Acadiana’s favorite sandwich bread was created by Joseph Huval, who used a $50 World War I bonus to create the Huval Baking Co. in 1919 in Youngsville. Huval quickly grew his business by offering home delivery of his bread in a Model-T truck, moving his operation to Lafayette and acquiring an existing bakery.
By 1937, he constructed a larger bakery in its current location at St. John and Simcoe streets. The Evangeline Maid trademark was created that year with Huval’s daughter, Mary Helen, serving as the logo’s inspiration. The bakery’s iconic revolving Evangeline Maid sign, a landmark that still spins outside of the bakery, was unveiled in 1960. Today, the 87,000-square-foot bakery’s 200 employees bake more than 1 million pounds of bread and buns per week.
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