Historic Louisiana

ick and plaster support the lower level
of the Creole countryhouse. These short,
squat columns contrasted admirably with
the columnettes at the gallery level that
supported the roof line. In the next generation
the houses became more ostentatious. The
mostly American builders adopted the square
plan of the Creoles, but replaced the columns
with monumental columns. The short
Tuscan column at the ground level was
extended upwards through the gallery till
it reached the roof line. Columnettes
were dispensed with, along with the Creole
sense of delicacy. But many of the resulting
structures have come to epitomize Louisiana
architecture. These Tuscan-style buildings
include Hermitage, Houmas, Oak Alley, and
Seven Oaks.
Americans brought the Greek Revival Style
to Louisiana. But it never became as dominant
here simply because of the competition from
France and the Creole types. Domestically the
Anglo architectural influence is epitomized by
the William Allen Lane house. He moved onto
Weston Place in East Feliciana Parish in the
1830s. The home, built about 1830, has
remained in the possession of his descendants
ever since. Lane Plantation House is an “I”
plan house, with chimneys at each end and a
lean-to porch across the front. Inside is the
central hall. Tall and thin, it is rather a
contrast with the Creole home, that was
proportionately lower and wider, not to
mention deeper.
In Louisiana’s commercial districts until
1830 the favored structure was the Creole
townhouse. This was a two- or three-story
building with residential quarters over a shop,
a pattern familiar to early America and to
Europe. In New Orleans’ French Quarter the
Creole townhouse dominates many vistas. It
signals its presence through arched openings
on the street, one to an alley leading to the
rear courtyard. Three doors open into the
street-level business that might be a notary, a
printer, or a coffee house. Overhead, a gallery
extends over the banquette or sidewalk. Later,
elaborate ironwork scrolled up the façades
and covered the galleries. There are no front
or side yards, since the townhouses abut each
other down the block. Upon reaching the
courtyard, the visitor is invited up spiraling
stairs to the principal public rooms on the
second floor. To the rear of the courtyard is a
two-story service wing, with narrow galleries
facing the courtyard.
In writing of New Orleans in 1800, James
Pitot described many qualities of the state that
have survived right to the present. One of
the more remarkable is the great power of
the governor. In Pitot’s view the governor
kept all supervisory duties in his own hands.
All licenses and permissions had to be
specifically approved by him. A gratuity was a
✧
Left: This distinguished lady might be a
Decuir, Deslondes, Honore, Rillieux, or any
one of dozens of Creole families of color. The
presence of these distinguished families set
Louisiana apart. The portrait was painted
by Aimable Desire Lansot in the late 1830s.
COURTESY OF THE LOUISIANA STATE MUSEUM.
Right: Julien Hudson maintained a studio at
117 Bienville. He advertised himself as a
miniature painter, the most popular of
portrait sizes. This dramatic self-portrait
dates from 1839.
COURTESY OF THE LOUISIANA STATE MUSEUM.
CHAPTER II
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