Visit the second-oldest school in the United States west of the Mississippi River. Set on 225 picturesque acres, the Academy of the Sacred Heart has provided quality Catholic education to girls for two centuries. Founded in 1821, under the direction of Saint Philippine Duchesne, the Academy has remained in continuous operation through fire, epidemic, and war. Unearth these stories from the past while visiting the Academy’s museum (Le Petit Musée) and cemetery. Also, discover the institution’s history as a “colored school” for former enslaved persons, dedicated to transitioning students to freedom and self-sufficiency. Beyond the beautiful formal gardens and alley of oaks lies a fascinating history waiting to be told.

This 1,500 lb. steel statue displays Amédé Ardoin, legendary musician who laid the foundation for zydeco and Cajun music as we know it today, standing atop his most prized possession, his accordion. In his right hand, he holds out a bronze lemon that references Ardoin’s practice of carrying the sour fruit in his pocket to soothe his singing voice. The statue was carved by Russell Whiting, a self-taught, award-winning artist in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana. 

After the Yellow Fever epidemic of the 1850s, additional space was needed for burials in the town of Washington. The land for the cemetery was donated by Judge John Moore and was part of his Oakland Plantation, currently known as Magnolia Ridge. In 1878, additional land for the cemetery was purchased by the Morning Star Society of Washington from the Oakland Plantation owner, Willis Prescott.

This center offers the public an opportunity to relive traditions of the African-American community with folklorist, Rebecca Henry. Henry is a native to St. Landry Parish and offers educational programs and events that focus on Creole heritage. Learn about the use of herbs and folk medicine, everyday tools, home-life, and folk art. In the gift shop, find handsewn quilts, homemade soaps and potpourri, preserves, handcrafted dolls, and artwork.

The Michel Prudhomme Home is believed to be the oldest structure in St. Landry Parish. It is a French Colonial house built in the late 1700s by Michel Prudhomme. Prudhomme was an important public figure in the area and even donated the land to build St. Landry Catholic Church, one of the parish’s oldest Catholic churches. It was used as the Union headquarters when Opelousas was occupied.

Today, the church boasts one of the largest Catholic congregations of African Americans in the US. Visitors are often struck with admiration at the sight of the church’s collection of religious art depicting African Americans. Another special treat is the Holy Ghost Catholic Church Gospel Choir. The gospel choirs sing every Sunday during the 11am Mass.

Founded in 1837, St. Charles College in Grand Coteau, Louisiana is the site of the first Jesuit College in the South. Today, it functions as a Jesuit seminary and spirituality center. The massive brick structure was built in 1909 to replace the original, which was destroyed by fire. The extensive grounds include the dairy barn, another Grand Coteau landmark, which was used when the Jesuit College was a fully sustainable complex.

The Louisiana Memorial United Methodist Church is the oldest Methodist church congregation west of the Mississippi River. Missionary Elisha W. Bowman established the church in Opelousas in 1806. The present church, constructed in 1955, sits on the site where two earlier churches existed. Property for the church was purchased in 1857 from the Fonda Family. Today, you can visit the church to learn more about its architecture, design, and long history as a congregation.

This museum is dedicated to collecting and preserving those items that tell the history of the orphan train riders. The term “orphan train” or “orphan train riders” refers to the Orphan Train Movement, a welfare program that was in place between 1853 and 1930. During this time, over 200,000 orphaned children were transported to foster homes typically in rural areas in the Midwest.

Throughout the 1700s, this cemetery was adjacent to the Washington Catholic Church and used as a Catholic burial ground. After the church was moved in 1798, the cemetery was used by all creeds and races in the immediate vicinity. During the yellow fever epidemics of the 1850s, one-third of the town’s population was lost. The large number of deaths from this time filled the cemetery and necessitated mass graves, which are still unmarked to this day. These mass graves give the Old Church Landing Cemetery its other popular name, the Yellow Fever Cemetery.

Since 1938, Our Lady of the Oaks Retreat House has helped form the spirituality of many individuals and is a point of interest that can only be found here. Through offering one of a kind religious retreats for men, women, and couples, this Spanish mission-style facility offers an experience unlike any other in the state. Other amenities of the Retreat House include a library, a newly renovated chapel, private baths, and serene, secluded landscaped grounds.

This magnificent, predominately wooden structure was designed by New Orleans architect, James Freret. Following the approval of the plans by Pope Pius IX, the first cornerstone of the Church of St. Charles Borromeo was blessed and placed on March 19, 1879. The rear belfry was a significant addition to the church in 1886. Its second empire style with a mansard roof is rare and possibly unique among churches in the United States. It houses a 3,104-pound bell, still rung today. The church has a superb collection of religious art, paintings, and statues.

The Shrine of Saint John Berchmans sits on the site of the 1866 miraculous cure of a Religious of the Sacred Heart. As a novice, Mary Wilson was sent to Grand Coteau in the hopes that a milder climate would improve her poor health. However, her health continued to deteriorate, and she was confined to the infirmary the month after her arrival. Hopeful, yet anticipating Mary’s death any day, the religious offered a novena to Blessed John Berchmans. Mary’s testimony describes an apparition of John Berchmans followed by immediate relief from her pain and her subsequent recovery. The Catholic Church investigated this cure, and it was used in the canonization process of Saint John Berchmans in 1888. The infirmary, where this miracle occurred, is now the Shrine of Saint John Berchmans, a peaceful place of devotion and pilgrimage.

Visit the second oldest church parish in the Lafayette Catholic Diocese. The earliest documented ritual performed was a baptism on May 16, 1756. However, the parish church was officially founded in 1770 as The Parish Church of the Immaculate Conception of the Post of Opelousas by French Capuchin friars. Another reason to visit is the captivating momument of Lieutenant Father Joseph Verbis Lafleur fighting to save the lives of American POWs during WWII.

This bronze statue was made in the likeness of St. Landry, our parish’s namesake. He was known as “St. Landerieus” and “St. Landry the Confessor” and was consecrated bishop of Paris in 650. During the famine of 650-651, he sold all of his personal possessions, as well as some of the furniture and sacred vessels for the church, to feed the poor. In 651, Saint Landry founded a hospital dedicated to St. Christopher near the Cathedral of Notre Dame.