CREOLE HERITAGE DAY 2001 - RELATED INFO

Genealogy & Photo Scanning Workshop at January, 2001 Creole Heritage Day
     The Louisiana Creole Heritage Center will provide their current Creole Family History database for review and submissions at the January, 2001 celebration. A database containing family history information on the Louisiana Creole connections is being compiled by the Center and everyone is invited to submit their family data. Many families have already contributed their family trees to this database, which has allowed it to become a main depository of Creole genealogy.
     The Center will also be scanning photos for submission to the Center’s growing photo database. Of special interest will be photos depicting Creole celebrations such as church fairs, heritage day celebrations, All Saints Day, May Day Crowning, family gatherings, etc. from the past and the present.
     All those unable to attend or who would like to have their information entered prior to the January, 2001 Creole Heritage Celebration can send it to the Louisiana Creole Heritage Center, NSU Box 5675, Natchitoches, LA 71497 or via e-mail to creole@nsula.edu. The Center is opened Monday through Friday between the hours of 8am and 4:30 pm. The telephone number is 318/357-6685, fax – 318/357-6689.
4TH Grade School Project  Natchitoches, Louisiana

The NSU Louisiana Creole Heritage Center in partnership with the Natchitoches mayor's office invited the 4th graders of the NSU Lab School to participate in a project to be presented at the next Creole Heritage Day in January. The project introduced calls for the students to draw their interpretation of the Badin Roque House of the Cane River area along with their feelings about living in such a house. Ms. Colson of the Creole Center presented a poster display, which was donated to the class, and an information sheet on the structure for the students to use.

The Badin Roque house is a poteaux-en-terre, "post in ground", construction. It's walls are made of bousillage, a mixture of clay and Spanish moss or deer hair often used as nogging material in French and Spanish colonial era construction. Dated at almost 200 years old, according to the Louisiana Regional Folklife Program, Region 2 website (http://www.liberalarts.nsula.edu/regfolklife/default.htm) it is the only surviving example of this type of architecture in Louisiana and one of five in the entire United States. The house is mainly known for its use as a catholic convent and school in the 1850's. The property has also been used as a doctor's office and a bakery as well as a regular family residence. Presently, the house was bought by the St. Augustine Historical Society (www.cp-tel.net/creole). They are working on restoring the house to its original construction.All submissions received from these students will be on display during the celebration on January 20th at the St. Augustine Church facilities in Natchez, Louisiana. Each student submitting a drawing will receive a pass to attend the celebration as well as a certificate of participation from the Mayor's office.

Assisting Ms. Colson with this presentation were Maryann Nunley and Pat Jones of the mayor's office, and Sheila Richmond of the National Center for Preservation, Training and Technology.

The presentation of the project is seen as a way of adding to the cultural education according to Ms. Colson of the Center. Many of children were not aware of the "house with the dirt floors and mud walls" and seem genuinely interested in learning more. Directions to the house were given as a part of the informational sheet and all students were encouraged to visit.