WASHINGTON, LA, ANTIQUES MECCA

Opelousas, Louisiana was once the Capital of the state, for a brief period during the Civil War and nearby Washington was a busy steamboat port, sending cotton out and bringing in needed goods and equipment.

Washington is a sleepy little place, especially on Sunday when most businesses close there doors for Church and family. They have several fine historical buildings one with the original slate roof. Makes me wonder why we use anything but slate?
A grand old steamboat warehouse survived and has been converted to a restaurant.



The old wooden hasp on the warehouse door.
The old Washington schoolhouse, the Mudd family home and several other places have been turned over to Antiques and the town is known as an antique mecca by locals. Looking through antique stores is much like looking back through history.

I sincerely can’t imagine the chair above in an ordinary home, even an antebellum mansion. Makes me wonder, where did it come from? Who did it belong too? Who sat in it?

I would have bought this beautiful stained glass but it wouldn’t fit in the motor home. I settled for something smaller.

I collect old decks of cards, a habit (collecting) I’m trying to break. These old Civil War era cards remind me how little the kings and queens of playing cards have changed over the years. With video games, television and other exciting attractions, kids don’t play cards much anymore.
During my own childhood, when relatives came to visit, the adults played cards and we cousins were able to run wild with less supervision then usual. My own kids and grandchildren are avid card players and I expect the tradition will continue in some families, anyway.
Today, we move on to Arnaudville.