| Communities | Economy | History / Markers | Local Government |
| Location / Geography | Media | Parks and Recreation | Schools and Libraries |
| Parish Map | Top of page | ||
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| Iberville Parish***Map | ||||
| Ascension Parish***Map | ||||
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| DONALDSONVILLE | ||||
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| Ascension Parish***Map | ||||
| Assumption Parish***Map | ||||
| Belle Rose | ||||
| State Highway 70 | Paincourtville | State Highway 70 | Sunshine Bridge | |
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| State Highway 401 | NAPOLEONVILLE |
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Bayou Lafourche Bayou Pierre Blind River Mississippi River Petite Amite River |
Historical Markers |
Ashland Bayou Manchac Bocage Plantation Donaldsonville Donaldsonville First Missionary Martyr Galveztown Gramercy Houmas House L’Hermitage St. Emma Plantation |
History | |
| 1750 |
Prior to 1750 the French, proceeding south along Bayou Lafourche from where that stream forks with the Mississippi River, settled on both sides of what then was called "the river of the Chitimacha" after a local Native American tribe. |
| 1760s-1770s |
Spanish settlers and Acadians arrived in the 1760s.
The Acadians were welcomed here by the Spanish with open arms, given
tracts of land and supplies with implements of husbandry, seeds, and
rations. In 1763 the Treaty of Paris had given the territory of West
Florida to the British crown and the Spanish governor, Galvez,
saw the settlers as protection against the expansion of British interests
in the area. Canary Islanders or Islenos were sent there by Spanish governor Galvez in the late 1770s. The Isleno settlements along Bayou Manchac eventually were demolished by flooding, but by 1779 Galvez had driven the British troops out of West Florida . Ascension and St. James parishes became known as the Acadian Coast. For a while, the bayous and rivers that form Ascension’s borders ceased to be an international boundary. |
| 1772 August l5 |
Meanwhile the settlements on the Mississippi River thrived. Louis Judice was the first Spanish Commandant for Ascension. On August l5, 1772, by order of Charles III, King of Spain, the Ascension Catholic Church was established. |
| 1785 |
In 1785 the population of Ascension was about 1,000, and by 1817 it had increased to 2,219. Most of these settlers lived on the river front and some ventured down Bayou Lafourche, the rest of the area was undeveloped and a wilderness. |
| 1793 |
The area of Ascension Parish first fell under the sphere of influence of an ecclesiastical parish named after a small church built near Plattenville. |
| 1801 |
Bocage Plantation is built in Ascension Parish by Marius Pons Bringier as wedding gift for his daughter Fanny (Françoise), who married Christophe Colomb, a French refugee. Remodeled by Architect James Dakin in 1837, the architect who designed the Old State Capital in Baton Rouge and restored by Dr. & Mrs. E.G. Kohlsdorf 1941. It is a private residence today. |
| 1803 |
When Louisiana became a territory of the United States the border was again disputed because Spain continued to claim West Florida. When open rebellion of the settlers north of the Amite River drove the troops out in 1810 the question of the international boundary was settled forever. The United States formally claimed West Florida and it became a part of the territory of Louisiana. |
| 1805 |
When the Territory of Orleans is divided into counties the present-day Ascension Parish is part of Acadia County By the time English speaking land-seekers came in the early 1800s, Napoleonville was a thriving marketplace for many nationalities. |
| 1806 |
Donaldsonville is founded by William Donaldson on the farm of Pierre Landry. The area briefly known as the Second Acadian Coast began as a trading post about 1750, It will be the home of Governor Francis T. Nicholls and of Dr. F.W. Prevost, who performed the first Cesarean section, 1824. Donaldsonville will serve as the Parish seat of Ascension Parish and as the Capital of Louisiana from January 1830 to January 1831 |
| 1807 |
Evan Jones begins cultivation of sugar at Evan Hall Plantation near Bayou Lafourche in Ascension Parish. The plantation eventually becomes Evan Hall Sugar Cooperative during the 1930s. |
| 1811 |
In 1811, Wade Hampton established one of the first sugar plantations in the area. Ascension Parish soon became part of the prosperous sugar economy. Like all agricultural enterprises in the south, the sugar industry was totally dependent on the labor of its slaves. Though the Institution of slavery brought great wealth to the area during the first half of the 19th century, it also drew the Civil War, and great destruction. |
| 1830 |
It will serve as the Parish seat of Ascension Parish. After a post office was named Donaldsonville in 1822, Donaldson began to petition the legislature to make his town the capital of Louisiana. In 1930 he succeeds, if for only one session. Donaldsonville is the Capital of Louisiana from January 1830 to January 1831. After one week of the second year’s session in the small town the legislators decided it had little attraction as the seat of state government and moved back to New Orleans. |
| 1848 |
The old State House is razed, and its bricks used to prevent wave-wash at the bayou’s mouth. |
| 1845 |
In 1845, the state adopted a new constitution from which the county of Acadia was omitted, and instead there appeared the parishes of Ascension and St. James. |
| 1846 |
On the east bank of Bayou Lafourche, about five miles below Donaldsonville, is Belle Alliance Plantation house (1846), a 33 room Greek Revival manor built by Belgian aristocrat Charles A. Koch. The center hall on the second floor is illuminated by a large oval stained glass skylight, unique in Louisiana plantation homes. It will be owned by the Koch family until 1915, and then is occupied by Mr. C. S. Churchill who bought it in 1927. It is a private residence. |
| 1862 August 9 |
The greatest single action which occurred in Ascension Parish during the Civil War was the bombardment and almost complete destruction of Donaldsonville. After the capture of New Orleans and the town of Donaldsonville, the Union forces continued to push the campaign up the Mississippi and Red Rivers. As the Union boats passed back and forth before the town of Donaldsonville the Confederates, or guerillas who sympathized with them, fired isolated shots at the Union boats. Admiral Farragut notified the mayor to get all women and children out fired isolated shots upon the Union boats enemy. Admiral Farragut notified the mayor to get all women and children out of town and on August 9, 1862, the town was bombarded. Most of the principal buildings in town were destroyed. |
| 1877 |
When the Civil War ended conditions were desperate for the sugar planters. From 1877 to 1910, the industry slowly underwent a revolution in organization and method of production which transformed an essentially antebellum industry into a modern one. Today, the sugar industry is still the leading producer of agricultural income in Ascension Parish. |
| 20th century |
In the late 20th century the population and wealth of Ascension Parish are rapidly growing. With the construction of modern highways and the encroachment of metropolitan Baton Rouge, the economy of the parish has greatly diversified. The river has brought about expanding plants and industries and some towns serve as suburban bedroom communities. The Sunshine Bridge has made the east and west sides of the parish more easily accessible to each other. |
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The Ascension Parish School System includes 17 elementary, middle and high schools, as well as a special services school and a vocational center. There are two private and one parochial schools in Ascension parish to provide an alternative for students not attending public schools. All public and private schools are accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools and the Louisiana Independent School Association. Currently the percentages of graduating seniors attending college is 40.97% for the public schools. Annual cost in public funds to provide schooling is $3,476 per student one of the highest in the state and a pupil-to teacher ratio of 18.01:1. |
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Vocational training is available at the Ascension Vocational Technical Institute, a state-funded facility, located on U. S. Highway 61 in Sorrento, and in the vocational program of the parish schools. The Baton Rouge Regional Vocational Technical Institute is also located nearby and available to parish residents. Vocational training includes welding, automotive technology, drafting and design technology, computer technology, office occupations, nursing assistant, and instrumentation. To assure that new and expanding businesses have a continuing pool of workers with the level of education and expertise necessary for their operations, the areaËs colleges and universities, vocational-technical schools and high schools graduate trained and entry-level persons year round. Schools at all levels are augmenting their general education missions with programs explicitly connected with employment possibilities for their students. This is seen in secondary schools in career education curricula and programs such as Œadopt-a-schoolË through which business contributes resources, curriculum guidance and, in some cases, instruction, counseling and the promise of jobs for graduates. Community colleges are increasing their industry-specific training and colleges and universities are developing partnerships with industry that involve human as well as technological development. |
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Education |
Within an hour and a half drive of Napoleonville are eleven major colleges or universities. Five of these offer doctoral degrees in the arts, sciences, engineering, medical and legal fields. These universities are nationally and internationally recognized as sponsoring extensive research activities. Among these institutions are those receiving national recognition for their schools of law, medicine and engineering as well as fine arts curriculum. Within an hourËs drive of Ascension Parish are eleven major colleges or universities. Five of these offer doctoral degrees in the arts, sciences, engineering, medical and legal fields. These universities are nationally and internationally recognized as sponsoring extensive research activities. Southeastern Louisiana University (SLU) 35 miles Louisiana State University -Baton Rouge (LSU) 20 miles Tulane University 40 miles Southern University - Baton Rouge 20 miles Southern Univ. @ New Orleans (SUNO) 40 miles University of New Orleans 40 miles Louisiana State University -Medical Center 40 miles Tulane University Medical Center 40 miles Loyola University - New Orleans 40 miles Xavier University 40 miles Dillard University 40 miles |
Director - Angelle Deshauttelles 708 Irma Blvd. Gonzales, LA 70737 Email - 3 Branches - Donaldsonville, Galvez, Gonzales Ascension Parish enjoys an excellent parish-supported public library system. The main library is located in Donaldsonville, with a head librarian and a staff of eleven. Volumes in the library total in excess of 100,000, with approximately 170 new additions per month. The facilities offer reading and other reference materials, such as periodicals, films and audio materials for all ages. There are three branch libraries located in Sorrento, Geismar and Darrow. A childrenËs reading program is available during the summer. The State Library, LSU and Southeastern Louisiana University are located within one half hour of Ascension. The large collections at the university libraries are available to parish residents. American Library Directory 1999-2000, R. R. Bowker |
