Denegre, Walter Denis

Submitted by Mike Miller

Denegre, Walter Denis.---Among those families of French descent which have settled in Louisiana and added to the lustre of the family name since coming here and which have been entitled to much credit for upright manhood in civil and political matters of the state, that of Denegre stands among the most prominent. John Denegre, a native of Montaubon, France, settled first in Santo Domingo, and later in Southampton county, Va., and is the first of the immediate family under consideration here who came to America. In his adopted country he married Miss Mary Blow Cobb and became a member of the house of the Virginia Burgesses. His son was James Denis Denegre, who in 1838 left Virginia and located in New Orleans. Here as president of the Citizens' bank he became one of the best known financiers in the South. While in Paris in 1864 the portfolio of minister of finance of Mexico was tendered to and declined by him under the Emperor Maximilian. His death occurred in Brussels, 1865. While living in New Orleans, he married Miss Sylvanie Blanc, daughter of Evariste Blanc, of that city. Their son, Walter Denis Denegre, whose name is at the head of this sketch, was born June 17, 1858. He was educated at Jesuits' college in New Orleans, and after 2 years at St. Johns' college, Fordham, New York, he entered Harvard, where he graduated in 1879. Succeeding this, he took a 2 years' course in law at Tulane university and was admitted to the bar in 1881. He entered at once into the active practice of his profession, and was successively a member of the firms of Bayne, Denegre & Denegre; Denegre & Denegre; Denegre, Blair & Denegre. Mr. Denegre became one of the most conspicuous members of the New Orleans bar and was chosen in 1881 as a special counsel for the United States before the French and American claim commission. Mr. Denegre at once began to take an active interest in public questions, and following the footsteps of his family, aligned himself with the democratic party. In 1884 such were political conditions in this state, and such were abuses of the government of the city of New Orleans that it was necessary to devise some method of opposing the political machine in the city, which styled itself democratic, but in which the government was not by the consent of the governed, but by the dictation of a few ward bosses, and so made possible by the false returns of their election commissioners. Under the plea of rejecting the negro vote, the machine was counting out the vote of every white man who differed with its policy, perpetuating an organization whose chief object was to secure the spoils of office at the sacrifice of all honesty in election. While willing to go to any extreme to prevent a return of the evils of reconstruction, Mr. Denegre rebelled against any attempt to count out the white man, and in 1884 began the assertion of independence as a democrat by joining a movement to rid New Orleans of the dictation of a machine responsible for this misgovernment. The movement crystallized into the organization known as the "Independent Democratic Association," which put up a city ticket of its own, but endorsed the regular democratic state ticket. While the efforts of democrats of independence, in 1884, failed of election, so dishonest was the conduct of the election niachine so flagrant its falsification of the returns, that a healthier public sentiment was aroused in New Orleans. This sentiment grew in force owing to the unsatisfactory administration of the city officers by those declared to be elected by this dishonest election, and in 1888 the seed of 1884 bore fruit in the organization known as the "Young Men's Democratic Association," in which Mr. Denegre took a leading part and won a signal victory over the city ring and installed an administration more productive of good for the city and state than any in office up to that time. The emancipation of the thoughtful men by the canipaigns of 1884, 1888, and 1892, followed by the disgraceful administration of city affairs by the government imposed by the bosses, again aroused public sentiment and pointed the necessity of again taking the city government out of the hands of the creatures of the ring. This was the birth of the "Citizens' League,'' which was dominated by democrats and whose active leaders were democrats. Mr. Denegre was one of these leaders. The members of the legislature who belonged to this league asked Mr. Denegre to become a candidate for a seat in the United States senate, an election to which was to take place in May, 1896. Although having made other plans for his time, he consented to become a candidate. May 28, 1896, he received the 67 votes necessary for election, but the presiding officer declared that Mr. Denegre had received only 66, when it was well known that Mr. Troselair had demanded a change of his vote prior to the votes being announced. This change would have elected Mr. Denegre, and by this means he was unfairly deprived of a seat in the United States senate. He was married in 1893 to Mrs. Bertha Armour, widow of William Armour, and daughter of Silas Cobb, of Chicago. Socially Mr. Denegre and his family have been very prominent in New Orleans, and in 1899 he was king of the carnival. He is a member of the Boston club (New Orleans), University, Racquet, Harvard, Brook clubs (New York), Myopia Hunt, Essex County (Massachusetts), and Metropolitan club, of Washington. He was also a member of the board of administrators of Tulane university, and for some years a lieutenant-colonal in the Louisiana state national guard on the staff of Maj.-Gen. John Glynn, Jr. In 1889 he was among those who helped suppress the Mafia in New Orleans.

Source: Louisiana: Comprising Sketches of Parishes, Towns, Events, Institutions, and Persons, Arranged in Cyclopedic Form (volume 3), pp. 122-124. Edited by Alcee Fortier, Lit.D. Published in 1914, by Century Historical Association.