Dr. Benoit Grolee

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Grolee Street is one of the oldest streets in Opelousas, Louisiana. It was in 1934 on March 19th, when the Opelousas Board of Public met and passed an ordinance naming two streets that day. One of those streets just so happened to be named Grolee Street.
According to the research of the Daily World, “The name Grolee seems to go back as early as the fifteenth-century French history.” However, the street in Opelousas was named after a different Grolee and he went by the name of Dr. Benoit Grolee, who was an early Opelousas physician who died in 1833. But, according to researched records, “Dr. Grolee came to Opelousas during the early 1800s.” Per research, “We do know, however, that Dr. Benoit Grolee was born in 1783 in Saint-Symphorien, France. It was known that, “Dr. Grolee came to Louisiana as a young man and passed his physicians examination in 1801.” In 1817, Dr. Benoit Grolee received his medical degree in New Orleans, which allowed him to practice medicine in the state.
Dr. Benoit Grolee played a significant role in the early history of Opelousas.” “He was one of the first physicians in the town and the parish.” However, after the passing of Dr. Grolee, the Board of Police of the Town of Opelousas honored his memory by naming a street after him. So, in 1838, the Opelousas Board of Police voted to install brick path walks on some of the major streets in Opelousas. And, Grolee is one of those streets. As of today, many families and businesses have made their homes on East or West Grolee Street. There is also an elementary school called Grolee, which is located on the west end of Grolee