Historical Marker
Barbe Pier
Lake Charles, Calcasieu County · Louisiana
This pier is a story about one storm. The hurricane of August 6, 1918, a Category 3 that came ashore near Cameron, sent gusts estimated above 100 mph through Lake Charles. At Gerstner Field it destroyed 96 airplanes, and on Prien Lake the mail boat Borealis Rex capsized in waves of eight to ten feet, though everyone aboard survived. The Lake Charles tourism bureau says the storm took out most of the Barbe family's earlier fishing pier and casino, and that they rebuilt with a dance pavilion and bathhouse.
Where it stands
30.21727, -93.23648 · Directions
Worth the stop nearby
- Imperial Calcasieu Museum — 0.9 miLake Charles's history museum, founded by the Junior League in 1963, with parish artifacts, Claire Chennault's uniform and the Sallier Oak.
- Mardi Gras Museum of Imperial Calcasieu — 2.1 miA 6,000-square-foot museum of southwest Louisiana Carnival with about 275 costume mannequins and 14 animated figures, opened in April 2026.
- Sam Houston Jones State Park — 5.8 miA 1,087-acre park on the West Fork of the Calcasieu with longleaf pine, cypress-tupelo swamp, five trails, cabins and kayak rentals.
- Creole Nature Trail Adventure Point — 8.4 miA free visitor center at the western gateway of Louisiana's only All-American Road, with exhibits on alligators, migrating songbirds and the estuary.