On Sept. 11, 1920, a page from The Weekly Iberian featured a story that noted the Jeanerette Social Club had been duly notarized and registered with the District Attorney, Emile Vuillemot. The article listed the names of the officers, all prominent young men, as well as 22 fellow Jeanerette residents who were present when the Charter was presented.

Article II of the charter clearly defined the club’s purpose as “the establishment in Jeanerette of a Club Room, a Library, a Reading Room for the literary improvements of its members and social intercourse …” All noble endeavors. 

How boring it would be if this were all there is to this story. A little closer look at what else was happening in the country at the time may bring the events into focus, but not without some questions. It is all circumstantial evidence. We will let you be the judge.

What could be considered a coincidence is that several months before, the 18th Amendment, the law prohibiting the sale or manufacture of alcoholic beverages in the United States, had been passed by Congress and had gone into effect in mid-January of that year. 

For the men in South Louisiana, drinking was considered a way of life, from Mardi Gras in the cities to backyard boucheries. Even Louisiana Governor Huey Long (1893-1935), when asked what Louisiana was doing to enforce Prohibition, replied, “Not a damn thing…”  With that kind of leadership, it isn’t any wonder that rural South Louisiana and nearby urban New Orleans quickly perfected ways to get around the law. Rumrunners from Cuba using passages through the many inlets and bayous along the coast did much to outwit the federal agents. Stills sprung up in the deeply wooded areas of the state. However, on the occasions when the Feds caught up with the bootleggers and smugglers, there were stiff prison sentences to be served, according to local lore.

Prohibition lasted from 1920 until 1933, a long dry spell, that some today would probably find oppressive. Perhaps the leading citizens of Jeanerette who signed their names as charter members of the Jeanerette Social Club thought so too. As a newly-formed club, they probably met frequently upstairs or in a back room behind a storefront to enjoy one another’s company.  

Who were they, you might ask.

Patrick Maupas, G. A Druilhet, Jr., Joseph Minvielle, Jerry Dryer, and Earl Ansley were listed as the first members of the board. Among the other signees many family names were represented: a few Ansleys; the name Landry was on the list; as were an Hebert and a Schexnayder. Two Beaullieus, LeJeunes, and a Weber, a Rogers, a LePorte, plus several more.  

Whether you consider them men to be admired or less is up to you.  But in either case, it has been nearly 100 years ago. I hope these snippets of a story spark an interest in history for you.    

There may have been books on the shelves of the club room which may have led to the literary improvement of its members, and there probably was friendly interaction among the members.  In either case, as a men’s club or a speakeasy, these fellows can be remembered as a forward-thinking group. 

JULAINE DEARE SCHEXNAYDER is retired after a varied career in teaching and public relations. Her email address is julaines14@gmail.com.