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This beautiful and spacious two room suite features a King size four poster bed in a private bedroom with a separate living room with a sofa sleeper. Comfortable and romantic, each room is decorated with old world furnishings, unique artwork and comfortable seating nooks. While enjoying the bygone era, the need for modern amenities is not overlooked. Each room includes a large flat screen TV, Wifi, coffee and tea makers, and an iron to name a few.
A Guide To Houmas House: A Haunted Louisiana Plantation
Immerse yourself in a captivating landscape with sunlight filtering through majestic oaks, inviting you to explore a remarkable mansion. Louisiana’s River Road boasts the jewel of the 1840 Houmas House Plantation—a timeless attraction blending history and promise. Travel through time, envisioning the splendor it held and still exudes 250 years later. Houmas House remains a preeminent sugarcane plantation in Louisiana.
Louisiana Plantation Haunted Down To Its Roots
The Houmas house is significant in the area of architecture as an excellent example of a plantation house designed in the peripteral mode of the Greek Revival. It represents an important regional variation of the Greek Revival, which typified many of the grandest residences in the deep South. Houmas house is also historically important because under owner John Burnside in the 1850s and 60s it was the center of the largest slave holding in Louisiana. With over 800 slaves, it represented the largest economic unit in the prevailing slave economy of the state's pre-Civil War period. The plantation house began in the late 18th or early 19th century as a two-story, pitched roof brick building with end wall chimneys and a stuccoed exterior. The house had two rooms on each floor with a central staircase, six over six windows, and exposed beams, some of which were beaded.
Our Experience at Houma House
We took the guided tour, and our guide (Darren) was not only very knowledgeable, but also quite amicable. He provided lots of information about the house and was able to answer any questions we had about all the items of which we inquired. After the tour, you are free to roam the beautiful grounds for as long as you wish, and pretty much anywhere you wish. Kind of unusual given that the owner actually lives on the property.Our tour was at 7 pm on a Friday night (The house closes at 8 pm.), and we saw numerous couples dressed very nicely. We thought there was a wedding party on site, but it turns out that the "fine dining" restaurant was open.
Proceed on Hwy 22, past the turnoff to Donaldsonville, the Cajun Village and in front of the Ascension Parish Visitor’s Center. Turn left on Hwy 44 and proceed less than half a mile to the River Road. Turn right at the levee and look for the entrance to Houmas House Plantation and Gardens about half a mile down the road, just at the end of the white fence that spans the front of the property. Passing under the Interstate, you will proceed straight ahead on Hwy 22, past the turnoff to Donaldsonville, the Cajun Village and in front of the Ascension Parish Visitor’s Center. Houmas House Estate and Gardens is open 7 days a week from 9 a.m. Overall we were very impressed with the Houmas House and cannot wait to visit again someday.
Dr. George Crozat engaged architect, Douglass Freret, to remodel and redesign the Classic Revival Mansion into a Williamsburg federal-style country home. The house was stripped of its belvedere railings and cupola ornaments, along with the decorative ornate entablature over the columns as well as removing the second floor rear bedroom wing. Numerous out buildings, located just behind the main house, were demolished.
Over 1000 cases and 500 varietals of wines are housed in these “cellars”. These wonderfully creative spaces are not on the tour, but we would be happy to show them upon request. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are available in both casual and fine dining settings. Just minutes from Baton Rouge and New Orleans, these restaurants have varying menus reflecting traditional Louisiana cuisine.
Luxurious cottage accommodations are also available for an overnight stay. With its historic mansion, enchanting gardens, educational museum, delightful dining options, and even the opportunity to stay overnight, it’s a destination that caters to a wide range of interests. For those seeking a truly immersive experience, Houmas House offers luxurious cottages for overnight stays.
Some plantations in the South are finally telling the real story - The Boston Globe
Some plantations in the South are finally telling the real story.
Posted: Fri, 23 Feb 2024 08:00:00 GMT [source]
Unfortunately, when the levee was built after a major flood in 1927, several of the gravesites were disturbed and the cemetery pretty much disappeared. Today the graveyard would be located under the levee and out onto the batture. In the hustle and bustle of bringing the house back to life and opening it up to the public, the mystery of the little girl was forgotten for the time being. Located near New Orleans, the 250-year-old house is just one of the estates located in Louisiana’s River Parishes that is open to the public. Soon after the death of Wade Hampton II on February 10th, 1858, John Smith Preston decided to sell the Houmas Plantation. On April 15th, 1858, the Houmas Plantations were sold to John Burnside, of the firm of J.
In 1857 the Prestons sold the house, twelve thousand acres, and 550 slaves to John Burnside, an Irish immigrant and New Orleans merchant, for $1 million. Burnside expanded the plantation’s acreage, built four sugar mills, and acquired other plantations in Ascension and St. James Parishes. By 1862 Burnside was the nation’s foremost sugar producer, turning out 5,150 hogsheads of sugar (approximately five million pounds). Burnside was also known for the lavish balls he held at Houmas House. During the Civil War, General Benjamin Butler attempted to occupy the plantation house, but Burnside claimed immunity by convincing Butler he was a British subject. The house is stately and majestic inside and out, with period antiques, artwork and artifacts helping tell the story of plantation life.
Mr. Burnside left one of the largest estates in America to his boyhood friend, Oliver Beirne. This two-and-one-half-story Greek Revival mansion is constructed of stucco-covered brick and shaded by a monumental Tuscan columned gallery along the front and sides. The house has a wide central hall and is three rooms deep, with a spiral staircase set in a rear vestibule. Wide doors connect the dining room and parlor, which have black marble mantles. On each side of the house is a hexagonal two-story brick garçonniere (ca. 1840) with an ogee-shaped roof, but these are more ornamental than functional, as they measure only ten feet on each side. A short allée of four live oaks leads to the house; the other trees were destroyed for a setback of the Mississippi River levee.
Another supernatural story told at the Houmas House plantation is close to my heart since it has to do with the impressive old live oak trees on the property. After doing research into the history of the house, the Houmas House staff thinks they may know the girl’s identity — though it remains somewhat of a mystery. Some say that all of that activity is what led one of the workers to see a young girl descending the beautiful freestanding stairway in the house. The crewman’s natural reaction was to express concern that a little girl was in a construction zone because it was not safe for children. The charm of the house, the land and the stately old oak trees is eternal and so are the memories you will make there.
They included an old kitchen, a pair of pigeonnieres, five large Moorish water cisterns, a school house, stables, green houses, service quarters and dozens of small service buildings. Dr. Crozat redesigned and remodeled the interior of the mansion then furnished the mansion with federal and early Louisiana antiques. The Inn at Houmas House is a collection of quaint cottages nestled along an ancient oak alley and surrounded by lush gardens, allowing guests to get lost in the tranquility of the South. The Mighty Mississippi River is just steps away and a peaceful setting to watch the sun rise or set. The cottages depict historic structures that once graced Uncle Sam Plantation, which was located downriver from Houmas House.
The family left for Columbia, South Carolina, where the young girl then died. They never returned to Houmas House, but those back in Louisiana who knew of the child’s love for the plantation mourned the loss. Once a sprawling plantation of more than 300,000 acres, Houmas House is a magnificent historical landmark that has survived wars, floods, abandonment — and the test of time. The historic Houmas House showcases what life was like on a sugarcane plantation in the 1800s and provides insight on the families who once lived there. The estate remained in the original family until 1925, when it was purchased by Andrew and Josephine Stewart. The plantation was inherited by the Oak Alley Foundation in 1972, after the Stewarts died, and became open to the public.
Rare and period artwork and artifacts are displayed and used to explain plantation life. This historic estate boasts 38 acres of the South’s most beautiful gardens, three restaurants, a luxurious inn, and a historic mansion open daily for tours. The guided mansion tour leads you through the architectural evolution of the mansion and details how a succession of owners and the Mississippi River grew this manor house into the grand estate it is today.
She was so knowledgeable and also shared stories that made us laugh. The gardens were amazing and actually were the prettiest we have seen so far. We are on a Mississippi River Boat cruise, and this was one of our stops. There was also a very large gift shop and a great restaurant on the grounds. Off the menu specials are offered daily and posted on the Houmas House Facebook page. The estate also had a formal English garden with a central walkway, as well as carriage pathways meandering off through the older oaks.
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