast. It is a weird place to look at before one lands (or sands, one might say, perhaps) upon it. It is a strange spot to wander upon, with its long stretches of wave-washed beach, shining desolately in the hot sun, and not a human being visible unless one can plod to the extreme limit where stands the towering white lighthouse.

—Ella A. Giles, a special correspondent with the Wisconsin State Journal (January 1890)

CONTENTS

FOREWORD

Here is your country. Cherish these natural wonders, cherish the natural resources, cherish the history and romance as a sacred heritage, for your children and your children’s children.

—Theodore Roosevelt

Cat Island is truly one of Mississippi’s greatest natural resources. This barrier island is rich in history, dating back to its discovery by the French in 1699. Our island has survived centuries of changes in ownership and tropical storms. It is a part of the culture of Mississippi and remains a jewel of the Gulf Coast. The history and architectural significance of this island make it deserving of preservation for all Mississippians.

When I first took office, Cat Island was the only barrier island off the Mississippi Gulf Coast with a significant portion of its acreage in private ownership. It was my opinion such a valuable resource should be kept for all generations to come. In 2013, the secretary of state’s office, on behalf of the citizens of Mississippi, purchased approximately two hundred acres of Cat Island from a longtime private landowner. After years of negotiation, the secretary of state’s office finalized a transaction in 2016 to acquire almost five hundred additional acres without expending any state funds. Plans to replenish Cat Island’s beaches over the next several years will also add to the state’s acreage and will continue to protect the island’s natural state and preserve its historical significance. Cat Island provides extraordinary opportunities for recreational activities to Mississippi residents and guests. It is my hope that future generations will learn and appreciate the rich three-hundred-year history of Cat Island. Just as important, I am pleased to ensure the island’s future preservation for your children and your children’s children.

With thanks for allowing me to serve,

DELBERT HOSEMANN

Mississippi Secretary of State

Over the years, I have seen the island’s many moods, from stormy to calm, from threatening to serene.

PREFACE

Cat Island has been named as the site of some of the most dramatic events and remarkable stories in the history of the United States. While some of these are factual narratives, others are colorful fables that are true only in the hearts and minds of the many who have passed them down with conviction through the centuries. Despite this gumbo of fact and fiction, it is undeniable that Cat Island is one of the most historically significant landmarks on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

Over the years, I have seen the island’s many moods—from stormy to calm, from threatening to serene—each reflecting the triumphs and tragedies of Cat Island’s tumultuous past in local and Cuevas family lore. The stories include a mutiny against an immoral and malicious military captain killed at the hands of his rebellious men, the execution of a falsely accused bystander as the only American to have died on the horrendous French breaking wheel, the punishment of a man for a forgivable crime by placing him in a box and sawing him in half, the commandeering by Baratarian pirates of boats in the gulf, the running of booze by the notorious gangster Al Capone from the coast to Chicago, and the sudden appearance of the mighty British navy stretched out in the morning fog. These are only a few of the exciting sagas told about the island’s past.

Since Cat Island can sometimes be seen from the mainland, there has always been a mystical aura about it. There are days when the line of trees extending across its northern shore appear to float, sitting just above the water and appearing so sharply and crisply that the trees can almost be counted. On other days the island seems to vanish completely as if it were playing a game of hide and seek with anyone who cared to notice. Peeking through the grey mist and heavy humidity of the coast, it winks and nods to highway travelers who try to imagine what secrets it holds.¹ Many pass it daily and wonder, what is it like out there?

There is a mystical aura about Cat Island. Sometimes it can be seen from the mainland, appearing so sharp and clear that the trees can almost be counted. On other days, the island vanishes completely in the humid air.

The blood-red sun slowly drifts below the horizon.

The brown pelicans dive into the gulf to catch unsuspecting trout swimming just below the surface.

Cat Island’s history is so rich in stories of love and hate, murder and mayhem, that only a Hollywood movie could do justice to many of its chapters. (Photo courtesy of John Cuevas.)

Those who have been fortunate enough to visit have experienced the romance of the atmosphere of Cat Island. They have felt the golden sun warm their skin and the softness of the sand as they walked barefoot along the shore. They have tasted the salty spray blowing cool against their lips. They have heard the rolling surf, the squawking gulls, and the summer wind rustling through the pines. They have seen the sleepy lagoons and the moss-draped oaks. They have marveled at the brown pelicans diving into the gulf to catch unsuspecting trout swimming just below the surface. They have watched in awe as the blood-red sun slowly drifted below the horizon and have looked up to count the white stars sparkling like ice crystals in the winter sky. They have heard the rumble of thunder that emerges like timpani, announcing the onset of an afternoon storm. Such is the beauty and allure of Cat Island.

This tiny ghost crab is just one of the fascinating creatures that welcomes visitors to the island. Despite such beauty and charm, very few people know Cat Island’s history, and even fewer have actually been there.

But what makes Cat Island so unique in the history of the coast is not its beauty or the island’s many tales but the personal attachment that so many feel to it. Cat Island is the ancestral home to many of the first pioneer families living along the coast. The catalogue of family names with some connection to Cat Island reads like a who’s who of Gulf Coast history. Among these are Ladner, Fountain, Favre, Nicaise, Seymour, Mauffray, Morin, Garriga, Krohn, Caillavet, Garcia, Guardia, Dubuisson, Dedeaux, Fayard, Hoda, Carcaux, Saucier, Malley, Cuevas, and Quave. The list of those connected to Cat Island through the Ladner/Cuevas family also includes such notable personalities as William H. Macy, Pete Fountain, Hale Boggs, Cokie Roberts, Brett Favre, Diane Ladd, and Laura Dern.²

Some of the descendants of the Ladner/Cuevas family feel so strongly about the island even today that many hold on to the notion that it is still theirs. Somehow, through the years, they developed the belief that it was unjustly taken from them. Even when confronted with the facts, they refuse to give up the idea that Cat Island rightfully belongs to the family. This belief has been formulated over years of stories told and retold by parents and grandparents, becoming so deeply planted in the minds of the current generation that the old stories seem as real today as they were two centuries ago. This is the extraordinary relationship that has developed between the family and Cat Island over so many generations.

The white stars sparkle like ice crystals in the winter sky.

The rumble of thunder emerges like distant timpani, announcing the onset of an afternoon storm.

The sound of the children’s laughter is sometimes heard in the chattering of the gulls.

Visitors to the island who know of the family connection and the island’s many tales sometimes report hearing the sound of soft, whispering voices—echoes from the past—in the foamy surf rolling gently against the shore, or the sound of the Cuevas children’s laughter in the chattering of the gulls. And then, in those special times, when the lighting is just right, some say they catch a glimpse of what seems to be a shadowy figure peering from behind the moss-covered oaks. Half-expecting to come face-to-face with Jean Lafitte or one of his crusty pirates, they turn to take a second glance, only to find the shape has vanished like a vapor in the salty air. This