FROM THE GROUND UP
Out here, awe-inspiring architecture embodies the poetic
myth of our region
The plantation houses along the Great River
Road are the most assertive remains of
a complex plantation culture. Within the
big houses, lavish entertainment areas are
often a stark contrast to the utilitarian living
quarters. Look closely to identify how the
river played a large role in the construction
and detailing of the structures.
At Laura: Louisiana's Creole Heritage
Site, Guillaume Duparc used highly skilled
enslaved people to assemble his house
26 | #OutHere
using an inverted boat design. Today,
etched roman numerals on beams that
helped pull together that design can
still be found in the basement of the
house, which is the best example of farm
houses from that period.
Edmond Bozonier Marmillion of San
Francisco Plantation turned his vision
into the very steamboat Gothic style
that resembled the ornate structures of a
Mississippi riverboat.