The Corner Stone was laid in 1891 and was demolished in 1952. The site is the same as the present courthouse. Based on the 1947 Ford, this picture was taken after the war. This picture was taken from the 1987 calendar published by The First National Bank of Abbeville.

This is one of the few pictures that shows the lion’s head on the front wall of the courthouse. The previous courthouse, a wooden structure, burned to the ground on the night of April 7, 1885, destroying many of the courthouse records. The police jury temporarily established the courthouse offices in a building built by the Masons on the site of the present Masonic Temple until the 1891 courthouse was completed. This courthouse was designed by John J. Hannan and his partner Mr. Pulford, and was constructed by C. D. Stewart and Douglas Southwell of New Iberia. It was demolished to make way for our present courthouse, which was completed in 1953.

By Gary E. Theall on behalf of the Vermilion Historical Society