Dedicated August 25, 1909, by Fr. Arthur Drossaerts, Pastor of Sacred Heart church in Broussard, and opened on September 15, 1909 with an enrollment of seventy students. Accredited as an elementary and secondary school by the State Department of . . . — — Map (db m49294) HM
• Southwestern Louisiana Industrial
Institute was established July 14, 1898.
State Senator Robert Martin, for
whom the administrative building is
named, authored the legislative act
that created SLII. •
In 1899, the Board of Trustees . . . — — Map (db m227412) HM
• Dr. Edwin L. Stephens, first president of
SLII, planted oak trees on campus on
January 1, 1901. •
The first campus building, known initially
as the Main Building, was completed in June
1901. •
SLII opened on September 18, 1901, with
100 . . . — — Map (db m227415) HM
• The first L'Acadien yearbook was published
in 1912.
• In 1916, SLII became a senior high school
and junior college. •
The Institute's Students Army Training
Corps began in 1918. •
Influenza epidemic closes campus for . . . — — Map (db m227416) HM
•In 1920, the Main Building was renamed
Martin Hall in honor of Louisiana Sen Robert.
Martin, who introduced legislation that created
SLII •
1920 enrollment 280-number of
faculty 26. •
In 1921, SLII became a college and
conferred its first . . . — — Map (db m227419) HM
• 1930 enrollment 918-number of
faculty 58.
• The first Camellia Pageant was held in
1934.
• Dr. Edwin Stephens, first president of
Southwestern Louisiana Institute, retired in
January 1938. He died on November 5, 1938. •
Lether E . . . — — Map (db m229010) HM
• 1940 enrollment 2,345-number of faculty 109. •
In January 1941, Joel Lafayette Fletcher became
the third president of SLI. •
By the end of 1941, SLI had either won or tied for
Louisiana Intercollegiate Conference championships
in . . . — — Map (db m229011) HM
Main Panel
The two beams, retrieved from Ground Zero in New York City, are actual beams that were part of the World Trade Center. Standing side by side the beams represent the World Trade Center North and South Towers and are oriented as . . . — — Map (db m209464) WM
ACADIAN HOUSE:
A Small Cajun Plantation Building
This small Cajun structure dates from the 1830s, and originated on the Mouton Plantation near
Carencro, north of Lafayette. The plantation was owned by Francois and Antoine . . . — — Map (db m135319) HM
Attkapas Chapel: The Church in a Catholic Region This chapel is a reproduction based on St. Francis Catholic Church in Point Coupee (1760) and St
Martin de Tours Catholic Church in St. Martinville (1773). Both churches had a double pitch . . . — — Map (db m130028) HM
Battle of Pinhook Bridge April 17, 1863. Battle of Bayou Vermilion October 9, 1863. We honor the memory of those soldiers who valiantly fought on these banks. — — Map (db m49059) HM
THE BAYOU VERMILION DISTRICT The historic village at Vermilionville is administered by the Lafayette Parish Bayou Vermilion District (LPBVD). The Louisiana state legislature created the district in 1984 in an effort to improve the quality of . . . — — Map (db m136617) HM
La Maison Beau Bassin
BEAU BASSIN HOUSE:
Honoring a Lost Home in Acadian Canada
The Beau Bassin House was originally built in the 1840s by Louis Arceneaux, a Cajun rancher who lived between Carencro and Lafayette. The . . . — — Map (db m131270) HM
Beaver Park was developed by the Beaver Club on land leased by the Playground and Park Commission in April 1959.
The Beaver Club is an organization of business and professional men dedicated to the ideals of public service.
In addition to . . . — — Map (db m137224) HM
MAISON BOUCVALT:
An Urban Dwelling from the late 1800s
This house was
was built in the late 1800s as an
located originally in downtown Opelousas, and
urban dwelling. Named after the last owner of the house Dr. Roy . . . — — Map (db m135042) HM
BROUSSARD HOUSE: A Large Acadian Plantation Home La Maison Broussard dates to 1790, and is the oldest building in Vermilionville. It was the home of Armand Broussard, who immigrated to Louisiana as a child from Acadian Canada. . . . — — Map (db m136621) HM
Buller House: A Creole Style House This Creole style house was built in 1807 on land acquired by Joseph Buller near Prairie Ronde in St. Landry Parish. It contains several characteristics of the Creole architectural . . . — — Map (db m136627) HM
Dr. Butler's Drug Store on Gordon Street was known as a place that
provided affordable health and comfort to the ill and large vanilla ice cream
cones to the youngsters. Dr. Butler's story represents a very special African
American success . . . — — Map (db m224617) HM
Established in 1846. A combination of Mount Carmel Academy and Cathedral School. Operated by The Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist Parish in the Diocese of Lafayette. Affiliated with the Sisters of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel and the De La Salle . . . — — Map (db m49062) HM
HOUSE OF CULTURES: Reflecting the Crossroads of Cultures The history of this house reflects the diverse groups of people that inhabit the region. The Coussan family of French immigrants built this house around 1850 in the Pont . . . — — Map (db m134977) HM
Following its establishment in 1898, Dr. Edwin Lewis Stephens became the University's first president in 1900 at the age of 27. He transformed an empty sugar cane field into a respected institution of higher learning. On January 1, 1901, he planted . . . — — Map (db m111638) HM
In April 1955, Emmanuel Baptist Church held its first meetings, thus becoming the earliest Southern Baptist Church to minister to Lafayette's southside neighborhoods. — — Map (db m114490) HM
This otherwise flat region, sloping, hill-like formations are visible and represent the Mississippi River escarpment (bluff-like shelf) that divides this area into floodplain and prairie. The Vermilion River flows at the base of this . . . — — Map (db m114785) HM
1829-1864. Confederate brigadier general from Lafayette who served in Shiloh, Lafourche, Teche, and Red River campaigns. Killed at Mansfield, leading Confederacy to its most important military victory west of the Mississippi. — — Map (db m49063) HM
Sculpture by Charles Correia. Cast by Shidoni Foundry. Erected by the Lafayette Centennial Commission on July 2, 1987 as a gift to the people of Lafayette, Louisiana following the celebration of the centennial of the city's name change in 1884 from . . . — — Map (db m68722) HM
On this site in the year of 1904 the first hotel was opened in Lafayette as the Gordon Hotel. It was housed in this building and operated as a hotel through the 1950's.
This building is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. . . . — — Map (db m91821) HM
From where did the word "Cajun" come? The refugees from Acadian Canada, called themselves Acadians. Over time, the word transformed into more vernacular pronunciation Cajun Can you be Cajun if your family was NOT from . . . — — Map (db m135003) HM
On July 9, 1913, Father Keller purchased farm land once owned
by the sister of the King of
France, from Louis Domengeaux to
establish Holy Rosary Institute in Lafayette, Louisiana.
The Institute opened September 1913 as an industrial . . . — — Map (db m120896) HM
Lawyer, Louisiana Legislator
U.S. Congressman, Founder-President of CODOFIL
Legion d'honneur française, Ordre de la couronne belge
Preserve the language, and you preserve the culture.
This tree from the Durance Valley of the . . . — — Map (db m109227) HM
Jean Jacques Alfred Mouton
Born in Opelousas La. February 18, 1829
Killed at the Battle of Mansfield La. April 8, 1864
when 35 years of age. — — Map (db m125494) HM WM
Established 1954
by
Les Vingt-Quatre
Home of Louisiana's
first Democratic Governor
Alexandre Mouton (1804-1882)
Built prior to 1836
fondé en 1854
par
Les Vingt-Quatre
Résidence du Premier Gouverneur
Démocrate de la . . . — — Map (db m85870) HM
GUIDE ROPE FERRY: Simple Technology for Traversing Bayous South Louisiana features numerous rivers and bayous that flow from north to south, making east-west travel difficult in the pre-modern age. Ferries were essential for . . . — — Map (db m134963) HM
Mouton House: The House of a Middle Class Acadian Family The Maison Mouton is a reconstruction of a standard sized dwelling with a detached kitchen, representing a home of a middle class family. Some Cajun families built up . . . — — Map (db m134961) HM
MOUTON KITCHEN:
A Detached Kitchen before the Modern Age
This building is a reproduction of a typical kitchen built separately from the main residence to reduce
heat and the threat of fire. Pre-modern kitchens in rural . . . — — Map (db m135077) HM
These centurion live oak trees shaded Ile Copal, the plantation home of Alexandre Mouton. Mouton was governor of Louisiana from 1843-46 and son of the founder of Vermilionville. Here marks the beginning of a shady lane of oaks planted by Emma K. . . . — — Map (db m125837) HM
In 1776 Pierre Dugat received a Spanish land grant for this site, which became his plantation. Indian artifacts found on this site date from 3000 B.C. to about the eighteenth century. — — Map (db m114601) HM
On September 15, 1953, Clara Dell Constantine, Martha Jane Conway, Charles Vincent Singleton, and Shirley Taylor attempted to enroll at Southwestern Louisiana Institute, now known as the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. They were denied, due to . . . — — Map (db m66243) HM
School House: Banning of the French Language
L'école is a reproduction of a typical schoolhouse of the late 1800s. In southwest
Louisiana, French was the dominant language until the mid-1900s. Native Americans
along with . . . — — Map (db m135004) HM
The tree, one of the largest live oak trees in the United States, is estimated to be almost 500 years old. It was a large tree in 1800 when the property was donated to the Catholic Church. The age of the tree is based on the average sizes of known . . . — — Map (db m86194) HM
First church in Lafayette Parish was "l'Eglise St. Jean du Vermilion." Built on a gift of this site by Jean Mouton, 1821. In 1824 he donated land for a court house and founded Vermilionville (Lafayette).
(Reverse) French: La Cathedrale . . . — — Map (db m49293) HM
The Forge:
A Utilitarian Space for Hot Dirty Work This recreated building represents a blacksmith shop, which was essential to a working farm, vacherie (ranch), or plantation in rural southwestern Louisiana. The . . . — — Map (db m136628) HM
THE PRESBYTERY:
A Simple Residence from the early 1800s
This small home represents the simple but functional structures in which priests could have lived in
the early 1800s. The building was originally located
property . . . — — Map (db m135886) HM
TRAPPER'S CABIN: Harvesting the Natural Bounty of the Wetlands This replica of a structure is based on an outbuilding used for storage from the 1700s, and illustrates st a basic dwelling in which trappers and moss pickers in . . . — — Map (db m134624) HM
After four black students successfully sued in federal court to gain admission, Southwestern
Louisiana Institute, now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, became the first state-supported,
previously all-white undergraduate college in the . . . — — Map (db m224481) HM
This marker commemorates the 50th anniversary of the desegregation of Southwestern
Louisiana Institute and the 50th anniversary of Brown v. the Board of Education of Topeka,
Kansas, the landmark Supreme Court case that ultimately resulted in the . . . — — Map (db m224616) HM
The Vermilion is a tidal river formed from the bottom up by Vermilion Bay tides and other natural actions that slowly eroded inland from the marshes and cheniers and through the Louisiana prairie. The Vermilion River, also known as Bayou . . . — — Map (db m114505) HM
During early settlement and into the Antebellum Period, the Vermilion was an important secondary waterway for steamboats carrying agricultural products to New Orleans, the east coast and, eventually the world.The Vermilion River, also known as . . . — — Map (db m114649) HM
pre-1699 pre-1699: Ancestors of the Ishak (Atakapa) and Chitimacha people hunt bison, deer, bear and small game; harvest fish and shellfish. The Chitimacha's territory encompasses the entire Atchafalaya Basin, lands west . . . — — Map (db m136633) HM
1775-1783 1775-1783: United States War of Independence. In support of the U.S., in 1779 the Spanish military captures British-held Baton Rouge, with the use of Native American, French, Spanish, and free persons of color . . . — — Map (db m136634) HM
Architectural Style: Victorian Shingle/Eastlake
This house was built by Henri Bendel (1868-1936) for his beloved, long-
time housekeeper. Henri was well known for his generosity to employees,
family and friends. In addition to this house, he . . . — — Map (db m228252) HM
Built: c. 1910
Architectural Style: Prairie Queen Anne
For years, many residents fondly remembered their visits to Dr.
Butler's Drug Store on Gordon Street. It was known as a place
that provided affordable health and comfort to the ill as . . . — — Map (db m225687) HM
Built c 1880 Architectural Style - Modified French Creole Good Hope Hall was known originally as "True Friends Hall.
It was built by the True Friends Association in Freetown,
a settlement that offered sanctuary and compassion to
many . . . — — Map (db m225134) HM
Architectural Style: Vernacular Storefront
Martin's Hat Shop operated at this address in "Freetown" between
circa 1942 and 2008. The history of the business goes back to 1915,
when the hat shop was located at 115 W. Cypress Street, not far . . . — — Map (db m228408) HM
Architectural Style: Vernacular Storefront
Pavy Studio was originally built as a residence and converted
to a retail shop sometime in the late 1940s. It is a good
example in terms of design, workmanship and materials, for
a neighborhood . . . — — Map (db m228288) HM
Oral tradition tells us the neighborhood originated with free people of
color who lived in this area prior to the Civil War. After emancipation,
newly freed slaves also settled in the community. Two subsequent
waves of activity further . . . — — Map (db m228409) HM
