Pierre Frechette Navarre

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Obituary- Navarre, Pierre

Famous Men in South Bend History

Pierre Navarre

The first white settler to settle in present-day St. Joseph County was Pierre Navarre. Mr. Navarre was of French descent, well educated, and moved to St. Joseph Country from Monroe, Michigan in 1820. At the time of this move, Mr. Navarre was an agent for the American Fur Company.[3] Prior to Mr. Navarre settling in St. Joseph County, he had trapped and traded furs among the Native Americans that lived in the area. But, in 1820 he decided to permanently reside in South Bend and open a standing trading post.

Pierre married a Potawatomi woman named Angelique and had six children, three sons and three daughters. Pierre and his new family built a log home, the first home to be erected in the county, on the east side of the St. Joseph River, now in South Bend.[4] Mr. Navarre located his home on a trail in which Native Americans traveled and traded every spring and fall to reach the other posts along the river, down to Lake Michigan. This brought Pierre huge amounts of furs, maple sugar, baskets, and other articles. He was very loyal to the Potawatomi tribe and when they were forcibly removed from the Michiana area, he traveled west with the tribe, but afterwards returned home. Pierre Navarre died in the home of his daughter on December 27, 1864. His body was buried in Cedar Grove Cemetery on the property of the University of Notre Dame. Navarre's cabin is still standing and has been moved to Leeper Park East in downtown South Bend, Indiana.