Where in the south for plantations
 

I would like to build a plantation style home. Before I do, I would like to tour several of them. Where in the south has the most homes close together? Where would you recommend I go to see them?

There are several plantation houses in several styles around New Orleans and Baton Rouge, LA. And there are more such houses just outside of Charleston, SC.

You could do a tour. Plantation homes outside Baton Rouge and New Orleans and then drive to Natchez Mississippi which has a great plantation tour and homes.

The thing that makes a plantation house special is how well it fits in with its surroundings. Where do you live? Find an area close to you and check out the plantation houses there. If you live in the north, maybe a different style of home would be more appropriate. Plantation houses are best suited to hot, sunny places.

There are MANY styles of plantation houses, from the very simple but elegant (I'm thinking of the Litchfield Plantation house) to grand and elegant. You would probably do well to look in your library for some pictures before investing in a trip to an area. Charleston, Savannah, Georgetown (SC), New Orleans, Mississippi==and probably a LOT of others. Be sure you have the LONG lane leading up to the house, with the live oaks with Spanish moss. LOL

There are also a couple you can tour along the James River in Virginia, between Richmond and Williamsburg on rt.5.

Thanks! I'll check these out.

Certainly check out Natchez, Mississippi! I think you'll find a bigger crowd of them closer together here than almost any other city in the U.S. You can get a glimpse of them on the Daily Tours page of http://www.natchezpilgrimage.com.

I would search for Pilgrimage tours where you can see multiple home in one location. Many of them are residences but during Pilgrimage tours they are open to the public.

Here are some cities in Alabama I would search: Huntsville (theirs is held every May), Selma, Mobile and Eufaula.

All of these towns have homes that can be toured year 'round but to maximize your viewing, I would try and visit when many of the private homes are opened to the public as well.

Natchez, Ms is a good location too.

HTH

Plantation houses were build in response to hot summers and no air conditioning. They also assumed you had slaves or servants. Many houses had elaborate public rooms (smoking room for men, music room for women) but the kitchen was located outside. A lot of square footage was devoted to central hall ways.(to generate breezes).

If you want the style of plantation living, but a house that meets your needs today, I would suggest you look through Southern Living. It is our region's lifestyle magazine. It seems each month they feature house plans. Some of the SL houses are open to the public for tours. The magazine will also give you ideas of where to want to visit to see authenic plantation houses.

kory, let me suggest you stay at a plantation. We stayed at Manmouth Plantation in Natchez and it was truly wonderful. We had dinner in the formal dining room (one huge dining room table so you have to make reservations) You can tour other plantations while there, I think we toured a total of three. It was a good experience. One thing I remember learning was the reason the beds were so high. It was because they had no air conditioning then and the beds were high to catch the wind from the windows, just found that interesting :-) Go to: http://www.monmouthplantation.com/