The star-progress. (Opelousas, La.) 1917-1921, 1920-11-10
New Village on River Forg-
ing to the Front at
Rapid Gait
HOUSES AND PEOPLE
INCREASING FAST
New Industries and Model
Road Promise to Put it
in Front Rank

A few years ago, where the village
Of Krotz Springs now stands there
was a bowling wilderness. When the
main line of the New Orleans, Texas
and Mexico railroad (Gulf Coast Lines)
was driven through, naturally station
was placed at the roads crossing over
the Atchafa1aya river Col. c. W.
Krotz owned the land thereabouts, and
the first name of the station, Latan-
nier, was later changed to Krotz
Springs, in his honor. The Springs"
part of the name was adopted from
the artesian well which the doughty
colonel drilled in quest of oil-in-
stead of oil he got water, and perhaps
that was best after all.
The vast forest of timber which
surrounded the embryo village was a
fertile field for the lumberman, and
naturally this was, the unexplored and
undeveloped wealth Of the country.
The timberman's axe began to hew
out the forests and the busy saws of
different mills began to cut the raw
fproduct into marketable lumber.
A dozen years, after all, is brief
time in the history of town, and
during that time Krotz Springs has
emerged from its swaddling clothes
and the place where a few settled in
quest Of home and livelihood has
now begun to assume the proportions
of a real up and coming town. Col.
Krotz made his home there and in his
4 usual vigorous may began to hammer
after anything which would develop
the town and the surrounding territory
Krotz Springs may have been cons d
cred a huge joke once, but the jok-
ing era has passed and now the once
struggling village is beginning to loom
up as a place Of size and Importance.
AS soon as the place boasted the
required number of people, the boost
ers there took steps to incorporate it
as a village under the laws of Louisi'
ana. This being complete, the next
step was a school, and within short
time splendid and modern school
building was erected. Col. Krotz has
been often joked about the size of the
two-story school structure, and when
; quizzed as to where the children to oc
cupy the big building we're coming
from, invariably replied, with a smile:
eve are going to raise them"
) Undoubtedly the colonel was wiser
than he was given credit for. The
school is being occupied, and perhaps
: the children have already beer
raised" From a one-teacher schoo
is now about to jump into the two
teacher class, for the colonel was here
the first of the week to urge the
school authorities to place another
teacher in Krotz Springs. educationa
D institution.
Following the clearing Of man!
acres of land during the process o
logging operations, naturally these
denuded areas have been converted il
to farm lands. Everyone knows tina
the lands along the great river arr
the riches in America and have ant
will continue to produce tremenduou
Yields of everything grown in tht
territory. The splendid shipping fac
ilities, both by rail and water, affor'
an abundant outlet for the harves
which is bound to come from tn
thousands of acres that will be farm
4 ed in the years to come.
Col. Krotz, always smiling, is al
1 WAYS thinking and planning. He gen
orally gets what he goes after, and n
always goes after much. Just abou
the time people in his section begal
i to awake to a realization that what W
q lacked and what we most needed wa
J good roads, the colonel laid the frame
work Of a scheme to construct
5 modern road paralleling the Gul
5 Coast Lines from the Bayou Courts
Q bleau to his town. Almost everybod
n laughed at the proposition, but tina
didn't deter the colonel, and he wen
:. to work and despite all obstacles h
q put the scheme over. A road district
o perhaps there were several-was o.
# ganized and the required tax voted
Il the bonds issued and sold and tn
" road is beginning to show up as
r real going concern. This highwa
r will connect Opelousas with Krot
h Springs, and perhaps, later on. it wi
If be pushed through the forest on tn
(. Pointe .Coupee side of the river an
g connect with the Jefferson Highwa
b at Livonia.
After all is said and done, Krot