ENROLLED
Page 1 of 3
Regular Session, 2014
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 76
BY REPRESENTATIVES ORTEGO, BARRAS, BERTHELOT, STUART BI SHOP,
BURRELL, CHAMPAGNE, COX, DANAHAY, GAINES, GAROFALO,
GEYMANN, GISCLAIR, GUILLORY, GUINN, HARRISON, HENSGENS,
HUVAL, JOHNSON, JONES, NANCY LANDRY, LEBAS, MI LLER,
MONTOUCET, PIERRE, PRICE, RICHARD, ROBIDEAUX, SCHEXNAYDER,
SMITH, ST. GERMAIN, THIBAUT, THIERRY, WHITNEY, AND WILLMOTT
A RESOLUTION
To commemorate the two hundred fiftieth anniversary of the arrival of Acadians in
Louisiana and to recognize the unique contributions of the Acadian people to the
culture and flavor of Louisiana.
WHEREAS, some four hundred years ago, small bands of men and women left their
hometowns in France and sailed to what would become Canada to settle in an area they
called Acadia, which is now known as Nova Scotia; and
WHEREAS, these early settlers were hardworking, peace-loving people who
remained neutral during the many feuds between the French and British forces over
Canadian lands; but in 1755, without approval from the British government, men who
refused to sign a loyalty oath to England were forced to separate from their families and
were arrested, and their farms, barns, churches, shops, crops, and the livestock that made up
the Acadian colonies were burned to the ground or confiscated, followed by a mass
expulsion of the Acadians; and
WHEREAS, some of the expelled Acadians returned to England and France, only
to suffer imprisonment or to live as outcasts; some settled in the colonies of New England
and blended with the established communities; in the Carolina colonies, some Acadian
parents had their children taken away from them while they were forced to work on
plantations; still others were deported to Haiti, Newfoundland, Argentina, and Uruguay; yet
after ten years of wandering from place to place and finding no home, a group of twenty-one
Acadians journeyed from Georgia to Mobile, Alabama, from where they eventually reached
the Mississippi River to travel to New Orleans, finally settling along the West Bank in April
of 1764 in what came to be called the Acadian Coast; and ENROLLEDHR NO. 76
Page 2 of 3
WHEREAS, undaunted by the unfamiliar climate of Louisiana or a lack of monetary
resources, these determined early settlers encouraged their kin to make the trek to Louisiana
and over the next two decades, more than three thousand Acadians joined the adventurous
folk already here; and
WHEREAS, Acadians settled the mosquito-infested areas along Bayou Teche,
performed hard labor that other settlers would not attempt, were rejected by the resident
Frenchmen in Louisiana because of their strange-sounding Acadian dialect, overcame
attempts by established Louisiana residents to force them to speak English, and perpetuated
their unique heritage by marrying within their communities; and
WHEREAS, the persistence of those brave Acadian settlers transformed regions of
Louisiana into special places that, to outsiders, appeared as worlds unto themselves, and the
unmatched spirit of the first Acadians remains alive in their descendants to this day; and
WHEREAS, the progeny of the first Acadians, now called Cajuns, have spread from
the original enforced settlements along the West Bank of the Mississippi River to populate
regions from Lake Charles to Houma, almost the entire length and breadth of Louisiana, and
their number now surpasses seven hundred thousand; and
WHEREAS, anthropologists at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette will
undertake an archaeology project in 2014 along Bayou Teche near Loreauville in Iberia
Parish in search of some of the earliest settlements of the Acadian exiles, seeking artifacts
from Acadian folk hero Joseph "Beausoleil" Broussard and his followers, who arrived in
1765 but most of whom appeared to have died within months of their arrival; and
WHEREAS, "Acadie à La Louisiane" (Acadia To Louisiana) by Bruce Daigrepont
is a masterful example of Cajun music and retells the tragedy of the forced exodus from
Acadia to the triumph of the Acadians' settlement in Louisiana; and
WHEREAS, the Cajun culture has in recent years burst onto the food and arts scene
as evidenced by the increasing popularity across the United States of Cajun cuisine, led by
chefs such as Paul Prudhomme and John Folse, Cajun music, led by Grammy award winners
such as Beausoleil and Courtbouillon, and Cajun visual arts, led by artists such as George
Rodrigue; and ENROLLEDHR NO. 76
Page 3 of 3
WHEREAS, the unparalleled flair and flavor of the Cajun people give Louisiana
much sought-after qualities that cannot be found elsewhere in the world, and it is fitting to
commemorate the two hundred fiftieth anniversary of the arrival of the first Acadians to the
bayous in New Acadia: a people and culture that have contributed to the greatness that is
Louisiana.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
Legislature of Louisiana does hereby recognize and acclaim the two hundred fiftieth
anniversary of the arrival of the Acadian people to the state; does hereby commend the
hearty spirit demonstrated by the early settlers in overcoming innumerable odds to become
the genesis of a unique culture; and does hereby express the congratulatory sentiments of all
of the residents of the great state of Louisiana on the occasion of the celebration of two
hundred fifty years of Acadians in Louisiana.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a suitable copy of this Resolution be transmitted
to the Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATI VES