Alice C Planation House - Franklin, LA
N 29° 46.141 W 091° 28.650
15R E 647189 N 3294162
Private plantation home, located on Hwy. 182, between Garden City and Franklin, LA.
Waymark Code: WM7WC0
Location: Louisiana, United States
Date Posted: 12/12/2009
Views: 4
Large private home, located on Louisiana Highway 182. Sits off the highway, but was very noticable, due to its large size. I searched, and could not find any information on the house or history. I did find the Louisiana State Register page, located
here and it states:
In contrast to the rest of South Louisiana, which is known for its French Creole architecture, St.
Mary Parish is renown for its many major examples of the Greek Revival style. The parish was formed in
1811, and its parish seat, Franklin, was founded in 1808 by men with English rather than French names.
The booming antebellum economy was based largely upon sugarcane, and area planters were among
the wealthiest of the wealthy. They built impressive residences on their plantations and within the town of
Franklin. Within the Franklin city limits alone there are eleven major Greek Revival residences, all of
which have the size and grandeur to be called mansions. Then there are numerous galleried Greek
Revival cottages scattered throughout town, some small and some fairly substantial in size. Looking
beyond Franklin, one finds an additional seven large Greek Revival plantation houses. In short, while St.
Mary has at least eighteen major Greek Revival residences and countless galleried cottages, the typical
older parish in the state, by contrast, is fortunate to have a half dozen, whatever the size and quality.
This special heritage represents the parish’s architectural apogee – its architectural signature, soto-
speak. With the exception of a few turn-of-the-century landmarks, there has not been as impressive an
architectural flowering in St. Mary since the Greek Revival. In the opinion of the State Historic
Preservation Office, all surviving examples are significant because they contribute to the parish’s
distinctive architectural identity. A notable number of St. Mary’s major Greek Revival houses are in the
temple form, which is unusual in Louisiana. Most of the others are galleried houses. Two feature
colossal galleries across the front, while Alice C has a double gallery. And while Alice C has some
French Creole influences, stylistically it is overwhelmingly Greek Revival.