Visit destrehan plantation: a concise orientation before we get practical.
Visit destrehan plantation: Quick notes
A visit to New Orleans is always a treat and for me, seeing the old plantations on River Road is a big treat to see in person. I’ve had the pleasure of visiting several of them over the last 10 years since my family lives down there and we’ve made a point to go and visit many of them. Being a part of the Southern Travelers conference allowed us all to get a personalized tour of several of the plantations and I was very happy to visit several that I hadn’t been to before. Today, we will visit Destrehan plantation. This is where we also experienced Spuddy’s Cajun cooking class, which was a lot of fun. You can even stay overnight on the plantation in a Creole cottage.
A little history on Destrehan plantation, from the website:
Robin de Logny, a prominent landowner, played a crucial role in establishing what would become Destrehan Plantation. He commissioned a skilled builder, Charles Paquet—who was enslaved at the time—to construct a grand French Colonial-style home. The contract specified a raised structure measuring 60 by 35 feet, encircled by a 12-foot balustrade gallery and supported by 10-foot brick piers. The home’s distinctive double-pitched roof, multiple fireplaces, and use of locally sourced materials made it well-suited for Louisiana’s climate. Construction began in 1787 and was completed in 1790.
De Logny compensated Paquet with rice, corn, livestock, 100 piastres, and an enslaved man named Leveiller. During the construction of the house, Paquet gained his freedom through his father’s will, a free man of color. Remarkably, the original contract still exists and is preserved in the St. Charles Parish Courthouse. Today, visitors can admire Paquet’s master craftsmanship in the plantation’s cooling room and interpretive areas.
From what I can see on the history, Jean Noel Destrehan married Robin de Logny’s daughter, Marie Celeste. After Robin de Logny’s death, Jean Noel purchased the plantation and thus began the ownership of the Destrehan family. We received a beautiful coffee table book on the Destrehan Plantation and it’s a beautifully detailed book filled with pictures and historical references. Destrehan Plantation is now owned and operated by the River Road Historical Society, a non-profit organization, whose mission is the preservation and restoration of Destrehan Plantation and other historic buildings along River Road for the education and enjoyment of future generations. It’s the closest plantation to New Orleans, at 25 miles.
We enjoyed a wonderful cooking class from Spuddy’s Cajun Cooking Experience, who does these classes regularly in the Mule Barn on the property.
There were several of us in the group and he recruited 3 ladies to start 3 pots of Cajun cooking and gave us detailed instructions on starting a roux, as well as other dishes.
He was quite the character and we enjoyed his presentation a lot. He had the Cajun accent to the max!
Ingredients for Jambalaya and Chicken & Andouille Gumbo.
That gumbo was absolutely delicious, it was my fave.
Spuddy, the Cajun character was fun to listen to.
We also had Jambalaya and Roux Peas, which were quite tasty. I’m not really a pea fan, but they were good.
Next, was a tour of the plantation and that was a treat, since this house dates back to the 1700’s. There’s so much history in these plantations and a lot of the story involves the enslaved people who worked on these plantations.
We heard a lot of the stories about the enslaved and all they did and experienced. History comes alive in places like this. It’s a sad part of our US history, but one that needs to be told and shared.
Rooms in the house.
View from the front terrace.
The old live oak trees always capture my attention in New Orleans and surrounding areas. They are so stately and beautiful.
Most of these are 100’s of years old.
The swaying moss is especially pretty to me as it reminds me of visiting my grandaddy in central Florida. We would drive down there to see our relatives and the moss in the trees remind me of childhood.
The Farm Barn has more information on the sugar cane industry of this plantation.
A photo op in the sugar cane.
Slave cabins
The grounds are just beautiful. I’m so glad that these plantations have been preserved and saved for all of us to experience.
We went in one building that is a museum, sharing all about the Slave Revolt of 1811.
Artifacts from the property.
The Slave Revolt was a very sad story of a failed revolt which took many lives.
Ann was a docent in the museum telling us many stories.
More out buildings on the property.
Another shot of those live oaks.
Another part of our participation in the Southern Travelers Conference was dinner out that evening and we all split up to different locations.
My group went to Pier 51, where we were treated to tasty appetizers and delicious seafood.
That blooming onion was fantastic.
I had blackened redfish and sweet potato fries. So good! Spending time in the River Parishes was such a meaningful experience and I loved seeing more of the plantations along River Road. There are even more that I haven’t been to and I’m sure I’ll visit those eventually. Each one is different and unique, but very somber as history is shared, the good and the bad. I can only be grateful that these beautiful historic plantations have been saved and preserved for generations to come. We should never forget our history or cover it up, even the horrific parts of it, but we can learn from it and never repeat atrocities again. If you ever get to Louisiana, I’d highly recommend visiting River Road along the Mississippi River. The history is alluring and so interesting!
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