Ye Ol' Plantations: Oak Alley vs. Laura

Oak Alley Plantation
Completed: 1839
Built By: George Swainy
Built For: Jacques Telesphore Roman
Original Name: Bon Sejour
Most recognizable feature: the 26 live Oak tree that stand as the entry gate to the main house.




Laura Plantation
Completed: circa 1805
Built For: the Duparc family
Original Name: Duparc Plantation
Most recognizable feature: the briquette-entre-poteaux (brick between posts) style of construction.


Both Oak Alley and Laura Plantation are Creole-styled plantations; however, it is clear from the architecture and owners that these plantations were developed and managed very differently.

Originally named Duparc, the plantation was then renamed during its reconstruction after Laura, the last owner of the plantation, before it was sold off in the twentieth century. Unlike Oak Alley, Laura is painted in brilliant hues; this was recommended so that those along the Mississippi River could detect the difference between Creole and American plantations. Without a doubt, Laura is a Creole plantation through and through: the sugar plantation, and thus the main house, were passed down to the child/grandchild who was deemed best to run it. As it happened, the majority of the managers of Laura were the women in the family. Interestingly, much of the plantation's business would be done in the woman's bedroom, as was the custom for Creole families. It turned out, however, that the Americans felt more than a little uncomfortable to be conducting business while a lady's bed sat just a few feet away. In response, Elizabeth (Laura's grandmother), proceeded to create a new room, an "office" so to speak, that still had an excellent view of her bedchamber and thus, her bed. The Duparc women were clearly not lacking in sass.



Oak Alley is also a Creole plantation...in the strict sense that it was owned by Creoles. The house is painted white, a telltale sign that, heritage aside, the Roman family did not view their sugar plantation as a family enterprise--a corporation--like the Duparcs. Jacques Telesphore Roman died in 1848 and luckily avoided both the Civil War and the following demise of his home. His wife Cecille, unlike Elizabeth Duparc and her female relatives, knew nothing of how to run a plantation and her son Henri was forced to sell Oak Alley in 1866 for a total of $32,800. Nevertheless, their relatives, the Buchanans, continued to live in the house until 1881, when the house was purchased by Antoine Sobral, a Portuguese native.

In either case, the plantations are both Creole at heart. However, they were managed in completely different manners and very different families.