Yambilee Festival

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The Yambilee Festival is held annually in Opelousas, Louisiana during the last full week of October.^[1]

The Yambilee was founded by two friends, native Texan J.W. "Bill" Low and Felix Dazauche, a yam shipper and processor as a way to honor the local sweet potato industry. According to J.W. Low, the raison d’etre of the festival was to “assist and encourage the advancement of the material prosperity and progress of the State of Louisiana, Southwest Louisiana and St. Landry Parish by stimulating local and national interest in Louisiana farm produce, particularly Louisiana Sweet potatoes (yams) and to provide colorful programs of entertainment capable of generating nationwide publicity and advertising for Louisiana yams and other farm produce.”

The first Louisiana Yambilee celebration, held October 9th and l0th of 1946^[2], would not have been possible without the dedication of the first Board of Directors whose members included: J.W. Low, J.F. Dezauche, Anthony Chachere, Charles Bourque, Lee Mizzi, J.P. Barnett, Arnold Winsberg, J.M. Landry, A.B. Reed, Allen Dezauche, John Thistlewaite, Alex Watkins and Seth Lewis not to mention Opelousas Chamber of Commerce, city, parish and state officials, local organizations and countless volunteers.

The first Louisiana Yambilee festival queen was Jean Horecky of Church Point. There were 2 Co-Mr. Yams, Jack Herbert and Alfred Lagrange, both from Opelousas. The festival would crown it's first king ,R.J. Castille of Sunset, during the second festival.