During the weekend of October 9th through 11th, the Association for the Preservation of Historic Natchitoches (APHN) will host its 61st annual Fall Pilgrimage Tour of Homes. Whether you’d like to visit homes dating back to the 1700s, the centerpiece house of the movie “Steel Magnolias,” a modern townhouse situated in an early 1900’s building, or early plantation homes, the tour has homes for you to see.
The three-stage tour starts on Friday evening at 7:00pm with showings of the Metoyer-Brown House built in 1850, the Chamard-Dunahoe House circa 1788, the Chaplin House built in 1893, and the Prudhomme-Rouquier House that was built in 1782. APHN will host a wine and cheese reception throughout the evening in the Prudhomme-Rouquier House. The tour homes on Friday demonstrate several building styles, including Late Greek Revival, French, and French-Colonial, Victorian, and Federal/Greek influences. The hyphenated names reflect the original and subsequent owners.
The Steel Magnolia House has been maintained to reflect its appearance from the movie, including Shelby’s pink bedroom. The Ragan Townhouse is located on the top floor of the original Natchitoches Opera House built in 1915. That building became the AMUSU Theatre in 1930 and later housed the Don Theater. The building and the adjacent hotel building stood vacant and in disrepair for many years before they were renovated and converted to townhouses.
Melrose, Cherokee, and Oakland plantations, the Marie Therese Coincoin Museum, and the St. Charles Borromeo Chapel (built in 1909) will be open to visitors on Saturday and starting at 9:00am on Sunday. Cherokee Plantation was built in 1839, has six fireplaces, original floor and windows, and 18 hand-hewn cypress columns which support outside galleries on three sides. Cherokee is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Oakland Plantation, built in 1821, contains several structures including the main house, the Overseer’s House, Slave Cabin, and other outbuildings. Oakland has also been named a National Historic Landmark and a Cane River Creole National Historic Park.
Tickets for the tour are $25.00 for one day, $40.00 for two days, and $50.00 for all three days for adults. Children’s tickets (ages 6 through 12) are $5.00 per tour, and children under six are admitted free. All tickets include free admission to the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and Northwest Louisiana History Museum in Natchitoches. For more information, contact the Natchitoches Parish Tourist Commission at (318) 259-1714 or Melrose Plantation at (318) 379-0055.