Lafayette Historic Register
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Colorized photo of Lafayette’s Jefferson Street taken in the 1920s. Photo is provided courtesy of Louis J. Perret, Lafayette Parish Clerk of Court. A Brief History of Acadiana Before European influence, Acadiana’s population consisted mainly of the indigenous Ishak (Atakapa), Chahta (Choctaw), and Sitimaxa (Chitimacha) peoples. It was not until 1541 that the first people of the lower Mississippi Delta region first encountered Europeans in any noticeable number. European influence was still negligible until 1682 when France colonized Louisiana under King Louis XIV, and even after another 100 years, the population of European settlers remained small. However, by 1720, South Louisiana had became home to small groups of Spanish, French, and English working as ranchers, trappers or traders. Europeans named the region using the Choctaw word for the Ishak inhabitants, which was Atakapa. By 1800, the two largest population groups were French refugees from Nova Scotia, now called Acadians, (also called Cajuns), and enslaved Africans. Acadians were brought to Southwest Louisiana to clear and cultivate the fertile river- bottom land. Some were given Spanish land grants to cultivate the land along the various rivers, bayous, and lakes. At the same time, Africans were brought to the Atakapa Region to be sold into slavery for work on Louisiana farms and plantations. For several decades, the Catholic Acadians, deported by the British, made up the largest European-heritage population. Additional French and other Europeans settled in the Atakapa Region in greater numbers after 1785. With the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, “Des Americans” began to settle in the Atakapa Region, and significant numbers of other Europeans began to arrive between 1820 and 1870; Germans searched for affordable land, Irish wished to escape famine, and more French citizens fled from religious persecution. Families from the West Indies, Middle East, and Asia also arrived in significant numbers. A resilient Creole culture was formed by the diverse mix of indigenous and immigrant peoples. They shared skills and technologies amid the plantations that covered most of Acadiana before the Civil War. Considering their ancestors’ experience of hardships and ill-treatment prior to settling in South Louisiana, it is interesting that after 100 years, over 30% of the families in the region had become slave-owners and supported a society of white supremacy. Conversely, due to the relative small size of plantations in Acadiana, a natural demand for smiths, carpenters, craftsmen, and artisans developed. As a result, a sizeable diverse middle class emerged and flourished, providing numerous economic opportunities. Native American, African, Acadian, combined with French, Spanish, and German cultural traditions formed the area‘s cultural heritage. Acadian and African cultures have emerged as the more prolific influences that form the basis for today’s local observances. Commitment to family ties, helping neighbors in need, a passion for what the land produces, a culinary mix of various homeland recipes, and an abundance of music inspired by old world compositions, continue to serve as evidence of the authenticity of Acadian and Creole Culture today. 1863 Hand-drawn Map of Vermilionville Environs From The Attakapas Country: A History of Lafayette Parish, by Harry Lewis Griffin, © by Harry Lewis Griffin and reprinted. Used by permission of the publisher, Pelican Publishing. www.pelicanpub.com Map of Vermilionville About 1880 From The Attakapas Country: A History of Lafayette Parish, by Harry Lewis Griffin, © by Harry Lewis Griffin and reprinted. Used by permission of the publisher, Pelican Publishing. www.pelicanpub.com Lafayette Historic Azalea Trail Lafayette Azalea Trail first began in the historic Elmhurst Park neighborhood in the early 1930s when residents planted azaleas along sidewalks and in front yards along Dunreath Street. It began as a neighborhood beautification project, attracting crowds of visitors to the neighborhood every year during blooming season. However, as early as the mid-1800s, the bright fushia-pink flowers of the Southern Indian Formosa Azaleas were actively prized in Lafayette and as early as the mid 1700s they were brought to Mobile and New Orleans. The Southern Indian "Lavender" Formosa Azalea became so prevalent in Lafayette that on February 23, 1938, Mayor J. Maxime Roy proclaimed it the official city flower, renaming it “The General Lafayette Azalea” in honor of the Marquis de Lafayette. At the site of the Lafayette Oil Center National Register Historic District, before becoming a business center in the 1950s, it was Maurice Heymann’s horticultural nursery. Heymann’s nursery provided many of the evergreen azaleas, camellias and magnolias, some of which are now over 100 years old and have continuously been cultivated on properties throughout Lafayette’s historic center. Azaleas were planted by Captain Paul Mouton in “Les Jardins de Mouton” in the 1930s and by Henri Bendel in what would soon become Bendel Gardens in the 1940s. They were also planted in the early 1920s along Myrtle Place Boulevard, throughout the Saint Streets neighborhood and as early as 1910 in Sterling Grove National Historic District. Over the decades, thousands have visited Lafayette in late February and early March to see the trail bloom into its full glory, and nicknaming the season as “Lafayette’s Floral Mardi Gras”. The trail continues to be one of the most popular floral delights in Lafayette, lavishly marking the beginning of spring. E WILLOW ST LOUISIANA AV LOUISIANA LOUISIANA AV LOUISIANA TEURLINGS DR TEURLINGS TEURLINGS DR TEURLINGS W GILMAN RD E GILMAN RD DONLON AV W WILLOW ST MADELINE AV CARMEL DR MOSS ST MOSS ST N UNIVERSITY AV UNIVERSITY N N UNIVERSITY AV UNIVERSITY N HEBERT RD HEBERT HEBERT RD HEBERT NW EVANGELINE THWY EVANGELINE NW NW EVANGELINE THWY EVANGELINE NW MUDD AV RDRD WALKER E SIMCOE ST LA 389 N ST CAMEROCAMERON ST SURREY ST LANDRYLANDRY RDRD LOUISIANALOUISIANA AV AV SIXTHSIXTH STST ERASTEERASTE TWELFTHTWELFTH ST ST N BERTRAND DR BERTRAND N BERTRAND DR DR BERTRAND N BERTRAND DR W ST MARY BL ST JOHN ST JOHN ST ST JOHN ST JOHN ST EE PINHOOK PINHOOK RD RD JEFFERSON ST I49I49 LEELEE AV AV BANKS AV BANKS BANKS AV BANKS U S 90 E UNIVERSITY AV SOUVENIRSOUVENIR GATEGATE E UNIVERSITY AV S ST SS ST E ST MARY BL LA 729 WW CONGRESCONGRE LA 729 DULLESDULLES DRDR CAJUNDOME BL REXREX ST ST WW TAFT TAFT ST ST U S 90 N COLLEGE RD JOHNSTONJOHNSTON STST U S 90 LA 7282-2 FOREMAN DR LA 7282-2 GIRARDGIRARD PARK PARK DR DR S COLLEGE RD VITAL ST S COLLEGE RD I49I49 RampRamp COOLIDGECOOLIDGE ST ST VITAL ST LEGEND AZALEA TRAIL U S 90 WW CONGRESSCONGRESS STST DOU HISTORIC PROPERTIES CET RD S HUGH WALLIS RD WOODVALE AV HISTORIC DISTRICTS U S 90 GUILBEAU RD LAFAYETTE AZALEAS COLLEGE TRAIL RD INDUSTRIAL PKWYPKW 2 Miles BRENTWOOD BL LA 182 1 E BAYOU PW 0.5 Y CAMELLIA BL 0 YOUYOU PKWY PKWY WW BA BA JOHNSTONJOHNSTON ST ST French Acadian Colombage and Bousillage Wall Construction Colombage refers to a type of wall construction that uses half timbers or posts for height, and diagonal bracing with infill for lateral strength. The construction method was commonly used throughout Europe and the Far East for centuries. Bousillage refers to the type of wall infill made with mats of mud and moss hung on wooden rungs that are placed House with exposed colombage framing between half timbers or posts. Bousillage infill in South Louisiana is made with a mixture of the area’s typically clay soil by adding water to form mud and Spanish moss or horse hair to add strength. It was adopted by Acadian French settlers in the Gulf Coast region for buildings in the hot and humid climate. In similar climates around the globe, indigenous people built dwellings made with Bousillage hung on rungs between posts light-weight materials forming well-ventilated huts. Acadian French settlers were accustomed to using heavy timbers and stone to form massive walls that would retain heat. In South Louisiana, they raised their buildings off the ground to address the region’s damp soil and adopted bousillage infill to substitute for stone or brick between timbers. With these adaptations, and with the addition of deep porches to protect walls from sun and rain, the interior rooms of these early dwellings remained cool in summer and warm in winter. More detailed information can be found online at the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources web page: http://dnr.louisiana.gov/assets/TAD/education/ECEP/drafting/a/app-a.htm Table of Contents Lafayette Preservation Commission ..................................................................... i Historic Register Sites ........................................................................ Pages 1 - 125 Historic Register Site Maps .................................................................. Maps 1 - 12 Historic Register Listing Index by Property Name .................. Appendix A (4 pages) Historic Register Listing Index List by Property Address ........ Appendix B (4 pages) About the Lafayette Preservation Commission Formed by ordinance O-3387 by the city of Lafayette's municipal government, the Lafayette Preservation Commission was created on May 10, 1988. 1. To provide for designation of Historic Assets: Historic Properties, Cultural Resources, Historic Landmarks, and Historic Neighborhoods. 2. To stimulate revitalization of business districts and historic neighborhoods and to protect and enhance local historical and aesthetic attractions to tourists and thereby promote