Written by Mrs. C. J. Morton The GazetteFebruary 22, 1939 The site where the town of Bernice now stands was originally a huge forest known as "the big woods." There large virgin pines stood and it was only natural that the lumber industry looked upon this site, together with those that surrounded it with a … Continue reading Mrs. Morton Writes Short, Interesting History of the Town of Bernice from Its Foundation Nearly Forty Years Ago
History
History of Union Parish and the families who lived there.
Experience Says ‘Don’t Trash Your History!’
Mary K. HamnerPiney Woods Journal Correspondent Local history is a great avenue for learning. Digging through family stories/genealogy and church history is encouragement for extending knowledge as you travel back through the ages to learn about the local folk. Their stories speak of a different time, an age that causes us to laugh and sometimes … Continue reading Experience Says ‘Don’t Trash Your History!’
Prosperity, Rapid Development Marked D’Arbonne Community In Its Early History
Walter HitesmanThe GazetteOctober 5, 1939 In 1878, at the height of the reconstruction era in the South, a merchant, Eli Rugg, wandered in to the land south of Farmerville and established a store where today the community of D'Arbonne is. Rugg erected a blacksmith shop and a residence a short time later. His store began … Continue reading Prosperity, Rapid Development Marked D’Arbonne Community In Its Early History
Church At Litroe Organized in 1918
The Gazette October 5, 1939 Church Building was Burned Last December Meeting in the store of Dr. P. K. Hudson on May 26, 1918 for the purpose of organizing a church, the people of the community of Litroe gathered that spring day in reverence under the direction of several elders and deacons. Those charter members … Continue reading Church At Litroe Organized in 1918
James Edmunds: The Man and The Legend
Written by Edna Liggin Submitted by Molly Liggin Rankin The Bernice News Journal October 4, 1979 James Edmunds was a man who traveled many miles going from Georgia to Alabama as a young man, then perhaps back to Georgia as a married man. He brought his family to Union Parish in the mid 1840’s. He … Continue reading James Edmunds: The Man and The Legend
Bernice Dots #21
Bernice Historical Society Bernice Dots #21 By Cathy Buckley 1940 - 1941 Bernice began its 41st year with both excitement and sadness. The town had a reputation from its earliest years of being a town where drunkenness often ended badly for the consumer of such substances. On this particular night a 25 year old resident … Continue reading Bernice Dots #21
Bernice Dots #20
Bernice Historical Society Bernice Dots #20 By Cathy Buckley In January of 1938 construction began on a new high school building for the Bernice area; “brick veneer and modern in every aspect.” The school was located on the site of the old baseball field so construction included a new baseball field complete with a wall … Continue reading Bernice Dots #20
Bernice Dots #19
Bernice Historical Society Bernice Dots #19 By Cathy Buckley In July of 1934 the town of Bernice honored the memory of the first two Bernice soldiers who died in World War One with the organization of an American Legion post named the Reagan/St. John Post. The first commander was Mark Price, Jr. with James T. … Continue reading Bernice Dots #19
Bernice Dots #18
Bernice Historical Society Bernice Dots #18 By Cathy Buckley I believe this winter I saw the temperature drop to 5 degrees at my house. However on February 8th of 1933 Bernice posted a temperature of 4 degrees accompanied by snow and a stiff north wind. Housewives in Bernice awoke to find their once flourishing vegetable … Continue reading Bernice Dots #18
Bernice Dots #17
Bernice Historical Society Bernice Dots #17 By Cathy Buckley 1930’s Part Two The year 1932 began with an inconvenience for those traveling south to Ruston. Due to construction and high water the Bernice-Ruston highway was closed to traffic and if you wanted to go the 22 miles to Ruston you had to take a … Continue reading Bernice Dots #17
Bernice Dots #16
Bernice Historical Society Bernice Dots #16 By Cathy Buckley 1930's Part One The year 1930 began with the good news that the town population had grown since the last census of 1920 and the town now sported a population of 975 people; a fact Mayor Talbot attributed to the town not being dependent upon … Continue reading Bernice Dots #16
Shiloh
Written by Dr. Timothy D. Hudson During the latter half of the nineteenth century, Shiloh formed the commercial center of the western portion of Union Parish, attracting extensive business from not only the surrounding countryside of southwestern Union, but also from portions of Claiborne, Jackson, and Lincoln Parishes due to Shiloh’s role as a gateway … Continue reading Shiloh
Bernice Dots #15
Bernice Historical Society Bernice Dots #15 By Cathy Buckley The 1920’s Come to an End With the coming of a national highway through Bernice the town decided to spruce up one block of the business section. In 1928 the town council met with the main street property owners and decided to pave one block … Continue reading Bernice Dots #15
Bernice Dots #13
Bernice Historical Society Bernice Dots #13 By Cathy Buckley Fire once again struck the town of Bernice in the summer of 1923 when The Heard Hotel was destroyed. This building was originally known as the Moore Hotel and was built in 1900, making it one of the oldest buildings in town. Originally the property of … Continue reading Bernice Dots #13
Bernice Dots #9
Bernice Historical Society Bernice Dots #9 By Cathy Buckley In February of 1914 citizens in and around Bernice and the eastern part of Claiborne Parish considered the possibility of forming a new parish with Bernice as the parish seat of government. The local paper in Bernice ran an article stating one possible reason was … Continue reading Bernice Dots #9
Bernice Dots #8
Bernice Historical Society Bernice Dots #8 By Cathy Buckley When Capt. Henderson was establishing the town lots in Bernice he set apart lots for churches and schools.. The Baptist congregation which was established in 1899 with William Cooksey as pastor for one service a month would meet inside the building used as a school … Continue reading Bernice Dots #8
Bernice Dots #7
Bernice Historical Society Bernice Dots #7 By Cathy Buckley An early history of Bernice published in a catalog prepared for Bernice High School in 1909 states this fact: “Bernice has always taken a deep interest in the education of her children and from the very beginning she has fostered private and public schools. Soon … Continue reading Bernice Dots #7
Bernice Dots #6
Bernice Historical Society Bernice Dots #6 By Cathy Buckley By 1903 Bernice was making rapid progress with new businesses popping up almost weekly. The depot handled a steady supply of staples and merchandise that streamed into town from commercial outlets both north and south of town. The first of two destructive fires occurred in … Continue reading Bernice Dots #6
Bernice Dots #5
Bernice Historical Society Bernice Dots #5 By Cathy Buckley The first business establishment in Bernice was located in a tent and run by a man named Nelson. The first sale made in that store was a box of matches purchased by R.T. “Uncle Dick” Moore. Shortly afterward Will Martin of Shiloh operated a general … Continue reading Bernice Dots #5
Memories of Farmerville
https://youtu.be/jPHljc-4BtA The video is available for a $10 donation to the Union Museum of History and Art. The Museum will also mail the video for an additional $4 for shipping and handling. Union Museum of History and Art 116 N Main Street Farmerville, LA 71241
Union Museum of History and Art
Terry L. Jones, Civil War scholar, will talk about the famed "Louisiana Tigers" fighting regiment this Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017 at 1 p.m. in the Union Museum of History and Art, 116 N. Main St., Farmerville. This is the last in the series of lectures associated with the "Civil War in North Louisiana" exhibit (ends … Continue reading Union Museum of History and Art
Nick Ramsey
The Gazette October 19, 1898 Nick Ramsey was convicted last Wednesday at Homer of manslaughter for the killing of S. J. Maffett about two years ago. The case had been before the courts five times.
History of the Alabama Landing
Written by Jon McKinnie - 2013 Above is a photo of the Alabama Landing today, quite different from the thriving port in the 1800's (below) In 1541-1542, Spanish explorer Hernando DeSoto's expedition included the first white men to explore this particular area of north Louisiana. They had traveled throughout mid-America from the Mobile, Ala., starting … Continue reading History of the Alabama Landing
James Russell Coplen and Sarah Ann Elizabeth Eady
My third great-grandparents, James Russell Coplen and Sarah Ann Elizabeth Eady, are another family mystery that has the other side of my mom’s family searching high and low. They are the great-grandparents of her dad. Like the Butler/Webb family they have descendants all over the country digging for even the tiniest bit of information. According … Continue reading James Russell Coplen and Sarah Ann Elizabeth Eady
This Wall Must Come Down
As I mentioned before, my grandmother was a closet genealogist. She kept everything from newspaper clipping to pictures. She also made lists of everything. And she loved to talk. This was a family trait. All of her siblings did the same thing. She talked about the Butlers a lot. There was Aunt Sid, Aunt Fronie … Continue reading This Wall Must Come Down
How I Began The Search
To be honest I can't remember when it started but I do know how. It all goes back to Grandma. Of course, she had no idea she was a genealogist. She just liked to talk and visit. Her favorite subject was her family, both the one she came from and the one she brought into … Continue reading How I Began The Search
History of Bernice and Farmerville, Louisiana
by Edna Matthews Liggin 1939 In the 1790's when Union Parish grew wild and was roamed by Indians (there is found today an Indian burial mound on the old Scott Hamilton place), John Honeycutt, trader and trapper, did business with the Indians from the present site of Camden, Arkansas to Biloxi, Mississippi and assisted the Spanish government … Continue reading History of Bernice and Farmerville, Louisiana
Shiloh to Canaan 
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