ST. MAURICE, LA — Descendants of founding Winn Parish families gathered on Sunday, October 11, 2026, for the annual St. Maurice Cemetery Homecoming, celebrating community heritage, honoring departed loved ones, and reviewing major preservation efforts on the historic grounds.
St. Maurice holds a distinguished place in regional history as an early Red River steamboat landing and one of the earliest settlements in Winn Parish. The gathering took place inside the historic St. Maurice Methodist Church sanctuary, a landmark originally erected in 1874 by John E. Jones and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Board member Mark Swafford opened the morning assembly with prayer, welcoming families and guests. Board member Tonia Lonadier coordinated attendee recognitions, highlighting the generations of family lines tied to the historic grounds, while a solemn time of remembrance honored those interred over the past year. Current officers serving the association include, Mark Swafford, Melissa Ward, Tonia Lonadier, and Casey Gorum.
Melissa Ward presented the association’s annual report, outlining milestones achieved since incorporating the St. Maurice Cemetery Association, Inc. in 2024 following the acquisition of the historic church and cemetery. To comply with Louisiana Cemetery Association regulations and protect family lineages, the board spearheaded a comprehensive survey utilizing GPS coordinates and aerial drone photography to create an accurate master plot map.
Financially, the association remains strong. Over $10,000 was collected for the general maintenance fund this year, securing ongoing mowing and perpetual grounds care. Additionally, a Dedicated Project Fund established for the historic 1874 sanctuary funded key restorations to the historic 10-foot windows, door framing, and exterior signage.
Casey Gorum reviewed guidelines for family plots and monument care, reminding families that all burials and headstone placements are conducted by permit only. Attendees were asked to complete a standardized reservation form to reconcile unrecorded family spaces with the master plot map.
Representing the Winn Genealogical and Historical Association (WGHA), President Troy Rogers attended to connect with kinfolk and gather parish oral histories. Among those sharing stories was Mr. Harold Bray, who recounted an extraordinary family account passed down through his grandmother, Eva Crawford, highlighting early medical history in Winn Parish.
A Piece of Winnfield History: Ava Crawford’s Grit and the Town’s First Tetanus Shot.
As told by Harold Bray at the 2026 St. Maurice Cemetery Homecoming.
Around 1917, long before grass lawns were commonplace across Winn Parish, front yards were hard-packed dirt swept tidy with brooms and garden rakes. That year, a 12-year-old girl named Ava Crawford—daughter of the Winn Parish Sheriff—suffered a painful mishap when she fell onto an iron rake, driving two or three deep puncture wounds straight into her knee.
In those days, barnyard puncture wounds carried a terrifying danger: lockjaw, or tetanus. The family quickly carried young Ava inside to the living room and sent for the local physician.
What happened next was an extraordinary stroke of good timing. Ava’s brother, Frank Crawford, was working for the local pharmacist in Winnfield. Recognizing the urgent risk of infection, the doctor sent young Frank racing to the drugstore. As providence would have it, an unfamiliar medical shipment had just arrived on the pharmacy counter. The doctor opened the package, reviewed the enclosed literature, and discovered it was the very first shipment of tetanus antitoxin to reach the community. Reading the instructions on how to administer the serum right there in the living room, he gave young Ava the first documented tetanus shot in Winnfield history.
The antitoxin saved her life, but the severe puncture trauma caused her knee joint to lock up completely. Ava walked with a stiff, unbending leg, swinging it outward with each step, but she resolutely refused to let the injury define her future.
Determined to walk normally again, she took rehabilitation into her own hands with a unique brand of turn-of-the-century physical therapy. Ava would walk over to the high curb outside the Winn Parish Courthouse, sit down with her stiff leg extended out over the ledge, and have her brother Frank bounce up and down on her knee. Through sheer grit—and the unmistakable sound of internal joint adhesions snapping free—she forced the knee to regain mobility. The joint eventually unfroze completely, allowing Ava to live an active, normal life until arthritis set in during her later years.
Following the business meeting, attendees gathered under the shade trees for a traditional homecoming dinner on the grounds.
Cemetery Guidelines & Contributions:
All burials and monument placements at St. Maurice Cemetery require authorization. For permit inquiries, contact Board Secretary Melissa Ward at Melissaward83@gmail.com. Walk-ins and wheelchairs are always welcome on the grounds.
Memorial donations may be mailed to:
St. Maurice Cemetery Association, Inc.
c/o Melissa S. Ward, Secretary
162 Alma Swafford Rd
Natchitoches, LA 71457
(Please note on the check memo line whether contributions are designated for Cemetery Maintenance or the Church Building Project Fund).
This report and oral history account were compiled and transcribed using AI-assisted technology from on-site recordings gathered at the 2026 St. Maurice Cemetery Homecoming.
Photo Caption: Framed by the boughs of a native Winn Parish shortleaf pine, the historic St. Maurice Methodist Church (built in 1874 by John E. Jones) stands in bright autumn sunlight during the annual cemetery homecoming on Sunday, October 11, 2026.