 benachi family benachi family ray mon 4122010 955  the nicholas marino benachi family of new orleans louisiana and biloxi mississippi   nicolas marino benachi  18121886 was born on the greek island of khios khios is located in the aegean sea off the west coast of turkey it is believed to have been the birthplace of homer khios is known for its school of epic poets the homeridae and it sculptors it became a greek possession in 1912 today with the adjacent islands of cyclades dodecanese lesbos and samos khios forms the greek department called aegean islands webster s new geographical dictionary1988 p 261    nicholas marino benachi  18121886 image made march 1998 by ray l bellande courtesy of james g derbes nola nm benachi immigrated to the united states his brother emmanuel benachi became mayor of athens anthony benachi a son of emmanuel donated his athens home for the prominent benachi museum nicolas m benachi settled at new orleans louisiana here he made his livelihood in the new orleans cotton trade with the greek firm the ralli brothers they were international cotton brokers with offices in london cairo athens and india derbes et al1998 p 4 another branch of the benachi family in partnership with the choremi clan operated in the cotton business at alexandria egyptfrom the mid1800s until dispossessed by nasser 19181970 choremi july 1998 nicolas m benachi married  catharina grund  d 1853 they were the parents of four children  michel benachi  18411853  marie b botassi  ca 18421894  marino benachi  18531853 and  pandia n benachi  c 18571891 the yellow fever epidemic of 1853 took the lives of catharina g benachi and two of her children michel benachi and marino benachi while they vacationed in august at biloxi mississipi in late september 1856 an inventory of the estate of mrs benachi was filed in the 2 nd district court at new orleans the results of this survey showed that the benachi estate was valued as follows movable objects primarily furniture 331 two slaves 1800 and immovable property real estate 16550 and mr benachi s interest in ralli company 12293 the credit of the community against nm benachi was 6740 leaving him a net worth of 377132 nd district court of new orleans september 1856 the following is a summary of what is currently known of the lives of the first family of nm benachi  michel benachi  18411853 died at the age of twelve during the 1853 yellow fever epidemic  the new orleans picayune   september 4 1853 p 2 c 6   marie benachi botassi   ca18421894 married  demetrius nicholas botassi  in december 1862 murray p 108 a son  demetrius botassi  was born at new orleans on november 15 1865 she appears to have spent most of her life as a resident of paris france mr botassi was living in new york city in 1886 inventory of the succession of nm benachi1886 no further information marino benachi  18531853 died at the age of five months during the yellow fever epidemic of 1853  the new orleans picayune   september 4 1853 p 2 c 6   pandia paul n benachi  c 18571891 married  sarah ann stohr  18581920 in january 1877 in orleans parish louisiana pandia n benachi was a resident of jacksonville florida as early as 1880 he took he took his own life at jacksonville on november 13 1891 benachi s remains and those of his spouse are interred in the evergreen cemetery at jacksonville florida the columbus georgia daily enquirer november 14 1891 p 1 the daily picayune november 1891 p murray p 108 and the inventory of the succession of nm benachi1886 after the demise of his wife catharina grund nm benachi married a minor  anne marie bidault  18371897 on november 13 1856 she was a native of bordeaux and the daughter of antoine bidault 18001875 of new orleans and desire marie gilbert 18101870 who was in france in 1856 the couple had a marriage contract drawn up it consisted of three clauses 1 no community gains and separate properties between the two parties 2 husband to contribute to the expense of the marriage 3 donation of 10000 to mrs anne b benachi from the succession of nm benachi the agreement was notarized by abel dreyfous notary public for the parish of orleans prior to their wedding in november 1856 harco chancery court cause no 676 mrs a benachi v marie batassi et al august term 1894 the children of this union were  george n benachi  18571858  anthony n   benachi  18581916  helene benachi frangopulo  18601886  irene b bidault  18621942 m louis a bidault 18621940  belisarie n benachi  18641923 and  diomede n benach  18661930 a summary of the lives of the second family of nm benachi follows  george n benachi   18561858 was born on august 31 1857 at new orleans he died at new orleans on october 13 1858  the daily delta   october 14 1858 p 2  anthony nicolas benachi  18581916 was called tony he was born april 10 1858 at new orleans tony benachi made his livelihood in the crescent city as a cotton broker and at greenville in the mississippi delta the biloxi herald february 16 1916 p 2 in 1900 he appears to be residing in the benachi house on the beachfront at biloxi and employed as a cotton classer 1900 federal censusharrison county mississippi an benachi seems to have been a bon vivant and yachting at biloxi was a favorite pastime benachi owned the  royal flush  a sixteenfoot catboat which competed annually in the biloxi regatta the swift craft also sailed in match races for sizeable prize money ocean springs record april 2 1998 he organized the west end yacht club at biloxi in august 1900 tony benachi served as first commodore while brother zio was vicecommodore  the biloxi daily herald   august 7 1900 p 8  an benachi expired at biloxi on february 16 1916 while residing at 422 elmer street his remains were interred in the benachi plot in the biloxi cemetery  the biloxi herald   february 16 1916 p 2 c 7   helene benachi frangopulo  18601886 was born at new orleans circa december 1860 she married  nicholas s frangopulo  in april 1883 murray p 108 they were childless helene b frangopulo expired in the benachi home at 425 bayou road on february 19 1886  the times picayune   february 20 1886 p 4  no further information irene benachi bidault  18621942 was born at new orleans on september 28 1862 she married  louis a bidault  18621940 an 1866 french immigrant and resident of new orleans at mississippi city in july 1903 justice jj herbert officiated  the biloxi daily herald   july 17 1903 p 6  irene may have been previously married to william s douglas in june 1886 murray p 108 no further information irene expired at new orleans on may 17 1942 louis had preceded her in death passing on december 11 1940 their corporal remains were interred in st louis no iii cemetery in the crescent city the timespicayune may 18 1942 p 2 and december 12 1940 p 2  besari  or  belisaire  or  belizarius n benachi  18641923 was called zio he was born on october 26 1864 at new orleans zio married  sallie doyle  d 1952 at new orleans in november 1899 she was a mobile native and resident of biloxi  the biloxi daily herald  november 7 1899 p 8 c 2 three children were born from this union  edward anthony benachi  19041921  thomas w benachi  19021982 of chicago and berwyn illinois and  helene anna benachi waldo  19111980 of huntington west virginia and wilmington north carolina the spouses of thomas benachi and helene benachi waldo were lise benachi 19071987 and kenneth c waldo 18971986 respectively thomas and lise benachi expired at berwyn illinois a western suburb of chicago while mr and mrs waldo passed at wilmington north carolina family tree maker cd romsocial security death index united states 19371996 volume 1 and volume 2 in 1904 zio benachi was a bookkeeper for the new orleans acid fertilizer company which was located at 204 carondelet the family resided at 376 millaundon soards 1904 p 115 at the time of his demise in 1923 zio was associated with the planters fertilizer chemical company of new orleans mr benachi resided at 7901 south claiborne with his wife sallie doyle and their two children  the biloxi daily herald   february 14 1923 p 6 c 3  sallie doyle benachi passed on september 5 1952 at the home of her daughter mrs kenneth c waldo in huntington west virginia she had three grandchildren  the times picayune   september 13 1952 p 2  diomedes n benachi  18661930 may have been called eugene federal census 1880orleans parish louisiana in 1904 he made his livelihood as a drayman with his residence located at 924 philip street soards 1904 p 115 dn benachi passed on january 27 1930 his remains were interred at the st louis no 3 cemetery on esplanade avenue in the crescent city  the times picayune   january 28 1930 p 2 c 7  no further information  the benachitorre house     2257 bayou road new orleans louisiana     photograph   taken by ray l bellande in march 1998  the outstanding centerhall classicstyle house built in 1859 for nicholas benachi and his second wife anna marie bidault for 18000 this was the site of an earlier bayou road residence designed for joseph zeringue in 1806 by barthelemy lafon the earlier building housed the bellanger boarding school from 1832 to 1838  benachitorre house benachi purchased it with grounds measuring 135 feet front by three arpents depth in 1852 for 11134 he lived in the earlier maison de maitre with his first wife and children for a short time but mme benachi died and two of the children died in the yellow fever epidemic in 1853 at their summer home in biloxi when benachi remarried he demolished the early house building this one for his new wife the benachi family kept its residence until 1886 when peter torre purchased it the house and grounds remained in the torre family although the threearpent depth of the lot has been cut by the extension of laharpe street the house and detached twostory service building are enclosed on the   spacious grounds by a high castiron fence having a gothic style gate the ensemble is one of the city s major landmarks although the floor plan reflects the traditional american centerhall plan the single windows on either side of the entrance and second level door are unusual for new orleans paired box columns supporting the double galleries are another variation from the norm adding sophistication to the facade are the pilasters at the corner of the flushboard front the 18000 building price in 1859 is high and is reflected in the excellent quality of interior millwork and plaster decoration the complex was donated to the louisiana landmarks society in 1978 by heirs of peter torre  christovich et al 1980 p 146 the benachitorre house is now owned by james g derbes mr derbes a new orleans attorney acquired this historic home in july 1982 from the board of trustees of the lousiana landmarks society for 227000 derbes et al 1998 p 4 councilor derbes resides in the benachitorre house and lets rooms to bed and breakfast patrons he also owns and rents the esplanade villa at 2216 esplanade avenue mr derbes refers to his properties as the cotton brokers houses as both edifices were once possessed by prominent cotton traders of the 19 th century nm benachi was consul of greece at new orleans a speculator in real estate and slaves a hunter horseman and founder of the greek orthodox church in the western hemisphere derbes et al1998 p 4 in july 1964 a trisagion a traditional greek othodox memorial service was held at the tomb of nm benachi in the st louis cemetery on esplanade avenue in recognition of his founding the greek orthodox community in the western hemisphere in 1864 the ceremony was integrated into the 13 th international conference of the greek orthodox youth of america hosted at the jung hotel  the times picayune   july 31 1964 section 3 p 3 c2  in 1870 mr benachi made his livelihood as a wholesale merchant at new orleans he resides with his wife and five children in the seventh ward his motherinlaw marie gilbert resided with the family as well as two domestics william stewart 18531870 and hubert darley 18191870 a black female benachi s net worth was 34000 of which real estate accounted for 25000 louisiana federal census 1870 by 1880 benachi was the greek consul at new orleans his sons antoine and belisaire benachi were clerks in a store at this time three domestic servants were in the benachi household louis chapon b 1845 from france and louisiana natives augustine johnson b 1858 and anne millet b 1859 louisiana federal census 1880 in addition to his land possessions in louisiana nm benachi began acquiring land on the seashore at biloxi mississippi in march 1851 at this time he bought from jw lavillebeuvre for 6500 a tract in the louis fayard claim no 143 section 26 t7sr9w which had 232 ½ feet on the beach front and ran north to the back bay of biloxi jacques fayard was to the west and a blondeau to the east 1 this particular tract of land was traded within the benachibidault family several times between 1867 and 1876 pandia n benachi sold the parcel to the pelican hook ladder company no 4 in february 1876 leon bertoli was president of the fire company at this time 2 the biloxi beach front parcel came back to nm benachi in january 1879 when leon bertoli of the pelican hook ladder company no 4 quitclaimed it to him 3 nm benachi had many land conveyances in the biloxi area unfortunately they are metes and bounds descriptions and can be located for the most part only in a general sense present day benach avenue at biloxi was originally the path for ingressegress from the nm benachi beachfront home to pass christian road now howard avenue in the 19 th century there was no road from the biloxi lighthouse eastward towards the village of biloxi for some distance hollandjune 1998 it wasn t until november 1909 that the city of biloxi began acquiring a seventyfive foot strip for street and bulkhead purposes from the landowners in this area the name of the throughway was to be west beach street or front street 4 it is believed that the magnificent live oaks that line this thoroughfare today are the result of mr benachi s foresight in december 1905  the biloxi daily herald  reported  benachi avenue from howard avenue to the beach was ordered graded and shelled this is good new to those living on that beautiful avenue of oaks when completed it will form one of the most beautiful thoroughfares in the south or anywhere else    the biloxi daily herald   december 6 1905 p 1 c 2  the nm benachi house on the beachfront at biloxi was moved sometimes in the 19 th century to a position west of present day benachi avenue and east of the biloxi lighthouse it was relocated to the west to allow the benachi drivewayroad which became benachi avenue to reach the beachfront wp kennedy acquired the benachi home it was demolished several years after hurricane camille of august 1969 herron kennedy june 1998 information on the benachi house in local journals is rare it was reported that the benachi edifice at biloxi was entered by thieves on the night of march 29 1885 joseph cody one of the keepers of the benachi place was severely cut on the arm by one of the perpetrators the villains fled without being identified  the daily picayune  april  1 1885 p 1 c 5   nm benachi family tomb st louis no 3 esplanade avenue nola  image by ray l bellande december 1997 nm benachi died intestate on february 8 1886 at new orleans he left the following lands at biloxi with an estimated value of 15000 bounded south by the front bay or gulf of mexico east by property now owned by john cleary north by section line and west by the estate of jacques fayard having a front on said front bay or gulf of mexico of three hundred and twenty two feetsix inches running back due north between parallel lines to said section line a distance of 40 arpents more or less also one lot bounded south by lands of henry miller west by property now owned by dr maloney north by the property of charles fayard east by above described lot measuring north and south eight hundred feet east and west   harrison county chancery court cause no 676 august 1894    from the transcription of the inventory of the succession of nicholas m benachifebruary 1886 provided by james g derbes of new orleans the appraised value of the nm benachi estate was as follows value of movable effects 47100 value of shares of stock 45000 value of silverware 4250 value of claims 20000 value of real estate 1171500 cash 52105 total   1339955 in august 1894 mrs benachi petitioned the chancery court of harrison county mississippi for a forced heirship sale of these lands she told of her marriage contract with nm benachi and the clause where she was entitled to 10000 from his estate harco chancery court cause no 676 anna benachi v marie botassi et al august term 1894  nm benach house at biloxi  photograph taken by ray l bellande of a pencil drawing of the nm benachi house at biloxi by kathy kennedy courtesy of herron kennedy 119 benachi avenue biloxi mississippi in august 1895 special commissioner fg hewes conveyed to anna benachi the lands at biloxi in the estate of her late husband for 80005 several months before her demise in november 1897 mrs nm benachi with her son diomedes n benachi as attorneyinfact platted a subdivision titled   benachi   addition to the city of biloxi   this strip of land is 275 feet in width and extends about 1700 feet north of howard avenue 2 nd judicial district harrison county chancery court copy book 1 p 9 present boundaries of the benachi addition are north by division street east by graham south by howard avenue and west by benachi avenue the heirs of mrs anna benachi sold the last parcel of land here in may 19056 after mrs benachi s death zio dio and irene benachi in may 1903 sold their ¾ interest in what was known at biloxi as   the benachi property   to patrick kennedy for 8250 tony benachi retained his ¼ interest in the beachfront tract and became a business partner of mr kennedy 7 the benachi house was relocated in july 1903 from its original site to the lot west of the new street benachi avenue across from which it now stands  the biloxi daily herald june 4 1903 p 6  entrepreneur  patrick kennedy  18451913 was born may 1845 in gaulestown kilkenny county eire he immigrated to the united states in 1866 circa 1871 pat kennedy married probably at new orleans the irish immigrant widow of  bernard mckenna   margaret m kenna  18451905 she was the mother of eleven children five of whom were alive at the commencement of the 20 th century federal census 1900harrison county mississippi mrs kennedy had a brother  thomas p mckenna  d 1920 who resided at long beach new jersey  the daily herald  july 26  1920 p 3 c 1  the family of pat and margaret kennedy were  william p kennedy  18731951 and  john j kennedy  18751949 her m kenna children were  mary m   hodgins  d 1895  sarah m kenna  18611903  katherine m coyle  18641952 and  margaret m baltar  18701945 the patrick kennedy family arrived at biloxi from new orleans on a permanent basis in the early 1890s they had established summer residency here in 1884 at new orleans mr kennedy was initially engaged in the cooperage business he later operated a retail soda water operation  the biloxi herald   march 10 1913 p 1  one of pat kennedy s first business ventures on the mississippi gulf coast was to ship raw oysters he operated as p kennedy company biloxi herald november 12 1892 the renown turn of the century kennedy hotel was erected by this family on the southeast corner of reynoir street and railroad just east of the l n depot the land on which the kennedy hotel was built was acquired by wp kennedy from the estate of marie harvey bellande 18401894 as a result of a forced heirship sale harrison county mississippi chancery court cause no 710 ida bellande gossow v antoine v bellande et al the kennedy hotel occupied the site of the 1882 homestead of captain antoine v bellande 18291918 a french immigrant bar pilot and his family the depot saloon which was operated by captain bellande s son joseph a bellande 18681961 was also on the hotel parcel bellande1991 p 31 and p 42 two of pat kennedy s sons william p kennedy and john j kennedy made important contributions to the economic and history of biloxi william p kennedy was originally in the drug business as kennedy folkes he later became engaged in the seafood business and is credited with bringing the first trawler to biloxi  the daily herald   december 24 1951 p 6 c 3  john j kennedy served the people of biloxi as mayor for fourteen years he managed the kennedy hotel for many years after his father passed at the time of his demise jj kennedy was the us comptroller of customs at new orleans  the daily   herald   september 13 1949 p 1 c 6 and p 4 c 4  the benachi property at biloxi was defined as having a 322foot front on the gulf and running north to howard avenue with john cleary to the east and mrs henry miller to the west 8 a good approximation of   the benachi property   in current view would place benachi avenue at the center of the parcel with strips of land 140 feet wide on each side running north to howard avenue during the years of the next decade patrick kennedy 18451913 and an benachi sold lots from  the benachi property   the four beachfront tracts two on each side of benachi avenue were conveyed between 1904 and 1912 in february 1904 william p kennedy 18731951 acquired the tract west of benachi avenue upon which the nm benachi home was apparently situated 9 william w baltar purchased the lot just east of william p kennedy in august 1904 from his step fatherinlaw pat kennedy and an benachi for 210010 in late 1905 william winslow baltar 18701928 had a twostory home constructed on his lot by je greene one of the largest contractors in south mississippi the baltar home cost 2600  the biloxi daily herald   december 20 1905 p 1 c 4  the two beachfront lots on the east side of benachi avenue were acquired by martha j johnson of chicago in 1905 and sarah kennedy in 19121112 the   fabacher house   now owned by walter blessey iv at present day 948 west beach was erected for rinaldo everitt on the beachfront lot that he acquired from martha johnson in december 190513 the everittblessey commonly known as the  fabacher   house   was probably erected in early 1906  the biloxi daily herald   december 20 1905 p 1 c 4    references    chancery court land records  1 harrison county mississippi land deed book 5 pp 515516 2 harrison county mississippi land deed book 15 p 14 3 book 16 pp 305306 4 book 40 p 205 5 book 33 p 75 6 book 66 p 419 7 book 55 p 583 8 book 55 p 583 9 book 61 p 37 10 book 90 p 558 11 book 69 p 51 12 book 105 p 445 13 book 70 p 574  books and essays ray l bellande  from marseille to mississippi bellabde ocean springs mississippi 1991  mary louise christovich and roulhac toledano  new orleans architecture faubourg   treme and the bayou road  volume iv pelican publishing company gretna louisiana1980 james g derbes and william d reeves  benachi house and esplanade villa   2257 bayou road and 2216 esplanade avenue unpublished essay1998 nicholas r murray  hunting for bears  orleans parish louisiana marriages 18301900 murray hammond louisiana  bradford o keefe burial book no 6 anthony nerlas sic benachi   biloxi public   library archives p 33 soards new orleans city directory 1904   soards directory company ltd new orleans1904  webster s new geographical dictionary  merriam webster inc springfield massachusetts1988 p 261 the new orleans wpa guide the federal writers project guide to 1930s new orleans  pantheon book new york1983  cd rom  family tree maker cd rom   thomas benachi lise benachi helene b waldo   and  kenneth waldo   social security death index united states 19371996 volume 1 and volume 2   court cases 2 nd district court of new orleans orleans parish louisiana   the inventory of catherine grund benachi   september 25 1856 recorded in volume 6 act 141 transcription of   inventory of the succession of nicholas m benachi   february 24 1886 from james g derbes harrison county mississippi chancery court cause no 676  mrs a benachi v marie   botassi et al  august term 1894 harrison county mississippi chancery court cause no 8286  estate of bn benachi  may 1922 see also harco will book 5 p 259  federal census louisiana federal census 1870orleans parish   nichol benachi   7 th ward p 446 louisiana federal census1880orleans parish   nm benachi   7 th ward roll no 462 p 652   journals the biloxi herald   local happenings  november 12 1892 the biloxi herald   mrs anna benachi   november 13 1897 the biloxi daily herald   doylebenachi   november 7 1899 the biloxi daily herald   west end yacht club   august 7 1900 the biloxi daily herald march 11 1903 the biloxi daily herald   city news   june 4 1903 the biloxi daily herald   benachibidault   july 17 1903 the biloxi daily herald   benachi avenue to be shelled   december 6 1905 the biloxi daily herald   big building improvement  december 20 1905 the biloxi daily herald   city news   december 20 1905 the columbus georgia daily enquirer   a jacksonville suicide   november 14 1891 p 1 the daily delta october 14 1858 the daily herald   patrick kennedy pioneer citizen of biloxi passes away   march 10 1913 the daily herald   tony benachi is claimed by death   february 16 1916 the daily herald   thomas p mckenna   july 26 1920 the daily herald   zio benachi dead   february 14 1923 the daily herald  john j kennedy exbiloxi mayor dies at residence   september 13 1949 the daily herald   wp kennedy sr is buried sunday with catholic services   december 24 1951 the daily herald   your coast  the biloxi house that changed its address   december 20 1956 the daily picayune   biloxi  april 1 1885 the daily picayune   nm benachi dead   february 9 1886 the new orleans picayune   marino benachi   september 4 1853 the new orleans picayune   michel benachi   september 4 1853 the ocean springs record   sous les chenes   april 2 1998 the new orleans picayune   mrs nm benachi  september 4 1853 the daily picayune   mrs nicholas frangopulo   february 20 1886 the times picayune   dn benachi   january 28 1930 the times picayune   louis bidault  december 12 1940 the times picayune   mrs irene benachi bidault  may 18 1942 the times picayune   greek service honors leader   july 31 1964  personal communication   baltar holland home interview at biloxi mississippi on june 8 1998 herron kennedy telephone interview june 11 1998 james g derbes home interview at new orleans louisiana on june 23 1998 alec m choremi letter of july 21 1998 from locust valley new york 11560 photographs image 1  nicholas m benachi photograph taken by ray l bellande in the benachitorre house at 2257 bayou road new orleans louisiana in march 1998 courtesy of james g derbes image 2benachitorre house photograph   taken by ray l bellande in march 1998 of 2257 bayou road new orleans louisiana image 3  nm benachi house at biloxi photograph taken by ray l bellande of a pencil drawing of the nm benachi house at biloxi by kathy kennedy courtesy of herron kennedy 119 benachi avenue biloxi mississippi 904 views  