Welcome to the Free State of Avoyelles
Avoyelles Parish is located in Central Louisiana. The free state of Avoyelles .....located at the junction of the Mississippi,
Red and Atchafalaya Rivers in the swampy area of Louisiana......we have
earned our name by being secluded and evolving our own mindset of handling
law in our own ways.....hence the name free state... .....and as national
radio personality Paul Harvey described us in 1959: the fishing is so
good...you have to hide behind a tree to bait your hook.
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Avoyelles Links
Angelfire - Easiest Free Home Pages
DeCuir family page
Avoyelles Family Name Origins
Fort deRussy Civil War fort of Marksville
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NEWSPAPERS OF AVOYELLES
The Marksville Weekly News
P O Box 209
Marksville, LA 71351-0209
Founded in 1843, Oldest Weekly Newspaper in the State of Louisiana.
Published weekly with news of general interest of Avoyelles Parish,
including a weekly historical and genealogical column. Out of State
Subscriptions: $28. per year. Mail check with your address to start your
subscription. FAX letters to the editor, newstories and inquries to to:
318-346-7253. or e-mail to above address.
The Bunkie Record
PO Box 179
Bunkie, LA 71322
Founded 1888. Published weekly with news of general interest of Bunkie, in
southern Avoyelles, including a weekly historical column by Dr. Sue Eakin.
Out of State Subscriptions: $28. per year. Mail check with your address to
start your subscription. FAX letters to the editor, newstories and inquries
to to: 318-346-7253. or e-mail to above address.3Bunkie - best place topside
God's green earth2
The Avoyelles Journal
PO Box 523
Marksville, LA 71351
Founded in 1978 by Randy DeCuir. Published Sundays and Wednesdays. Delivered
free to every home in the greater Avoyelles area.16,6000 circulation. Total
market coverage of Avoyelles Parish Market area....covering all of
Avoyelles, all of upper Pointe Coupée, and parts of Rapdies, Evangeline and
St. Landry Parishes.. FAX 318-253-7223
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THE FIRST COLONISTS OF AVOYELLES
Avoyelles Parish was settled by predominently direct French Immigrants and
their descendants.....long before the Acadians came to Louisiana, the
anestors of Avoyelles were settled here. Names such as Bordelon, DeCuir,
Laborde, Normand are unique to Avoyelles... All of the first families were
from France except the DeCuir family which came from Macon, Hainaut, Belgium
ORIGINS OF SOME EARLY AVOYELLES NAMES IN EUROPE:
if you wish to share genealogical information let us list your -email number
with a particular....you must be willing to repond, as an person
knowledgable wtih others about these families:
link to
* Avoyelles Family Names & Genealogies
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AVOYELLEANS OF THE YEAR
as honored by the Avoyelles Journal, Sunday newspaper which covers the
parish like the aroma of cochon de lait on a Sunday morning 1976 Verdie
Bielkewicz Lemoine 1977 Judge Earl Henry Edwards 1978 Raymond J. Laborde
1979 A. J. Sookie Roy 1980 Warren Constant 1981 Carlos A. Mayeux 1982 Rev.
Earl Provenza 1983 Marion Roy 1984 Marion Gremillion 1985 Dr. F. P.
Bordelon, JR. 1986 Marc Dupuy, Jr. 1987 William Belt 1988 Eddie Rabalais
1989 Aggie Neck 1990 Jo Hamilton 1991 Lucien Laborde 1992 Dr. Richard Michel
1993 Earl Barbry 1994 Louise Coco Schnieder 1995 Dr. Don H. Hines 1996 Rev. Bill Provosty
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OLD COPIES SOUGHT if you know were we can copy original copies of Avoyelles
newspapers from the 1800s please e-mail us. We are cooperating wtih LSU to
microfilm and preserve these old editions
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The little cities of Avoyelles
Bunkie, founded 1880 Best place topside God's Green Earth
Cottonport, founded 1880s,on beautiful Bayou Rouge
Marksville first noted in 1809, chartered in 1843
Mansura Chartered in 1860, named by a son of a soldier of Napolean after
Mansura, Egypt.
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Fairs and Fesitvals of Avoyelles
Cochon de Lait, Mothers Day, Mansura, 20,000 average attendance. Featuring
roast suckling pig, cooked over an open fire.
Corn Fest, Summer, Bunkie, 15,000 average attendance, featuring the corn
industry of Bunkie...agriculture, cooking, events.
July 4th Fesitval...Marksville, the oldest continous Independence Day
festival in the state of Louisiana. Started 1952. Street dance around the
courthouse sqaure, parade, fireworks.
Cottonport Christmas Festival on the Bayou: Cottonport, 10,000 average
attendance...one of the largest Christmas parades in the state...followed by
fireworks and and festival along beautiful Bayou Rouge.
Email: laroots@earthlink.net
Email: Randy P. DeCuir
