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Sandoz, Joel H. and Spencer, William H. Opelousas courier. [Vol. 12, no. 43 (March 25, 1865)]

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC05959.15.07 Author/Creator: Sandoz, Joel H. and Spencer, William H. Place Written: Opelousas, Louisiana Type: Newspaper Date: 25 March 1865 Pagination: 2 p. ; 42.8 x 30.7 cm. Order a Copy

The front page is in French and the back page is in English. General Order by General E. Kirby Smith, Notice to Confederate Tax Payers, Schedule of Prices for Confederate Army Quartermaster on Food and Livestock the Requisition from Local Citizens. A poem memorializes the death of Marcellus Gregory Doyle, a local eight-year-old boy. Notices announce the upcoming elections of a district judge, a board of police, and a constable. Opelousas was under Federal occupation at the time.

Named for a Native American tribe, Opelousas, Louisiana, was settled by French fur traders early in the eighteenth century, the third oldest city in the state. During the Civil War Opelousas briefly served as the Louisiana state capital in 1862. While only two battles occurred here, Federal occupation of the city in late 1863 resulted in several bloody riots through the war and Reconstruction.

André Meynier founded the Opelousas Courier in 1827, and it ran through 1910, suspended 30 April - 30 July 1870 and 11 January - 8 February 1873. This weekly newspaper was printed both in French and English on the reverse, often on "necessity" paper or wallpaper, as newsprint was scarce.

Smith, Edmund Kirby, 1824-1893

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