‘Sugar King of Louisiana’ is topic of Oct. 22 meeting of Natchez Historical Society

By Roscoe Barnes III
Natchez, MS, USA / ListenUpYall.com
Oct 10, 2024 | 4:47 PM

Peter M. Wolf is the author of "The Sugar King: Leon Godchaux: A New Orleans Legend, His Creole Slave, and His Jewish Roots." (Click on image to enlarge.)

NATCHEZ, Miss. – Peter M. Wolf, a respected author and biographer, said he looks forward to speaking about Leon Godchaux, the “Sugar King of Louisiana,” at the Tuesday, October 22 meeting of the Natchez Historical Society. Wolf’s presentation is part of a lecture series that is funded by a grant from the Mississippi Humanities Council through funding by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

“I’m delighted to have been invited to talk about my book in Natchez,” Wolf said. “I understand the Natchez Historical Society is filled with experts and I’m pleased to have an opportunity to have a talk with them.”

Wolf is the author of “The Sugar King: Leon Godchaux: A New Orleans Legend, His Creole Slave, and His Jewish Roots” (Xlibris, 2022). He is the great-great-grandson of Godchaux. His presentation is free and open to the public. It will be held at the Historic Natchez Foundation, 108 S. Commerce St. The program will begin with a social at 5:30 p.m., followed by Wolf’s presentation at 6 p.m.

Wolf’s book tells the compelling story of Godchaux, who arrived in New Orleans in 1837 as a “penniless, illiterate, Jewish 13-year-old from France.” Although he had hopes and dreams, he never learned to read or write in English or French. However, by the end of his life, Godchaux became the owner of 14 plantations and the largest sugar producer in the region, as well as the top taxpayer in the state, which earned him the name, “Sugar King of Louisiana,” according to Wolf’s website.

Wolf said that Godchaux refused to enter the sugar business until the end of slavery.

Two Black men played vital roles in Godchaux’s success. Joachim Tassen, who was enslaved, and Norbert Rillieux, who was a free man of color and inventor, made significant contributions to Godchaux’s work.

Wolf is a fifth generation native of New Orleans. He holds a Bachelor of Arts from Yale University, a Master of Arts from Tulane University, and a doctoral degree from New York University. His research has taken him to Paris as a Fulbright scholar and to Rome as a visiting artist and scholar at the American Academy in Rome. He currently serves on the advisory board of the Tulane University School of Architecture, and as a trustee of the Louisiana Landmarks Society.

Wolf’s book on Godchaux has received rave reviews from noted scholars and historians. Henry Lewis Gates Jr. wrote, “Peter Wolf’s The Sugar King is an absorbing ancestral journey.” Lawrence N. Powell noted “There are eye-openers in nearly every chapter.”

Wolf is a prolific writer. His other books include “My New Orleans, Gone Away, A Memoir of Loss and Renewal” (Delphinium Books Inc., 2013); “Land Use and Abuse in America: A Call to Action” (Xlibris, 2010); “Hot Towns: The Future of the Fastest Growing Communities in America” (Rutgers University Press, 1999); and “Land in America: Its Value, Use and Control” (Pantheon Books, 1981).

For more information on the October 22 presentation, call 281-731-4433 or 601-492-3004 or send email to info@natchezhistoricalsociety.org