Bayou Pigeon Heritage Association

10/02/2025

Do you know that October is Atchafalaya month.

As the seasons begin to change and the temperatures fall, local culture is showcased far and wide at the region’s many festivals nestled in a natural environment unlike any other,” said Atchafalaya National Heritage Area Executive Director Justin Lemoine.

One festival is our Bayou Pigeon Heritage Association Wild Beast Feast on Oct. saturday 11 .

There’s no better way to celebrate Atchafalaya Month than to take a trip to Bayou Pigeon ...

This year we have over 15 experienced cajun cooks participating in our wild Beast cook ... cooking everything from crawfish stew, to turtle sauce piquant, and deer chili and maybe smothered Nutria serve over white rice.

We have a large raffle going with $5000.00 first prize.

A large selection of items for a live auction and many more silent auction items ...all things associated with the Atchafalaya Basin.

In addition we will have the Bayou Pigeon Folklife Museum open with free admission to al festival goers. The displays all all engaging you will learned a lot about the folklife ways of the people who live and work the Basin Natural Resources.

We will have the award winning book 'Bayou Pigeon Spirit of the Atchafalaya' on sale at reduced prices.

Come pass a good time with good food and explore everything Atchafalaya.

We guarantee ...

09/23/2025

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cwcN-mm4xs
Hey Everybody,

Check out the shortcut we attached—it’s a great little video about Houseboat / Camp Boat living in the Pierre Part / Belle River area. It’s a very cool story, and honestly, it could be about any of our folks from Bayou Pigeon too!

We thought it was the perfect time to share because, at the end of the video, they’re cooking nutria—a reminder of how Cajuns have always been creative and resourceful with wild game.

👉 That brings us to an invitation:

Are there any brave Cajuns out there willing to cook at our Wild Beast Feast on October 11, 2025?

There’s still plenty of time to enter the contest—so dust off your recipes, sharpen those knives, and get ready to show off your wild side!

07/25/2025

What makes Bayou Pigeon and Bayou Pigeon Heritage special...

Bayou Pigeon and its Heritage Association embody the heritage, and spirit of Cajun communities: tightly bonded,

Cajuns are descended from the Acadians, French-speaking people who were expelled from Nova Scotia in the mid-1700s during the Great Expulsion. When they resettled in the swamps, around Bayou Pigeon, Pierre Part _and Belle River

They learned early on that community cooperation was not optional—it was essential.

Yesterday morning, Mike Dupre and I went to the Heritage Museum to take some measurements... looking at the grass at the site that needed cutting and realizing that the weather forecast was calling rain for the rest of the week. Realizing that three of the board members who usually handle this were out of state on vacation. or business. That it would get out of hand..

With that said, I went to Bayou Pigeon Seafood and asked Glenda Randazzo if she could help ...

Today, the complete site ... the grass was cut , and weeds eaten.

Glenda truly embodies community cooperation and the Spirit of Bayou Pigeon and always comes through. I know she sent some of her people and their equipment to get it done

Special thanks Chris & Glenda Randazzo, they are committed to preserving Bayou Pigeon Heritage...

Thank them when you see them

06/21/2025

http://blog.bayoupigeon.com/

Check out the latest blog story on my Blog "All Things Bayou Pigeon".

It is about the Baptist Mission School on Keel Boat Pass in the 1940, 1950's.

It is a story that deserves to be remembered.

aim straight

Chachie

06/16/2025

BPHA Facebook followers ... a piece of our Heritage....

As the out migration from the heart of the swamp was occurring, after the construction of the Atchafalaya floodway Bayou Pigeon had a very convenient spot for people to move to, and it was the Hwy. 75 Borrow Canal along Grand river built in 1925. to build the foundation for LA. Hwy 75.

The borrow canal was at one time a thriving place and main part of bayou Pigeon. Not the eye sore that it is today.

With the opening of the Plaquemine Lock, (1905) towboat traffic through the Bayou Plaquemine/Grand river system had increased dramatically.

The Borrow Canal was an ideal situation for houseboat owners, mainly because you were fairly safe from the pounding of waves of tugboats passing by.

You could tie your houseboat up, swing down the wharf plank and you were essentially done, no government intrusion no property taxes. A la, the name, ‘“Houseboat Alley”.’

The best photographic evidence of “Houseboat Alley,” available to the authors, are these pictures from a video made by the Baptist Mission church from New Orleans.

And this picture of Mr. Dewey Vaughn, roy Vaughn and Eugene Vaughn at Mr. Alcee Leonard’s Store/Fish Dock which Mr. Leonard purchased from Jack Carline, in 1941.

With “Houseboat Alley” in the background, this picture is taken looking south toward Mr. “Bee” Landry’s Store and
Fish Dock. Hwy. 75 is on the left and Grand river on the right.

Note the width of the canal at that time. It did not take
long and “Houseboat Alley” was getting crowded. In the beginning, there were only two inlets and outlets from Grand river
into the Borrow Canal; one nearly straight across from the Bayou Pigeon/Grand river confluence, the other just north of
the current pontoon bridge, still visible today.

Entry in and travel down the canal for new houseboats and fishing activities was busy. The residents decided they needed
another entrance to the canal. Together they cleared trees, dynamited stumps; wheel washed the bank and made two new
cuts through Grand river and the Borrow Canal. The cuts were made in the late 1930’s.

Eventually they became wide and
deep enough to maneuver houseboats into and out of the canal.

These two new cuts were located at the existing grocery
stores of Mr. Ignace Sauce and Mr. Cleveland Landry (Mr. Bee).
By end of the 1930’s there were more than 25 houseboats parked in the little Borrow Canal.

BPHA preserving the history and Heritage of Bayou Pigeon. To become a member check out our website at www.bayoupigeon.com

05/29/2025

Whats on my mind... BPHA Heritage followers...

These are the three books I will donate to BPHA to have in our Crawfest Silent auction on June 7, 2025

They are all very informative about the Folklife and Culture of the Atchafalaya Basin, Bayou Pigeon, Pierre Part and Belle River area.

Between the 3 of them, there is over 1350 pages of information, over 1000 pictures, maps, and illustrations, and over 100.000 words.

Everything you should want to know about our heritage and culture...

Why we should care about our BPHA museum

The Heritage Cycle, is a model developed by Simon Thurley in 2005, outlines a process through which people engage with cultural heritage.

It provides a clear framework for how understanding leads to valuing, which leads to caring and, ultimately, to enjoyment—a continuous cycle of cultural appreciation and preservation.

Three Types of Cultural Heritage

Tangible Cultural Heritage refers to physical artifacts that are created, maintained, and passed down through generations. These include monuments, buildings, artistic works, tools, and other objects with cultural, historical, or artistic value.

Intangible Cultural Heritage encompasses the living expressions and traditions inherited from our ancestors and passed on to future generations. This includes language, oral traditions, rituals, crafts, music, recipes, and skills—everything that shapes a community’s identity and way of life.

Natural Heritage includes landscapes, flora, and fauna that hold cultural, spiritual, or historical significance. These natural elements are often deeply tied to the identity and lifestyle of a region’s people.

The Heritage Cycle a Detailed Explanation?

Understanding:
People begin by learning about cultural heritage—its meaning, importance, and role in shaping communities.

Valuing:
Through understanding, people begin to appreciate and recognize the significance of heritage.

Caring:
Appreciation naturally leads to action—volunteering, preservation efforts, support for museums and cultural programs, and advocating for protective policies.

Enjoying:
As individuals participate in these activities, they find fulfillment and pride, which deepens their connection to heritage.

Looping Back:
This enjoyment encourages even deeper learning and engagement, creating a powerful and ongoing cycle of heritage preservation.

05/25/2025

Crawfest 2025... Bonjour , Comment Ca Va ... come by and visit with the only Cajun Community in Iberville Parish june 7 2025 at the Bayou Pigeon Heritage complex ....

05/23/2025

Memorial Day 2025 Less We Forget !

05/17/2025

Hello, Bayou Pigeon Heritage Facebook followers.

Come visit our 5th annual Crawfest 2025 ... June 7. It is going to best yet... lots of vendor booths, and we will have a silent auction with lots of different items, and our live auction has lots of Bayou Cajun items.

Our Bayou Pigeon Folk Life Museum will be open for visitors all day during the event.

Our museum is part of the Eastern Atchafalaya Gateway trail and represents the best of Bayou Cajun Folklife.

I will have my 3 books on the Atchafalaya for sale.

1.The original 'Bayou Pigeon LA, Spirit of the Atchafalaya" $50
2. "Heritage of Atchafalaya, A Natural & Cultural History of the Atchafalaya Basin" $ 35
3. My latest book … "River of Trees – Land of the Dead Giants" $50
See you there …

Cliff (aka Chachie) LeGrange
Board member & Ex officio BPHA

03/19/2025

Randy LaPrairie forming up the pad for our 25 ton A /C unit for the BPHA. Activity center… randy. Continues to be a pillar of the BPHA. Organization …

02/26/2025

02/17/2025

Crawfish Skiff to be raffled off June 7 at our BPHA Crawfest ,,,,

it is going to big deal ... so get your raffle tickets now...

Come check us out we are growing ...