Biography
Pierre Soulé, a New Orleans lawyer, former United States senator and former minister to Spain, was arrested under General Benjamin F. Butler during the Union occupation of New Orleans in 1862. A contemporary newspaper report identifies him under custody after passage north on the Ocean Queen. His June 27, 1862 letter to Salmon P. Chase was written from Fort Lafayette and discussed his arrest and treatment. No exact arrest or release date is assigned from these sources. Sources: LSU Libraries Special Collections, Pierre Soulé Papers, finding aid p5, https://lib.lsu.edu/sites/default/files/sc/findaid/0401m.pdf; Charleston Courier, June 28, 1862 p2, reprinting New York Herald June 19, https://www.latinamericanstudies.org/civil-war/Civil-War-June-Dec-1862.pdf.
The Department of the Gulf’s June 11, 1862 order accused Soulé and Adolphe Mazureau of treason and other crimes, directed their transport aboard the Ocean Queen to the United States marshal, and required detention pending War Department instructions. The order establishes the stated grounds and planned transfer; it does not independently fix the physical arrest day or establish a conviction. Source: Official Records, series II, volume III, printed page 675, https://www.civilwar.com/official-record/960-prisoners-of-war/263063-675-series-ii-volume-iii-serial-116-prisoners-of-war.html.
