Collections for College of Liberal Arts

COLL 1-B 04 f – University Archives: Foreign Languages

COLL 86 – France-Amérique de la Louisiane Acadienne Records

The Society France Amérique de la Louisiane Acadienne was formed in Lafayette on 26 Oct. 1951. It had a two-fold aim. First, it sought to strengthen ties of friendship and kinship that united France and the United States, specifically French-Acadian Louisiana. Second, it sought to encourage the maintenance of French as a living language among the people of Southwest Louisiana. This collection includes organization records, Acadian Committee records, and meeting photographs.

COLL 127 – Marie del Norte Theriot Collection

Marie del Norte Theriot taught French at the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette). This collection contains information concerning people, places, and events during and before her life; information on different sections of Louisiana; and information on historical events. It includes postcards, notes, memos, awards presented to her, songs, biographical information on people of the U.S., photographs, and her personal souvenirs. Marie del Norte Theriot donated the collection, which is part of the Women in Louisiana Collection.

COLL 129A – Avoyelles Parish Colonial Records

This collection contains digitized copies of Avoyelles Parish colonial documents. These documents include sales of land, slaves, and products, mortgages, declaration of homesteads, and judgments. Also included is an Oil and Gas Map of Louisiana. These documents are in French and English. The physical copies of these documents can be found at the Louisiana State Archives. Donated by Sheldon Roy.

COLL 165 – Marie Theard Manuscripts

An unpublished manuscript of "Old Songs of French and Creole Origin Collected in Louisiana," compiled by Marie Theard. Photocopy, 297 pp. Donated by Frances M. Crist, 1990.

COLL 167 – Ain Cadjien [Anonymous] Literary Manuscripts

Material on the literature presented in Cajun French prepared by an anonymous individual and delivered to KVPI radio station in Ville Platte. Includes translations of literary excerpts, poems, etc. into Cajun French and grammar of Cajun French. Photocopy. Original in possession of KVPI. Secured by Mario Mamalakis for the University of Louisiana at Lafayette to copy.

COLL 206 – Council for the Development of French in Louisiana (CODOFIL) Records

On July 20, 1968, Gov. John J. McKeithen signed into law Act No. 409 authorizing the establishment of the Council for the Development of French in Louisiana (CODOFIL). It was developed to do all things necessary to accomplish the development, utilization, and preservation of the French language for the cultural, economic and tourist benefit of the state of Louisiana. This collection consists of mostly CODOFIL Office Records, which includes correspondence, meeting agendas, photographs, press releases, news clippings, reports, etc. There are scrapbooks that contain photographs and newspaper clippings from 1966 thru 2001. These are also photographs of the 25th anniversary of CODOFIL and scholarship applications from 1990-2005.

COLL 210 – Yvonne Levasseur Papers

Yvonne Lavasseur was a registered nurse and a successful writer in French. She published over 200 short stories and two novels, as well as worked in the public school system. This collection includes notes from her classes at SLI and American High School, a draft of her thesis, correspondence, newspaper clippings and some of her writings.

COLL 223 – Mildred Ruth and George Boylston Brown Music Collection

This collection contains unpublished music. Most of the compositions and arrangements by Mildred Ruth Brown are based on French folk songs. There are arrangements for piano, voice, and string orchestra and quartet. Many of the arrangements by George B. Brown are hymn tunes for organ or keyboard. There is also some vocal material.

COLL 229 – Raymond S. Rodgers Collection

Raymond S. Rodgers taught political science at the University of Southwestern Louisiana from 1966 to 1968. He was deeply involved in the movement to save the Cajun French dialect and was a member of the Council for the Development of French in Louisiana (CODOFIL). This collection consists of material dealing with CODOFIL and French in Louisiana. Donated by Raymond S. Rodgers.

COLL 273 – Elizabeth Brandon Papers

Elizabeth Brandon was a professor who specialized in the French language and Louisiana Cajun folklore. Dr. Brandon served as Professor of French and as chair of the French Department during her tenure at the University of Houston. Her research covered a wide range of topics revolving around Louisiana history, culture, and folklore. This collection contains Dr. Brandon’s working and personal papers. A large portion of the papers include written notes, in both English and French, on Louisiana history, people, cultures, folksongs, and dances.

COLL 288 – Philip F. Dur Papers

While at the University of Southwestern Louisiana, Dur extensively researched and wrote about the life of Ambassador Jefferson Caffery (1886-1975). Much of this collection stems from the research conducted by Dur in preparation for his publications and includes both originals and copies of material, primarily correspondence, and photographs, created throughout Ambassador Caffery’s career. For more information about Ambassador Jefferson Caffery, view the Jefferson Caffery Papers (Collection 45) and the Caffery Photograph Albums (Collection 45A). In addition to material related to Ambassador Caffery, this collection contains research materials related to journal articles and other publications written throughout Dur’s career, covering a wide variety of topics including American education, Louisiana history, and French history. Collection donated by Philip Dur Jr. and his siblings, and Christopher Gilcrease.

COLL 311 – Zachary Richard Papers

Zachary Richard is a world-renowned musician, recording artist, author, and educator. This collection contains Zachary Richard’s personal papers, including production and research notes from his documentary Against the Tide, publications, music, press and newspaper clippings, and publicity items. The collection also documents his Francophone initiatives. Zachary Richard donated the collection.

COLL 322 – Elvina H. Montegut Papers

This collection contains mainly letters in French to Elvina Montegut of LaPlace, Louisiana. They date especially in 1911, 1915 and 1938. There are also many unidentified family photographs. This collection was donated to John Robert Moore of the History Department by Rita Davis. Dr. Moore sent the materials to UAAMC.

COLL 323 – Jean S. Gentil Papers

Jean Gentil was born in France which he left in 1851 as a political exile. He arrived in St. James Parish, Louisiana in 1853. He taught foreign languages at Jefferson College in Convent, LA. In 1865 he and A.V. Roman started the newspaper La Louisianais. He edited the paper 1865-1873, 1874-1881. Almost everything in the collection is a photocopy of either publications or documents from the Kurtz Collection at the Louisiana Research Library, Tulane University. There is also a framed portrait of M. Gentil. Mrs. William Butcher of Lafayette donated gathered the material and donated it to UAAMC.

COLL 326 – William J. Thibodeaux Collection

William Joseph Thibodeau interviews interesting people in both French and English and manages a French table in Rayne where their events were first audio-recorded. He writes mostly non-fictional articles with historical significance to the Acadiana area.

COLL 329 – Colonial Louisiana Records Collection

Microfilmed colonial records copied from repositories in Europe and North America. Drawn from French and Spanish colonial archives, and the British Museum and Public Records Office, the collection focuses on the history of European settlement in the Mississippi Valley, New France, Acadia, Ile Royale, and the French Antilles. For a further description of the Colonial Louisiana Records Collection, view Brasseaux, Carl A. “The Colonial Records Collection of the Center for Louisiana Studies”, Louisiana History, Vol. XXV, No. 2. pp. 181-188, Spring 1984. This collection includes most of the materials listed in Nancy M. Miller Surrey’s Calendar of Manuscripts in Paris Archives and Libraries Relating to the History of the Mississippi Valley to 1803. This calendar acts as a comprehensive guide documenting the French experience in the Mississippi Valley. To see Surrey's Calendar in electronic form, view "A Guide to French Louisiana Manuscripts: An expanded and revised edition of the 1926 Surrey Calendar with Appendices" from The Historic New Orleans Collection.

COLL 331 – Renaissance Cadienne Records

Renaissance Cadienne was a performance group established in 1990 for the purpose of preserving the unique culture of the Cajuns of the prairies and bayous of South Louisiana. The group used authentic Cajun/French folk songs and dances in its performances. The collection documents the activities of the group. The collection was donated by May Waggoner.

COLL 339 – Warren A. Perrin Papers

This collection contains files of Warren Perrin’s correspondence with foreign governments, testimonies from Acadian descendants, numerous speeches and newspaper articles, and the Official Proclamation by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth of England recognizing the injustice done to the French Neutrals (The Acadians) in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia from 1755 through 1763, commonly known as the Grand Derangement. This collection was donated by Mr. Warren Perrin.

COLL 344 – Mathé Allain Papers

Dr. Mathé Allain was a professor of French at University of Southwestern Louisiana (now University of Louisiana at Lafayette). She specialized in the history of French in Louisiana. This collection consists of copies of her research, writings, and lessons. Such topics include Louisiana history, women, and Cajun culture. Languages of the materials include English, French, and Spanish.

COLL 381 – Frans C. Amelinckx Papers

Dr. Frans Carl Amelinckx was a professor of French and Francophone Studies and the head of the Department of Foreign Languages at the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette) from 1983 until his retirement in 2003. This collection primarily consists of Dr. Amelinckx’s research notes, written works, and personal/professional correspondence, but also contains class materials, graduate student work, and conference materials. The majority of materials in this collection are in French. Donated by Dr. Carol Cedar Amelinckx.

COLL 393 – duQuesnay and Related Families Papers

This collection contains papers related to the le Mercier du Quesnay and related families. Papers include nobility documents from France, correspondence, royal documents, financial papers, newspapers, photographs, and books, including several letter books and scrapbooks. There are also several plays written by Adolphe Le Mercier du Quesnay. Other family names included are Le Mercier, Dommartin (Dompmartin), Jumecourt, Grisolle, and Adams, or variations thereof. Dr. Alvina Bonnie Wheeler of Southern Methodist University, and wife of Jeremy duQuesnay Adams, donated this collection through Dr. Maurice W. duQuesnay.

COLL 395 – Barry Jean Ancelet Papers

Dr. Barry Jean Ancelet served on the faculty of University of Southwestern Louisiana/University of Louisiana at Lafayette from 1977 until his retirement in 2016. He was a professor in the Department of Modern Languages, serving as chair of the department and as the first director of the University’s Center for Acadian and Creole Folklore, the largest compilation of media resources pertaining to these two south Louisiana ethnic groups. He was also the co-founder of the Tribute to Cajun Music in 1974, which became the annual Festivals Acadiens. This collection consists of manuscripts from “Suite de loupe” (1998) and “The Makers of Cajun Music” (1984). Dr. Ancelet donated the collection.

COLL 458 – Cajun French Music Association Records

The Cajun French Music Association (CFMA) is a non-profit organization of Cajuns and non-Cajuns whose purpose is to promote and preserve Cajun music and various aspects of the Acadian Heritage. This collection consists of correspondence, newsletters, photographs, publications, events material, and audio/visual materials. Donated by the French House (La Maison Française) at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

MSS 7 – Louis Stagg Letters

Photocopies of letters to Laurie, Stagg’s sweetheart then-wife, written in French with typed copies and translations. Written from Ville Platte, Louisiana, and Opelousas, Louisiana before the war, and Camp Moore, Louisiana; Tupelo, Mississippi; Jackson, Mississippi; and Chattanooga, Tennessee during the war. Donated by Gene Ardoin.

MSS 43 – Gavarret Family Papers

Poems, school books, correspondence (in French). Additions [43-2 through 43-5] donated by Lynn Chaney.

MSS 60 – Louis Lefevre Journal

Journal recording observations (in French) made during travels in Algiers, 1846-1848. Lefevre gave this journal to his friend from New Orleans, Louisiana, Jules Dehor, in 1853.

MSS 118 – Lorene Bernard Thesis

Thesis: Idioms of Common Usage by the French-Speaking People of Southwest Louisiana (Acadiana). No donor card. Donated in 1981.

MSS 175 – Bec Doux Cartoons

Bec Doux was a weekly newspaper comic written in Cajun French by Ken Meaux (art) and Early Comeaux (text). It was published for the first time in The Kaplan Herald in August 1969 and ran on a weekly basis for over twenty years. The collection includes photographs of Meaux and Comeaux, as well as the artwork for the comic strips.

COLL 119 – Archivo Historico Nacional [Spain] Records

Microfilm records in the Archivo Historico Nacional, Madrid from the Papeles Relativo a las Negociaciones Deiplomaticas de Espana con los Estados Unidos de Norteamerica series, 1737-1819. Part of the Louisiana Colonial Records Series.

COLL 120 – Archivo General de la Nación [Mexico] Records

Microfilm records in the Archivo General de la Nación, Mexico City, from the Correspondencia de los Virreyes, the Historias, and the Provincias Internas Serias. These are mainly administrative records from provincial governors to the Viceroy of New Spain, 1500-1812. Part of the Louisiana Colonial Records Series.

COLL 121 – Archivo General de Indias [Spain] Records

Microfilm of records in the Archivo General de Indias, Seville, Spain, from the Audiencia de Mexico Series, 1540-1810. Part of the Louisiana Colonial Records Series.

COLL 131 – East Baton Rouge Parish Civil Records

Civil record books of East Baton Rouge Parish during Spanish and Early National Periods. Filming was probably done by the Center for Louisiana Studies. All reels are negative except Reel 3.

COLL 329 – Colonial Louisiana Records Collection

Microfilmed colonial records copied from repositories in Europe and North America. Drawn from French and Spanish colonial archives, and the British Museum and Public Records Office, the collection focuses on the history of European settlement in the Mississippi Valley, New France, Acadia, Ile Royale, and the French Antilles. For a further description of the Colonial Louisiana Records Collection, view Brasseaux, Carl A. “The Colonial Records Collection of the Center for Louisiana Studies”, Louisiana History, Vol. XXV, No. 2. pp. 181-188, Spring 1984. This collection includes most of the materials listed in Nancy M. Miller Surrey’s Calendar of Manuscripts in Paris Archives and Libraries Relating to the History of the Mississippi Valley to 1803. This calendar acts as a comprehensive guide documenting the French experience in the Mississippi Valley. To see Surrey's Calendar in electronic form, view "A Guide to French Louisiana Manuscripts: An expanded and revised edition of the 1926 Surrey Calendar with Appendices" from The Historic New Orleans Collection.

COLL 344 – Mathé Allain Papers

Dr. Mathé Allain was a professor of French at University of Southwestern Louisiana (now University of Louisiana at Lafayette). She specialized in the history of French in Louisiana. This collection consists of copies of her research, writings, and lessons. Such topics include Louisiana history, women, and Cajun culture. Languages of the materials include English, French, and Spanish.

COLL 345 – Anthony Muller Camp #8, United Spanish War Veterans Collection

Organizational papers of Anthony Muller Camp #8, United Spanish War Veterans; also proceedings and programs from annual meetings of the Department of Louisiana, USWV association; proceedings, minutes, reports, and programs from the national meetings and conventions of the USWV; publications about the USWV, its ceremonies, procedures, rituals, and history; and artifacts from Anthony Muller Camp #8.

COLL 521 – Azema Demarais Collection

This collection contains a portrait and land grant, both in frames. Azema Demarais, a Frenchwoman whose family settled in Louisiana during colonial days, is the subject of the portrait. Her great granddaughter Azema Demarais Rountree Smith, owned the portrait and land grant. Louis LoConte and his daughters, Paula Frazier and Amanda Michanczyk, donated these items. Dr. Manuel Morales of the UL Lafayette History Department and Dr. Leslie Bary of the UL Lafayette Modern Languages Department translated and transcribed the land grant from Spanish to English.