Historic Businesses of Acadiana: Past and Present
Highlighting historic businesses is crucial because they embody resilience and innovation, offering inspirational stories that demonstrate how they’ve weathered challenges over time. These businesses are more than just economic entities; they become integral to the community's identity, often shaping local culture and traditions. By preserving and sharing their legacies, we honor their contributions and provide valuable lessons for future generations, reinforcing the importance of longevity and community roots in business success.
Loading Stories
Stories 20
Keeping Acadiana Beefed Up, The Story of Prejean's Wholesale Meats
It is no secret that in Acadiana, meat is everywhere. Every true Cajun/Creole loves filling their stomach with rice and gravy, fricassee, gumbo, or any other stew. This is thanks in part to…
Lifetimes of Lumber: The Story of St. Landry Lumber Co.
St. Landry Lumber Co. is one of the oldest businesses in the Opelousas area. The oldest transactions can be dated to the 1890s. The story of its early owners quickly grows murky though, as the…
From Wrought to Rot: The Story of J.B. Sandoz
In the early 1870s, a Quebec-born blacksmith named Joseph Jobin took on an apprentice in Opelousas, Louisiana. The apprentice's name was Jacques B. Sandoz. In 1877, Jobin passed away and left his…
The Show Must Go On: The Story of the Grand Opera House of the South
In the year 1901, David E. Lyons built a theatre in downtown Crowley. It is estimated that the entire 33,000 square foot building priced out at approximately 18,000 dollars. The original name for…
Rich History at the Royal Tavern: Twenty years of Roy Gathe's legacy, the Royal Tavern
Nightlife in Acadiana was especially dynamic and rich with complicated history. Many dancehalls, prior to the 1960s, were segregated or even white only, though one particular dancehall that opened sometime in the late 1930s not only welcomed Black patrons, but was owned by a Black family. In its early days, the Royal Tavern was regarded as a pinnacle of high-class entertainment in Lafayette. As the dancehall changed hands and became more established in the Lafayette community, vices of the night, including illegal alcohol sales, prostitution, violence, and narcotics changed the place the Royal Tavern held in the community.
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!
Setting Sights on the Rice
A rich history of film entertainment, community, tragedy, and rebirth at Crowley's longest operating theater, The Rice Theater
Give Me Liberty: A brief history of the historic Liberty Theatre in downtown Eunice
Through fire and storm, the Liberty Theatre stands as an historic example of entertainment and community for the people of Eunice
Generations of Banking in the Heart of Acadiana: The Bank of Abbeville and Trust Company
The Bank of Abbeville and Trust Company has stood the test of time. For over a century, it has served the banking needs of Vermilion Parish, Louisiana residents. Since its establishment in 1894, the bank has survived a fire, two world wars, and numerous financial crises threatening the American South. While other businesses have come and gone, the Bank of Abbeville and Trust Company demonstrates a constancy comparable to that of the city.
The Veranda Hotel's Journey Through Fires, Violence, and Modernization: The Evolution of Abbeville's Historic Landmark
Born from a courthouse construction project in 1845, the Veranda Hotel evolved into a bustling hub for traveling professionals during the nineteenth century. The hotel embodied growth and development until it was replaced by the modern Audrey Hotel in 1928. Today, its legacy endures as a symbol of progress and continuity for Abbeville, Louisiana.
Forging A Legacy: The Enduring Spirit of Sam Guarino & Son Inc.
Sam Guarino & Son Inc., a cornerstone of Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, is a testament to Sicilian craftsmanship and dedication. Founded over a century ago by Sicilian immigrant Salvadore “Sam” Guarino, the blacksmith shop is now a museum preserving a rich cultural heritage.
Deep Roots and Sweet Cane: Exploring the Tradition and Resilience of Domingues Farms
Sugar cane farming is a tradition and economic cornerstone in the fertile land of Vermilion Parish, Louisiana. Domingues Farms, with roots dating back to 1918, embodies its founder's legacy with resilience and pride.
Beyond Hammers and Nails: The Long Legacy of Theo. Daigle & Bros. Hardware Store: Supplying Church Point with the tools to build a town, 114 years and counting.
The Daigle family operated dozens of businesses in Church Point and the surrounding rural areas for decades. Ranging from banks, grocery stores, cotton gins, department stores, and lumber and power companies, the family played a key role in the town's early development. One hardware store remains the oldest business in town.
Chocolate Soldier Chronicles: From Church Point to Hanley's Bottling Works: Supplying Church Point with delicious refreshments, from 1906 to 1978.
The turn of the century's railroad industry supported the creation and operation of the tiny Church Point Bottling Works by Church Point natives Alcee Sonnier and Pierre Guidry. By the 1950s, the son of an Irish railroad man, "Tooney" Hanley, had bought the factory, renovated and upgraded equipment, and began exporting "pop" all over Acadiana. Hanley's Bottling Works' slogan was "bottled in Church Point for America since 1925."
Peddler to Pioneer: A Slovakian Immigrant's Journey to Church Point Wholesale: Supplying Church Point and the South with almost anything, 112 years and counting.
After four generations of Horeckys and going on two of Gielens, this company remains one of the largest wholesale distributors in the South, located in the tiny town of Church Point. "At Church Point Wholesale, we still believe in quality, service, and tradition!"
Grit and Tin: Cajun Sharecroppers and the Prairie Hayes Cotton Gin: Supplying rural farmers with the means to gin their cotton from the 1930s until the 1970s.
For over 200 years, Cajuns in rural Acadiana cultivated coton jaune, an heirloom variety of cotton brown or beige in color, on a domestic scale for clothing and bedding. Blankets and sheets were passed down to a Cajun woman as a wedding gift and tight-nit communities of women worked together to divide the labor associated with spinning yarn and weaving. These women used coton jaune as a means of cultural transmission among generations as well as cultural preservation. In the late 19th and 20th centuries, plain white cotton could be dyed any color, and therefore became a cash crop for its versatility in application and ability to be mass produced. Common across the southern United States, cotton surprisingly had a home in Acadia Parish and many Cajuns, Creoles, and Creoles of Color made their livings sharecropping cotton.
Greig's West Main Grocery: Greig's little store was a gatekeeper of the growing city of New Iberia for nearly 50 years.
The buzzer sounded on the kitchen door, notifying Raymond August Greig that someone had entered his store. The kitchen door opened into the small, connected building on West Main Street in New Iberia. Raymond would meander behind the counter, greet his guest, sit in his worn yellow chair, and welcome a new business day. Greig's West Main Grocery was your average small corner store that supported patrons heading in and out of town on Highway 182.
A Survey of Success: The Fenstermaker Story
C. H. Fenstermaker & Associates, L.L.C., started in the back bedroom of Charles Howard Fenstermaker's family home at 317 Allen Street, New Iberia.
Against The Grain: The Endurance Of The Conrad Rice Mill: The 112-year-old Conrad Rice Mill is the oldest operating rice mill in America.
The Conrad Rice Mill is a story of success and resilience, steered by competent and astute businessmen from Philip Conrad to Mike Davis.
A Lost Paradise: Rousseau's Catahoula Inn: The Tragic Story of a Forgotten Getaway
Deep in the bayous of Louisiana once stood Rousseau’s Catahoula Inn. Shaded by majestic oak trees and with the sound of cicadas humming in the background, it was a picturesque respite for young and old.Tour curated by: Students at UL Lafayette