The Spiritual Backdrop: Thibodaux Churches
treneice cannon video editor
Setting the Stage for the Chitlin’ Circuit: Thibodaux History and Culture
Hannah Robert and Jennifer Marts podcast editor & staff Thibodaux, Louisiana, formed as a trading post between New Orleans and Bayou Teche in the late 1700s. This area, rich in cultural traditions, was a melting pot of races and nationalities. It was this mix of African, French, Spanish and Creole cultures that made South Louisiana a rich backdrop for innovative music, according to Curtis Johnson’s Glimpses of Black Life Along Bayou Lafourche. Today, Thibodaux is a modern college town, but in the 1940s and 1950s it was segregated. While this division caused much pain, it also paved the way for this small city to cultivate and protect a new sound being explored by Black musicians, according to Johnson’s book. Thibodaux, with its location between Baton Rouge and New Orleans, became an easy and welcoming stop along the Chitlin’ Circuit, a series of venues for Black performers. “Everybody wanted to play in Thibodaux because if you played Thibodaux, you were the top of the line.” Bobby Rush, a Louisiana blues musician who has won three Grammys and is called the “King of the Chitlin’ Circuit” The rich Black culture and community of Thibodaux fostered the musicians on the Circuit. In the community, Black children in Thibodaux attended C.M. Washington High School, the only Black primary and secondary school in the area. Pioneered and named for Cordelia Matthews Washington, the school opened in 1902. “I had to make a round trip of 70 miles a day because I decided I wanted a high school education,” says Marilyn Marts, a Larose South Lafourche native. “It was such a long trip to and from school, I tried to do some of my work on the bus.” While the school was segregated, it was known for excellence. “In each of her students, Mrs. Washington inspired a sense of pride and commitment to service,” says Ronnie Winston, a Thibodaux police officer who attended C.M. Washington High school and was quoted in Glimpses of Black Life Along Bayou Lafourche. “We felt like it was a family, it wasn’t just like going to school. She made you feel like you were part of something. She encouraged us to excel. She encouraged people to do the best they can.” Thibodaux also boasted a vibrant spiritual community, from which the songs and music developed. Churches like Allen Chapel, Calvary United Methodist, Moses Baptist and St. Luke Catholic Church created opportunities for the Black community to commune and enjoy music like gospel, jazz and the blues together. In Spirituals and The Blues, African American theologian James Cone says “…the blues and the spirituals flow from the same bedrock of experience, and neither is an adequate interpretation of Black life without the other.” Margie Scoby, a local historian, founded the Finding Our Roots African American History Museum to preserve and share these stories and history. “We all have the blues one time or another. They [Chitlin’ Circuit performers] just knew how to convert it into a song.” Margie Scoby Carlie Dalgo staff designer
The Great Depression and WWII’s Impact on The Chitlin’ Circuit
kaylie st.pierre staff On a Saturday night in South Louisiana, sounds of saxophones, laughter and dancing filled the air, regardless of the tough times and uncertain future. The local nightclubs offered the only entertainment around, promising memories and good music for just fifty cents. The Chitlin’ Circuit thrived during the Great Depression, from 1929 to 1939, and World War II, from 1939 to 1945. These time periods marked growth for the circuit due to the limited entertainment opportunities in the South. “Chitlin Circuit and the Road To Rock ‘N Roll” author Preston Lauterbach says the lack of entertainment and affordability of the Circuit helped it flourish. “There wasn’t a lot going on. People didn’t have TV. There was very limited access to radio and other media. A popular band coming through a town and playing for 50 cents was a pretty good deal, it was worth it for people.” Preston Lauterbach The Depression assisted in migration, making it easier for people to leave harsh discrimination in the South. A local musician, Thomas Lyons, says the Great Depression spurred musicians to migrate to Northern areas where they developed their own music cultures. “People had disposable income, and they wanted to have a good time,” Lyons says. “So the Circuit and booking agents sprung up because they could make money doing it.” WWII provided jobs for African Americans, resulting in better income. More venue owners established Black nightclubs, giving musicians job opportunities to perform. “For the first time in American history, African American people reached almost total employment,” says Lauterbach. “Everybody had jobs due to the war and the war effort.” WWII brought positive and negative impacts to the Circuit, like providing jobs and creating challenges of rationing and the draft. Rationing became a concern due to supply and demand issues, as well as the focus on military needs. “Americans could only use so much of certain products like gasoline and rubber because those items had to go towards the Army and towards the war effort,” says Lauterbach. Throughout these hard times of World War II and The Great Depression, African Americans found comfort in blues music. Margie Scoby, president of the Finding Our Roots African American History Museum in Houma, says music was their way of expressing themselves. The post-war blues was their way of recovering from what they had experienced. “They always had a way of expressing feelings and thoughts and messages,” she says. “They always had a way for one to help the other.” 1942 DUKW Truck used in WWII with ammunition and supplies List of Casualties from WWII from Lafourche Parish Model Plane of Second Lieutenant Augustus G. Brown Song Books Issued to Soldiers while in WWII WWII Registration Card
Podcast Series: Community Memories
jaci remondet staff Jerry Jones former Lafourche Parish Councilman Thomas Lyons raised in Houma and moved to Thibodaux for college Harvey Hill Chitlin’ Circuit venue owner Hosea Hill’s grandson
C.M. Washington: Educating the Community
jennifer marts staff In 1902, a Black woman named Cordelia Matthews Washington pioneered the Negro Corporation Training School in “back of town” Thibodaux, Louisiana. African American children traveled lengthy distances from Cut Off to Houma and even Napoleonville to attend this all-Black school. “I had to make a round trip of 70 miles a day, because I decided I wanted a high school education. It was such a long trip to and from school, I tried to do some of my work on the bus.” Marilyn Marts, a Larose native The vision for the school began with Washington’s passion for education, driving her to create the first African American educational institution within the tri-parish area. “The best education I got was going to the all-Black C.M. Washington High School,” says 1963 graduate Donald Johnson. “The teachers really cared about the students, and they made you learn.” In 1942 the school board changed the name to C.M. Washington Elementary and High School in honor of the founder. After integration in 1968, the school’s name changed to South Thibodaux Elementary School despite pushback from the community and the school’s alumni association. “Our goal was to get the name (C.M. Washington) returned to at least one of the schools in the area,” says Marian Ellis, a 1959 graduate of C.M. Washington and member of the school’s alumni association. With pressure from the alumni association, the Thibodaux City Council changed the school’s name back to C.M. Washington in 2019. “The vote was unanimous,” says Ellis. A century after Washington started the school, current principal, Gina Johnson, says the school is still serving the area’s children. “The teachers here work really, really hard and their main focus is doing what’s best for our kids and putting things in place to motivate them, challenge them, and keep them abreast academically as well as socially and emotionally.” Gina Johnson Washington left an educational legacy along Bayou Lafourche that built a foundation for the Black community. Ellis says, “I am proud to be a graduate of C.M. Washington.” Born in Lafourche Parish, Louisiana in January 1876, Cordelia Matthews Washington was an educational pioneer who championed a school for the Black children of the Bayou Region. Side of School Back View of the School C.M. Washington Sign C.M. Washington Cheerleaders from 1964-1968 C.M. Washington High School A Current Classroom Current Classroom Decoration More Classroom Decoration C.M. Washington Female Teachers First Building of C.M. Washington Elementary Graduating Senior Class Homecoming Flyer from 1958 of C.M. Washington Alma Mater in 1953 lyrics C.M. Washington School Marker Today’s School Decoration Mrs. Marion Rhodes Fleming Street C.M. Washington is on Gina Johnson, Principal of C.M. Washington Football Team Poster The Proclamation of C.M. Washington
A Traveling Guide: The Green Book
skylar neal staff Other Green Book Travel Guides During Segregation
The Secret Code of the Chitlin’ Circuit
sally-anne torres staff During segregation, Blacks came up with ways to tell each other where to go so they could be safe and enjoy activities. The “Chitlin’ Code” represents how they knew what venues to visit or where to perform. The world of Black music existed separately from the entertainment nearly everyone listened to at the time, says Preston Lauterbach, author of The Chitlin’ Circuit and the Road to Rock ‘N’ Roll. On the circuit, Blacks could safely attend various establishments, including theaters, juke joints, nightclubs and restaurants, spread throughout the southern U.S. “Due to segregation in this country, African American people did not have access to mainstream America,” Lauterbach says. But venues serving chitlins signified that it was a safe space for Black performers to sing or act for their audiences, says Jackie Avery, a musician from the circuit. “Most of those places [venues] were considered people’s houses,” Avery says. Chitlins, short for chitterlings or animal intestines, is a dish that dates back to slavery and plantation life, Lauterbach says. “If there was a slave owner who had the hog butchered, the master is going to keep the pork chops, ham, bacon and all of the more desirable cuts. And the slaves will be left with pigs feet, snout, ears and the entrails.” Preston Lauterbach Venues also could not always pay in cash and would pay with food instead, according to Lloyd “Teddy” Johnson, owner of Teddy’s Juke Joint. “You always feed the band because most of the time, they’re homeless,” he says. According to Lauterbach, this “code” might be viewed more as a variation of the Green Book rather than an actual code. The Green Book was a published book that served as a guide for Blacks, indicating places that welcomed them. The book featured places like the Dew Drop Inn, the Chicago, and the Apex Club. Lauterbach also says that the Chitlin’ Circuit was a safe space for Black musicians because it coincided with their history and culture with slavery and plantations. “African American people came to understand how the circuit worked,” Lauterbach says. Segregation laws made it illegal for Blacks and whites to patronize the same places during the Jim Crow era. So Blacks took the initiative to create safe spaces of their own. Spaces like the Chitlin’ Circuit where they could cultivate and appreciate music and theater despite the restrictions.
An Overlooked Artifact: Moses, Allen Chapel, Calvary Cemeteries
gabrielle chaissson staff Hidden among Thibodaux, Louisiana’s side streets lies a cemetery with a deep connection to the Chitlin’ Circuit. Hosea Hill and Eddie “Guitar Slim” Jones, two significant circuit figures, are buried in Moses, Allen Chapel, Calvary Cemeteries. Hill owned the Sugar Bowl—a venue that brought the circuit down to Thibodaux—and he managed “Guitar Slim,” a popular circuit performer known for his unique performance style and outlandish entertainment tactics. Hill’s grave sits next to Guitar Slim’s and faces the site of the Sugar Bowl, which was intentional, according to his niece Angela Watkins. “Burying him closest to what he became. What he was known for…That’s a nice ending.” Angela Watkins Since its establishment in 1880, Moses, Allen Chapel, Calvary Cemeteries has served as an exclusively African American cemetery for three of Thibodaux’s churches — Moses Baptist Church, Allen Chapel AME Church and Calvary United Methodist Church. It is considered one of the earliest local burial grounds for African Americans, according to its historical marker. “African Americans needed a place to bury their loved ones when they passed on, so the churches got together and purchased property to do that,” says Patrick Bell, the pastor of Allen Chapel AME Church. “It was a way for families to say goodbye to their loved ones.” Bell says all three churches share the land and each is responsible for its section of the cemetery. The Louisiana Cemetery Board divides the site into Moses Baptist Church Cemetery, Allen Chapel AME Cemetery and the Calvary United Methodist Church Cemetery. Divided along the three streets that surround the cemetery, the Moses Cemetery is listed on McCulla Street, Allen Chapel Cemetery is on 12th Street and Calvary Cemetery is on Goode Street, according to the board’s database. The cemetery was unnamed until 1999 when the Lafourche Heritage Society’s board members commissioned a historical marker and combined the names of all three churches, according to the Lafourche Heritage Society Historian and Nicholls State University Archivist Clifton Theriot. Although the cemetery is shared between the three churches, most of the people buried there were not affiliated with one specific church, according to cemetery documents. The headstones are arranged in haphazard rows throughout the cemetery and are both engraved and hand-painted, representing the site’s 144 years of history, ancestry and legacy. Some of the oldest headstones commemorating the burial sites are of two African American Union soldiers, George Anderson and Alexander Miller — soldiers born and raised in South Louisiana, yet fought for the Union and their freedom. Anderson was a private in Union Company I within the 78th Regiment of the United States Colored Infantry and Miller was a private in Union Company K within the 75th Regiment of the United States Colored Infantry. There are also World War I, Korean War and World War II soldiers buried here. Along with its circuit and military connections, this cemetery has a strong connection to local community leaders. Leaders like Cordelia M. Washington, who was a pioneer of African American education, and Pastor Jacob Young, who helped establish Allen Chapel AME Church in Thibodaux in 1895, are buried here along with many others. And while the cemetery is the final home for many important figures, there are few records about it. Local entities like the Louisiana Cemetery Board, the Louisiana Office of Cultural Development and the Lafourche Heritage Society do not have a lot of historical documentation on this cemetery. “Black history wasn’t recorded like white history was recorded…The younger generations just aren’t interested in it anymore. On one hand, I applaud them. Move forward. On the other hand, you cannot forget the history. This is how you became you.” Angela Watkins Allen Chapel Marker Mr. George Anderson’s fallen headstone behind old headstones Calvary Church Front Entrance Calvary Church Marker Current photo of Allen Chapel Guitar Slim and Hosea Hill George Anderson’s headstone Guitar Slim’s headstone Guitar Slim, Hosea Hill, and Thurston’s graves with cemetery marker Hosea Hill’s headstone Moses Allen Chapel News clipping from 1899 when Rev. TJ Rhodes passed Rev. Thomas J Rhodes headstone
How the Circuit Got Its Name
jaci remondet staff A distinct smell travels through the air as water starts to boil over the hot stove fire. The oil hisses as the holy trinity — onion, green bell pepper and celery — sauté together. Chitterlings are on the menu for dinner tonight. Chitterlings, sometimes spelled chitlins or chittlins, can be prepared in a variety of ways, including stewed or deep-fried. Chitlins mostly come from hogs but can also come from other domestic animals such as cows, chickens or lambs, according to Oscar J. Jordan III in the Soul-Patrol Times. This dish is traditionally known as an African American soul food and dates back to slavery. The Chitlin’ Circuit name comes from an ode to the traditional dish in the Black community, says Gregory Rosary, an instructor in the Chef John Folse Culinary Institute at Nicholls State University. “Down South, little hole-in-the-wall juke joints would always have chitlins or pig feet, you know, soul food. Somebody just called it the Chitlin’ Circuit because chitlins were huge back then, and it was just a nickname they came up with.” Gregory Rosary Clubs compensated Black performers with food, such as chitlins, after a show. Chef Rosary says the venues would often serve the dish as well. The performers would then sell the food to earn money. Thibodaux native and former Lafourche Parish Councilman Jerry Jones says local stories passed on through generations gave the circuit its name. “What was told to me, the Chitlin’ Circuit, came from Black people eating chitlins,” Jones says. “Since it was a place for just Black people, and they had loved the special dish.” Henry Louis Gates says in his 1997 The New Yorker piece, “[Chitlins] its a good example of how something that was originally eaten out of necessity became, as is the way acquired taste, a thing actively enjoyed.” L&N Food Store Frozen Chitlin at L&N Food Store Cleaning Chitlins Cooking prep and spices Chitlins cooking in a pot Bowl of chitlins Stewed Chitlins Ingredients Chitlins Apple Cider Vinegar Baking Soda Garlic Onion Celery Red Bell Pepper Green Bell Pepper Chicken Broth Onion Powder Garlic Powder Salt Pepper Tony Chachere’s Seasoning Red Pepper Flakes Optional Rice 1 Clean the chitlins thoroughly and separate the membrane from the lining Tip: Use apple cider vinegar and baking soda to help with the smell and to clean further 2 Boil chitlins in a large pot to get rid of impurities Drain 3 Cook down all the vegetables in a clean pot and add the chitlins back in 4 Add in chicken broth and seasonings 5 Cook for about three hours on a low simmer 6 Optional: serve over rice