3-hour tour illuminates local history
May 2, 2012
Nine ways to spend the Dog Days
May 2, 2012
On the corner of Main and Lafourche streets in Lockport lies a building filled with boats of the past and present.
At the Center for Traditional Louisiana Boat Building, guests can learn about the bayou culture, viewing old and new pirogues and dugout boats while reading more about the evolution of the water navigators and their makers. The 100-year-old building, located next to the peaceful Bayou Lafourche, holds historical significance in the realm of navigation, as it was once home to a Ford exhibit.
“This was a collection of boats that I started at Nicholls State University in 1979,” Tom Butler, director of the center, says.
As associate director of the library at Nicholls, Butler and a coworker grew curious about the dying art surrounding the unique boats of Louisiana. The two often questioned the subject during various fishing trips and decided to conduct further research.
“We decided we’d start interviewing boat builders because we thought it was a culture that was dying,” Butler says. “This was in 1979, and it’s been dying ever since. A lot of the boat builders we talked to then are no longer living now.”
When Butler retired, he left the boats on display in the university’s library. Four years later the mayor of Lockport expressed interest in relocating the exhibit and eventually got Butler on board. Through various grants and donations, the project was realized and is on display for the enjoyment of tourists and natives alike.
“I’d given up on it until the mayor contacted me,” Butler says. “I came and looked at the building and liked what I saw.”
The main exhibit features 11 life-sized boats of all ages, including a 26-foot Native American dugout that dates back to 1519. The exhibit features a variety of pirogues from different parts of Louisiana as well as dugouts and skiffs, like one used to gather fish.
Aside from boats on display in the main exhibit, the warehouse is home to dozens more, including one pirogue from 1890 that is featured in “Eyes of an Eagle: Jean-Pierre Cenac Patriarch” by Christopher Everette Cenac.
Tours are available Tuesday and Thursday from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m., and Butler has plans to gradually expand the hours. The center also offers lessons in which students learn to construct their own boat during Monday evening classes. Tuition varies depending on the type of boat the builder desires.
“I’ve always wanted a boat, and I like to make things,” says Kelli Mascaro, a student who started last April. She drives from Metairie once a week to attend classes and continues working on her nearly finished skiff. “I really like this group of guys. It’s fun taking it from cutting [wood] to when it starts to take shape.”
The center has seen steady growth, but longs for more guests, volunteers and participants. On May 12 the center hosts the Bateaux de Bois Festival, featuring pirogue races, various lessons about boating, food and musical entertainment.
For more information about the Center for Traditional Louisiana Boat Building, contact Tom Butler at (985) 446-8440 or e-mail him at reti-jtb@nicholls.edu.
The pirogue was built by Weneslaus Billiot, Sr. and features a concave bottom that creates less suction in shallow mud and water.
The creole skiff is the smallest and lightest of skiffs.
The Center for Traditional Louisiana Boat Building offers a program where students can build their own boats.
The pirogue is from 1890 and is the one featured in “Eyes of an Eagle: John-Pierre Cenac Patriarch,” by Christopher Everette Cenac.
The wooden-boat museum is located on the corner of Main and Lafourche streets in Lockport.
