The History of The Bright-Lamkin-Easterling Home

The land that the above home would be built on, was once part of Henry Bry's Mulberry Grove plantation. The Bry family sold the land to William A. Bright, a railroad baron, to build his home on. The Louisiana Review (New Orleans) April 18, 1890, page 1 Major W.A. Bright, of the H., C. A. … Continue reading The History of The Bright-Lamkin-Easterling Home →

Ouachita Parish Rosenwald Schools

Just after the Civil War, the Freedmen's Bureau, along with local African American churches, established the first schools in the south for the formerly enslaved. After Reconstruction ended, education for African Americans in the south was woefully underfunded. Julius Rosenwald, a Jewish-American part owner of Sears Roebuck saw the need for more schools in the … Continue reading Ouachita Parish Rosenwald Schools →

The Cantillon Settlers

Tuesday's post had me thinking about the Cantillon settlement, established over three hundred years ago. Who were these people? If you remember my post a while ago on it, I said this appeared to be the first real effort by the French at settling the area now known as Ouachita Parish. They set up residence … Continue reading The Cantillon Settlers →

Colorful Characters of Fort Miro Program

I just wanted to let everyone know that on this Thursday the 17th at 5:30 pm at the Main Branch of Ouachita Parish Public Library, I and three of my colleagues will present a program about four residents of colonial Ouachita parish. You will hear from Fort Miro's commandant and Monroe's founder Jean Filhiol, his … Continue reading Colorful Characters of Fort Miro Program →

The Davis Market and the Central Cafe

What you are looking at is an ad for two businesses, owned by a very forward thinking young man named T.J. Davis. Mr. Davis was only 23 years old when he opened the only African-American owned grocery in Monroe around 1937. Next door there was a cafe, also owned by him. A little paragraph says … Continue reading The Davis Market and the Central Cafe →

I Finally Have Proof!

I have always heard that Louis Armstrong played at the Savoy in the Miller Roy building. I never found concrete proof of that. I found ads for him playing at Carroll's Gym at the Monroe Colored High School, but not the Savoy. Well....found it! March 6, 1937 ad in the Monroe Broadcast.

Elderly Former Enslaved Man Passes Away

Any mention of an enslaved person gets my attention, since so few of their stories remain. On the front page of the Southern Broadcast, Saturday, January 9, 1937, was the obituary of a 93 year old man named Thomas Jefferson. He had been the former personal body servant of Daniel Armand Breard, Sr. I will … Continue reading Elderly Former Enslaved Man Passes Away →

Monroe Colored High School Annex – 1936

Here is another clipping from 1936. I have never seen this before!

Fats Waller at the Savoy – 1936

I have been able to get my hands on a rare collection of Monroe African American newspapers from the mid 1930s. My jaw is continually on the ground from what I am finding! I'll be sharing some of the treasures in the next few posts. One of the first things I have found is an … Continue reading Fats Waller at the Savoy – 1936 →

The Monroe Monarchs

Did you know Monroe hosted the 1932 Negro League World Series championship game? The great Satchel Paige and several other Hall of Famers played in those games right here in Monroe against the Monroe Monarchs team. Want to know more? Watch this great video about the Monarchs here: https://ladigitalmedia.org/video_v2/asset-detail/LSWI-3424-MonroeMonarchs