1960 Map of Ville Platte

About this map

The Mamou Oil Field and the Ville Platte Oil and Gas Field dominate the industrial landscape of this Evangeline Parish region during the early 1960s. The settlement pattern is defined by a dense network of bayous, including Nezpique Bayou and Bayou des Cannes, which dictate the placement of early homesteads and cemeteries. Genealogists will find a significant concentration of family-named landmarks such as Platin Cem, Ardoin Cem, and Guillory Cem. The transition from rural agriculture to early 20th-century modernization is evident in the presence of Celestine High Sch in Mamou and Stephens High Sch in the parish seat. Transportation infrastructure is anchored by the Chicago Rock Island and Pacific RR and the Texas and Pacific RR, which connect the commercial hubs of Ville Platte and Eunice to the surrounding prairie settlements.