Villere Plantation: Home of Louisiana's 2nd Governor (First Native Governor and First Creole Governor) Occupied by British Forces Gen Pakenham in 1814 Historic Trees along the Panel Ditch and linear canal and Historic Brick Structure Ruins in the wetlands north of the 20 arpent canal. Site of the actual British Invasion route for the Battle of New Orleans .

Villere Plantation: Home of Louisiana's 2nd Governor (First Native Governor and First Creole Governor) Occupied by British Forces Gen Pakenham in 1814

The Villere Plantation home was located on the South Side of Judge Perez on the current Meraux refinery processing campus. It burned in the 1930's. In the community of Meraux, St Bernard Parish Louisiana between the 20 and 40 arpent canals, on the western border of Meraux, at Magistrate Street and Jacob Drive: Magistrate Street is the continuation of the natural waterway Panel Ditch. This was the actual British Invasion Route for the Battle of New Orleans. British General Pakenham's forces used the Panel Ditch and the linear (north - south) canal to the east of the Entergy utility pole easement to reach the Villere Plantation and the Mississippi River.

Historically significant and worth preserving the trail or invasion route and its historic trees run along the length of this linear canal from the rightofway along the 20 arpent to the rightofway along the 40 arpent. In the 19th century ditches like the Panel Ditch were used in St Bernard Parish to delineate areas which were more desirable for cultivating crops from those that were less desirable. This wetlands area below {or north} of the Panel Ditch and before the cypress swamp was used to cultivate rice, as these fields tended to stay flooded.

The historic brick structure is a drainage machine which would drain the more desirable fields for crops such as sugar cane and lumber.

Where Magistrate Street ends and one could enter the property, this was the Panel Ditch. Just to the East of the Entergy utility pole easement, there is an Historic brick structure and associated historic oak trees. The brick structure is the ruins of the drainage pump for the Villere Plantation.This drainage machine was used to drain the fields and the smaller linear ditches to the bigger canals. The canals were used to float cypress lumber down to the sawmills. The Villere Plantation had such a timber crop and a small saw mill. The plantation also had the cash crops of sugar cane and rice.

(Notes from St Bernard Parish Historian, Mr William Hyland)

Interesting Links to Villere's History

map of Villere, Lacoste, Chalmette, Jumoville Plantation property lines
http://www.galafilm.com/1812/e/events/orl_villere.htmlpicture of plantation home that was south of judge perez drhttp://louisdl.louislibraries.org/cdm4/item_viewer.php?CISOROOT=/LSA&CISOPTR=1205&CISOBOX=1&REC=6
villere's bio (8 children)http://enlou.com/people/villerejp-bio.htm

page 40 of this book states the plantation was taken down for a sewage plant, Mr Hyland disputed this and stated the plantation burned in the 1930's on the Meraux refinery plant grounds South of Judge Perezhttp://books.google.com/books?id=folWLmrFXqwC&pg=PA40&lpg=PA40&dq=%22villere+plantation%22&source=web&ots=cM7oAI9BRf&sig=i120Bxq517Kyn4mdHN2cuSSNTUw
Notes from Mr. William Hyland St Berand Parish Historian