Chapter 17
Cultural Landscapes of Louisiana
by Ashley Lord and Jon Knight

Introduction

Louisiana’s first European and African settlers faced certain challenges in regard to the geography, the climate and various landforms, of the state. They had to build a variety of different things on the landscape that would help them adapt to a new life in a new place. Wells, cisterns, fences and barns were some of the built objects that were necessary for rural living. The first settlements in Louisiana were generally located near a water source for two reasons. First, transportation via a river was a primary connection between towns and cities. The second but most important reason however, was the vitality of water as a substance required to sustain human life. But the usefulness of the natural water sources was limited. Ponds and streams were scattered and, depending on weather conditions, sometimes dried up or became stagnant. The southern marshy areas contained saltwater, and larger streams and rivers proved to be unstable during flood conditions.

Despite the problems encountered, the natural water sources were useful in other ways. Ponds, though few and far between, were important for settlers with livestock. But because of their scarcity, the government and privately owned operations took on projects to build ponds where they were needed across Louisiana. This is only a fairly recent solution, beginning in the mid-twentieth century.

Cisterns

One solution to the problem of useable water was the cistern. There were two types of cisterns used in two different areas of Louisiana. The first type was built in South Louisiana where the local natural water was not good to live on. The warm waters of the bayous contained diseases, and the surface water was bitter from decayed vegetation. So in the early nineteenth century, above ground cisterns were built near the eaves of houses. Built out of cypress wood, these large barrels stored an abundant supply of water for domestic use. Gutters were used to direct rainwater from the roof into the cistern.

The second type of cistern was used in North Louisiana. This underground version was built by the wealthy on plantations, large farms, and town lots. Sometimes they were even used for fire control in cities. The underground cistern was made from bricks and the only visible portion stood two feet above ground level and was three feet in diameter at the opening, flaring to twelve feet at ground level. The underground portion of the cistern was sometimes measured to be twenty feet deep. Instead of being located under the eave of a house, this type was generally placed in a decorative garden behind the house. Though there were variations between the two types in regard to size, material, and location, both were filled with rainwater by the same gutter system. A pump or a bucket was used to retrieve the water.

Wells

Settlers sometimes found a good water supply in aquifers, underground streams, located a relatively short depth from ground level. To gain use of the water, wells had to be dug. Thus, the first type of well was called a dug well. It took on the shape of a square or round hole five or six feet in diameter, and a supporting wall was built along the inside at the parameter. These wells were dug no more than about 125 feet deep.

The bored well, only reaching a depth of fifty feet, was only about a foot in diameter and employed the use of a special bucket. The bucket was deep, but only slightly smaller than the diameter of the hole it was to descend, and it had a hole in the bottom that was stopped up by a plug. When the bucket was lowered into the water, the plug lifted, filling the bucket from bottom to top. When the bucket was lifted by means of a rope, the plug dropped back into the hole, trapping the water in the bucket.

A third type of well was used by the poorer Louisiana inhabitants and by people who didn’t need a long term supply of water. The driven well, as it was called, was made from pipe and had a pump above ground. With this well, no digging was needed. First, a metal point was attached to a pipe and then driven into the ground with a hammer. Once in place, another piece of pipe was added until water was reached. The maximum depth for this well was only twenty-two feet because that was all a pitcher pump, which was fastened to the top, was able to lift.

The next invention for retrieving underground water was the pressure pump. It used surface-based water pressure to force the water at the bottom of the well to come up. This development accessed water that was several thousand feet deep. It was widely used in rural areas where public water supply was scarce.

Fences

The lack of fences in early Louisiana settlements led to great disputes between the settlers. Two main views were represented by farmers and livestock owners, but in two different regions of Louisiana. French and Tidewater supported the idea of closed range, while the Upland South region agreed with the open range policy. The closed range law stated that it was the responsibility of the livestock owner to keep his animals contained on his land in order to keep them from straying into a farmer’s crop and destroying it. But the open range stated that it was up to the farmer to keep his land out of harms way by fencing the extents of his property. Sadly, the fight between the farmers and the livestock owners was a bitter one and contained strong opposition on both sides. Often the disputes led to violence and bloodshed, and all over the trivial matter of a fence.

Different types of fences were built for different reasons, but mostly to appease the law. In French Louisiana, the livestock were confined with a fence called the post-and-rail. In it, vertical posts were set at equal distances from each other. Holes in the vertical posts held horizontal split rails in place. In the region where farmers had to protect their land, post-and-rail was also used. Another French fence was called the Pieux fence, consisting of consecutive palings driven into the ground. It was commonly seen around the dooryards of French homes.

In the early twentieth century, the differing opinions slowly converged on the idea that closed range would be a better law to enforce. Four things swayed the "open-rangers" to be more open-minded. First, diseases among cattle and pigs led owners to put an end to meandering livestock. Second, the idea of selective breeding, requiring the confinement of choice males and females, spurred the owner’s desire to see a stronger breed produced. Third, with timber being cut and new seedlings planted, random wandering hogs presented a problem because they dug up the young trees and ate the roots. And lastly, because of the booming sensation of automobiles, stray livestock made traveling on roads an inconvenient task.

Barns

Barns have slight variations between types, but the distinguishing features are differing roof types and floor plans. The majority of barns in French Louisiana are not in the French style, however. Most are copies of British-American barns. The French barn, though rare in Louisiana, has a plan that consists of a small interior room, called a crib, with its own door and a raised floor. The exterior building has a front-gabled roof with a large door at the front. The Teche barn matches the French barn in floor plan but has a gambrel roof that varies from south to north. The gambrel roof near Lafayette has a nearly flat upper portion, but a little further north in the state, the pitch on the upper portion gets steeper. Near Marksville, the eaves flare and extend beyond the side walls. Also, this type has an exterior stair and landing in front of the loft door in the gable.

Louisiana’s other barns play off of multiple cribs. The first is a single crib barn which has a central crib with a door in the front gable. The eaves are extended on the sides and the front allowing for exterior storage space. The double-crib barn has two cribs facing each other. They are connected by a single roof, making a dog-trot in the middle. The four-crib barn has a large corporate gabled roof with one crib at each corner of the plan. This allows for intersecting pathways through the middle of the building and out all four sides. The last is the transverse-crib barn with six cribs. The pathway runs down the center of the gabled building flanked by three cribs on each side. This type of barn is usually used for sheltering horses.