Forgotten History Revealed in Brusly

On Sunday, February 1st 75 interested citizens gathered in the Brusly Town Hall to hear Dr. Thomas H. Richey speak about a forgotten part of West Baton Rouge history, the Tirailleurs and the Delta Rifles. The Tirailleurs, a French word meaning “rifleman”, were a company of Civil War soldiers from Brusly Landing, while the Delta Rifles were from the northern part of the parish. The Tirailleurs were mostly Acadian soldiers.

Dr. Richey, a direct descendant of Second Sergeant Trasimond Landry, began the book as a genealogy project. After five years of reading diaries, letters and memoirs, he had followed the soldiers from a bloodbath at Shiloh’s Hornet’s Nest to the terrible debacle at the Battle of Nashville. His book is the first definitive history of the 4th Louisiana Infantry, CSA and contains over 1600 references to men who served in the company. Guests enjoyed asking Dr. Richey questions about his project.

Currently residing in Zachary as a General Surgeon, Dr. Richey was born in the Louisiana Delta.

The West Baton Rouge Genealogical Society and West Baton Rouge Historical Association sponsored the event.