Bayou Sara: A Beginning…

In advance of the settlement of Bayou Sara (also listed as Bayou Sarah on some maps and in some writings) and its development as an important Mississippi River port, various Native American tribes- the Biloxi, Houma, Ofogoula, Choctaw, Tunica and others had villages in the area. Their location on the Mississippi River allowed them to engage in extensive trade with the Europeans on the river. One source (Butler & Williams, 2017) cited that one of the first occupants of the West Feliciana area in the late 17th century and early 18th century were the Houma Indians, considered to be a peaceful tribe. In 1706, the Houmas were attacked and driven out by the Tunicas who continued to reside in the vicinity until 1764 at which time they are said to have fled to the Pointe Coupee before relocating to the Marksville area on the Red River in 1790.

Before the establishment of a formal settlement at Bayou Sara, the bayou often served as a calm overnight resting stop for flatboats ladened with goods headed to New Orleans. In some cases, goods from the flatboats were offloaded to smaller craft that could navigate the waters of the bayou and deliver goods to plantations located along the shores of the bayou. The settlement was developed on the flood plain extending from the Mississippi River to the to the hills on which the community of St. Francisville was later formally established in 1807. As you can imagine, such a location made the community of Bayou Sara particularly vulnerable to Mississippi River flooding. As will be discussed later, flooding ultimately lead to the collapse of the settlement. The map provides a visual reference for the location of the bayou and the associated town of Bayou Sara. Other than artifacts, nothing remains of the bustling port that once existed at this site.

Prior to the Civil War, Bayou Sara was one of the busiest and most important ports between New Orleans and Memphis. Flatboats, barges, and later keelboats and steamships brought goods from northern ports on the river. Cotton from multiple storage warehouses was then shipped to mills up north and in England. Soon, fine furniture from the East and Europe began arriving for the wealthy plantation owners. In addition to goods, steamships carried passengers to and from the port.

While Bayou Sara was judged to be the largest antebellum port on the Mississippi River between Memphis and New Orleans at one time, it was ultimately superseded by Natchez. As an indication of the importance of Bayou Sara, three different newspapers, Louisiana Churchmen and Industrial News, Louisiana Chronicle, and Ledger were published in the community during the mid to late 1800’s.

The community of Bayou Sara extended from the river back to a line of hills upon which St. Francisville was developed. Bayou Sara was incorporated by an act of the state legislature in 1842 in the parish of West Feliciana. In 1842, a terminus for the West Feliciana Railroad was established at Bayou Sara. It was one of the country’s first standard gauge railroads and provided a tremendous resource for freight transport to and from the port. Cotton was one of the principal commodities shipped from the port to factories in the east that produced dry goods and clothing.

LaSalle would have passed the bayou on his expedition down the Mississippi River in 1682 but there is no evidence that he actually explored the bayou. He likely noticed the bluff upon which the community of St. Francisville, Louisiana, was developed at a later date. At the conclusion of his expedition, LaSalle was to claim the lands of the Mississippi River basin for France. There is evidence that while Louisiana was under their control, the French mapped the bayou as early as 1730. French rule over the territory that included Bayou Sara remained in place until 1763 at which time Spanish rule was established.

At this point, let’s review a little of the somewhat complicated history about the European and AngloSaxon relationships with the Louisiana territory. We begin with LaSalle’s expedition of 1682, the outcome of which was his claim of all the lands of the Mississippi River basin, that he termed La Louisiane, for France. French rule of La Louisiane prevailed until 1763 at which time it was ceded to Spain as compensation for handing Florida to Great Britian following the end of the Seven Year’s War. This war ended with the signing of the Treaty of Paris of 1763 that brought about a set of somewhat complicated transfers of territories between France, Spain and England , specifically:

• France ceded its North American possessions west of the Mississippi River to Great Britain

• France ceded Louisiana and its North American territory east of the Mississippi River to Spain

• Spain ceded Florida to Great Britain in exchange for the return of Havana and Manila

Great Britain divided Florida into East Florida and West Florida, the latter of which reached as far west as the Mississippi River. The northern boundary of West Florida shifted around somewhat but in 1767 was fixed at a latitude of 32 degrees 38 minutes at the mouth of the Yazoo River east to Apalachicola. Bayou Sara is located at a latitude just under 31 degrees, so would have been considered a part of West Florida. The next transfers of territory were brought about by the Treaty of Paris of 1783, the treaty ending the Revolutionary War. Of significance to Bayou Sara was giving Spain back control of West Florida in conjunction with existing control of Louisiana.

In doing my research for the brief, I came across two different accounts of the founding of the community of Bayou Sara. What follows is the story I judge to be more creditable and is the one cited on the historical marker.

The founding of Bayou Sara in 1790 is attributed to John H. Mills. Although Mills was born in Virginia, his family was of Scottish heritage. Mills first settled in Natchez and formed a partnership with Issac Johnson, an Englishman from Liverpool, to erect a sawmill. While profitable, the mill was destroyed by a flood in 1789 or 1790. In response, Mills prevailed upon his partner to move to the Bayou Sara area. Whereas Johnson established himself on a plantation near the Mississippi River, Mills formed a partnership with Christopher Strong Stewart to set up a trading post on the batture (basically, the flood plain of the river) to serve the growing flatboat trade along the river. Within a very short time a village sprung up around the trading post and took the name of the bayou.

In addition to its role as an important port on the Mississippi River, Bayou Sara effectively served as the economic center for St. Francisville, a community located on the loess bluff to the east. The founding and development of St. Francisville, originally known as the Villa of St. Francis, somewhat lagged that of Bayou Sara. Official records document the fact that St. Francisville was established in 1807 by John H. Johnson. In Bayou Sara there was an explosion of new businesses and the structures to house those businesses- hotels, boarding houses, restaurants, coffee houses, liveries, stables, saddle makers, pool halls, saloons, brothels, ice houses, warehouses, grocery stores, bookstores, and general merchandise stores among others. Additionally, professional and semi-professional workers- bankers, physicians, dentists, druggists, photographers - flocked to the community. Of course, carpenters, masons, and laborers were needed to build the commercial and residential structures to house businesses, offices and families. In parallel, the infrastructure needs of both new construction and maintenance of community streets, sidewalks, possibly streetlights and drainage would have required a substantial number of additional workers and quantity of materials. I’ve found no evidence of any type of community government administered by either self-appointed or elected officials to manage the infrastructure needs of the community, those already cited plus such basic needs as water, fire protection, and sanitary facilities. A notation on an 1885 Sanborn Map of Bayou Sara listed the following: Population- 1100; “No fire DEPT”; and “Water Facilities- Not Good.” These notations are somewhat astounding considering that the settlement/town had been in existence for almost 100 years!

There’s more to tell about the resilience and growth of the town despite the trials and tribulations of flooding, fires, and a particularly devastating Civil War engagement. These issues will be addressed in the next brief…the middle and the end.

Sources:

Anne Butler and Helen Williams. BAYOU SARA Used to Be, University of Louisiana Lafayette Press, 2017.

D. H. Pardue. Bayou Sara-The Town and Stream, Louisiana Genealogical Register, Louisiana Genealogical and Historical Society, March 1996.

Stanley Clisby Arthur. The Story of the West Florida Rebellion, The St. Francisville Democrat, 1935.

The Lost River Town- History and Archeology of Bayou Sara, Coastal Environments, 2019.