Houmas House Plantation and Gardens

USA / Louisiana / Donaldsonville / Highway 942, 40136
 garden, mansion / manor house / villa, plantation, NRHP - National Register of Historic Places, historical building

40136 Louisiana 942
Darrow, LA 70525
(225) 473-9380
www.houmashouse.com/

Described during its heyday as "The Sugar Palace," the Houmas House Plantation was originally owned by the indigenous Houmas Indians who sold the land to Maurice Conway and Alexander Latil in the mid 1700's. The original French Provincial house that Latil erected is still situated directly behind the Mansion.

In 1810, Revolutionary War hero Gen. Wade Hampton of Virginia purchased the property and began construction on the Mansion, completed in 1828. Then Irishman businessman John Burnside bought the plantation in 1857 for $1 million and increased production of sugar until Houmas House was the largest producer in the country, encompassing 98,000 acres. During the Civil War, Burnside saved the Mansion from destruction at the hands of advancing Union forces by declaring immunity as a subject of the British Crown.

During the Great Depression the plantation began to decline. The Mansion closed and fell into disrepair, until 1940 when Dr. George B. Crozat purchased it. Crozat bought Houmas House to be a summer home away from his native New Orleans. Eventually, the Crozat heirs opened the property to tourists.

In 1963, the defining Bette Davis film "Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte" was shot in the property. The room in which Ms. Davis stayed while filming is preserved as part of today's Houmas House tour.
Nearby cities:
Coordinates:   30°8'28"N   90°56'4"W

Comments

  • This is THE single most beautiful place to have a wedding in the South.
This article was last modified 11 years ago