John Busalacchi moved from St. Gabriel to Luling in 1899 and began managing his father’s general merchandise store in 1917. John and Miss Jennie were married in 1920. Photo courtesy of the St. Charles Herald
Using the skiff they named the Virgin Mary, the Portera
family sold produce up and down the Mississippi River. The family later entered into the retail business. (Photo courtesy of Cynthia Portera)
J. Cali. Ice cart railroad refrigerator cars. M. Cali 1936.
Originally built as slave cabins, these dwellings became housing for freed slaves, Italians, and other immigrants after the Civil War.