I’ve had the pleasure of visiting an old plantation near Charleston years ago and while we were in New Orleans for our long visit, my sister and I went to Vacherie, LA to check out Oak Alley Plantation, an antebellum mansion.  It was such an interesting place and we enjoyed every minute of our beautiful day there. Old South sugar plantations like this that date back before the Civil War are just fascinating to see. I’ve seen movies from the Old South and this just brings it alive even more.
By the way, here are just a few of the movies and entertainment videos that have been filmed at the plantation, along with other media coverage:
Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte (1964)
Nightrider (1978)
The Long Hot Summer (1985)
Interview with the Vampire (1993)
Primary Colors (1997)
Beyonce Videos (2006)
The 300 year old canopy of Virginia Live oak trees (or alley) of Oak Alley plantation are a quarter mile long and were planted in the early 1700’s by an unknown settler. The 28 oaks were inducted into the Live Oak Society in 1995 and each tree was registered and given a name. The house was built in 1836 by Jaques Roman, a wealthy sugar planter who lived in New Orleans and built the plantation for his wife, Celina. Here’s a fascinating bit of this tour. The house is said to have been designed by Celina’s father, Gilbert Joseph Pilie (pronounced Pil-ee-a) and this is of special note to our family, since Lauren married a Pilie from New Orleans. They know for sure that Gilbert Joseph is a relative and all of them are related. How about that?
There have been several owners since then and in 1972 the Oak Alley Foundation was formed by the last owner, Josephine Stewart and she set it up so that it would be taken care of and it was opened to the public as a tourist attraction. They have corporate events, weddings, private parties and more at Oak Alley these days. You can take a self-guided walking tour of the sugar plantation grounds and see replicas of the 20 slave cabins that once stood behind the house. They’ve been rebuilt to size and inside is lots of information about how the plantation was run and the slaves that were here during those pre-Civil war days. Showing the daily life of the slaves, these exhibits cover health care, punishment, and life after emancipation. The plantation ran with slaves from 1835 until the end of the Civil War, 1865.
The large Greek Revival house of Oak Alley Plantation.
Isn’t she grand?
A sidewalk was built going from the main road to the house. This is looking back towards the road.
The 300 year old Virginia Live oaks are something to see, their twisted and gnarly branches dipping to the earth.
The back side of Oak Alley plantation house.
The trees and vegetation on the property are just beautiful. We took our time walking around and it was a perfect sunshine day.
The rebuilt slave quarters which had deteriorated over the years.
Very fascinating to read about the slaves who were housed here before the Civil War. Of course, we all know that slavery is a horrible thing that we did here in the US, but it is part of our Southern history.
Slave quarters.
Inside the cabins, there is clothing displayed showing what they wore.
Artifacts and other plantation instruments are in displayed in the cabins.
Enslavement, identity and dress.
Tools used on the sugar plantation.
You know what this is, right? Outhouses were prevalent, I’m sure. I’ve used my share of these over the years. They seem to have been all over the South way back in the day. No, we didn’t have one of these at our house, but I’ve used them in rustic situations in the mountains.
A winding paved sidewalk connects all the houses to the parking area and the Big House.
View of the back of the Big House.
One side of the Big house.
I did some fashion photos here and you can see how big these doors are.
Inside the big foyer, I joined a large group for our guided tour.
Look at the main staircase.
The molding and millwork in the house is just spectacular.
A peek into the living room.
The guides are dressed in period costumes and this young lady was very good and informative.
Some of the period pieces around the house.
The large dining room was something to see. What a table!
She explained that during dinner, one of the slaves would come in and using a pulley system, pull this big fan over the table, moving it back and forth to keep the air circulating and the flies away from the table.
She demonstrated a fly catcher jar on the table. They would be attracted and fall into the water.
Table settings and the fly catcher jar.
One of the large fireplaces in the house.
More molding.
Such chunky millwork and details all over the house. They really built homes with lots of details back then.
One of the bedrooms in the house.
These rooms were large and had plenty of furniture.
The nursery.
Sweet daybed.
The master bedroom was so big and spacious.
A beautiful chandelier hanging in the master.
The master bed. They lived very well back then, didn’t they?
Another view of the master bedroom. Check out the old plank floors.
Oh, the things this house has experienced and seen over the years.
A lady’s pink bedroom.
With twin beds and canopies.
From the top balcony, you can see the canopy of trees well.
Peeking down below at my sister and baby Parker. She’s learned how to wave now and it’s SO cute. She steals our heart!  We couldn’t take the stroller inside, so when Parker got loud, she took her out. She loves her stroller when she’s moving and seeing things.
A view of the gardens.
Upstairs porch that wraps around the house. Can you imagine the upkeep on this house?
One last room, the office in the house.
When we got to the plantation, it was almost lunch time, so we ate a nice lunch in the restaurant.
They were all decorated for Mardi Gras.
I hope you enjoyed tagging along with me to Oak Alley Plantation. I would highly recommend going and checking it out if you are in the area. It’s about an hour from New Orleans and easy to get to. It also sits on the river, but we didn’t get close to the river to see that part. It’s an amazing place and I love seeing Southern history preserved like this.
Thank you for a beautiful reminder of our trip to New Orleans last Spring! Visiting Oak Alley was one of the highlights and you did a wonderful job of photographing all of it. Thanks.
I am from Louisiana, so this was a special treat!! Love your shoes!!!
Wow! I can almost see the history coming alive in your pictures. What a gorgeous place – thanks for taking us along on the tour!
What a nice treat, I have always wanted to visit that place and now I have. Thank you for sharing your trip, your great pictures and that darling little wave from the sweet baby.
My daughters wedding was at Oak Alley! It was gorgeous!
What stunning architectural details in that home. So rich in history and beauty! Thanks for sharing!
Yeah they lived well off the backs of slaves. The plantation should be sold and the proceeds given to the families of those that were forced to work there. Yes it’s part of southern history but no need to minimize the travesty and glorify the place. The original owners would not have been able to live so grand without the people they “owned.” I wouldn’t brag about ancestors like that. Your statement about slavery being horrible is not genuine. Just a way for you to try to disguise your racist nature. This is an example of why racism is still alive today. I bet if your family was one of the slaves, you wouldn’t think this was so “fascinating.”
Gee Karen: it’s a historical site – and like most historical sites, there are likely details that are unsavory whether they be tied to the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, World War II, etc.. Can we not just enjoy the beauty of the place? Slavery is gone – hallelujah. Facinating doesn’t mean ‘delightfully interested.’ Webster says: captivating; strongly interesting.
Karen, I believe you to be the mean-spirited person who has been stalking me for several years now, so I’m going to let this comment stay and not delete it. I know who you are now, figured it out awhile ago. I will continue to delete your ugly comments as I have been doing for years. But now you are exposed. My readers know me and my family. You do not.
Touche Rhoda. Thanks for the heads up.
Well, Karen, you might be another mean-spirited Karen (could there be 2 mean-spirited Karens, I saw your profile from a Facebook comment?) and not the one who has left mean comments for me over the years. But I stand by my original comment. You don’t know me.
Never stalked you or commented before rhoda. I actually like your blog.
Well then, I don’t get why you would go out of your way to make this post into something it is NOT….and that is glorifying slavery.
Rhoda, I commented to state my opinion. You got your tail feathers ruffled and announced that I’m your stalker. I am NOT. No, I don’t know you personally, I based my comment on this blog post.
Karen, I completely agree. It is always so pleasant encountering someone with deeply held, yet vocal, convictions. Speaking of, how is life overseas? Obviously, a person of your moral stature would not live in the US, after what we did to Native Americans.
Haha
Let it go Karen, you are obviously having a very bad day. It’s a beautiful place and you need to get over your anger. History happens and I wonder what yours is.
I agree with you Karen.
My goodness that was mean spirited.
Oak Alley is beautiful! Thanks for sharing! A few years ago, my best friend and I took a tour of several plantations along river road – Destrehan, Houmas House, and Nottaway were the others that we visited. Oak Alley is the most majestic, imo. I did find it very interesting that there is no Spanish Moss in the trees. Did they talk about that?
A fascinating tour of a plantation that must have seen so much over its lifetime! Thanks so much for sharing!
xo. Leslie
Segreto Finishes
I think the previous commenter was probably taking issue with the celebratory tone of the post even though I’m sure it wasn’t meant that way. The grounds and the home and the slave quarters are a piece of our history that should never be forgotten. Love your blog Rhoda!
Thanks, Patti, the only celebratory tone was in the lovely trees, nature, and architecture of the house itself. Not in what happened there. History is fascinating to me.
I agree with Patti. I think the tone could be off-putting, but ONLY if you are not a regular reader of this blog and only if you were looking to take offense. This is a decorating blog, for Pete’s sake. A decorating blog written by an upbeat, kind-hearted, gentle lady (I mean that in the nicest way).
Take things in context (and maybe take a chill pill too).
We visited Oak Alley Plantation back in May of 2005 before Katrina hit. My husband and I truly loved visiting and learning the history of the Plantation. Those Live Oak trees are just stunning. I have a pic of my husband in front of one for comparison. Did they tell you about how the boys would race on horseback and go right down the front walkway and right into the house/foyer and straight through to the back doors? I can just imaging that happening.
As a Northener from Michigan I truly loved seeing the old Plantations and all the beauty of Louisiana. We visited Laura Plantation as well. I also have visited many Revolutionary sights in New England as that is where I grew up.
Don’t let the racist people get to you. Slavery has been over for over 150 years now. Repercussions…. Nonsense! Hasn’t our education taught us that?
Good Job Rhoda – love your blog!!!
Liz, I didn’t hear that part of the story, how sweet.
Very interesting post. I have never been to Oak Alley and hope to go someday. The pictures are great! Also, loved the sweet baby wave!
Good blog post, and wonderful photos, ma’am!
Oak Alley is run by a non-profit educational trust. Our mission is to share all of the history of this place, so that we can all learn from that history. As you stated very well, sometimes history is beautiful and sometimes it is awful. It is not our goal to glorify one part of the history and minimize other parts. Our mission is to share a comprehensive and honest history of this place so that we may all learn from that history.
Slavery was a sad part of Oak Alley’s past, but we do not shy away educating the public about slavery. Last year alone, we built six new exhibit buildings to help tell the story of slavery on this very property.
Our efforts will continue as our financial means allow us to grow, and tell more of the true history of this place.
— Oak Alley Foundation staff, Mr. Gary
Thank you, Mr. Gary! I’m so glad you found the post and chimed in.
Our short podcast video about the two years we spent researching and building of exhibit “Slavery at Oak Alley.” http://www.oakalleyplantation.com/plan-your-visit/plantation-overview/exhibit-slavery-oak-alley
LOL Rhoda….I highly doubt he randomly found this post on his own. However, he does use sensitivity wih his words. It seems that you are so pretentious that you can’t stand anyone to state a personal opinion or not agree with you.
I don’t know the blogger. Our Foundation uses a system called Google Alerts that searches the internet and informs us whenever anyone makes a blog post using the term ‘Oak Alley’.
You can learn more about it at: https://www.google.com/alerts
Karen, what is wrong with you? Personal opinions are one thing (we all have them), but grace in delivering them is another. You certainly don’t have that.
Bless poor Karens heart for she seems to know no better when it comes to tact and being gracious or eloquent for that matter. Seems her mama failed her horribly.
My daddy use to always quote Mark Twain in situations like this; “Never argue with stupid people, they will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience.” Don’t let Karen beat you with experience Mrs. Rhoda. Just say a little prayer for her sad heart.
Oak Alley is a beautiful place with a rich history. I am so glad you enjoyed the food there as well. If you loved the architecture of Oak Alley ride on up to Nottoway although you can’t go wrong with any of the gorgeous plantations dotting LA.
As if you used grace when you announced that I was your stalker. I can see why you have a stalker. Pretentious lady. Look that up.
Kate…Bless your poor heart as well. Practice what you preach. Didn’t your daddy tell you that too? Referring to me as stupid isn’t that gracious or eloquent of you is it. Looks like your momma failed horribly with you too. Thanks for the entertainment.
What a beautiful property. The house is amazing!
It reminded me a lot of the house in the movie Django.
Debora, they mentioned Django, so I think it might have been filmed here too.
Rhoda, Thanks so much for the beautiful tour. I have never been to Oak Alley but I sure plan on going. I love those Oaks & the gorgeous architecture. I am interested in our country’s history & have visited many other historical sights here in Virginia & the U.S. I live just a few miles from Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello & have visited it many times over the years. There you see beautiful architecture & grounds (including slave quarters & cemeteries), hear interesting stories, and are informed of the slaves contributions. They include some of their names but slavery is not “glorified” at all. Love your blog, Rhoda and hope you continue to include historic homes.
I’ve been going to New Orleans for over 20 years but I have never toured a plantation. I must put that on my list of things-to-do the next time we visit family there!
Have you done a swamp tour? It’s kind of fun but don’t go in the middle of summer. It would be too hot and humid then.
Hi, Linh, I have not done that one. There are many more things we want to do later though. New Orleans has lots to take in.
I visited Oak Alley as a little girl back in 1972. Even at that young age, I understood the historical significance of the plantation, but, of course, not to the extent I do now. We must learn from our past mistakes in order to move forward – all of us.
Rhoda, keep doing what you’re doing – you educate when appropriate, entertain when appropriate. You do it all very well!
I am certain it was unintentional, but some parts of this post could be construed as insensitive. The caption “They lived very well back then, didn’t they?” is particularly cringe-worthy.