Smithfield Plantation House - Port Allen, LA
N 30° 32.967 W 091° 17.400
15R E 664021 N 3380915
Fine plantation home located along Historic River Road in West Baton Rouge Parish. Home appeared to be in excellent condition.
Waymark Code: WM5YTV
Location: Louisiana, United States
Date Posted: 03/02/2009
Views: 1
Very fine private home. There is not alot of traffic along River Road in this area, so it was pretty easy to locate and enjoy the home. Everything looked perfect, the grounds and home appeared to be in excellent condition. Could not find any information on the home, so a brief history from the Register application hereThe Smithfield Plantation House is locally significant in the area of architecture because it is
a landmark within the parish of West Baton Rouge. This landmark status is based upon the home's
pretentious Eastlake ornamentation, its distinctive massing, its elaborate interior staircase, and its
size.
A partially complete survey combined with extensive staff knowledge reveals that West
Baton Rouge Parish has very few buildings reflecting the influence of styles popular during the years
between the end of the Civil War and the beginning of the twentieth century. In fact, only a small
minority of buildings could be considered to be styled at all, regardless of the period. The surviving
50+ year old buildings in this rural parish consist mainly of utilitarian plantation buildings and small,
very plain galleried houses in the Creole cottage form. Very few major plantation houses survive.
The parish's small communities are characterized largely by vernacular commercial buildings
featuring no particular style, plain cottages and low-key bungalows.
It is against this background that Smithfield's landmark status emerges. Of the 211
structures surveyed to date in West Baton Rouge Parish, only ten reflect the influence of the
Eastlake style. Were the survey to be complete, this number would not be dramatically higher
(based on staff knowledge and the fact that the survey has already covered high probability areas).
Of the ten Eastlake influenced buildings covered in the survey, most are low key examples in which
perhaps a series of columns or brackets are applied to otherwise small, simple, one story homes.
Staff knowledge reveals that this overall lack of quality is indicative of the parish as a whole. There
are only two known buildings which would be considered landmark examples of the style --
Smithfield and Poplar Grove (NR). Both are fully articulated, combining Eastlake columns and
brackets with turned balusters and spindle screens outlining their galleries. Smithfield is the only
example to display Eastlake features on both the upper and lower portions of a double gallery. Thus,
it is one of the parish's most prominent examples of the Eastlake style.
Street address: 12445 N. River Rd. Port Allen, LA USA 70767
County / Borough / Parish: West Baton Rouge
Year listed: 1995
Historic (Areas of) Significance: Architecture/Engineering
Periods of significance: 1875-1899, 1900-1924
Historic function: Domestic. Sub - Single Dwelling
Current function: Domestic. Sub - Single Dwelling
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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