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Established in 1994, the Cane River Creole National Historical Park serves to preserve the resources and cultural landscapes of the Cane River region. Located along the Cane River Lake, the park is approximately 63 acres and includes two French Creole cotton plantations, Oakland and Magnolia. Both plantations reflect completeness in their historic settings, including landscapes, outbuildings, structures, furnishings, and artifacts; and they are the most intact French Creole cotton plantations in the United States. In total, 65 historic structures and over a million artifacts enhance the National Park Service mission as it strives to tell the story of the evolution of plantation agriculture through the perspective of the land owners, enslaved workers, overseers, skilled workers, and tenant farmers who resided along the Cane River for over two hundred years. A defining characteristic of the park is the conservation and interpretation of Creole culture. In colonial Louisiana the term “Creole” was used to indicate New World products derived from Old World stock, and could apply to people, architecture, or livestock. Regarding people, Creole historically referred to those born in Louisiana during the French and Spanish periods, regardless of their ethnicity. Today, as in the past, Creole transcends racial boundaries. It connects people to their colonial roots, be they descendants of European settlers, enslaved Africans, or those of mixed heritage, which may include African, French, Spanish, and American Indian Influences. The Prud'hommes of Oakland and the LeComtes of Magnolia were considered French Creole. As with others in the area, the homes and plantations of these families reflected the French Creole architectural style and way of life. The historic landscapes and dozens of structures preserved at Oakland and Magnolia plantations are the setting for the stories of workers (enslaved and free) and families who farmed the same land for over two centuries, adapting to historical, economic, social, and agricultural change. Today their descendants carry on many of their traditions. ==Magnolia== The origins of Magnolia Plantation can be traced to the mid-18th century with the French LeComte family and are continued by the French Hertzog family. In 1753, Jean Baptiste LeComte received a French land grant in Natchitoches Parish. LeComte established the Shallow Lake plantation and focused mainly on tobacco,and subsistence farming. The LeComte family pioneered through the colonial rule of the French and the Spanish, and became one of the most successful landowning families in Natchitoches Parish. By the early 19th century the LeComte family was producing cotton and expanding their landholdings. In the 1830s, Ambrose LeComte II acquired the land that would come to form Magnolia Plantation. During this period, the LeComtes were extremely prosperous and began to build most or the structures that are still located on Magnolia. By the 1850s Ambrose and his wife Julia retired to their Natchitoches townhouse, where Ambrose could focus on his lucrative race horse business. By 1852 management of the plantation was turned over to Ambrose’s son-in-law, Matthew Hertzog. The name Hertzog would eventually become inextricably linked with the plantation. However this prosperous period would come to an abrupt halt with the Civil War. During the Civil War Magnolia’s main house was burned to the ground by Union troops during the Red River Campaign. In addition, crops and plantation structures were destroyed by both Confederate and Union armies. After the Civil War, the LeComte-Hertzog family rebuilt their plantation along with the main house, and converted to the new labor system of sharecropping. The system of sharecropping required an agreement between the landowner and the tenant. The sharecropper agreed to farm a section of the owner's land in exchange for part of the crops or the money the crops generated. The plantation owner often supplied the seed and agricultural equipment required to cultivate the crop. On larger plantations, such as Magnolia and Oakland, a plantation store was opened to sell goods to the sharecroppers. A hardship faced by many sharecroppers across the South was the cycle of poverty created through the constant flow of debt and repayment owed to the plantation store. There was often little money left to live on. During the 20th century, it was clear the old plantation world was fading. At harvest time, ranks of workers in the cotton fields of Magnolia were replaced in the 1960s by mechanical pickers. Yet many of the old ways persisted. At Magnolia, workers and planters still enjoyed baseball games and horse races. Today, Magnolia Plantation is recognized as a Bicentennial Farm and a National Historic Landmark. The main house at Magnolia continues to be owned by the Herzog family and is not open to the public; however, the Plantation Store, the Overseer’s House, the Blacksmith Shop, the Slave/Tenant Quarters, the Gin Barn, Cotton Picker Shed and Carriage House are part of Cane River Creole National Historical Park and open to visitors. The gin barn houses two types of cotton gins and a rare 1830s mule powered cotton press, which is the last of its kind still standing in its original location. The lives of the diverse people associated with Magnolia reflect the resilience, resourcefulness, dedication, and continuous interaction of families and communities along Cane River. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Cane River Creole National Historical Park」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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