Strategically located at the western edge of the Atlantic World, the French post of Natchitoches thrived during the eighteenth century as a trade hub between the well-supplied settlers and the isolated Spaniards and Indians of Texas. Its critical economic and diplomatic role made it the most important community on the Louisiana-Texas frontier during the colonial era. Despite the community’s critical role under French and then Spanish rule, Colonial Natchitoches is the first thorough study of its society and economy. Founded in 1714, four years before New Orleans, Natchitoches developed a creole (American-born of French descent) society that dominated the Louisiana-Texas frontier. H. Sophie Burton and F. Todd Smith carefully demonstrate not only the persistence of this creole dominance but also how it was maintained. They examine, as well, the other ethnic cultures present in the town and relations with Indians in the surrounding area. Through statistical analyses of birth and baptismal records, census figures, and appropriate French and Spanish archives, Burton and Smith reach surprising conclusions about the nature of society and commerce in colonial Natchitoches.

Nestled between stately live oaks, magnolia trees, and Cane River is the beautiful old town of Natchitoches. The oldest settlement in the Louisiana Purchase and the third-oldest town in the United States, Natchitoches was founded in 1714 by Louis Juchereau de St. Denis, who was sent by the French governor to establish a colony in Louisiana. In Images of America: Natchitoches see the town as the backdrop for such movies as Steel Magnolias and view rare vintage photographs of plantation homes, the laying of bricks on Front Street, and the development of Northwestern State University.

Nestled on the banks of the Cane River, Natchitoches (pronounced NAK-i-tush) is perhaps the most beautiful inland town in Louisiana. Founded in 1714 as a French colonial settlement, it boasts brick streets, venerable architecture, and a charming ambiance that draw visitors from around the world. Nearby, a magnificent plantation country and the multicultural Creole community of Isle Brevelle amplify the area's allure. This stunning gallery of photographs by Philip Gould, along with edifying articles, documents the varying cultures of the Cane River region, one of the state's oldest and most historically French areas. The book opens with a look at Natchitoches proper and its breathtaking architectural gems, including stately churches and elegant homes. Gould also captures the life pulsing behind these impressive facades. A blues band performs its monthly gig at Roque's Grocery. A child prepares to be baptized in the Cane River. A young couple celebrates their marriage in high style. Through Gould's lens and an enlightening history by Richard Seale, Natchitoches yesterday and today comes alive. The regal residences and faded communities that lie beyond Natchitoches are remnants of a once bustling plantation economy. Accompanied by revealing commentary from Robert DeBlieux, Gould trains his talented eye on the majestic estates of Oakland, Magnolia, Oaklawn, Cherokee, Beaufort, and Melrose plantations and on the tiny town of Cloutierville, once home to writer Kate Chopin. The book also spotlights the nearby Creole settlement of Isle Brevelle, which dates back to the area's colonial period. Gould celebrates the music, food, folklore, architecture, and landscape of this vibrant multiethnic community -- which originated with a French planter and a former slave. Harlan Mark Guidry, one of the many descendants of Isle Brevelle now living throughout the United States, narrates the story of this unique cultural treasure. Natchitoches and Louisiana's Timeless Cane River offers passage through an extraordinary world where people, heritage, and history are inseparably intertwined. Natives and tourists alike will relish the journey.

Kathleen M. Byrd’s Natchitoches, Louisiana, 1803–1840 is an examination of one French Creole community as it transitioned from a fur-trading and agricultural settlement under the control of Spain to a critical American outpost on the Spanish/American frontier and finally to a commercial hub and jumping-off point for those heading west. Byrd focuses on historic events in the area and the long-term French Creole residents as they adapted to the American presence. She also examines the effect of the arrival of the Americans, with their Indian trading house and Indian agency, on Native groups and considers how members of the enslaved population took advantage of opportunities for escape presented by a new international border. Byrd shows how the arrival of Americans forever changed Natchitoches, transforming it from a sleepy frontier settlement into a regional commercial center and staging point for pioneers heading into Texas.

Written for the general public, Colonial Natchitoches: Outpost of Empires provides a detailed look at the colonial frontier experience at one settlement, the Natchitoches Post. First established by the French to trade with the Indians, the Natchitoches Post soon assumed the military function of protecting Louisiana from encroachment by the Spanish. In time, it grew into an area renowned for its tobacco. This book tells the small stories of life at this outpost of the daily activities of the inhabitants, of their relationships with the neighboring Spanish, and of the role the post played in the lives of the Native American tribes of the region.