Acadia Parish Louisiana Archives History.... .Lous And Etienne Daigle Help Build New Acadia After Flight From Novia Scotia; Family Prominent In Parish Life January 1, 1949 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.org/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.org/la/lafiles.htm ************************************************ ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: James Ojerholm James@ojerholm.com April 24, 2006, 6:07 pm Crowley Daily Signal Golden Anniversay Edition 1949 January 1, 1949 Taken from Golden Anniversary Edition of the Crowley Daily Signal Pub. 1949, page 91. Louis And Etienne Daigle Help Build New Acadia After Flight From Nova Scotia; Family Prominent In Parish Life _____________________________________________________________ When officers of the English forces were arresting all in the Province of Nova Scotia in Canada who would not swear eternal allegiance to England and the Church of England, among those stalwarts who fled rather than deny their heritage and their faith were two young men, Louis and Etienne Daigle, the latter a Chevalier de la France, or Knight of the Crown. Little did they dream---for this was about 100 years ago--that their leaving all that was near and dear to them would eventually mean tremendous good for a faraway land to which they finally wandered. They and their line of descendants were to help build a thriving; aggressive new Acadia from a barren plain inhabited only by remnants of Indian tribes. Those two boys left Canada on snow shoes in the dead of winter, the snow shoes not only necessary but a foil which aided the young Daigles in eluding the sniffing English bloodhounds set on their trail. They meandered at long last into the Attakapas country and took temporary shelter at an outpost built by the few white men who hovered together amid the then more numerous red skins. Their travels had been by water and through the almost impenetrable woods, the travail of their journey lost in unwritten history. Finally Etienne settled near Opelousas and St. Martinsville (as they are known today), Louis making his home in Houma. Both men married Indians. As Edward E. Daigle, their many-times over-great-great grandson tells, “It was marry an Indian then, I guess, or not marry at all, for there were no other women living in this area then.” Edward Everett Daigle, member of a large family each of whom is outstandingly prominent in southwest Louisiana, was born May 22, 1873, in Church Point. He was the son of Joseph Ernest Daigle and Maria Breaux Daigle. In his own words, here are some of the memories of his earlier years: “There were no public schools when I was growing up. At that time only the very wealthy people sent their kids to college. First school built of any kind around here was a little one-room building put up by Homer Barousse and my father and there it was that school was conducted, first for one month a year and then for three months. This tiny educational center stood where the Church Point Methodist church is today. It was constructed of ‘rough edges’ from a little shanty sawmill of the time.” “Of course there was no post office, no railroads, not much of anything. I remember mail used to be carried on horseback from Opelousas to Lake Charles. The Star Route mail carrier was Emile Doucet. St. Landry parish then included all the country from the Attakapas River to the Sabine.” “The very first teacher was Jeff Childs. I was scared to death of him and couldn’t for the life of me learn the alphabet. Finally Mr. Childs came to my father and said that he might as well take me out of school; that I was only wasting my time. He suggested that my father put me in the fields to help out as I’d never get anywhere in readin’, writin’, and ‘rithmetic!” “Mr. Maroney, Howard Bruner’s grandfather, was my next teacher, a very kindly, patient man. We all loved him and under his tutelage I managed to conquer the alphabet and a little other learning. Among the schoolmates who sat alongside me and played in the simple games and pastimes of those years were Daniel Elkins, Valerie Bouurque, Desire Breaux, Etienne Thibodeaux, Lou Harmon and Sarah Frontenot, just to mention a few.” “My very first job was delivering meat--a nickel a pound--for my father who had established a little market. Then I clerked for Edgar Barousse at Branch when I was 15 years old. I remained there three years and then my father and I started a grocery and dry goods store in Church Point, the name being, simply, J. E. Daigle Store. This was in the late ‘80’s and when I was 21 we added ‘& Son’ to the store name, a big day for me! The firm was incorporated December 2, 1910, the present name taken then which is J. E. Daigle & Son Company, Limited.” “When I was 23 I married Eve Barousse and our children are Edward Everett (Jack), Jr., Lionel, Lionie (Mrs. Louis J. Thibodeaux), Bonita (Mrs. Francis Bertinot), Ruth (Mrs. Marshall Arceneaux), Valentine and a daughter Sylvia who died in 1941.” With a precision memory and a rapidity of speech which made it possible for the writer to jot down only high spot dates and names, Mr. Daigle recounted the beginning of the old Farmers Bank & Trust in 1919, which he organized. Prior to this he was vice president of the Commercial Bank. In 1926 he formed the Bank of Commerce, A. Kaplan serving as first president of this financial institution with offices and branches in Rayne, Church Point, Crowley and Iota. Later, when it was necessary for him to curtail his ever expanding activities, he concentrated his interest in the Church Point bank which he heads as president. Getting back to the historical facts which make the Church Point legend so fascinating a story, the pioneer said, “I guess my Grandpa married most everybody around here then. You see there was no resident priest and only an occasional visit from a circuit or traveling missionary priest and grandpa (Joseph Daigle) was a justice of the peace.” How Church Point got its name won’t ever be in doubt again because Mr. Daigle knows his facts about the town he loves and to which he as added so much of benefit. He told, “This used to be Placquemine Brulee, you know. It was ‘Placquemine Brulee post office’ even when I was a kid. The folks here wanted to change the name and old Father Eby, first resident priest here, suggested, since they had come from the original Acadia in Nova Scotia, that we make the new home namesake of the old. Co the Point de l’ Eglise of our ancestors was the choice--’Point of the Church’ being, naturally, Church Point.” “Eight or ten years ago I took an automobile trip back to the first land of the original Acadians and visited Point de l’ Eglise and Grand Pre’ and the Evangeline church shrine and all those fabulous spots. It was a real experience, one I’ll never forget. Riding down the main boulevards was like a drive down the main street of our own southwestern Louisiana. For the merchants’ signs in front of their business houses read ‘Lafleur’s, ‘Daigle’s’, Hebert’s’, and so on--all kinsmen of our neighbors right here in Acadia Parish,” Mr. Edward told. Although he forgot to mention it, Mr. Edward served in the Louisiana State Legislature for four years, refusing to run again because of his wide business responsibilities. Also, during the governorship of the late Huey P. Long, a close friend of his, he was urged to accept the office of lieutenant- governor. In this regard, he commented, “I simply couldn’t consider it. I’ve learned one thing during all these years--that is that you can’t be politicking and running your business at the same time without neglecting either the duties of office or the needs of your firm and your family. And it would really have been something if I’d run for lieutenant governor and won, wouldn’t it? Because, you see, Huey died and there I’d have been sitting in the governor’s chair worrying about my crops and my bank and my other interests down here!” Mr. Daigle isn’t worrying about anything any more. He enjoys his beautiful acres of garden, which surround his palatial Church Point home, doing a great deal of the planting and tending himself. Most of all, according to his gracious wife, he enjoys fishing and hunting, and crowds in as many trips to his Grand Lake camp as his crowded schedule allows. Two scared runaways of nearly a century ago who snow-shoed out of a land which had grown hostile to them and their comrades never dreamed what a big bonanza they were to bring to the new Acadia drama in which they and their families to come were to play starring roles.