TOURS KICK OFF HOLIDAYS

Published 8:00 am Sunday, November 25, 2018

Start the Christmas season celebrating in homes along the Bayou Teche

Experience a day filled with the iconic

Louisiana architecture style of A. Hays Town

 Celebrating the holiday season for most residents in the Teche Area includes family and traditions. Old or new, they are a reminder of the things most loved and worthy of telling the next generation. 

As part of the Christmas tradition and in celebration of a 50th anniversary, three tours of homes are planned. Two will be held Dec. 2 in New Iberia and St. Martinville, a third in Franklin Dec. 16. Each will distinctively celebrate the community and the families that help build the hometown atmospheres enduring and endearing from generation to generation. 

A. Hays Town Tour

As a part of the Hilliard Museum’s 50th anniversary celebration, a three city A. Hays Town Tour started in July around Lafayette with the centerpiece being the original home of the Hilliard University Art Museum. Known as The Arts Center for Southwestern Louisiana, according to Jolie Johnson, development manager for the museum, Town’s design for the art museum was the first building built after the Civil War using  classic doric columns, easily recognized by the simple circular capitals at the top of the massive columns. 

“The Art Center for Southwestern Louisiana was built by Hays Town, the first building after the Civil War constructed true to form, appropriately built with doric columns,” Johnson said. “We started the A. Hays Town and the Architectural Image of Louisiana exhibit to celebrate our 50th anniversary and to honor A. Hays Town. He created the architectural image of Louisiana. He built throusands of homes across the state. We couldn’t put all of them on the tour, but started in Lafayette in July, Baton Rouge in October and (the New Iberia) tour is the third in the series. It just happens to fall at Christmas.”  

In New Iberia, the doors to four residential properties, a Hays Town church in Loreauville and the Hays Town designed New Iberia Courthouse will be open for people to enjoy his iconic designs. His residential homes draw upon French, Spanish and Caribbean building techniques as well as his earlier Mid-Century Modern influence. The tour begins at the Bayou Teche Museum from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 2. In respect for the homeowners, the locations will be provided with tickets, although many in the area will know their friends are working hard to get decorations ready for the visits.  

“We’re thrilled to collaborate with the Hilliard Museum again as we celebrate Hays Town’s legacy and landmarks,” said the Louisiana Architectural Foundation’s executive director Stacey Pfingsten. “He was a Louisiana legend whose work is universally appreciated.”

The three Town tours serve as fundraisers for the Hilliard University Art Museum, the Louisiana Architecture Foundation and the Iberia Cultural Resources Association. The tours correspond in part with the exhibition which remains in the large space at the Hilliard Museum through Dec. 22. Photographs, floor plans and models display the classic Hays Town looks found throughout the state. 

“The tours are a great way to get the word out about these historic homes and to appreciate the beauty of what we see and pass by everyday,” said Johnson. “To have a day that is educational and entertaining in its nature, it’s special and fun.”

A selection of Town’s own furnishings and personal memorabilia are on display at the Hilliard to give a glimpse into the life of the reknown architect who spent the early part of his career designing commerical buildings. It was only after he retired, Johnson said, that he took up the hobby of designing homes, which he did until his death. Starting his career in Jackson, Mississippi, the designer moved to Baton Rouge and built his home on the lake along the campus of Louisiana State University. His son still lives there.

Special Guests

At least two of the homes on the tour will have personal narrations by family members who lived in the homes when they were first built. Some include legends, others paint a picture of the times inwhich they were built. Refreshments and dialogues with homeowners will bring a facinating element to the appreciation of both the architectural achievements as well as the halls decked for the Christmas season.

“What’s good about these homes is everyone loves them and wants there to be a part of Hays Town in their homes. It feels very right, like the wooden beans and the big windows that overlook lush landscapes and crepe myrtles everywhere,” said Johnson. “Everyone can see a little bit of their own home in these. That’s what I love about it. I saw so much of my childhood in them.”

Access to the Tour

Tickets for $30 per person are available to purchase online at Bontempstix.com/events/towntours-newiberia. A limited number of VIP Packages are available for $55 and gives access to a private Hays Town home, champagne and hors d’ouevres reception from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at a location that will only be disclosed to VIP ticket holders. Addresses to the homes on the tour will not be made public until ticket holders pick up their brochures/bracelets Dec. 2 at the Bayou Teche Museum, 131 E. Main St. in New Iberia. An email with details will be sent to all ticket buyers the week prior to the event.

The Hays Town Home Tours would not be possible without the support of the Louisiana Architecture Foundation and Iberia Cultural Resources Association. Other confirmed partners include Lowry’s Printing and Copying, Lowry’s Sign Shop, AIA South Louisiana Chapter, the Bayou Teche Museum, New Iberia Main Street Program and the Designing Women of Acadiana.

Next Sunday the Franklin Historic Home Tour will be featured in this section.