Upon the beginning of the Haitian Revolution, where Haitian slaves rose up against their masters and began tearing the island to pieces for their independence (
), many white and Free People of Color began fleeing the island for their lives. Literally.
Although Free People of Color were of African descent just as the slaves were, they were also a target because of their status on the island. (Many FPOC on the island were a product of a slave mother and a Frenchman). And the slaves had no problem killing FPOC because of that.
The Free People of Color fled Haiti (which was called "Saint Domingue" before the Revolution's end) and arrived at the Gulf Coast of America, mostly settling in states of Louisiana and Mississippi. It was there that they were greeted by and mingled with other groups, such as the Choctaw Natives, who were obviously already in place when they arrived.
A popular route for the FPOC to take upon entrance to the states was the Mississippi River, which sits directly between LA and MS. Some of them stopped at the lower part of the river and settled, while others went and settled further upward.
