34 (D-28) The German Coast / Lac des Allemands

Another map of Louisiana!
http://geology.com/state-map/louisiana.shtml

Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. that has parishes (64) instead of counties as administrative areas.  Louisiana was formed from French and Spanish colonies, which were both officially Roman Catholic and local colonial government used the name "parishes" as the local ecclesiastical division (French: paroisse; Spanish parroquia*).

We are going to Houma which is in the parish of Terrebonne. Look first at the parishes north of Terrebonne: St. John the Baptist, St Charles and St James parishes.  This is where you find the German Coast.  Germans came early in the 18th century when John Law was advertizing Louisiana as a good place to live. Many died en route (in English we use the French expression) and only 300 arrived. This area to the east of the Mississippi River where they settled is called the Côte des Allemands. There is the Lac des Allemands and the town name in St Charles parish is known as Des Allemands. Later, in the middle of the 19th century, 53,000 German immigrants arrived at New Orleans---the nation's second-biggest port of entry after New York---in 1853.  Many German immigrants left Louisiana for other states, but about 25,000 Germans during these years made the Pelican State their adopted home.

The biggest slave revolt was in this part of Louisiana in 1811.  It was called the German Coast Uprising.  Nearly half of the total 95 slaves were killed during the fight; the others were executed after quick trials in parish courts.

During World War I, in a reaction against Germany as the enemy, all expressions of German culture and heritage, especially the printed or spoken use of the German language, were by law prohibited in the state. 

Very interesting and not too long:
Click here-->  http://ccet.louisiana.edu/tourism/cultural/The_People/german-american.html

For those of you who may be interested (particularly my students who are German or my retired German teachers) here is another (quite long) article....long, and it's in English, not in German!  You can read a part of it.
http://www.louisianafolklife.org/LT/Articles_Essays/German.html

Jane 
PS.  Today is our first day of Spring holidays!  You know that the blog will be here for you every day during your holidays!  Don't forget to take a look...every day!?
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*In English we have the noun "parish" and the adjective "parochial".  I went to a parochial elementary school in Louisiana. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/pronunciation/british/parochial
-trial = un procès
-Any other words you don't know?  Remember, you can go to your dictionary, or you can simply google the word followed by the word "traduction" and several dictionary sites will appear.  
I like www.wordreference.com and www.linguee.fr