Hooray for Ste. Genevieve! The quaint French village was recently designated a National Historic Park. It’s narrow streets and fenced gardens wreak with charm. Today the town has 4,500 residents, but the surrounding area has many thousands more.
On the River, but Sometimes Under It
Ste. Genevieve has suffered from many a fight with the mighty Mississippi River. But the French colonial village located an hour south of St. Louis managed to survive, though it once had to move farther inland because of flooding.
I was last there during the Great Flood of ’93, when Mel and I joined the victims and volunteers in helping to fill sandbags to protect the city from raging waters.
Ste. Genevieve flood marker places the Great Flood of ’93 at the very top of this gauge.
This week I returned with my friend, Jane, and her husband, Bill, both St. Louisans now living in California. We met up with former mayor Kathy Waltz at the Audubon Hotel for a pleasant and relaxed lunch, that included French onion soup, of course.
Jane, Bill, former mayor Kathy Waltz, and I enjoy lunch at the Audubon Hotel.
The French Connection
Kathy gave us a crash course on St. Gen’s history. The oldest buildings in town are named for various French families, who settled the area back in the late 1730s. The hotel commemorates Frenchman John J. Audubon, naturalist and painter, who had a mercantile business in town for several years.
Another name attached to the city is that of a French nun, the patron saint of Paris. It is said that through prayer and fasting, Ste. Genevieve single-handedly saved Paris from Attila the Hun. Hmm. . . we could use a nun like that today!
View of the original settlement, that was moved to higher ground after disastrous flooding in 1787.
A Day Visit
The unique French colonial homes are reason enough for a day trip. Unlike Williamsburg, where buildings are reproductions, St. Genevieve boasts original structures. Three of the houses are made in the poteaux en terre style, (meaning posts in the ground), with vertical side logs rather than the horizontal version used by English settlers.
Take a Look
And because a picture is worth a thousand words, take a look at the photos taken during our “Colonial French Getaway.” It was far too hot for an in depth sightseeing tour. But the mid-week visit was perfect for a stroll about town during a time when the pace was a bit slower.
The Bauvais-Amoureux house
The Delassus-Kern house: a fixer-upper from the 18th century.
Green Tree Tavern (circa 1790s)
The original church, a vertical log building, was moved to the present location after the flood of 1785. The current church replaced it in 1880.
The Bequette-Rebault House
The Bequette-Rebault house is one of only five remaining structures in the United States with vertical log construction, that is, they are built with posts in the ground. Three are located in Ste. Genevieve. The other vertical post homes in town sit on a sill rather than in the ground.
Side view of the Bequette-Rebault house featuring wrap around porch and palisade. Inside, heavy timbers are mortised and pegged into the trusses, that support the double-hipped roof and wide porches. Similar building can be found in Quebec, Canada and Normandy, France. Hank Johnson, owner of Chaumette Vineyards and Winery, purchased the property in 2013.
I think I’ve just breached the palisade with my bare hands!
Inside the old French Colonial home.
Rooms feature furnishings of the period.
Water basin and pitcher. Yesteryear’s necessity; today’s decorations.
A table from a more primitive time.
Chaumette Vineyards and Winery has private villas for overnight stays, a pool and full-service restaurant.
Jane and I pause to visit across from Sara’s Ice Cream Shop. Sadly, it had just closed for the day.
