Pont-Saint-Esprit

History

The bridge was observed by the Irish pilgrim Symon Semeonis in 1323 on his way to the Holy Land: "Pont-Saint-Esprit where there is a famous stone bridge over the Rhône, half a mile in length, the height of which and the breadth of its arches are greatly admired by all those who cross over it." Italian canon Antonio de Beatis described the bridge in his 1517-1518 travel journal: "This has twenty tall, wide arches, is finely built in a pleasing stone and is still better paved."

In the seventeenth century the Jewish immigrants from Spain were cast out of central Bayonne and settled in Saint Esprit. This quarter became known in popular parlance as Saint Esprit les Israélites because Jews constituted the majority of its population -which was extremely rare in France. It was a Jew of Spanish origin, Gaspar Dacosta, who introduced the art of chocolate-making to Saint Esprit, and indeed in France.

Geography

Climate

Pont-Saint-Esprit has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification: Cfa). The average annual temperature in Pont-Saint-Esprit is 14.2 C. The average annual rainfall is 829.8 mm with November as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in July, at around 23.9 C, and lowest in January, at around 5.5 C. The highest temperature ever recorded in Pont-Saint-Esprit was 42.2 C on 6 August 2003; the coldest temperature ever recorded was -12.7 C on 7 January 1985.

|Jan record high C = 19.9 |Feb record high C = 23.2 |Mar record high C = 27.0 |Apr record high C = 30.0 |May record high C = 34.4 |Jun record high C = 39.3 |Jul record high C = 40.1 |Aug record high C = 42.2 |Sep record high C = 36.0 |Oct record high C = 29.5 |Nov record high C = 23.5 |Dec record high C = 20.0 |Jan record low C = -12.7 |Feb record low C = -10.2 |Mar record low C = -7.7 |Apr record low C = -1.4 |May record low C = 1.6 |Jun record low C = 5.0 |Jul record low C = 8.0 |Aug record low C = 7.1 |Sep record low C = 4.0 |Oct record low C = -0.2 |Nov record low C = -5.0 |Dec record low C = -7.2 | access-date = September 3, 2022}}}}

Bouvier family origins

Pont-Saint-Esprit is famous as the town of origin of Michel Bouvier, a cabinetmaker, who was the ancestor of John Vernou Bouvier III, father of Jacqueline Kennedy.

1951 mass poisoning incident

Main article: 1951 Pont-Saint-Esprit mass poisoning

On 15 August 1951, an outbreak of poisoning, marked by acute psychotic episodes and various physical symptoms, occurred in Pont-Saint-Esprit. More than 250 people were involved, including 50 persons interned in asylums and four deaths. Most academic sources accept naturally occurring ergot poisoning in rye flour as the cause of the epidemic, while a few theorize other causes such as poisoning by mercury, mycotoxins, or nitrogen trichloride.

Population

|graph-pos = bottom |1793 |5766 |1800 |4055 |1806 |4331 |1821 |4545 |1831 |4853 |1836 |4937 |1841 |5239 |1846 |5375 |1851 |5538 |1856 |5887 |1861 |5123 |1866 |4694 |1872 |4350 |1876 |4826 |1881 |4726 |1886 |4962 |1891 |5262 |1896 |4289 |1901 |4798 |1906 |4906 |1911 |4685 |1921 |5801 |1926 |4409 |1931 |4652 |1936 |4411 |1946 |4149 |1954 |4925 |1962 |5778 |1968 |6951 |1975 |6709 |1982 |8067 |1990 |9277 |1999 |9265 |2007 |9846 |2012 |10651 |2017 |10336

International relations

Pont-Saint-Esprit is twinned with:

• Germany Egelsbach, Germany
• United Kingdom Haverhill, United Kingdom
• Portugal Penacova, Portugal

Notable people

• Michel Bouvier (1792–1874), carpenter and French American immigrant to Philadelphia
• Joseph Di Mambro (1924–1994), French cult leader

References

1. (12 March 2025). "Répertoire national des élus: les maires". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises.
2. "The Journey of Symon Semeonis from Ireland to the Holy Land".
3. Antonio de Beatis. ''The Travel Journal of Antonio de Beatis, 1517-1518.'' Translated by J.R. Hale (Ed) and J.M.A. Lindon. Hakluyt Society (1979)
4. "Bayonne - jewish heritage, history, synagogues, museums, areas and sites to visit".
5. "BAYONNE - JewishEncyclopedia.com".
6. Gabbai, Lisbonne and Pourquier. (1951-09-15). "Ergot Poisoning at Pont St. Esprit". [[British Medical Journal]].
7. Lisbonne, Gabbai. (15 September 1951). "Ergot Poisoning at Pont St. Esprit". [[British Medical Journal]].
8. Finger, Stanley. (2001). "Origins of Neuroscience: A History of Explorations Into Brain Function". Oxford University Press.
9. (2013). "Alcamo's Fundamentals of Microbiology: Body systems edition". Jones & Bartlett Publishers.
10. (2010). "Economic and biological interactions in pre-industrial Europe, from the 13th to the 18th century". Firenze University Press.
11. Frederick Burwick. (1 November 2010). "Poetic Madness and the Romantic Imagination". Penn State Press.
12. {{Cassini-Ehess. 27609. Pont-Saint-Esprit
13. [https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/4515315?geo=COM-30202#ancre-POP_T1 Population en historique depuis 1968], INSEE
14. "Michel Bouvier (1792-1874) - HouseHistree".
15. (1997). "L'Ordre du Temple Solaire: Enquête et révélations sur les chevaliers de l'apocalypse". Libre Expression.