The rich and famous of the 17th and 18th centuries...
the owners of Plantations

There are several plantations in southern Louisiana. I will cover many on this page, that are said to be some of the most famous, down to some that many people have never heard of. There are several along the Mississippi River in Louisiana, mostly from Baton Rouge to New Orleans. I will gradually add more and more to the list, with descriptions, as I learn more about them.

If there are any that are not listed here, please feel free to send me a message with some information and I will review and revise, and publish it to these pages. Do you know more plantations? You can contact me here. Most Plantations were built and occupied in the 1700’s and 1800’s. One of the first crops was indigo. This was until the invention of cotton gin, by Eli Whitney, and the sugar cane process (to granulate sugar), by Etienne de Boire, in the late 1700’s.

Sugar Cane was considered “white gold.” These farms were more common in the southern parts where the climate was a little warmer and the soil was a little denser.

The Cotton Farms were generally more north of Baton Rouge, where there were different soil types, and a little cooler climate.

Owners usually had a staff that lived on the premises. Most of the labor was performed by slaves, upon request. There were no outside people hired for work. Whatever the owner of the farm wanted, the slaves manufactured, on the land. They would usually use woods that they had on the land to furnish the goods. In other words, if they were to build a porch for the “big house” then they would literally go out and cut down a tree (whatever kind that was most desired) from the farm and used that to manufacture the products. They were very self-sufficient.

The Plantation usually consisted of several different elements. These are to include: the Slave Quarters, and outside kitchen, a garage, Barn, and a place for the young men of the family to move in to, to create independence, but yet not be too far from home, and obviously the “big house.”

Some had all of these features on their land, some had less, and some had more. It depended a lot upon the quality of life the owners were wanting, and the wealth that they had. Another way that they would show their wealth was their silverware. And yes, it was real silver. The larger the silverware, the wealthier they were.

These people were what we know now as the “rich and famous.” There were many successful businesses that were passed down for many generations. To this day, most are now up for tour. They usually charge a small fee, and give a guided tour, throughout the estate, informing you of how that particular one was run. It is an excellent experience and I completely recommend that you check them out if you are ever in Southern Louisiana.

For a brief description, address, phone numbers, and tour times, check out the following links:

*Oak Alley is famous for its tunnel of trees all the way to the Mississippi River....