Keller’s Bakery

The Kellers were bakers and vintners in the Alsace region of France before they arrived in the United States. Mr. Victor Keller opened the first Keller’s Bakery in Abbeville in 1884, and his son, Florian, operated the bakery after him. In 1899, Florian’s son, Felician, moved to Crowley to operate Keller’s Bakery with his cousin, Louis Keller. In 1929, another son, Fenwick Keller, opened Keller’s bakery in Lafayette with his young wife, Eleanor Dyer Keller. The bakery was first located on Jefferson Street near East Main Street, and in 1948 they relocated to this newly-constructed building. As was the norm for most bakers, the family lived above the bakery. The building was designed in the Commercial style with influences from the Art Moderne architectural movement, popular in the 1940s. Elements include the round window, the horizontal line of windows turning the corner on the second floor, the multiple-level roofline, window frames that are set flush with the exterior building façade, and a building form designed to emphasize a simple geometry. Fenwick’s children began helping with the
bakery when they were young. In time, the second son, Kenneth Gregory Keller, began managing the business, and in 2004, he became sole owner.