Parlez-vous français?

142 years ago, this letter was written by Arnaud Casenave to his brother, Pierre Casenave. Pierre Casenave was my great-great-grandfather who left the Basque country of France to settle in Los Angeles.


From 1866 to 1883, letters were written back and forth between France and Los Angeles. The original letters, all written in French, were passed from Pierre Casenave, to his son Marcus Casenave, to my grandmother Jeanne Casenave, then to my father Howard Lawson, Jr. and finally to me. Not ever having learned any French, I was left to wonder what mysteries they held.


Now thanks to the internet, one of the letters written from Los Angeles to France has been located in the hands of a distant cousin in France. This letter is from Pierre's wife, Cayetana Alaniz, telling the French relatives of Pierre's death. Distant cousin speaks limited English, so maybe we will begin to unravel the mystery. In the meantime, I have got to find a translator and figure out what these letters say!