The story
from WikipediaRead it all ↗The Attakapa Native Americans inhabited this area at the time of the first European encounter. French colonists founded the first European settlement, Petit Manchac, a trading post along the Vermilion River. In the mid-to-late eighteenth century, numerous Acadian refugees settled in this area, after being expelled from Canada after Great Britain defeated France in the Seven Years' War. They intermarried with other settlers, forming what became known as Cajun culture, which maintained use of the French language and adherence to the Roman Catholic Church.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Start Lafayette’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Lafayette’s history is told.
0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10Lafayette, decade by decade
2000
28 historic places in Lafayette
Lafayette has 28 listings on the National Register, and they protect 1,118 historic buildings, because Freetown-Port Rico Historic District alone counts 677.
Where they are
Architectural styles
When they were listed
Listed 1975Old Lafayette City Hall
Listed 1975Alexandre Mouton House
Listed 1980Charles H. Mouton House
Listed 1980Holy Rosary Institute
Listed 1982Gordon Hotel
Listed 1983Hope Lodge #145
Listed 1983Vermilion Inn
Listed 1984Elrose
Listed 1984Lafayette Hardware Store
Listed 1984First United Methodist ChurchListed 1984Sterling Grove Historic District
Listed 1994Evangeline Hotel
Listed 2002Brandt House
Listed 2024St. John's Cathedral (Boundary Increase)Listed 1984Daigle HouseListed 1984J. Arthur Roy HouseListed 1984Lafayette Elementary SchoolListed 1984Old Guaranty Bank BuildingListed 1984Sidney Martin HouseListed 1985Alexandre Latiolais HouseListed 2016Freetown-Port Rico Historic DistrictListed 2018Lafayette Coca-Cola Bottling PlantListed 2019Downtown Lafayette Civic CenterListed 2020Lafayette Central Business DistrictListed 2020Oil Center Historic DistrictListed 2022Trappey’s CanneryListed 2023Camp Claiborne Regimental ChapelListed 2025Mills, Kennedy, and Hopkins AdditionsThen & now
When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.
Stories next door
nearby towns’ historyFrom the National Register (6). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.