Houmas House Plantation and Gardens, Distinctive Gem of Louisiana Plantations…
Houmas House Plantation and Gardens, Distinctive Gem of Louisiana Plantations…
Houmas House Plantation and Gardens, 40136 Highway 942, Darrow, Louisiana
From a side garden, pond walkway towards the main house, noting the adorable Greek Revival bird house almost like the main house...
Among the jewels of Louisiana’s River Plantation, Houmas House Plantation and Gardens is certainly distinctive. Furthermore, the whole experience is among the most unusual of “house museums” in the United States. Since our agents have been to hundreds of cultural sites and museum, including 100 or more house museums, we feel confident in our assessment.
Facade and Alley view of the main house…Houmas Plantation...
First of all Houmas House Plantation and Gardens is more than a house museum, and even more than a house and gardens, it is a artful, cultural experience. While we were blown away and unduly impressed by the period interior and unusual exterior of San Francisco and naturally agog at the Oak Alley, the creative flare of Houmas was most distinctive. What’s the word everyone throws around? Modern. Yes, it is distinctively modern, as per our eyes!
Rear Hall, Houmas House
But, why? Well, unlike numerous of the other plantations, this plantation is not, in any way, stuck in time. The gardens are extensive, far more so than ever could have been reasonably imagined, undertaken and maintained in the 19th century. Further more, the house itself is maintained within an inch of its life, but the interior itself was most unusual. There were no truly period rooms at a glance, but, instead, the period furnishings were at the core of an evolved house—a house that survived the Civil War in more than one way. Since the house actually has a history of surviving the Civil War raids of “yankee” soldiers, this is most appropriate. In fact, if the guide had announced that the original family still owned and operated this place with an increasing wealth, we would have solidly believed her…
Front Hall, Houmas House
Rather than calling it a house or a “house and gardens,” let’s call it a fantasy of what might have been if wealth and taste had prevailed in one family from Pre-Civil War days to the Pre-WWII period, sharpened and shaven, most attractively in the late 20th century. The collection is wonderful, as are the buildings and gardens—magnificence. A full five flames!
Gardens and Buildings of Houmas Plantation
