Terrebonne County Louisiana Archives News.....An Excursion!! (part 5) May 17, 1873
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Savanna King savanna18king@gmail.com August 11, 2023, 6:16 pm

The Thibodaux Sentinel May 17, 1873

Our party, having dined at the Harney house, which is the finest Hotel I have 
seen outside of New Orleans, we issued forth in search of more curiosities.

I had a great desire to visit the Penitentiary, but as the other members of the 
party had conscientious scruples, or were apprehensive, of entering its walls I 
had to go without them, escorted by one of our Baton Rouge brethren.

It was about thirty years since I had been in a penitentiary, and I confess that 
the noise of the big key, fastening the door behind me was not as musical as the 
sound of a well played Organ. At a first glance I did not perceive where the 
punishment of a convict came in, unless it be simply in the fact of his 
confinement. About 200 of them were laying around the yard sunning themselves, 
most busily engaged doing nothing. I understood that they had been, for some 
time, at work on the Mobile and Texas Railroad, and had just returned. The 
contractors had not been paid and serious fears were expressed that the lessees 
were about to follow the example of a good many outsiders and “bust up.” 

I shall not attempt to give a description of the manufactory of cotton goods 
which was going on during my visit, a few looms being worked. The process is 
exceedingly interesting, and the greatest wonder to me was the simplicity of 
all, the various machines through which the cotton, entering in a rough State 
and coming out in cloth, passed. The labor of the convicts in charge of the 
spindles and looms is very little, consisting principally in attention and close 
watching.

The dining room is a long building, every seat having a number corresponding 
with the number on the shoulder of each convict’s dress. The uniform appears to 
have been made in something of the style of the famous coat of Joseph, which so 
aroused the jealousy of his brothers, consisting of various colors and stripes.

Our stay was too limited to examine the other departments of this great place of 
entertainment of the guests of the State.

The Barracks are situated in the upper portion of the town and present a very 
pretty appearance from the river: one wing has lately been burnt down.

I entered one of the Engine houses and saw a most beautiful and splendid hand 
Engine. Baton Rouge has two hand Engines and a Hook and Ladder company.

The Town is supplied with water by cisterns which are filled through pipes 
leading from the gutters of the houses. These cisterns have to be tight 
otherwise the water would soon drain out of them, instead of remaining full as 
ours do in Thibodaux.

At four o’clock the Steamer Pike, with our old friend, and the former favorite 
of all the Lafourche people, Capt. A. Dugas, in command landed at the Wharf when 
our party, after bidding our kind and hospitable brethren in Baton Rouge 
farewell, embarked and started homeward.

The country on both sides of the river appears to be generally well cultivated 
although hundreds of acres of land are lying idle. The plant cane marked the 
rows plainly and the rattoons were beginning to appear in many fields. We 
noticed however, that the buildings along the river need badly the touch of the 
Painter, the hedges were not trimmed, and many other facts to show that no 
luxurious prosperity was attained by the inhabitants.

As the sun was shedding his last rays for the day, gilding in various colors the 
trees and house tops along the banks of the river, the town of Plaquemine 
appeared in view. This seems to be a pleasant village containing some neat and 
comfortable buildings. As the Pike was rounding to, in front of the village, the 
Church bell rang, notifying the citizens that the time for evening services had 
arrived, when all the good people of his moral and pious Town without regard to 
sex, age, color, or previous condition, put on their hats and bonnets, came out 
of their houses and–walked out on the Levee to see the steamboat land. 

I did not think it proper to find fault with this movement as it is seldom that 
a steamboat passes along there and a little commendable curiosity is not to be 
reprehended.

At 11 o’clock P.M. I debarked at Donaldsonville expecting the Lizzie Hopkins 
along in a couple of hours. The first piece of information I had, was that 
smallpox was raging in the outskirts of the Town. The Watchman waked up my old 
friend J.R. Fayette, who has a store in front of the Wharf, with whom I passed 
the remainder of the night, the Lizzie Hopkins not reaching the Wharf until 8 
o’clock.

The smallpox report checked up all the desires I had to promenade through and 
look at Donaldsonville.

The new turn Bridge over the Bayou for the Mobile and Texas Railroad appears to 
be ready for the reception on the rails but the builder will not give up the 
Bridge until he is paid, and thus the matter remains. The crops along the Bayou 
were looking early, rattoons in many places marking the rows distinctly. Not 
much in the way of [illegible]. Paincourtville has erected a few buildings. A 
nice store has been built by Mr. Trahant, formerly a member of our old regiment 
in which he keeps a large assortment of goods. At Plattenville everything seems 
to be going to decay. At Napoleonville a new Catholic Church is in process of 
erection in the rear of the village which will add much to the appearance of the 
place. The Lizzie Hopkins brought up a large bell for the use of this Church. 
Col. Garner, is fitting up, in a neat and handsome manner, the former residence 
of Mrs. Sims, about 5 miles below Napoleonville where he designs residing in the 
future. At midnight the boat reached Thibodaux and this after a pleasant absence 
of one week, ends my excursion.


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