Valverda Plantation House - Maringouin, LA
N 30° 32.350 W 091° 32.700
15R E 639573 N 3379432
Fine large Greek Revival style southern plantation home. Privately owned,house is nestled in a nice grove of large, old live oak trees.
Waymark Code: WM5DV6
Location: Louisiana, United States
Date Posted: 12/24/2008
Views: 10
Privately owned home, located on State Hwy. 977. Care should be used, highway is quite busy at times. Home appeared to be in fine, restored condition. The grounds were also well kept.Could not find any historical information on internet, except the Register application I located here. Among Louisiana’s chief architectural assets are its plantation houses, whether they be in the earlier French
Creole style or the grand Greek Revival taste. At the apex of the Greek Revival are the monumental homes found along
the Mississippi River and the bayous of South Louisiana. Generally built by sugar planters, they may be briefly
characterized as pillared two story houses with broad galleries across the front and back and sometimes encircling the
house. The Greek temple form was not much in evidence. The grandest houses had colossal columns rising to the
roofline in one continuous shaft. It is these houses that have become an icon of the Deep South. No one will ever know
the exact number (often grand enough to be mansions) that existed along the waterways of South Louisiana. Various
sources, however, reveal that more have been lost than have survived. Today there are some 30-40 major Greek Revival
plantation homes in the state. And while Valverda is admittedly not in the same category as mansions such as Houmas
House and Madewood, it nonetheless is a major expression of the Greek Revival taste in a Louisiana plantation house.
(Major is defined loosely as a convincingly styled large two story example, in contrast to the medium and small galleried
cottages found in greater abundance.) Of the 30-40 major Greek Revival plantation homes in the state, it is among the
minority in featuring colossal columns, with those on the façade having the additional refinement of paneling. Valverda is
also distinguished by its abundance of boldly articulated Greek Revival woodwork reflecting the style as it was seen
typically in the 1840s and ‘50s. In 1855 Valverda Plantation was purchased by former Louisiana governor Henry Johnson, who retained ownership
until his death in 1864. Johnson’s political career included the U. S. Senate, 1818-24; governor, 1824-28; U. S.
Congress, 1834-39; U. S. Senate, 1844-49. Apparently Johnson moved to Pointe Coupee after his unsuccessful bid for
re-election to the Senate in 1850. Significance on the basis of Johnson is not being claimed at the present time because
sufficient research has not been done to determine if there are surviving buildings associated with his productive life, per
National Register guidelines. A retirement home is generally not eligible unless one can demonstrate it is the sole
surviving property associated with the significant individual. If such a case can be documented, the nomination can be
amended.
The origin of the Valverda name is unknown. Presumably it is a corruption of valle verde, “green valley” in
Spanish, although there are no valleys in flat South Louisiana. There is a small community of the same name.
Street address: 2217 LA 977 Maringouin, LA USA 70757
County / Borough / Parish: Pointe Coupee
Year listed: 2002
Historic (Areas of) Significance: Architecture/Engineering
Periods of significance: 1850-1874
Historic function: Domestic. Sub - Single Dwelling
Current function: Vacant/Not In Use
Privately owned?: yes
Primary Web Site: [Web Link]
Secondary Website 1: [Web Link]
Season start / Season finish: Not listed
Hours of operation: Not listed
Secondary Website 2: Not listed
National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed
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