Pierre Evariste Jean-Baptiste Bossier

Bossier Parish is named for Pierre Bossier, a 19th-century Louisiana state senator and U.S. representative from Natchitoches Parish.

Pierre Evariste Jean-Baptiste Bossier (March 22, 1797 – April 24, 1844) was a soldier, planter, and politician born in Natchitoches, Louisiana. Bossier Parish (pronounced BO ZURE), which includes the parish seat of Benton and the larger Bossier City, located east of the Red River from Shreveport, is named for him.

Bossier was the son of Francois Paul Bossier and the former Catherine Pelagie Lambre. He received a classical education privately. He was a cotton and sugar planter on his plantation, Live Oaks, on the Cane River, formerly a segment of the Red River, in Natchitoches Parish. He was also a general in the state militia.

Having entered politics as a Democrat, Bossier was a member of the Louisiana state Senate from 1833 to 1843. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from north Louisiana from March 4, 1843, until his death in Washington, D.C.

Representative Bossier is interred in the Catholic Cemetery in Natchitoches.

US Congressman. Elected to represent Louisiana's 4th District in the Twenty-Eighth Congress, he served from 1843 until his death in office. Pierre Evariste Jean-Baptiste Bossier was born in Natchitoches, Louisiana, the descendant of French Creoles who were among the first settlers of the Louisiana Territory in the early 1700s. He grew cotton and sugar on his plantation, Live Oaks, along the Cane River, and was also appointed a General in the State Militia. From 1833 to 1843 he served in the State Senate, a period that saw much strife between the Democrats and the Whigs in Natchitoches Parish. In September 1839 Bossier killed Francois Gainnie, a local Whig politician and fellow Militia General, in a duel; the incident divided the region and resulted in 11 more fatal duels being fought there over the next two years. Despite the controversy he won the 1842 election to Congress by a wide margin. He died of tuberculosis 13 months into his term. Originally buried at Washington, DC's Congressional Cemetery, Bossier was reinterred at the Catholic Cemetery in Natchitoches on January 3, 1845. Louisiana's Bossier Parish was created in his memory, and its largest metropolitan area, Bossier City, is named for him.

• Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Dec 23 2023, 23:17:54 UTC

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