Ouachita Parish History Tidbits

Author: Lora Diane Peppers

  • Hide the Naughty Stuff From Mom! A Hilarious Monroe Letter.

    This little one paged, water-damaged letter was written in the Garden District back in 1954 (Scroll to the middle of the page). https://beinecke.library.yale.edu/article/gerrit-lansing-papers It is from a collection of the…

  • Legal Executions in Monroe

    All of these were hangings and all were given a trial and found guilty. Whether they were or were not guilty for the crimes they paid is left to history.…

  • Photos of the 1958 Flood

    Among the items my boss continues to digitize is this little gem: https://www.louisianadigitallibrary.org/islandora/object/oplib-orv%3A92 . It is a booklet with photos of South Grand street during the 1958 flood. They are…

  • Mardi Gras in Monroe

    Today is the official start of the Mardi Gras season. While Mardi Gras in Monroe will look very different from past years, that doesn’t mean we can’t have our share…

  • Concerts at Neville Auditorium.

    I am amazed at the national level talent that came through Monroe in the middle of the last century. I just browsed around searching instances where Neville Auditorium was mentioned…

  • A Stunt at the Natatorium

    Yep. Stunts like the above were all the rage in the 20’s. This particular one happened in 1928. His second attempt was more successful. He exceeded his old record of…

  • Isaac Burnett: Grocer and Businessman

    What you are looking at is an ad in a local newspaper from 1946. That imposing man in the photo, Isaac Burnett, was a very savvy businessman. He opened his…

  • Ouachita Parish History In a Calendar

    These were done in the 1980’s by the West Monroe Historic Preservation Project. Each month featured a photo and info about the area’s past. They are rare, but if you…

  • Reported Lynchings in Ouachita Parish

    I have posted before, listing reports of lynchings that have been found in Ouachita Parish newspapers. I can see the stats that show what articles are looked at and at…

  • An African-American Man is a Guest Speaker to a White Women’s Business Club…in 1939.

    I want you to read the article for a moment, then sit back and reflect on the fact this article and photo was published in a northern paper in May,…