Things to do & places to visit in Donaldsonville, Louisiana, United States

Donaldsonville city in Louisiana, United States. Timezone: America/Chicago, current date and time: Wednesday, May 08, 2024, 8:25.

Top things to do

• Historic Sites
• Architectural Buildings
• Points of Interest & Landmarks
• History Museums

Top places to visit

1. 5.0 Palo Alto (3 reviews)
   - Visiting the area
   Spent 1-2 hours Historic Sites • Architectural Buildings
   This was a great experience. It is an early 19th Century plantation home, not one of the really spectacular ones, but very beautiful. They have one guest room. It is classified as a "bed and breakfast," but they did not actually serve breakfast, so I guess it's not. We did not take a tour of the place, but we did book the room for an evening. Very nice, quiet place to stay. See more..
   
2. 5.0 Donaldsonville Historic District (1 review)
   - Gateway to Cajun and Plantation Country
   Points of Interest & Landmarks
   Donaldsonville is the gateway to Louisiana's Cajun and Plantation Country, one of the state's oldest incorporated cities, the state capitol from 1829 to 1831. And the Donaldsonville Historic District contains the finest collection of buildings dating to the antebellum era of any Louisiana river town above New Orleans. It is bounded by the Mississippi River on the north, Bayou La Fourche on the south, Church Street on the east and Marchand Drive on the west. Railroad Avenue, the town's main street, bisects the district. Visitors can explore and admire the many sites by taking a 2.5-mile tour. Stroll along the Mississippi River levee and watch the ship traffic. Among the sites are the Mississippi Riverwalk, the River Road African-American Museum, Ascension Catholic Church built in the late 1800s and serving a parish established in 1772, Palo Alto and St. Emma Plantations, Ascension Parish Courthouse and Grapevine Cafe and Gallery. Also the B. Lemann & Bro. Department Store, a historic landmark and the oldest family owned department store in Louisiana and the Landry Tomb, a 20-foot-tall granite monument and burial vault in the cemetery of Ascension Catholic Church that was built in 1845 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. Finally, stop at Framer Dave's Frame Shop on Mississippi Street to admire and purchase the works of local folk artist Alvin Batiste. The Donaldsonville Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. See more..
   
3. 5.0 St. Emma Plantation (1 review)
   - Site of a Civil War battle
   Spent 1-2 hours Historic Sites
   We weren't aware until we visited St. Emma Plantation that it once was the site of a Civil War battle known as the "Battle of Kock's Plantation" in the fall of 1862. St. Emma, located about four miles south of Donaldsonville, Louisiana, and just west of Bayou Lafourche, was owned from 1854 to 1869 by Charles A. Kock, one of the leading sugar planters and largest slaveholders in Louisiana. He also owned nearby Belle Alliance plantation and 300 slaves. St. Emma and the nearby plantation of Palo Alto figured in a Civil War battle in 1862. Confederate troops quartered in the sugarhouses of the two plantations skirmished with Union troops marching south from Donaldsonville to Thibodaux. The Union army lost 465 men. St. Emma, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980, stands five bays wide and three rooms deep, all around a central hall, following a standard raised plantation house plan. Built in 1847, it is a fine example of a large mid-19th century Greek Revival plantation house. Both the front and rear facades have five-bay galleries which are formed of brick posts on the lower story and paneled wooden pillars on the upper story. Although the upper story is the main floor, there are rooms on the ground floor as well, which are original to the house. Today, St. Emma is furnished with a superb collection of Empire-period furniture. See more..
   
4. 4.5 River Road African-American Museum (15 reviews)
   - This is a must see!
   Wednesday: 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM History Museums
   
   
   The River Road African American Museum is dedicated to collecting, preserving, exhibiting and interpreting art, artifacts and buildings for the purpose of educating visitors about the history and culture of African Americans in the rural communities between Baton Rouge and New Orleans. The River Road African American Museum is open by appointment only from July 1, 2015 to October 1, 2015 while restructuring and redesigning the exhibits and tours. Sorry for the inconvenience. See more..
   
5. 4.0 Donaldsonvillle (15 reviews)
   - A Louisiana Original , Ascension Catholic Cemetery
   Points of Interest & Landmarks
   
   
   A little off the beaten path, a few blocks from the historic building district is the Ascension Catholic Cemetery. I know, cemeteries are not the most exciting places to visit, but if you always wanted to go to a "New Orleans" type cemetery without the New Orleans traffic, this place is for you. See how the movers and shakers from the antebellum period and area are forever entombed. Large gothic structures as well as interestingly designed smaller tombs are here. It is a large cemetery. One of the structures (Landry Tomb) is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Open from sun up to dusk. Remember, this is a cemetery. See more..