THE MESSAGE FROM ST. FRANCISVILLE, LOUISIANA; WE’RE OPEN FOR BUSINESS by Anne Butler Yes, Virginia, there is life in Louisiana outside New Orleans, and as the state’s beloved Crescent City slowly resurrects itself, visitors are encouraged to enjoy in the meantime what the rest of the state has to offer. The rich cultural diversity and historic architectural legacy that made New Orleans so irresistible to visitors from afar extends throughout the Bayou State. Tourism officials in St. Francisville, Louisiana, say Fall in the Felicianas is always fabulous, and this unique part of the state has much to offer in the way of historic plantation tours, Bed & Breakfast stays, quaint little shops and cozy restaurants, not to mention unsurpassed recreational opportunities. The West Feliciana Historical Society museum on Ferdinand St. serves as headquarters for the dissemination of tourist information and provides maps and details on events, activities and attractions. Quiet, safe little St. Francisville is a year-round tourist destination, its peaceful thoroughfares shaded by ancient live oaks, the glorious galleries of its Victorian homes dripping with gingerbread, its main street still the viable center of life. The entire downtown area, once the cultural and commercial center of the surrounding plantation country, is a National Register Historic District attesting to its architectural and historical significance. Within a few miles are half a dozen of Louisiana's most interesting plantations, each representing a different period of life in this unique corner of the state. The earliest plantations…The Cottage, Butler Greenwood and The Myrtles…all date from the 1790's, when the first valiant efforts were made to tame the virgin woodlands and till the rich river bottomlands into vast fields of indigo and cotton, prospering sufficiently that the planters along the Great River Road from New Orleans to Natchez comprised a large percentage of America's mid-1800’s millionaires. The houses they built reflected their status. The Cottage Plantation’s long, rambling main house began as a simple structure of virgin cypress, expanded so skillfully over the years that the front gallery eventually had four French doors and nine windows opening onto it. Surrounded by one of the area's most complete complexes of original dependencies, The Cottage hosted General Andrew Jackson on his way home from the Battle of New Orleans. Butler Greenwood Plantation, on lands granted to the area’s earliest physician, contains one of the South’s finest formal Victorian parlors, its twelve-piece set of carved rosewood furniture still in the original upholstery. Butler Greenwood is occupied by descendants of the builder, and visitors here see more original family pieces than almost anywhere else in Louisiana. When Pennsylvanian David Bradford obtained the land grant for The Myrtles, he was a fugitive from justice because of his role as leader of the Whiskey Rebellion protesting a tax levied on spirits. A Reconstruction-era murder on the front gallery gave rise to chilling tales of unquiet spirits, and the weekend "ghost tours" are immensely popular. These three early plantation houses in the St. Francisville area are similar in style, unpretentious raised cottages typical of the first-generation structures. Oakley Plantation, completed in the early 1800's and now a State Historic Site, is decidedly atypical, showing West Indies influence with two full stories and an attic atop a raised basement of brick, its jalousied galleries connected by exterior stairs. The need of a tutor for the daughter of the family here brought flamboyant artist-naturalist John James Audubon to the plantation in pursuit of his dream of painting all the birds of the young country America. Audubon was to receive $60 per month plus room and board for teaching dancing, music, drawing, math and French; he executed a number of his bird studies at Oakley in the 1820's. By the time the second and third generations of these plantation families built homes in English Louisiana in the 1830's, they had prospered sufficiently to afford grand Greek Revival structures, much more formal and elaborate than the first-generation houses. An outstanding example is Rosedown Plantation State Historic Site, which, like Oakley, often offers historic re-enactments and living history presentations. Built in 1835 by wealthy cotton planter Daniel Turnbull, the lavish double-galleried house is approached by a magnificent oak alley and surrounded by 28 acres of formal gardens. Another of the great Greek Revival plantation homes in the St. Francisville area was Greenwood, 100 feet square. From the time it was opened to the public in the early 1900's, Greenwood was toured by thousands and beloved by Hollywood, but in 1960 lightning struck the house and within three hours nothing was left but 28 Doric columns and a few forlorn chimneys. A 15-year reconstruction project faithfully duplicated the original to welcome guests once again. Visitors can tour each of these plantation homes and gardens daily. Guests can even stay overnight in a number of them, and there are other fine B&Bs in the area as well, both historic townhouses in St. Francisville and golf resorts and lakeside properties in the surrounding countryside. After touring the plantations, many visitors stay over to sample the exceptional recreational opportunities in this scenic unspoiled part of Louisiana. As temperatures drop, fall color frosts the woodland foliage with oranges and red and yellows, beckoning to the rugged Tunica Hills region around St. Francisville enthusiastic hikers, bikers, birders, horseback riders and hunters. Ranging from St. Francisville northwest along the Mississippi River, the Tunica Hills provide the perfect backdrop for any outdoor activity, including some of the most challenging hiking in the state. Actually foothills of the Appalachians, the Tunica Hills are rare land formations found only in a narrow strip from West Feliciana on north into Tennessee, loessial ridges created by dust storms of the Glacier period which swept in from the western plains carrying powdery fertile soil to form vertical cliffs up to 90 feet high resting on the sand-clay bottom of an ancient sea bed. The area harbors rarities like wild ginseng, Eastern chipmunks and other flora and fauna found nowhere else in Louisiana. Bicyclists and Sunday drivers appreciate the area's quiet country roads, some so ancient they began life as prehistoric game trails stamped indelibly into the soil of lands claimed by native Indians long before the first Europeans arrived. With habitat areas ranging from the hilly loessial bluffs and steep shady ravines of the uplands to the swampy river bottomlands and hardwood forests, birdwatchers find the area still harbors the same rich abundance of birdlife that so inspired Audubon in the 1820's. Cat Island National Wildlife Refuge is one of the largest tracts of virgin wetland forest along the Mississippi River not protected by levees from cyclical flooding. Sometimes inundated by 15 to 20 feet of water in the spring, Cat Island supports huge populations of wintering waterfowl, as well as the world's largest bald cypress tree, believed to be 800 to 1500 years old and an astounding 83 feet tall The Tunica Hills area abounds with prime hiking possibilities. In the fall, heat and humidity no longer wilt the will of even the most determined hiker, and scenic forest vistas open up which are not visible in the lush crowded overgrowth of summer. Clark Creek Natural Area just across the state line near Pond, Mississippi, has challenging trails leading to a series of waterfalls. The Tunica Hills Wildlife Management Area has nearly 6,000 acres of rugged hills, high bluffs and deep shaded ravines sheltering a significant wealth of rare plant and animal species, including the Louisiana black bear. In the works is a planned 635-acre Tunica Hills State Preservation Area encompassing bluffs and bayous and interpretive centers telling the story of the early Tunica Indians and the later Civil War battle at nearby Como Landing, while introducing Louisiana's "flatlanders" to the wonders of this hilly unspoiled wildnerness site. One of the most enjoyable ways to take in the scenery of the Tunica Hills region northwest of St. Francisville is on horseback, and Cross Creek Stables offers gaited horses for three-hour morning or afternoon rides along the sunken roadbed of the historic Old Tunica Road or on trails in the wildlife management area. The Louisiana State Penitentiary near St. Francisville hosts the area’s liveliest October activity, the annual Angola Prison Rodeo, the "Wildest Show in the South." Prison bands entertain and incarcerated craftsmen sell all manner of artwork, but the real highlight is the rodeo, begun in 1964 solely as entertainment for correctional officers and a few foolhardy inmate cowboys, now grown into one of the area's most popular events. From the time the mounted Angola Rough Riders charge into the arena at full gallop with flags flying, the spectators are on the edges of their seats as they watch inmates compete in regular professional rodeo events like bareback bronc riding, bulldogging and bull riding. The crowd favorites are the events unique to Angola, the "Bust Out" when all the chutes containing ferocious bulls are opened at once, or the "Wild Horse Race" in which inmates try to catch and mount frantic wild horses, or the "Wild Cow Milking" where obtaining even a drop of milk is easier said than done. Two other events pit inmates against bulls in a contest of wills: "Convict Poker," with four inmates seated at a poker table as a bull is released into the arena, and the last one to remain seated wins; and the crowd-pleasing "Guts and Glory", an arena full of inmates on foot trying to remove a $100 ticket tied between the horns of the meanest Brahma bull around. Professional rodeo clowns and pick-up riders do their best to assure the safety of the contestants, and Angola's EMS units haul off the casualties. Said to be the longest running prison rodeo in the country, the Angola Prison Rodeo is held every Sunday in October, performances beginning at 2 p.m. Gates open at 9 a.m., and visitors should arrive early to enjoy the arts and crafts, concessions and music. Advance tickets are a good idea, and information can be obtained online at www.angolarodeo.com or by telephoning (225) 655-2607. Located on US Highway 61 on the Mississippi River between Baton Rouge, LA, and Natchez, MS, just 35 minutes north of the full-service Baton Rouge airport, the St. Francisville area is enjoyable in the Fall as well as throughout the year. For online coverage of tourist facilities, attractions and events in the St. Francisville area, see www.stfrancisville.us, www.stfrancisville.net or www.stfrancisvilleovernight.com, or telephone (225) 635-6330 or 635-3873. Things have not been easy in The Big Easy this fall, and the quiet little town of St. Francisville has tried to help as much as it could, providing shelter and aid for a number of Hurricane Katrina evacuees. The area has long been a favorite getaway destination for visitors from New Orleans, but even in the best of times, these urbanite guests would always comment, “We love St. Francisville, but it’s not New Orleans.” To which the residents of St. Francisville collectively replied, both then and now, “Exactly!” Photos by Patrick Walsh unless otherwise stated. Large/high resolutions photos for press/advertising can be obtained from Patrick Walsh at Blue Goose Media This article may be reproduced for any press material.