USA 2024 – Oise: An “American Beauvais” where we vote for Donald Trump!

Wednesday 06th November 2024 06:20 AM

For several hours already, the result left no room for doubt…

Donald Trump was elected 47th president of the United States of America.

If the full results of the vote, state by state, have not yet been made official, the outcome of the latter is no longer in doubt: Donald Trump now has 277 electors on his side out of the 270 voters needed (Source: Le Monde)

Did you know? The town of Beauvais in the Oise has an American namesake!

Emmanuel Macron congratulates Donald Trump

The President of the French Republic Emmanuel Macron has already congratulated Donald Trump on his election earlier this morning.

A “Beauvais American” who votes for Trump

Did you know? A “civil township” (editor's note: a type of government organization in the United States, comparable to a canton in France, a township is attached to a county). in the State of Missouri is called “Beauvais Township” in the Midwest of the United States.

Even more surprising, it is located in the county of Sainte-Geneviève (you can't make this up!), a name which will remind the inhabitants of Beauvaisis of that of the commune of the same name Sainte-Genevieve.

The state of Missouri voted overwhelmingly in favor of Donald Trump (Republican Party), 57.6% of the votes, against 41.0% for Kamala Harris (Democratic Party). An even more striking finding in Sainte Genevieve County also favored Donald Trump with 72% of the votes cast against 27% for Kamala Harris. (Source: The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times).

Like French Beauvais which has more than 56,000 inhabitants (2021 census), “Beauvais Township” serves as a small town with its 1,246 inhabitants (2020 census).

A French Canadian settler at the origin of “Beauvais Township”

The name Beauvais Township honors Jean Baptiste St. Gemme Beauvais, a local notable of French origin.

Jean Baptiste St. Gemme Beauvais was a French Canadian born May 11, 1698 in La Prairie, in present-day Quebec, and died April 15, 1773 in Kaskaskia, Illinois. He played a significant role in the colonization of the Illinois Country and French Louisiana.

The canton of Beauvais was formed in 1832 from parts of the cantons of Saline and Sainte-Geneviève. It includes several localities, including River aux Vases, Minnith and Ozora. Several rivers cross the canton, notably the Rivière aux Vases and the Rivière de la Saline.

History does not say whether Jean Baptiste Saint Gemme had knowledge of French Beauvais.

Beauvais in France has a long shared history with the United States, including the fact that many neighborhoods in Beauvais were rebuilt after the war using funds from the Marshall Plan.

A pecan tree planted in Beauvais as a symbol of Franco-American friendship

A pecan tree (tree producing pecan nuts) is also planted in front of the Monument to Marshal Foch (Cours Scellier in Beauvais) to symbolize Franco-American friendship as part of the Pecan Tree Jefferson Pecan program (editor's note: Thomas Jefferson, 3rd president of the USA, one of the founding fathers of the country).

This story also evokes that of this American blacksmith who was inspired by the Beauvais icon Jeanne Hachette and created a hatchet in her honor in 2019.

Several towns in the Oise with an American namesake

Several towns in the Oise share their names with localities in the United States, testifying to the French influence on American toponymy. Here are some examples:

• Compiègne : a locality called Compiègne is located in Louisiana.

• Noyon : A town named Noyon is located in the state of Washington.

• Senlis : There is a place called Senlis in New York State.

• Chantilly : Chantilly is a city in Virginia, United States, named after the French town.

• Creil : A place named Creil is located in the state of Ohio.

• Clermont : Clermont is the name of several cities in the United States, notably in Florida and Iowa.

• Saint-Just : There is a place called Saint-Just in the state of Louisiana.

• Holder : A town named Montataire is located in the state of Illinois.

• Pont-Sainte-Maxence : A locality with this name exists in the State of New York.