History
Pointe Coupee Parish (Cut Off Point) is one of the oldest settlements in the lower Mississippi River Valley. Its early French and African influence can still be found today in its friendly people and delicious cuisine. The area is home to several plantation estates and many historic sites and museums, several listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Download our Historic Brochure, Morganza Cultural District Map, or Live Oak Tree Tour, and come discover historic Pointe Coupée Parish!
Fun Facts
- Pointe Coupée means Cutoff Point and was noted in Iberville's exploratory trip up the Mississippi River in 1699.
- Pointe Coupée Parish is one of the oldest settlements in the Mississippi River Valley.
- With two Mississippi River oxbow lakes, including popular False River and Old River, we are a top location for fishing, boating, and hunting
- Pointe Coupée Parish is the birthplace of Louisiana public education with three public schools dating back to 1811.
- We boast the third oldest Mardi Gras celebration in Louisiana, normally hosting four parades each year.
- The Parish Seat, New Roads, is named after a “new road” the Spanish built in 1776 between the Mississippi and the False River.
- New Roads downtown was permanently settled in 1822, when a free woman of color, Catherine Depau subdivided a portion of her plantation there.
