Roberts Cove, Louisiana
Encyclopedia
Roberts Cove is an unincorporated community in Louisiana
.
Roberts Cove is not a town, but rather a scattered rural community with the St. Leo's Catholic church complex as a community and cultural center which is located three miles northwest of Rayne
in Acadia Parish. It is part of the Crowley
Micropolitan Statistical Area.
, was asked to come to New Orleans by Archbishop Jean-Marie Odin, mainly because of the large number of German
immigrants there.
It was on January 13, 1880 that Fr. Thevis, accompanied by his brother Peter Joseph Thevis, his nephew, John Gerhard Thevi,s and Herman Grein, came on this railway to Rayne, and to the prairie land three miles north of Rayne to look over the area. The site selected for the future colony was known as "Roberts Cove" named for Benjamin Roberts, the original owner of a Spanish land grant.
Thereafter, thirteen families joined them in 1881. These German Catholics were fleeing the Gangelt
, Geilenkirchen
district of Germany to avoid religious persecution and military impressments. Fr. Hennemann, OSB, of the Benedictine order, purchased land that included a house which served as both rectory and chapel and another building which served as a school house in the spring of 1883. The Benedictines
helped to established the parish of St. Leo IV
in 1885.
Roberts Cove was staunchly German until the World War I
era when harsh anti-German wartime legislation initiated a decline of the German language
and other cultural elements. The Louisiana
state legislature passed Act 114 which made all expressions of German culture and heritage, especially the printed or spoken use of the German language, illegal in the state. Consequently, there are few remaining German speakers and relatively few overt manifestations of German culture yet the community is still viewed as a German ethnic enclave.
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
.
Roberts Cove is not a town, but rather a scattered rural community with the St. Leo's Catholic church complex as a community and cultural center which is located three miles northwest of Rayne
Rayne, Louisiana
Rayne is a city in Acadia Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 8,552 at the 2000 census. It is nicknamed the "Frog Capital of the World", as well as the "Louisiana City of Murals".Rayne is part of the Crowley Micropolitan Statistical Area....
in Acadia Parish. It is part of the Crowley
Crowley, Louisiana
Crowley is a city in and the parish seat of Acadia Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 14,225 at the 2000 census. The city is noted for its annual International Rice Festival. Crowley has the nickname of "Rice Capital of America", because at one time it was a major center for...
Micropolitan Statistical Area.
History
In 1867, Rev. Peter Leonard Thevis, a native priest of Langbroich, Nordrhein-Westfalen, GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, was asked to come to New Orleans by Archbishop Jean-Marie Odin, mainly because of the large number of German
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
immigrants there.
It was on January 13, 1880 that Fr. Thevis, accompanied by his brother Peter Joseph Thevis, his nephew, John Gerhard Thevi,s and Herman Grein, came on this railway to Rayne, and to the prairie land three miles north of Rayne to look over the area. The site selected for the future colony was known as "Roberts Cove" named for Benjamin Roberts, the original owner of a Spanish land grant.
Thereafter, thirteen families joined them in 1881. These German Catholics were fleeing the Gangelt
Gangelt
Gangelt is a municipality in the district Heinsberg, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated on the border with the Netherlands, approx. 10 km east of Sittard and 10 km south-west of Heinsberg. Gangelt was the town in which Gerard Kremer, better known as Gerardus Mercator,...
, Geilenkirchen
Geilenkirchen
Geilenkirchen is a town in the district Heinsberg, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated near the border with the Netherlands, on the river Wurm, approx. 15 km north-east of Heerlen and 20 km north of Aachen....
district of Germany to avoid religious persecution and military impressments. Fr. Hennemann, OSB, of the Benedictine order, purchased land that included a house which served as both rectory and chapel and another building which served as a school house in the spring of 1883. The Benedictines
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
helped to established the parish of St. Leo IV
Pope Leo IV
Pope Saint Leo IV was pope from 10 April 847 to 17 July 855.A Roman by birth, he was unanimously chosen to succeed Sergius II. When he was elected, on 10 April 847, he was cardinal of Santi Quattro Coronati, and had been subdeacon of Gregory IV and archpriest under his predecessor...
in 1885.
Roberts Cove was staunchly German until the World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
era when harsh anti-German wartime legislation initiated a decline of the German language
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
and other cultural elements. The Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
state legislature passed Act 114 which made all expressions of German culture and heritage, especially the printed or spoken use of the German language, illegal in the state. Consequently, there are few remaining German speakers and relatively few overt manifestations of German culture yet the community is still viewed as a German ethnic enclave.