Nearest city Reserve, Louisiana NRHP Reference # 74002186 Area 3 ha Architectural style Gothic architecture Added to NRHP 30 May 1974 | Built 1849 Designated NHL May 30, 1974 Opened 1849 Phone +1 985-535-2341 | |
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Address LA-44, Garyville, LA 70051, USA Hours Open today · 9:45AM–4PMSaturday9:45AM–4PMSunday9:45AM–4PMMonday9:45AM–4PMTuesday9:45AM–4PMWednesday9:45AM–4PMThursday9:45AM–4PMFriday9:45AM–4PMSuggest an edit Similar The Houmas, Destrehan Plantation, Laura Plantation, Oak Alley Plantation, Evergreen Plantation Profiles | ||
San Francisco Plantation House is a historic plantation house at 2646 Louisiana Highway 44 in Garyville, St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana. Built in 1849–50, it is one of the most architecturally distinctive plantation houses in the American South. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1974. It is now a museum and event facility.
Description and history
The San Francisco Plantation House is located on the north bank of the Mississippi River, separated from the river by Louisiana Highway 44 and a levee. The house stands on about 8 acres (3.2 ha) of land, now surrounded by a farm of oil tanks. It is a 1-1/2 story structure, set on a full-height basement. The basement has a brick floor, reportedly 6 feet (1.8 m) deep, with brick piers rising to support the main structure. Side-facing divided staircases lead to the main floor, which is sheltered on three sides by an ornate porch, supported by fluted columns with iron Corinthian capitals. It has deeply overhanging decorative cornice, which in profile gives the house a styling called "Steamboat Gothic". The house is topped by a dormered hip roof. The interior is also richly decorated, with paintings attributed to New Orleans artist Dominique Canova on ceiling and door panels.
The house is traditionally ascribed a construction date of 1849–50, and may include elements of an older building. It was built for Edmond Marmillion, and its name is alternatively said to derive either from San Francisco, California, then celebrated as a destination for the California Gold Rush, or to a corruption of the French phrase "son saint-frusquin", meaning "the shirt off his back", an assessment of what it cost Marmillion to build the house.
The house has been restored to an 1850s appearance, and is open for tours daily. It is also available for rental for special occasions.