“Few of our state’s 64 parishes have first-rate published histories available about them. How marvelous that Pelican should have seen fit to republish this superlative book!”
—Shreveport Forum News
From the banks of the Mississippi River to the edge of Bayou Barataria to the shores of the Gulf of Mexico, Louisiana’s Jefferson Parish encompasses a diverse and historic region. This comprehensive, illustrated volume reconstructs the natural and human history of the parish, tracing its evolution from the earliest times of prehistory to the modern era. Betsy Swanson spotlights the area’s early Indian life and archaeological sites and historic landmarks, extinct and extant, and the roles they played in the progress of the region. Colorful historical figures who appear in these pages include the pirate Jean Lafitte, revolutionary Nicolas Chauvin de la Frenière, and the reclusive philanthropist John McDonogh.
Historic Jefferson Parish also features a treasure trove of early sketches, rare maps, and vintage photographs.
About the Author
Betsy Swanson earned a bachelor of fine arts degree with distinction in art from Newcomb College in 1959 and was awarded the master of fine arts by Tulane University in 1966. She is a coauthor of New Orleans Architecture Volume II: The American Sector and a photographer for New Orleans Architecture Volume VI: Faubourg Tremé and the Bayou Road. Ms. Swanson lives in Harahan, Louisiana.
About the Foreword Writer
A native New Orleanian, Monsignor Henry C. Bezou was ordained to the priesthood in 1938 at St. Louis Cathedral. Among his various ministries, he served as pastor of St. Francis Xavier, in the heart of Old Metairie, from 1967 to 1983. He is also the author of Metairie: A Tongue of Land to Pasture. He died August 15, 1989.
HISTORIC JEFFERSON PARISH
From Shore to Shore
By Betsy Swanson
Foreword by Henry Bezou
HISTORY / United States / State & Local / South
192 pp. 9 x 12
20 color photos
162 b/w photos 80 b/w illus.
38 maps Biblio. Index
First pb ptg.; 2nd ptg.
ISBN: 9780882890487 pb