Louisiana; comprising sketches of counties, towns, events, institutions, and persons, Volume I, Part 17

Author: Fortier, Alcee, 1856-1914, ed. 1n
Publication date: 1909
Publisher: Atlanta, Southern Historical Association
Number of Pages: 1294


USA > Louisiana > Louisiana; comprising sketches of counties, towns, events, institutions, and persons, Volume I > Part 17


Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).


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forming the 183 miles of boundary line; on the south bounded by Red River and De Soto parishes and on the west by the Sabine river, which separates it from Texas. Caddo is good upland with some alluvial formation. The uplands have many bayous and lakes and a soil of excellent quality. In the northern portion there are heavy cypress brakes, and the southwestern portion is the water shed between the Red and Sabine rivers. The Red river bottom is from 2 to 8 miles wide and the soil of this bottom land is black, very deep in many places, and of almost unsurpassed fertility, producing, when above inundation, 2 bales of cotton, and from 80 to 100 bushels of corn to the acre. There are thousands of acres of uplands, which, when brought under cultivation, will produce immense amounts of cotton, while more alluvial land is being re- claimed every year by the extension of the levee system. Red river with its tributary streams drains the eastern portion, Cypress bayou the extreme southern portion, while a chain of lakes consisting of Clear, Cross, Ferry, Sodo, Swan and Roberta, extend above Shreve- port, and are often called Caddo lake, which drains the central portion, and Black bayou, with its confluents, runs through many dense cypress brakes in the northern portion. The forests of the parish are still heavy and offer a wealth of commercial timber to the lumberman. The trees are oak. guin, elm, beech, hickory. poplar, sycamore and locust. The recent discoveries of oil and natural gas (q. v.) in this parish have done much to attract the attention of investors, with the result that the industrial develop- ment of the parish has made great strides since 1905. Crop pro- ductions are varied, with cotton far in the lead, and corn second. Live stock thrives on the uplands, and some of the finest grades of cattle, sheep, hogs and horses are raised there, as good pasture can be obtained the greater part of the year. Game and fish are plentiful and of excellent quality. Caddo has the best transporta- tion facilities. The Kansas City Southern R. R. enters near the center of the northern boundary, runs southeast to Shreveport, and from there directly south to Wallace's lake; the Missouri, Kansas & Texas R. R. runs west from Shreveport : the Texas & Pacific enters the northern boundary, follows the general course of the Red river to Shreveport, and then runs southwest to Hadley; the Houston & Shreveport runs southwest from Shreveport to Logans- port in De Soto parish : the Louisiana Railway & Navigation com- pany, the Vicksburg, Shreveport & Pacific, and the St. Louis Southwestern railroads all center at Shreveport. The following statistics are taken from the U. S. census for 1900; number of farms, 3,865; acreage, 344,487; acres improved. 110.327; value of land and improvements exclusive of buildings, $1.817.830; value of farm buildings, $496,870; value of live stock, $581.036; total value of products not fed to live stock, $1.089,856; number of manurac- tories, 42; capital invested, $405,052; wages paid, $82,832; cost of materials used, $289.506; total value of products, $498.072. The population in 1900 consisted of 8,160 whites, 16,903 colored, a total of 25.063, an increase of 5,203 over the census of 1890.


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Cades, a village in the extreme southwest corner of St. Martin parish, is about 6 miles southwest of St. Martinville, the parish seat. and in 1900 reported a population of 150. It is at the junction of two divisions of the Southern Pacific R. R. system, which makes it an important shipping point. It has a money order postoffice, and is the trading center of a rich agricultural district.


Cadeville, a post-hamlet in the western part of Ouachita parish on a confluent of the Ouachita river, about 6 miles southwest of Fleming, the nearest railroad station.


Cadillac, Antoine de la Motte, one of the early French governors of Louisiana, was born in Gascony, France, about 1660, of noble family. At an early age he entered the French army and rose to the rank of captain. In 1691 he received a grant of land in America and from 1694 to 1699 was commandant at Mackinaw. Two years later he received a commission from Louis XIV to found a settle- ment somewhere near the foot of Lake Huron, and on July 24 of that year, landed on the site of the present city of Detroit, Mich., "with 50 soldiers, 50 colonists, and 2 priests," who had made the voyage from Quebec in bark canoes in 49 days. His rashness and irritable disposition brought about trouble in the colony and in 1704 he was tried at Quebec for official misconduct. but was ac- quitted and governed at Detroit for several years. He then returned to France, where he became associated with Antoine Crozat in mercantile pursuits, and when the latter was granted a monopoly of the Louisiana trade, he appointed Cadillac governor. He arrived at Mobile on March 17, 1713, and it was not long until the same traits of character that had involved him in trouble at Detroit began to manifest themselves in Louisiana. He had been instructed to seek for gold and silver, which were believed to exist in bountiful quan- tities in Louisiana, and wasted much time in a vain search for the precious metals. He refused to listen to or cooperate with Bien- ville, who had been with the colony from its incipience. and by arbi- trary actions alienated the Indian tribes with whom Bienville had established friendly relations. In a short time he began to write complaining letters to his superior in France. In one of these he says: "What can I do with a force of forty soldiers, out of whom five or six are disabled? A pretty army this, and well calculated to make me respected by the inhabitants or by the Indians! As a " climax to my vexation, they are badly fed, badly paid, badly clothed and without discipline. As to the officers, they are not much better. Verily, I do not believe that there is in the whole universe such another government." This would indicate that Cadillac's notion of government was to have a large and well dis- ciplined army, so he could command by force the "respect of the inhabitants and the Indians." It would doubtless have been better had he tried to win the respect of the people by measures less harsh. and by the adoption of a policy that would have contributed more to their material welfare. In the summer of 1716 Cadillac was recalled to France, where he died about 1720. (See Crozat Grant.)


Caffery, Donelson, lawyer, soldier and U. S. senator, was born


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in St. Mary's parish. La., Sept. 10, 1835. He was educated at St. Mary's college, of Maryland, after which he studied law and was admitted to the bar. In Jan., 1862, he enlisted as a private in the Crescent Rifles, joining his command at Corinth, Miss., but two months later was transferred to the 13th La. infantry, with which he served in the Corinth campaign and the battle of Shiloh. After that engagement he returned to New Orleans, where he soon after- ward received a commission as second lieutenant in the 1st La. regular infantry. This commission was signed by Jefferson Davis, president of.the Confederate States. Before reaching his command Lieut. Caffery was detailed as an aide-de-camp on the staff of Gen. John G. Walker, who had been assigned to the command of a division under Gen. Richard Taylor in Louisiana. He served in this capacity for two years, taking part in the battles of Brashear and Franklin and the principal engagements of the Red River cam- paign in the spring of 1864, after which he was ordered to join his regiment at Mobile. Upon reaching that city he found that his command had moved and was again assigned to Gen. Walker's staff, but before he could report for duty the war came to an end. He then resumed his law practice and became extensively inter- ested in sugar planting. Mr. Caffery's first active connection with political affairs was in 1879, when he was elected a delegate to the constitutional convention. In 1892 he was elected to the state senate, and the same year was appointed to the U. S. senate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Gen. Randall L. Gibson. The legislature of 1894 elected him for the remainder of this unex- pired term, and at its close he was elected for a full term of six years. He was succeeded by Murphy J. Foster on March 4, 1901. Upon retiring from the senate he resumed his law practice until his death in 1906.


Calcasieu Parish .- The legislative act creating this parish was approved March 24, 1840. It is situated in the southwestern part of the state on the Texas border and is bounded on the north by Vernon and Rapides parishes: on the east by St. Landry, Acadia and Vermilion parishes; on the south by Cameron parish, and the Sabine river forms its entire western boundary, separating it from Texas. Calcasieu is the largest parish in the state. having an area of 3,629 square miles, which makes it larger than the state of Dela- ware or Rhode Island, and for this reason it has been called "Imperial Calcasieu." The early history of the parish dates back to the closing years of the 18th century, when the tract between the Rio Hondo and the Sabine river, called for years the "neutral strip," was under Spanish jurisdiction. In 1797, a large grant of land was made to Jose M. Mora, in this vicinity, and the country soon filled up with desperados from the eastern states until it became a notori- ons refuge for outlaws. Filibusterers from Carolina, Georgia and Mississippi filled the Rio Hondo grant, and quite a period elapsed before any permanent settlers ventured to take up claims in the district. Some of the first to take up land were Charles Sallier, an Italian, who settled in Calcasieu at the beginning of the 19th cen-


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tury. His name is perpetuated by the city of Lake Charles. The. Ryan, Perkins, Le Blue and a number of other English speaking families settled on the Rio Hondo lands, as Calcasieu was then known, between 1811 and 1824. Nearly all of these pioneers re- mained on the east side of the river, those on the west were Joseph Cornow, Hiram Ours, Dempsey Ile, Elias Blount, David Choate, Philip Deviers, Joshua Johnson, John Gilchrist, George Ower, Isaac Foster, Joseph Clark, Mitchell Neil and John Henderson. At a later date some Acadians emigrated from the parishes cast of Calcasieu, so that today the population is mixed, consisting of Creoles, Acadians, Americans and Indians, or their half-breed de- scendants. After the organization of the parish the first courthouse was 6 miles from Lake Charles, at a small place called Marion, but which is now known as Old Town. About 1851-2, the parish seat. was removed to Lake Charles, where a courthouse was erected in 1872 and a jail in 1873. The surface of the parish is nearly level and is partly covered with savannas or open plains, which make excellent pasture for cattle as they are covered nearly the entire year with luxuriant grasses. Originally about 60 per cent. of the parish was covered with long leaf yellow pine, as the northwestern half is pine flats and pine hills. The eastern half is upland and prairie. A little marsh land and cypress swamp exists along the- southern boundary and the center of the parish, while all the alluvial land lies along the Sabine river and the other water courses. The: soil of the uplands, while not so fertile as that of the eastern par- ishes, produces all kinds of field crops in paying quantities and the rich, alluvial land will produce as much cotton to the acre as the northern and eastern parishes. The chief industry up to recent years was lumbering, the heavy forests providing an almost inex- haustible supply of yellow pine, and millions have been invested in. the lumber interests. As the pine woods were cleared away, cattle- raising became an important industry. Better breeds of stock were introduced, as well as improved methods of handling, feeding, etc .. Today the crop productions are principally rice and sugar, though cotton, sweet and Irish potatoes and some small grains are raised .. Until recently fruit culture was not considered profitable except in the northern part of the parish, but both soil and climate are adapted to the growth of fruit trees and horticulture is a growing industry. Fruits and nuts such as oranges, peaches, pears, plums, pecans, * guavas, pomegranates, prunes and figs, are profitably grown and exported to the northern markets during the winter months. In- exhaustible deposits of sulphur have been found in the parish, and the sulphur mine at Sulphur City is one of the richest in the world. Large gypsum beds exist, oil of a high grade has been found, and though none of the wells so far have been gushers, the pumping wells are paying. Gas wells have been struck south of Sulphur. but so far have not been put to commercial use. The principal streams of the parish are the Sabine, Houston and Calcasieu rivers. Bayou Nezpique. and their many tributaries, which all flow south to the Gulf of Mexico. Transportation facilities are excellent. The


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Southern Pacific R. R. crosses the southern part of the parish from Mermenton on the east to Orange on the Sabine river, and a branch of the same system runs from Lake Charles to Lake Arthur, in the southeastern part of the parish ; the St. Louis, Watkins & Gulf R. R. enters at the northeastern corner and runs southwest to Lake Charles; the Colorado Southern R. R. traverses the center of the parish east and west ; the Kansas City Southern R. R. runs from Lake Charles to Ludington on the northern boundary, and a branch of the same system runs southwest from De Quincy into Texas : and there are some roads of minor importance, such as the Jasper & Eastern, the Louisiana & Pacific, and some logging roads. Lake Charles, the parish seat, is the largest and most important town in the parish. Other important towns and villages are Bell City. Canton, Carson, De Quincy, De Ridder. Edgerly. Fenton. Fields. Jacksonville, Kinder, Lake Arthur, Ludington, Merryville, Oakdale, Oberlin, Jennings, Sugartown, Sulphur, Welsh and Westlake. The following statistics are taken from the U. S. census for 1900: Number of farms, 2,594; acreage, 511,254; acres improved, 134,480; value of farms and improvements exclusive of buildings, $2.730,400; value of farm buildings, $620,450; value of live stock, $1.204,682: total value of all products not fed to live stock, $1.517.122; number of manufactories, 135; capital invested. $2,613,836; wages paid, $430,880; cost of materials used, $2,097,944; total value of all prod- ucts, $3,164.872. The population of the parish for 1900 consisted .of 24,267 whites and 5,966 negroes, a total of 30.233, an increase of 10,252 during the preceding decade. The estimated population for 1908 was over 40,000.


Caldwell Parish, situated in the north-central part of the state, is bounded on the north by Ouachita parish ; on the east by Richland and Franklin parishes; on the south by Catahoula parish, and on the west by Winn and Jackson parishes. Caldwell parish was established in 1838, during the administration of Gov. Edward White, and up to that time formed a part of Catahoula, one of the original 19 parishes created by the first legislature of Orleans terri- tory in 1807. Upon the organization of the parish, Columbia was selected and has remained the parish seat. The first meeting of the ex-officio members of the 'police jury was held at the house of Fleming Noble, March 13, 1838. The members of the board were Thomas B. Rutland. James A. Woodbridge, John Gray and Jacob Humble, justice of the peace, and William B. Snow, parish judge. In April, 1839, Judge Heury Boyce presided over the first district court, which was held in a log building hurriedly erected as a court house, and used for several years until torn down to make way for a more modern structure. At an early date a man by the name of Copenhagen started, about a mile west of the Ouachita river on a small prairie, a store, which became a trading post and around which quite a settlement sprang up within a few years. The second settlement was made on Bayon Castor, in the western part of the parish by immigrants of Scotch, English and Irish descent from the older states. Here settled the Strouds, Nortons, Bannisters and


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other families. In 1827, Daniel Humphreys settled where the city of Columbia now stands, and 3 miles west of Columbia a bear hunter by the name of Riley Baker made a settlement, which bears his name today. A. A. Banks, another early settler, became a wealthy planter and merchant. A number of Frenchmen came into the parish and located east of the Ouachita river, where their descendants still own some of the fine plantations. The formation of Caldwell is pine hills, good uplands and alluvial bottom land. Its physical outlines are rugged and broken in the upland portions, but the soil is rich and productive. All the country west of the Ouachita is wooded upland, with many valleys, having a general trend north and south. The hills are covered with fine timber, such as pine, oak, ash, beech, hickory, elm. poplar, magnolia, locust, holly, maple, walnut and willow, while the valleys are exceedingly rich farm lands. It is said that the valley of the Ouachita and its tributary streams has the richest cotton land in the world. The eastern part of the parish is watered by the Ouachita and Boeuf rivers and their branches; the west and southwest part by Bayou Beaucoup and Little river, and other portions of Bayous Castor, Lafourche and Marengo. The principal products are cotton, corn, and potatoes, while rice, sugar, sorghum, oats and tobacco are all paying crops. On the uplands stock raising is an important industry, cattle, hogs and horses being exported in considerable numbers. All the hardy fruits thrive well in this latitude and prove a source of income to the farmers. In the marshes are deposits of fire and potter's clay, iron and marl, but they have not been worked much as yet and a great opportunity is offered in their development. The principal industries are lumbering, wooden- ware manufacturing and fruit canning. The St. Louis, Iron Moun- tain & Southern R. R. traverses the center of the parish north and south affording transportation by rail, while cheap shipping is fur- nished by water on the Ouachita river. The parish maintains pub- lic schools for both white and black. Columbia, the parish seat, is the most important town. Other towns and villages are Lively, Kelly, Blankston, Riverton. Grayson and Sinope. The following statistics are from the U. S. census for 1900: Number of farms, 1,070; acreage, 136,099; acres improved. 42,169; value of lands and improvements exclusive of buildings, $651,400; value of farm build- ings, $228,720: value of live stock, $244.681 ; total value of all prod- ucts not fed, $323,060: number of manufacturing establishments, 12; capital invested, $46,915; wages paid. $23,211; cost of materials used. $29,175; total value of products, $71,756. The population in 1900 was 3.841 whites, 3,076 colored, a total of 6,917, an increase of 1.103 over the year 1890. The estimated population for 1908 was over 7.000.


Calhoun, a village and station in the extreme western portion of Ouachita parish, on the Vicksburg, Shreveport & Pacific R. R., is about 15 miles west of Monroe, the parish seat. It has a money order postoffice, 1 free rural delivery route, an express office. tele-


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phone and telegraph facilities, and in 1900 reported a population of 150.


Calumet, a village in the northern part of St. Mary parish, is a station on the Southern Pacific R. R., about 10 miles southeast of Franklin, the parish seat. It has a money order postoffice, an express office, telegraph and telephone facilities, and does consid- erable shipping.


Calumet .- This word denoted an important ceremonial observ- ance by the Indians of Louisiana, and throughout the United States and Canada generally. It means a pipe, and is derived from the Norman word "chalumeau," which was the name of a rustic pipe or musical instrument used by the shepherds at their rural feasts and dances. The Norman-French settlers of Canada first applied it to the ceremonial pipe of the Indians, and it grew into general use. The Indians employed it both as a symbol of peace and of war. The head or bowl of this pipe was made of baked clay, or soft red stone, fashioned to look like the head of a bird or animal, and was somewhat larger than the common tobacco pipe. The head was fixed to a hollow reed or cane, about a yard in length, and very much ornamented with the feather of the paroquet, wild turkey, some species of water-fowl, or with that of the eagle or other bird of prey. When the calumet was used to proclaim war it was adorned with the feathers of birds of prey ; as a peace symbol, with the feathers of water-fowl, etc. Among the Indians the dance and song of the calumet of peace was an interesting and very solemn ceremony which often lasted several days, and was only made use of on important occasions, such as to confirm an alliance. make peace with their neighbors, as a token of friendship to strangers who arrived among them, or when one tribe visited another, when it was made the occasion of a grand entertainment with much feast- ing and dancing.


While Iberville was constructing Fort Maurepas in 1799. the Pascagoulas, Colapissas, Chickasaws, Pensacolas and Biloxis, headed by their several chiefs, came with great ceremony to the fort, singing and holding out the calumet. Iberville smoked it sol- emnly in conformity to the Indian custom. The ceremony lasted three days, and the Indians danced and sang thrice daily. Again, after the completion of Fort Rosalie among the Natchez in 1716, some 600 Natchez warriors, together with about 30 Yasous, danced the calumet before the fort, to signify their joy over the new alli- ance with the French.


Calvin, a post-village in the western portion of Winn parish, is a station on the Louisiana & Arkansas R. R., about S miles north- west of Winnfield, the parish seat.


Cambon, Jules, a French legislator and diplomat, was born in the city of Paris. April 5, 1845, was educated in his native city, and in 1866 began the practice of law. He served as a soldier in the French army in the Franco-Prussian war in 1870-71. and in the latter year was appointed a member of the provisional commission that replaced the council of state. In 1874 he was made director-


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general of civil affairs in Algeria ; became secretary-general of the prefecture of police in the department of the Seine in 1879; was made governor-general of Algeria in 1891, but after a brief service was sent to Washington as the French ambassador to the United States, which position he held until 1902. On Jan. 26, 1902, he arrived in New Orleans as the guest of the Athénée Louisianais, which society tendered him a reception, and before which he deliv- ered an address in the French language. He also delivered an address before the French Circle of the Tulane University of Louisiana.


Cameron, the seat of justice in the parish of the same name, is located on the Calcasieu river, about half way between Calcasieu lake and the Gulf coast. As the entire parish is without a railroad, Cameron has to depend largely on the river for its transportation. It is one of the smallest parish seats in the state, having an esti- mated population at the close of 1908 of 150. Its commercial importance is much greater, however, than the census would indi- cate, as it is the source of supply for a considerable district. The town was originally called Leesburg and it is mentioned by that name in the acts of the legislature of 1874, the courthouse having been destroyed by fire on Feb. 26 of that year. The principal point of interest about Cameron is the gulf biologic station, which was established here by act of the legislature.


Cameron Parish, with an area of 1,445 square miles, was estab- lished in 1870, during the reconstruction period, while Henry Clay Warmoth was governor. It was created from portions of Calcasieu and Vermilion parishes, and forms the southwest extremity of Lou- isiana. It is bounded on the north by Calcasieu parish : on the east by Vermilion parish : on the south by the Gulf of Mexico, and on the west by Texas, from which it is separated by the Sabine river, which widens into Sabine lake before it enters the gulf. Among the early settlers were John M. Smith and George McCall, whose families were for several years, the only ones at Grand Chenier. George W. Wakefield came from Ohio and located about a mile from Leesburg (now Cameron) in 1840. Cameron has not been settled thickly, owing to its vast area of sea marsh lands. The set- tlements have been confined to the highlands, above overflow. The principal town is Cameron, the parish seat, and the only other set- tlements of consequence are Grand Chenier, Hackberry, Grandlake, Johnson's Bayou. Berry, Shellbank and Lakeside. Cameron parish has no railways, but transportation and shipping facilities are pro- vided by water on the Calcasieu river to Lake Charles and over the Gulf and Mississippi river to New Orleans. The formation is largely sea marsh, from which Cameron derives the name "sea marsh" parish. Part of the parish is level, open prairie, which makes excellent pasture for cattle and sheep. and live stock is one of the important industries. In the alluvial belt the soil is extremely rich and highly productive. Calcasieu lake divides the parish nearly in equal halves: the principal water courses are the Calcasieu, Mer- mentau and Sabine rivers. The Calcasieu flows through Calcasieu




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