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Mallows Bay National Marine Sanctuary

Bayou Teche

Bayou Teche was built in 1918, by the Jahncke Shipbuilding Corporation at the Jahncke Shipyard along the Tchefuncte River in Madisonville, Louisiana. It was a Ferris-type wooden hulled cargo steamship built for the U.S. Shipping Board as part of the large World War I war effort. The shipyard employed close to 2,200 workers and went on to build six wooden cargo ships like Bayou Teche.  The city of Madisonville stayed a center for shipbuilding after World War I and into the post-World War II era. However, the high demand created by the U.S. Shipping Board contracts was never seen again.

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Drone photograph of the remains of Bayou Teche (located on the left side of image), located within Mallows Bay-Potomac River National Marine Sanctuary. (Photo: Tyler Smith/NOAA). Drone photograph of the remains of Bayou Teche (located on the left side of image), located within Mallows Bay-Potomac River National Marine Sanctuary. (Photo: Tyler Smith/NOAA). Stern view of Bayou Teche being towed by tugboats, date unknown. (Source: Courtesy of Southeastern Louisiana University, Center for Southeast Louisiana Studies, Jahncke Shipyard Collection). Stern view of Bayou Teche being towed by tugboats, date unknown. (Source: Courtesy of Southeastern Louisiana University, Center for Southeast Louisiana Studies, Jahncke Shipyard Collection). View of Bayou Teche being towed by tugboats to get over shallow parts of Tchefuncta River, near Madisonville, Louisiana. (Source: Courtesy of Southeastern Louisiana University, Center for Southeast Louisiana Studies, Jahncke Shipyard Collection). View of Bayou Teche being towed by tugboats to get over shallow parts of Tchefuncta River, near Madisonville, Louisiana. (Source: Courtesy of Southeastern Louisiana University, Center for Southeast Louisiana Studies, Jahncke Shipyard Collection). Construction of Bayou Teche at Jahncke Shipyard, date unknown. (Source: Courtesy of Southeastern Louisiana University, Center for Southeast Louisiana Studies, Jahncke Shipyard Collection). Construction of Bayou Teche at Jahncke Shipyard, date unknown. (Source: Courtesy of Southeastern Louisiana University, Center for Southeast Louisiana Studies, Jahncke Shipyard Collection). Bayou Teche archaeological site plan. (Credit: Program in Maritime Studies, East Carolina University) Bayou Teche archaeological site plan. (Credit: Program in Maritime Studies, East Carolina University) View of starboard side of Bayou Teche at Jahncke Shipyard, displaying dazzle painting, date unknown. (Source: Courtesy of Southeastern Louisiana University, Center for Southeast Louisiana Studies, Jahncke Shipyard Collection). View of starboard side of Bayou Teche at Jahncke Shipyard, displaying dazzle painting, date unknown. (Source: Courtesy of Southeastern Louisiana University, Center for Southeast Louisiana Studies, Jahncke Shipyard Collection).

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