The Lacombe Choctaw have called the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain home for countless generations, and today, their descendants are working to preserve their ancestors’ traditions, language and history. In Lacombe’s town park, a traditional Choctaw house, known as a chukka, provides a setting where Choctaw descendant Scierra Legarde demonstrates the ancient art of basket weaving.
Preserving the lacombe choctaw basket weaving tradition
Using palmetto plants that grow wild in the surrounding forests and marshes, Legarde carefully weaves strips of palmetto stems into traditional baskets. A standard-size basket can require approximately 100 stems, woven together in patterns that have been passed down through generations.
Legarde learned the craft from Tom Colvin, who had learned from one of the last Lacombe Choctaw basket weavers. She worked alongside Colvin for six years before his death two years ago. For Legarde, preserving that knowledge is more than a responsibility. It is a personal connection to her ancestors. “I don’t see it as a burden. It’s like carrying a relative with you and you wanna bring that relative with you … anywhere you go,” Legarde said.
the lacombe choctaw: a story of survival
More than a century ago, some Choctaw families were removed from the Lacombe area and sent to Oklahoma. Others remained, eventually blending into the local Creole population. Their history is preserved at the Bayou Lacombe Museum, housed in a former schoolhouse built in 1912. Historical photographs and artifacts offer visitors a glimpse into the lives of the Indigenous people who inhabited the area.
Karen Ducre-Raymond, who helps manage the museum and has Choctaw ancestry herself, hopes visitors appreciate the perseverance of earlier generations who made their living from the surrounding land. Looking at the museum’s historical photographs, Raymond reflects on her ancestors. “I guess a sense of pride to know that these people have kind of paved the way for where we are today.”
awakening a Nearly lost language
Beyond basket weaving and historical preservation, some members of the Lacombe community are working to reclaim the Choctaw language. Legarde is among those helping keep the language and cultural traditions alive, recognizing that the knowledge passed down through generations can disappear without people willing to preserve it. “If we don’t pass these stories down, they fall asleep. … Nothing is forgotten, nothing is lost forever. It’s just been put to sleep and it’s our job to awaken it.”
Through the careful weaving of palmetto baskets, the preservation of historical photographs and the revival of their ancestral language, descendants of the Lacombe Choctaw are ensuring that the stories of their ancestors continue to be told.
bayou lacombe choctaw featured on tv
how to visit the bayou lacombe museum
The Bayou Lacombe Museum is located at 61115 S. St. Mary Street in Lacombe, Louisiana. The museum is open on Saturdays from Noon – 4pm. Arrangements can be made for other tour times. Contact the museum at info@bayoulacombemuseum.com. Click here to check out the museum’s Facebook page.
Leave a Reply