Antoine Simon (b. Les Cayes, October 10, 1843 – d. Les Cayes, January 10, 1923)
President: December 17, 1908 – August 2, 1911
Three days after President Nord Alexis’ fall, the leader of the revolt against him, General Antoine Simon, was acclaimed in Port-au-Prince. He succeeded him on December 17, 1908. the new president was not very educated but possessed a great deal of common sense. He had been commander of the South Department for twenty-five years. He was known for his rather uncommon moderation.
One of his first official decisions was to start a policy of appeasement. A great number of exiles returned to their country in January 1909 and were received at the National Palace by the president. They reached a compromise, allowing the country to return to more peaceful political times.
Adopting as his administration’s motto, “Freedom and Justice”, President Simon labored constantly to increase the country’s agricultural production. He also wanted to create a railroad network. To that effect, his government signed different contracts with U.S. companies, the most famous ones known as Mac Donald contracts, for the building of the port-au-Prince to Cap-Haïtien railroad and the cultivation and export of bananas. Well intentioned but ill-prepared, those contracts were severely criticized by intellectuals and politicians alike.
In spite of the meager resources of the country, the streets of Port-au-Prince were paved I concrete, and the capital was wired for electricity. The Chaps de Mars, a beautiful park, was built. The first cars appeared in Haiti, and an agricultural bank was also established, during this period.
A large and onerous loan was contracted with the Banque de l’Union Parisienne in order to consolidate the different national debts. That loan was the subject of heated national debates.
To accommodate the U.S. companies growing bananas, expropriations became very common, angering the small land owners. The Cacos, rebel peasants from the northern part of the country revolted against the administration in port-au-Prince. General Cincinnatus Leconte, a former minister of the Public Works under President Simon Sam, instigated the movement. Unlucky at first, he tried again two months later and succeeded. On August 1, General Leconte’s troops reached Port-au-Prince, and President Antoine Simon was forced to relinquish power and leave for exile the next day, August 2, 1911
