pioneer heritage center

The Center is open to the public year-round, Tuesday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon. The Center is also available for group, school, and special events by appointment only. The Center is closed on holidays and from December 15 through February 1st.

The Pioneer Heritage Center is a small collection of historic buildings on the campus of LSU-Shreveport. It is fenced in and you need an appointment to get in, 364 days out of the year. If you are interested in a private tour (which we haven't done, but might be interesting) you can contact them at 318-797-5339, or email pioneer@lsus.edu. What we have done each of the past several years, is attend the Pioneer Day. This is a unique experience that is offered only once per year. It is generally the last Saturday in October, and it's great for families like mine with school-aged kids. Not only do you see the buildings and artifacts, but volunteers in period costumes turn the place into a bit of a trip back in time to when this country was being settled. There are, of course the houses, musicians, a blacksmith making horseshoes and other things out of metal, a church, there are generally some women demonstrating spinning and weaving, a general store, doctor's office with "operating room", a group of civil-war re-enactors sometimes brings their cannon and my personal favorite, a group of dutch oven cooks prepare dishes to taste over open fires. Last year there was a falconry demonstration with live birds. It's really a neat experience for the family. I don't recall it being particularly expensive, something like $3-5 per person, which includes the food samples.

It was neat to see the houses, but you have to make an appointment to see inside.