Winston De Ville, FASG, noted genealogist, historian, and author – focusing on colonial Mississippi Valley/Provincial Louisiana history –died Monday, March 24, 2025. He was 87.
De Ville was born August 8, 1937, in Evangeline Parish, Louisiana, son of Dalvis Joseph De Ville and Olevia Marie Johnson. In 1959, he was graduated magna cum laude from Louisiana College with majors in Piano and French, and minors in organ and journalism. He received his master’s degree in history
from Louisiana State University in 1965.
Winston De Ville was inducted as a Fellow of the American Society of Genealogists (FASG), an organization limited to fifty members worldwide, selected on the basis of quantity and quality of published works. He was a member of Mexico’s Academia Mexicana de Genealogía y Heráldica.
De Ville was also named a Penrose Associate of the American Philosophical Society (APS); “Penrose Associate” refers to the legacy of Richard Alexander Fullerton Penrose, Jr., a prominent philanthropist who bequeathed a significant
portion of his estate to the American Philosophical Society.
Of Winston’s many works, his Louisiana Soldiers in the American Revolution published in 1991, is important to those wishing to join either the Sons or Daughters of the American Revolution. Winston partnered with NSDAR genealogists to complete the work and President General Marie H. Yochim wrote the preface. His hope was to assist those who descended from Louisiana and Mississippi Valley families to point with pride to their own ancestors of the American Revolution.
Winston De Ville was considered an expert in colonial-era Opelousas history because of his extensive work in primary source documents related to Opelousas’ founding. He was the author of the ground-breaking book, Opelousas: The History of a French and Spanish Military Post in America, 1716-1803. He often spoke about rewriting the tome because of newly discovered information on the founding of Opelousas and the life of the early colonists who settled in the area.
Winston was a publisher and owned Polyanthos, Inc., and Provincial Press, which published numerous genealogical and historical publications. Provincial Press will continue to publish De Ville’s unpublished works by Louisiana historian and Opelousas native John N. Harper. Winston De Ville’s selected papers were compiled by Harper in 2012, and Winston’s acclaimed series, Mississippi Valley Mélange: A collection of Notes and Documents for the Genealogy and History of the Province of Louisiana and the Territory of Orleans will also continue under John Harper.
Archives of De Ville’s papers are housed at Louisiana State University Hill
Memorial Library’s Special Collections.
Prominent genealogists and historians had this to say on the passing of Winston:
“As a historian, a pianist, and a raconteur, Winston De Ville is already a legend among his peers. For more than six decades, he excelled in ferreting outobscure documents that shed priceless light on the social structure of the Louisiana colony and those who peopled it. As an author and translator, he leaves more thana hundred titles on library shelves around the world to help others with their research. As the Father of Louisiana Genealogy, he left no offspring to extend his
branch of the De Ville tree, but he mentored a legion of inquisitive minds to carry on his legacy. Godspeed, Winston. (And may you now, in your afterlife, get answers to all the delightful suspicions you had about Mme. Marie des Neiges Juchereau de St. Denis de Soto.)”
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL, FASG
“By far, Winston De Ville is the earliest of Louisiana's prolific genealogical writers... I can think of few genealogical authors with so many works to theirnames... as important to the historian as to the genealogist... [His] quality
productivity in so few years is remarkable.”
P. William Filby, former director of the Maryland Historical Society
“There are so many wonderful things that can be said about Winston by so many, and for me, mine was the honor of being asked to collaborate with him. Winston had collected a series of letters on his ancestor Joaquin Ortega. By the time Winston could dream about this project, his typing skills had diminished enough that he needed assistance. He gave me the letters which I set out in chronological order and included with his previously published articles about the Ortega family. Kristine Sjostrom and Molly Long Fernandez de Mesa (my sister), willingly assisted with the Spanish translations. Hence the beautiful, finished product published in 2017, The Papers of Joaquin Ortega. There is now a Facebook page for descendants of Ortega (mostly Ortego’s and Orteg’s) who have connected thanks to this work. I traveled back and forth from Houston to Opelousas for about three years visiting Winston and working on the book. His favorite outing was to go to Soileau’s and have a whiskey sour and catfish. My time with Winston also gave me much precious time to ask him questions about Opelousas history and the early families who settled there. Winston was a precious gift who gave freely of his knowledge to so many and I for one am so grateful for his legacy.”
Mary Anthony Startz
“In 2012, Sieur Winston De Ville asked me to help him compile his numerous articles and publications that were in periodicals and journals all over the country. He wanted his more than sixty years of work and research published in one place. I retyped each article and our finished publication became the Mississippi Valley Mélange series and Winston’s An Annotated Bibliography & other writing, 1959 – 2012. These projects gave me an opportunity to spend time with the person I respected and admired and saw as my mentor in all aspects of Opelousas and greater Louisiana and the Mississippi Valley colonial history. I am proud to continue to research Louisiana’s colonial past and continue to publish the Mississippi Valley Mélange series.”
John N. Harper
“For many decades Winston served as a one-man clearing house for genealogical and historical data about southLouisiana and the Lower Mississippi Valley in general, especially regarding the colonial era. He always gave freely of his time, research, and wisdom.”
Dr. Shane K. Bernard