Author: Lora Diane Peppers
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The Fire of 1854
If you are interested in Monroe history, you have probably heard of the Monroe fires of 1871 and 1889 that were supposedly set by the infamous…
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A Peek into a Dentist’s Office in 1893
The below description of a visit to a dentist’s office was found in a rare 1893 newspaper. It offers a rare peek into the dental practices of long ago. As…
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The Pre Civil War Murder of Jailer Abram Williams and the hanging of “Tennessee Jack”
I found the following article one day while I was browsing pre Civil War newspaper of Monroe. This crime was shocking and brutal by even today’s standards. What drove…
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The story of Edwin Francis Jemison: Louisiana’s Most Famous Boy Soldier
His face is haunting. He stares out expressionless from a photograph that has been used in countless books about the Civil War. One could project any feeling you want to…
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Jim May: West Monroe’s Own Holt Collier
Many people know of Holt Collier, who led Teddy Roosevelt on his famous area bear hunt, which gave birth to the Teddy Bear. Did you ever hear of West Monroe’s…
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Art Alley in 1927
This was taken from the News-Star building in 1927 by Griffin. At the time, this street was known as 2nd Street, but is now known as Art Alley. Most prominent…
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Some Ouachita Parish History sites
I have recently found a great blog on WordPress, where the author has posted items from her personal family history collection: https://okellyfamily.wordpress.com/ The O’Kelly family has deep roots in Ouachita…
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For anyone interested in preserving family papers.
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10218840569108290&id=1323351680&sfnsn=mo
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Circus Elephant on the Rampage in Monroe
The Indiana State Sentinel (Indianapolis, IN) April 17, 1845, Page 1 Speaking of the recent savage performance of the elephant at Baton Rouge, the Advocate of that ilk says:…
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Anna Ruth Slade Meyer: The Mother of Monroe’s Public Library System
The above painting hangs in the Anna Meyer branch of the Ouachita Parish Public Library. It was created from an actual photo of Anna currently housed in the Library’s collection.…
Ouachita Parish History Tidbits 