Welcome to Breaux Bridge

Welcome to Breaux Bridge. . , Truly born on the bayou, Breaux Bridge has remained connected to its waterway despite modern advances. Downtown Breaux Bridge and Bridge Street are intersected by Bayou Teche, and Main Street parallels the bayou, with a significant historic district that owes its development to the waterway. The "Crawfish Bridge," as it's called by locals, is a focal point of downtown and crosses the bayou to connect Breaux Bridge with Interstate 10., Bridging the Bayou , The secret to the founding of Breaux Bridge is in its name. Firmin Breaux was one of the first major landowners along the bayou as the result of a Spanish land grant in 1771. He built the first mode of transportation across the Teche, a suspension footbridge, in order to visit his family and friends. His son, Agricole, inherited the land and built the first vehicle bridge, which brought commerce to town. Agricole's wife, Scholastique, is responsible for drawing up "Plan de la Ville du Pont Breaux," which became the founding of what is now Breaux Bridge. A statue of her is located in Veterans Park, just off the bayou., "The history of the town of Breaux Bridge coincides with that of its historic St. Bernard's Parish Church. It was not many years before the establishment of the first small chapel on the west bank of Bayou Teche, just below the point where the bayou completes its crescent and forms the area that became known popularly as La Grande Pointe, that the first cluster of homes and stores began to rise and form a community." - Centennial of St. Bernard's Parish, Breaux Bridge , Great Flood of 1927 , Almost all of Breaux Bridge was underwater during what's known as the Great Flood of 1927. Water flowing from the Mississippi River breached levees and made its way down to the Teche region, with even more water from the Atchafalaya River coming in. On May 18, New Orleans officials recommended complete evacuation of Breaux Bridge and surrounding towns. Army engineers described the flood as a "new river" being pushed into South Louisiana. The Lafayette-Breaux Bridge highway was flooded up to 5-10 feet in just 12 hours, and water rose over the bridge and covered what is now Bridge Street. The water continued to rise in Breaux Bridge through May 27, and high-water markers can be found at the old bank building downtown. By June 2, floodwaters had finally receded, but there was much rebuilding to do. Out of the flood rose a new Breaux Bridge, one with a progressive, entrepreneurial spirit., La capitale mondiale de l'ecrevisse , American Indians are credited with being the first to harvest and eat crawfish in Breaux Bridge, but a local hotel serving up mudbugs in the 1920s and a resident inventing the Crawfish Dog in the 1950s led to what was thought of as "poor man's shrimp" becoming a delicacy. The Louisiana Legislature proclaimed Breaux Bridge the "Crawfish Capital of the World" in 1959, and the world-famous Crawfish Festival began in 1960 as a spinoff of the town's Centennial Celebration. The May festival includes a Crawfish Eating Contest, Crawfish Etouffée Cook-Off, cooking demonstrations and the World-Famous Crawfish Races., Progression of Bridges , Can you count how many bridges preceded the present-day "Crawfish Bridge?" The Breaux family first built a footbridge in 1800 so they could visit each other across the bayou. This early bridge became known as "Breaux's Bridge" and led to a toll bridge in 1820 that Agricole Breaux used as a business venture. That bridge was modified to a drawbridge in 1845 so that steamboats could pass through. Ten years later, a turntable bridge took its place, as was the practice throughout the rest of the state. During the Civil War in 1863, that bridge burned, and a steel bridge replaced it in 1899. That bridge collapsed in 1949, and the bridge that stands today has been in place since 1950., N'allez pas plus vite qu'au pas, Sinon cinq piastres d'amende - French phrase printed on a large, ornate sign over the bridge to warn horses and buggies against speeding before 1898. , Pont Breaux-French for Breaux Bridge, Home of Hunter Hayes , Grammy-nominated Breaux Bridge native Hunter Hayes began playing music at age 2 and joined his first band at age 4. He was known for playing the accordion regularly around town and on stage at the Crawfish Festival before getting national attention by appearing on stage with Hank Williams Jr. and in the film "The Apostle" starring Robert Duvall, who gave him his first guitar. He released his first album in 2000 at age 9, and Billboard has called him the "Leader of Country Music's Youth Revolution." In 2013, Breaux Bridge was officially proclaimed "Home of Hunter Hayes." , Find a complete Bayou Teche music playlist at techeproject.org! , The TECHE Project recognizes Shane Bernard, Patti Holland, Tami St. Germain, Chloé St. Germain-Vermillion and Erin Bass for their contributions to the content of this panel. , For more information, visit: , City of Breaux Bridge | breauxbridgela.net St. Martin Parish Tourist Commission cajuncountry.org The TECHE Project | techeproject.org