Ponchatoula River
Tangipahoa County, Louisiana

The River for which the
USS Ponchatoula AO-146
is named after


Typical Louisiana River Photo

Ponchatoula is a small Northshore town East of Baton Rouge,
located in the Plantation Country Region of Louisiana.



Ponchatoula City History
Ponchatoula, a Native-American word for "falling hair", used to describe the "Spanish Moss" hanging from oak trees. Ponchatoula is best known for it's Strawberry Festival held yearly in April. Fresh sweet Louisiana Strawberrys picked fresh from the vines and sold at roadside stands

 Ponchatoula is recognized as “America’s Antique City.” While farming and timber are still important to the local economy, many citizens travel local interstates to work at the numerous petrochemical plants located along the Mississippi River in Baton Rouge and in the New Orleans area.
The 2003 Reunion for
USS Ponchatoula AO-148
was held here

The Association members stayed at the Microtel Inn where the crew were treated like royalty.

Mayor Dufreche organized an armada of Party Boats that entertained them with a tour of the local waterways including the Ponchatoula "river". They were then served a Crawfish Feast and the crew were taught the art (?) of eating crawfish.

They visited Laura and Oak Alley Plantations. At the evening dinner Mayor Dufreche presented our Association with Keys to the City and also handed out Honorary Citizenship Certificates to the City of Ponchatoula to the members and wives of the Association attending the reunion

 The crew participated in a ceremony of lowering and again
raising the largest American Flag flown in the State of
 Louisiana.

The Association presented the mayor with an oil painting of the USS Ponchatoula (AO-148). An attached plaque reads "Presented to the citizens of the City of Ponchatoula, LA from the USS Ponchatoula Shipmates Association, May 8, 2003". Mayor Dufreche graciously accepted the painting on behalf of the citizens of Ponchatoula and said it would be displayed in a position of prominence in City Hall. See Photo below.

Each Association member was presented with a Ponchatoula Reunion pin that had been designed for this reunion.The group visited the National D-Day Museum in New Orleans and walked through the French Quarter.

Go To Ponchatoula Page