Louisiana Purchase Cypress Legacy

Save Dufrene's Legacy Cypress Tree in St. Charles Parish

Murray Dufrene Des Allemands, LA

In Bayou Gauche, Louisiana lies a historical 360+ year old bald cypress tree in peril of being destroyed. This tree is located on a parcel of property owned by the Dufrene family at 154 Bayou Estates South in Des Allemands, Louisiana in the Sunset Levee District.  St. Charles Parish is currently attempting to acquire a perpetual servitude as part of a levee project on this property. Our bald cypress tree has a majestic full canopy, a rare find for a tree of this age. It is one of the few trees of this magnitude that is located in an area that can be viewed and enjoyed by the public. Many families from our community have used this setting to commemorate a lifetime of special events such as weddings, graduations, family pictures, etc. This tree was registered with the Louisiana Purchase Cypress Legacy organization in 2010 because it was alive prior to the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. Currently, it is the only bald cypress in St. Charles Parish that is registered with this organization. We commend St. Charles Parish’s past and present administrations in their efforts to obtain flood protection for the residents of St. Charles Parish and are in full agreement for the need of adequate levee protection. However, this can still be done without harming the tree.  Engineering, design, and construction methods for Corps certified levees are modified routinely for public and private industry infrastructure; a 360+year old tree should receive the same consideration. At this point, the four agencies involved in determining the fate of this tree are LBLD (Lafourche Basin Levee District), St. Charles Parish Government, BKI (Burk-Kleinpeter Inc.) and GCR Inc. The LBLD board has voted to issue a letter indicating that they were for efforts to keep the tree.This majestic cypress tree is truly a Louisiana treasure and we would deeply appreciate any help in saving this tree which has stood the test of time. It is a part of history and deserves every effort for protection.