Dunice Theriot promo picture lists it: “Playing every Saturday night at Scrantz’s, Grand Anse” Photo courtesy of T- Bert and A.J. LeBlanc ...
Comus Club
From http://www.canerivernha.org/historic-natchitoches: “Blanchard Building – Also known as the LaCoste Building, this building was constructed in 1850. The second floor was a dance hall called the Comus Club. The building is one of two in Natchitoches that retains its original carriage drive from the street into the rear courtyard.” Washington Street, Natchitoches ...
De Pope Tavern and Boat Launch
From http://www.louisianafolklife.org/LT/Articles_Essays/islenos.html#tab14 : Written by Sara-Ann Harris “The Saturday night dance tradition including décima singing, Spanish/Isleño dinner, and speaking in Spanish fell away in the late 1940s. It was not revived. However, after Katrina, Edween Nunez, a man who grew up on Saturday night dances, reconstituted a variation on the custom. After the storm, Edween relocated from lower St. Bernard to higher ground, like many Isleños. In the town of Violet at De Pope Tavern and Boat Launch, at 100 years of age Edween kicked off a Saturday night dance. “Oh yea. I didn’t dance all the time,” said Edween, meaning it had been many years since the dance hall days. “You see I hadn’t been dancing much lately, but here [De Pope’s Tavern] I dance every week end.” Just as everyone did at the turn of the 20th century dance halls, Edween’s favorites were the waltz and the fox trot. Here’s Johnny, the band at De Pope’s, picked the waltz up and began playing it on Saturday nights. Edween said, “Now everybody likes it! Yea.” He shook his head affirmatively. Edween passed away a year and a half later, after his 102nd birthday.” ...
Coconut Island Barroom
Dayna Bowker Lee: “There were a couple of halls in the Isleno community in St. Bernard Parish. One was the Coconut Island Barroom, destroyed by Katrina but replicated now on the Isleno cultural park property.” From http://www.losislenos.org/museum.html : “The Society moved the Coconut Island Barroom, a 1920 cypress board and batten structure, and the Estopinal House and kitchen, dated circa 1800 to the museum grounds as part of a plan for a master complex. The Coconut Island Barroom was one of the last board and batten commercial structures remaining in St. Bernard Parish. In the past, barrooms like the Coconut Island were centers of commerce and community gathering places.” From http://www.louisianafolklife.org/LT/Articles_Essays/islenos.html#tab14 written by Sara Ann Harris: “At the turn of the 20th century good fortune visited the Isleños. When the trend to wear fur escalated among Americans, Mom and Pop Traders profited tremendously… Most important to their cultural lives, they built dance halls in each village. The halls cultivated décima singing, dancing, traditional cooking, and speaking Spanish. Dance halls also strengthened their survival skills: strong family ties and community reciprocity. The Isleño experience of their identity was heightened during the Dance Hall Era. Every Saturday night, parents, children, teenagers, grandparents, infants – everyone – went to the dance. Dance contests were open to all ages and proud winners showed off their prizes. New Orleans bands played at the dance halls until midnight, then the community sat down for a meal… After dinner the singing began. The décimeros might go after anyone: an unfaithful aunt or a neighbor who carelessly busted his boat motor. No one knew who the décimero would rib. Everybody took great delight in the décimas. And so it would go, week to week, from Isleño town to Isleño town. To negotiate life in the outside world, the Isleños learned French in the 19th century and then English. However, on Saturday nights at the dance halls, everyone spoke Spanish, sang in Spanish, and told jokes in Spanish. Their language was a source of pride. Outside of the dance halls, life repeated a familiar pattern: hardship at the hand of natural forces and the struggle to recover. The Mississippi River Flood churned into south Louisiana in 1927 and the Isleños were faced with major destruction of the landscape, loss of life, and property. The damage to these communities was intensified by the diversion of flood waters into lower St. Bernard Parish, a tactical move to preserve the city of New Orleans. It took years for the Isleños to recover after the Great Flood. Some families moved to northern St. Bernard Parish and took day jobs. Beginning in the 1930s, some signed on for more reliable employment in the new oil and gas sector. About the same time, roads and public education introduced many new people to lower St. Bernard — and many more Isleños to the outside world. Those who returned after the flood began hunting, trapping, fishing and shrimping again. They also rebuilt the dance halls, where cultural traditions thrived through the 1940s. Today, Isleños tell stories about dance halls in the 1950’s, but by then, they explain, Saturday nights were not necessarily family events or exclusively for Spanish-speakers. Nor did they feature décima singing or midnight Spanish/Louisiana dinners. The Isleño identity was fading.” ...
Jungle Bar
Dayna Bowker Lee: “If you’re driving to Natchitoches, there’s (an) old hall still standing on Hwy. 1 not too far south of Cloutierville on the east side of the road. It’s a huge red barn structure. I’m pretty sure I have a photo of it, and I think it was called the Jungle Bar.” ...
Roque’s Grocery
Dayna Bowker Lee: “Roque’s Grocery, which is a neighborhood grocery, dance hall, and live music venue, is still operational as far as I know – it’s at 235 Carver Avenue in Natchitoches.” ...
White Elephant
Dayna Bowker Lee: “There were a few halls in Cloutierville. One was the White Elephant near the intersection of Hwy 1 and 495 on the west side of Hwy. 1…” ...
Kirkland’s Hall
Dayna Bowker Lee: “Across the river (from the area of the Blue Moon) on Hwy. 119 was Kirkland’s Hall, aka, the Friendly Escape. It stood until the 1990s when it collapsed – it was not too far south from Frenchie’s…” ...
Blue Moon
Dayna Bowker Lee: “Just down from Wood’s (Hall) on the same side of the river, Hwy. 484, was the Blue Moon on the Roque Brother’s property, across from the store.” ...
Wood’s Hall- The Friendly Place
Dayna Bowker Lee: “On Hwy. 484- Also known as “Friendly Place”” From http://winhttp.nsula.edu/regionalfolklife/crcc/WoodsHall.html : “Although it is no longer in operation, Wood’s Hall was the most successful Creole juke joint on the river. At various times, there were at least ten ‘halls’ in operation along Cane River. Before Wood’s Hall closed in the 1980s, it was the gathering place for Cane River Creoles. The Hall was open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights. Admission was free except on Sundays, when the weekly dance was held. Two Creole storytellers talked recently about their memories of Wood’s Hall. ‘They had quite a few people when Wood built that hall and when they saw the business that he had, there were quite a few people along here to build halls, but they never made it. . . . No one ever did draw business away from Wood’s.’ ‘It cost $1 to get in when there was a band – Yuke and Dumah [LaCour] and them.’ ‘But you had your dollar’s worth of fun… You’d wish Monday would never come. It was funny, but they never had a dance on Saturday where you didn’t have to do anything on Sunday, but they had them on Sunday night and you’d be sicker than three dogs the next day.’ ‘You’d be working in the hot sun the next day with a wine hangover. And Daddy would say, “You had your fun last night, now have your fun today.” About 8 that morning you’d say, “I ain’t never going to take another drink.” ‘Yeah, but you couldn’t wait until next weekend.'” ...