Chretien Point Plantation - Sunset, LA (One Tough Little Lady)

665 Chretien Point Plantation

Sunset, LA 70584

30.389406,-92.09826

www.chretienpoint.com

            If I haven't already informed you, I am quite man enough to admit that I have an intense case of arachnophobia! It's pretty pathetic how severe it is, as I will literally freak out if I get near a spider bigger than a dime. I can remember putting laundry into the washer once and as I pushed down on the clothes, a spider about as big as a fifty cents piece sprang from the clothes, onto my arm! I honestly do not remember much, as I seemed to come out of my own skin, hitting a level of consciousness that is hard to comprehend. Next thing I remember, I am stripped down to my underwear, running around the house, flailing my arms like an idiot! Needless to say, it was quite a sight! Oddly enough, the types of spiders I hate the most are the ones that are the most harmless.  The proper term for this species is the golden silk orb-weaver but in Louisiana, they are referred to as banana spiders. They are massive in size, ominous in color and make gigantic webs with strange zig-zag patterns down the middle. I have always been told they are non-poisonous but I have never bothered getting close enough to one to find out. Ironically, the next location I will mention is home to the largest banana spiders I have ever seen. Maybe that's why it's one of the only plantations in Louisiana that I have yet to investigate!

Madame John's Legacy - New Orleans, LA (Claudia's Blood Feast)

632 Dumaine St.

New Orleans, LA 70116

29.959437,-90.063075

www.thelmf.org  

            One of my favorite movies of all time is Interview with the Vampire. Not only because the movie is primarily shot in Louisiana, but I have always been enthralled with the vampire lifestyle. I’m not talking about the teenie-bopper vampires with sparkling skin of today, but those said to have existed in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The movie truly stylized the genre and paved the way for similar movies for many years to come. The morbid dark humor in the film is unforgettable. In one of my favorite scenes, Kirsten Dunst’s character, Claudia, is taking piano lessons from a strict instructor. At this point, Claudia has just transformed into a vampire and is having a difficult time controlling her insatiable appetite for blood and will not always kill at the most opportune of times. In this case, she kills her instructor to feed her need. The following scene shows individuals carrying out the coffin containing the instructor from a large French Colonial townhouse with a very distinctive elevated from porch. I would soon learn that the home used for this scene is none other than the landmark known as Madame John’s Legacy.

Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop - New Orleans, LA (Even Pirates Have To Drink)

941 Bourbon St.

New Orleans, LA 70116

29.96101,-90.063587

www.lafittesblacksmithshop.com 

            Only a few steps away from the Lafitte Guest House is one of my favorite bars in the city. Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop is said to be the oldest building in America that has been transformed into a bar. Although the last few years seem to have brought in large amounts of tourists, this dark little bar still is a great place to relax and have a few drinks, while listening to the piano player in the rear. On many occasions, I’ve sat in the back of this centuries old building listening to; you guessed it, House of the Rising Sun. I really wished the saying “If these walls could talk” were true. If such was the case, one can only imagine what this bar would say. Other than the electricity that runs the register and bar area, there are no lights throughout the bar except for candles on the tables. Here, you can find your traditional Louisiana beers, mixed drinks and a concoction called the “Voodoo Daiquiri”. Not sure what is in it but after a couple, you may need a Voodoo priest to revive you from your comatose state!
            The building is rumored to have been built sometime around the 1720’s by Nicolas Touze and is one of the oldest buildings in the city to have survived the two huge fires that ravaged the French Quarter. As expected, the bar gets its name from our beloved brother and pirate duo, Jean and Pierre Lafitte. During the late 1790’s and early 1800’s, the home was a regular hangout spot for the two who operated a blacksmith shop here. The legitimate business was a cover which served as a front for their less than legal privateer enterprises, which normally consisted of selling smuggled goods. It is rumored that much of the Lafitte’s profits were often hidden inside the walls of the building. Unfortunately, the treasures have long been gone, but the memories and spirits during this era are still alive and well.

Lafitte Guest House - New Orleans, LA (The Pirated Playa)

1003 Bourbon St.

New Orleans, LA 70116

29.961155,-90.063461

www.lafitteguesthouse.com 

            Believe it or not, there are actually quiet portions of Bourbon Street. After a brisk stroll through the strip clubs and rowdy bars, pass the three hundred pound bearded guy wearing only a leather thong and a feathered boa and beyond the transgender café, things actually become pretty calm and serene! Approximately around the 1000 block, the area opens up into residences and several small inns. Don’t worry, despite the decrease in action from the living, the amount of hauntings are far from affected, such as with our next location, the Lafitte Guest House.
            Records of the land that the home sits on can date back as far as the late 1700’s, when it was donated to Charity Hospital by the King of Spain. A small hospital was built on the property but did not last long, as it was destroyed by a fire in 1809. Several years later, the property would be home to a residence that would give the current property its historical name. As we have learned, and will continue to read, pirate Jean Lafitte was a prominent figure in and around New Orleans. Jean would often work together with his brother, Pierre, as the two were quite a resourceful pair.

Joseph Jefferson Mansion - New Iberia, LA (Rip Van Winkle and the Buried Treasure)

5505 Rip Van Winkle Rd.

New Iberia, LA 70560

29.975237,-91.973441

www.ripvanwinklegardens.com

            In all my years of investigating, I don't think I have ever visited a location where the land itself has an even more interesting history than the haunted house that sits there. That is, until I visited the Joseph Jefferson Mansion and Rip Van Winkle Gardens, located on the outskirts of New Iberia on Jefferson Island. Although the focal point of this blog will be the home, to truly appreciate the complexity of this location, I must first introduce you to the unique land.
            Jefferson Island, originally known as Orange Island, helps make up the famous “Five Islands” of Louisiana. The islands were created due to enormous pressures in the earth, forcing large amounts of salt rock to form a mother bed located five miles below the earth's surface. This elevated several low laying hills, which became the five islands: Jefferson, Weeks, Belle Isle, Cote Blanche and Avery Island. These islands are elevated anywhere between fifty and one hundred feet above sea level, which due to the islands' proximities to the Gulf of Mexico, this is considered extremely high ground.