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she was Marie or Clarisse is not known) had a slave named S Rosine, who fathered a child also christened in the church; she named him Jean Wilfrane Lafiteau.
Relatives of the pirate? At best, we can only say perhaps. The disparity of ages does militate against any stronger assumption, but it is still instructive to follow Clarisse to her death, just in case she might have been the right Mrs. Lafitte. Her will, signed with an “X” on October 31, 1857 and probated on February 22, 1858, describes her property as being “300 feet deep and the same width as that of John Fayard.” This land, which included her house, was sold by the estate for $650. After the giving of three slaves to her friends, her personal estate was auctioned for $29.65. Debts of $388.50, including legal fees of $300 (“an act of R. Seal for professional services rendered in said estate”) were satisfied by the sale of the land.
If Clarisse somehow was the widow of the pirate, she had little to show for all the fabled wealth he derived from his adventures on the high seas.
In summation, mysteries abound about the Pirate House. It is perhaps significant that any attempt to disprove the legends results only in the recognition of possibilities.


Pirate House Document (077)
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