Yearly Archives: 2023

Sand Marmillion, Director and Curator of Laura Plantation, joins us to share the stories of two very significant enslaved women who lived and worked at Laura Plantation. Clarisse Peterson, an American slave who arrived on the plantation in adulthood and was in charge of tending to the sick and injured in the plantation hospital, and Clarisse Wilson, a Creole, born into slavery at Laura Plantation, who was involved in the founding of the Baptist Church, took in orphans, and acted as a mother figure in the community. We also touch upon the lives of their husbands, one of whom they shared (not simultaneously)! We compare and contrast their lives, note the changes that took place after the Civil War, and learn about one of their descendants, Freddie Keppard, a famous New Orleans jazz pioneer.

#lauraplantation #womenshistory #womenshistorymonth #jazzhistory #jazz

In this episode we discuss the educational opportunities available to Creole women--both free and enslaved--and the way they evolved over time. These include convents, governesses, private schools, and public schools. Religion and language were key elements in the instruction of Creole women in the colonial and antebellum eras, but after the Civil War this would change. Formerly enslaved children and adults learned to read and write at schools established by the Freedmen's Bureau after the Civil War. With the end of Reconstruction, many of those educational opportunities came to an end. Not until 1952 did Black children growing up on Laura Plantation have access to a high school.

Laura Plantation was owned and operated by women at various times spanning four generations. Nanette Duparc took over after her husband’s death and established the business. Her daughter Elisabeth Locoul inherited the plantation during the Civil War and ran it until she donated the property to her children. After Emile Locoul’s death, his wife Desirée and their daughter Laura were instrumental in making decisions about the management of the plantation. How was this possible?

Louisiana’s legal system enabled Creole women to maintain a certain amount of autonomy after marriage. This episode explores the differences between Louisiana's legal system, based on civil law, and that present in the rest of the nation, based on common law, and the impact this had upon women.

Joseph and Katy discuss Women's History Month topics, including enslaved women, Nanette's role in the early days of Laura Plantation, Louisiana exceptionalism in women's property laws, and social mores of different eras. They also touch upon International French Language Month and the significance of French not only to Louisiana's cultural heritage but also in the process of studying and researching all aspects of Louisiana history.

Harry Minor was one of two million enslaved individuals sold from the Upper South to the Lower South through the interstate slave trade. He was forcibly brought to Laura Plantation and made to assimilate into the Creole community. Hear his story, along with his own words, in this episode.