FAQ’s
Population: City of St. Martinville = 7,137 St. Martin Parish: 49,000.
Where is St. Martinville? The city of St. Martinville is located on Bayou Teche, 16 miles south of Breaux Bridge, 18 miles south of Lafayette, and 9 miles north of New Iberia.
What is Acadiana? Acadiana is a 22-parish area in South Louisiana, including St. Martin Parish. Initially recognized by the Louisiana State Legislature for its Acadian and Cajun heritage, this part of Louisiana is widely known today for its French-speaking heritage, both Cajun and Creole. The triangular region is highlighted on official Louisiana highway maps. It reaches up from the salt marshes along the coast, across the bayou woodlands and prairies, to the beginning of the piney woods and hills of Central Louisiana. St. Martinville has been dubbed the “Birthplace of Acadiana” because the first documented settlement of Acadian refugees in Louisiana took place in this area.
Economy of St. Martinville: St. Martinville’s economy is fueled by agriculture, tourism and the hardworking spirit of its people. Agricultural production mainly yields crops of crawfish and sugar cane. St. Martin parish contributes over 8,000,000 pounds of wild crawfish from the Atchafalaya Basin and another 14,000,000 pounds harvested from ponds annually to the overall production of Louisiana crawfish.
The Louisiana Sugar Cane Co-op and St. John Mill, administered in St. Martinville, currently manage 34,000 acres of sugar cane in the State of Louisiana. Tourism increases have fueled growth in local service industries.
The pepper business is “hot” in St. Martinville! Cajun Chef Products, Inc. is the largest employer in the city. For 30 years, the Bulliard family has built a tradition of supplying quality Cajun food products nationwide. The business that began in 1958 with one product now distributes more than 250 products through fast food and other restaurants as well as other institutions. Approximately 100 employees support the local plant.
Peppers Unlimited of Louisiana, Inc. employs approximately 60 people from the St. Martinville area. The George Bulliard family has been making Louisiana Hot Sauce for more than thirty years. The family hot sauce recipe dates back to the turn of the century, in 1910. There are four generations of Bulliards now represented in the pepper business. Products processed at the St. Martinville plant are made under the Louisiana Supreme label or private labels and are sold internationally.
In an enterprise zone just north of town, St. Martinville’s Industrial Park offers tax incentive programs for small and large companies.
How’s the weather? St. Martinville’s geography provides a wide range of weather. The Gulf of Mexico provides hot and humid weather in the summer with afternoon showers and thunderstorms frequently from June to August. St. Martinville does get a brief taste of winter from December through February, with temperatures in the 30s and 40s, mainly at night during cold fronts. By far the most pleasant conditions are found during the spring and fall with average temperatures in the 70s and 80s during the day and cool temperatures in the 50s and 60s at night. St. Martinville does not escape the hurricane season known to the regions close to the Gulf of Mexico. The hurricane season lasts from June 1 to November 30.
What about twinnings? The City of St. Martinville is twinned with: “the Village of Ploermel in Brittany, France ¨ the Acadian Town of Bouctouche in New Brunswick, Canada ¨ the City of Chaudfontaine in the Walloon region of Belgium ¨ the municipality of Goree Island in Senegal, West Africa Evangeline Oak Park is twinned with Grand-Pré National Historic Site in Nova Scotia, Canada. The Acadian Memorial Mural by Robert Dafford, “The Arrival of the Acadians in Louisiana”‘, is twinned with another Dafford mural in the Chantenay district of Nantes, France, called “The Embarkation of Acadians for Louisiana”.
What does the term: ___________ mean?
Acadian – describes a person or thing with heritage from Acadia, a former French colony in the region of modern Nova Scotia on Canada’s east coast.
Atchafalaya – an indigenous term meaning “Great River”. It refers to the large basin in South central Louisiana carved from the river by the same name.
Attakapas – refers to a district in colonial Louisiana made up of the modern civil parishes of St. Martin, St. Mary, Iberia, Lafayette and Vermilion. The district was named for the native people of the region.
Cajun – By 1900, the English term “Cajun” referred to the people and culture of white, working class French speakers in Louisiana, including those of Acadian and other backgrounds. In French, the correct term is Cadien rather than Cajun.
Creole – In colonial Louisiana, “Creole” meant “native born”. Creole people were native Louisianians of African and/or European heritage who used the French language. It distinguished them from immigrants from Europe or Africa. Acadians and Native Americans did not call themselves Creoles, although they did speak French. “Creole” was often used in contrast to “(Anglo) American.