Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Christmas in the Country

St. Francisville Celebrates Christmas in the Country

By Anne Butler

Parade in St. Francisville
Christmas in Country Parade
Troubled economic times call for a return to comfort, to simplicity, to the tried-and-true. That’s just what the little Louisiana community of St. Francisville, perched on a ridge overlooking the Mississippi River, offers visitors with its annual Christmas in the Country on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, December 5, 6 and 7th. This safe, small-town celebration of the season combines intriguing shopping opportunities with lots of old-fashioned fun for the whole family—lively Christmas parade, strolling carolers, living nativity, house tours, theatrical performances, all in historic downtown St. Francisville.

Numerous vendors display their wares along the main street.
Vendors display their wares along the main street.
The celebration kicks off on Friday evening when the angelic voices of the Children’s Choir of the First Baptist Church ring out from the front porch of Town Hall on Ferdinand St., following which longtime Mayor Billy D’Aquilla will light the town tree and host a welcome reception at which Santa just might put in an appearance.


With its Victorian homes and shops decorated with twinkling white lights tracing gingerbread galleries and soaring rooflines, the little town is transformed into a veritable winter wonderland for the holiday season, and after dark it is positively magical. Friday night the downtown merchants host White Light Night from 6:30 to 9 p.m., with trolley transportation between shops, each one featuring spectacular decorations and delightful merchandise in a pleasant and relaxed environment far removed from mall madness. Visitors should take time to hop off the trolley to participate in the popular pastime called Peep Into Our Holiday Homes, with signs designating those historic homes that offer curious visitors a glimpse through lace-c urtained windows into family holiday observances. At 7 p.m. the Baton Rouge Symphony performs at Grace Episcopal Church, followed by a dessert reception, and tickets are available through the Bank of St. Francisville.

Always a hightlight, marching bands for the Christmas Parade.
Christmas in Country Parade

Saturday gets an early start with a 7:30 Prayer Breakfast at the Methodist Church Fellowship Hall. Children will relish the opportunity to have Breakfast With St. Nick at Grace Episcopal’s Jackson Hall, sponsored by the Women’s Service League, with three seatings, 8, 9:30 and 11 a.m.; reservations may be made by calling 225-202-5403 and there is a fee. The Women’s Service League will also sell their popular giant cypress wreaths as well as Plantation Country Cookbooks on Ferdinand St. throughout the weekend to fund charitable community projects.

Throughout the day on Saturday, musical entertainments are scheduled all around the historic downtown area. The Bains Elementary Chorus sings at 9:30 a.m. at the Methodist Church Fellowship Hall, Bains Lower Elementary Choir at 9:30 at the Historical Society Museum, West Feliciana Middle School Choir at 10 at the museum, Lagniappe Quartet strolling along Ferdinand and Royal Streets from 10 to 2, West Feliciana High School Spanish and Latin Club singers at 10:30 at the Methodist Fellowship Hall, High School Choir at Methodist Hall at 11. The Angola Inmate Traveling Band enlivens things across from Garden Symposium Park from noon to 4, and the Main Street Band performs in Parker Memorial Park noon to 2. Junior Jazzercise puts on a lively demonstration at 11:30 downtown.
Vendors offer handmade goods.
The Women’s Service League’s immensely popular annual Christmas Parade begins at 2 p.m. Saturday and runs along Ferdinand and Commerce Sts. with decorated floats, bands, marching units and plenty of candy flung to onlookers. Theme this year is JUMP IN! in tribute to grand marshall Miguel Pate, hometown hero-athlete who participated in this year’s Olympics competing in the Long Jump. All day in Parker Memorial Park there will be vendors offering food, music and children’s activities, and other artisans will offer strictly homemade items along Ferdinand and Royal Streets throughout the weekend.

Saturday evening abounds with special activities, beginning with a Community Sing-A-Long at the Methodist Church on Royal St. at 6 p.m. The First Baptist Church at the intersection of LA 10 and US 61 reprises its beloved Live Nativity from 6 to 8 p.m., and the Peep Into Our Holiday Homes continues along Ferdinand and Royal Streets from 6 to 8 p.m. At 7:30 p.m. at the Old Market Hall on Royal St., the talented group of thespians in the St. Francisville Transitory Theatre presents two Christmas stories, “A Christmas Carol” and “The Gift of the Magi,” with limited seating and a small admission charge.

Christmas in Country Parade

Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. the Library Tour of Homes opens the doors to some spectacular private residences for the benefit of the parish library system; tickets may be purchased at the library on Ferdinand St. in advance or on the day of the tour. Featured homes are those of Clifford and Cynthia Wilcox, Phillip Plaisance and Ken Haydel, L.J. and Jo Sevin, Chard and Mendy Richard, and the Chapel at The Bluffs. The St. Francisville Transitory Theatre presents a second performance of the two Christmas stories at 7:30 p.m. Sunday evening in the Old Market Hall.

Unless otherwise noted, all activities are free of charge and open to the public. The St. Francisville area also provides other opportunities for visitors throughout the month. There are a number of splendidly restored plantation homes open for tours daily: The Cottage Plantation, Butler Greenwood Plantation, The Myrtles Plantation, Greenwood Plantation, all decorated for the holidays in antebellum style, plus Catalpa Plantation by reservation and Afton Villa Gardens seasonally. The area’s two state historic sites, Rosedown Plantation and Oakley Plantation in the Audubon state site, offer fascinating living-history demonstrations every weekend to allow visitors to experience 19th-century plantation life and customs. The nearby Tunica Hills region offers unmatched recreational activities in its unspoiled wilderness areas—hiking, biking, birding, photography, horseback riding with rental mounts from Cross Creek Stables. Besides the shops, many in restored historic structures, there are fine little restaurants throughout the St. Francisville area as well as some of the state’s most popular Bed & Breakfasts for overnight stays, including historic plantations, lakeside clubhouses and beautiful townhouses right in the middle of all the seasonal festivities.

For additional information on the St. Francisville area, telephone 225-635-4224, 225-635-3873 or 225-635-6330; online www.stfrancisville.us, www.stfrancisville.net or www.stfrancisvillefestivals.com.


Monday, November 10, 2008

Friends of Library "Tour of Homes"

"2008 TOUR OF HOMES"

Friends of the WFP Library's
Annual Christmas Tour of Homes

West Feliciana Tour of Homes

The twelfth annual Friends of the West Feliciana Tour of Homes will be held Sunday, December 7, 2008 between 12 noon and 5:00P.M. During Christmas in the Country. Four homes will be on tour: one in Plantation Oaks off Hwy 61 near Riverbend Nuclear Plant, one in Plantation Ridge off Hwy 10, and two in the Bluffs. Additionally, The Chapel on the Bluff in The Bluffs will be open to the tour.

Tickets for the tour are $15 per person and may be purchased in advance and on the day of the tour at the West Feliciana Parish Library, 11865 Ferdinand Street in St. Francisville. All Proceeds from the tour are used for library projects. For more information, call the library at 225-635-3364.

West Feliciana Parish Library
11865 Ferdinand St.
St. Francisville, La, 70775

Website: www.youseemore.com/westfeliciana
For more information call 225-635-3364

Homes on 2008 Tour

Clifford and Cynthia Wilcox
5310 Live Oak Drive
St. Francisville, La 70775

A country French style home built in 2006. It features an open floor plan and is completely handicapped accessible. It sits on 9 acres of beautifully landscaped property.

Home of Clifford and Cynthia Wilcox
Photo by
Ann Weller
Philip Plaisance & Ken Haydel
5758 Alexander Drive
St. Francisville, La 70775

A brick and stucco cottage in French Quarter-West Indies style built in 2004 by Haydel Contractors. The owners’ collections feature antique estate silver, Tiffany china, vermeil and Chinese and Japanese porcelains. The home is currently being photographed for several national interior design magazines.


Home of Philip Plaisance & Ken Haydel
Photo by
Ann Weller
L.J. & Jo Sevin
14205 Sunrise Way
St. Francisville, La 70775

The Sevin Home is built in the West Indies style with an enclosed courtyard. The outdoor kitchen overlooks the 18th green of The Bluffs Golf Course and Thompson Creek, and a sundeck is above the outdoor kitchen. An interior winding staircase, locally crafted, leads to a library area, guest quarters, and a media center which opens to a sundeck.


Home of L.J. & Jo Sevin
Photo by
Ann Weller
Chard & Mindey Richard
5913 Afton Villa Way
St. Francisville, La 70775

Built and designed by Jordan Traditions in 2005, this Louisiana colonial style home was designed using materials from the 18th century era. Rustic materials, such as old brick and virgin longleaf heart pine floors and beams, gabled rooflines and a huge classic front porch speak to the traditional roots of this home. These classic features join with the open floor plan, kitchen and bath amenities and Energy Star features to meet the needs of modern family life.


home of Chard & Mindey Richard
Photo by
Ann Weller
The Chapel on the Bluffs

The Chapel on the Bluffs is a nondenominational chapel for the use and enjoyment of all Bluffs members, residents, and lodge guests. The hanging light fixtures originated from an old European chapel. Black walnut paneled walls are from a preacher’s barn. The church is surrounded by a custom built white picket fence with cross detail. The masonry of the outdoor steps is an exact replica of an old church in Clinton, Louisiana.


Chapel at the Bluffs
Photo by
Ann Weller


Chapel at the Bluffs
Photo by Ann Weller

Christmas Special - Transitory Theatre


St. Francisville Transitory Theatre presents;
Performances are scheduled for 4:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, December 6 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday, December 7 at Market Hall on Royal Street in St. Francisville. Each performance will run approximately 90 minutes which includes a 15 minute intermission between plays. Admission to all performances is $5.00 per person. Tickets will be on sale 30 minutes prior to each performance. Seating is limited to 50 people, so come early to get your seats!.

For more informaiton: Click Here

Transportation Notice!

Ferry Schedule
The St. Francisville/New Roads ferry is on a low water schedule which means that it will run only during daylight hours. Until further notice, the ferry will operate from 6 am until 6 pm.

Highway 61 Closing -(Hwy Closure has been postponded until further notice - Hwy will be open this weekend.)
Highway 61 from Folks Road to Highway 965 will be closed on Friday, November 14 at 7:00 pm with a scheduled re-opening on Monday morning, November 17 at 6:00 am. Denton & James, the contractor for the widening of the highway, will need to do culvert work during this time. There will be detours set up to allow flow into state highways.
More information on the exact route of the detours will be forthcoming.

Informational Map - Click on icons for information.


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