RAMBLIN’
The Museums Along the Mississippi A GUIDE TO THE FASCINATING COLLECTIONS ALONG THE RIVER ROAD By Mary Ann Sternberg
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boy, about seven years old, hung over the railing of the large 1904 sugar mill model in the central atrium of the West Baton Rouge Museum, enchanted. Press the button and a voice-over provides the boy’s introduction to how the tall grass called sugar cane is magically transformed into raw sugar. And since the factories called sugar mills that perform this feat rarely give tours, this may be the only way the boy, or anyone else, can see this demonstrated. The mill model is part of an extensive exhibit about sugar, an insight into this slice of local history and culture that remains important in West Baton Rouge as well as elsewhere along the River Road. It’s typical of what the (mostly) small museums of the River Road do: present stories that focus on local people and their cultures, on the basic essence of the place and how its heritage has influenced what it has become. New Orleans and Baton Rouge—the anchor cities of the River Road, an approximately one hundred mile section in South Louisiana of the Great River Road National Scenic Byway—are well known for their assortment of excellent museums. The stretch of geography in between, through cane fields and petrochemical plants, is most often defined as a plantation parade because its best known attractions are the elegant antebellum mansions open to the public. But in fact, wonderful museums exist along the River Road, tucked in along the bends on both banks of the Mississippi River between New Orleans and Baton Rouge. Each of the River Road’s museums offers some combination of education and entertainment, insights into past and present in this richly historic and colorful region. Here is a listing of River Road museums by location—downriver along the west bank from Port Allen; upriver along the east bank from LaPlace. Travel the roads sequentially—or dip in as you desire. And enjoy!
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WEST BANK The West Baton Rouge Museum, located inside the records vault of the old 1880s West Baton Rouge Parish courthouse building, houses a fine permanent collection focused on the sugar industry and the history and culture of rural life in the parish. Changing exhibits of art and regional culture fill the building’s ancillary galleries. (Current ones include Evangeline: Evolution of an Icon and a solo exhibit by figurative oil painter Douglas Bourgeois.) The main building shares a six-acre, live oak-shaded campus with historic structures each filled with displays and artifacts: The Aillet House, circa 1830, is a raised and galleried sugar planter’s cottage with bousillage walls; three cabins from Allendale Plantation reflect the lifestyles of the African Americans who lived in the quarters, a Reconstruction-era cabin, and a sharecroppers’ cabin; the Arbroth Plantation Store reflects rural farm life in the early twentieth century; a Juke Joint spotlights local Blues musicians, instruments, and artworks; the Reed shotgun house exemplifies early twentieth century vernacular architecture; a barn that houses the 1964 industry-changing Julien Sugar Cane Planter and vintage farming implements.
Eight miles downriver in the old railroad town of Addis, west of LA 1 is the tiny Addis Museum in the 1920 redbrick Bank of Addis building facing the still-active railroad tracks. The collection of local interest artifacts reflects the town’s importance on the transcontinental rail route between New Orleans and the west coast, and includes railroading memorabilia—vintage tickets, train photos, signal lights, and more—as well as displays on town history, Mardi Gras, and local war veterans. The old river town of Plaquemine boasts two museum attractions just across the street from each other. The Iberville Museum, housed in the 1848 Courthouse Building, is a grandma’s attic of collected Iberville Parish history, stories of diverse and worthy parish residents and Louisiana’s high school boxing history, cases of vintage tools, cooking implements, and much more. Out back is an extensive Atchafalaya Basin exhibit, introducing visitors to the swamp’s unique way of life through audio-visuals and panels as well as a swamper’s cabin, artifacts, maps, and environmental information about this threatened area.
