Reply #22: Bell City, LA: The story behind the name.

[trof]

It's a little bitty place deep in Cajun country, southeast of Lake Charles.
Miz t.'s maternal granparents were born and died there, and a couple of generations before them. And before it was Bell City.

Before her mama's brother, Unca Bert, died I asked him about it.
I thought it was "Belle", French for beautiful.

"Naw", sez Unca Bert.
"Back in 19 ought-something the Bell brothers, Terrance and Looley(?), set up a sawmill down the road. They was cutting the virgin cypress out in the swamps. Lots of folks came to work in the mill and out cutting timber. Started building houses and ol' man Alphonse Derouen built a store. They built a catholic church and a school. Pretty soon it was like a town so they called it Bell City."

Unca Bert was a Derouen, as is half the population of Bell City. I think everybody there, whether Derouen or not, is related in some way.
Miz t.'s grandparents were BOTH Derouens before they married.
First cousins.
I only bring it up if she does something particularly ditzy.
And then I duck.
;-)