MADERE FAMILY ORIGIN
Johann Adam Matern was born about 1698 in Rosheim, which was a part of Alsace at that time, and came to Louisiana in 1720 or 1771.� He later married Regina Konig.
In the census of the German Village of Hoffen� (near present day Lucy) on Bonnet Carre Point, on November 12, 1724 were recorded:
Jean Adam materne, 26, native of Rosenheim in the upper Alsace, his wife, a nursing infant and two sisters-in-law of 18 and 20. Jean Adam Materne had been "a year-and-a-half on the plaace" at this time. In the census of 1 july 1727, Adam Maderne, his wife and two children were living in the village of the Germans.
In 1731, Johann Adam Materne, his wife and three children were recorded there.� Although the names of the children were never given in these accounts, later documents show that Johann and Regina had at least five children; Jean, Jacques, Nicolas, Marguerite, and Catherine.
Hans Adam Matern was buried in St. Charles Parish on November 16, 1739.
Abstracts of the Catholic Church Registers of French and Spanish Post of St. Jean Baptiste des Natchitoches in Louisiana: 1729 - 1803 contains many references to Jean Matern (dit Jean des Jean), in which his name is spelled as Mather, Madern, Mader, Maderne and Madere.� In none of these documents was there shown a connection between Jean Matern of Natchitoches and Johann Adam Materne of The German Coast.� In no other reference material have I been able to find that connection clearly stated, but references to various members of the Matern family on the German Coast documents show that Jean Matern was indeed the son of Johann Adam Materne.
Jean's wife's name is given as Marie Materne, Marie Thily, and Marie Thili and in the March 20, 1761 burial records as Jeanne Maternes.� In a number of records of Natchitoches Parish the name "Materne" was stricken out and the name "Thily" or "Thili" was written in.
Jean was a warden of the church, which probably accounts for the many instances where he appears as a witness for baptisms, marriages, deaths, etc. �In all instances, he signed with an (X).� In the records, which mention both birth dates and baptism dates for his own children, the baptisms were performed on the day after the birth.� In the case of Francois Daniel Madere, no birth date was given, but the date of baptism was January 6, 1753.�
Jean and his wife, Marie Thily, had at least five daughters and two sons:
Reine Jeanne Maderne - Born February 6, 1743, Baptized February 7, 1743
Jean Maderne - born August 6, 1744, Baptized August 7, 1744, died 1756
Jeanne Mader - Baptized September 22, 1747
Marie Jeanne Madere - Baptized September 22, 1749, buried December 29, 1783
Francois Daniel Madere - Baptized January 6, 1753
Marie Fran�oise Mader - Baptized June 29, 1755
Cecile Mader - Baptized December 1, 1758, buried February 5, 1761
Jean Madere (pere) was buried in Natchitoches on April 21, 1758 and his wife was buried in Natchitoches on March 20, 1761.� Francois Daniel Madere was orphaned at the age of 8.
On March 25, 1761, the marriage of Francois Carles and Jeanne Madere was recorded in Natchitoches, after only one posting of the bans of Marriage.� Jeanne would have been only 14 on this date.� In the French census of 1766, Francois Carles was listed as a widower.
It is not known when or how many of the surviving members of this family moved to the German coast area, but the marriage of Marie Jeanne Madert and Francois Vasseur was recorded in St. Charles Parish on November 13, 1764.� Nicolas Materne and Jacques Materne (uncles of the bride) appears as witnesses, along with Jean Lampert, brother-in-law of the bride.� It is this statement that leads the belief that Jean Materne, father of Marie Jeanne, was the son of Johann Adam Materne, since entries in Natchitoches records indicate their mother's name was Thily.� It was not unheard of for two family members to have the same name, so it is possible Johann had two sons named Jean.
Francois-Daniel Matere was a witness to a land sale in St. Charles parish on February 15, 1773.� Francois Daniel Madert signed a quitclaim to his brother-in-law, Francois Le Vasseur, on March 31, 1773 in Natchitoches.
Sometime between 1770 and 1773, Marie Fran�oise married Daniel "Gaspard" Normand in St. Charles Parish.� Daniel's father, Jean Gaspart Normand, had bought three arpents of land on March 3, 1765 in what is now Montz in St. Charles Parish.
Then, on January 21, 1777, Francois Daniel Madere was married to Ana Marie Marguerite Perilloux at St. John the Baptist Church in Edgard. Louisiana.