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PATOUTS FIND
In America
WRITTEN BY SCOTT MCDONALD
I
t’s no secret that French explorer Rene-Robert
Cavelier de La Salle was killed by his own men
right here in Navasota. But what many don’t
know is that one prominent Navasota family
has ties that go back to France’s first emperor
– Napoleon Bonaparte.
The Patout family began their American journey
when a long-distance relative, Pierre Simeon
Patout, made the trek from France to New Orleans,
Louisiana, in hopes of growing grapes and starting
his own vineyard.
“I think he was a big supporter of Napoleon,”
said Jared Patout, a lifelong Navasotan. “It was a
good time to get out of France and he heard that
Louisiana had a mild climate to grow grapes.”
This wasn’t long after Napoleon sold the Louisiana
Territory to the United States, and New Orleans was
the port of entry. But a mild climate? He couldn’t
have been more wrong.
Upon arrival, the Frenchman quickly realized that
South Louisiana had a hot, humid, sub-tropical
The Navasota Hook & Ladder Co. No. 1 – After the parade
April 21, 1909, Capt. R.A. Patout in foreground.
Photos from “Reflections of Grimes Country, Texas” 1994 by The Examnier.
climate suited more for rice and sugar cane than
grapes, so he started a sugar cane farm on a plot
of land near modern-day New Iberia. Patout’s
farm grew into a space with a general store and
post office, and the area became what is now
known in Louisiana as Patoutville.
Years later as the sugar cane business continued to
grow in Louisiana, Rivers Aristide Patout made the
move to Navasota, Texas, to manage the famous
Mistrot Brothers clothing store in town, which
was owned by his two brothers-in-law. The Texas
brothers established stores at train stops along the
route from Waco to Galveston, including the one in
Navasota. Rivers eventually became manager of
that location. When the Mistrot brothers decided
to exit the business and sell their stores some time
later, Rivers was given the opportunity to purchase
the store in Navasota. Several partnerships existed
before it became R.A. Patout Company.
“My grandfather had a real good sense for selling
clothes,’ Jared said. Rivers knew his clientele and
shopped with them in mind so that no two prominent
women wore the same dresses. Rivers’ business
approach proved successful as the Patout store
A Saturday in the summer of 1936 on Washington Avenue in Navasota.
Left to right, E.M. Perry, R.A. Patout Co. and Camp Drug Co.
brought in customers from all over the state. The
Patout family’s clothing store thrived in Navasota
as did the sugar cane in Louisiana. Years later,
Rivers, Jr. who was born in 1907, graduated from
Rice Institute (now Rice University) before getting
his Masters in Business Administration from Harvard
University. He practiced accounting in Houston
and Galveston before returning to Navasota in the
1940s to help his father in the clothing store. Rivers
closed the store in the mid-1970s despite pleas
from his children to keep it open.
R.A. Patout float, Navasota parade, Washington Avenue, March 21, 1943
NAVASOTA
Jared Patout, a graduate of Navasota High
School, the University of Notre Dame and Texas
A&M University, still lives in the same house his
grandfather R.A. Patout, Sr. built in the 1920s. Most
of the original structure and brick still stands but
it’s not nearly as old as the oak trees in his yard
– both front and back. The large oak tree in the
backyard was once deemed the largest in Texas
with a certificate to prove it.
Jared sat on the board of directors for the sugar
business. His grandfather and father both served as
board chairman, a position now held by his brother.
The company M.A. Patout & Son, LTD, LLC, is the
oldest completely family-owned and operated
manufacturer of raw sugar in the United States.
The company comprises Enterprise Plantation and
three subsidiaries: Sterling Sugars, LLC, Raceland
Sugar, LLC and Patout Equipment Company,
LLC. Enterprise Plantation was founded in 1825
by Simeon and Appoline Patout. The combined
capacity of the three mills is approximately 4.6
million tons of cane annually. The main distribution
of sugar from the company goes to Domino Sugar,
a national brand that refines and sells packaged
sugar.
Despite the demands of such a large operation,
Jared still serves on several boards in Navasota
and surrounding counties.
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Photo by Connie Clements
Rivers and Azzalie Patout had this wildcat mounted to serve
as the mascot for the George Washington Carver High School
in Navasota. Photo taken in the gym May 5, 1964.