The Gateway to South Louisiana
St. John Cathedral circa 1870 photo by UL Lafayette Archives Collection St. John’s Cathedral located at 515 Cathedral Street in Downtown Lafayette, was originally called lEglise St. Jean du Vermilion or St. John of Vermilion. Situated on land donated by Jean Mouton, the donation provided that it be named St. John, and that it face […]
Lafayette Crime Stoppers began in 1983 with a mission to assist local law enforcement to fight crime by helping to overcome the two elements that inhibit public involvement: fear and apathy. The program originated in Albuquerque, NM in 1972, and now Lafayette is one of over 1800 communities with an Active Crime Stoppers organization. Crime […]
The Bill Landry Orchestra, originally assembled and known as the Louisiana Six, played Dixieland jazz all along the Gulf Coast in Louisiana and Texas. The family band was wildly popular in Cajun Country, and they were mentioned as early as 1918 in The Daily Advertiser when they played at the Martin Dance Hall in Scott. […]
The arrival in 1880 of the railroad in Lafayette, in what was then known as Vermilionville, opened a new era of growth and opportunity for locals. It also attracted many new residents. The Sabine was the area’s first work locomotive that reached Vermilionville as tracks from New Orleans were completed. The arrival of the railroad […]
Lafayette General Hospital evolved from the Lafayette Sanitarium, the first hospital in Lafayette. The Sanitarium was founded in 1911 by Doctors L.O. Clark, J. Franklin Mouton, and L.A. Prejean. It was located on St. John Street and had five or six beds, eventually expanding to 84 beds. By the 1950s the facilities were inadequate and […]