Pictured above is Acadia Plantation just outside Thibodaux, Louisiana. Ormonde Plater, who took the picture, spent his boyhood at Acadia Plantation. A mega-developer, Jake Giardina, bought the property and, demolition of the old plantation house began yesterday. Read Ormonde's account of his visit yesterday and the history of the house at his blog Through the Dust.
UPDATE: From the comments to Ormonde at Through the Dust:
DeeDee DiBenedetto, the Baton Rouge genealogist and historian, asked me to post the following in her name:
"Owning historical property, especially a historic home in a community, makes the owner a part of the community. Note the root word commune. Just as your right to swing your fist ends when you threaten to swing it into my nose, a property owner’s right to do as he pleases with his historical property ends when it threatens the history of the community. Historical preservation areas preserve a look and feel of a community, and the owners in these areas should consider the entire community."
DeeDee is right.
