One of the defining features ofsouth Louisiana’s distinct Cajun culture is the food. Of course there’s the language, the music, the geography and the shared traditions and heritage, but it’s the food that stands second to none. While the region…
BRIAN GAUVIN PHOTOGRAPHS THIS PAGE TOP, FACING PAGE BOTTOM; PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY UNIVERSITY OF NEW ORLEANS EARL K. LONG LIBRARY SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, THIS PAGE BOTTOM AND FACING PAGE TOPBoth economically and politically, Louisiana in the 1930s was one of the nation’s…
Levees and spillways have long been part of the Louisiana landscape, but Katrina and Rita put them on the map Levees in Louisiana, besides keeping us dry, provide some welcome elevation for low-lying areas and have added cultural benefits. As…
The Untold Story of the Louisiana National Guard, Katrina, Questions of Command, the Law and the Battle to Save Lives In any ordinary early Friday evening, 19-year-old Anthony Harrison would be helping out during the weekend rush at Fanta’s Seafood…
In the shadow of Katrina, the parishes of “Imperial Calcasieu” stagger from Rita n a Tuesday evening. George Swift is popping a bag of popcorn in his Lake Charles home, marking the end of another day, most of which he…
NORTHERN LOUISIANA CAUSE TO CELEBRATE The wearing of the green Celtic culture influenced the Old World and the New. When the Celts crossed the Rhine around 600 B.C., this fierce and brave race began settling across Europe and ventured as…
As a resident of Bossier City in northwest Louisiana for four years, we are very proud of our new Louisiana Boardwalk, which was briefly noted in the “Around Louisiana” section of your magazine in the Summer 2005 issue. The issue…
Finally, the future. For too many Louisianians, over too many days, the future stalled. Too many hours, filled with too much uncertainty, was too much to take. “This, too, shall pass.” Who first said that? Was it Jesus? Buddha? Moses?…
The phone rings. It’s 5:45. That’s a.m. As in, earlier than 6 o’clock in the morning. In most households – in normal people’s households – this might be cause for alarm. But here on our fresh-produce farm north of Franklinton,…
Is there a future for cypress? Down a half-mile gravel footpath, deep within the Cat Island National Wildlife Refuge near St. Francisville, stands a majestic 1,500-year-old bald- cypress tree. “Old Cat,” as the tree is affectionately called, stands more than…
Remember always the week that began on Sunday, Aug. 28, 2005, for on that date, as southeast Louisiana emptied to the threat of a tempest in the gulf, Louisiana began to change, becoming poorer and sadder, yet showing its worth…
Restoring the soul of America On August 29, 2005, the greatest natural disaster in U.S. history occurred when Hurricane Katrina hit Southeast Louisiana. Four parishes, including New Orleans, were severely damaged. Families were torn apart, lives and homes were lost.…
Weekend Favorites When I was finalizing a move back to Louisiana from New York 15 years ago, I told friends that the house I had found was originally built as a camp. Initially, it didn’t occur to me that “camp”…
The Atchafalaya, Louisiana’s best-loved swamp Like most outdoors adventures in Louisiana, wetlands explorations are best done when temperatures are perfect and barometer readings are tolerable. That means spring or fall. The tiebreaker for the Great Atchafalaya Swamp is that fall’s…
As the old clubs close, Louisiana’s traditional music looks for a new home About 1,000 people, black and white, turned out in Lafayette on Sunday, June 19, to pay their final respects at the passing of a cultural legend. No,…
"Neque porro quisquam est qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit..." "There is no one who loves pain itself, who seeks after it and wants to have it, simply because it is pain..." Lorem ipsum dolor sit…
John Darling Haynes and the Southern landscape by John R. Kemp Like alchemists, artists use canvas and palette to create imagined or real images of the world, its beauty, drama or the play of light upon the land. Others paint…
Distinguished author John Barry compares Louisiana’s two greatest natural disasters and what we have learned from each John Barry’s book Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and how it Changed America spent six weeks on The New York…
In New York, they still talk about Willis Reed and that night and that game with the same head-bowing reverence as when they speak of Casey Stengel’s Amazin’ Mets and Joe Namath’s “guaranteed” Super Bowl III win in 1969. It…
Biker saloon pulls ’em in Over the roar of motorcycle engines, word is spreading about a new Louisiana business that caters to an increasing population of weekend bikers. Cy Dodge’s Bike Barn Saloon, located off Interstate 49 between Lafayette and…
Bull Moose and the Daisy I read with much interest the article on “Building Barriers” concerning Breton National Wildlife Refuge, which appeared in the Winter 2004/05 edition. The article was excellent and addressed an important part of our state’s pioneer…
Suitable meals for summer by STANLEY DRY My favorite summer meal is grilled food, a salad and a cold bottle of dry rosé. If there’s any meal more welcome than that on a hot day, I don’t know what it…
A brief history of coastal smuggling by JEREMY J. ALFORD The hurricane-charged winds and rain stopped almost as suddenly as they attacked. All that could be heard now were cypress planks creaking under the strain of the surviving sails and…
Eunice's former first couple's trophy house by BONNIE WARREN Just six blocks from the famous Liberty Theatre in Eunice lives the man who is credited with being the father of an effort to preserve Cajun music, the French language in…
