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Jacques Clamorgan

© Lisa Perkins

Jacques Clamorgan (1734? - 1814), rumored to be a Haitian refugee, was said to have been of many different heritages, including Welsh, Portuguese, Spanish and African. Although little is known about his early life, Clamogan is said to have been a prominent landowner, entrepreneur, fur trader and early settler of St. Louis, Missouri.

Legend has it that Clamorgan left Haiti in 1780 bound for New Orleans with Jean Baptist DuSable. Along the way, their boat capsized and only Clamorgan and DuSable survived. DuSable founded the first settlement in Chicago and Clamorgan became one of the early settlers in St. Louis. Clamorgan was involved in the slave trade between Jamaica and New Orleans, and became a fur trader with Francois Marmillion by 1784. Clamorgan obtained exclusive rights to trade with the Native Americans of the upper Missouri River from Spain during this time. Clamorgan was also involved in exploring the Missouri River, looking for an overland trail to the Pacific. He tried and failed three times.

Clamorgan claimed rights to hundreds of thousands of acres throughout Missouri and Kansas; some say he even stole it from the Native Americans. There is record of his purchase of land from Native Americans for a yoke of oxen, a cow and two sows. On this property, in the city now known as St. Louis, Missouri, he built a small house and lived in it until he sold it to Pierre Chouteau in 1788.

Clamorgan organized twenty of the leading white men of St. Louis in 1794 into the Missouri Company, which was chartered by Spain to explore and expand trade with the Native Americans in the northwest and Santa Fe. This was financed by the Spanish Commercial Company, which was organized by Clamorgan. On April 10, 1796, the Missouri Company was renamed Clamorgan, Loisel & Co. The goal of the company was to find an overland route to the Pacific to help Spain settle the west. This venture nearly caused Clamorgan to become bankrupt, as he was competing with Auguste Chouteau and the Chouteau family interests.

Although Clamorgan never married, he did sire four children with different women, all of African descent, and most of them slaves. One of these women, named Esther, was an important woman in the history of colonial St. Louis. Clamorgan was said to have owned slaves himself, not surprising since he was involved in the slave trade before and upon his arrival to the states.

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