Winning Essays
Lafayette’s Escape from Prison by Eli Spears Saturday, November 6th, 1794 Day… Day I can’t seem to remember anymore. I’ve…Read More
OUR MISSION
The mission of the Lafayette Alliance is to inspire, illuminate, and unite, all in the Spirit of Lafayette.
celebrating our heritage
bringing our community together through history
Inspire
One person can change the world. Cicero said all virtues hinge first on gratitude; Aristotle said courage foremost. Lafayette speaks to both.
Unite
Liberty, equality, and justice are verbs. They take work. Lafayette believed them to be at the heart of the idea of America.
Illuminate
One person can be heroic. It takes perseverance. It takes vision. Lafayette owned both.
The Spirit of Lafayette
It’s the undistracted moment, in the quiet of early morning.
It’s a contingent instant when things can go either way and you make the call.
It’s letting go and making what is to come better.
It’s the hot dog, at the ball game with the children.
It’s hope, dressed in flannel shirts and worn-out jeans.
Our Journal
bringing history to life
The more we know about Lafayette, the more we understand our present world and nation. Those who publish articles bring differing perspectives and opinions to the life and legacy of Lafayette.
Lafayette and Inoculation
By Richard Ingram, Chair, Lafayette Alliance In Lafayette’s time, the eighteenth century, smallpox killed more people than war. …Read More
Lafayette, Washington, Jefferson, and Ice Cream
Today, Sunday, July 18, 2021, is National Ice Cream Day! Thanks to President Ronald Reagan, we celebrate National Ice Cream…Read More
James Armistead Lafayette: What We Know And Don’t Know
James Armistead Lafayette Notes Edited by Richard Ingram, Chair, Lafayette Alliance Early YearsJames was born December 10, 1748, in New…Read More
2022 Speaker Series Announced
The 2022 Lafayette Alliance Speaker Series was announced tonight during the Julien Icher lecture. Alliance Secretary, Alex Hughes, had the…Read More
Matthew Oleson Trendsetter
Matthew Oleson achieves two things, one much less obvious than the other. Oleson owns CheesyMac Deli, Bull Street, LaGrange, now…Read More
Essay and Art Competition Winners!
The Lafayette Alliance hosted an essay and art competition this semester for students in grades ten through twelve. Led by…Read More
Lafayette Cur Non! – A Play
Lafayette Alliance Chair Richard Ingram has written two plays about Lafayette. This is the play entitled “Lafayette: Cur Non!” This play is…Read More
The statue of General Lafayette in LaGrange is cast from an original in LePuy-en-Velay, France near where Lafayette was born.
It depicts the Marquis in his French National Guard uniform holding aloft a cockade of red, white, and blue. A cockade was a ribbon worn in one’s hat to signify an affiliation.
Dr. Waights G. Henry, Jr., President of LaGrange College, initiated the project in 1974 which was backed by the Callaway Foundation. The statue was erected in 1975 as a tribute to the Marquis and to the Bicentennial of the American Revolution.
It is on permanent loan to the City of LaGrange from LaGrange College.
