Sometimes the government sent soldiers into the swamps to catch maroons and destroy their settlements. In the 1780s, a maroon leader named San Malo was caught and publicly hanged in New Orleans. In the 1830s, soldiers killed a maroon named Bras-Coupé and left his body on display in New Orleans’ public square. In Cécile’s time, police probably kept a close eye on anyone suspected of being a maroon, like the boy and girl she meets in the story.
Maroons were not unique to Louisiana. The word “maroon” comes from the Spanish word cimarrón, meaning cattle or horses that escape into the wild. Eventually it was also used for escaped slaves who chose to live free in remote places rather than risk capture, slavery, and prejudice.
Although few Americans today have heard of maroons, their hidden communities existed all through the South. From Virginia to Florida and west to Louisiana, maroons made their homes in swamps. In Texas, they lived in mountains and deserts. In fact, maroon settlements sprang up wherever people were enslaved, including the Caribbean and Central and South America. Whether maroons settled in jungles, swamps, mountains, or deserts, they shared a desire to live freely by their own rules.
By Cécile’s time, however, thousands of free black people were living in American cities and towns. About 10,000 free people of color lived in New Orleans in the 1850s.
In the years before the Civil War, though, racial tensions rose sharply, making life more difficult and dangerous. For example, free people of color were required to carry papers proving that they were legally free.
People caught without papers were in terrible danger of being enslaved. Some managed to prove their freedom in court, but most were shipped hundreds of miles up the Mississippi River and sold into slavery. In most cases, their families never knew what had happened to them.
Despite such risks, free people of color still enjoyed the rich cultural life and entertainments in New Orleans—theaters, operas, cafés, churches, markets, and more. The Floating Palace showboat came to New Orleans every winter, bringing a marvelous circus. In an era before movies and television, a circus—with tightrope artists, acrobats, and trained animals performing before a live audience—was an amazing and heart-stopping spectacle for a girl like Cécile.
GLOSSARY OF FRENCH WORDS
Click on the word to see the first place it appears in the story.
bonjour (bohn-zhoor)—hello
chérie (shay-ree)—dear, darling
gens de couleur libres (zhahn duh koo-luhr lee-bruh)—free people of color
ma chérie (mah shay-ree)—my dear, my darling
madame (mah-dahm)—Mrs., ma’am
mademoiselle (mahd-mwah-zel)—Miss, young lady
marchand (mar-shahn)—a male seller or merchant
marchande (mar-shahnd)—a female seller or merchant
merci (mehr-see)—thank you
mon Dieu (mohn-dyuh)—good heavens; my God
monsieur (muh-syuh)—Mister, sir
oui (wee)—yes
pardon (par-dohn)—excuse me, pardon me
tante (tahnt)—aunt
tignon (tee-yohn)—a scarf or kerchief tied around the head; often worn by women of color in Louisiana
très bien (treh byen)—very good
HOW TO PRONOUNCE FRENCH NAMES
Click on the word to see the first place it appears in the story.
Agnès Metoyer (ah-nyess meh-twah-yay)
Armand (ar-mahn)
Aurélia (oh-ray-lyah)
Bras-Coupé (bra–koo-pay)—Cut Arm, One-Armed Man
Cécé (say-say)
Cécile Rey (say-seel ray)
Cochon (koh-shohn)
Grand-père (grahn-pehr)—Grandpa, Grandfather
Irène (ee-ren)
Jean-Claude (zhahn-klohd)
Lejeune (luh-zhun)
Maman (mah-mahn)—Mama, Mother
Mathilde (mah-tild)
Monette Bruiller (moh-net brew-yay)
Octavia (ohk-tah-vyah)
Philippe (fee-leep)
Pierre (pyehr)
René (ruh-nay)
READ MORE OF CÉCILE’S
AND MARIE-GRACE’S STORIES
Available at bookstores and at americangirl.com
THE HIDDEN GOLD: A MARIE-GRACE MYSTERY
Marie-Grace can’t wait to begin her journey up the Mississippi River with her father. The steamboat is full of interesting passengers, including Wilhelmina Newman, a girl Marie-Grace’s age. Wilhelmina is traveling alone, and she’s carrying a secret. Her father has hidden gold somewhere, and he’s left her clues to find it. But Wilhelmina doesn’t understand the secret messages. When Marie-Grace steps in to help her new friend, she discovers that they’re not the only ones trying to find the hidden gold!
BOOK 1: MEET MARIE-GRACE
When Marie-Grace arrives in New Orleans, she’s not sure she fits in—until an unexpected invitation opens the door to friendship.
BOOK 2: MEET CÉCILE
Cécile plans a secret adventure at a glittering costume ball. But her daring plan won’t work unless Marie-Grace is brave enough to take part, too!
BOOK 3: MARIE-GRACE AND THE ORPHANS
Marie-Grace discovers an abandoned baby. With Cécile’s help, she finds a safe place for him. But when a fever threatens the city, she wonders if anyone will be safe.
BOOK 4: TROUBLES FOR CÉCILE
Yellow fever spreads through the city—and into Cécile’s own home. Marie-Grace offers help, but it’s up to Cécile to be strong when her family needs her most.
BOOK 5: MARIE-GRACE MAKES A DIFFERENCE
As the fever rages on, Marie-Grace and Cécile volunteer at a crowded orphanage. Then Marie-Grace discovers that it’s not just the orphans who need help.
BOOK 6: CÉCILE’S GIFT
The epidemic is over, but it has changed Cécile—and New Orleans—forever. With Marie-Grace’s encouragement, Cécile steps onstage to help her beloved city recover.
DEDICATION
To my youngest daughter, my talented reader, Latrayan (Sankofa) Mueed, who helps me become a better writer with each book. And to the man who endures months of being ignored for the sake of my writing, my “rock,” my wonderful husband, Talib Din.
I also want to dedicate this book to the ancestors and to all the descendants of the maroons, the escaped enslaved, and those who were not able to escape… and to the men, women, and children massacred at Fort Negro. Always remember our fight for freedom!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Evelyn Coleman grew up in North Carolina with her parents and brother, surrounded by a large extended family. Today, she lives in Atlanta, Georgia, with her husband and enjoys spending time with her two grandchildren.
She is the author of Shadows on Society Hill: An Addy Mystery, which was a finalist for the Edgar Award, and many other award-winning books for children and young adults.
AUTHOR’S NOTE
Thanks to Denise Lewis Patrick for creating the character of Cécile Rey.
Thanks to Dr. Gwendolyn Midlo Hall, author, historian, and renowned professor, and to authors and New Orleans natives Freddi Evans, who wrote Congo Square: African Roots in New Orleans, and Keith Weldon Medley, who told me about Bras-Coupé, for all their assistance during my trip to New Orleans and my research efforts. Thanks to John Hankins, executive director of the New Orleans African American Museum of Art, Culture and History. Thanks also to the staff of the Historic New Orleans Collection and Williams Research Center, especially research assistants Eric Seiferth and Jennifer Navarre, and the staff of the Hermann-Grima & Gallier Historic Houses in New Orleans for making sure I understood the historical context of the time. Thanks also to maroon descendant Phil Fixico for all the information he passed along to me. A big thanks to the staff of the Auburn Avenue Research Library, especially Eleanor L. Hunter, reference librarian; Angela Ahmad, library associate; and Kerrie Cotten Williams, archivist, for their assistance in helping me locate books and photos; and to Morris Gardner, program division manager, for making sure I had
a place to work. I would be remiss not to thank Captain Jay Boutte of the Louisiana Swamp Tours for his knowledge and for allowing me to hold his year-old alligator. Yikes!
Love and thanks to my mother, Annie S. Coleman; my brother, Edward J. Coleman; my aunts, Audrey White (who gave me my iPad), Lucille Mendez Vaz, and Swannie Richards; my granddaughter, Taylor 7 Blayne Parker; my grandson, Jody Santana Rhone; my eldest daughter, Travara Mueed Strigl; my new son-in-law, Matthew Strigl; and my adopted daughter, Gina Barboza.
In addition, I want to give a special thanks to American Girl marketing manager Mary Guenther, who saved the day; historian Mark Speltz, for working diligently to keep me on the right track throughout my research for this book; my editor and dear friend, Peg Ross, without whom I could not have finished; and my daughter, Latrayan (Sankofa) Mueed, for refusing to let me stop.
And lastly, even though he has no idea he helped me, I’d like to thank Grandpa Elliott, New Orleans street musician who is now with the marvelous Playing for Change Band, for inspiring me through his music.
Published by American Girl Publishing
Copyright © 2012 by American Girl
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
Questions or comments? Call 1-800-845-0005,
visit americangirl.com, or write to Customer Service,
American Girl, 8400 Fairway Place, Middleton, WI 53562-0497.
F1438_030112_1
All American Girl marks, American Girl Mysteries®, Cécile™, Cécile Rey™, Marie-Grace™, and Marie-Grace Gardner™ are trademarks of American Girl.
This book is a work of fiction. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by American Girl. References to real events, people, or places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of imagination.
PICTURE CREDITS
The following individuals and organizations have generously given permission to reprint illustrations contained in “Looking Back”: portrait, Photographs and Prints Division, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations (detail); cypress swamp, Meyer Straus, Bayou Teche, oil on canvas, ca. 1870. Courtesy of the Morris Museum of Art, Augusta, Georgia (detail); chains, courtesy of the Drain Collection; swamp hideout, Photographs and Prints Division, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations; French Market, North Wind Picture Archives; cypress basket, photo by Thomas Wintz, courtesy Louisiana Folklife Program; Black Seminoles, courtesy of Bonnie Peters Gearhart, Groveland, Florida; Jamaican bill, © Bank of Jamaica; courtyard, courtesy of Teri Robida; portrait, Photographs and Prints Division, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations (detail); proof of freedom, The Historic New Orleans Collection; Floating Palace circus, Collection of The New-York Historical Society, ID 36805.
Author photo by Sue Ann Kuhn-Smith/Newton Citizen
Illustrations by Sergio Giovine
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Coleman, Evelyn, 1948–
The cameo necklace : a Cecile mystery / by Evelyn Coleman.
p. cm.
Summary: Eleven-year-old Cécile Rey searches through many corners of 1854 New Orleans seeking a necklace, borrowed from her Tante Tay, that disappeared as she was exiting a crowded showboat. Includes facts about the 1850s.
ISBN 978-1-60958-052-0 (e-book)
[1. Lost and found possessions—Fiction. 2. New Orleans (La.)—History—19th century—Fiction. 3. African Americans—Fiction. 4. French Americans—Fiction. 5. Mystery and detective stories.]
I. Title.
PZ7.C6746Cam 2012 [Fic]—dc23 2011039983
Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Chapter 1: A Night at the Circus
Chapter 2: Confusion on the Wharf
Chapter 3: Uncle Henry’s Last Gift
Chapter 4: Back to the Floating Palace
Chapter 5: Close Call
Chapter 6: An Unexpected Invitation
Chapter 7: The French Market
Chapter 8: Troubling Questions
Chapter 9: Hunters and Lions
Chapter 10: Miss Millie
Chapter 11: Agnès’s Surprise
Chapter 12: Message in Congo Square
Chapter 13: Chase
Chapter 14: Hannah’s Secret
Chapter 15: Shadows in the Night
Looking Back
Glossary of French Words
How to Pronounce French Names
Read More About Marie-Grace’s and Cécile’s Stories
About the Author
Credits
The Cameo Necklace (American Girl Mysteries (Quality)) Page 9