What Our Friends and Visitors Say..
Mourning Tour Review
By Ellen Byron, award-winning mystery writer
When you write mysteries, you tend to gravitate toward the macabre, which is how I ended up on the Creole Mourning Tour offered by St. Joseph Plantation in Louisiana. It was fun to experience a really good living history tour, as opposed to the lame one foisted upon Maggie Crozat and her co-workers by an obnoxious new boss in my latest Cajun Country Mystery, A Cajun Christmas Killing.
The St. Joseph tour offered fascinating insights into the Creole customs and superstitions surrounding death. It helps that it’s the rare plantation still in family hands, so a lot of the information has been passed down through generations. Maureen Gilly, St. Joseph’s general manager, is the great-great-great-granddaughter of Joseph Waguespack, who bought the plantation in 1877. She introduced the tour, and then turned it over to a cast of re-enactors who wove history into their characterizations.
As I went from room to room, I was welcomed by grieving family members of the deceased, a Dr. Cazemir Bernard Mericq who lived at the plantation prior to the Civil War. Genuinely a good doctor, he didn’t discriminate, tending to both the manor house and enslaved residents. So his death was truly a loss to his wife, daughters, and other family members.
* The deceased was loaded into the horse-drawn hearse feet-first so that the spirits couldn’t make eye contact with the mourners, thus dooming them. Another theory was that if the spirit of the departed could look back at the house, it might decide not to leave. (Can you say haunted???)
* Visitation of the deceased took place at home for tradition’s sake, but also because given the lack of medical knowledge, there was always the chance he or she wasn’t actually dead. So keeping the resumed-departed out of the ground for twenty-four to forty-eight hours provided at least some insurance against being buried alive.
* There were strict rules about the length of time to mourn, from widows down to workers. And the length of time spent in mourning was much longer for women than men. (Why is that no surprise?)
* There were also rigid rules regarding mourning apparel. For the first six months, a widow’s garments could only be made from a flat black fabric. After six months, the fabric still had to be black, but it could be shiny. After a year, she was allowed to segue into gray or lavender garments. Jewelry was restricted to materials like onyx and wood, or featured designs woven from the deceased’s own hair.
* Even dolls went into mourning.
Of all these rituals, I think the only one I’d embrace is covering the mirrors with black cloth – at least until I hit my Weight Watchers goal weight.
Like I mentioned, the St. Joseph tour offered a wealth of history regarding Creole mourning practices. I hope I got the traditions I shared right. If not, I hope the spirits don’t hunt me down to offer corrections.
Creole Mourning Tour
St. Joseph Creole Mourning Tour
St. Joseph Creole Mourning Tour
St. Joseph Creole Mourning Tour
Elicia Briggs
We went to st. Joes during their mourning tour that shared how the family would have mourned the passing of family members. It gave a great insight into a past world. The buildings and grounds are fantastic!
Elicia Briggs
Beth Fury
Hi. I took a tour of your lovely property and home a while ago. I’m a local (LaPlace) and just wanted to say that I’ve seen many plantations but your tour is the most informative and enjoyable I’ve ever taken. Yours is also quite inexpensive when compared to others that barely let you in the home. There was nothing roped off, you have access to just about anything you want to see. I plan to tour again, this time bringing my hubby. I’ve told everyone I know about the informed, courteous tour guides and if they want to see a plantation, they need to see St. Joseph. Can you tell how impressed I was? Thanks for everything!
Beth Fury
Karen and Mike Russo
My husband and I recently toured St. Joe’s and we just wanted to say once again how much we enjoyed the tour and the history lesson. Ms. Jackie Roussel, our tour guide, was truly wonderful and inspirational. Her passion for St. Joe’s and its history was very evident throughout the tour. The family members who are dedicated to the preservation of St. Joe and its wonderful past are to be commended for giving this legacy to all of us who are lucky enough to tour the estate. We will certainly tell our friends about the experience and encourage them to take time from their busy schedules to visit this remarkable working plantation. Thanks again for a wonderful afternoon.
Karen and Mike Russo
Debby Pigman
The kids had a great time at St. Joseph Plantation. Many of them thought it was the best part of the trip. They thought all the outbuildings were interesting, especially the kitchen. I hear that you are restoring the sugar mill. I’m looking forward to seeing that on my next visit.
Debby Pigman
Louise S. McGehee School
Karen Hait
Thank you for the wonderful tour for our Southdown volunteers and members. The added “mourning ” elements were very interesting (and the very next day the article was in our local Houma Courier newspaper). Good luck with all your endeavors at St. Joseph and we hope you’ll stay in touch with our group.
Karen Hait
Museum Director
Southdown Plantation /Terrebonne Museum
Mary Collins
My husband and I toured St. Joseph Plantation in April of this year and would like to say how much we enjoyed the tour as well as the family member who conducted the tour. She was extremely knowledgeable and amenable to us Canadian visitors. We will certainly come to Louisiana again and visit you in the near future. Are there plans for renovating Felicity plantation and having it open for tours as well? YES
Thank you so much for the lovely experience.
Mary Collins
Beth Fury
Hi. I took a tour of your lovely property and home a while ago. I’m a local (LaPlace) and just wanted to say that I’ve seen many plantations but your tour is the most informative and enjoyable I’ve ever taken. Yours is also quite inexpensive when compared to others that barely let you in the home. There was nothing roped off, you have access to just about anything you want to see. I plan to tour again, this time bringing my hubby. I’ve told everyone I know about the informed, courteous tour guides and if they want to see a plantation, they need to see St. Joseph. Can you tell how impressed I was? Thanks for everything!
Beth Fury
Sue Bradford & Charles Kearns
Charlie and I visited on Saturday, June 30, and had a wonderful time. Kiley was a sweet and informed tour guide, and the staff was willing to spend time with us, telling us interesting tidbits from the history of the family. We will spread the word in Baton Rouge about this unique and interesting historic site.
Best of luck
Sue Bradford & Charles Kearns
July 2007
Destrie Horgan
We had a wonderful time at the wedding and are so happy that we decided to have it at St. Joseph. I wouldn’t have changed anything about the day.
Thank you for helping to make my dream wedding a reality!
Destrie Horgan
Glenn and Samantha Bergeron
Thank you so very much for all that eveyone did to make our wedding of November 11 such a beautifully memorable one. We are truly grateful to you all, and St. Joseph will remain dear to our hearts for many, many years.
Glenn and Samantha Bergeron
Rita Long
My sister and myself recently discovered and visited your lovely plantation and grounds. We were quite impressed with our tour guide and her wealth of knowledge on family and local history. We’ve toured many plantations, but none with such thoroughness of information. The fact that a family as large as yours can come together and agree to disagree to achieve such a dream is impressive also. We hope to see you agan on our next trip South!
Rita Long
Marty McCormick
I was at the plantation in early July. I am from Ohio and came to Louisiana to visit my son. Seeing the plantation was one of the most important things that happened in my life. I love them and anything to do with them. I had a wonderful time there and plan to come back i Feb 2006. Keep up the good work, people need to see things like this beautiful home. You have done a great job on the house and grounds. Love it!!!!!!!!
Marty McCormick
Jack Cooper
I thoroughly enjoyed our tour of St. Joe’s last Friday. I was with a group of my aunts and uncle who grew up on the River Road. I have fond memories of our time spent on a great tour, thanks.
Jack Cooper
Gloria Maurin
Dear Friends at St. Joseph Plantation
On Wednesday, May 18, eighteen of our members toured the home. It was truly a memorable occasion for our group. They were excited and overwhelmed with the amount of history that our tour guide gave in her presentation. Everybody wants to come back and I’m sure we will.
Gloria L. Maurin, President
German Acadian Coast Genealogical and Historical Society
Cayley Birchfield and Family
My mother and I visited your plantation home with my three children. Wow! What an interesting tour! Wehave been patiently waiting through the years to see your home as we make at least once-a-year trip to Oak Alley to get away from Texas for awhile. It was defeintely worth the wait. I am an archeological major and I love everything to do with your part of the world. I find women’s roles fascinating and Creole families inspiring. I loved the family history and hard work that has gone on in the past on your land and seeing it continue to this day us testament to the importance of preserving the past. Thanks again for sharing your story with us and we look forward to our trips in the future to see your progress. Wish we were close enough to volunteer our time and effort- because we definitely would
Cayley Birchfield and Family