In a previous blog post “Haunted St. Landry”, the St. Landry Parish Tourist Commission collaborated with local paranormal investigative group, Louisiana Spirits, to connect history and evidence collected by the group’s investigations in St. Landry Parish. This Halloween, the Commission has collected 2 first-person accounts of unexplained phenomena and a piece of video evidence. You can visit where these stories took place and decide for yourself if what the accounts say are true.

Thistlethwaite Wildlife Management Area

Highway 359 is a stretch that travels alongside Bayou Wauksha, a small bayou that offshoots from the historic Bayou Courtableau. It creates a border for the Thistlethwaite Wildlife Management Area. The highway, surrounded by dark, wooded areas on one side and sprawling farmland and crawfish ponds dotted with lonely, country homes on the other, makes for driving that is as beautiful as it is isolating.

Stories along the highway range from seeing a ghostly “White Lady” that stands on the side of the road at night to shadow figures that frighten drivers. Today’s story comes from a resident, who would like to remain anonymous, that has lived along Highway 359 for three decades.

“We (the witness and her mother-in-law) were driving home from the casino one night when we saw something dark blocking the road about the size of a trash can. It was too late to switch lanes or swerve

Morning along Hwy 359

away, so we braced for impact because we were certain that we were going to hit it, but we just passed right through it. Afterward, we both looked at each other and said, ‘What was that!’”

Was this a mischievous shadow person or simply a trick of the light?

Highway 359 has picturesque scenes with crawfish ponds, which also make for great birdwatching opportunities with snowy egrets and other large wading birds being common sights.

Inside the Steamboat Warehouse Restaurant

Highway 359 turns into Highway 103 which takes you to Washington, the most haunted town in St. Landry Parish. You can’t mention the supernatural in this area without acknowledging the sheer amount of history and ghost stories that come from this historic steamboat town.

These days, Washington, the third oldest settlement in Louisiana, is updating with the times with a new pocket park and an electric vehicle charging station. However, with most of the town appearing on the National Historic Register, there’s no shortage of ghost stories from nearly every old home that line Mainstreet. Many date back to the 1800s. One of the more compelling stories comes from the popular restaurant, Steamboat Warehouse.

The restaurant has been inside the last of the old steamboat warehouses on Bayou Courtableau for over thirty years. Multiple teams of ghost hunters have recorded whistles, talking, singing and unexplained conversations. Chef and owner Jason Huguet has said that at the time of their visit, one team ranked the restaurant in their top 3 most active locations.

Workers and customers alike have reported strange experiences at the restaurant. Security cameras have even recorded activity, including this video shot after closing time.

It shows cups suddenly falling on a counter in the restaurant’s kitchen. Workers who were there at the time had no explanation.

The claims and evidence that have built up the restaurant over the building’s 200 years of history is substantial. It’s a guarantee that stopping for dinner will give you a meal to remember. Try Chef Huguet’s award-winning dishes Eggplant Belle Rose, Chicken and Sausage Gumbo, and Sidesaddle Angels.

Seven Brothers Oak on Hwy 182

If you take Highway 182 out of Washington, it won’t be long until you reach Opelousas’ downtown area. On your drive, you can stop at the Seven Brother’s Oak, otherwise known as The Lastrapes Oak. This large and sprawling oak tree with multiple trunks pouring out of the ground is a part of both the National and State Live Oak Societies. It makes for a nice photo opportunity on the way to the next haunted locale.

In Opelousas’ Courthouse Square, several cafés and offices line the oak-strewn street. One of those cafés makes its home inside of an old bank from the 1920s, Java Square Café. Former employees of this café have reported everything from ghostly touches and door slams to unidentified noises and eerie feelings.

This specific account comes from a former employee who was closing the café one night. It was late, and her sister had come by to pick up the barista after her shift. The sister waited in the café’s main lobby while the barista completed her closing rituals in the kitchen. When the barista came back out to the main area, her sister remarked that she had fun whistling together with her.

Java Square Café Bank Vault

“But,” the barista told her sister, “I don’t know how to whistle.”

The two were alone in the café and the streets were empty. But someone had whistled along with the girl’s tune, turning a light-hearted moment between sisters into something unexplained and haunting.

Even if you don’t believe in the supernatural, the café is worth a visit with its Prohibition Era bank vault that’s open for visitors. Their coffee is pretty good too.

You can believe the accounts and evidence recorded here, or not. However, it is undeniable that all three locations work together to create a haunted road trip with classic Louisiana food and scenic driving.

If you’d like to expand your haunted road trip, there are plenty of locations with stories that we haven’t mentioned here. Give us a call at 337-948-8004 or email hawkins@cajuntravel.com, and we can help create your own haunted tour of St. Landry Parish. We’ll even throw in some non-haunted stops for you.

Mary Hawkins is the communications manager for the St. Landry Parish Tourist Commission. Contact her at hawkins@cajuntravel.com.