No one knows exactly when the Easter Rock ceremony started or why, but it’s said the northeast Louisiana tradition started before the Civil War.
These days, the ceremony is practiced only in Winnsboro, which partly answers a question posed by Phyllis Hall, who asked if the tradition is exclusive to Louisiana.
“I first heard about the Easter Rock a few years ago,” the Coushatta resident said. “I was curious to learn more about its origins.”
Though the Easter Rock doesn’t enjoy the wide notoriety of other cultural traditions, it has gained some recognition through the Louisiana Folklife Festival in Natchitoches and the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C. Its name refers to the rocking motion of a procession that takes place on the night before Easter, which once was practiced in northeast Louisiana Black churches from Lake Providence to Ferriday…