This one surprised me. The above home was built by Frank P. Stubbs, Sr. on Front Street (now Riverside Drive) circa 1853. This is a very historic home. A few years after it was built, Stubbs sold part of his land next door to Judge Ludeling and he built Sycamore Hall next to it. Somewhere on the property is where Ludeling’s son Frederick was murdered by Stubbs’ eldest son. I got curious and wondered when it was torn down or burned. I did some digging.
In the Monroe Morning World of April 16, 1948 is an article stating Mrs. Frank P. Stubbs (Jr.) sold the home to Mr. and Mrs. George Scrimshaw. That is when the home was sold out of the Stubbs family. Mrs. Stubbs moved into a small apartment at Layton Castle, owned by a close relative.
Continuing on with my research, I found a News-Star article, dated December 10, 1988 talking about a tour of homes along Riverside Drive that was happening. I was shocked to read the following:
The McDonald home, 1106 Riverside Drive, was built in 1853 as a pine and cypress building, and was known as “The Cedars.” It was the residence of Col. Frank P. Stubbs Sr. until 1947. Red brick was added to the home in the 1920’s and a serpentine wall was added in the 1950s by a Mr. Scrimshaw to compensate for the privacy lost when a yard man cut the limbs of the magnolia too high off the ground.
A carriage porch graces the front of the house under the center dormer. The interior features a classic staircase, cypress crown moldings and cornices and a marble mantle in the living room. Two 18th-century Virginia sconces are in the breakfast room, and fan-shaped transoms and glistening hardwood floors are found throughout the house.
Photographs of the home as it was changed over the years are exhibited in the back hall.
WOW! I pulled up the address on Google Maps and compared the above photo to it. The shape is similar and the wrap around porch is enclosed. I had no clue The Cedars was hiding in plain sight!
Ouachita Parish History Tidbits 