Lafayette (LA) Daily Advertiser, December 30, 1997--No. 7



The Daily Advertiser's

HISTORY OF ACADIANA

a publication of the Daily Advertiser dedicated to preserving Acadiana's heritage and culture

ST. MARY PARISH

Cypress, Seafood, and Sugar

St. Mary Parish is in the heart of Louisiana's sugar belt, but its first settlers raised cattle, cut cypress, and harvested fish, shrimp, and oysters from the sea.

  1. Chitimacha were early settlers in parish
  2. Chitimacha chief recorded old story of the Creation
  3. Newspaperman Daniel Dennett gave early view of area
  4. Sugar lands, natural resources enriched parish, First settlers raised cattle
  5. Franklin established as St. Mary Parish seat in 1820
  6. Berwick named for earliest white settler
  7. Sugar and sawmills helped build Baldwin
  8. Early surveyor first to settle at what is now Morgan City, Thomas Berwick brought family to Tiger Island
  9. Tycoon Charles Morgan seldom saw Morgan City, Steamboat magnate saw possibilities of port community
  10. Brashear City was strategic point during Civil War
  11. Knights of White Camellia chafed under Carpetbag rule
  12. Sensational murder occupied St. Mary's attention in 1927
  13. Patterson named for trader, Hans Knight led group of Dutchmen from Pennsylvania
  14. Wedell-Williams partnership added to aviation lore
  15. Steamboats and schooners were important to early St. Mary
  16. Foster family long involved in St. Mary politics, Mike Foster's grandfather was governor at the turn of the century
  17. Fosters were not only governors from parish, Three other men from St. Mary led Louisiana
  18. Capt. John Newton Pharr built sugar, steamboat empire
  19. Sugar is synonymous with St. Mary agriculture, Anglo planters found Teche land to their liking
  20. St. Mary has been frequent hurricane target
  21. Letter written in 1821 tells about Franklin, raising cane
  22. Fishing industry vital part of parish life
  23. Morgan City played historic role in offshore development
  24. St. Mary mills cut cypress from Atchafalaya Basin
  25. St. Mary Parish communities part of parish history: Adeline, Albania, Alice B, Amelia, Ashton, Avalon, Avoca Island, Bayou Salé, Bayou Vista, Belle Isle, Bodin, Bonvilain, Burns, Caffery, Calumet, Camperdown, Caneland, Centerville, Charenton, Charenton Beach, Charpentier, Choupique, Côte Blanche, Cypremort, Dumesnil, Ellerslie, Englewood, Florence, Four Corners, Freetown, Garden City, Garrett, Greenwood, Glencoe, Glenwild, Gold Mine, Gordy, Home Place, Idlewild, Irish Bend, Ivanhoe, Johnson, Julien, Katy, Kemper, Lake Palourde, Linwood, Louisa, Matilda, Myette Point, North Bend, Oaklawn, Oxford, Patagonia, Ramos, Reuterville, Richard, Ricohoc, Richland, Rodriquez, Shadyside, Siracusaville, Sorrel, South Bend, Sterling, Verdunville, Wilson's Landing, Wyandotte
  26. Some memorable dates in parish history
  27. Further reading on St. Mary Parish