Centre for French Colonial Life

Quick Facts

Location:

Sainte Genevieve, MO

MANAGED BY:

French Colonial America

Amenities

8 listed

Benches/Seating, Gifts/Souvenirs/Books, Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Information, Information - Ranger/Staff Member Present, Parking - Auto, Parking - Bus/RV, Restroom

Lewis and Clark NHT Visitor Centers and Museums

This map shows a range of features associated with the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, which commemorates the 1803-1806 Lewis and Clark Expedition. The trail spans a large portion of the North American continent, from the Ohio River in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to the mouth of the Columbia River in Oregon and Washington. The trail is comprised of the historic route of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, an auto tour route, high potential historic sites (shown in black), visitor centers (shown in orange), and pivotal places (shown in green). These features can be selected on the map to reveal additional information. Also shown is a base map displaying state boundaries, cities, rivers, and highways. The map conveys how a significant area of the North American continent was traversed by the Lewis and Clark Expedition and indicates the many places where visitors can learn about their journey and experience the landscape through which they traveled.

Since January 2017, French Colonial America (FCA) has been proudly operating the historic Centre for French Colonial Life Museum Campus in Ste. Genevieve, MO. Initially owned by the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in the State of Missouri (NSCDA-MO), the properties were gifted to FCA by NSCDA-MO in early 2020. The campus features four historic French Colonial structures (The Louis Bolduc, Bolduc-LeMeilleur, Beauvais-Linden, and Francois Valle II Houses) as well as the education and exhibits facility, the Centre for French Colonial Life.

The Centre features the campus gift shop, offices, a curatorial lab, lecture hall, warming kitchen, conference room, and two exhibits: 1) an orientation exhibit, detailing the origins of Ste. Genevieve and history of the IL River valley under French & Spanish colonial periods and 2) a temporary exhibit examining the ways that wild foods were harvested by the various people of the region to feed their families and communities in the colonial period. A new temporary exhibit, The American Revolutionary War in the West, will be installed in May 2020 and will explore the Battle of Fort San Carlos (St. Louis) and the role the Ste. Genevieve Militia played in the victory.