On May 15 I had the opportunity to interview Felix Simoneaux Jr., who turned 108 this month at his home in LaPlace. Born May 24, 1905, in the town of Montz, he was the son of Felix Simoneaux Sr. and Marie Sedonia Vicknair of Reserve. He spent most of his early youth living in Police Jury Ward 3 in St. Charles Parish.
At an early age, Felix Simoneaux Jr. attended a two-room school in St. Charles Parish and quit school in the third grade at the age of 13. He dropped out of school because he missed two to three day a week helping his father in the field. Although his poor attendance caused him to fail several times, he can read and write, and actually his spelling and vocabulary was amazing. While in school, he memorized half the pages in a book and could recite each page. Although he couldn’t remember his third grade teacher’s name, he did remember she was short and mean. You could see from his facial expression his third grade teacher left a negative image. He never received a whipping in school but he did remember an Italian classmate receiving many whippings from the third grade teacher.
In his early years, Felix Simoneaux Jr. remembered playing marbles, shooting birds with a sling shot and chewing stalks of sugar cane. He remembers the silent movie era, but he didn’t go the movies. His home didn’t have electricity or a refrigerator, so his father preserved meat by placing meat in a crock pot and poured salt to keep the meat from rotting. He recalled eating a lot of potatoes and beans — both red and white. For fun, he learned to swim in a little pond on the Mississippi River batture.
“We never swam in the Mississippi River,” he stated. “The river’s current was too strong!” He continued, “I took my family to outings along Frenier Beach, and I certainly remember the 1915 hurricane that flooded the area and destroyed Frenier.”
Felix Simoneaux Jr. worked many jobs. At an early age, he rode a horse to the field and helped plant sugar cane, potatoes and corn. He worked well with those of different races who worked side by side with him in the Montegut fields. He helped his father sell vegetables in LaPlace and Reserve, and some of the produce was brought to the French Market in New Orleans. He worked on the Mississippi River building levees and was paid 75 cents per day for a 12-hour work day. The 1930 U.S. Census listed him as a painter at an oil refinery. By 1940, Felix Simoneaux Jr. had become a carpenter and worked on the skyscrapers in New Orleans, worked briefly at Shell Oil and worked at Godchaux Sugars in Reserve where he helped to build the sugar silos. He once supervised a work crew of 18 men.
Historian Wayne Norwood wrote the following from his 2012 interview with Felix Simoneaux Jr.: “All of the roads were dirt with very few stores. One of the dirt roads that I remember went back to what we know today as Peavine and Frenier. A horse and wagon would stop at your house with groceries to sell, or you swapped chick eggs for food. Everyone had a horse and wagon, and sometimes you might see a car. If you got sick, Dr. Armand Donaldson from Reserve would come to your home to check on you.”
Felix Simoneaux Jr. loved to dance and met his wife, Myrtle Champagne of Ama, at a dance in Luling. Less than one year later, the couple married on Dec. 6, 1934. They had six children: Loretta Simoneaux, who died on an ear infection and lived only 13 months; Myrtle Simoneaux Robichaux; Audrey Mae Simoneaux Terrio; Myra Simoneaux; Carey Simoneaux; and Maurice Simoneaux. His wife passed on May 22, 2004, and was buried in St. Peter Cemetery in Reserve.
In 1941, Felix Simoneaux built the house he now lives in on the Hammond Highway in LaPlace at a cost of $700. He cut his own cypress, and two young men helped him. One was J.D. Perilloux III, his neighbor.
“They would hand me the boards, and I would do the nailing,” said Felix Simoneaux Jr.
When completed, the house had three bedrooms, a living room, kitchen and bath. Like many residents in that area, he had a cow and a few chickens to supply his family with milk and eggs. He recalled his first car — a second-hand model T-Ford, and he later purchased a Model A.
During World War II, he was drafted but didn’t pass the physical examination. At the time of his physical, he had an eye problem and poor circulation in his calves. He and the family listened to the news on radio and at night and pulled down the shades to comply with the blackout requirements. He worked at Higgins building landing craft that helped in military invasions.
Felix Simoneaux Jr. stopped working when he was 75 years old and quit driving at the age of 105.
At 107 plus, he is in good health and rarely goes to the doctor. When asked what attributed to his longevity, he responded,
“No spicy foods, no black pepper, no whiskey and don’t smoke!” He said. “I never smoked in my life! I don’t rush when I eat — I chew my food. I like fresh fruit and vegetables. I occasionally drink a small highball during a social.”
Brian McTopy of Reserve added, “He loves to play cards, especially Pedro.”
Felix Simoneaux Jr. is a religious man that attended church services at a chapel in Montz where he was baptized. The family attended St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church in LaPlace.
Today, he wears glasses, needs a walker and has some hearing loss, but he is alert, and his memory was astonishing. Standing 5-foot-7-inches in height and weighing 140 pounds, he has a daily routine and gets agitated if that pattern is altered. When I walked into his house, he was sitting in his chair holding a television remote in hand. I could see as the interview progressed, he was a no-nonsense man, and as the interview filtered into his space, he became agitated.
I could see that Mr. Simoneaux was beginning to wear down from the interview and asked, “Can I take a picture?” His response was, “I sure hope you would hurry up!” With that, I took three pictures and said, “Thank you for allowing me to interview you and sharing your life.”
What I found out later from his daughter, Audrey Simoneaux Terrio, was that he kept looking at his watch because it was time for “Everybody Loves Raymond.”
The world certainly needs more courageous, righteous and devout people such as Felix Simoneaux Jr. Regardless of the circumstances, he always rose to the challenge. He is truly a man of many seasons. He was not perfect, but his desire to obey God and His commandments gave him the strength to remain steadfast.

Gerald Keller is a member of the St. John the Baptist Parish School Board and has complied and published books on local history, including “Precious Gems From Faded Memories: A Pictorial History of St. John the Baptist Parish” and “Reserve.”