Dudley Joseph "Cousin Dud" LeBlanc (August 16, 1894 -- October 22, 1971) was a popular Democratic and Cajun member of the Louisiana State Senate whose entrepreneurial talents netted him a fortune through the alcohol-laden patent medicine known as "Hadacol." He is also considered the "father of the old age pension" in Louisiana. August 16 is the 228th day of the year (229th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1894 (MDCCCXCIV) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... October 22 is the 295th day of the year (296th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 70 days remaining. ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday. ... The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States; the other being the Republican Party. ... This article is about an ethnic culture. ... Official language(s) de jure: none de facto: English & French Capital Baton Rouge Largest city Baton Rouge [1] Area  Ranked 31st  - Total 51,885 sq mi (134,382 km²)  - Width 130 miles (210 km)  - Length 379 miles (610 km)  - % water 16  - Latitude 29°N to 33°N  - Longitude 89°W... Hadacol was a patent medicine marketed as a vitamin supplement. ... A pension (also known as superannuation) is a retirement plan intended to provide a person with a secure income for life. ...

Early years and military service

LeBlanc was born to Numa and Noemie LeBlanc in the farming community of LeBlanc near Youngsville, in Lafayette Parish. The LeBlancs moved to Erath in Vermilion Parish, when he was a toddler. He considered Vermilion Parish as his home throughout his life, though technically he was not a native of that parish. He graduated from Erath High School. When he turned 18, LeBlanc graduated from the institution now known as the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. At the time it was called "Southwestern Louisiana Institute." LeBlanc self-financed his college expenses by running a pressing business at night. The operation was so successful that he reportedly helped to put two cousins through school as well. Youngsville is a town located in Lafayette Parish, Louisiana. ... Lafayette Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. ... Erath is a town in Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, United States. ... Vermilion Parish is a parish located in the state of Louisiana. ... The University of Louisiana at Lafayette, or UL Lafayette[1], is a coeducational public research university located in Lafayette, Louisiana, in the heart of Acadiana. ...

After he graduated from college, LeBlanc became a high-powered salesman of tobacco, shoes, crude oil, and, later, patent medicines. He was so successful that he sent each of his four brothers through college. "Then I went into the U.S. Army. Educating my brothers took it all," LeBlanc quipped. The Army is the branch of the United States armed forces which has primary responsibility for land-based military operations. ...

LeBlanc was a sergeant during World War I. His adulthood was spent primarily in Abbeville, the seat of Vermilion Parish, where LeBlanc had a large, comfortable home. Another gubernatorial hopeful, Republican Charlton Havard Lyons, Sr., was born in Abbeville. Lyons lost the 1964 general election to John Julian McKeithen. Combatants Allied Powers: Russian Empire France British Empire Italy United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary German Empire Ottoman Empire Bulgaria Commanders Nikolay II Aleksey Brusilov Georges Clemenceau Joseph Joffre Ferdinand Foch Robert Nivelle Herbert H. Asquith D. Lloyd George Sir Douglas Haig Sir John Jellicoe Victor Emmanuel III Luigi Cadorna... Collégiale St Vulfran Beffroi Abbeville is a city in the Picardie région, in the north of France. ... The Republican Party is a one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States; the other being the Democratic Party. ... Charlton Havard Lyons, Sr. ... 1964 (MCMLXIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1964 calendar). ... A general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are up for election. ... John Julian McKeithen (May 28, 1918 -- June 4, 1999), a Democrat from the tiny town of Columbia in Caldwell Parish in northeastern Louisiana, was the first governor of his state to serve two consecutive terms. ...

Tangling with Huey P. Long, Jr.

In 1924, LeBlanc was elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives. He ran because he did not think that the incumbent representative had done a good job of bringing roads into Vermilion Parish. A story persists that the representative dared LeBlanc to run against him, and LeBlanc accepted the challenge and narrowly unseated the lawmaker. 1924 (MCMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar). ...

LeBlanc served only a half term in the state House because he was elected in 1926 to one of the then three seats on the Louisiana Public Service Commission, the utility rate-making body. He defeated the candidate supported by Huey P. Long. LeBlanc's district covered all of the southwestern third of the state. The commission was expanded to five members under the Louisiana Constitution of 1974. Year 1926 (MCMXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar). ... Louisiana Public Service Commission (LPSC) is an independent regulatory agency serving the public of Louisiana by managing its public utilities and motor carriers. ... 1974 (MCMLXXIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ...

LeBlanc provided the third swing vote to remove Long as the PSC chairman, as Long was attempting to use the position to promote his pending gubernatorial candidacy. LeBlanc accused Long of being a "slacker" in World War I. Combatants Allied Powers: Russian Empire France British Empire Italy United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary German Empire Ottoman Empire Bulgaria Commanders Nikolay II Aleksey Brusilov Georges Clemenceau Joseph Joffre Ferdinand Foch Robert Nivelle Herbert H. Asquith D. Lloyd George Sir Douglas Haig Sir John Jellicoe Victor Emmanuel III Luigi Cadorna...

The 1932 gubernatorial campaign

LeBlanc and Huey P. Long, Jr., both being salesmen, had become friends during the 1920s. By the time that LeBlanc decided to run for governor in 1932, they were bitter intraparty rivals. Long, himself a former public service commissioner, threw his support to the eventual gubernatorial winner, Oscar K. Allen of Winnfield. There were reports of fraud in the balloting, but the election was not close. Allen prevailed with 214,699 votes (56.5 percent) to LeBlanc's 110,848 ballots (29 percent). A third candidate, George Guion, polled 53,756 votes (14.2 percent). Some fishermen even claimed to have seen ballot boxes floating down the Mississippi River. Huey Pierce Long, Jr. ... The 1920s is a decade sometimes referred to as the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties, usually applied to America. ... Year 1932 (MCMXXXII) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link will take you to a full 1932 calendar). ... Oscar Kelly Allen Oscar Kelly Allen, Sr. ... Winnfield is a small city located in Winn Parish, Louisiana. ... The Mississippi River, derived from the old Ojibwe word misi-ziibi meaning great river (gichi-ziibi big river at its headwaters), is the second-longest named river in North America, with a length of 2320 miles (3733 km) from Lake Itasca to Gulf of Mexico. ...

In the 1932 campaign, LeBlanc spent more time attacking Long than he did Allen. Long retaliated: in stump speeches, he poked fun at LeBlanc's French name, much as Long's brother, Earl Kemp Long, later ridiculed then New Orleans Mayor deLesseps Story Morrison, Sr., in the 1955 gubernatorial primary. Earl Kemp Long (26 August 1895 - 5 September 1960) was an American politician and three-time Governor of Louisiana. ... New Orleans is the largest city in the state of Louisiana, United States of America. ... de Lesseps Story Morrison (1912 January 18–1964 May 22) was a U.S. political figure. ...

Long also criticized LeBlanc's funeral business, which catered to blacks:

"He [LeBlanc] charges for a coffin and charges $7.50 for a shroud. I am infomed that the [expletive deleted] is laid out, and after the mourners have left, LeBlanc takes the body into a back room, takes off the shroud and nails him up into a pine box and buries him at a total of $3.67 and a half cent."

Historian T. Harry Williams of Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge wrote that LeBlanc's black clients were so outraged by the possibility that the shoruds might be being used more than once that they deserted LeBlanc's business in droves. Thomas Harry Williams (May 19, 1909 -- July 6, 1979) was an award-winning historian at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge whose career began in 1941 and extended for thirty-eight years until his death. ... Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College at Baton Rouge, generally known as Louisiana State University or LSU, is a public, coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and the main campus of the Louisiana State University System. ... Capitol Building Baton Rouge is the capital of Louisiana, a state of the United States of America. ...

It was during this losing campaign for governor that LeBlanc began calling for a $30 old-age pension. Years later, Governor John McKeithen, who found LeBlanc charming and humorous, declared LeBlanc the "father of the old-age pension." By that time, the payments were $100 per month. McKeithen also considered returning LeBlanc to the post of president pro tempore of the state Senate, third in line in gubernatorial succession. LeBlanc was president pro tempore from 1948-1952). When controversy surfaced over the proposed appointment, McKeithen changed his mind. 1948 (MCMXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1948 calendar). ... 1952 (MCMLII) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Long was unable to succeed himself as governor but in the meantime had been elected to the U.S. Senate and was poised to take his "Share Our Wealth" philosophy nationwide to Washington, D.C. The United States Senate is the upper house of the U.S. Congress, smaller than the United States House of Representatives. ... Nickname: DC, The District Motto: Justitia Omnibus (Justice for All) Location of Washington, D.C., in relation to the states Maryland and Virginia Coordinates: Country United States Federal District District of Columbia Government  - Mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D)  - City Council Chairperson: Vincent C. Gray (D) Ward 1: Jim Graham (D...

After his defeat for governor, LeBlanc returned to another prosperous burial insurance business, the "Thibodaux Benevolent Association." Long ran LeBlanc out of Louisiana by getting the legislature to pass a law forbidding LeBlanc from operating his firm in the state. LeBlanc, therefore, moved the company to Texas, where it continued to prosper. After Long's assassination in 1935, LeBlanc sold that business and returned to Abbeville. Official language(s) English (de facto) See also languages of Texas Capital Austin Largest city Houston Area  Ranked 2nd  - Total 268,581 sq mi (695,622 km²)  - Width 773 miles (1,244 km)  - Length 790 miles (1,270 km)  - % water 2. ...

Four state senate terms

In 1940, LeBlanc was elected to the first of his four nonconsecutive terms in the state Senate. LeBlanc served from 1940-1944 (Sam Jones), 1948-1952 (second Earl Long administration), 1964-1968, and 1968-1971 ( McKeithen), when he died in office, with some seven months remaining in the term. 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1940 calendar). ... 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... 1948 (MCMXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1948 calendar). ... 1952 (MCMLII) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1964 (MCMLXIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1964 calendar). ... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday. ... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday. ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday. ...

At the time of his death, LeBlanc was also seeking a fifth term in the Senate, representing Vermilion and Acadia parishes. Acadia Parish is a parish located in the state of Louisiana. ...

LeBlanc also twice ran for the U.S. House: he waged unsuccessful Democratic primary challenges to the Lafayette-based incumbent Third District Representative Edwin E. Willis in 1952 and 1954. The House of Representatives is the larger of two houses that make up the U.S. Congress, the other being the United States Senate. ... Edwin Edward Willis (October 2, 1904-- October 24, 1972) was an American politician from the U.S. state of Louisiana. ... 1952 (MCMLII) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1954 (MCMLIV) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Campaigning in French

LeBlanc often campaigned in French when he made appearances in Acadiana. In his ethnic tongue, he extolled his virtues as a politician who deserved the support of his fellow French ethnics, and he attacked his opponents in a language that most of his rivals could not understand.

William J. "Bill" Dodd, a friend and sometimes rival of LeBlanc's, said that LeBlanc once addressed a political gathering in which Public Service Commissioner Ernest S. Clements, who did not speak French -- he was from mostly English Oberlin in Allen Parish -- was in attendance. A practical joker, LeBlanc had some fun with Clements: he assailed Huey and Earl Long AND Clements. There was Clements on the platform applauding as LeBlanc called him "a crook!" Only in Louisiana, it was said, could such politicking be commonplace. And, yes, on more than one occasion Earl Long called LeBlanc "a crook." William Joseph Bill Dodd (November 25, 1909--November 16, 1991) held some half dozen important positions in Louisiana government in the mid-twentieth century, including the offices of state representative, lieutenant governor, state auditor, president of the State Board of Education, and superintendent of education, but he never achieved his... Ernest S. Clements (April 17, 1898 -- May 1987) was a seemingly unlikely member of the Long political faction in Louisiana in a career which spanned 38 years from the 1930s to the 1970s. ... Oberlin is a town in Allen Parish, Louisiana. ... Allen Parish is a parish located in the state of Louisiana. ...

Dodd recalled an incident when he was lieutenant governor and presided over the state senate. LeBlanc was accused by an unnamed north Louisiana senator of having a financial interest in some proposed law. Dodd said in his memoirs, Peapatch Politics: The Earl Long Era in Louisiana Politics, that "Dudley had a hard time getting gung ho for any political act that didn't help him personally." The two senators nearly came to physical blows. Then the whole Senate burst into laughter, and two forgot their differences.

Running for governor again, 1944 and 1952

In 1944, LeBlanc surrendered his senate seat to make his second run for governor. He fared poorly. He polled only 40,392 votes (8.4 percent). Ernest Clements was running for governor too -- he polled about half as many votes as LeBlanc received. The winner that year was LeBlanc's fellow Democrat, Jimmie Davis, who won the first of his two nonconsecutive terms. Jimmie Davis James Houston Davis, better known as Jimmie Davis, (September 11, 1899 - November 5, 2000) was a noted singer of both sacred and popular songs who served two nonconsecutive terms as a Democratic governor of Louisiana in the mid-twentieth century. ...

LeBlanc returned to the state senate in 1948, only to give up the seat again in 1952, so that he could contest the gubernatorial nomination for the third time. He polled 62,906 votes (8.3 percent). The winner that year was Democrat, Robert F. Kennon, a judge from Minden in Webster Parish. Dodd was in the same race and also fared poorly, but he still received more votes than LeBlanc. Robert Floyd Kennon (August 12, 1902 - January 11, 1988) was the Democratic governor of the state of Louisiana, United States between 1952-1956. ... The small city of Minden is the parish seat of Webster Parish, in the U.S. state of Louisiana. ... Webster Parish is a parish located in the state of Louisiana. ...

LeBlanc used his state Senate seat to pass legislation to assist teachers, farmers, and veterans. He also developed the Louisiana Old Age Pension, originally $30 a month, for people over 65. At one point, he was outbidding the Longs on how much the state could afford to pay the aged.

In the 1947-1948 campaign -- the election was in January 1948, but most of the voter appeals were made in the fall of 1947 -- then State Representative Dodd, who himself was running for lieutenant governor on the Earl Long slate, and LeBlanc, who was running for a second term in the state senate, campaigned together for a few days. They used LeBlanc's comfortable Abbeville home as a base of operations in Acadiana. LeBlanc had supported anti-Long candidates Sam Houston Jones and James Houston Davis in 1940 and 1944, respectively. But in 1948, he supported Long, whom he expected to win, against Jones, who was trailing badly in a comeback attempt. Sam, Samantha or Samuel Jones can refer to a number of different people. ... Jimmie Davis James Houston Davis, better known as Jimmie Davis, (September 11, 1899 - November 5, 2000) was a noted singer of both sacred and popular songs who served two nonconsecutive terms as a Democratic governor of Louisiana in the mid-twentieth century. ...

In 1951, LeBlanc had considered running for lieutenant governor, which was then the presiding officer of the state senate, on Dodd's gubernatorial ticket. However, Earl Long, when he heard of LeBlanc's plans, had a friend tell an untruth about Dodd to LeBlanc. Long split the two old friends, as was his forte, but the breach was temporary. So LeBlanc and Dodd both ran unsuccessfully for governor. A Lieutenant Governor is a government official who is the subordinate or deputy of a Governor or Governor-General. ...

Defender of Cajun culture

In addition to his determined political activities, LeBlanc was a staunch defender of preserving Cajun culture in Louisiana. He served as president of the Association of Louisiana Acadians, and in the late 1960s, he worked to establish the interest group, CODOFIL, or the "Council for the Development of French in Louisiana." LeBlanc helped to make Louisiana the only bilingual state in the nation. CODOFILs logo. ...

LeBlanc wrote three books: The True Story of the Acadians in 1927, an "improved version" of the first book in 1932, and The Acadian Miracle in 1966. The latter was a revised and expanded edition of the first book. 1927 (MCMXXVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1966 calendar). ...

1957 indictment

LeBlanc was indicted in 1957 for fraudulently filing his federal income tax for the year 1951. The indictment was thrown out, however, when his attorneys filed a motion that LeBlanc could not properly defend himself because a U.S. District Court in New York had destroyed the records of his company after a 1952 bankruptcy hearing. 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... An income tax is a tax levied on the financial income of persons, corporations, or other legal entities. ... 1951 (MCMLI) was a common year starting on Monday; see its calendar. ... Notice of closure stuck on the door of a computer store the day after its parent company, Granville Technology Group Ltd, declared bankruptcy (strictly, put into administration - see text) in the UK. Bankruptcy is a legally declared inability or impairment of ability of a individuals or organizations to pay their...

LeBlanc's obituary

LeBlanc died of a massive stroke suffered at Abbeville General Hospital, where he had been admitted for emergency surgery for a gastric ulcer three days earlier.

Services were held on October 23, 1971, at St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church in Abbeville. LeBlanc was a member of the Catholic Church and had donated the land on which St. Theresa Catholic Church of Abbeville stands. He was interred in the St. Mary Magdalen Parish Cemetery.

Survivors included his widow, the former Evelyn Hebert (1897-1992), a schoolteacher whom he married in 1919; four sons, Dudley J. LeBlanc, Jr. (born 1921), of Lafayette, Roland Francis LeBlanc, Sr. (born 1925), and Morgan E. LeBlanc (born 1938), both of Abbeville, and Jean B. LeBlanc (also born 1938)of Baton Rouge; two daughters, Mrs. Kay (Lewis) Jarrell (born 1927) of Lafayette and Mrs. Bertha Anne (James) Curley (born 1934) of Alexandria; two brothers, Oliver J. LeBlanc, the Lafayette Parish clerk of court, and Paul LeBlanc of New Orleans, and 24 grandchildren. Two other brothers preceded him in death; Preston LeBlanc and Raoul (Ralph) LeBlanc (1898-1970). 1897 (MDCCCXCVII) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... Year 1919 (MCMXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar). ... Year 1921 (MCMXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for full calendar). ... 1925 (MCMXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar). ... Year 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1927 (MCMXXVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... Alexandria is a city in Louisiana and is the parish seat of Rapides Parish. ...

A grandson's innovation

Roland F. LeBlanc, Jr. (born 1954), of Abbeville, a grandson of Dudley LeBlanc, conceived the idea of turning the juice of sugar cane into jelly. Roland LeBlanc developed the product after three years of experiments, research, and travel. The produce is marketed under the corporate name "LeBlanc's Cane Jelly." LeBlanc innovation continues. 1954 (MCMLIV) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Louisiana Hall of Famer

The novelist and biographer Steven Longstreet compared LeBlanc with Huey Long, while LeBlanc was still living: "He's as good a speaker and as quick a thinker as Long was. But I don't think he has Long's streak of cruelty, and he has the quality that Long never had -- the ability to laugh at himself."

LeBlanc was posthumously inducted into the maiden class of the Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame in Winnfield in 1993. Presumably no one as colorful as he could have been omitted from the first Hall of Fame listings. Winnfield is a small city located in Winn Parish, Louisiana. ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ...

References

William J. "Bill" Dodd, Peapatch Politics: The Earl Long Era in Louisiana Politics, Baton Rouge: Claitor's Publishing, 1991

Obituaries of Dudley J. LeBlanc, Baton Rouge Morning Advocate, October 23, 1971; Lafayette Daily AdvertiserOctober 22, 1971; New Orleans Times-Picayune, October 23, 1971

http://www.sec.state.la.us/archives/leblanc/leblanc-1.htm

http://ssdi.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/ssdi.cgianc

Floyd Clay Martin, Coozan Dudley LeBlanc: From Huey Long to Hadacol

http://www.alibris.com/search/search.cfm?S=R&qwork=1336975&qsort=p&siteID=KLVmR9fE2yU-LcsUdqTmR6Odz.nkB9F.IA

Dudley J. LeBlanc, The True Story of the Acadians, Reprinted 1998 by Quintin Publications, Inc., Pawtucket, Rhode Island

http://www.acadian.org/leblanc.html

http://www.lpb.org/education/classroom/itv/serdesc.cfm?SerID=15

http://www.leblancjelly.com/about-us.htm http://www.cityofwinnfield.com/museum.html