Dr. John & Edith Miles House

Dr. John and Edith Miles’ Colonial Revival house was built with salvaged lumber from the original French Creole structure that was located on the site and with additional lumber taken from barracks that were discarded at Fort Polk. Dr. John and Edith Miles House is one of several well-maintained historic properties in Elmhurst Park Historic Neighborhood. In 1938, the property was sold to Dr. Miles’ wife, Edith de Gravelle Miles. At that time, there was only a single-story French Creole structure facing Saint John Street on the property. In 1948, the original house was completely reconfigured, the entrance was changed to face Calder Street, and the structure was enlarged to its present size. A bomb shelter that is still intact today, was also built on the property. It is one of a number of underground shelters in Lafayette, all of which were built during the post-World War II, Cold War era in response to a prevailing fears of missile attacks by the Communist country, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. The house remained in the Miles family until 1981.