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CANE RIVER CACHET ? November 6, 2001
By Ada D. Jarred
Irving Berlin?s ?God Bless America? was introduced in 1938 and remained popular throughout World War II, but the song has enjoyed resurgence in popularity since the events of September 11, 2001:
God bless America,
Land that I love,
Stand beside her and guide her
Thru the night with a light from above....
Several members of the Natchitoches community, representing the Cane River National Heritage Area, recently joined in singing that patriotic anthem at the closing plenary session of the National Preservation Conference 2001 in Providence, Rhode Island. The song was a fitting conclusion to the meeting?s theme, ?Preserving the Spirit of Place,? as participants were reminded again and again how strong the American spirit is and how critical it is to preserve the places that tell our stories.
The music followed a stirring address on President John Adams by the eminent historian David McCullough. His research, largely based on the voluminous correspondence between John and Abigail Adams, recalls earlier times of crisis in American history and how our forefathers persevered.
The plenary session was held in the First Baptist Church in America, founded by Roger Williams in 1638. The present church building, dedicated in 1775, was itself a perfect reminder of the tradition of religious freedom that has permeated U.S. philosophy since the founding of the country.
Earlier in the conference, several local residents attended a Save America?s Treasures luncheon that addressed the current historic preservation plan, originated by the Clinton and now continued in the Bush administration. The presentations made it perfectly clear that this program does not take the word ?treasures? lightly. Natchitoches Parish has three sites currently being restored with both federal and local monies as Save America?s Treasures projects: the Prud?homme-Rouquier House in downtown Natchitoches, as well as the Yucca House and the African House at Melrose Plantation.
We live among some of America?s treasures, passing them on a daily basis, yet how well do we know them and appreciate their significance in our history? They truly represent our spirit of place--the lush, beautiful Cane River country.
The Prud?homme-Rouquier House, presently owned by the Service League of Natchitoches, Inc., was built about 1806 and renovated to the Greek revival style in the 1830's. Constructed on a Spanish land grant given to the Prud?homme family between 1764 and 1800, the house was a working plantation home surrounded by cotton fields in town. A rare, 2 ½ story bousillage structure, the house serves as an architectural example of French Creole plantation life in the 1800's.
The saga of Melrose Plantation is one of strong women, beginning with the birth in 1742 of Marie Therese Coincoin, a slave in the household of Louis Juchereau de St. Denis. Marie Therese became the mother of fourteen children, four Black and ten of Franco-American blood.
Thomas Pierre Metoyer purchased Marie Therese and several of her children; later he freed her and her Metoyer children. Marie Therese and her sons obtained several land grants between 1794 and 1803. The land forming Melrose Plantation was recorded in the name of her son Louis.
The Metoyers built both Yucca House and the African House at Melrose. Yucca, the original main house of the plantation, was constructed circa 1796. The beams are of hand-hewn cypress, and the walls are mud mixed with deer hair and Spanish moss. The house is remarkable for the number of America?s notable authors and historians that it has housed. African House, reminiscent of straw-thatched huts of the Congo, was erected about 1800. The lower level is constructed of locally baked brick; the upper story is fashioned of thick hand-hewn cypress slabs with eaves that slope toward the ground. African House was probably used for storage and detention of slaves. Descendants of the Metoyers still live along Cane River today.
In 1884 Joseph Henry acquired Melrose Plantation; later it became the home of John Hampton and Cammie Garrett Henry. Miss Cammie was the second strong woman in the story of Melrose. Her patronage of the arts and preservation of local artifacts made Melrose famous. Mrs. Henry restored and expanded the plantation gardens, rescued the colonial buildings, fostered local handcrafts, and gathered her enormous library of Louisiana books and materials. She also invited artists and writers to stay at Melrose as long as they worked on a creative project.
Among those who visited and worked at Melrose were Erskine Caldwell, Alberta Kinsey, Caroline Dormon, Gwen Bristow, Ross Phares, and Ruth Cross. Lyle Saxon, who portrayed the Cane River area in Children of Strangers, also stayed and wrote at Melrose for many years. So did Francois Mignon, who recorded his life at Melrose in Plantation Memo.
During the 1940's, Clementine Hunter, a cook at Melrose, began to paint and soon was recognized as Louisiana?s most celebrated primitive artist. Clementine was the third strong woman in Melrose history. Her murals line the second floor of the African House, and many of her paintings are displayed in the Big House. No one has recorded the life of the Cane River area as well as Clementine did in her colorful paintings.
The Melrose Plantation historic home is currently owned by the Association for the Preservation of Historic Natchitoches.
If you aren?t familiar with these three treasured structures?the Prud?homme Rouquier, the African, and the Yucca houses--then you are missing some of the most fascinating parts of local history. If you haven?t contributed to their restorations, then it is time to do so. Centuries of Louisiana climate and moisture have taken their toll on these physical representations of the spirit of the Cane River region.
Irving Berlin probably visualized New York City as he wrote ?God Bless America,? but he did not neglect to mention the mountains, the prairies, and the oceans that are also parts of the American image. When we sing his song we probably see scenes of Natchitoches and Cane River is our minds. Expand your knowledge of local history. Know why and how this area has endured and prospered for centuries. Appreciate the unique features of life in this region. Realize that patriotism invokes pride not only in the monuments and cities of the United States but in local scenes as well.
Sing proudly, thinking of the Cane River area as you sing, ?God bless America, My home, sweet home.?
The Cane River National Heritage Area is telling your story and singing your song.
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