Welcome to Thibodaux, Louisiana, the "Queen City of LaFourche"! First settled in the 18th century by French colonists, the area was acquired by the United States as part of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. The town was incorporated under the name Thibodauxville in 1830, but was shortened to its current name in 1838. From the early 1800s until after the Civil War, Thibodaux was the trading center for the numerous sugar cane plantations in the region. After the Civil War and the Reconstruction Era, civil unrest caused by sugar cane plantation owners attempting to return to slavery era conditions led to the Thibodaux Massacre where at least 50 African Americans were murdered in the midst of a workers' strike. The town was also the birthplace of "The Bayou Strangler", Ronald Joseph Dominique. Dominique was a serial killer who murdered at least 23 men and boys in Louisiana between 1997 and 2006. While this certainly paints a dark picture of Thibodaux's past, the town has been referenced in a kinder light in songs by a number of popular musicians like Hank Williams, George Striat, and Jimmy Buffett. Join us for a quick trip through this interesting small town on the banks of the Bayou Lafourche!
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