Pierre Gibault was the eldest son of Pierre and Marie Saint-Jean Gibault of Montreal, and was christened on April 7, 1737.
His great-grandfather had emigrated to Quebec from Poitiers, France, about the middle of the seventeenth century
Accompanied by his mother and sister, he took up his residence at Kaskaskia, the chief Illinois settlement.
After completing his education at the Seminary of Quebec, Pierre served for a short time at the cathedral.
In 1768, in response to the call for helpers by Father Sebastian Meurin, who was in charge of the Roman Catholic missionary activities in the Illinois country, Gibault was sent thither by Bishop Oliver Briand of Quebec.
Accompanied by his mother and sister, he took up his residence at Kaskaskia, the chief Illinois settlement. Missions at Ste. Genevieve and St. Louis were included in his parish.
After the capture of Kaskaskia by Virginia militia July 4, 1778, the generous attitude of the commander, George Rogers Clark, towards the church served to stir up the enthusiasm of the French for the American cause. The effect of this conduct upon the minds of the villagers was magical and they readily took the oath of allegiance to the commonwealth of Virginia.
In a conference, Father Gibault undertook to gain the allegiance of the French at Vincennes, assuring Clark that while he had nothing to do with temporal affairs, “he would give them such hints in the Spiritual way that would be very conducive to the business. ”
The priest, accompanied by a Dr. Jean Laffont and a few companions, set out for Vincennes carrying an address prepared by Clark to the inhabitants of that village. The mission was completely successful, winning also the friendship of the Indian tribes of the region.
After the capture of Vincennes by the British Lieutenant-Governor Hamilton, Gibault assisted Clark in securing volunteers among the French for the expedition which recaptured that post.
For his patriotism, Father Gibault received the thanks of the governor and Assembly of Virginia.
He later disclaimed responsibility for the submission of Vincennes, and declared he had done nothing further than to counsel peace and union and attempt to prevent bloodshed. His willingness thus to shift all responsibility for leadership to Laffont was due to the demand on the part of Bishop Briand in 1780 that he should appear at Quebec to answer the charge of treason made by British officers. There is no evidence to show that this order was ever enforced.
During 1785, he established his residence at Vincennes. After four years, he removed to Cahokia. For his losses during the Revolution, in 1790, he petitioned Gov. Arthur St. Clair to assign him a grant of Seminary land.
Following the effective protest of Bishop Carroll of Baltimore against the alienation of church property to an individual clergyman, Gibault crossed the Mississippi to Spanish territory and settled at New Madrid, where he was parish priest until his death early in 1804.
Gibault officiated at the chapel regularly in spite of being under the authority of the bishop of Quebec and being a British subject, and he performed dozens of masses and sixty-four baptisms until 1772, when a Capuchin priest named Valentine became the first resident priest. Having been made vicar-general of the Illinois country in 1769, Gibault visited Vincennes where he found much vice and disorder. Through his influence, a new church was erected in that village. Statue of Gibault, in front of the Old Cathedral and George Rogers Clark National Historical Park, Vincennes, Indiana. USS Pierre Gibault is named for Father Gibault. Gibault Catholic High School in Waterloo, Illinois is named for Father Gibault. Gibault, Inc. , dba Gibault Children's Services, based in Terre Haute, Indiana is also named for Father Pierre Gibault and was founded in 1921 by the Indiana Knights of Columbus. Good Samaritan Hospital in Vincennes, Indiana is constructing a new building to be named Gibault Memorial Towers. The expected completion date is mid-2016
