Winter Quarters State Historic Site, human settlement in Tensas Parish, Louisiana, United States of America
Winter Quarters State Historic Site is a plantation in Tensas Parish on a river bend. The main house started as a small hunting lodge around 1805 and grew into a residence over time, with the estate covering roughly seven acres.
Job Routh built the original hunting house in 1805, which was later taken over by the Nutt family. During the Civil War from 1863-1864, the house remained intact because the wife of the then-owner supported the Union, while other nearby plantations were destroyed.
The name Winter Quarters comes from when people only occupied the estate during colder months. The house shows how plantation owners and their families lived and spent their time in this rural region.
The grounds were heavily damaged by a tornado in 2011 and are currently not open to the public. The state has not announced a timeline for reopening yet.
During the Civil War, the house was the only plantation building on Lake Saint Joseph that was spared and served as a command center for Union officers. The later residents in the 1950s included a family member who became nationally known in the polio prevention movement.
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