Louis C. Roudanez
The birth of Louis Charles Roudanez in 1823 is celebrated on this date. He was a Black Creole physician, civic leader, and news publisher.
Born in St. James Parish, Louisiana, he was the son of a French merchant and a free Black woman. Roudanez was educated in France, like many young men of color. He received his medical degree from the University of Paris in 1853 and a second medical degree in 1857 from Dartmouth. He returned to New Orleans and began a successful medical practice open to blacks and whites. In 1862, during the Federal occupation of the city, Roudanez and his brother Jean-Baptiste founded the newspaper, “L’Union,” which advocated civil rights for Black citizens.
Shortly after “L’Union” folded in July 1864, Dr. Roudanez launched the bilingual paper, “La Tribune de la Nouvelle Orleans,” the first daily newspaper published by Blacks in the United States. Louis Roudanez died in 1890.
Contemporary Black Biography, various volumes
Edited by Shirelle Phelps
Copyright 1999 by Gale Research, Detroit, London
ISBN 0-7876-1275-8
