Cane River is home to a rich, diverse heritage and vibrant living traditions rooted in a distinctive Creole culture that developed in colonial Louisiana as French, Spanish, African, and American Indian cultures interacted and adapted to each other and the land. In colonial Louisiana, the term Creole indicated New World products derived from Old World stock and appeared in every part of life. Historically, it referred to people born in Louisiana during the colonial period who spoke French, Spanish and or creole languages and practiced the Roman Catholic faith regardless of ethnicity. Today, as in the past, Creole goes beyond racial boundaries and connects people to colonial roots, whether they are descendants of European settlers, enslaved or free Africans, or those of mixed heritage. Many define Creole through foodways, music, folklore, family traditions, architecture, the Catholic faith, and genealogy. In 1994, the U.S. Congress created Cane River National Heritage Area and Cane River Creole National Historical Park, including Oakland and Magnolia Plantations, two of the most intact Creole plantations in the United States, where generations of the same families of owners and workers lived on the land for 200 years.