Magnolia Mound Plantation House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Magnolia Mound Plantation House
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Front of the house
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 Location in Baton Rouge
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| Location | 2161 Nicholson Drive, Baton Rouge, Louisiana |
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| Area | 7 acres (2.8 ha) |
| Built | 1786 |
| Architectural style | French Colonial |
| NRHP reference No. | 72000549 |
| Added to NRHP | September 7, 1972 |
The Magnolia Mound Plantation House is a historic French Creole house. It was built in 1791 near the Mississippi River in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. People often called the large farm, or plantation, Mount Magnolia back then.
The house and its old buildings show how early settlers from France and the West Indies built their homes. Today, the city of Baton Rouge owns this special place. The Recreation Commission (BREC) takes care of it. It's about one mile south of downtown Baton Rouge.
This important house was added to the National Register of Historic Places on September 7, 1972. This means it's a place worth saving for its history.
Contents
A Look Back in Time
The Magnolia Mound Plantation House started as a small cottage. It is one of the oldest buildings in what is now Baton Rouge.
The land first belonged to James Hillin, a settler from Scotland. He arrived in 1786 with his family. Six African people were forced to work for him as enslaved individuals.
In 1791, a man named John Joyce bought the large property, which was about 950 acres. He lived in Mobile, Alabama. By 1798, about 50 enslaved people worked on the plantation. They grew important crops like indigo, tobacco, cotton, and sugarcane. An overseer watched over their work.
After John Joyce passed away, his wife, Constance Rochon Joyce, married Armand Duplantier. He was an important person in the area. They had a big family together. From 1802 to 1805, they made the house bigger. They mostly used it as a country home. The Duplantier family owned the plantation until 1849.
Life at Magnolia Mound
The main house started with just four rooms. Around 1812, it grew to seven or eight rooms. This included a dining room and two service rooms. A "U-shaped" porch, called a gallery, was also added. This is when the Duplantier family used it as their country house.
Later, in the late 1800s, more rooms were added under the gallery on the sides. The house has a big, sloped roof that covers all the rooms and porches. In the early 1800s, double-hung windows were put in.
Exploring the Outbuildings
The plantation also has several other buildings. These buildings show how the plantation worked every day.
- Slave Cabin: In 1998, an original slave cabin from the 1830s was brought to the grounds. One side shows how enslaved people lived in the early 1800s. The other side has an exhibit about their lives in Louisiana.
- Open-Hearth Kitchen: The city rebuilt a separate outdoor kitchen. It has old cooking tools like spider pots and waffle irons. This shows how food was prepared long ago.
- Overseer's House: This building is original to the plantation, built around 1870. An overseer was a person who managed the work on the plantation.
- Crop Garden: This garden grows the same crops that were important to Magnolia Mound's history. You can see indigo, tobacco, cotton, and sugarcane. These were the main crops sold for money.
- Pigeonnier: This small pigeon house, built around 1825, was common on French Creole plantations. It was used to raise pigeons for food. Today, it still houses live pigeons.
- Carriage House: This building holds old tools and a weaver's workshop. It shows the crafts that were done on the plantation around 1800-1820.
Images for kids
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Front of the house
See also
