List of plantations in Louisiana

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This is a list of plantations and/or plantation houses in the U.S. state of Louisiana that are National Historic Landmarks, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, listed on a heritage register; or are otherwise significant for their history, their association with significant events or people, or their architecture and design. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

List of plantations

Color keyHistoric register listing
National Historic Landmark
National Register of Historic Places Historic District
National Register of Historic Places Individual Listing
Not listed on national or state register
NRHP reference numberNameImageDate designatedTown, ParishParishNotes
87000849 Acadia Plantation May 29, 1987 Thibodaux Lafourche Demolished 2010
83000554 Afton Villa Gardens Afton Villa.jpg February 24, 1983 St. Francisville West Feliciana House destroyed by fire in 1963. Gardens and ruins open daily, March 1 to June 30 & October 1 to December 1.
91001046 Aillet House Aillet House.jpg August 9, 1991 Port Allen West Baton Rouge Built in 1830; French-Creole Architecture
01000007 Albania Plantation House 11AlbaniaWM.jpg January 26, 2001 Jeanerette Iberia
Albemarle Plantation House Not applicable Napoleonville Assumption Owned and in continuous operation by the original family since 1839.
84001291 Alice Plantation House June 14, 1984 Jeanerette Iberia
00001229 Alice C Plantation House October 24, 2000 Franklin St. Mary
96001263 Allendale Plantation Historic District Allendale Plantation Historic District.jpg November 1, 1996 Port Allen West Baton Rouge Founded by Henry Watkins Allen and it was burned to the ground by during the American Civil War. The plantation was rebuilt after 1880 by another owner.
Angola Plantation Acklen - Panola Belle View Killarney Angola plantations Louisiana 1858.jpg Not applicableAngola West Feliciana Had been Francis Routh's cotton plantation; and the land is now part of the Louisiana State Penitentiary. [4]
82000469 Ardoyne Plantation House Ardoyne Plantation.JPG November 1, 1982 Houma Terrebonne
80004476 Arlington Plantation October 3, 1980 Lake Providence East Carroll
82000457 Arlington Plantation House FRAringtonWM.JPG October 5, 1982 Franklin St. Mary
82004676 Arlington Plantation House August 11, 1982 Washington St. Landry
79001050 Ashland (Belle Helene) Ashland (Belle Helene).jpg May 4, 1979 Geismar Ascension
72000552 Asphodel Plantation November 15, 1972 Jackson East FelicianaBuilt in 1830, by Benjamin Kendrick. There is also a cemetery on the property.
Atahoe Plantation Elevation view of west facade, with scale - Atahoe Plantation, 1843 Bermuda Road, Natchez, Natchitoches Parish, LA HABS LA-1333-5.tif Not applicableNatchezNatchitoches
87000729 Audubon Plantation Audubon House.jpg May 14, 1987 Baton Rouge East Baton Rouge
82000434 Avondale Plantation Home December 17, 1982 Clinton East Feliciana Now the Camp Avondale Scouting campground
07000424 Bagatelle Plantation Bagatelle Plantation, East River Road (moved to Iberville Parish), Donaldsonville vicinity (St. James Parish, Louisiana).jpg May 9, 2007 Sunshine Iberville
79001056 Battleground Plantation May 14, 1979 Sicily Island Catahoula
9800142 Bayside Plantation Bayside.jpg January 29, 1987 Jeanerette Iberia
98001425 Belle Alliance Belle Alliance Assumption.JPG November 23, 1998 Belle Alliance Assumption Italianate and Greek Revival home, built about 1846.
Belle Grove LA Belle Grove HABS.jpg Not applicable White Castle Iberville Burned in 1952
79001083 Bennett Plantation House May 14, 1979 Alexandria Rapides
91000705 Bocage Plantation Bocage Plantation.JPG June 20, 1991 Darrow Ascension Built in 1837, possibly designed by James H. Dakin
Bonnie Glen PlantationJanuary 11, 1980New RoadsPointe CoupeeBuilt approx. 1825–1830 by Antoine Gosserand. Raised plantation home along False River representing the early Creole Greek Revival period. Privately owned by descendents of the Gosserand
09000931 Boscobel Plantation Cottage Bosch Plantation House.jpg November 18, 2009 Bosco Ouachita
79001078 Bosco Plantation House Boscobel Cottage.jpg May 7, 1979 Bosco Ouachita
83000527 Bouverans Plantation House BouvernsWM.jpg July 21, 1983 Lockport Lafourche Parish
80001709 Breston Plantation House November 22, 1980 Columbia Caldwell
83000503 Buckmeadow Plantation House September 15, 1983 Lake Providence East Carroll Delisted December 28, 2015
79001103 Butler-Greenwood Plantation Butlergreen woodpecker.jpg April 17, 1979 St. Francisville West Feliciana
82002754 Calliham Plantation House July 22, 1982 Hamburg Avoyelles Parish
84002859 Calumet Plantation House FRCalumetWM.JPG October 18, 1984 Patterson St. Mary
82002767 Canebrke August 29, 1982 Ferriday Concordia
79001069 Carter Plantation CarterPlantWM.JPG February 23, 1979 Springfield Livingston Built c. 1820 for free man of color Thomas Freeman. During the Civil War, a minor Confederate naval operation was launched here.
82002757 Cashpoint Plantation House August 11, 1982Elm Grove Bossier
Caspiana Plantation Not applicable Caspiana Caddo The main house was moved and is now located in Sherevport, and the plantation store is now located in Natchitoches. [5]
92000583 Caspiana Plantation Store Caspiana Store 1.JPG June 5, 1992 Natchitoches Natchitoches
88001049 Cedar Bend Plantation July 14, 1988 Natchez Natchitoches
76000965 Cedars Plantation May 19, 1976 Oak Ridge Morehouse
82000442 Chatchie Plantation House Chatachie.JPG October 25, 1982 Thibodaux Lafourche
73000869 Cherokee Plantation Detail view of southeast elevation, looking from the south to show gallery - Cherokee Plantation, Highway 494, Natchez, Natchitoches Parish, LA HABS LA-1318-7.tif August 14, 1973NatchezNatchitoches
77001519 Chretien Point Plantation Chretien Point Plantation.jpg May 26, 1977 Sunset St. Landry
85000970 Clarendon Plantation House May 9, 1985 Evergreen Avoyelles Delisted
75000857 Cottage Plantation March 17, 1975 St. Francisville West Feliciana
84000144 Crescent Plantation Crescent Plantation.jpg October 18, 1984 Tallulah Madison
73000868 Darby Plantation Crescent Plantation.jpg March 26, 1973New Iberia Iberia Delisted: Burned down and replaced with replica.
86001054 Desire Plantation House DesirePlantation11.JPG May 15, 1986 Vacherie St. James Built circa 1835, French Creole perique tobacco plantation. Private.
73002132 Destrehan Plantation Destrehan Manor House 20070706.jpg March 20, 1973 Destrehan St. Charles Completed in 1790, the site of a tribunal after 1811 German Coast Uprising, the largest slave rebellion in U.S. history. Restored by a nonprofit organization and open to the public.
87000851 Dixie Plantation May 29, 1987 Franklin St. Mary Parish
85002759 Ducros Plantation DucrossWM.jpg November 7, 1985 Schriever Terrebonne
94000742 Dulcito Plantation House July 22, 1994New Iberia Iberia
82002791 El Dorado Plantation House March 24, 1982Livonia Pointe Coupee
88003135 Emilie Plantation EmilePlantation1.JPG January 13, 1989Garyville St. John the Baptist Parish
75000848 Enterprise Plantation March 17, 1975 Jeanerette Iberia
91001386 Evergreen Plantation Evergreen Plantation NHL.jpg April 27, 1992 Wallace
30°01′37″N90°38′22″W / 30.02690°N 90.63958°W / 30.02690; -90.63958 (Evergreen Plantation)
St. John the Baptist Composed of 39 buildings, Evergreen Plantation is an intact major antebellum plantation complex of the Southern United States. [6] [7] Open to visitors.
88000102 Fairhaven Plantation House February 11, 1988ZacharyEast Baton Rouge
93000821 Fairview Plantation House August 12, 1993EthelEast Feliciana
10000062 Felicity Plantation FelecityWM.JPG March 8, 2010 Vacherie St. James Sister plantation to St. Joseph Plantation, built circa 1850 and privately owned.
80001712 Frogmore Plantation Frogmore Plantation Hse 9-12-23.jpg May 31, 1980 Ferriday Concordia Established circa 1815, Frogmore Plantation has a steam-powered cotton gin.
82004674 Frozard Plantation House August 12, 1982Grand CoteauSt. Landry
93001548 Godchaux–Reserve Plantation Reserve House.JPG January 21, 1994Reserve St. John the Baptist
97000967 Gracelane Plantation House August 29, 1997Baton Rouge East Baton Rouge
92000510 Graugnard Farms Plantation House May 14, 1992St. James St. James
82000451 Harlem Plantation House WaterPleaseHouseLAHwy39.jpg October 26, 1982 Pointe à la Hache Plaquemines
98001422 Hermione Plantation House Hermione Museum, Tulluah, Louisiana.jpg November 23, 1998 Tallulah Madison Relocated from Kell Plantation in rural Madison Parish
78001438 Hazelwood Plantation Hazelwood.jpg July 31, 1978 Laurel Hill West Feliciana
86003129 Homestead Plantation Complex November 6, 1986 Plaquemine
70000842 Homeplace Plantation House Homeplace Plantation, River Road, Hahnville (St. Charles Parish, Louisiana).jpg April 15, 1970 Hahnville
29°58′16″N90°24′27″W / 29.97105°N 90.40758°W / 29.97105; -90.40758 (Homeplace Plantation House)
St. Charles Built circa 1790, large French Colonial raised cottage. Not open to the public.
04001470 Hope Plantation House January 11, 2005 Garyville St. John the Baptist
80001694 The Houmas The Houmas 01.jpg September 27, 1980 Burnside Ascension
92001529 Indian Camp Plantation CarvilleDistWM.JPG November 18, 1992 Carville Iberville Listed as the "Carville Historic District"
87002449 Inglewood Plantation Historic District January 14, 1988 Alexandria Rapides
01000669 Katie Plantation House June 29, 2001 Breaux Bridge St. Martin Parish
06000317 Kenilworth Plantation House Kennilworth Terre-aux-Bouefs Mch 2012 B.JPG April 24, 2006 St. Bernard St. Bernard
71000362 Kent Plantation House Kent Plantation House.jpg August 5, 1971 Alexandria Rapides
99000235 Killarney February 18, 1999 Ferriday Concordia Also known as Alabama Plantation
84000145 LaBranche Plantation Dependency LaBranche Plantation-Barbarra Plantation Dependency (St. Rose, Louisiana), 2009.jpg October 18, 1984 St. Rose St. Charles
02001296 Landry Plantation House November 8, 2002 Youngsville Lafayette
93000322 Lane Plantation April 22, 1993 Ethel East Feliciana
92001842 Laura Plantation LauraPlanationHouse.jpg February 3, 1993 Vacherie St. James Plantation heiress and manager Laura Lacoul Gore's (1861–1963) autobiography tells the family's history and her experience living at the plantation. Open to the public.
78001426 Laurel Valley Sugar Plantation Ruined mill at the Laurel Valley Sugar Plantation.jpg March 24, 1978 Thibodaux Lafourche
93000694 LeBeuf Plantation House July 29, 1993 New Orleans Orleans
Leonard Plantation Not applicable Algiers Orleans Located at Patterson Street and Merrill Street, and noted for its productive truck gardens. Ravaged by Hurricane Betsy in 1965 and dismantled several years later. Also known as Webert Plantation.
94000705 Linwood Plantation Manager's House Linwood Tensas.jpg September 23, 1994 Newellton Tensas
79001057 Lisburn Plantation House Localimagereader.ashx copy.jpg July 26, 1979 Ferriday Concordia
77000680 Live Oak Plantation March 11, 1977 Weyanoke West Feliciana
74000924 Live Oaks Plantation November 20, 1974 Rosedale Iberville
80001748 Logtown Plantation Logtown Plantation.jpg October 16, 1980 Monroe Ouachita
77000678 Loyd Hall Plantation April 29, 1977 Cheneyville Rapides
02001603 Lucky Plantation House Lucky Plantation, Sunshine Louisiana.jpg December 27, 2002Sunshine Iberville Parish
73000860 Madewood Plantation House Madewood house.jpg May 4, 1983 Napoleonville
29°55′39″N90°59′39″W / 29.92738°N 90.99426°W / 29.92738; -90.99426 (Madewood Plantation House)
Assumption
83000548 Magnolia Plantation January 3, 1998 Schriever
29°42′53″N90°49′08″W / 29.714722°N 90.818889°W / 29.714722; -90.818889 (Magnolia Plantation (Schriever, Louisiana))
Terrebonne
79001071 Magnolia Plantation Magnolia Plantation, Louisiana Route 119, Natchitoches (Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana).jpg January 3, 2001 Derry
31°33′11″N92°56′33″W / 31.55294°N 92.94240°W / 31.55294; -92.94240 (Magnolia Plantation (Derry, Louisiana))
Natchitoches
86000253 Magnolia Lane Magnolia Lane Plantation House Posted.JPG February 13, 1986 Westwego
29°56′59″N90°09′12″W / 29.94986°N 90.1533°W / 29.94986; -90.1533 (Magnolia Lane Plantation)
Jefferson
72000549 Magnolia Mound Plantation House Magnolia Mound Plantation House.jpg September 7, 1972 Baton Rouge East Baton Rouge
87002135 Marengo Plantation House IN THE SPRING OF 1973 THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER REACHED ITS HIGHEST LEVEL IN MORE THAN 150 YEARS. UNPRECEDENTED FLOODING... - NARA - 552857.jpg December 14, 1987 Jonesville Catahoula
98000394 Marengo Plantation Cinclare Sugar Mill Historic District.jpg April 23, 1998 Cinclare West Baton Rouge Listed as "Cinclare Sugar Mill Historic District"
83000533 Mary Plantation House Mary Plantation House upriver side.JPG July 13, 1983 Braithwaite Plaquemines
72000556 Melrose Plantation Melrose Plantation, Big House, State Highway 119, Melrose (Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana).jpg May 30, 1974 Melrose
31°05′16″N92°58′03″W / 31.08771°N 92.96756°W / 31.08771; -92.96756 (Melrose Plantation)
Natchitoches
80001769 Monte Vista Plantation House June 9, 1980Port Allen West Baton Rouge Parish
87002505 Montegut Plantation House NOMontegut3.jpg January 21, 1988LaPlace St. John the Baptist Parish
82000444 Montrose Plantation House October 5, 1982 Tallulah Madison
82000468 Moro Plantation House October 5, 1982 Waterproof Tensas
06000779 Moss Grove Plantation House September 6, 2006Jonesville Catahoula Parish
76002167 Moundville Plantation House December 12, 1976Washington St. Landry Parish
80001717 Mount Hope Plantation House Mount Hope Plantation House.jpg December 3, 1980 Baton Rouge East Baton Rouge
79001094 Myrtle Grove Plantation May 10, 1979 Waterproof Tensas
74002185 Myrtle Hill Plantation House December 4, 1974Gloster DeSoto Parish
78001439 Myrtles Plantation Myrtles Plantation Louisiana.jpg September 6, 1978 St. Francisville West Feliciana
76000966 Narcisse Prudhomme Plantation General view looking down allee to house - Beau Fort, 4055 State Highway 494, Natchez, Natchitoches Parish, LA HABS LA,35-NACHE,1-2.tif July 13, 1976Bermuda Natchitoches Parish
85000976 Narrows Plantation House May 9, 1985 Lake Arthur Jefferson Davis
80001733 Nottoway Plantation House Nottoway plantation wc.jpg June 6, 1980 White Castle Iberville
74002187 Oak Alley Plantation OakAlleyacp.jpg December 2, 1974 Vacherie
30°00′15″N90°46′33″W / 30.00427°N 90.77593°W / 30.00427; -90.77593 (Oak Alley Plantation)
St. James
92000036 Oak Grove Plantation Dependencies February 13, 1992 St. Francisville West Feliciana
Oakland Plantation Oakland Plantation Bossier.JPG Haughton Bossier
79001073 Oakland Plantation Oakland Plantation house.jpg January 3, 2001 Natchez
31°39′54″N93°00′12″W / 31.66500°N 93.00333°W / 31.66500; -93.00333 (Oakland Plantation (Natchitoches, Louisiana))
Natchitoches
80001720 Oakland Plantation House October 3, 1980 Gurley East Feliciana
73002162 Oaklawn Manor Oaklawn Manor.jpg March 30, 1973 Franklin St. Mary Plantation home of U.S. Senator Alexander Porter.
79001072 Oaklawn Plantation Oaklawn Plantation house.jpg March 28, 1979 Natchez Natchitoches
73000878 Oakley Plantation Oakley2.JPG January 25, 1973 St. Francisville West Feliciana John James Audubon worked here as an art tutor in 1821 & painted 32 of his Birds of America . Open as the Audubon State Historic Site.
80001697 Oakwold Plantation House Oakwold picture 1979.jpg July 23, 1980EvergreenAvoyelles ParishSam Houston visited while in the area soliciting funds for his Texas army.
80001764 Orange Grove Plantation House March 26, 1980 Houma Terrebonne Circa-1840 Greek Revival briquette-entre-poteaux architecture; operates as an inn today. See Orange Grove Plantation House.
90001748 Ormond Plantation House Ormond Plantation House, Destrehan, Louisiana.jpg November 11, 1990 Destrehan St. Charles
77000665 Palo Alto Plantation PaloAltoWM.JPG April 13, 1977 Donaldsonville Ascension
70000258 Parlange Plantation Parlange Plantation, State Highway 93, New Roads vicinity (Pointe Coupee Parish, Louisiana).jpg May 30, 1974 Mix
31°39′54″N93°00′12″W / 31.66500°N 93.00333°W / 31.66500; -93.00333 (Parlange Plantation House)
Pointe Coupee
03001064 Pegram Plantation House October 24, 2003 Lecompte Rapides
71000360 Pitot House PitotHouseBayouStJohn.jpg September 28, 1971 New Orleans Orleans Built in the late 18th century in what then was outside of the city, home to Mayor James Pitot. Restored and open to the public.
84001347 Pleasant View Plantation House April 5, 1984 Oscar Pointe Coupee
80004251 Judge Poché Plantation House December 3, 1980 Convent St. James
87002136 Poplar Grove Plantation Poplar Grove Plantation, Port Allen, LA 2014-06-28 01-10.jpg December 14, 1987 Port Allen West Baton Rouge Former sugar plantation from the 1820s, manor house built in 1884 for the 1884 World's Industrial and Cotton Centennial Exposition in New Orleans. [8]
01000943 Residence Plantation House Residence Plantation Houma.JPG September 8, 2001HoumaTerrebonne
79001064 Richland Plantation March 28, 1979 Norwood East Feliciana
80001736 Rienzi Plantation House RezieniWM.jpg May 31, 1980 Thibodaux Lafourche Not open for tours
80001771 Rosale Plantation December 8, 1980 St. Francisville West Feliciana
76000974 Rosalie Plantation Sugar Mill January 2, 1976 Alexandria Rapides
73000880 Rosebank Plantation House April 13, 1973 Weyanoke West Feliciana
01000765 Rosedown Rosedown Plantation, Saint Francisville (West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana).jpg April 5, 2005 St. Francisville
30°47′46″N91°22′15″W / 30.79602°N 91.37095°W / 30.79602; -91.37095 (Rosedown Plantation)
West Feliciana
85003002 Roseland Plantation House October 10, 1985 Ferriday Concordia Parish
99001039 Sandbar Plantation House September 2, 1999 Port Allen West Baton Rouge Parish
74002186 San Francisco Plantation House San Francisco Plantation 02.jpg May 30, 1974 Reserve
30°02′51″N90°36′20″W / 30.04753°N 90.60554°W / 30.04753; -90.60554 (San Francisco Plantation House)
St. John the Baptist Parish Open for tours
78003448 Santa Maria Plantation House December 29, 1978Baton Rouge East Baton Rouge
82000445 Scottland Plantation House 903 Black and White.jpg November 2, 1982 Tallulah Madison
86001495 Sebastopol Plantation House August 13, 1986 St. Bernard St. Bernard
72000553 Shadows-on-the-Teche Shadows on the Teche, Main & Weeks Streets, New Iberia (Iberia Parish, Louisiana).jpg May 30, 1974 New Iberia
30°00′09″N91°48′54″W / 30.00254°N 91.81499°W / 30.00254; -91.81499 (Shadows-on-the-Teche)
Iberia Greek Revival home completed in 1834 by planters David & Mary Weeks, within New Iberia. William Weeks Hall left the building to the National Trust for Historic Preservation in 1958. Open for tours.
Shadowlawn Plantation Not applicable Franklin
29°47′39″N91°30′03″W / 29.79407°N 91.50087°W / 29.79407; -91.50087 (Shadowlawn Plantation)
St. Mary Greek Revival home completed in 1833 by Simeon Smith. [9] [10] Open for tours and events.
95000387 Smithfield Plantation House April 7, 1995Port AllenWest Baton Rouge
83000558 Solitude Plantation House January 27, 1983 St. Francisville West Feliciana
74002188 Southdown Plantation Southdown1.JPG January 18, 1974 Houma Terrebonne
80001695 St. Emma StEmmaWM.JPG June 30, 1980 Donaldsonville Assumption Circa-1850 home on former sugar plantation, scene of a Civil War skirmish in 1862. [11]
82000470 St. George Plantation House Stgeorge2.jpg October 5, 1982 Schriever Terrebonne
05000987 St. Joseph Plantation House StJosPlantWM.JPG September 6, 2005 Vacherie St. James Early 19th-century plantation, joined in 1890 with Felicity Plantation to form the St. Joseph Plantation & Manufacturing Company. Privately owned.
75000849 St. Louis Plantation St.LouisPlantation111.JPG December 3, 1975 Plaquemine Iberville Italianate and Greek Revival style home on a working sugar cane plantation; owned by the same family for 150+ years, named for the city in Missouri. Private.
79001104 St. Maurice Plantation April 3, 1979St. Maurice Pointe Coupee
03000680 Star Hill Plantation Dependency July 24, 2003Star Hill West Feliciana Also known as Star Hill Billiard Hall.
98000570 Stephanie Plantation House May 20, 1998 Arnaudville St. Landry, St. Martin
82000432 Synope Plantation House October 5, 1982 Columbia Caldwell
79001059 Tacony Plantation House April 19, 1979 Vidalia Concordia
80001731 Tally-Ho Plantation House Tally Ho.JPG January 20, 1980 Bayou Goula Iberville
99000257 Trio Plantation House February 26, 1999 Rayville Richland
Uncle Sam Plantation Uncle Sam Plantation 01b.jpg Not applicable Convent St. James
02000297 Valverda Plantation House April 1, 2002 Maringouin Pointe Coupee
77000677 White Hall Plantation House White Hall Plantation.jpg May 26, 1977 Lettsworth Pointe Coupee
87001475 Whitehall Plantation House September 8, 1987 Monroe Ouachita
92001566 Whitney Plantation Historic District The Big House - Whitney Plantation Historic District - 2016.jpg November 24, 1992 Wallace St. John the Baptist Site of a slavery museum, opened to the public in December 2014. French colonial main house dates from 1803.
88000977 Wildwood Plantation House June 30, 1988 Jackson East Feliciana
98000702 Woodland Plantation A Home on the Mississippi.png June 18, 1998 West Pointe à la Hache Plaquemines

Historical background of the plantation era

Upland or green seeded cotton was not a commercially important crop until the invention of an improved cotton gin in 1793. With an inexpensive cotton gin a man could remove seed from as much cotton in one day as a woman could de-seed in two months working at a rate of about one pound per day. [12] The newly mechanized cotton industry in England during the Industrial Revolution absorbed the tremendous supply of cheap cotton that became a major crop in the Southern United States.

At the time of the cotton gin's invention, the sub tropical soils in the Eastern United States were becoming depleted, and the fertilizer deposits of guano deposits of South America and the Pacific Islands along with the nitrate deposits in the Chilean deserts were not yet being exploited, meaning that there were fertilizer shortages, leading to a decline in agriculture in the Southeast and a westward expansion to new land.[ citation needed ]

Transportation at the time was extremely limited. There were almost no improved roads in the U.S. or in the Louisiana Territory and the first railroads were not built until the 1830s. [13] The only practical means for shipping agricultural products more than a few miles without exceeding their value was by water. This made much of the land in the U.S. unsuitable for growing crops other than for local consumption.[ citation needed ]

Under ownership of Spain, the city of New Orleans held the strategically important location between the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain.[ citation needed ] The Carondelet Canal, which was completed in 1794, connected the Tremé section of New Orleans with Bayou St. John, giving shipping access to Lake Pontchartrain as an alternative route to the Gulf of Mexico. The U.S. gained rights to use the New Orleans port in 1795.[ citation needed ]

Louisiana (New Spain) was transferred by Spain to France in 1800, but it remained under Spanish administration until a few months before the Louisiana Purchase. The huge swath of territory purchased from Napoleon Bonaparte in 1803 was sparsely populated. During the Thomas Jefferson Presidency, a high priority was to build roads to New Orleans, specifically the Natchez Trace and the Federal Road through Georgia, initially intended to facilitate mail delivery.

The Napoleonic Wars and the Embargo Act of 1807 restricted European trade, which did not recover until the end of the War of 1812 in 1815.[ citation needed ] The Year without a summer of 1816 resulted in famine in Europe and a wave of immigration to the U.S., with New Orleans being the destination of many refugees.[ citation needed ] The return of good harvests in Europe along, with the newly cleared and planted land in the Midwest and Mississippi River Valley and improvements in transportation, resulted in a collapse in agricultural prices that caused the 1818–19 depression. Agricultural commodity prices remained depressed for many years, but their eventual recovery resulted in a new wave of land clearing, which in turn triggered another depression in the late 1830s. Cotton prices were particularly depressed. [14]

Until the development of the steamboat, transportation of goods on major rivers was generally accomplished either with barges or flatboats, floated downstream or pushed upstream with poles or by hand using overhanging tree limbs. On the Mississippi River, most shipping was down river on log rafts or wooden boats that were dismantled and sold as lumber in the vicinity of New Orleans. Steam-powered river navigation began in 1811–12, between Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and New Orleans. Inland steam navigation rapidly expanded in the following decades. Railroads appeared before the Civil War, though at first were used to link waterways. After the Civil War, railroads took over most of the hauling of goods.

It was during the period of expanding steam transportation that plantation agriculture dominated the Southern economy, with two-thirds of the millionaires in the U.S. living in Louisiana, mostly between Natchez, Mississippi, and New Orleans. The surviving plantation homes range from relatively modest dwellings to opulent mansions, some containing original furnishings and many with period furniture.[ citation needed ]

Due to poor transportation and slow industrialization, plantations tended to be somewhat self-sufficient, growing most of their own food, harvesting their own timber and firewood, repairing farm implements, and constructing their own buildings. Many slaves were skilled blacksmiths, masons, and carpenters who were often contracted out.[ citation needed ] Cloth, shoes, and clothing were imported from Europe and from the Northeast U.S.[ citation needed ]

The self-sufficiency of plantations and cheap slave labor hindered economic development of the South.[ citation needed ] Contemporary descriptions cite the lack of towns, commerce, and economic development.[ citation needed ]

Besides the necessity of river transportation, the ground near the rivers and old river channels contained the best agricultural land, where the sandy and silty soil settled, increasing the height of the natural levees. The clay soil settled farther away from the rivers and being less stable, it slumped to muddy back-swamps. [15] The plantations in the vicinity of St. Francisville, Louisiana, are on a high bluff on the east side of the Mississippi River with loess soil, which was not as fertile as the river alluvium, but was relatively well-suited to plantation agriculture.

Slave housing

Examples of slave housing can be found on many of the extant plantation complexes. Historically housing for enslaved people on Louisiana plantations (prior to the reconstruction era), featured cabins consisting of two rooms, with one family in each room. [16] After the American Civil War in 1865, the United States of America had abolished slavery, and the architecture changed for laborers on plantations to include more space, one example of this is found at the Allendale Plantation in Port Allen. [16]

Other notable examples of slave housing can be found at the Laura Plantation in Vacherie and at the San Francisco Plantation House in Garyville.

See also

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Established in 1994, the Cane River Creole National Historical Park serves to preserve the resources and cultural landscapes of the Cane River region in Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana. Located along the Cane River Lake, the park is approximately 63 acres and includes two French Creole cotton plantations, Oakland and Magnolia. Both plantations are complete in their historic settings, including landscapes, outbuildings, structures, furnishings, and artifacts; and they are the most intact French Creole cotton plantations in the United States. In total, 65 historic structures and over a million artifacts enhance the National Park Service mission as it strives to tell the story of the evolution of plantation agriculture through the perspective of the land owners, enslaved workers, overseers, skilled workers, and tenant farmers who resided along the Cane River for over two hundred years. This park is included as a site on the Louisiana African American Heritage Trail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henry Watkins Allen</span> American politician

Henry Watkins Allen was a Confederate military officer who was a member in the Texian Army as a soldier, while also serving as a politician, writer, enslaver, and sugar cane planter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arkansas Delta</span> Natural region of Arkansas

The Arkansas Delta is one of the six natural regions of the state of Arkansas. Willard B. Gatewood Jr., author of The Arkansas Delta: Land of Paradox, says that rich cotton lands of the Arkansas Delta make that area "The Deepest of the Deep South."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evergreen Plantation (Wallace, Louisiana)</span> United States historic place

Evergreen Plantation is a plantation located on the west side of the Mississippi River in St. John the Baptist Parish, near Wallace, Louisiana, and along Louisiana Highway 18. The main house was constructed mostly in 1790, and renovated to its current Greek Revival style in 1832. The plantation's historical commodity crop was sugarcane, cultivated by enslaved African Americans until emancipation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magnolia Plantation (Derry, Louisiana)</span> Historic house in Louisiana, United States

Magnolia Plantation is a former cotton plantation in Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana. The site was declared a National Historic Landmark in 2001, significant as one of the most intact 19th-century plantation complexes in the nation, as it is complete with a suite of slave cabins and numerous outbuildings and period technology. Included in the Cane River Creole National Historical Park, Magnolia Plantation is also a destination on the Louisiana African American Heritage Trail. It is one of two plantations in the park; the other is Oakland Plantation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Register of Historic Places listings in Orleans Parish, Louisiana</span>

This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Orleans Parish, Louisiana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of slavery in Louisiana</span> Regional history of slavery in the USA

Following Robert Cavelier de La Salle establishing the French claim to the territory and the introduction of the name Louisiana, the first settlements in the southernmost portion of Louisiana were developed at present-day Biloxi (1699), Mobile (1702), Natchitoches (1714), and New Orleans (1718). Slavery was then established by European colonists.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frogmore Plantation</span> Historic house in Louisiana, United States

Frogmore Plantation is an historic, privately owned cotton plantation complex, located near Ferriday in Concordia Parish, Louisiana. Since 1997, Frogmore Plantation is a working farm, tourist attraction featuring many structures, and educational center. Buildings on the site include a cotton gin, and a plantation manor house named Gillespie. Formerly this plantation relied on enslaved African American labor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piazza Cotton Gin</span> United States historic place

The Piazza Cotton Gin is on the Frogmore Plantation at 11656 U.S. Highway 84, about 7 miles (11 km) west of Ferriday, Louisiana in Concordia Parish, Louisiana. The building containing the cotton gin press was built c.1880, while the machinery was added c.1900. The gin itself is a system cotton gin, which was invented by Robert S. Munger. This invention was the second major revolution in cotton processing. This example is one of the few left in existence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert S. Munger</span> American business executive and inventor (b. 1854, d. 1923)

Robert Sylvester Munger and his wife Mary Collett Munger (1857–1924) invented the "system cotton gin". After that achievement, Munger started and ran some of the largest gin manufacturing companies in the United States. He also developed real estate in Dallas, Texas. Munger was also a philanthropist who supported causes in the Birmingham, Alabama area.

References

  1. "How to Apply the National Register Criteria for Evaluation Archived 2013-12-04 at the Wayback Machine ," (PDF), National Register Bulletins, National Park Service. Retrieved March 22, 2007.
  2. National Park Service (April 2007). "National Historic Landmarks Survey: List of National Historic Landmarks by State" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-06-09. Retrieved 2007-05-20.
  3. National Park Service. "National Historic Landmark Program: NHL Database". Archived from the original on 2004-06-06. Retrieved 2007-08-14.
  4. Ryan, Joanne; Perrault, Stephanie L. (2007). "Angola: Plantation to Pententiary" (PDF). US Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans District.
  5. Wildsmith, Henrietta. "Pioneer Heritage Center gives glimpse into settler life". The News-Star. Retrieved 2022-01-18.
  6. "Evergreen Plantation". National Historic Landmarks Program. National Park Service. Archived from the original on 2011-03-08. Retrieved 2010-02-18.
  7. "Evergreen Plantation". National Register of Historic Places Travel Itinerary. National Park Service. Retrieved 2010-02-18.
  8. "Poplar Grove Plantation House". NPGallery Asset Detail, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior . Retrieved 2021-05-25.
  9. "Shadowlawn Plantation". Louisiana Official Travel and Tourism Information. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
  10. Mary, Fonseca. Weekend Getaways in Louisiana. Pelican Publishing. p. 414. ISBN   978-1-4556-1398-4.
  11. Daspit, Fred (2006). Louisiana architecture, 1840–1860. University of Louisiana at Lafayette. p. 263. ISBN   9781887366748.
  12. Roe, Joseph Wickham (1916), English and American Tool Builders, New Haven, Connecticut: Yale University Press, p. 145, LCCN   16011753 . Reprinted by McGraw-Hill, New York and London, 1926 (LCCN   27-24075); and by Lindsay Publications, Inc., Bradley, Illinois, ( ISBN   978-0-917914-73-7).
  13. Taylor, George Rogers (1989). The Transportation Revolution, 1815–1860. M.E. Sharpe. ISBN   978-0873321013.
  14. North, Douglas C. (1966). The Economic Growth of the United States 1790–1860 . New York, London: W. W. Norton & Company. ISBN   978-0-393-00346-8.
  15. See soil surveys of the various parishes.
  16. 1 2 Louisiana Department of Historic Preservation National Register (August 1987). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Allendale Plantation Historic District". National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior . Retrieved May 27, 2021. (with with 13 accompanying photos taken in August 1996)

Further reading