Oakland Plantation (Natchez, Louisiana)

Infobox_nrhp | name =Oakland Plantation
nrhp_type =nhl


caption = Oakland Plantation
nearest_city= Natchitoches, Louisiana
locmapin = Louisiana
area =
built =1818
architect= Unknown
architecture= Other
designated= January 03, 2001cite web|url=http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=872124837&ResourceType=District
title=Oakland Plantation |accessdate=2008-01-30|work=National Historic Landmark summary listing|publisher=National Park Service]
added = August 29, 1979cite web|url=http://www.nr.nps.gov/|title=National Register Information System|date=2007-01-23|work=National Register of Historic Places|publisher=National Park Service]
governing_body = Private
refnum=79001073

Oakland Plantation is also known as Bermuda and is associated with Atahoe Plantation and Isle Brevelle. It is a National Historic Landmark in the Bermuda Community near Natchitoches, Louisiana on the Cane River, near Magnolia Plantation and Melrose Plantation.

It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 2001.citation|title=PDFlink| [http://www.nps.gov/nhl/designations/samples/la/Oakland.pdf National Historic Landmark Nomination: Oakland Plantation / Jean Pierre Emmanuel Prud'homme Plantation] |171 KiB |date=May, 2000 |author=Jonathan Fricker, Donna Fricker, Paul Hawke, Frank J. Miele, and Patty Henry |publisher=National Park Service]

History

Oakland Plantation is situated on a bend on the Cane River off highway 119 in the Bermuda Community near Natchitoches, Louisiana. In 1997 the National Park Service acquired the main buildings and surrounding land of Oakland. Since then, the Cane River Creole National Historical Park has progressed to advanced stages of preservation and conservation of the buildings, furniture, oil paintings, textiles, and history of the home as it was at the end of the plantation era in the 1960s. Free blacks and Creoles of color lived and worked on the plantation for nearly 100 years after the US Civil War. They were all an integral part of the region's community life. The plantation is strongly linked with the Prud'homme name in the community.

The building of Oakland was completed in 1821 by owners, Jean-Pierre Emanuel Prud'homme and his wife, Marie Catherine Lambre Prud'homme. The family tradition claims that Oakland was one of the first plantations to grow cotton on a large scale; they also had farm animals (made evident by extant buildings such as the dipping vat, the turkey shed, the mule barn, two "pigeonniers" and several chicken coops) and other crops. The Prudhommes also owned and operated a store on the property, which included the Bermuda Post Office for many years. The farm flourished in the late 1800s. J. Alphonse Prudhomme I won the gold medal at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis for growing the highest grade cotton in the South.

After five generations (and a Civil War), the plantation has a strong and tangible history. This is, in large part, due to the work of Rosalie Lucile Keator, wife of J. Alphonse Prudhomme II. "LuLu" was an active advocate in the 1940s for the preservation of Oakland's history. Although she and "Phonsie" were the last generation to raise a family at Oakland, the story of the home comes alive because of her careful research. It is because of Mrs. Prudhomme's work that Oakland was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.

The Prudhomme family had donated a large portion of their artifacts and archives to the Prudhomme "alma mater", University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, before the creation of Cane River Creole National Historical Park (CRCNHP). Since 1997, CRCNHP has acquired donated gifts from the Prudhomme family and deaccessioned donations from UNC. The plantation includes an impressive array of artifacts.

Guided tours of Oakland are available Monday - Friday, 8am to 4:30pm. For more information, please contact the NPS Oakland Main Office at (318) 356 - 8441 or visit our website.

References

External links

* [http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/caneriver/ Cane River National Heritage Area, a National Park Service "Discover Our Shared Heritage" Travel Itinerary]