Episode 83: The Making of a Better Pecan – An Enslaved Person’s Story

Here is the amazing story of how the pecan, as we would come to know it, was transformed from being a lowly nut that grew wild in the south to becoming a finely developed food source. All of this was because of an enslaved person who was the gardener at Oak Alley Plantation and who developed an expertise at grafting. Historian Katy Morlas Shannon joins Errol Laborde, executive editor of Louisiana Life, along with podcast producer Kelly Massicot to talk about the discoveries from her fascinating new book “Antoine of Oak Alley.”

Oh yes, we will also hear about slave laws and how Louisiana differed from some other southern states.