Biography of 	Denegre, Walter Denis;  Southampton Cty., VA;  now Orleans Parish, Louisiana
Submitted by 	Mike Miller April 1998

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Denegre, Walter Denis.---Among those families of French descent which have
settled in Louisiana and added to the lustre of the family name since
coming here and which have been entitled to much credit for upright manhood
in civil and political matters of the state, that of Denegre stands among
the most prominent.  John Denegre, a native of Montaubon, France, settled
first in Santo Domingo, and later in Southampton county, Va., and is the
first of the immediate family under consideration here who came to America.
 In his adopted country he married Miss Mary Blow Cobb and became a member
of the house of the Virginia Burgesses.  His son was James Denis Denegre,
who in 1838 left Virginia and located in New Orleans.  Here as president of
the Citizens' bank he became one of the best known financiers in the South.
 While in Paris in 1864 the portfolio of minister of finance of Mexico was
tendered to and declined by him under the Emperor Maximilian.  His death
occurred in Brussels, 1865.  While living in New Orleans, he married Miss
Sylvanie Blanc, daughter of Evariste Blanc, of that city.  Their son,
Walter Denis Denegre, whose name is at the head of this sketch, was born
June 17, 1858.  He was educated at Jesuits' college in New Orleans, and
after 2 years at St. Johns' college, Fordham, New York, he entered Harvard,
where he graduated in 1879.  Succeeding this, he took a 2 years' course in
law at Tulane university and was admitted to the bar in 1881. He entered at
once into the active practice of his profession, and was successively a
member of the firms of Bayne, Denegre & Denegre; Denegre & Denegre;
Denegre, Blair & Denegre.  Mr. Denegre became one of the most conspicuous
members of the New Orleans bar and was chosen in 1881 as a special counsel
for the United States before the French and American claim commission.  Mr.
Denegre at once began to take an active interest in public questions, and
following the footsteps of his family, aligned himself with the democratic
party.  In 1884 such were political conditions in this state, and such were
abuses of the government of the city of New Orleans that it was necessary
to devise some method of opposing the political machine in the city, which
styled itself democratic, but in which the government was not by the
consent of the governed, but by the dictation of a few ward bosses, and so
made possible by the false returns of their election commissioners.  Under
the plea of rejecting the negro vote, the machine was counting out the vote
of every white man who differed with its policy, perpetuating an
organization whose chief object was to secure the spoils of office at the
sacrifice of all honesty in election.  While willing to go to any extreme
to prevent a return of the evils of reconstruction, Mr. Denegre rebelled
against any attempt to count out the white man, and in 1884 began the
assertion of independence as a democrat by joining a movement to rid New
Orleans of the dictation of a machine responsible for this misgovernment.
The movement crystallized into the organization known as the "Independent
Democratic Association," which put up a city ticket of its own, but
endorsed the regular democratic state ticket.  While the efforts of
democrats of independence, in 1884, failed of election, so dishonest was
the conduct of the election niachine so flagrant its falsification of the
returns, that a healthier public sentiment was aroused in New Orleans.
This sentiment grew in force owing to the unsatisfactory administration of
the city officers by those declared to be elected by this dishonest
election, and in 1888 the seed of 1884 bore fruit in the organization known
as the "Young Men's Democratic Association," in which Mr. Denegre took a
leading part and won a signal victory over the city ring and installed an
administration more productive of good for the city and state than any in
office up to that time.  The emancipation of the thoughtful men by the
canipaigns of 1884, 1888, and 1892, followed by the disgraceful
administration of city affairs by the government imposed by the bosses,
again aroused public sentiment and pointed the necessity of again taking
the city government out of the hands of the creatures of the ring.  This
was the birth of the "Citizens' League,'' which was dominated by democrats
and whose active leaders were democrats.  Mr. Denegre was one of these
leaders.  The members of the legislature who belonged to this league asked
Mr. Denegre to become a candidate for a seat in the United States senate,
an election to which was to take place in May, 1896.  Although having made
other plans for his time, he consented to become a candidate.  May 28,
1896, he received the 67 votes necessary for election, but the presiding
officer declared that Mr. Denegre had received only 66, when it was well
known that Mr. Troselair had demanded a change of his vote prior to the
votes being announced.  This change would have elected Mr. Denegre, and by
this means he was unfairly deprived of a seat in the United States senate.
He was married in 1893 to Mrs. Bertha Armour, widow of William Armour, and
daughter of Silas Cobb, of Chicago.  Socially Mr. Denegre and his family
have been very prominent in New Orleans, and in 1899 he was king of the
carnival.  He is a member of the Boston club (New Orleans), University,
Racquet, Harvard, Brook clubs (New York), Myopia Hunt, Essex County
(Massachusetts), and Metropolitan club, of Washington.  He was also a
member of the board of administrators of Tulane university, and for some
years a lieutenant-colonal in the Louisiana state national guard on the
staff of Maj.-Gen. John Glynn, Jr.  In 1889 he was among those who helped
suppress the Mafia in New Orleans.

Source:  Louisiana:  Comprising Sketches of Parishes, Towns, Events,
Institutions, and Persons, Arranged in Cyclopedic Form (volume 3), pp.
122-124.  Edited by Alcee Fortier, Lit.D.  Published in 1914, by Century
Historical Association.