Tales of times past

• By ANGELA FONTENOT
• Special to The Advocate
• Published: Dec 1, 2008 - Page: 1B -- Acadiana Edition - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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CATAHOULA — Who better to preserve the intricacies of a culture during a certain period than one who has lived through it.
Camille Blanchard, of Catahoula, is that man.

Blanchard carves wooden boats and houses that represent a time when bayous served as highways and folks built what they needed.

St. Martinville Director of Tourism Brenda Trahan said Blanchard is one of the few old Cajuns who remembers those old ways and “has a story and visual to show their way of life.”

The wooden objects, made of soft and durable cypress, speak for Blanchard, and to a great extent, themselves as well. The wood tells of a time long passed when settlers along the Atchafalaya Basin lived a life on the water of fishing, hunting and trapping.

Blanchard, who grew up in the community of Catahoula on the edge of the Basin, has fond memories of people living, traveling and doing business by way of boats.

His woodwork reflects that old way of life, a time before school buses replaced school boats and mobile grocery stores made the rounds in the bayous and backwaters.

Among his hand-made creations are pirogues, houseboats, putt-putt boats, fishing boats and chalons, large barge-shaped boats used for picking and carrying Spanish moss.

Blanchard also builds homes that the first Cajuns lived in on land.

As the son of a master carpenter, Blanchard started this hobby quite naturally.

He said his father, Wilmer, could build anything and made homes and boats for many people who lived in Catahoula. Blanchard remembers his father saying, “If you want something, don’t buy it, build it yourself.”

The oldest of 14 children, Blanchard was the leader of his siblings and was always known to be generous and helpful to his family and to strangers alike.

“The majority of the Cajun houses he makes are donated to people who live in Catahoula, and they really look up to him. He doesn’t know how to say no,” said Blanchard’s sister, Carol Rouseau.

He never sells his creations.