Lake Charles' downtown "Carpentier District" encases a twenty (20) block area of homes dating back to the late 1800's and 1900's. Because there weren't any practicing architects the area until the early 1900's, the homes in the district acquired their individual characteristics from the carpenters who built them. These carpenters expressed their artistry and tried to out build one another with their use of elaborate fretwork and Victorian decoration.