Columns

By Stephen Waguespack

To be from Louisiana is to love Louisiana. If you were born and raised here, you are probably like many of us in that you couldn’t imagine living anywhere else. Our people, culture and sense of community separates us from others. The resolve we show in times of crisis is admired by the nation and the fun we incorporate into everything we do is why tourists flock here each year. We have much to be thankful for and are blessed to call Louisiana home.

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By: Raymond Powell

In keeping with the interest of this writer of our early forefathers of DeSoto Parish Bessie Hooker has always stood out. During a delightful recent dinner with Mr. & Mrs. Billy Franklin at Paul’s Restaurant in Grand Cane, Mrs. Bessie Hooker, one of the many old educators of Grand Cane, was discussed. Billy said he had a letter of her life and he has shared it for this article.

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By Stephen Waguespack

For generations, Americans have peacefully disagreed amongst themselves about the direction of the country. At times, fights have escalated over some of those disagreements. Thankfully though, our commonalities with our fellow countrymen have usually overruled many of our differences, bringing us back together, in the end, to rally around the greater good of our country.

As a united people, we have always been driven by our Constitutional right to speak freely, worship God, vote for our own leaders and enjoy the limitless opportunity of freedom…even though we often disagree on the most appropriate ways to do so.

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By: Raymond Powell

If you are a reader of this column it has become apparent that I like to research the life of an early leader of this town. Such is the case of the subject today – Marmaduke Ricks. A person with a name like that would have to work extra hard to succeed and Marmaduke did just that.

He was born March 24, 1828 in Greene County, Ala. To Josiah and Sallie Gandy Ricks one of ten children raised on a farm. He came to Mansfield in 1849 and after working for others he purchased a farm. In 1858 he went into the mercantile business and in 1862 he joined the Eleventh Texas Regiment where he served honorably during the Civil War.

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By Stephen Waguespack

In the closing weeks of the regular legislative session, Louisiana State Senator Rick Ward introduced a resolution to call for more civility in political discourse. This resolution was rightly passed without any objection on the Senate and House floors, with those legislators speaking in support of the resolution making timely and important commentary on the need for people of all political persuasions to better learn how to advocate for their position in a more respectful way.

In the closing minutes of that very same session, a long-serving state senator went to the House floor and told one of her legislative colleagues in that chamber to “shut the f--- up.”

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By Stephen Waguespack

For generations, Americans have peacefully disagreed amongst themselves about the direction of the country. At times, fights have escalated over some of those disagreements. Thankfully though, our commonalities with our fellow countrymen have usually overruled many of our differences, bringing us back together, in the end, to rally around the greater good of our country.

As a united people, we have always been driven by our Constitutional right to speak freely, worship God, vote for our own leaders and enjoy the limitless opportunity of freedom…even though we often disagree on the most appropriate ways to do so.

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By: Allison Davidson Carpenter

A couple of weeks ago, in the middle of a sunny week day, someone broke into a home in a neighborhood just down the road from ours. The suspect killed the family dog before taking off with valuables. Thankfully no one was around to be hurt by these criminals, but it definitely caused fear among residents in this area.

A while back, my dad gave me a booklet called Personal Safety Tips put together by Crimestoppers in Metairie. I’ve read it before, but after this recent burglary, I pulled it out again and thumbed through it.

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By: Raymond Powell

All of our youth are familiar with multi-purpose gadgets such as TV remotes, phones, etc. But the original multipurpose instrument was very popular 100 years or more ago … Grandmother’s apron along with the bonnet might have been the original. One of my fondest memories as a youngster was to go to the garden with my grandmother and gather black-eyed peas and tomatoes. She cupped the two corners of her apron and gathered vegetables with the other hand. Soon she would have enough for the noon meal and headed for the shady back porch.

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BY Stephen Waguespack

In the closing weeks of the regular legislative session, Louisiana State Senator Rick Ward introduced a resolution to call for more civility in political discourse. This resolution was rightly passed without any objection on the Senate and House floors, with those legislators speaking in support of the resolution making timely and important commentary on the need for people of all political persuasions to better learn how to advocate for their position in a more respectful way.

In the closing minutes of that very same session, a long-serving state senator went to the House floor and told one of her legislative colleagues in that chamber to “shutthe f--- up.”

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By: Raymond Powell

Several have expressed the desire to have an abbreviated history of DeSoto with most of the facts in a shortened history that could be saved for quick reference. DeSoto Parish became a parish with the April 1, 1843 Act 88 signed by C. Derbigny, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Felix Garcia President of the Senate and Governor Alfred Mouton. Section 3 of Act 88 stated that Charles A. Edwards, James Welch, Francis Rumbrice, Simon DeSoto and Israel Rogers were appointed Commissioners to lay off the parish into not more than seven police districts and select a seat of justice within three miles of the geographical center (original parish was bounded on the west by the Sabine River and the east by the Red River).

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