Covid Christmas in St. Francisville:

Covid Christmas in St. Francisville:
Six Feet Y’all

By Anne Butler
           
For decades, St. Francisville’s wonderful Christmas in the Country celebration has drawn excited crowds to escape mall madness and celebrate a safe small-town holiday the first weekend in December. Its historic charm shone as tiny white lights climbed Victorian gallery posts to turn this little rivertown into a magical venue, its lavishly decorated shop windows filled with alluring gift possibilities and a delightful parade lending its theme to the whole shebang…Walking in a Winter Wonderland, or Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, or something equally upbeat.

Not this year. Pandemic issues have upended the whole celebration, but the resourceful sponsors have figured out innovative ways to ensure the safety of guests, even if it means unseating Santa from his comfy inside throne for outside photo ops with children and a special spaced-out parade marching to the theme of “Six Feet Y’all.”

Events kick off Friday evening, December 4, as retiring longtime mayor Billy D’Aquilla hosts his last lighting of the town Christmas tree at the St. Francisville town hall, complete with fireworks, the United Methodist Church Children’s Choir performing on the front porch (5:30) and a Welcome Walk-Thru. The First Baptist Church puts on a Drive-through Live Nativity at its location at the intersection of US 61 and LA 10 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Private homes throughout the National Register-listed Historic District on Ferdinand and Royal Streets encourage peeping Toms to peer through windows to admire Christmas decorations inside; signs designate homes participating in what’s called “Peep into our Holiday Homes” on Friday and Saturday nights from 6:30 to 8.

Be sure to drive through the West Feliciana Parish Hospital’s lighting display from Burnett Road to Commerce St. and enjoy cookies and cocoa; this will be a popular drive-through all month.  Also on Friday, from 7:30 to 9 p.m., Hemingbough hosts the Holiday Brass concert featuring the Baton Rouge Symphony.
Saturday, December 5, Anytime Fitness underscores its understanding that fitness bolsters both mental and physical health, especially in this time of Covid19, by sponsoring 5K and Fun Run races. Benefitting Cancer Services, Christmas on the Run begins at Town Hall on Ferdinand Street, 8 and 8:30 a.m. In downtown Parker Park, live music and interesting vendors will be onsite both Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; over 50 unique artists and vendors sell woodworks, jewelry, bath products, paintings, food and much more.

Santa in the Park is the new outdoor event on Saturday, December 5, at 11 a.m. Featuring opportunities to take pictures with Santa in a fun socially distanced way, this event has been moved by the sponsoring non-profit Women’s Service League to the expansive West Feliciana Sports Park just off US Highway 61 at the north end of St. Francisville and will also feature the West Feliciana High band and cheerleaders plus theater students performing. Advance tickets are available online at www.wslwestfel.com or Facebook:WSLofWestFel; refunds will not be made if bad weather cancels this event. Bring your own picnic foods, lawn chairs or blankets.

There will be book signings for the new Soul of St. Francisville volume, full of fascinating history of iconic faces and places plus beautiful portraiture, at the West Feliciana Historical Society museum on Ferdinand Street on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and at The Conundrum bookstore Sunday from 11 to 1.

Saturday evening from 6 to 8 p.m., Audubon State Historic Site hosts its annual tribute to 1815 called A Jane Austin Christmas with wassail, straight-out-of-the-woods seasonal decorations, period music and vintage dancing by beautifully costumed re-enactors; Oakley House, where artist John James Audubon painted so many of his bird studies in 1821, never looks lovelier than by candlelight. A Community Sing-Along raises voices and spirits at the St. Francisville United Methodist Church on Royal Street from 6 to 7.

Sunday, December 6, the Women’s Service League is calling its ever-popular parade through downtown St. Francisville “Six Feet Y’all” in recognition of the Covid19 mandate for safe social distancing. Starting at 2 p.m., the parade features floats, marching groups and local politicians flinging lots of candy, with special adaptations in consideration of the peculiar circumstances required this year for the safety of parade participants and spectators. Live music will be presented in Parker Park before the parade, featuring the Fugitive Poets noon to 2 and Nancy Roppolo & Day Trip 2 to 4.

But the big draw this weekend is the wonderful array of shopping opportunities in St. Francisville. There are co-ops bursting at the seams with antiques and one-of-a-kind collectibles, plus art galleries, specialty boutiques, ladies’ fashions, home décor and gift shops, ice cream parlors and candy shoppes, a bookstore, candles and crafts, fine jewelers and more. Many of these are located in charming repurposed historic structures, some of which were private cottages and others carrying on the tradition of several centuries as mercantiles.

All of the shops are ramping up their appeal for Christmas in the Country, with exquisite seasonal decorations, refreshments, music, and lots of special sales. There’s also the fun “Find Me If You Can, I’m the Gingerbread Man” hunt with prizes; cards and directions are available at the West Feliciana Historical Society Museum and Visitor Center as well as the West Feliciana Parish Library, with Sunday noon at Town Hall turn-in card time. An additional incentive to Shop Small Y’All is the offer of a designer tote bag with purchase of $200 at each shop.

Located on US Highway 61 on the Mississippi River between Baton Rouge, LA, andNatchez, MS, the St. Francisville area is a year-round tourist destination.  Several splendidly restored plantation homes are open for tours: The Myrtles Plantation, Greenwood Plantation, plus Catalpa Plantation by reservation; Afton Villa Gardens is open in season. Particularly important to tourism in the area are its two significant state historic sites, Rosedown Plantation (a National Historic Landmark) and Oakley Plantation in the Audubon state site, which offer periodic living-history demonstrations to allow visitors to experience 19^th-century plantation life and customs.

The nearby Tunica Hills region offers unmatched recreational activities in its unspoiled wilderness areas—hiking, biking and bicycle racing due to the challenging terrain, birding, photography, hunting. There are unique art galleries plus specialty and antiques shops, many in restored historic structures, and some nice restaurants throughout the St. Francisville area serving everything from ethnic cuisine to seafood and classic Louisiana favorites. For overnight stays, the area offers some of the state’s most popular Bed & Breakfasts, including historic plantations, lakeside clubhouses and beautiful townhouses in St. Francisville’s extensive National Register-listed historic district, and there are also modern motel accommodations for large bus groups.

For visitor information, call St. Francisville Main Street at 225-635-3688 or West Feliciana Tourist Commission and West Feliciana Historical Society at 225-6330 or 225-635-4224; online www.stfrancisvillefestivals.comor www.stfrancisville.net.

Colorful Azaleas and Costumes of the 1820s Welcome Spring in St. Francisville, LA

Colorful Azaleas and Costumes of the 1820s Welcome Spring in St. Francisville, LA
By Anne Butler

The forty-eighth annual Audubon Pilgrimage March 15, 16 and 17, 2019, celebrates a southern spring in St. Francisville, the glorious garden spot of Louisiana’s English Plantation Country. For nearly half a century the sponsoring West Feliciana Historical Society has thrown open the doors of significant historic structures to commemorate artist-naturalist John James Audubon’s stay as he painted a number of his famous bird studies and tutored the daughter of Oakley Plantation’s Pirrie family, beautiful young Eliza. A year’s worth of planning and preparation precedes each pilgrimage, and with nearly half a century of experience under their belt, society members put on one of the South’s most professional and enjoyable pilgrimage presentations.

Featured this year are three historic plantation homes in the countryside and two townhouses, plus lots of extras.

Sunnyside, built in 1838 in Pointe Coupee Parish, was disassembled, trucked across the Mississippi River bridge in 1997, then meticulously reassembled on the Tunica Trace, retaining its original footprint. A fine example of vernacular architecture, its bluffland design is eminently suite to the historic Weyanoke community and its period landscaping anchors house to site as if it’s been there for centuries. Historian David Floyd and wife Marla have raised two children there.

Laurel Hill Plantation was purchased in the 1830s by Judge Edward McGehee, founder of the early standard-gauge West Feliciana Railroad that hauled cotton through this plantation country to the Mississippi River port at Bayou Sara. In the 1870s daughter Caroline and her husband Duncan Stewart enlarged the original small Carolina-I structure to accommodate their growing family. Beautifully restored, it is now the property of Jimmy and Mary Farrar Hatchette.

Puente Largo, built in the 1850s in Tangipahoa Parish and moved to West Feliciana in 1997, is a handsome raised Creole cottage with four large rooms and spacious hallway on the upper premier etage, above what had been an unfinished ground-floor storage for wagons and buggies but is now closed in. Broad front stairs access the upper gallery. Used as a field hospital during the Civil War, Puente Largo has been beautifully furnished and landscaped by owners Mike and Krista Dumas.

In St. Francisville’s downtown National Register-listed Historic District is the Brasseaux House, quintessentially charming cottage complete with Victorian gallery trim, picket fence and climbing roses. It was built in 1895 by Albert Sydney Brasseaux, who was named for his father’s commanding general in the Civil War. Its architectural style is called southern dogtrot, and its extensive sloping back yard shows why St. Francisville is called the little town that’s two miles long and two yards wide. It is now home to a vibrant young family, the Magruder Hazlips.

And then there’s the Coffin House, tiny stepped-roof structure built around 1903 right on St. Francisville’s main thoroughfare, proving history is nothing if not dynamic and showing the amazing adaptability of even the most unassuming of historic structures. Previously used for strictly utilitarian purposes including the storage of coffins, it is now a delightfully cozy pied-a-terre for visiting doting grandparents, Don and Harriet Ayres.
In addition to the featured homes, pilgrimage visitors are also welcomed to Afton Villa Gardens, Audubon (Oakley) and Rosedown State Historic Sites, three 19th-century churches and Temple Sinai in town and beautiful St. John’s and St. Mary’s in the country, plus the Rural Homestead with lively demonstrations of the rustic skills of daily pioneer life.

Audubon Market Hall hosts an exhibit of the West Feliciana works of the late Charles Reinike (1906-1983), one of New Orleans’ most respected landscape artists. Passionately in love with South Louisiana from New Orleans through the wetlands and the hills of rural plantation country, Reinike and wife Vera opened an art school in the French Quarter in the 1930s-1940s and brought their students to summer art camp on their West Feliciana property where their daughter lives today. Reinike’s paintings are nostalgic but not saccharine, his son Charles III explains; “he liked the grittier side of things...depicting rural Louisiana and chronicling the early African-American cabins and lifestyle for their honesty and simplicity, as well as the residential and industrial scenes of New Orleans and the Mississippi River, and the beauty of the bayous and shrimp boats.”
An impressive exhibit of Audubon’s Birds of Feliciana hangs at Oakley Plantation (Audubon State Historic Site). Other special events called Exploring Nature and Birding remind of continued ties to the birdlife so beloved by the artist: Friday bird walk is led by local artist Murrell Butler at his Oak Hill property; Saturday the Wildlife Hospital of Louisiana offers a glimpse of live-and-in-person rehab survivors (Red-Winged Scarlett, Red-Tailed Hawk, Mississippi Kite, Broad Winged Hawk, Eastern Screech Owl); Sunday’s bird walk is led by LSU avian vet Dr. Tom Tully at Oakley.
Daytime features are open 9:30 to 5; Friday evening activities are scheduled from 6 to 9 p.m., Saturday soiree begins at 7 p.m.

The Historic District around Royal Street is filled during the day with the happy sounds of costumed children singing and dancing the Maypole; in the evening as candles flicker and fireflies flit among the ancient moss-draped live oaks, there is no place more inviting for a leisurely stroll. Friday evening features old-time Hymn Singing at the United Methodist Church, Graveyard Tours at Grace Episcopal cemetery (last tour begins at 8:15 p.m.), and a wine and cheese reception at the newly restored St. Francisville Inn showing off the exquisitely detailed 1820’s evening costumes, nationally recognized for their authenticity. Light Up The Night, the fun Saturday evening soiree, features live music and dancing, dinner and drinks.

For tickets and tour information, contact West Feliciana Historical Society, Box 338, St. Francisville, LA 70775; phone 225-635-6330 or 225-635-4224; online www.audubonpilgrimage.info, email sf@audubonpilgrimage.info . New this year is a package including daytime tours, all evening entertainment Friday and Saturday, and a Saturday picnic lunch. Tickets can be purchased at the Historical Society Museum on Ferdinand Street. For information on St. Francisville overnight accommodations, shops, restaurants, and recreation in the Tunica Hills, see www.stfrancisville.us, www.stfrancisville.net, or www.stfrancisvillefestivals.com.

Beautiful oak-shaded Parker Park in the midst of St. Francisville’s National Register-listed Historic District is the scene for two other special activities in March. A Walk In The Park on Saturday, March 2nd, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. will feature live music plus vendors offering varied crafts, art and culinary specialties, while March 30th from 10 to 10 the Tunica Hills Music Festival and Jam has professional musicians performing on stages but also dispersed throughout the park to encourage pop-up jams everywhere. Visitors are encouraged to bring their own instruments and join in the free fun.

Located on US Highway 61 on the Mississippi River between Baton Rouge, LA, and Natchez, MS, the St. Francisville area is a year-round tourist destination. A number of splendidly restored plantation homes are open for tours: The Cottage Plantation (weekends), Myrtles Plantation, Greenwood Plantation, plus Catalpa Plantation by reservation; Afton Villa Gardens is open in season and is spectacular. Particularly important to tourism in the area are its two significant state historic sites, Rosedown Plantation (a National Historic Landmark) and Oakley Plantation in the Audubon state site, which offer periodic living-history demonstrations to allow visitors to experience 19th-century plantation life and customs.

The nearby Tunica Hills region offers unmatched recreational activities in its unspoiled wilderness areas—hiking, biking and especially bicycle racing due to the challenging terrain, birding, photography, hunting. There are unique art galleries plus specialty and antiques shops, many in restored historic structures, and some nice restaurants throughout the St. Francisville area serving everything from ethnic cuisine to seafood and classic Louisiana favorites. For overnight stays, the area offers some of the state’s most popular Bed & Breakfasts, including historic plantations, lakeside clubhouses and beautiful townhouses right in the middle of St. Francisville’s extensive National Register-listed historic district, and there are also modern motel accommodations for large bus groups.

For visitor information, call West Feliciana Tourist Commission and West Feliciana Historical Society at 225-6330 or 225-635-4224, or St. Francisville Main Street at 225-635-3873; online www.stfrancisvillefestivals.com, www.stfrancisville.net or www.stfrancisville.us (the events calendar gives dates and information on special activities).

Celebrate a Country Christmas in St. Francisville

Celebrate a Country Christmas in St. Francisville
By Anne Butler
Used to be, country folks piled into wagons for a trip to the nearest town in anticipation of Christmas, the youngsters pressing noses against frost-covered storefront windows to dream of china dolls or wooden rocking horses. Today that trend has been reversed, as harried urbanites escape from mall madness and compulsive consumption to ease back into the slower pace and peace of a country Christmas. And there’s nowhere to better experience that than St. Francisville’s Christmas in the Country weekend December 7, 8 and 9th.
Spectacular holiday decorations, with millions of white lights gracing gallery posts and tracing soaring Victorian trimwork, turn the downtown Historic District into a winter wonderland, and carefully planned activities provide fun for the entire family. The theme of the Sunday afternoon Christmas parade, Walking in a Winter Wonderland, sets the tone for the whole weekend, and it’s is highly appropriate. The weekend is a safe, small-town celebration of its bedrock beliefs---in the goodness of people, the beauty of nature, and the strength of community and faith. Plus it’s just plain fun! Remember when Christmas shopping was actually a pleasure? It still is in St. Francisville, where each unique little store welcomes shoppers with Open House lagniappe: refreshments, music, and spectacular discounted sales.

Friday evening, December 7th, Christmas in the Country is kicked off around St. Francisville’s Town Hall as the children’s choir Voices in Motion from Bains Lower Elementary School sings at 5:45, followed by jovial longtime mayor Billy D’Aquilla lighting the town tree and hosting a reception complete with fireworks. Participating homes in St. Francisville’s National Register Historic District along Ferdinand and Royal Streets, designated by signs, permit visitors to Peep Into Our Holiday Homes from 6 to 8 p.m. both Friday and Saturday, and a Holly Jolly Jazzy Christmas Concert featuring Willis Delony and friends, sponsored by the St. Francisville Symphony Association with the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra, starts at 7 p.m. on Friday at Grace Episcopal Church, with tickets available at the door.

Saturday, December 8th, begins with 7:30 a.m. Community Prayer Breakfast at the Methodist Church Fellowship Hall, sponsored by the local church, United Methodist Men, and the Louisiana Egg Commission; guest speaker Abby Cochran is the principal of the local high school, serves on the town’s Board of Aldermen, and is co-chair of the Methodist church’s Missions Committee, evidence of her belief in the power of linking church, school and community. Christmas on the Run for the Relay for Life supporting the American Cancer Society has a one-mile fun run beginning at 8 a.m. and a 5-K run at 8:30 a.m., both starting at Parker Park.

Little ones can enjoy Breakfast with St. Nick at the First Baptist Church; sponsored by the Women’s Service League, two seatings are available at 8 and 9, with reservations encouraged and tickets available online (wslwestfel@gmail.com). The Women’s Service League also offers fresh wreaths on Ferdinand St. from 9 to 5.

In Parker Park from 10 to 4, over 65 vendors offer everything from food and music to arts and crafts; from noon to 2 there will be live music in the park featuring Blu Rouge. The Polar Express train transports visitors through the downtown area from 10 to 2, with a Polar Express movie and fun in the Town Hall meeting room.

St. Francisville’s shops and art galleries are the enthusiastic sponsors of this special weekend, offering a wide variety of inventory, from antiques (there are three sprawling antiques co-ops) and art (both original and prints), decorative items, one-of-a-kind handmade crafts, custom jewelry, housewares, artisanal foodstuffs, clothing for every member of the family. Be sure to pick up your Candy Cane Shopping Card from one of the listed shops, featuring discounts and “I Shopped St. Francisville” t-shirts for purchases over $100.

From 10 to 4 on Saturday, the non-profit organization Friends of the Library sponsors the popular annual Tour of Homes benefitting library programs, showcasing three stately homes featuring varied architecture and eclectic décor, plus a special treat this year. Right in the center of St. Francisville’s historic district beside the iconic Magnolia Café are the 3-V Tourist Cabins, throwbacks to the 1930s automobile age when a tiny garage was provided with each overnight accommodation. Used in the documentary Bonnie & Clyde, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and still renting as B&Bs, these little cabins are on tour this year as decorator showcases, each done up in style by local interior designers Ellen Kennon, Marc Charbonnet and Caroline Alberstat. Tickets are available at Eventbrite.com, the library, or at each home.

Downtown Merchants Open Houses, with music and refreshments, keep the fun and fine shopping going into the evening Saturday from 4 to 7 p.m. From 6 to 8 p.m., Oakley Plantation’s Dickens of a Christmas at Audubon State Historic Site features candlelight tours, period music and wassail. From 6 to 7 United Methodist Church hosts a Community Sing-Along. First Baptist Church (LA 10 at US 61) has a Living Nativity inside the church from 6 to 8, a real Christmas journey—travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem and rediscover the miracle of the birth of Jesus; children love the petting stable, crafts, and hot chocolate and cookies. There will also be a concert at historic Temple Sinai (Prosperity St. just off Royal) featuring Nancy Roppolo, Clay Parker and Jodie James beginning at 7 p.m.

On Sunday, December 9th, Candy Cane Shopping Card opportunities continue from 10 to closing, with T-shirt prizes available at the Visitor Center on Ferdinand St. (open 9 to 5). Vendors are in Parker Park from 10 to 4, with live music noon to 3 by the Fugitive Poets. Sunday’s highlight is the Women’s Service League Christmas Parade beginning at 2 p.m., travelling along Ferdinand and Commerce Streets, with floats, bands, marching groups, dignitaries and lots of throws, all under the theme of Walking in a Winter Wonderland.

The following week, Countdown to Christmas draws crowds to the West Feliciana Sports Park on Thursday, December 13, from 5 to 8 p.m. for more free family fun. There will be arts and crafts, bonfires, games, face painting, music and train rides. Santa will make an appearance, a Christmas tree costume contest really does mean dressing as your favorite decorated tree, and concessions and dinner will be available.

Located on US Highway 61 on the Mississippi River between Baton Rouge, LA, and Natchez, MS, the St. Francisville area is a year-round tourist destination. A number of splendidly restored plantation homes are open for tours: The Cottage Plantation (weekends), Myrtles Plantation, Greenwood Plantation, plus Catalpa Plantation by reservation; Afton Villa Gardens is open in season and is spectacular. Particularly important to tourism in the area are its two significant state historic sites, Rosedown Plantation (a National Historic Landmark) and Oakley Plantation in the Audubon state site, which offer periodic living-history demonstrations to allow visitors to experience 19th-century plantation life and customs.

The nearby Tunica Hills region offers unmatched recreational activities in its unspoiled wilderness areas—hiking, biking and especially bicycle racing due to the challenging terrain, birding, photography, hunting. There are unique art galleries plus specialty and antiques shops, many in restored historic structures, and some nice restaurants throughout the St. Francisville area serving everything from ethnic cuisine to seafood and classic Louisiana favorites. For overnight stays, the area offers some of the state’s most popular Bed & Breakfasts, including historic plantations, lakeside clubhouses and beautiful townhouses right in the middle of St. Francisville’s extensive National Register-listed historic district, and there are also modern motel accommodations for large bus groups.

For visitor information, call West Feliciana Tourist Commission and West Feliciana Historical Society at 225-6330 or 225-635-4224, or St. Francisville Main Street at 225-635-3873; online www.stfrancisvillefestivals.com, www.stfrancisville.net or www.stfrancisville.us (the events calendar gives dates and information on special activities).

St. Francisville Welcomes First Artist in Residence

St. Francisville Welcomes First Artist in Residence
By Anne Butler
When Life give you Lemons, you make Lemonade.
Or Collages. When life gave English artist John Lawson lemons, in the form of Katrina floodwaters engulfing his New Orleans studio and soaking over two decades’ worth of original sketches, he pieced together tattered fragments, added other meaningful images, and won such praise from art critics that he’s been working in that medium ever since.
While studying landscape architecture at LSU in the 1980s, Lawson fell in love with Louisiana’s creative culture---its art, its music, its cooking, its lush landscapes and magnificent architectural treasures, its joie de vivre, its Mardi Gras parades that provided bright beads he recycled into gorgeous artworks including covering an entire piano—but after Katrina he left the state. Now he’s back, has just had a well-received showing of colorful collages of iconic blues musicians at Ann Connelly Fine Art, and was tapped to design the official poster for this year’s Baton Rouge Blues Festival.
He’s also going to be in St. Francisville from mid-July through the month of August as the very first Artist in Residence sponsored by the local umbrella arts organization called Arts For All, which is providing lodging for him in downtown’s quirky 3-V Tourist Courts, the little throw-back-thirties automobile-age cabins with garage attached that were used in one of the Bonnie and Clyde documentaries. Arts For All is also providing work space in its studio.

In return, Lawson will give a public talk at Birdman Coffee on August 2 at 6 p.m. and will teach a collage workshop (pre-registration required) on August 7. In addition, limited opportunities to observe the artist’s creative processes may be available, as he demonstrates his techniques and also explains a bit about his selection of meaningful images---prolific butterflies, for example, representing rebirth, or the cycles of the moon as something always changing but always still there, image of the artist processing the passage of time and loss and recovery. Information on these programs is available at westfelicianaarts.com or birdmancoffee@bellsouth.net, and donations to help with expenses would be welcomed. John Lawson will also be honored as the featured artist at fall’s popular Yellow Leaf Arts Festival in Parker Park, St. Francisville, a great gathering of original artists and crafters, musicians and food vendors.

Birdman Coffee & Books owner and Arts For All guiding light Lynn Wood, an artist and musician herself, along with local musician Nancy Roppolo, attended the April opening of Lawson’s blues series of artworks at Ann Connelly gallery and, says Lynn, “we were blown away, intrigued by his enthusiasm about art, the blues, about working up here in our area, and his ideas about collaboration with us; he went on and on. He is ‘the real deal,’ if you know what I mean, a very creative thinker, a true artist who talks and breathes creativity. He talks about learning about the world and understanding the world and communicating that understanding through his art.”

Birdman has an exhibit of Lawson’s collages hanging, and Lynn says during his residency he will “soak up the atmosphere in our area and then create work!” The St. Francisville area, with its verdant woodlands and picturesque pastoral reaches, has been inspiring artists of every stripe since Audubon painted a number of his famous Birds of America series in the area, and now it is home to a wide assortment of writers, artists, designers, musicians, crafters and other creative souls.

And now it may also inspire one resilient English-born and nationally appreciated fine artist, whose intricately layered collage images create mixed-media representations of his journey through life and his search for its meaning.

Located on US Highway 61 on the Mississippi River between Baton Rouge, LA, and Natchez, MS, the St. Francisville area is a year-round tourist destination. A number of splendidly restored plantation homes are open for tours: The Cottage Plantation (weekends), Myrtles Plantation, Greenwood Plantation, plus Catalpa Plantation by reservation; Afton Villa Gardens is open in season and is spectacular. Particularly important to tourism in the area are its two significant state historic sites, Rosedown Plantation (a National Historic Landmark) and Oakley Plantation in the Audubon state site, which offer periodic living-history demonstrations to allow visitors to experience 19th-century plantation life and customs.

The nearby Tunica Hills region offers unmatched recreational activities in its unspoiled wilderness areas—hiking, biking and especially bicycle racing due to the challenging terrain, birding, photography, hunting. There are unique art galleries plus specialty and antiques shops, many in restored historic structures, and some nice restaurants throughout the St. Francisville area serving everything from ethnic cuisine to seafood and classic Louisiana favorites. For overnight stays, the area offers some of the state’s most popular Bed & Breakfasts, including historic plantations, lakeside clubhouses and beautiful townhouses right in the middle of St. Francisville’s extensive National Register-listed historic district, and there are also modern motel accommodations for large bus groups.

For visitor information, call West Feliciana Tourist Commission and West Feliciana Historical Society at 225-6330 or 225-635-4224, or St. Francisville Main Street at 225-635-3873; online www.stfrancisvillefestivals.com, www.stfrancisville.net or www.stfrancisville.us (the events calendar gives dates and information on special activities).

Happenings in April 2016

WE LOVE IT HERE !!!   HAPPENING IN THE HILLS



MUSIC AT THE MAG

Friday-April 22^nd-Mojo Mudd
Saturday-April 2^3rd- Carlo Ditto Band
Friday-April 29^th- The Delta Drifters
Saturday-April 30^th – Nouveau String Band



FARMER’S MARKET EVERY THURSDAY ON WILCOX ST.

   9am-1pm    Support our local farmers.


ROSEDOWN PLANTATION STATE HISTORIC SITE


Garden Tour Fridays will take place the first Friday of each month at 10am, starting on February 5^th.  A guided walking tour of the historic Rosedown Gardens and Outbuildings. 



Photo Day – April 21, 2016 from 5pm-8pm.  This is a paid evening program.  The park will stay open until dark on designated days.  Each person will pay $15 to take pictures throughout the grounds, but not in the buildings, from 5pm until dark around 8pm.  Photographers will make reservations in advance to take the desirable sunset pictures of Rosedown.  Payment will be required before 5pm and a parking pass will be issued.  The scheduled days are the first and third Thursdays in April and May.



THE BLUFFS ON THOMPSON CREEK GOLF AND CONFERENCE RESORT

Brunch on the Greens:  Sunday Buffet Brunch every Sunday from 10:30am-1:30pm   Call for reservations 225 634-6419.

 Live Music every Saturday from 6pm-9pm.

April 23^rd - Styk

MOTHER’S DAY BRUNCH-SUNDAY, May 8, 11 am and 1 pm seating

Treat mom to our delicious brunch buffet. Assorted salads, Refish Acadiana, Caribbean Flank Steak, and desserts with so much more. Call to reserve your spot 225-634-6419.

ST. FRANCISVILLE SPRING GARDEN STROLL  

The 2016 Spring Garden Stroll will be held on Saturday, April 30, 2016 featuring four private gardens and the educational school gardens in West Feliciana Parish. 

Tickets may be purchased the day of the event at St. Francisville Town Hall or purchased in advance by contacting the LSU Ag Center Office in St. Francisville at 225-635-3614. NO CREDIT CARDS.

NATIONAL TOURISM WEEK  

Please join us on Monday May 2^nd at 3:30pm at Oakley Plantation to celebrate National Tourism Week with Lt Governor Billy Nungesser.  We will also be announcing our local Tourism Award Winners.


ST. FRANCISVILLE SYMPHONY ASSOCIATION  

On Friday May 6^th at Jackson Hall the Baton Rouge Symphony will present the last concert of this season

“A Piano Trio” along with the Wine and Cheese Reception & Silent Auction beginning at 6pm.

Tickets are $25.00 and available for purchase at The Bank of St. Francisville.

WE LOVE IT HERE !!! WHAT’S COMING UP IN ST. FRANCISVILLE

WE LOVE IT HERE !!!   WHAT’S COMING UP IN ST. FRANCISVILLE



MUSIC AT THE MAG
Friday- February 5^th – Dale Sellars & Backroads
Saturday- February 6^th – Drew Landry
Friday February 12^th – Smokehouse
Saturday-February 13^th – Valentine Givewawy at 7pm Come early get your lucky seat
Friday-February 19^th – Trainwreck
Saturday-February 20^th – Ted Hefko and the Thousandaries
Friday- February 26^th – The Delta Drifters
Saturday- February 27^th – Late Evening

FARMER’S MARKET EVERY THURSDAY ON WILCOX ST.

   9am-1pm    Support our local farmers



ROSEDOWN PLANTATION STATE HISTORIC SITE

Black History Month Display for the whole month of February, Rosedown will mount a display in the gift shop conference room honoring the lives and accomplishments of African-Americans.  The exhibit will feature pictures, brief biographies and music of African-Americans who had an influence on history. 

Garden Tour Fridays will take place the first Friday of each month at 10am, starting on February 5^th.  A guided walking tour of the historic Rosedown Gardens and Outbuildings. 


THE BLUFFS ON THOMPSON CREEK GOLF AND CONFERENCE RESORT

Breakfast on the Greens:  Sunday Buffet Brunch coming on January 24^th from 10:30am-1:30pm   Reservations Recommended 225 634-6419.


MARDI GRAS IN ST. FRANCISVILLE

Arts for All presents ‘LIFE IS A MASQUERADE” one day only Sunday February 7^th from 12-4pm.  The 4^th annual Mardi Gras Pop Up Art Show and Walking Parade.  Dress in costume for a walking parade from the Arts for All Studio on Commerce Street (5877) to walk to the Birdman Coffee for a Potluck Dinner and Music after the show.      Artists wishing to participate in the show need to bring original artwork related to the theme of a masquerade to the Arts for All Studio on Sunday February 7^th. 

The Bluffs on Thompson Creek Golf and Conference Resort invites you to a Mardi Gras Family Buffet

On Tuesday February 9^th from 5pm-8pm.  Menu to include:  all the warm comforting Louisiana dishes, Jambalaya, Red Beans and Rice, Etoufee and King Cake.  Price is $11.00 for Adults and $7.00 for children.



ST FRANCISVILLE SYMPHONY ASSOCIATION

Friday – February 12^th at 7pm at Grace Church the St. Francisville Symphony Association along with the BRSO Willis Delony: Intersections.  Mr. Delony offers a fascinating glimpse into the connections between the worlds of Classical and Jazz in his original production.  Tickets can be purchased at The Bank of St. Francisville.

VALENTINE’S SPECIALS

Birdman Coffee is hosting nationally recognized musician Pierce Pettit at 7pm on Sunday February 14^th.

Bohemianville Antiques has gorgeous jewelry for that special Valentine.

Valentine’s Dinner at The Bluffs on Saturday February 13^th from 5:30pm-9pm   $89.95 per couple

A special five course dinner Choice of Appetizer, Soup, Choice of Salad, Choice of Entrée, 6oz Filet, Chicken Oscar or Blackened Catch of the Day and Choice of Dessert, will be served with a Complimentary Glass of Champagne.  Reservations are Required   225 634-6419

PARKS AND REC

A Pickleball Clinic will be held Saturday, February 20th, 9 am until 11:30 am, at the West Feliciana Sports Park. The clinic is FREE, with instruction from experienced players from Baton Rouge and Zachary, and all must pre-register by Thursday, February 18th. This clinic is for 3 different playing levels - Beginner; Advanced Beginner; Intermediate. All equipment needed will be provided. Persons should wear athletic shoes and comfortable clothing to allow movement. Interested persons may pre-register by emailing Pat Heurtin at patheurtin@aol.com or by calling the Park Office at 225-784-8447. When registering, all need to indicate their playing level and the best contact number in case they need to be reached to indicate a change in venue due to bad weather.


Bonfire Bash (for adults) with music by Vida Duet

WF Community Park                      Saturday, February 20th

6-10 PM

Hotdogs + s’mores provided

BYOB- beer and wine only

Suggestion- bring chairs as well

A CELEBRATION OF LITERATURE & ART 

Writers & Readers Symposium on Saturday February 20^th from 8:30am-3pm.     

The event will be held at Hemingbough.  The Authors presenting will be Margaret McMullan, Michael Rubin, Mona Lisa Saloy, Philip Gould and Robert Dafford. 

Writers Workshop on Sunday February 21^st from 9am-4pm

The event will be held at the West Feliciana Parish Library.  Margaret McMullan will help experienced and aspiring writers hone their writing skills.  For more information, www.literatureandart.org





We now have an instragram account, please share your pictures with us.

Great Things in St. Francisville, La.

St. Francisville, La., "Happenings Newsletter" -  Entertainment, Festivals and Events.

HAPPENINGS: The newsletter to discover what's happening in St. Francisville and West Feliciana Parish.  Periodically articles from the "Friends of St. Francisville" blog will be added to this newsletter.  Following these article introductions you will find the most updated news on upcoming local events.  A good source to find updates on festivals can also be found on the St. Francisville Festival website. What’s coming up in St. Francisville Music at The Mag  in May   Friday May 15 – Gary Bello Saturday-May 16 – Sugar and Honey Friday May 22 – Jim Voohries Saturday-May 23 – Eric di Santo Band Friday May 29 – The Delta Drifters   FARMER’S MARKET EVERY THURSDAY AND SATURDAY ON WILCOX ST.    9am-1pm    Support our local farmers ROSEDOWN PLANTATION STATE HISTORIC SITE OFFERS IN MAY   Photo Day at Rosedown SHS May 7 and 21st  5pm-8pm.  This is a paid evening program.  The park will stay open until dark on designated days.  Each person will pay $15.00 to take pictures throughout the grounds, but not in buildings, from 5pm until dark around 8pm.  Photographers will make reservations in advance to take the desirable sunset pictures of Rosedown.  Payment will be required before 5pm and a parking pass will be issued.  For more information call 635-3110. Behind the Scenes Tour on Saturday May 16th starting at 10:30am.  A guided tour of rarely seen aspects of Rosedown, focusing on the working side of a high visitation historic site.  Visitors will get to view the attic of the main house and the production greenhouse, learning the “nuts and bolts” of what makes Rosedown tick.    WEST FELICIANA PARISH LIBRARY  Come test your skills to see if you would survive in the HUNGER GAMES – Saturday May 23 from 4pm-6pm Make a reservation at 635-3364   FELICIANA ROAD RACE – SUNDAY MAY 24TH This is an annual bike ride that starts and finishes at 13918 Highway 421.  Looks like the first riders will start at 9am. For information online USACycling   WALKER PERCY WEEKEND – JUNE 5-7, 2015 A LITERARY FESTIVAL CELEBRATING THE ACCLAIMED NOVELIST'S LIFE AND WORK. For a complete schedule of events please visit www.walkerpercyweekend.org   THE DAY THE WAR STOPPED – JUNE 12-14, 2015 An Annual Reenactment of a Unique Time in History For a complete schedule of events please visit www.daythewarstopped.net   Congratulations to all of our West Fel Graduates and their families.     Your Subscription: {tag:subscriptions} {tag:unsubscribe}

April Showers brings Great Events

What’s coming up in St. Francisville

Music at The Mag  in April
Friday April 17^th – United we Jam
Saturday April 18^th – Cedric Watson
Friday April 24^th – The Delta Drifters


FARMER’S MARKET EVERY THURSDAY AND SATURDAY ON WILCOX ST.
   9am-1pm    Support our local farmers

LIBRARY FULL OF EVENTS IN APRIL

POETRY & SHORT STORY CONTEST – submit your poetry and short stories on any topic.  We will have 4 categories 5/6 grade, 7/8 grade, 9/10 grade, 11/12 grade.  Get rules and entry procedures at http://tinyurl.com/libcontest  Entries due on Friday April 17^th, Winners announced on Thursday April 30^th.

DIY Thursday April 23^rd   MASON JAR BANKS  from 4pm-6pm

Audubon Nature School Day
April 17th, 9 AM until 1 PM
Preregistered students are invited out to meet the natives at Audubon State Historic Site. Young explorers are taken through a variety of stations where they will meet the native plants and animals of Louisiana and also take part in various demonstration areas. There is no cost to preregistered school groups.

ANGOLA PRISON RODEO AND CRAFTS SHOW
The Wildest Show in the South will be held two days on Saturday April 18^th and Sunday April 19^th.
For ticket information www.angolarodeo.com

ST. FRANCISVILLE / JACKSON SPRING GARDEN STROLL
St. Francisville and Jackson Garden Stroll

Feliciana Master Gardeners of LSU Ag Center presents the St. Francisville and Jackson Spring Garden Stroll on Saturday, May 2, 2015 from 1 pm until 5 pm. The tour provides a wonderful opportunity to visit 5 beautiful and unique private gardens in Louisiana’s East and West Feliciana Parishes.  Master Gardeners will be on hand at all the sites to provide information. Tickets are $20 per person and may be purchased beginning at noon the day of the tour at the St. Francisville Town Hall (11936 Ferdinand Street) and in Jackson at Centenary Inn, 1740 Charter Street (LA Highway-10). Tickets can be purchased in advance from the West Feliciana Ag Center office, 5924 Commerce Street, St. Francisville (225-635-3614).

Gardens on tour include an expansive property near Jackson that was featured in Louisiana Gardener, a landscaped sculpture garden in the hills of West Feliciana parish, and 3 town gardens in the Historic District of St. Francisville.

Proceeds from the event benefit 4H scholarships, school gardens and other local charities.

For more information go to www.stfrancisvillespringstroll.org

ARTS FOR ALL – SATURDAY MAY 2^ND
Art Exhibit in Market Hall on Royal Street in conjunction with the St Francisville Spring Stroll

Audubon State Historic Site Oakley Plantation presents:
150th Anniversary of the Civil War...The War Ends
May 2nd, 10 AM until 4 PM

A commemoration of the 150th Anniversary of the surrender of the Confederate Department of Alabama, Mississippi, and Eastern Louisiana marking the end of the Civil War east of the Mississippi. The program features a Living History encampment of Civil War reenactors portraying soldiers of the Blue and the Grey and a recreation of the surrender of troops in the area of St. Francisville.

March Madness

St. Francisville, La., "Happenings Newsletter" -  Entertainment, Festivals and Events.

HAPPENINGS: The newsletter to discover what's happening in St. Francisville and West Feliciana Parish.  Periodically articles from the "Friends of St. Francisville" blog will be added to this newsletter.  Following these article introductions you will find the most updated news on upcoming local events.  A good source to find updates on festivals can also be found on the St. Francisville Festival website.    What’s coming up in St. Francisville Music at The Mag  in March Friday March 6th – Noggin      Saturday March 7th – Harris Bros. Trio Friday March 13th – Sundanze     Saturday March 14th – Steve Judice &                                                       James Best Friday March 20th – Bradley’s Circus     Saturay March 21st – Ben Bell Friday March 27th – Hard Drivin Lincoln’s   Saturday-March 28th – The Delta Drifters FARMER’S MARKET EVERY THURSDAY AND SATURDAY ON WILCOX ST.    9am-1pm    Support our local farmers FISH FRY --- Fridays during Lent 2015       February 20th - March 27th Serving begins at 6:00 pm     Our Lady of Mt Carmel Church    11485 Ferdinand St Fried or Grilled Catfish, Potato Salad or French Fries, Cole Slaw, Bread, Dessert and Soft Drink $8.50 per plate Dine -in on the Hill or Take out below the bluff on Ferdinand St Proceeds benefit Knights of Columbus #7856's Charities WEST FELICIANA PARISH LIBRARY MARCH EVENTS MOVIE NIGHT – Saturday the 14th 6pm-8:15pm The Hunger Games – MockingJay Part 1 YA CAFÉ BOOK CLUB – Monday the 16th and the 30th   5pm-6pm St. Francisville Symphony Association Sponsors  Come as You Are, Pay what you can concert St. Francisville, LA – The St. Francisville Symphony Association (SFSA) is pleased to announce that it is sponsoring a seasonal spring concert, entitled Musical Montage, on Friday, March 6, 2015 at 7:00pm at Grace Episcopal Church.   Follow the SFSA on facebook at www.facebook.com/StFrancisvilleSymphony. REGISTRATIONS ARE NOW BEING ACCEPTED!! Youth Baseball & Softball Youth Spring Soccer After School Playground Call Lee Hammer 784-8447 for more information. ROUGE ROUBAIX March 14 and 15, 2015 An awesome biking event, Saturday for non competitive riders and Sunday for the competitive rider. For more information  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rouge-Roubaix/133129676743513 ARTS FOR ALL ANNUAL MEETING AND PICNIC Details to follow.  Picnic in Parker Park at 4pm 44TH ANNUAL AUDUBON PILGRIMAGE    MARCH 20, 21 AND 22 Tickets can be purchased at the Museum or online at www.audubonpilgrimage .info Daytime Tours $35.00 9:30am-5:00pm   (Sunday private homes are open 11am-4pm) Good for all three days: Four Private Homes Oakley House, Audubon State Historic Site and Rosedown Plantation, State Historic Site Afton Villa Gardens and 19th Century Churches Recreated Working Rural Homestead Authentic 1820’s Costumes and Costumed Children Dancing Audubon Play Friday Night Entertainment $20.00 6pm-9pm Cemetery Tour (last tour starts at 8:15pm) at Grace Church Robust Hymn Singing United Methodist Church Wine & Cheese Reception (reception starts at 7pm) Bishop Jackson Hall Period Costumes & Vintage Dancers – Bishop Jackson Hall Audubon Play Royal Street by Candlelight Saturday Night Entertainment $50.00 7:00pm – Light Up the Night, Soiree Live Music, Fine Food, Drinks and Dancing All inclusive package $100.00.  Please visit website for details or call 225 635 6330  www.audubonpilgrimage.info   FELICIANA TENNIS CLASSIC  March 27-29, 2015 Benefitting: The West Feliciana Parent/Teacher Organization Host Site: West Feliciana Sports Park in St. Francisville, LA Format: Team Tournament (6-10 people per team). Teams will compete as 3 doubles pairs (one women, one men, one mixed) Divisions: 5.5/6.0, 6.5, 7.5 Cost per player: $65.00  (includes all of the above) Non-playing guest: $15.00  (includes all food and drink for the Saturday Night Social) Entry deadline:    March 1, 2015 or when full – Entries are limited to the first 25 teams. Draws:       March 25, 2015 (Will be sent to team captains) Online Team Registration at http://felicianatennisclassic.eventbrite.com Register by Mail at Feliciana Tennis Classic PO Box 2547 St. Francisville, LA 70775 (Registration will not be accepted without team payment) Tournament email: missy@relocationcenter.com Questions??? Call Missy Higgins at 225-266-5577 Your Subscription: {tag:subscriptions} {tag:unsubscribe}

Happenings Feb. 11, 2015

St. Francisville, La., "Happenings Newsletter" -  Entertainment, Festivals and Events.

HAPPENINGS: The newsletter to discover what's happening in St. Francisville and West Feliciana Parish.  Periodically articles from the "Friends of St. Francisville" blog will be added to this newsletter.  Following these article introductions you will find the most updated news on upcoming local events.  A good source to find updates on festivals can also be found on the St. Francisville Festival website. What’s coming up in St. Francisville Music at The Mag  Friday – February 13th – Dale Sellars & Backroads                                       Friday-February 20th – Smokehouse                                       Friday-February 27th-Delta Drifters   TWEEN & TEENS AT THE LIBRARY – FEBRUARY EVENTS YA CAFÉ BOOK CLUB – Thursday February 19  5pm-6pm MOVIE NIGHT – Saturday February 21  6pm-7:45pm  THE GIVER HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY – CARRIAGE HOUSE RESTAURANT Kaine's Sweet Potato and Andouille Soup and  Carriage House Sensation Salad        With choice of Entrees Chicken Piccata over Angel Hair Pasta served with Citrus Grilled Asparagus          5 oz Filet Mignon and GRILLED 5 oz Lobster Tail with Potato Au Gratin and Citrus Grilled Asparagus  Blacken Mahi Mahi with 3 Jumbo Shrimp served  with Potato Au Gratin and Citrus Grilled Asparagus   With choice of Dessert Our Signature White Chocolate Bread Pudding with Crown Royal White Chocolate Sauce New York Style Cheesecake with Fresh ?  Raspberry topping  or Decadent Chocolate Mousse Free Glass of Champagne with Each Entree's  39.99 Per Person/ $79.98per couple Tax and Gratuity not included Valentine’s Dinner at The Bluffs Restaurant – Saturday February 14th 2 seatings 5:30pm & 7:00pm       Reservations Required   634-6419     $89.98 per couple Appetizer: Two Run Farms Beef Tar Tar or Ceviche of Bay Scallops Soup: Broccoli & Cheddar or French Onion Salad: Grilled Ceasar or Caprese Entrees:  6oz. Filet se with Boursin Cauliflower Puree, Parmesan Chips. Roasted Beets & Rosemary Demi      Or       Pan Seared Salmon set with Cous Cous and Fennel Mediterranean Salad, Gremolata. Parsnip Chips      Or       Oven Roasted Chicken Breast with Roasted Red Peppers Risotto, Asparagus Tip and Pan Jus Dessert: Chocolate Pot au Crème with Mint Whipped Cream or Tres Leche with Chocolate Covered Coffee Beans Complimentary Glass of Champagne. ARTS FOR ALL – “IT TAKE TWO TO TANGO” Art Show – February 15th ARTS FOR ALL invites all to participate in our annual Art challenge, exhibit, walking parade and pot luck event!   There is nothing else like it anywhere!! “It Takes Two to Tango” ART SHOW!    February 15th, 2015 Arts For All Studio on Commerce St. in St. Francisville The challenge this year is to collaborate with another artist, OR ARTISTS:  visual, written word, music, clay, etc.  to create one work.   The exhibit  will take place on the afternoon of Sunday, February 14th, 2015 from noon until 4:00 at which time we will proceed in our annual “crazy fun walking parade”  to BirdMan for a potluck dinner!  Info at artsforall.felicianalocal.com  or call Lynn at 225-721-1296    ALL ARE WELCOME!!   WRITERS & READERS SYMPOSIUM The committee is excited to announce the 2015 featured authors for the Writers and Readers Symposium, award winners all: California mystery writer Abigail Padgett whose most recent book is set in St. Francisville, New Orleans novelist and short story writer Moira Crone, Louisiana Poet Laureate Ava Hayman, and the gifted photographer/writer Richard Sexton whose latest release explores and illustrates with dreamy images the Creole connections of New Orleans with the Latin Caribbean. Moderating this day-long program of individual and panel discussions with audience participation will be Carolyn Thornton; authors mingle with guests during lunch and will have autographed books available for purchase. Ava Hayman will teach a poetry workshop for Bains Elementary students on Friday, February 20, and she joins Abigail Padgett in presenting a writers’ workshop for more mature aspiring and professional authors the following week in a stimulating plantation setting. Other monthly programs leading up to the Writers and Readers Symposium are planned as well, the first being a free community Folk Music Open Mic at Hemingbough Sunday, October 19, from 4 to 6 p.m. (contact dayreaves@bellsouth.net). Dramatic readings and memoir readings will follow in December and January. Tickets for the Writers and Readers Symposium: A Celebration of Literature and Art, will be available beginning in November, and those interested are encouraged to reserve early. For information on the photography exhibit and free monthly community events, contact Darlene Reaves (dayreaves@bellsouth.net); to volunteer, to engage speakers for book clubs and other organizations, and for additional information, contact Dr. Olivia Pass (oliviapass@bellsouth.net). FELICIANAS SPRING SEMINAR SERIES  - HOME GROUNDS Tuesday-February 24th from 6pm-8:30pm   Bedding plants for Landscape Color (Dan Gill)  Nuisance Wildlife (Dr. Don Reed) Thursday-February 26th from 6pm-8:30pm  Mulches & Composting (Miles Brashier)  Drought-Resistant Landscaping (Andre Brock) New Location – the West Feliciana Parish Library on Burnett Rd.  Free Admission, Door Prizes & Refreshments provided.  Andre Brock  abrock@agcenter.lsu.edu  (225)  635-3614  Bobby Bingham  bbingham@agcenter.lsu.edu  WRITERS WORKSHOP – SATURDAY FEBRUARY 28   9AM-4PM  at Butler Greenwood Plantation Louisiana Poet Laureate Ava Leavell Hayman and award-winning novelist Abigail Padgett join forces to help existing and aspiring writers hone their writing skills.  Both writers will lead participants in writing activities and exercises.  Writers are invited to bring samples of their work for critiquing.  This workshop is designed to help participants identify, polish and (for works in prose) ultimately learn how to get their stories published.   Beginners are especially welcome!       Lunch is provided , limited to 20 persons   $125.00.  For additional information contact Dr. Olivia Pass  (oliviapass@bellsouth.net) ARTS FOR ALL HOSTS: February 28-March 1- Encaustic workshop by Kat Fitzpatrick  9:00 – 4:00 both days  $300 for the weekend .  For more information see our website   artsforall.felicianalocal.com ROSEDOWN PLANTATION STATE HISTORIC SITE – FEBRUARY EVENTS Black History Month Display at Rosedown SHS: Month of February, 10 am-4 pm. In celebration of Black History Month, Rosedown will mount a display in the gift shop conference room honoring the lives and accomplishments of African-Americans. The exhibit will feature pictures, brief biographies and music of African-Americans who had an influence on history. For more information call 888.376.1867 toll free or 635.3110 locally. African and Caribbean Influence in Southern Antebellum  Cooking at Rosedown  SHS: February  14, 2015, 11 am -2 pm.  In recognition/celebration  of Black History Month, State Parks Staff will discuss and demonstrate the tremendous influence of African and Caribbean peoples to the cooking heritage of the Antebellum South.  Visitors will receive printed menus and recipes of all dishes prepared during this demonstration, highlighting the specific African and Caribbean influences in each recipe. For more information call 888.376.1867 toll free or 635.311 O locally. Enslaved Life at Rosedown: February 28, 2015, 11 am. An overview of the history of African-American enslavement, specifically in Louisiana, followed by a more detailed look into enslaved life at Rosedown. The layout of the plantation, including outbuildings, home sites, work areas and fields will be discussed. Also discussed will be the duties and accomplishments of the inhabitants of Rosedown, including a walking tour of outbuildings on the grounds. For more information call 888.376.1867 toll free or 635.3110 locally. Fish Fry --- Fridays during Lent 2015           February 20th - March 27th Serving begins at 6:00 pm Our Lady of Mt Carmel Church 11485 Ferdinand St Fried or Grilled Catfish, Potato Salad or French Fries, Cole Slaw, Bread, Dessert and Soft Drink $8.50 per plate Dine -in on the Hill or Take out below the bluff on Ferdinand St Proceeds benefit Knights of Columbus #7856's Charities Your Subscription: {tag:subscriptions} {tag:unsubscribe}

What's coming up in St. Francisville, La. - Feb. 5, 2015

St. Francisville, La., "Happenings Newsletter" -  Entertainment, Festivals and Events.

HAPPENINGS: The newsletter to discover what's happening in St. Francisville and West Feliciana Parish.  Periodically articles from the "Friends of St. Francisville" blog will be added to this newsletter.  Following these article introductions you will find the most updated news on upcoming local events.  A good source to find updates on festivals can also be found on the St. Francisville Festival website. What’s coming up in St. Francisville Music at The Mag  Friday- February 6th – Hard Drivin Lincolns                                       Friday – February 13th – Dale Sellars & Backroads                                       Friday-February 20th – Smokehouse                                       Friday-February 27th-Delta Drifters   TWEEN & TEENS AT THE LIBRARY – FEBRUARY EVENTS YA CAFÉ BOOK CLUB – Thursday February 19  5pm-6pm DIY – CRAYON ART – Thursday February 5   4pm-6pm                  Limited to 10 people, bring your hair dryer GAME NIGHT – Thursday February 12   5pm-6pm MOVIE NIGHT – Saturday February 21  6pm-7:45pm  THE GIVER A CELEBRATION OF LITERATURE & ART’S READERS SERIES- Thursday-February 5th Book Discussion with Moira Crone’s The Ice Garden Readers, join in on the discussion of the exciting novel, The Ice Garden, which will be via Skype with the author Moira Crone.  Moira is a participant in our upcoming Writers & Readers Symposium.  The West Feliciana Parish Library has a list of discussion questions for you to consider as you read the book.  West Feliciana Parish Library JOIN US THIS WEEKEND FOR CHEF JON'S SPECIALS AT THE BLUFFS 2-5 TO 2-7 from 5 to 8pm Appetizers: Asian Marinated Crab Claws Smoked Salmon with  Fried Capers served on Home made Crostini’s and Dill Cream Cheese Salads Roasted Beets with Goat Cheese and  Pine Nuts Mixed Greens with  Almonds with a Basil Vinaigrette  Dressing Soup Roasted Asparagus Entrees Pulled Pork Torchon served with a  Creole Coleslaw Italian Shrimp Pasta served with a Side Salad Desserts New York Cheese Cake with Chambord Blackberries King Cake Bread Pudding HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY – CARRIAGE HOUSE RESTAURANT Kaine's Sweet Potato and Andouille Soup and  Carriage House Sensation Salad               With choice of Entrees Chicken Piccata over Angel Hair Pasta served with Citrus Grilled Asparagus         5 oz Filet Mignon and GRILLED 5 oz Lobster Tail with Potato Au Gratin and Citrus Grilled Asparagus  Blacken Mahi Mahi with 3 Jumbo Shrimp served  with Potato Au Gratin and Citrus Grilled Asparagus   With choice of Dessert Our Signature White Chocolate Bread Pudding with Crown Royal White Chocolate Sauce New York Style Cheesecake with Fresh ?  Raspberry topping  or Decadent Chocolate Mousse Free Glass of Champagne with Each Entree's  39.99 Per Person/ $79.98per couple Tax and Gratuity not included ARTS FOR ALL – “IT TAKE TWO TO TANGO” Art Show – February 15th ARTS FOR ALL invites all to participate in our annual Art challenge, exhibit, walking parade and pot luck event!   There is nothing else like it anywhere!! “It Takes Two to Tango” ART SHOW!    February 15th, 2015 Arts For All Studio on Commerce St. in St. Francisville The challenge this year is to collaborate with another artist, OR ARTISTS:  visual, written word, music, clay, etc.  to create one work.   The exhibit  will take place on the afternoon of Sunday, February 14th, 2015 from noon until 4:00 at which time we will proceed in our annual “crazy fun walking parade”  to BirdMan for a potluck dinner!  Info at artsforall.felicianalocal.com  or call Lynn at 225-721-1296    ALL ARE WELCOME!!  WRITERS & READERS SYMPOSIUM The committee is excited to announce the 2015 featured authors for the Writers and Readers Symposium, award winners all: California mystery writer Abigail Padgett whose most recent book is set in St. Francisville, New Orleans novelist and short story writer Moira Crone, Louisiana Poet Laureate Ava Hayman, and the gifted photographer/writer Richard Sexton whose latest release explores and illustrates with dreamy images the Creole connections of New Orleans with the Latin Caribbean. Moderating this day-long program of individual and panel discussions with audience participation will be Carolyn Thornton; authors mingle with guests during lunch and will have autographed books available for purchase. Ava Hayman will teach a poetry workshop for Bains Elementary students on Friday, February 20, and she joins Abigail Padgett in presenting a writers’ workshop for more mature aspiring and professional authors the following week in a stimulating plantation setting. Other monthly programs leading up to the Writers and Readers Symposium are planned as well, the first being a free community Folk Music Open Mic at Hemingbough Sunday, October 19, from 4 to 6 p.m. (contact dayreaves@bellsouth.net). Dramatic readings and memoir readings will follow in December and January. Tickets for the Writers and Readers Symposium: A Celebration of Literature and Art, will be available beginning in November, and those interested are encouraged to reserve early. For information on the photography exhibit and free monthly community events, contact Darlene Reaves (dayreaves@bellsouth.net); to volunteer, to engage speakers for book clubs and other organizations, and for additional information, contact Dr. Olivia Pass (oliviapass@bellsouth.net). FELICIANAS SPRING SEMINAR SERIES  - HOME GROUNDS Tuesday-February 24th from 6pm-8:30pm   Bedding plants for Landscape Color (Dan Gill)                                                                                       Nuisance Wildlife (Dr. Don Reed) Thursday-February 26th from 6pm-8:30pm  Mulches & Composting (Miles Brashier)                                                                                        Drought-Resistant Landscaping (Andre Brock) New Location – the West Feliciana Parish Library on Burnett Rd.  Free Admission, Door Prizes & Refreshments provided.  Andre Brock  abrock@agcenter.lsu.edu  (225)  635-3614  Booby Bingham  bbingham@agcenter.lsu.edu WRITERS WORKSHOP – SATURDAY FEBRUARY 28   9AM-4PM  at Butler Greenwood Plantation Louisiana Poet Laureate Ava Leavell Hayman and award-winning novelist Abigail Padgett join forces to help existing and aspiring writers hone their writing skills.  Both writers will lead participants in writing activities and exercises.  Writers are invited to bring samples of their work for critiquing.  This workshop is designed to help participants identify, polish and (for works in prose) ultimately learn how to get their stories published.   Beginners are especially welcome!       Lunch is provided , limited to 20 persons   $125.00.  For additional information contact Dr. Olivia Pass (oliviapass@bellsouth.net) ARTS FOR ALL HOSTS: February 28-March 1- Encaustic workshop by Kat Fitzpatrick  9:00 – 4:00 both days  $300 for the weekend .  For more information see our website   artsforall.felicianalocal.com ROSEDOWN PLANTATION STATE HISTORIC SITE – FEBRUARY EVENTS Black History Month Display at Rosed own SHS: Month of February, 10 am-4 pm. In celebration of Black History Month, Rosedown will mount a display in the gift shop conference room honoring the lives and accomplishments of African-Americans. The exhibit will feature pictures, brief biographies and music of African-Americans who had an influence on history. For more information call 888.376.1867 toll free or 635.3110 locally. Garden Tour Fridays at Rosedown SHS: February 6, 2015, 10 am. A guided walking tour of the historic Rosedown Gardens and Outbuildings. Program occurs every first Friday of each month. For more information call 888.376.1867 toll free or 635.3110 locally. African and Caribbean Influence in Southern Antebellum  Cooking at Rosedown  SHS: February  14, 2015, 11 am -2 pm.  In recognition/celebration  of Black History Month, State Parks Staff will discuss and demonstrate the tremendous influence of African and Caribbean peoples to the cooking heritage of the Antebellum South.  Visitors will receive printed menus and recipes of all dishes prepared during this demonstration, highlighting the specific African and Caribbean influences in each recipe. For more information call 888.376.1867 toll free or 635.311 O locally. Enslaved Life at Rosedown: February 28, 2015, 11 am. An overview of the history of African-American enslavement, specifically in Louisiana, followed by a more detailed look into enslaved life at Rosedown. The layout of the plantation, including outbuildings, home sites, work areas and fields will be discussed. Also discussed will be the duties and accomplishments of the inhabitants of Rosedown, including a walking tour of outbuildings on the grounds. For more information call 888.376.1867 toll free or 635.3110 locally. Your Subscription: {tag:subscriptions} {tag:unsubscribe}