(Karen Wink / American Press)
(Karen Wink / American Press)
Merryville caps off Centennial celebration
Last Modified: Monday, July 16, 2012 1:04 PM
By Warren Arceneaux / American Press
MERRYVILLE — The town of Merryville held a big birthday party Saturday with an all-day centennial celebration to cap off a weekend of celebrations.
The fun started with a pet parade in the morning, followed by the Merryville Centennial Parade.
A host of local musicians were
scheduled to take the stage, and the Merryville Historical Society’s
museum hosted several
displays on the town’s past.
Notable residents of the town include
former Louisiana Gov. Sam Houston Jones; Lt. Gov. Lether
Frazar, the dean and first president of what is now McNeese State
University; former state Sen. Jesse Knowles, a Bataan Death
March survivor from World War II; Christian Keener “Red” Cagle, a
football star at Army who later played professionally for
the New York Giants; Charles “Leather Britches” Smith, who led a
riot involving striking sawmill workers in Grabow; and Gussie
Loftin Townsley, a folk artist known as “Grandma Moses.”
Festivities were scheduled to culminate with a fireworks display Saturday night.
The centennial celebration began Friday with the dedication of a marker honoring Jones and a four-hour block party.
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