DeRidder: Culture and History

DeRidder brings together local history, art, and public open spaces, with specific places to visit during your stay. You can focus on museum collections, historic architecture, a gallery, or time outdoors; in June, an annual festival is also held.

Museums and Collections

The Beauregard Museum is housed in DeRidder’s second Kansas City Southern depot, built in 1926. Its collection ranges from handcrafted tools and artifacts from the timber industry to old photographs documenting the history of Beauregard Parish. It also includes Indigenous peoples’ arrowheads and pottery, military memorabilia, antique furniture, musical instruments, and curiosities from the parish. A stainless-steel galley car is also on display in the courtyard.

The War Memorial Civic Center was built in 1941 as America’s first USO center outside a military installation and was added to the National Register of Historic Places on February 25, 1992. It houses the War Room Museum, which displays World War II artifacts, most of them donated by Mrs. Velmer Smith.

At the Old Post Office, the Lois Loftin Doll Museum displays more than 3,500 dolls. The same building also features the mural Rural Fresco Delivery, one of 17 rare WPA-era murals in Louisiana. These two attractions highlight, respectively, an extensive collection and a single mural.

Historic Buildings and Architecture

The DeRidder Commercial Historic District encompasses the largest and most well-defined collection of historic commercial buildings in Beauregard Parish. The Gothic Jail offers a different scale: built in 1915, it served as the parish jail until it was decommissioned in 1984. Its Collegiate Gothic style is expressed in pointed Tudor arches, dormers, and bay windows. The comparison is between a collection of commercial buildings on one hand and a single building with its own former function on the other.

Outside the Halloween season, the Gothic Jail offers public daytime tours, usually Monday through Friday. Weekend tours are available by appointment for groups of ten or more. If you plan a weekend tour, take the appointment requirement and group size into account.

Art and the Louisiana Byway

The RealArt DeRidder Art Gallery opened in 2009 under the name RealArt Deridder Arts Cooperative, through a partnership between the city and local artists. Its origins offer a different focus from the historic museum sites. The Louisiana Myths and Legends Byway also passes through DeRidder as a route stop, adding a connection to myths and legends to the cultural themes.

Parks, Festival, and Market

The parks and public open spaces maintained by the City of DeRidder are free to visit and use. West Park has a walking path, while Veterans Park – Pernici Park offers a disc golf course. This lets you choose between a walking path and a disc golf facility for time outdoors.

The Beauregard Watermelon Festival is held every June at the Beauregard Parish Fairgrounds in DeRidder. The program includes watermelon-themed games, live music, and entertainment. If you want to plan your stay around the festival, check the specific event dates. A vendor sells homemade goods at the DeRidder Farmer's Market.

For the broader travel overview: Beauregard Parish.