Chanquet family

The Chanquet family has a long history in the Bay Area, most notably working in the alcohol business. Some of the family came to San Francisco, then moved to Oakland following the 1906 earthquake. The businesses include Chanquet Brothers, P. Chanquet & Son, Somps & Chanquet soft drink parlor, and Pirates Den Lounge.

NB: the names are sometimes spelled differently in newspaper articles, e.g., Valentine instead of Valentin, Ambrose instead of Ambroise, etc. And some of the family used Americanized versions of their names.

Joseph Chanquet and Magdelaine Candau (Chanquet) had numerous children in France (possibly as many as 11). Some stayed in France, one moved to Argentina, but at least 4 came to the Bay Area, including Pierre, Marie, Valentin, and Ambroise.

Pierre ("Peter") Chanquet (December 12, 1869 — May 14, 1951) immigrated to San Francisco c.1887, and was naturalized in 1894. The 1895 SF directory lists him as a bartender. On February 6, 1896, he married Josephine Galatoire (Chanquet) (March 19, 1874 — July 24, 1960), who had been born in the same part of France. They had two children, Adrien and Gabrielle. The family attended St. Anthony's Church; Adrien took his first communion there in 1910.

The family went missing for a time in Mexico in 1914 while Pierre was inspecting mine holdings there. They reappeared a few weeks later, reporting a few escapes from bandits.

Pierre was elected to the board of the French Hospital in San Francisco in 1915. He was appointed the head of the hospital in 1918. Pierre was also on the advisory board for the Oakland branch of the Bank of Italy from 1918 to at least 1934.

• Adrien Georges Chanquet (February 3, 1897 — November 18, 1968) was born in San Francisco. Following his service in WWI, he married Mae Emma Kreuzberger (Chanquet) (May 17, 1896 — August 22, 1985) of Oakland on July 9, 1919. They did not have any children.
• Gabrielle Georgette Chanquet (June 16, 1904 — March 16, 1988) was born in San Francisco. She attended UC Berkeley.

Marie Chanquet (Betmon) (c.1871 — September 4, 1941) immigrated to San Francisco in the late 1880s. She married Jean Baptiste ("John") Betmon (c.1866 — February 14, 1939). They had two children, Emilie and Joseph. They lived in Emeryville and Oakland.

• Emilie ("Emily") Betmon (Sayous) (May 26, 1892 — February 25, 1976) was born in Oakland. She married Jean François ("Frank") Sayous (September 24, 1890 — July 21, 1972), and they had three children, George, Aileen, and Vernon.
• Joseph John Betmon (July 24, 1897 — October 11, 1963) was born in Emeryville. He married Gladys Susan Shideler (Betmon) (October 6, 1897 — November 11, 1957). They did not have any children.

Valentin Ambroise Chanquet (March 22, 1873 — January 28, 1918) immigrated to San Francisco c.1891, and was naturalized in San Francisco in 1896. The 1900 SF directory lists he and Pierre as the successors to D. Chesney, wines and liquors. He married Swiss-born Sophie Sautier (Chanquet) (January 11, 1870 — February 3, 1928) in 1901. They did not have any children. Valentin died early in 1918, and left an estate worth $79,110. His third of Chanquet Brothers was left to his brothers, the rest was left to Sophie. The cause of Valentin's death is unknown, but he died suddenly. His brother Pierre became deathly ill a few days later, but survived. His son Adrien and brother Ambroise also became ill. (While it could have been influenza, the 1918 flu pandemic didn't really start until March at Camp Funston in Kansas.) A newspaper article suggested that perhaps the family was cursed. ¹

Ambroise Pierre Chanquet (December 7, 1881 — October 21, 1939) immigrated from France in 1901. He declared his intention to become a U.S. citizen in 1902, but had to petition for citizenship in 1917. He married Marie Gracienae Berriex (Chanquet) (February 13, 1884 — November 24, 1965) and they had two children, Zoe and Maurice.

• Zoe Ambrosina Chanquet (Laborde) (December 30, 1907 — April 20, 1988) was born in Oakland. She married Jean Baptiste Laborde (February 20, 1902 — April 4, 1990), and they had two children, Henri and Paul.
• Maurice Joseph Chanquet (January 15, 1909 — March 21, 1972) was born in Oakland. He married Evelyn Irene Marriott (Chanquet) in 1932 and they had a son, James. They divorced about 1936.

Links and References

1. Eerie Fate Scars House of Chanquet Oakland Tribune April 10, 1918