Included in a 2006 Louisiana Cajun dance hall list compiled by WYNK Cajun DJ “Tee Mick” Abed, sent to me in personal correspondence from David Marcantel ...
Dancehalls in St. Martin Parish
Rebop
(Behind Casino) ...
Poche Bridge Country Club
No known information ...
True Friends Hall
Bernard Pearce: “They still have a lot of Zydeco dances there- it’s over 100 years old!” Mention in newspaper article 1909: http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn88064454/1909-09-04/ed-1/seq-3/ ...
Tuxedo Club
Was previously half of Dauphine’s dancehall- reopened in 1940 on the east side of the bayou by Rene Dauphine’s son- Morris. Morris was a member of Oscar Celestine’s Tuxedo Band in New Orleans and had recently recturned home to Parks. Aubrey Pearce- “it recently burned down. It was the largest dancehall in town. I went there with my father a few times when I was a child. The waiters wore gloves and there were private booths- seperated from the room by curtains. My parents attended a ball there for the eldrely put on by a local school teacher. The women wore gowns and the men suits. The Tennessee Waltz was the theme.. It was the late 1940s or early 1950s.” ...
Joe Wiltz’s bar
Aubrey Pearce- “It was across from Joe’s house. I went there with my father. He’d sit me on the bar and we’d listen to the jukebox. There was a small dancefloor.” ...
PB Dee’s Classic Club Valentine
Resweber Highway and Promise Land Drive. Aubrey Pearce: “It’s still there- I think the owner’s name is Wilbert. The family originally had a grocery store and then expanded it to a bar.” Included in Emily Ardoin’s 2014 thesis “Fais do-do to ‘Hippy Ti-Yo’: Dance Halls of South Louisiana”: “PB Dee’s is located in the Creole community center of Parks/Promiseland. The club was opened in 1955 and remains open. The building is of frame construction, has a front gabled and metal roof, no parapet, and has a concrete pier foundation. The dance floor is constructed of wood strips and the ceiling is composed of plywood panels and acoustic tile. The bar and dance floor are located in the same room. The building is in good shape. Interior has been altered with continuous use. Bars have been added; original bar removed. Last remaining dance hall of several in the Promise Land community.” ...
Valentine’s
Aubrey Pearce: once was PB Dee’s- Wilbert owns it. The family had a grocery and bar. ...
August Charles’ Dancehall
1890s- Hypolite Charles in Maguire, p. 195: “It was right across the street, where you see the church there now. It was a dance hall, and they used to give dance in there now and then. My father (August Charles) was the head. He always had amusement here. Jazz ...
Club Valentine
Was previously PB Dee’s- Aubrey Pearce: Wilbert owns it. His family had a grocery store and expanded to a bar. Classic Valentine Club in Promised Land ...