Charles deGravelles

Who was Charles deGravelles?

Charles Camille deGravelles, Jr., known as Charlie deGravelles, was a Lafayette oil and gas landman who was a pioneer in the development of the Republican Party in the formerly historically Democratic state of Louisiana. Known as the "Mr. Republican of Acadiana", deGravelles and his wife, the former Mary Virginia Wheadon, held leadership positions in the GOP from 1968 to 1972 and from 1964 to 1968, respectively. DeGravelles was the party chairman, and Mrs. deGravelles was national committeewoman. When deGravelles assumed the chairmanship, the Louisiana GOP had only 28,427 registered members, barely 2 percent of the state's voters. For a brief time in 1968, both de Gravelleses were members of the Republican National Committee, a husband-wife combination that has not since repeated itself.