Posted by Joseph on July 18, 2024
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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.
Posted by Joseph on April 03, 2023
In this episode, Katy and Joseph chat about "the de Lobel-Mahy notebook," the challenges of working with damaged historic documents, and talk about how these small excerpts from private correspondence can provide deep insights into family life in Louisiana and France, as well as the social and political climate of the time period.
As promised, we've included images of the pages below so our listeners can see condition of the document. Translations into English follow.
Excerpt 1
Mr le Baron de Meynard
Octobre 12, 1876
I thank him for the kind welcome he gave Raymond and congratulate him for his skillful management of la Thuilerie. The lease that he negotiated with Rensard (sp?) replacing Breuillé appears advantageous for me. We still hope to travel to Bourgogne to show him our appreciation. After assuring him of several details about the social disorder that reigns in Louisiana, I share with him our present hope of a coming change in favour of the Democrats [then the conservative, segregationist party in Louisiana].
I agree with Raymond's decision to acquiesce to Mr Meynard's insistence that he remain longer at Feÿ than he initially thought he would, since he had the great pleasure to be among friends who have retained the same feelings for us. I request that he communicate my respectful compliments to Mme de Meynard and our fondest memories to Mesdemoiselles Jeanne and France and send him friendly greetings.
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Excerpt 2
Mr R.H. de Lobel-Mahy
October 15, 1876
I urge him to write to us every 15 days and urge him to not spare any details in his letters. I ask him for a directory of the school of the Jesuit Reverend Fathers. News of the elections in the States of Ohio, Indiana, West Virginia and Colorado, in the case of the last three States are favorable to us and give us the hope to elect Tilden and Hendricks, etc. etc.
