Posted by Joseph on August 26, 2025
LAURA PLANTATION VETERANS DAY EVENT 2025
In unison with the African-American Civil War Memorial and Museum in Washington, DC, Laura Plantation will honor the veterans of the 75th United States Colored Infantry regiment at a special event at 10:00 A.M. on Tuesday, November 11, 2025.
Louisiana contributed more Black soldiers to fight for freedom than any other state in the nation. These include nine (9) enslaved men from Laura Plantation who fought in the U.S. Army during the Civil War.
For more than a decade, Laura Plantation's tour has featured the story of Edward Gros, a veteran of the 75th United States Colored Infantry, and research continues into the lives of USCI veterans from Laura Plantation.
The 75th USCI began as the Third Louisiana Native Guard, which was formed in New Orleans in 1862 and was made up of free men of color and enslaved men seeking freedom. These were among the first Black soldiers to join the United States military during the Civil War and the first to see action on the battlefield during the Siege of Port Hudson.
Laura Plantation is committed to highlighting the contributions of Black veterans, their widows, and descendants to St. James Parish, Louisiana, and the nation, and ensuring that their legacies are brought to the forefront of the historical narrative.
The Veterans Day ceremony at Laura Plantation will include a Reading of the Names of the soldiers of the 75th USCI and the unveiling of a plaque in honor of the men from Laura Plantation who served.
Check this page often for updates to the program.
Media inquiries should be addressed to Joseph Dunn at joseph@lauraplantation.com
Posted by Joseph on July 18, 2024
(CLICK TO LISTEN NOW!)
In the second episode of season 2 of the Laura Plantation Podcast, Joseph chats with Dr. Brittany Cochran Jones.
Dr. Jones is a member of the Laura Plantation Descendant Community. Here, she shares the journey of discovery that led her to her ancestor Madison Gray, an enslaved carpenter on the Habitation Duparc-Locoul.
Dr. Jones describes herself "as a curious little girl, always asking questions" about her family's past. A school field to Laura Plantation for the Br'er Rabbit Festival in the 1990s also inspired her to dig deeper into the story of her family's resilience, successes, and dedication to education.
Her great-grandfather, T.D. Noel, was an entrepreneur who ran a shoe repair shop called the "Vacherie Shoe Hospital."
Mr. TD. Noel; photo courtesy of Dr. Brittany Cochran Jones
The Vacherie Shoe Hospital; photo courtesy of Dr. Brittany Cochran Jones
Ms. Vondra Etienne-Steib, Dr. Cochran's mother, is the first woman elected to the St. James Parish Council and is also its Chairwoman.
Photo credit: St. James Parish Council website
Posted by Joseph on February 15, 2024
Descendant d'un militaire autochtone francophone vétéran de la Première Guerre mondiale, le comédien français Clément Lagouarde est ajourd'hui l'un des chefs de la tribu Natchitoches de Louisiane. Il parle de son ancêtre au parcours ambiguë, de la découverte de son appartenance au peuple Natchitoches et de sa double culture franco-amérindienne.
The French actor Clément Lagouarde is descended from a French-speaking Native American who served in France during World War I. Today, he is one of the chiefs of Louisiana's Natchitoches Tribe. He talks about his ancestor's ambiguous history, the discovery of his relationship to the Natchitoches people, and the duality of his French and Native American cultures.
Posted by Joseph on October 03, 2023
Bonjour everyone and welcome back to the Laura Plantation podcast. In this episode, Joseph will be talking with Dr. Angel Adams Parham about her research into the Haitian refugee community in early 19th century New Orleans, how slavery and enslavement are represented at plantations and in urban spaces, and the importance of preserving and talking about buildings and stories that reveal Louisiana’s connection to Africa and African history.
Dr. Parham is Associate Professor of Sociology and senior fellow at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture (IASC) at the University of Virginia. Before moving to Virginia, she spent a number of years at Loyola University in New Orleans where she chaired the African and African American Studies program.
She works in the area of historical sociology, engaging in research and writing that examine the past in order to better understand how to live well in the present and envision wisely for the future.
To learn more about Dr. Parham’s work, visit her website at www.angelparham.com
Posted by Joseph on May 03, 2023
In her memoirs, Laura Locoul Gore writes, "I would often stand on the front gallery facing the river, watching the big steamboats or packets pass by, imagining what fun and excitement it would be if an accident could happen to one of them (nothing serious, of course) in front of our place that we might go to the rescue of the passengers aboard and bring them home. Now, being an old and experienced housekeeper, I would worry to the think where the food would come from to care for them."
In this episode of the Laura Plantation podcast, "Real People, Real History," Katy and Joseph talk about steamboats and the importance of river commerce to the plantation and they also discuss the tragedy of the steamboat "Meteor," described in this article from 1853 and which provides a vivid glimpse into how the Habitation Duparc-Locoul and their neighbors responded to the explosion.
