Who we are
Preserving Louisiana and Mississippi heritage and forgotten history.
A small private, non-commercial research society documenting faded communities, rail and mill towns, and old maps of southwestern Mississippi and Louisiana.
Our Mission
Preserving Louisiana and Mississippi heritage and forgotten history.
The Bayou & Bluff Historical Society researches, records, and shares the stories of Southeast Louisiana and Southwest Mississippi, from the river bottoms and bayous to the bluffs and piney woods. We focus on the history that's easiest to lose: vanished towns and old crossroads stores, shifting rivers and early land surveys, the Native peoples who lived here first, and the everyday lives of the families who built these communities.
Much of that past lives in scattered maps, railroad reports, timber-company records, and local memory. A place that once had a depot, a mill whistle, or a post office can be hard to find on a modern road map. So we do the footwork. We dig into old maps, land and court records, newspapers, photographs, and the memories of the people who lived it. Then we head into the field, walking old roads and town sites, visiting cemeteries and landmarks with permission, and documenting what still remains on the ground. We gather it all so these stories are easier to find and cite.
We treat history with respect. We credit our sources, separate fact from folklore, and work alongside tribes, archives, libraries, and state preservation offices. We protect sensitive places by never publishing exact site locations and by keeping sensitive material offline, and we honor the land, the landowners, and those laid to rest here.
We aren't a museum, a tourism bureau, or a commercial publisher. We're researchers who share what we learn freely with our neighbors, schools, and fellow researchers. Over time, we plan to publish finished books and essays here as chapters are ready.
Above all, history belongs to the community. Whether you're a lifelong researcher, a family keeping old stories alive, or a young historian just getting started, there's a place for you here. Together, we make sure the past of this place is remembered, understood, and passed on.
What we study
- Ghost towns and vanished settlements along old rail and river corridors
- Lumber-mill and railroad-company towns of the early twentieth century
- Historic maps, survey plats, and aerial photographs from public collections
- Glass insulator collecting as a window into telephone and telegraph history
How we work
Research draws on open public archives—state and federal map collections, digitized newspapers and reports, and libraries that grant permission to quote. We ask for citation where required, and we do not publish private land details or exact locations of sensitive sites.
See Projects for what is underway, and Sources & Thanks for the institutions that make this work possible.