Who Are We?

Kianna Mateen
HON 1000: Essay One
Professor: Andrew Cavin
October 10, 2016

Mateen |2

Franois LeBlanc is a newly married twenty-five-year-old French male who

decided to leave Nice, France in search of a prosperous life for his wife Juliette and his unborn
son, Franois II. Hes an ambitious and well-educated Frenchman who highly values family and
hard work. However, since the war began he has been searching for a better place to live for his
new family. After watching his friends and family members continue to risk their lives in
participating in battle for World War I, Franois becomes captivated by a letter sent by his
childhood friend, Pierre, that describes a new way of seeing life. This particular lifestyle has
been established in Detroit, Michigan and it practices the newly formed individualistic values of
America. Franoiss attraction to this lifestyle becomes very strong as he considers moving his
family to Detroit. In the beginning of his journey Franois is eager to join in on the new ideals of
America by proudly joining the Ford Motor Company but after one revolutionary moment he
discovers that he wants to branch off and become more of an individual by opening his own
family retail business.
On a rainy Sunday afternoon in August of 1916 Franois received a letter along
with The Ford Manual from Pierre Lefebvre, his childhood friend who moved to America the
year prior. Within the letter Pierre described the ways in which he believed America was a
beautiful and liberating country. In addition to the admiration of America, Pierre suggested that
Franois should bring Juliette to Detroit in order to establish a prosperous family life. After
reading American ideals about income, sanitation, education, and overall family life, Franois
became eager to create a better life for his family. Specifically, the section of the manual that
promised The Company desires all of its employees and their families to be well housed, live in
good wholesome neighborhoods, and be free as possible from danger of disease caused by dark,

Mateen |3

foul, filthy tenements, and un wholesome localities, 1 is what Franois became most excited
about. He has always made it a goal to establish enough wealth in order to create and secure his
childrens position in life.2 After listening to Pierres proclaim, reading over the manual, and
reflecting on the conditions of France due to the current World War,3 Franois became
overzealous in the thought of a better life for himself, Juliette, and their baby. Therefore, that
very same day he decided that it would be wise to move his family four thousand miles away
from Nice, France to Detroit, Michigan.
Franois and Juliettes journey to America was a long and exciting one, both
were overcome with excitement and very eager to see what this move would create for their
family. The very first steps that the overexcited family took on American soil was on Ellis Island.
Before being granted permission to enter America the family endured a process lasting around a
total of eight hours, that tested their reading skills in addition to a physical examination for the
quality of their health. 4 Following a momentary rush of uncertainty, the LeBlancs returned to
their delight once they received the news of their acceptance to the country. The couple then
bordered a train headed to Detroit, Michigan. Once they arrived to Detroit, Franois met with
Pierre and he began his new journey as a Ford Motor Company employee. Within six months of
1 The Ford Motor Company, Helpful Hints and Advice to Employees (The Ford Motor
Company, 1915)
2 "French Father--French Mothers--and French Children." Detroit Free Press (18581922), Sep 22, 1865.
http://search.proquest.com.proxy.lib.wayne.edu/docview/560431966?
accountid=14925.
3 Fehr, Dennis Earl. "French Americans." In Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural
America, 3rd ed., edited by Thomas Riggs, 153-165. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 2014. Gale
Virtual Reference Library (accessed October 10, 2016).
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=GVRL&sw=w&u=lom_waynesu&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE
%7CCX3273300074&asid=67f0504e4ad60d81b5e620674eb3d0f0.

Mateen |4

working at the Ford Motor Company, Franois was able to graduate the Ford English School that
furthered his knowledge in the English language as well as taught lessons on how to become an
American.5 These lessons of becoming American included things such as civics and personal
hygiene. After graduating, Franois grew tired of the strenuous routines of labor and began to
feel hopeful, with his newly gained knowledge, that he could create a more independent and least
stressful way of making a living for his family. During this time of his uncertainty with Ford,
Franois came home to notice that his wife was sewing pajamas for the wounded French soldiers
of World War I6 and thats when he developed the idea of opening their own retail shop. He
discussed the idea with Juliette and she was excited by the thought of creating a family business
and also relieved that she would be seeing Franois more often being that Franois II would be
delivered soon.
Four months after Franois II was born, Franois purchased a newspaper add as
well as small store front in Detroit where the family began to sale military designed clothing. 7
4 Blumberg, Barbara. "Ellis Island." In Encyclopedia of American Urban History,
edited by David Goldfield, 241-242. Vol. 1. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Reference,
2007. Gale Virtual Reference Library (accessed October 10, 2016).
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=GVRL&sw=w&u=lom_waynesu&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE
%7CCX3470500146&asid=b135efa3c9d54b5695cfd1fcb0220bde
5University of Michigan. Ford English School (Accessed October 10, 2016.)
http://www.autolife.umd.umich.edu/Labor/L_Overview/FordEnglishSchool.htm
6 "Detroit Women Sewing Not Shirts but Pajamas for French Soldiers." Detroit Free
Press (1858-1922), Feb 25, 1917.
http://search.proquest.com.proxy.lib.wayne.edu/docview/566107696?
accountid=14925.
7 Library Of Congress. The stars and stripes, March 1, 1918. Paris, France, March 1,
1918. Newspaper. Retrieved from the Library of Congress,
https://www.loc.gov/item/20001931/1918-03-01/ed-1/. (Accessed October 10,
2016.) (Image.2)

Mateen |5

They named the store Les Crations de LeBlanc and after a few years of steady progression
business began to grow in the age of the roaring twenties. This changed their familys life
forever, the LeBlancs were able to hire workers for their thriving company and purchase an
affluent home just outside the city. Franois II later became a big brother to Eloise LeBlanc and
the two siblings were raised as true American children. When looking at his journey, Franois
was happy with the life he created for his family and proud of the outcome the bold risks he took
just a decade ago. By the end of the 1920s, Franois felt a sense of pride being that he feels as
though he reached the status of a true American lifestyle and he was fulfilled to have created
such a life in the wonderful city of Detroit.
In conclusion, Franois Leblancs bold decision to move his family more than four
thousand miles away from his hometown proved to be a successful choice. While courageous,
Franois decision to move his family thousands of miles away from his hometown seemed to be
a common one made by millions of people during this American era of progression. It also
appeared to be a successful move for most people who were daring enough to cease the
opportunities of individuality. However, Franois additional brave risk of establishing his own
business is what made his journey a unique and flourishing one. Furthermore, most cities seem to
be designed in a way that accepted and encouraged new prosperous endeavors. These very ideals
seemed to be what has established America to be known as an extremely diverse and innovative
nation. Therefore, one can conclude that these stories of establishing ones own independence is
in fact an American way of living.

Mateen |6

Bibliography
The Ford Motor Company, Helpful Hints and Advice to Employees (The Ford Motor Company,
1915), Page 7.
"French Father--French Mothers--and French Children." Detroit Free Press (1858-1922), Sep 22,
1865. (accessed October 10, 2016).
http://search.proquest.com.proxy.lib.wayne.edu/docview/560431966?accountid=14925.
Fehr, Dennis Earl. "French Americans." In Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America, 3rd e
d., edited by Thomas Riggs, 153-165. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 2014. Gale Virtual Reference
Library (accessed October 10, 2016). http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=GVRL&sw=w&u=lom_waynesu&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE
%7CCX3273300074&asid=67f0504e4ad60d81b5e620674eb3d0f0.
Blumberg, Barbara. "Ellis Island." In Encyclopedia of American Urban History, edited by David
Goldfield, 241-242. Vol. 1. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Reference, 2007. Gale Virtual
Reference Library (accessed October 10, 2016).
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=GVRL&sw=w&u=lom_waynesu&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE
%7CCX3470500146&asid=b135efa3c9d54b5695cfd1fcb0220bde
University of Michigan. Ford English School. University of Michigan. (Accessed October 10,
2016.) http://www.autolife.umd.umich.edu/Labor/L_Overview/FordEnglishSchool.htm

Mateen |7

"Detroit Women Sewing Not Shirts but Pajamas for French Soldiers." Detroit Free Press (18581922), Feb 25, 1917.
http://search.proquest.com.proxy.lib.wayne.edu/docview/566107696?accountid=14925.

Library Of Congress. The stars and stripes, March 1, 1918. Paris, France, March 1, 1918.
Newspaper. Retrieved from the Library of Congress,
https://www.loc.gov/item/20001931/1918-03-01/ed-1/. (Accessed October 10, 2016.)