For those of us who are researching ancestors in St. Landry parish there is a new book published by Cheryl Bihm Myers called Washington, LA, A Steamboat Town. The little town of Washington, above Opelousas, was an important port for people and goods traveling to New Orleans in the 1800s. There’s a lot of history in this little town about which not much has been written.
Cheryl Myers provides a lot of factual information that should help researchers who want a better understanding of the historical environment in which their ancestors lived and the events which impacted their lives. She provides detailed genealogies of the most prominent Creole families that founded the town of Washington and who settled the surrounding area including the prominent Donato and Simien Creole of color families.
Although she did not do a lot of non-factual editorializing, for this reviewer, Ms. Myers did lapse at times into what I consider a somewhat typical majority-population Southern attitude of writing about events with pride in dubious accomplishments such as how the “brave boys” went off to fight in the Civil War. However, ignoring this type of language will get you to some good nuggets of information. You can read more about her book in this local newspaper article http://www.villeplattetoday.com/lifestyle/full-steam-ahead.
If you would like a copy of her book it is not available in book stores, nor is it easy on your wallet at $49. And, as she told me, she is not computer savvy so she doesn’t have it available on a private ecommerce website. You must call her at 337-942-8616 or 337-945-0768 to make arrangements to purchase.
Lenora Gobert
