Family Photographs: Memories and Histories

From Mauritius to the USA

The Roussel family from Mauritius have families settled in the USA, Australia, France and South Africa. This is their American story.

This story begins in 1867, when Celeste Marie Eudoxie Roussel, married Ange Edmond de Lapeyre. Ange Edmond was a lawyer in Mauritius. They had 2 children, Maxime and Delphine. The de la Garrigue’s of France, and the de LaPeyre/Roussel’s were family friends. The de la Garrigue’s had 3 children. Leopold, Helene and Elizabeth.

South Africa

Maxime de Lapeyre married Helene de la Garrigue and moved to South Africa along with Maxime’s parents, brother George and three of his sisters. In the meantime, the de la Garrigue’s had a family accident that left their father disabled. Leopold contacted his sister, Helene, in S. Africa to ask for help. He was at University and was struggling to take care of the family. Helene told her brother, Leopold, to bring the family to S. Africa as there would be plenty of work for him, as he was a civil engineer and architect. On March 30, 1898 the de la Garrigue’s, Leopold and his parents, left for South Africa. They arrived in Natal South Africa, May 1898. There they met up with Ange Edmond and Celeste Marie Eudoxie De Lapeyre, Maxime and Helene, and Maxime’s sister, Delphine. Delphine de Lapeyre and Leopold de la Garrigue married May 8, 1900 by the bishop of Natal. In their time in S. Africa, they had 3 children and lost one of those children and lost Leopold’s mother. Leopold and Delphine’s family grew. Leopold worked for the South African government as an architect until 1906 when there was no longer any work. Leopold had heard of work in Argentina and said he “heard it was beautiful there.” They left S. Africa in 1909. Leopold, Delphine, children, Maxime, Helene and children, Leopold’s father and Delphine’s parents arrived in Argentina March 1906. Leopold worked in Argentina until 1909 when there was no longer any work.

America

In 1909 Leopold, Delphine, children (one more born in Argentina) and Delphine’s parents left for Montreal Canada. Maxime, Helene and Leopold’s father stayed behind in Argentina.

They travelled by ship and Leopold, Delphine and her parents arrive in Quebec late May 1909. They stayed for six months but Leopold could not find work so they moved to Los Angeles, California in October 1909. Leopold got a job as a structural and construction engineer. He worked for an architectural company until 1930 when it closed. After that, Leopold couldn’t find work anywhere in California because they all said he was “too old” at the age of 64. Leopold and Delphine had 2 more children in Los Angeles. In 1943 Delphine passed away and Leopold in 1965, both in Los Angeles, California, United States of America.