Welcome to the website of the historical society that the Baton Rouge Advocate has called "perhaps the best in the state." [Dec. 24, 2006].

Or use the Site Outline below.

Kenneth A. Dupuy's long-awaited book on the history of Abbeville is now available.

Click here for details.

Quick jumps to our most popular pages:

NOW ON SALE!

NOW ON SALE!

Miniature lighted buildings are in stock!

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Vermilion Parish Courthouse, Abbeville City Hall, School Board Building (first high school), Fenwick Sanitarium (Palms Hospital), St. Mary Magdalen, Bank of Abbeville

Who We Are

The Vermilion Historical Society is a nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to the collection, preservation, and dissemination of the history of Vermilion Parish, Louisiana.  It was formed in 1975 as a result of the renewed interest in history engendered by the impending national bicentennial.  The Society published History of Vermilion Parish, La., a 485-page book containing historical topics, family stories, and pictures, in 1983.  The second volume of that work, a 620-page book, was published in 2003, in conjunction with the bicentennial of the Louisiana Purchase.  Our third book publication was Journeys Into the Past—Abbeville, Louisiana: The Early Years, by Abbeville's premiere historian, Kenneth A. Dupuy.

    The Society also maintains a museum at the Alliance Center, 200 N. Magdalen Square, in the heart of Abbeville, Louisiana, as a part of the Abbeville Cultural and Historical Alliance.  Historical artifacts, documents, and photographs are on display there, including the "Morgan Effigy," a deer antler carved by Native Americans about 1000 years ago.  The sketch of the effigy shown above is the logo of the Society.

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Alliance Museum and Art Gallery

Inside this website you will find images of the people, places, buildings, and things of the past, documents and maps, biographies, articles on interesting historical topics, obituaries, newspaper articles, and a wealth of other information relating to the history of Vermilion Parish, Louisiana.  Click the "Enter Here" button above, or choose a link from the Site Outline below.  Click here to find out how to submit materials to the Vermilion Historical Society.

We sell miniature models of Abbeville buildings, Volume 1 and Volume 2 of our history book, History of Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, and Ken Dupuy's Journeys into the Past—Abbeville, Louisiana:  The Early Years.  To order our products, go to the ORDER FORM PAGE, print it out, and mail it in with your check or money order.

Membership in the Society is open to the public.  The dues are $5 per year for an individual, $10 for a couple, and $100 for an individual lifetime membership.  Contributions to the Society are tax-deductible.  We invite you to join us, and/or to browse around our site and return often.  Membership is not required for browsing this site nor for attending our meetings and presentations.  If you want to join, go to the membership form page, print it out, and send it in with your check.

SITE OUTLINE:

I.  News

II. Features

        A.  Journeys Into the Past—Abbeville, Louisiana: The Early Years

        B.  History of Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, vol. 1.

        C.  History of Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, vol. 2.

        D.  Abbeville Model Village Program

        E.  Slide Presentations

                1.    Mégret in France

                2.    Mégret in Louisiana

                3.    Vermilion Parish Courthouses

                4.    History of the Abbeville Meridional

                5.    The Railroad Comes to Abbeville

                6.    The Eli Wise Home

                7.    The Great Concord Street Fire of 1903

                8.    George Honold, Abbeville's Stellar Architect

                9.    The Fenwick Sanitarium (Palms Hospital)

                10.    St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church, Part 1

                11.    St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church, Part 2

                12.    St. Mary Magdalen Catholic church, Part 3

        F.  Topics in History

                1.   The Morgan Effigy, by Gary Theall

                2.    How Vermilion Parish Became Part of Louisiana, by Gary Theall

                3.    Père Mégret, Founder of Abbeville, by Ken Dupuy

                4.    How Abbeville Was Named

                5.    Abbeville, the Early Years, by Ken Dupuy

                6.    The Early Sheriffs of Vermilion Parish, compiled by Ken Dupuy

                7.    Fatal Shooting in Vermilion Parish, by Ken Dupuy

                8.    The Masonic Temple, by Ken Dupuy

                9.    The Coming of the Railroad, compiled by Gary Theall

                10.   The Railroad Celebration, by Ken Dupuy

                11.   A Ride on the Train, by Ken Dupuy

                12.   Fourth of July in Abbeville—1889 and 1898, by Ken Dupuy

                13.   Abbeville, Louisiana: As It Was In 1894, by Ken Dupuy

                14.   An Abbeville Authoress, Mrs. Ophelia Cook Jones, by Gary Theall

                15.  Cannon From the War for Texas Independence, by Ken Dupuy

                16.   The Fire of 1903, by Ken Dupuy

                17.  The Fenwick Sanitarium (Palms Hospital), by Beatrice B. McClellan.

                18.  Gueydan Liquor Raid, by Patricia Heard Saltzman.

                19.  History of Abbeville slideshow, by John W. O'Bryan Jr.

                20.  Animals of the Past, compiled by Gary Theall

                21.  Obituaries of the First 100 People Buried in Graceland Cemetery,
                        compiled by Gary Theall

                22.  World War II—Eleven Abbeville Heroes

                23.  Biographies of Those Buried in the Old Masonic Cemetery, by
                        Ken Dupuy

                24.  Abbeville Buildings, seen from the rooftop of the old Audrey Hotel,
                        in the form of a slideshow

        G.  Vermilion Parish Biographies

                1.  Martin Bagley, by Michael Bradford

                2.  Ellis Hubin Bergeron, by C. Paul Bergeron

                3.  C. Paul Bergeron:  A Cajun Boyhood, by C. Paul Bergeron

                4.  Lastie Broussard, by Ken Dupuy

                5.  Dr. Clarence J. Edwards, by Ken Dupuy

                6.  Eugene Isidore Guégnon, by Ken Dupuy

                7.  Jean-Pierre Gueydan, by Patricia Saltzman Heard

                8.  Reverend James A. Herod, by Ravin St. Julien-Brown

                9.  Christian George Honold, by Ken Dupuy

                10.  Judge William Kibbe, by Gary Theall

                11.  Dr. Francis Fenwick Young, by Ken Dupuy

        H.  Historical Images

        I.  Documents and Maps

        J.   Historical Collections

                1.  The Clarence J. Edwards Collection

                2.  The Robert H. Smith Collection

                3.  The Wilmer Geoffroy Collection

                4.  The R. J. Guidry Collection

        K.  Sanborn Maps

III.  VHS Pages

        A.  Membership Roster

        B.  How to Submit Materials

        C.  Order Form

        D.  Membership Application

        E.  Links Page

        F.  Site Map

        G.  Feedback

        H.  Site Search

How to contact us:

You can reach the Vermilion Historical Society by—

 

—Telephone

337-898-4114

—US Mail

P. O. Box 877, Abbeville, LA 70511-0877

—Email

General Information: Gary E. Theall

—Internet

Use our feedback page.

This website was created and is  maintained by Gary E. Theall on behalf of the Vermilion Historical Society.
All copyrights are retained by the original authors of works appearing on this website.
All other copyrightable material © Vermilion Historical Society.
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This page was last updated on 11/29/2008.