Rosedown Plantation, Cotton plantation in St. Francisville, Louisiana.
Rosedown Plantation is a Greek Revival cotton estate in Louisiana with a mansion built beginning in 1834 set at the end of an oak-lined avenue. The property spreads across 28 acres of formal gardens with geometric paths, water features, and garden structures.
The mansion was built starting in 1834 for Daniel and Martha Turnbull, marking their rise to wealth through cotton production in the region. It developed into a property of regional significance over the following decades with its expanding gardens and structures.
The gardens developed from Martha's 1836 diary, showing how she combined Asian camellias with European design elements and local plants. Today visitors walk through fountains and summer houses that reflect how the owners shaped the land as a place for leisure and beauty.
Visitors can explore the house and grounds during daytime hours, with guided tours of rooms available alongside self-guided walks. The gardens are easy to navigate on foot and provide benches in the structures for rest and shade.
The dining room preserves a traditional punkah, a large ceiling fan operated by rope pull, which cooled diners during meals. This ingenious method shows how the family blended comfort and practical engineering.
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