Author: Lora Diane Peppers
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Confederate Reunion in Monroe, 1913
Very long photo, and unfortunately, I had to make it very small to get the whole thing in! This was taken at the state confederate reunion in Monroe, September, 1913. …
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Jackson Street at the Turn of the Century
This is one of my favorite old photos of Monroe! What you are looking at, is a shot down Jackson street. On the left you can see the Jewish Temple…
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Roof Garden at the Virginia
Did you know the Virginia Hotel once had a rooftop garden? The Virginia (now the Vantage State Office Building) boasted that you could dance right out of the ballroom into…
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McLain Monument
The McLain Monument rests in Monroe’s Old City Cemetery. Next to the Saunders Monument, it is probably the most well known memorial in the cemetery. The angel’s hand points up…
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Five Things to Know to be a Good Researcher
Many years ago, a colleague asked me, “What are some important things to know to be a good researcher?” I sat down, thought it out, and wrote the following: Five…
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The Life of John Ray
The Ouachita Telegraph Saturday, August 25, 1888 Page 1, Column 1 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE EARLY SETTLERS OF OUACHITA PARISH. Sketch of the Life of Hon. John Ray. John Ray…
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Louisiana Freedmen’s Bureau Office Records, Monroe, LA Indentures, Mar.-Nov., 1867
Right after the Civil War, orphaned African-Americans were “apprenticed” to local white families to learn a trade. The Louisiana Freedmen’s Bureau took care of writing up the contracts and were…
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The Girl in the Iron Coffin
On February 3, 1955, an iron coffin was unearthed. Workers were laying a water line to a construction site on Lakeshore Drive in Monroe when they dug into an underground…
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The Explosion of the new Steam Ferry
“TRIAL TRIP OF THE NEW STEAM FERRY BOAT. Its Explosion, with Terrible Consequences!” Friday, April 12th, 1867 was a warm spring day in Monroe. The recently organized fire company…
Ouachita Parish History Tidbits 