Discover 11 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in Lafayette (United States). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Cypress Lake, Vermilionville, and St. John's Cathedral. Also, be sure to include First United Methodist Church in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in Lafayette (Louisiana).
Table of Contents
Cypress Lake
Lake in Louisiana. Cypress Lake is a 2-acre swamp-like lake in the heart of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette campus that started as a prehistoric bison wallow. Today it is a unique university landmark that is a habitat for native irises, alligators, turtles, birds and fish, as well as a hangout for students and a point of interest for tourists visiting Lafayette, Louisiana. Cypress Lake is casually called "The Swamp," which is also the nickname of the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football stadium, officially named Cajun Field.[1]
Address: 623 Hebrard Boulevard, Lafayette
Vermilionville
Vermilionville Historic Village, located in Lafayette, Louisiana, is a Cajun and Creole living history museum with restored historic structures.[2]
Address: 300 Fisher Rd, 70508-2028 Lafayette
St. John's Cathedral
Cathedral in Lafayette, Louisiana. The Cathedral of Saint John the Evangelist or La Cathédrale St-Jean, originally called l'Église St-Jean du Vermilion, is the cathedral and mother church of the Catholic Diocese of Lafayette. It was the first parish in Lafayette Parish, founded in 1821, and was made cathedral upon the erection of the diocese in 1918.
The historic church, located at 515 Cathedral Street in downtown Lafayette, is the third structure built on the site. The land was donated in 1821 by Jean Mouton, a wealthy planter who had founded the town as Vermilionville. The cornerstone was laid in 1913, and the church was completed in 1916 in the Dutch Romanesque Revival style. A large red and white brick structure, its notable features include stained glass produced in Munich depicting the life of the patron, oil paintings of Christ and the Apostles, and a Casavant Frères organ.
St. John's Cemetery is the oldest in the city of Lafayette. Notable burials include Jean Mouton, who donated the property for the church; his son Alexandre Mouton, a U.S. senator and governor of Louisiana; his grandson Alfred Mouton, a Confederate general in the American Civil War; and Jefferson Caffery, a distinguished U.S. diplomat who was a Lafayette native.
The church and a 7 acres (2.8 ha) area comprising the Bishop's residence and the cemetery was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 27, 1979.[3]
Address: 515 Cathedral St, 70501-6701 Lafayette
First United Methodist Church
United methodist church in Lafayette, Louisiana. The First United Methodist Church is a historic Methodist church located at 703 Lee Avenue in Lafayette, Louisiana.
Built in 1924, it is a two-story building in Classical Revival style, with a five-bay front facade and a pedimented portico with four Ionic columns. It was designed by architect J.A. Baylor and built by contractor Knapp & East. According to its NRHP nomination it is one of only three buildings in Lafayette Parish known to have a monumental portico; of those it is "the only one with ornamental fenestration surrounds. It is therefore one of the parish's most pretentious and most high style period buildings."
The church was added to the National Register of Historic Places on June 21, 1984.[4]
Address: 703 Lee Ave, 70501-8043 Lafayette
Lafayette Science Museum
Museum, Science museum, Observatories and planetariums
Address: 433 Jefferson St, 70501-7013 Lafayette
Alexandre Mouton House
Building in Lafayette, Louisiana. The Alexandre Mouton House, also called the Lafayette Museum, is a historic house located at 1122 Lafayette Street in Lafayette, Louisiana. It was the home of 9th Governor and first Democratic Governor of Louisiana Alexandre Mouton, and it is also associated with other historic families.
It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on June 18, 1975. The listing included three contributing buildings: the two-story main house with an attic and cupola and wooden porches on its first and second floors, an Acadian house connected by a covered wooden porch, and a brick smoke house. The first two have cypress siding and are of briquette entre poteaux construction.
The original house, consisting of one room and a kitchen, was built in about 1800 by Jean Mouton, one of the earliest settlers in the Attakapas country, and father of Alexandre Mouton.[5]
Address: 1122 Lafayette St, 70501-6838 Lafayette
Charles H. Mouton House
The Charles H. Mouton House, also known as Shady Oaks, is a historic house located at 338 North Sterling Street in Lafayette, Louisiana.
Built in 1848 as the residence of Charles Homere Mouton, the house is a two-and-one-half story Greek Revival building with a front gallery with Doric posts, a brick ground floor, a frame second floor and pitched roof.
The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 9, 1980. It was also added as a contributing property to the Sterling Grove Historic District at the time of its creation, on July 26, 1984.[6]
Paul and Lulu Hilliard University Art Museum
Museum
Address: 710 E Saint Mary Blvd, Lafayette
Lafayette Hardware Store
The Lafayette Hardware Store is a historic commercial building located at 121 West Vermilion Street in Lafayette, Louisiana.
Built in c.1890, is a two-story frame building with a false front in Italianate style. The ground story originally hosted two separate stores until c.1915 when a dividing wall was removed. The store is one of Lafayette oldest commercial buildings.
The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 14, 1984.[7]
Heymann Performing Arts Center
Museum, Convention center, Concert hall, Theater, Art gallery
Address: 1373 S College Rd, 70503-2909 Lafayette
Gordon Hotel
The Gordon Hotel is a historic hotel building located at 100-110 East Vermilion Street in Lafayette, Louisiana.
Originally built in 1904 by George Knapp and designed by Favrot and Livaudais, the hotel was a three-story brick and stucco building in Renaissance Revival style. An extensive remodeling happened in 1928, with William T. Nolan supervision, which added a fourth Baroque styled story to the building, including an undulated roof and a corner obelisk. The 1928 remodeling also added a three-story addition to the east side of the building.
The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 25, 1982.[8]