Biographical entry: Rouillac, Pierre

Details

Father Pierre Rouillac, the son of a Breton fisherman, was one of the first group of Marist priests who moved to the Solomons in 1898. He voyaged around the Protectorate first in a cutter, then in the 18-ton schooner Eclipse. During 1898 he voyaged to Savo twice, to the south coast of Guadalcanal and to Makira, in 1899 and 1901 he visited Malaita, and in 1900 he ventured to Isabel. At Haununu on Makira he received four boys to take to Rau Sura School, and gave their relatives gifts of pipes and tobacco, and at Bina and Langalanga in western Malaita he persuaded sixteen youths to come to Rau Sura. He was also able to obtain students and land at Moli, Avuavu and Tangarare on Guadalcanal. The wreck of the Eclipse at Tangarare in 1902 slowed progress on islands other than Guadalcanal until a new vessel was obtained in 1909. (Laracy 1976, 40-41)

Published resources

Books

• Laracy, Hugh M., Marists and Melanesians: A History of the Catholic Missions in the Solomon Islands, Australian National University Press, Canberra, 1976. Details