Terrebonne County Louisiana Archives News.....Fifty Years Ago No. 36 December 12, 1896
************************************************
Copyright.  All rights reserved.
http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm
http://www.usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm
************************************************

File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Savanna King savanna18king@gmail.com August 11, 2023, 1:39 am

The Thibodaux Sentinel December 12, 1896
Having been landed on the wharf boat at Donaldsonville on the morning of 
November 3, 1846, before daylight, and seeing the market house illuminated, with 
my cousin I walked over to see what it resembled. As we entered the structure, 
we heard an incessant talking in languages that were worse than ancient Greek to 
our ears. We were young and endured with that curiosity that is peculiar to 
persons visiting new and strange scenes. Everything was a revelation to us. The 
actions, dress, and language were calculated to arouse singular sensations, and 
open new fields to our inspection.

We had seen negroes and a few slaves in Louisville, but this morning the negro 
women selling coffee in the market and the boys and girls following their 
masters with the market baskets, the singular dialect that they used were all 
strange and interesting. Having partaken of a cup of coffee we returned to the 
wharf boat to make preparations to descend Bayou Lafourche. The proprietor of 
the wharf boat informed us “that a little packet drawn by horses would go down 
the Bayou that morning, but that it was a half mile from the river, stopped by a 
little steamer named the Delta that was sunk in the channel,” about where the 
Texas and Pacific railroad bridge crosses the stream.

Upon inquiring how we could get our trunks taken to the packet, (which was 
commanded by Capt. Hoffman, father of our venerable fellow citizen residing on 
St. Philip Street, and called the Velocipede) we were told that “the Captain 
would come up with a skiff and get them,” “that he always came, so that it was 
not necessary to trouble ourselves but wait a short while.” After partaking of a 
miserable poor breakfast on the wharf boat we learned that the Velocipede had 
gone, without sending to ascertain if there were any passengers in waiting.

Thus disappointed we made search for some other means of transportation and 
seeing a carriage on the front street, the driver told us that he would take us 
down the bayou 20 miles for eight dollar, but could not carry our trunks.

These we left to be shipped later on, the bargain was closed with the carriage 
driver, when we left Donaldsonville, not very favorably impressed with the 
treatment that we had received. There were no bridges over the bayou, but our 
driver beat the ferryman out of his fare by fording that stream near its mouth 
where the water was not over 30 inches in depth. Our journey down the banks of 
the stream was pleasant, everything being new and strange. In those days the 
traveler could easily see over the levees, and two men riding along on opposite 
sides could hold a conversation with each other. 

Our carriage driver very obligingly jumped over some man’s fence and made us a 
present of some stalks of sugar cane which were the first that we had seen or 
tasted. To learn how to masticate it and imbibe its sweetness were 
accomplishments easily acquired. Our destination was the home of my brother who 
resided in the vicinity of a little place called Shrimptown, just twenty miles 
below Donaldsonville, composed of a coffee house and billiard saloon, a cooper 
shop and one store. There was a ferry at that point over which we crossed and 
ended our journey for the day. 


File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/la/terrebonne/newspapers/fiftyyea775gnw.txt

This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/lafiles/

File size: 3.8 Kb