Thibodaux in Lafourche Parish, Louisiana — The American South (West South Central)
Leonidas Polk
Photographed by Cajun Scrambler, January 13, 2018
1. Leonidas Polk Marker
Inscription.
Leonidas Polk. . Born in Raleigh, North Carolina, in 1806, Polk attended the University of North Carolina before receiving an appointment to West Point, from which he graduated in 1827. He soon resigned his commission, however, was ordained an Episcopal priest, and in 1832 moved to a farm near Columbia, Tennessee. He combined farming with pastoral work with a colored congregation until 1838, when he was appointed missionary Bishop of the old southwest--the vast area comprising present-day Arkansas, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Indian Territory. In that capacity, Polk resettled his family to Bayou Lafourche and resided on "Leighton Place" Plantation a few miles upstream from the town of Thibodaux., Among Polk's first accomplishments here was the founding of St. John's Episcopal Church. Built in the style of a Greek temple, in 1843-1844, the church faced the Terrebonne Road (Jackson Street) on Ridgefield Plantation land donated by Polk's friend and ardent supporter George S. Guion., Bishop Polk and his wife, Frances Devereaux, schooled their slaves, provided religious services for them, and established a lay nursery for servant's children. A cholera epidemic in 1849 killed many workers on the plantation. That disaster was followed by a tornado in 1850 which destroyed the sugar mill, many other structures, and the sugar cane crop. The plantation subsequently failed, and Polk moved in 1854 to New Orleans, where he became rector of Trinity Church on Jackson Avenue. He later helped establish the University of the South at Sewanee, Tennessee., In 1861, Leonidas Polk returned to service as a soldier, achieving a rank of Lieutenant General in the Army of the Confederacy. He was killed by a cannonball at the Battle of Pine Mountain, Georgia, June 14, 1864, and his remains later were interred in Christ Church Cathedral, New Orleans.
Born in Raleigh, North Carolina, in 1806, Polk attended the University of North Carolina before receiving an appointment to West Point, from which he graduated in 1827. He soon resigned his commission, however, was ordained an Episcopal priest, and in 1832 moved to a farm near Columbia, Tennessee. He combined farming with pastoral work with a colored congregation until 1838, when he was appointed missionary Bishop of the old southwest--the vast area comprising present-day Arkansas, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Indian Territory. In that capacity, Polk resettled his family to Bayou Lafourche and resided on "Leighton Place" Plantation a few miles upstream from the town of Thibodaux.
Among Polk's first accomplishments here was the founding of St. John's Episcopal Church. Built in the style of a Greek temple, in 1843-1844, the church faced the Terrebonne Road (Jackson Street) on Ridgefield Plantation land donated by Polk's friend and ardent supporter George S. Guion.
Bishop Polk and his wife, Frances Devereaux, schooled their slaves, provided religious services for them, and established a lay nursery for servant's children.
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A cholera epidemic in 1849 killed many workers on the plantation. That disaster was followed by a tornado in 1850 which destroyed the sugar mill, many other structures, and the sugar cane crop. The plantation subsequently failed, and Polk moved in 1854 to New Orleans, where he became rector of Trinity Church on Jackson Avenue. He later helped establish the University of the South at Sewanee, Tennessee.
In 1861, Leonidas Polk returned to service as a soldier, achieving a rank of Lieutenant General in the Army of the Confederacy. He was killed by a cannonball at the Battle of Pine Mountain, Georgia, June 14, 1864, and his remains later were interred in Christ Church Cathedral, New Orleans.
Location. 29° 47.632′ N, 90° 49.391′ W. Marker is in Thibodaux, Louisiana, in Lafourche Parish. It can be reached from Jackson Street south of Seventh Street, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map.
Photographed by Cajun Scrambler, January 13, 2018
2. Leonidas Polk Marker
Marker is at or near this postal address: 718 Jackson Street, Thibodaux LA 70301, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Louisiana’s River Parishes, in Acadiana Cajun Country, and specifically in Bayou Country. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Deep South, and on the Gulf Coast. Globally, it is in North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,Acadia, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, the Louisiana Purchase, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Credits. This page was last revised on September 6, 2023. It was originally submitted on January 14, 2018, by Cajun Scrambler of Assumption, Louisiana. This page has been viewed 831 times since then and 32 times this year. Last updated on January 31, 2018, by T. Patton of Jefferson, Georgia. Photos:1, 2. submitted on January 14, 2018.
