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Site 1: Jonte Equen's Home — The Birth of the Association: The Screwmen's Benevolent Association Organized
On the evening of November 18, 1850, 121 screwmen put down their jackscrews and emerged from the dark, cramped hulls that they had been toiling in since early that morning. They made their way down…
Site 10: Fort Proctor — The Screwmen's Guard: The Screwmen and the Civil War
Fort Proctor looms on the horizon, like a castle rising from the choppy waters of Lake Borgne.
Site 2: Screwmen's Armory — The Screwmen Go to War: The Present Disturbed State of the Country
Young men filed in and out of the building at 14 Canal Street. Some stood around outside and discussed the latest news of the war or compared enlistment details.
Site 3: The Bend in the River: A Post Civil War Labor Strike Unifying Black and White Workers on the Docks: Race and Unity on the Crescent
The port is, and was, the lifeblood of New Orleans. However, much has changed over the years. Sailors no longer dock steamboats, brigantines, and keelboats along the quay. Instead, container ships,…
Site 4: Tchoupitoulas and Thalia — A Neighborhood Unites: Port Workers Unite on Tchoupitoulas and Thalia Streets
On December 23, 1865, 600 longshoremen met at the corner of Tchoupitoulas and Thalia Streets to protest working conditions and discuss a wage increase.
Site 5: Louisiana Hose House — Responding to the 1865 Strike: A House for Hoses and for Meetings Too
A labor strike during Christmas of 1865 threw all port trades into turmoil and impacted the cotton industry tremendously. Shipmasters and stevedores met at the Louisiana Hose House to discuss the…
Site 6: Second to Seventh Streets — The 1894 Attack on Black Screwmen's Tools: Masked Men Raid Ships
On October 26, 1894, 200 men gathered under the cover of night and descended on the port in New Orleans. Some wore handkerchiefs to obscure their faces. Others wore false beards and masks. Armed with…
Site 7: First to Third Streets — The 1894 Waterfront Riot: Murder Comes to the Levee
Gun smoke mingled with steam rising from smokestacks of British ships docked along the levee. Rifle shots replaced the usual sounds of the port. The rattling of carts and longshoremen singing shanteys…
Site 8: Screwmen's Hall — The Association's Institutional Home: Where It All Happened
It was the heart of where members debated the issues surrounding their trade. It was a place to get information, cast votes, and make plans.
Site 9: St. Roch Cemetery — The Society Tomb: Screwmen's Benevolent Association at Work
Today, the Society Tomb of the Screwmen’s Benevolent Association in St. Roch Cemetery No. 1 stands as the only known public monument in New Orleans to the screwmen who once played such an important…
Slim's Y-Ki-Ki: Zydeco's Highs and Lows in Opelousas
Once the heart of Opelousas nightlife, learn about the highs and lows of zydeco's favorite dancehall, Slim's Y-Ki-Ki and the club it used to be!
Smoked Boudin - First Advertised: Early History of Modern Boudin
Who "invented" smoked boudin? Well, this is the location of the first meat market to advertise it . . . . .
Southdown Cemetery History Loss: Where are they now?
About three and a half miles from the Southdown Plantation house in Houma, Terrebonne Parish, lies a cemetery of the same name. Southdown Cemetery is still used today however, the history is being…
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…
Stephen E. Ambrose Memorial Parkway: Founder, Fraud, or Something In-between?
The Stephen E. Ambrose Memorial Parkway is a part of I-10, which was named after a famous American historian who spent most of his career writing about the soldiers who fought in the Second World War,…
Sunken Steamboat in Bayou Teche
There sits a sunken steamboat below four feet of mud in Bayou Teche.
The "James 'Terry' Watson Memorial Highway":
More than than a memorial for a life lost, but a reminder of a life lived.: One man's passion for adventure and helping other led to a life of service both at home and around the globe: The story of James 'Terry' Watson
From the opium fields of Afghanistan to the narrow city streets of Bogota, Colombia, DEA agent James 'Terry' Watson traveled to some of the most dangerous locales around the globe disrupting major…
The 440 Yard Journey: Cajun Downs, 1898-1998: The Foundation of Cajun Horse Culture
Barefoot and in your underwear. This is not how most people start an important journey...
The Barrow Approach: A Lesson in Leadership
A young man from St. Francisville would join the Marine Corps in 1942. He would lead men through the jungles of China & Vietnam, and up frostbitten hills in Korea. Forty one years later, he would…
The Battle at the Vermilion Bayou
The First Battle of Vermillion bridge, On April 17, 1863, was the third of delaying actions by Generals Muton and Taylor against Union forces led by Major General Nathaniel Prentice Banks. General…
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.…
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…
The Battle of Vermilion Bridge
It is 1860, and Abraham Lincoln was Just elected, the first Republican to win the White House. The Southern States had threatened secession if the Republicans won, and by the time Lincoln was…
The Catholic Church of Patterson, Louisiana: St. Joseph Church
19th Century Church
The Church that Started a City: Saint Mary Magdalen Church – Abbeville, LA
The city of Abbeville owes its origins to the founder of St. Mary Magdalen Church.
The Civil War campaign in Acadiana
The Corporal Clovis Wayne “J.R.” Searcy Jr. Memorial Highway
: The Life and Leagacy of Corporal Clovis Wayne “J.R.” Searcy Jr.
After two days of fighting for his life, Corporal Clovis Wayne "J.R." Searcy of the Ouachita Parish Sheriff's Office tragically lost his life to wounds sustained in the line of duty. A dedicated…
The Creole Cowboy of Pied des Chiens: Wilson Anthony 'Boozoo' Chavis Memorial Highway: Louisiana Highway 385
Louisiana Memorial Highway number 103 is known as the Wilson Anthony 'Boozoo' Chavis Memorial Highway. The highway runs south of Lake Charles towards Cameron Parish, east of Calcasieu Lake. It was…
The Enterprises of the Development of Heymann Oil Focus
Maurice Heymann was an easy going guy who developed the The Heymann Oil Center.
The Famous Livable Corner Bank: Bank of Scott
Old corner bank turned into renovated AirBnB.