The life and death of a house. Belle Grove, also known as Belle Grove Plantation, was a plantation and elaborate Greek Revival and Italianate-style plantation mansion near White Castle in Iberville Parish, Louisiana. Completed in 1857, it was one of the largest mansions ever built in the South, surpassing that of the neighboring Nottoway. (Nottoway is often cited as the largest antebellum plantation house remaining in the South) The masonry structure stood 62 feet high and measured 122 feet wide by 119 feet deep, with seventy-five rooms (including a jail cell) spread over four floors. Belle Grove was owned by John Andrews, a wealthy sugar planter originally from Virginia. Andrews owned over 7,000 acres spread over several plantations, with Belle Grove having 3⁄4 mile of river frontage. He founded Belle Grove during the 1830s, with Dr. John Phillip Read Stone as a partner. Andrews assumed full ownership in 1844, when the partnership was dissolved. By the 1850s, his more than 150 slaves were producing over half a million pounds of sugar each year. Andrews built the mansion from 1852 to 1857 at a cost of $80,000, not including the free (slave) labor or the plentiful cypress lumber and hand-made bricks produced on the plantation. The house was designed by New Orleans architect Henry Howard. Andrews had a legendary rivalry with the owner of Nottoway Plantation, John Randolph. This competition even extended to their mansions, with both massive structures designed by Howard in a mix of the Greek Revival and Italianate styles. Following the American Civil War and ensuing collapse of the plantation economy, Andrews sold the home and plantation in 1867 to James Ware, for the meager sum of $50,000. The Ware family continued to live and farm the plantation until the early 1920s. After several bad crop years, they were forced to sell the home. From 1925 onwards the house sat vacant. The post-War era at Belle Grove saw the finely crafted home rot away in Louisianas harsh environment. Neglect allowed a leaky roof to expand and destroy one wing of the mansion. Several owners purchased the home, each with aspirations of restoration, but none had the means necessary in the lean years of the Great Depression and World War II to stop the onslaught of rapid decay. On March 17, 1952, a mysterious fire during the night destroyed what remained of the house. ~ Donna Photo 1 - Front (River facade) of Belle Grove in 1938 Photo 2 - Rear view in 1936, showing total collapse of three-story side wing.
Posted on: Mon, 14 Jul 2014 02:14:42 +0000
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