The University of Louisiana = Lafayette Equine Center was established in 1920 when the university bought the property located in the middle of Lafayette. The "horse farm" as it has become affectionately known, was used as an agricultural center growing crops and grazing cattle and horses.

As Lafayette grew and it became apparent that the farm was landlocked by the growing community, the agricultural center was moved out to rural St Martin Parish near Cade. The farm still housed the Equine Center until the late 1990's when the horses joined the cattle in the new center.

Many wanted to develope the property for commercial use, but others resisted. A group called Save the Horse Farm was formed, dedicated to saving the property. A battle raged to save the area and its large oak trees.

In 2012 it seems as though a deal has been struck to turn the area into a downtown park, the Consolidated Government has agreed to purchase the aeea from the state and utilize it as a hiking and biking area - not baseball fields.

For more information, see http://www.savethehorsefarm.com/index.html