Elaisa (Steen) Callis (1818 - 1859)

Born 4 Jun 1818 in Iberia, Louisiana

Ancestors

Wife of Henry Callis — married 3 Feb 1844 in Tennessee

Descendants

Died 1 May 1859 at age 40 in Obion County, Tennessee

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Sarah Callis [send private message]

Biography

Eliza was christened as Elaisa Steen - daughter of Hilaire Elias Steen and Chaterine (Catherine) Stelly. She apparently changed the spelling to Eliza (or others changed it) and that's how her TN descendants spelled it.

Elaisa STEEN was born on 14 June 1818 in Opelousas, St. Landry Parish according to the Southwest Louisiana Records^[1]

A birth of 1 July 1817 was probably determined from her headstone which indicates she died 1 May 1859 at age 41 years and 10 months old (no days given). This would give a date of birth of 1 July 1817. So either Elaisa herself celebrated her birthday as July 1st (1817) or whoever gave the info to the stone mason gave the wrong info that went on her headstone.

From the Southwest Louisiana Records CD which was taken from church records^[2]: STEEN, Elaisa (Elias & Chaterine STELLY) b. 14 June 1818, bt. 11 Aug. 1818 Pats: Jhon STEEN & Eugenie NIL; Mats: Jean Baptiste STELLY & Magdelaine RHEITER; Spons: Michel STELLY & Josephine ROBIN. Fr. Flavius Henri ROSSI (Opel. Ch.: v.2, p.140) (The sponsor, Michel (Michael) Stelly, is Elaisa’s uncle – her mother, Catherine’s older brother)

The same Southwest Louisiana Records book indicates Elaisa’s father as Elias Steen [actual full name was Hilaire Elias Steen] and her mother as Chaterine (Catherine) STELLY.

Elaisa 'Eliza' and her daughter, Mary War Nan Johnson/Jeansonne, from her first marriage to Dr. Thomas C. Jeansonne [Johnson] were considered "White Creole's of German Descent". Steen, Stelly and Ritter family lines were of German ancestry - they were not Acadians from Canada or Native American. The Stelly's came to Louisiana sometime in the 1740's (not in 1721 as initially thought); the Steen's sometime about 1795 to no later than 1804 and the Ritter's probably sometime in the late 1770's or very early 1780's. The Ritter's came from Maryland but we're not sure when they immigrated from Germany to Maryland.

Burial

Burial:

Date: MAY 1859

Place: Pleasant Hills Cemetery (Old Section), Obion Co., TN.

Sources

1. ↑ "Louisiana Births and Christenings, 1811-1830, 1854-1934", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:HS5N-PYMM), Elaisa Steen, 1818.
2. ↑ Title: Southwest Louisiana Records, 1750-1900: compact disk #101; Author: Donald J. Hébert; Publication: Rayne, LA: Hébert Publications, 2001.

• Year: 1850; Census Place: District 9, Sumner, Tennessee; Roll: 897; Page: 267b https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/6934356:8054?ssrc=pt&tid=10963432&pid=-478190681

See also: https://freepages.rootsweb.com/~acadiancajun/genealogy/hebpubl.htm