11 posts
$137,000 pledged toward renovation; choir conflicts and catechism scheduling drive preservation urgency BRUSLY — One Month after descendants launched a campaign to save St. Francis Hall from demolition, fundraising has reached $137,000 toward a project now estimated between $120,000 and $160,000, depending on how extensively the century-old
October 02, 2025
Families who moved heaven and earth in 1932 rally again as October deadline approaches Three months after a packed community meeting saved St. Francis Hall from demolition, the descendant families of Sardine Point and the Cut Off community have launched an ambitious $150,000 fundraising campaign to preserve the 98-year-old
September 03, 2025
Bottom Line Up Front: Governor Jeff Landry highlighted confirmed improvements in Louisiana's national rankings at Tuesday's West Baton Rouge Chamber event, including a jump from 31st to 18th in economic outlook and from 49th to 32nd in education, while outlining infrastructure financing strategies to business leaders.
August 21, 2025
Billy Hebert reveals how Morley went from 400+ residents to complete abandonment in just 20 years West Baton Rouge Museum – A standing-room-only crowd gathered Saturday morning to learn the remarkable and tragic history of Morley, Louisiana – West Baton Rouge Parish's own ghost town that once bustled with over
August 13, 2025
Community meeting draws passionate debate over renovation plans that would demolish 95-year-old building By John Summers, WBR Independent A packed community meeting at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church on Wednesday evening June 25th revealed deep divisions over parish renovation plans that would demolish the historic St. Francis Hall to
July 08, 2025
On this Fourth of July, we celebrate the freedoms that make our nation great and the principles that guide our work here at WBR Independent. 248 years ago, our founders declared that governments derive their power from the consent of the governed. Today, that principle lives on in every city
July 04, 2025
The 1932 rescue that saved St. Francis Chapel and set the precedent for today's preservation battle When federal flood control eliminated their homeland, Sardine Point families made an extraordinary decision: they would literally move their chapel to save it. That 1932 precedent now guides their descendants' fight
June 30, 2025
How 159 years of Louisiana history disappeared beneath federal flood control From 1866 to 1932, Sardine Point was home to hundreds of Louisiana families who built two churches, raised children, and created a thriving river community on a Mississippi River peninsula. Then the federal government made it disappear forever. This
June 24, 2025
Historic St. Francis Hall faces demolition as families race to save 159-year Louisiana heritage Four weeks. That's how long descendant families have to save the last physical remnant of a lost Louisiana river community that housed hundreds of residents across nearly a century. BRUSLY, La. — In a small
June 14, 2025