There’s something for everyone at San Francisco Plantation

By Brooke Robichaux

“They were very accommodating to our vendors as well. We had a live painter, a photo booth and the band. None of them had any complaints as far as space. Other than that, it was a very antique looking building, which is what we were going for. It definitely met our expectations.”

Location was a huge factor in selecting a wedding destination, according to Louviere. She yearned for something classy and close to home. San Francisco Plantation was meaningful to her because of its connection to her family and community.

“My dad does a lot as far as cooking at the festivals they have there through his work at Marathon, so it was kind of special for Weddings, festivals and house tours mark National Historic Landmark G ARYVILLE – Historic tours that peer into the past, festivals that capture the present, and a charming Sugar Mill Pavilion where couples celebrate the future are all found on the scenic grounds of San Francisco Plantation in Garyville.

For Brooke Louviere, San Francisco’s Sugar Mill Pavilion was the perfect backdrop to start the rest of her life. In October 2018, she said “I do” to her husband, and they danced the night away under romantic twinkle lights. The wedding was large with approximately 450 guests, but the reception never felt cramped or overly crowded.

“It was accommodating to all of those guests,” Louviere said.

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The country chic Sugar Mill Pavilion is illuminated with romantic twinkle lights.

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For more information call Ronnie Luman at 985-652-9545 or 504-327-8236

Guests enjoy a fun-filled reception at the Sugar Mill Pavilion, located at 2646 Highway 44 in Garyville.

us to have it there,” Louviere said. “It’s a very beautiful location to have a wedding, and we enjoyed it a lot.”

San Francisco Plantation director Kim Fontenot wants to bring awareness to the multifunctional Sugar Mill Pavilion, a 6,000 square foot structure nestled alongside centuries old live oaks. Authentic and country chic, the barn also provides a venue for private meetings and celebrations.

Some brides choose walk the garden path leading to the gazebo for an outdoor ceremony surrounded by fountains and starlit trees. Others choose to celebrate the ceremony and reception indoors, according to Fontenot. “The Sugar Mill Pavilion is decorated and ready to go,” Fontenot said. “All you have to bring in are your table decorations and your linens. Just minor things like that. All of our weddings have been very successful, and our brides have been very happy. We really strive to do the very best for our brides.”

The Pavilion features a stage perfect for live music. Sets of rustic, wooden doors provide a frame for a cake backdrop and the entry to the pavilion. Guests will see stunning greenery before they walk into the barn, which features a large dance floor centered under festive white organza drapery and twinkle lights.

“We constantly are updating the pavilion and adding more deco

rations,” Fontenot said. “We have stage lighting now and a sound system for corporate events.”

San Francisco weddings support small business by partnering with several local vendors. Wedding cakes by Cora of LaPlace, local photographer Ricky Songy and Jim Keller with 360 Catering have all contributed to dream weddings. Next year, Keller’s daughter will be married at San Francisco Plantation.

For more information and for pricing, please call 985-535-2341 or email is sanfran@rtconline.com. A brochure is available at sanfranciscoplantation.org.

The 17th annual Frisco Fest will take place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. March 7-8, 2020.

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- FRISCO FEST - A wedding comes just once a lifetime with good fortune, but Frisco Fest is a celebration that can involve the entire family every year.

This year marks the 17th annual Frisco Fest, and Fontenot said guests will have a chance to experience historic plantation tours, enjoy a hot meal and support the talented artists of the community.

Frisco Fest will take place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. March 7-8, 2020 at 2646 Highway 44 in Garyville. More than 100 crafters will be present and ready to display their unique works of art. The day also includes an open car show, 25- and 50-mile bike tours, and 5K and 1-mile fun runs.

Food vendors are selling chicken and Andouille gumbo, smoked sausage poboys, jambalaya, pulled pork sandwiches, cracklin and much more.

Admission is $5 for the festival (ages 12 and under are free) and $10 for San Francisco Plantation house tours (ages 6 and under are free).

“We are a non profit organization, and this is our largest fundraiser of the year,” Fontenot said. “It helps to fund the plantation. We’ve done many improvements because of the festival. That includes everything from adding bathrooms to the back area along the Sugar Mill Pavilion to adding electricity to the grounds. We have great sponsors with the industry along the river.”

Industry partners also sponsor the race and the run. The Tour De’ San Francisco travels down the historic River Road, passing numerous churches and plantations. The early bird application deadline is Feb. 1, 2020. Check-in time is at 7:30 a.m. March 7. The police-escorted tour takes off at 8 a.m., and lunch will be served at 11 a.m. Admission is $25 by the early bird deadline and $30 after the deadline. This price includes admission to the Frisco Fest craft show, lunch and a Dry Zone fitted T-shirt.

The annual Frisco Fest run will also travel River Road, utilizing the top of the levee. The entry fee for both the 5K and the fun-run are $20 before Feb. 1, 2020, and $25 after. Children 12 and under get into the race free, and there is only a $10 charge for kids to receive a Dry-fitted T-shirt.

T-shirts, food, cold beer and free admission to browse crafts and entertainment are included in the admission. All sign up sheets, including those for food and craft vendors, are available at sanfranciscoplantation.com

Guests can hear wonderful live music at Frisco Fest. For more information, call the plantation office at 985-535-2341. “We have very devoted vendors who come out and do beautiful work,” Fontenot said. “We really want to share that with everyone in our parish and the tri-parish area.”

San Francisco Plantation’s roots trace back to 1827, when free man of color Elisée Rillieux began buying tracts of land and slaves to establish a sugar plantation. Only three years later, he sold the property to Edmond Bozonier Marmillion and his partner Eugène Lartigue for an impressive $100,000.

The plantation passed through only three owners before it became a nonprofit and earned a spot on the National Register of Historic Places.

With hand painted ceilings and faux marbling, the house became so distinctive and ornate that it inspired novelist Frances Parkinson Keyes to write “Steamboat Gothic.” From some angles, the house is reminiscent of the riverboats that strolled down the Mighty Mississippi. The design was so elaborate that second owner Edmond Bozonier Marmillion was burdened with enormous debt. He declared that he was “sans fruscins,” which translates to “without a penny in my pocket.”

Overtime, the name evolved to St. Frusquin and then to San Francisco Plantation.

Tours of San Francisco Plantation recognize the lives and the labor of the former enslaved through restored living quarters, a schoolhouse building, a museum and a slave inventory.

“Hopefully soon, we are going to release a book about the plantation from the letters that were written in the 1850s and 60s,” Fontenot said. “We have an author that has written the book. It is going through the publication process.”