The following was an email I sent out to a few people who
knew what I was talking about or if they didn't,
the pictures were not bad.
I'm going to try to make this more palatable to normal people.
I'll try to be clear about what and where I'm talking.
Even for me, this will be a challenge.
Footnote: "Edenborn was an industrialist who had a hobby, a railroad.
His business (hobby) was bought out by the Louisiana and Arkansas RR
which in turn became part of the Kansas City Southern giant.
Read Fairs Book or buy it used like I did.
If interested in the KCS/ L&A and a bunch of others tangled in the web,
it is worth it. Or, get it at a library.
Ok, here's my old email.
Last night I was thinking about old Edenborn and his hobby. What
a cat. He invents barbed wire and then decides he wants a railroad
in Louisiana. Let me tell you, getting around in Louisiana is not that
easy. We have a lot of water to traverse. In his grand scheme he
crossed two of our largest rivers at one time. Then when that wasn't
good enough he built a bridge over the wild one, the Atchafalaya.
I needed to get to that place. where a lot of head scratching was done
and getterdone he did. Here's how it went along with some ancillary
entertainment along the way. This was written fresh off the bike and
it's blurry. It's just a flippin note anyway.
I headed out and didn't light the camera up until Palmetto. I jumped
the tracks and took a picture of the old store/mill from the opposite
side. It worked. That's its second floor.
Still open. Taken from the other side of the tracks.
That is Budden's second story.
Backing off you can see the feed mill to the its right.
T&P = Texas and Pacific RR. RR = railroad.
I find that people are such narcissistic dilussionist that they believe everyone knows
what they are talking about.
Let's continue:
Bayou Rouge once connected Cottonport to the Atchafalaya River.
Steamboats connected Cottonport to the world.
Most people think that's an electrical transformer station
with power lines attached. Knowing a little history is like
having x-ray vision. Maybe that's a stretch.
This was the railroad right of way that connected Melville with Simmesport.
It can be followed by traveling La.105. If you are a motorcycle rider,
for the most part this is a fine ride.
I did sound a big smug there.
Being smug is a sign of narcissism.
I'm seeing a pattern developing.
I had to remove the big map. I'll do a reasonable one.
You see Simmesport?
You see "My New Road"?
You see "Big Bend"?
You see "Landing"
You see that line of brown dashes?
You see "Bordelonville"?
OK, you are good to go.
OK, you are good to go.
I have no idea what "R&G" means below.
Oh, I forgot, do you see "&B Cutoff" ?
That's "My New Road".
The "Big Bend Road" is La.451.
I really should reread these when I write them.
I guess I'm 2 plus years late.
March April are the perfect months.
"The Louisiana Rail and Navigation Right of way".
I already know his brother, It and sister, What.
Check the map above. Zoomed down place names appear.
Houses along the bayou.
Map Time.
You see "Bordelonville"?
You see "Mansura"?
You see "Echo"?
You see "Cheneyville"?
You see "Lone Pine"?
OK, you're good to go.
See "Loyd"?
Below exhibits my narcissist tendencies.
181 = La.Highway 181.
That's it. I could add more but I'm good to go.
BTW, the bridge is a section out the old Red River bridge at Moncla.