Gone Too Soon
Ginger DeVilbiss Tracy was only 9 years old when she lost her mother. Seven decades later, she talked about her memories of her mother as some family members were gathered around visiting after attending the 2000 Domingue Reunion. Fortunately, Wayne Swindell had his video camera rolling and captured her comments.
Spelling
You will notice that I spelled her name “Emelina” and the obituary spelled it “Mealie”. I chose to use the spelling that Ginger used in her notes that she shared with me.
Before 1778, Louisiana was a Spanish Province and was severely restricted in having commerce with foreign nations. After 1778, these restrictions were lifted and Spain adopted more moderate and progressive measures which
Source: Introduction to the canary island migration to Louisiana
Francoise Gustave was a farmer by trade and was a vey small man. He spoke only Spanish. Coralie was a very big woman and spoke only French. No one know how they communicated.
She had a stroke after her husband’s death and could only say “Ka-Ka-Pa”, which became her nickname.