All Stories: 133
Stories
The Story of Father Charles M. Menard – The Apostle of Bayou Lafourche
One significant feature of the history of Acadiana was the struggle for practicing the Catholic faith. In 1713, the British captured Acadia and required the Acadians to swear allegiance to the British Crown and convert to Anglicanism from…
Major General Godfrey Weitzel
Dupuy's Seafood and Steak – I Shuckin' Love It!
In 1869, an Abbeville native by the name of Joseph Dupuy established Dupuy’s oyster house, the oldest one found in Vermilion Parish, where he “harvested his own oysters and sold them for 5 cents a dozen.” Dupuy did this by being “the first…
Yellow Bowl Restaurant – I'm on a seafood diet!
The Yellow Bowl was established in 1927 by a local woman, known as Mrs. Scanton, “as a bus stop for the Greyhound bus line” , formally known as Teche bus lines. However, this information is rivaled with the details found in Dennis Covington’s…
Frosto – Shake, Rattle, and Roll!
The franchise Zesto Enterprises, Inc., opened in 1950 in Crowley, LA. It was originally owned by “Ralph Rosaland, a New Orleans resident who worked for Conoco.” The land and building that occupied Zesto was owned by “the late P. L. Lawrence.” In…
Poor Boy's Riverside Inn – Poor Boy ain't so poor no more!
Founded by Hulo “Poor Boy” Landry during the Great Depression, Poor Boy’s Riverside Inn became one of Lafayette’s first restaurants that is still in business in 2022. After learning of a flour allergy in 1932, Hulo decided that he would no longer be…
The Civil War campaign in Acadiana
KEUN: Eunice, the Prairie Cajun Capital – A Place for Cajun Music
The founding of radio station KEUN in Eunice occurred as Cajun and zydeco music were gaining prominence in the mid to late twentieth century. However, both genres struggled to get airtime anywhere because Cajun music was long considered a “novelty”…
The History of Holy Ghost Catholic Church – All one in Christ Jesus
Louisiana during the postbellum era instituted “black codes” that prevented black citizens from enjoying the same rights as white citizens. Eventually, “separate but equal” facilities came about to separate white citizens from black citizens, and…
The History of Assumption School in Carencro – Saintly Racial Justice in Carencro
During the era of segregation in the United States, many Christian communities created parishes exclusively for black Christians to separate them from the white Christians, whether in support of segregation or to prevent a riot. Saint Katherine…
The Battle of Buzzard's Prairie
The battle of Buzzards Prairie and the Battle of Bayou Bourbeux were fought close to the Chretien Plantation in the vicinity of Vermilionville for over six months. General Green and General Taylor have already fought in Bisbland, Franklin, and…
The Battle of Bourbeux Bayou
It is the third year of the "War between the States" or "The war of the Yankee aggression," as those from the South called it. All eyes were on Antietam, Bull Run, Vicksburg, and Chancellorsville. Battles fought in Pennsylvania,…
KANE: Of Sugarcane (and Sports) – How to Sack a Station Manager
On October 9, 1960, Franklin’s Hanson Memorial Tigers played against New Iberia’s Catholic Panthers in a high school football game. The Franklin area was convinced that the Tigers would win despite the expected difficulty Catholic High posed.…
KSIG: The Signal of Crowley – The Brothers Behind the Signal
When we think of radio stations, we think of the sound rather than focusing on the people behind the sound. The radio station call sign, KSIG, will sound more familiar than the names B. Hillman Bailey, Jr. and Clovis Bailey, two brothers who worked…
The Legendary Carencro Raceways – From Dirt to the Derby
The site where Carencro Raceways once stood is now a place of quiet reflection. The soft, green lawn with its neatly kept graves serves as a place of remembrance. It's hard to imagine that a famed bush track existed where Evangeline Memorial…
An American Actor's Dream Plantation – From Bob Acres Plantation to Rip Van Winkle House and Gardens
In 1869, American actor Joseph Jefferson purchased “Orange Island,” as it was known at the time of the purchase, which sat atop a salt dome on Lake Peigneur to use as his winter home and hunting lodge. The “island,” referred to now as Jefferson…
Grand Opera House of the South – Opera House Masquerades as Theater
How does a building from 1901 stay so pristine while having actors and major Louisiana figures visit it? You may know some of them: “Enrico Caruso, Huey P. Long, and Babe Ruth” (1) are a few of the notable people to visit the aptly named Grand…
The Steamboat Warehouse – Full Steam Ahead!
The steamboat warehouse started construction in 1819 and opened its doors in 1823 along the banks of Bayou Courtableau in the small, port town of Washington, LA, established in 1720. The warehouse was originally a docking location for “steamboats…
St. Mary Parish Fields Overtaking Cemeteries – Raising Cane Around Midway
One of the forgotten cemeteries is Midway Cemetery located in Franklin, St. Mary Parish. Located right alongside State Route 317, most would miss this small treasure. Midway is little maintained, and the newest burial was conducted in 2011. Noted…
Camp Pratt
The Battle at the Vermilion Bayou
All Aboard the Orphan Train! – The History of Opelousas' Orphan Train Movement
During the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century, there was a crisis in New York City with mothers abandoning their infants in front of orphanages due to the poor welfare institutions present. The Sisters of St. Peter’s Convent in New York…
The Battle of Bayou Bourbaux {Also Called the Battle of Bayou Carencro}
Battle of Bisland
KROF: Rice, Oil, Fur – A Signal That Grows
KROF in Abbeville differed from nearby Acadiana radio stations for its unique programming geared towards agriculture and farming: the main occupation of many of its listeners. Indeed, the importance of agriculture to the formation of the station is…
The Battle of Vermilion Bridge
The 440 Yard Journey: Cajun Downs, 1898-1998 – The Foundation of Cajun Horse Culture
But it’s how many young boys found themselves on a sweltering south Louisiana Sunday afternoon—sitting atop 1200 pounds of hot, sweaty horse and getting ready for the ride of their lives. “They’d tie you on the saddle in your underwear to keep you…
Judice Inn – No Frie Zone!
Built and established by brothers, Alcide and Marc Judice, Judice Inn became one of Lafayette’s treasures serving up the “’best hamburgers in town’” since April 5, 1947 where men or women on horseback could stop off to have lunch or dinner to enjoy…
Hey, Hey, Heymann Performing Arts Center – Hey man, Lafayette's first municipal auditorium turned into a theater!
Who knew one of Lafayette's most famous figures patronized the arts? The Heymann Performing Arts Center was originally Lafayette’s first municipal auditorium designed by architect A. Hays Town in 1957. Town built many of the most famous…
The Real Christian – The Story of Auguste Robert "Nonco" Pelafigue
The town of Arnaudville was a deeply Catholic area in Southern Louisiana, but the citizens would come to recognize a local layman as a saint. Auguste Robert Pelafigue was first born in Beaucens, France. He later settled in Arnaudville the year after…