Since I was a child I’ve been interested in the history of Opelousas. My curiosity about the stories I heard from my mom, my aunts and my grandmother led me to the St. Landry Parish courthouse when I got older, and eventually to other areas to do research on our town using anything available for more information.
I especially like to learn how businesses got started, what were the first businesses in town and who were the first professionals. I even wrote a book called "Opelousas Firsts."
Since that time I’ve learned so much more about some of the first known businesses as well as those that followed. Today, I want to share what I learned about the early jewelers in Opelousas with a focus on Dietlein Jewelry Store that operated over a century ago.