fort st. jean baptiste

My grandchildren are home schoolers and they loved the hands on self guided tour. They got to see a real Fort and learn how they lived back then. Thank you!!!!

Great historical information a very good museum and films and a great view of rivers. Told of first sellers in 1700's and civil war era.

Nice replica of the original fort, neat museum, and woodsy setting. The fort is very simple and basic with not alot of items to see like the plantations in the area, but still an enjoyable attraction. The film of Natchitoches history was good and the staff is great. We enjoyed watching some of their game camera films that were playing in the museum area also.

I visited this site with my family when they came from out of state. It was the perfect place for them to get a small glimpse of early life in Louisiana. The two guides working that the site were very knowledgeable and spent a good amount of time answering questions and explaining things in relation to other historic events. The re-creation of the fort is interesting to walk around and the artifacts inside the building are neat, but the guides really make this a worthwhile trip. We spend about 90 minutes at the site and it was an adequate amount of time to see things. :)

It wasn't much to it, took about 15 minutes to see everything. Don't waste your time. It cost to get it, it should be free.

Re-creation of a very interesting little fort. We had no idea of any of the local history since we had never been to this part of Louisiana before. It turns out to be quite interesting. We spent a nice couple of hours touring the fort, going on a short tour, and learning the local history.

The Fort St. Jean Baptiste is a must see for history buffs. The museum has some nice exhibits and a film that highlight the history of the French occupation of this area. In addition, employees of the museum have built a great reconstruction of the fort only about 200 yards from the museum. While we were there, they had two re-enactors in period clothing at the fort to explain the history and the design features and uses of each of the structures. They were very knowledgeable of the French history, the Caddo culture and history, and the Spanish history of the Fort Adaes near Robeline, Louisiana, to the West of the French fort about 15 miles. The French fort had been built on the banks of the Red River, although the Red River has changed its course and moved miles to the East leaving the current Fort on the banks of the 34 mile abandoned oxbow that is now called the Cane River Lake. Both forts were built in contested area since the Spanish claimed that their land called Tejas went all the way to the Red River. But the French claimed that their French territory went all the way West to the Sabine River (now covered by the huge Toledo Bend Lake). The only disappointing thing is that Fort Adaes, the original Spanish Fort in Robeline is apparently managed by the Fort St Jean Baptiste staff and when the state cut the funding for state parks, the Fort Adaes park was closed except for tours by appointment. If you want to visit Fort Adaes near Robeline, you will need to call the Fort St. Jean Baptiste staff and make an appointment to meet them at Fort Adaes. For history buffs, the Fort Adaes is significant in that it was the first capital of the Spanish territory called Tejas. We visited the Fort Adaes location and there is a gate that prevents entry onto the property, but we were at least able to say we had been there and to see the location and the lay of the land.

this is an awesome place to tour and learn about. i been goin here since i was a teenager and ive always loved it

The interior museum is enjoyable and informative but the tour of the fort replication is great. The rangers are very knowledgeable and love to answer your questions. I ended up getting the tour with a girl scout troop and the rangers worked really well with the girls.

I enjoyed the guided tour of the reconstructed fort by a park official. The tour guide helped make the history come alive. The indoor museum is adequate, and the guided tour is the best.

Well...they were having a re-enactment of the attack on Fort Jean Baptiste. It was the major thing we wanted to take our grandkids to see. We arrived 5 minutes before it started and as we started down the path to the stands...they called us back and would not let us go. They had decided to start a few minutes early !! I was SO ANGRY. We had verified the time with someone who was in the re-enactment and the flyers and brochures at the hotel and downtown.

The Fort had a nice video giving the history of the founding of Natchitoches and there were some nice exhibits in the museum. The grounds were lovely to walk around down by the river.

really enjoyed this. Built in 1979 from the blue prints of the original fort. Well maintained. The original location was destroyed by the river. Very interesting and well worth $4.

I used to reenact there. I donated the 16th century French document in the Museum and my husband Frank donated the square , handmade nails. wonderful reenactment. I need to go back sometime.

Although it is not the original fort, but a recreation of the original fort, it is still very interesting to see. A full-size reproduction of the fort's barracks, Commandant's quarters, storage facilities, jail, church, and others. Has costumed actors who interact with the visitors, giving insight about life during this time period. Admission is $4.00 per adult, but well worth it, if you like history / old forts and the like. There are a lot of static displays in the visitor's center, along with a 15 min. movie presentation. Allot about 2 hours. Worth the time to visit.