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Correspondence With respect to the article “Basque Governors of California” by Jon Bilbao that appeared in our last newsletter, we have received the following communication from Professor Tom I. Irving of the University of Tennessee: “From what I can gather, the first governor of Tennessee was also a Basque. He was John Sevier, who was born in Rockingham County, Virginia in 1745 of a French Huguenot family whose original spelling was Xavier*. He was quite distinguished as a settler and administrator, and there is a county and a town, the county seat, Sevierville, named after him, in the foothills of the Smokies about 20 miles south of Knoxville.” * Xavier, the birthplace of Saint Francis Xavier, is a town in Navarra. The name Xavier is the old Navarrese form of Etxebarri (Spanish spelling: Echeverri, French spelling: Etcheverry, which in Basque means “newhouse”). An Appeal The Basques of the American West research project is entering its final year. A major aspect of the project is the reconstruction of the historical movement of the Basques into the American West. While members of the project are traveling extensively throughout the West, it is impossible to visit every area. We would therefore request that if you know the history of a particular Basque-owned ranch, a particular Basque social club, a Basque hotel, etc., that you write to William Douglass here at the Basque Program. Also, if you possess old photos, diaries, or letter which would help us to reconstruct the past, we would be most interested in having them copied for our archives. It is possible that an important piece of information concerning the history of the Basques in the American West is tucked away among your family keepsakes. Please give this matter your serious consideration. |
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