Ouachita Parish History Tidbits

Category: Uncategorized

  • Ouachita Parish High School’s First Principal

    Meet Mr. Henry E. Chambers, OPHS’ very first principal! I was shocked when his photo came up associated with the school. Henry Chambers is well known in my department for…

  • The First Graduating Class of Ouachita Parish High School

    So I told you yesterday about the first class of the Monroe City High School, which is the forerunner of Neville. Lets go back about six years, to when the…

  • The First Graduating Class of the Monroe City High School.

    After yesterday’s post, I got interested in the very first graduating class of the Old Monroe City High School. I stumbled across an article in the Shreveport Journal newspaper (June…

  • Monroe City High School Handbook, 1902-03.

    This little booklet is priceless. The Student handbook is ubiquitous. Every student gets one when school starts. This handbook is 118 years old. Inside you will find a list of…

  • Laying of the Cornerstone for the Old City High School.

    This one is awesome! On Thursday, January 15, 1900, the cornerstone for a new school was laid. This was the program from that day. It includes a concept drawing of…

  • Ouachita Parish High School Graduation Programs

    I didn’t know we had a small collection of them in our files. How about 1916: https://louisianadigitallibrary.org/islandora/object/oplib-orv%3A67 1923: https://louisianadigitallibrary.org/islandora/object/oplib-orv%3A66 and 1933: https://louisianadigitallibrary.org/islandora/object/oplib-orv%3A65

  • The Hour Glass

    Want to know what was going on in Monroe in 1933? You would have picked up the magazine called “The Hour Glass”. I think of it as the grandmother of…

  • An Update to The Cold-Blooded Murder of Little Francis Winston Baker

    Surprisingly, a couple of weeks ago, I found a little tidbit as to why Francis may have been shot. You may remember a Confederate soldier walked up to the little…

  • A Description of Ouachita Valley’s Early Settlers.

    I stumbled on this little article a week ago and it is a fascinating read! It was written ten years ago and published in the Southwestern Historical Quarterly. It talks…

  • Monroe Illustrated

    This is another book I have posted pictures from. Last week I encouraged my boss to scan it and put it on the Louisiana Digital Library. I know of no…