Background
Antoine Le Claire was born on December 15, 1797, in St. Joseph, Michigan, United States. He was the son of a French Canadian father and a Potawatomi mother.
Antoine Le Claire
St. Marguerite's Church, later Davenport's first Catholic Cathedral, with the Le Claire grave in the foreground.
Le Claire Graves at Mt. Calvary Cemetery
A portrait of Le Claire derived from an oil painting
Businessman interpreter Landowner philanthropist
Antoine Le Claire was born on December 15, 1797, in St. Joseph, Michigan, United States. He was the son of a French Canadian father and a Potawatomi mother.
St. Joseph was a central point in the fur trade where buyers and sellers from the Great Lakes region and beyond would frequently meet. In that environment, Antoine Le Claire acquired the ability to speak French, Spanish, and several American Indian languages.
While his father was imprisoned, Antoine Le Claire met General William Clark who was impressed with Le Claire's faculty with languages. Clark sent Antoine to school to learn proper English, and he entered government service.
Antoine Le Claire came to Fort Armstrong in 1818 where he became the interpreter for Col. George Davenport. In 1832, at the end of the Black Hawk War, he was present at the peace treaty signing as an interpreter. Sac and Mesquakie territories west of the Mississippi River were purchased by the United States government. Because he was respected by the Native Americans, the Le Claires were given three parcels of land. One of the parcels was at the head of the Rock Island Rapids on the west side of the river. The second was given to Marguerite by Keokuk, the Sac chief. It was also located on the west side of the river and had been the location of the Mesquakie village. Keokuk stipulated that Le Claire build a house on the spot where the peace treaty was signed, or lose the land. After the United States Congress approved the peace treaty in 1833, Antoine Le Claire built a house, known as the Treaty House. The third parcel of land was given by the Potawatomie on the Illinois side of the river where present-day Moline, Illinois, is situated.
Antoine Le Claire was named the postmaster and the justice of the peace in 1833. His jurisdiction included all the lands that had been included in the Black Hawk Purchase. He was responsible for resolving disputes between the Native Americans and the white settlers. He generally took a hands-off approach which the independent-minded settlers found appealing. In 1834 he established the area's first ferry service across the river.
Antoine Le Claire was involved with a group of investors who brought the railroad to Davenport in the 1850s. On his property north of the Rock Island Rapids, Le Claire owned and operated a sandstone quarry. Stone from this quarry was used for the Clock Tower on Rock Island Arsenal, the first buildings on the Augustana College campus in Rock Island, and the abutments on the Government Bridge.
Antoine Le Claire died on September 25, 1861. His funeral was held in St. Marguerite's Church and he was buried in the churchyard. The Rev. J.A.M. Pelamourgues from St. Anthony's presided at the funeral with two other priests. The Rev. John Donlan preached the funeral sermon.
When the first addition was made to Davenport, Antoine Le Claire set aside one of the squares for a Catholic church. In April 1837 he joined with the missionary priest Samuel Charles Mazzuchelli to lay the cornerstone for the original St. Anthony's Church. The title to the property, named Church Square, was deeded to Bishop Mathias Loras of Dubuque in 1839 to support the Catholic Church in Davenport. Because of this support Davenport was named a See City with its own bishop in 1881.
When the church decided to establish a third parish in Davenport, Antoine Le Claire donated another square on a bluff on the east side of the city for St. Marguerite's, also called St. Margaret's. The LeClaires also built and furnished the rectory, and provided financial support for building the new church.
Antoine Le Claire donated property two miles outside of Davenport for St. Marguerite's Cemetery. Both St. Anthony's and St. Marguerite's were named in honor of the LeClaires for their generosity.
Antoine LeClaire had also been a member of the St. Anthony's choir, where he played the bass viol.
While they were devout Catholics their generosity was not limited to the Catholic Church. Antoine Le Claire also provided the land for the initial First Baptist Church, Edwards Congregational, and other churches.
The Le Claires' philanthropy existed in other areas of society as well. Antoine Le Claire donated Bolivar Square to Scott County, which sealed Davenport's attempt to be named the county seat. In 1846 he donated the land for the establishment of Iowa College, which eventually left Davenport and became Grinnell College.
In 1855 Antoine Le Claire built a new house and donated the Treaty House to the Mississippi and Missouri Railroad and it became Davenport's first railroad station.
Antoine Le Claire met and married his wife Marguerite LePage in 1820. She was born on October 16, 1802, in Portage des Sioux, St. Charles County, Missouri. She was the daughter of a French Canadian, Antoine LePage, and the granddaughter of the Sac chief Acoqua. The Le Claires had no children of their own. When his half brother Alexis died in 1849 Antoine and Marguerite informally adopted his son Louis. He even introduced Louis to former President Millard Fillmore as "my boy."
Francois Le Claire opened a trading post in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he traded with several Native American tribes. Francois fought on the side of the United States during the War of 1812. He was captured by the British in Peoria, Illinois, and held as a prisoner in Alton, Illinois.
(d. 1849)
