Myrtles Plantation
Myrtles Plantation is a historic Louisiana house and heritage-tourism attraction known for its antebellum architecture, lodging, tours, and association with ghost folklore.
Last updated August 26, 2026
AI crawler reads
No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.
Overview
Myrtles Plantation is a historic house and former antebellum plantation in St. Francisville, Louisiana. The property was established in 1796 by General David Bradford on approximately 600 acres in what was then Spanish West Florida. Originally called Laurel Grove, it later became known as the Myrtles, a reference to the crape myrtles growing in the area. The site was created and operated within the plantation economy, and enslaved people were forced to live and work there during its early history. The main house began as a one-and-a-half-story Creole cottage with a six-bay façade and three dormers. During the 1850s, Ruffin Gray Stirling and his wife, Mary Catherine Cobb, substantially enlarged and remodeled the building, almost doubling its size. The resulting house has a long veranda, cast-iron ornament, six brick chimneys, decorative dormers, French-influenced interiors, and original or historic architectural features. Its interior contains 22 rooms over two floors, including formal parlors, a dining room, a music room, bedrooms, marble mantels, elaborate plasterwork, stained glass, and a large entry hall with a crystal chandelier and cantilevered staircase. The plantation changed hands repeatedly during the nineteenth century. After Stirling's death, the property remained associated with the Stirling and Winter families. The Civil War and its aftermath damaged the estate's finances and resulted in the loss of furnishings and wealth tied to Confederate currency. William Drew Winter, who helped manage the property and was connected to the Stirling family by marriage, was killed on the house's porch in 1871. The estate was later sold several times, and its surrounding land was divided among heirs in the early twentieth century. In the second half of the twentieth century, the house underwent further ownership changes and eventually became a visitor-oriented property. James and Frances Kermeen Myers operated it as a bed-and-breakfast, while current owners John and Teeta Moss continue to offer tours and overnight accommodations. The grounds include a pond with an island gazebo, a historic building known as the General's Store, a restaurant, a brick courtyard, and modern guest cottages. The General's Store serves visitor-related functions including a gift shop, offices, laundry facilities, and breakfast service. The Myrtles is also a prominent example of ghost tourism. Stories associated with the property have circulated in print since at least the mid-twentieth century and were later amplified through guidebooks, promotional materials, evening mystery tours, and television programs. The site has appeared in programs including Unsolved Mysteries, Ghost Hunters, Ghost Adventures, Most Terrifying Places in America, and Files of the Unexplained. These stories are part of the attraction's commercial identity, although they are presented as legends and paranormal claims rather than established historical facts. Scholars have also criticized the way popular ghost narratives can minimize or distort the experiences of enslaved African Americans, especially in stories involving alleged figures such as Chloe and Cleo. The Myrtles was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. A 2014 fire damaged the historic General's Store, particularly a later extension, but the main house was not harmed and much of the original structure remained intact. Today, the property combines historic interpretation, architectural tourism, overnight hospitality, food and beverage services, retail activity, and paranormal-themed programming.
History
David Bradford established the property in 1796 on a large tract of land in the St. Francisville area, then within Spanish West Florida. The original estate was called Laurel Grove. Bradford initially lived at the site by himself after his involvement in the Pennsylvania Whiskey Rebellion; following a presidential pardon in 1799, he brought his wife, Elizabeth, and their five children from Pennsylvania. After Bradford died in 1808, Elizabeth continued managing the property. In 1817 she transferred operational responsibility to Clarke Woodruff, a former law student of Bradford who had married her daughter, Sara Mathilda. The Woodruff family experienced severe losses in the early 1820s when Sara Mathilda and two of the couple's children died from yellow fever. Elizabeth Bradford died in 1831, after which Woodruff and his surviving daughter relocated and a caretaker managed the estate. In 1834, Woodruff sold the property, its land, and the people enslaved there to Ruffin Gray Stirling. Stirling and Mary Catherine Cobb then undertook an extensive enlargement and remodeling project. The house was expanded to nearly twice its earlier size and furnished with imported European pieces. During this period, the property acquired the name Myrtles, reportedly after the crape myrtles in the surrounding landscape. Stirling died in 1854, leaving the plantation to his wife. The estate survived the Civil War, but its furnishings and other valuable contents were looted or lost. In 1865, Mary Cobb Stirling engaged William Drew Winter as a lawyer and agent to help manage the property. Winter was married to Stirling's daughter, Sarah, and the couple had six children. Their daughter Kate died of typhoid at age three. The family suffered financially after the war because its wealth was connected to Confederate currency. The property was sold in 1868, although the Winters regained it two years later. In 1871, William Winter was shot and killed on the house's porch, reportedly by a man identified as E. S. Webber, although the circumstances remain part of the site's historical and folkloric narrative. Sarah Winter remained at the property with relatives until her death in 1878. Mary Cobb Stirling died in 1880, after which the heavily indebted estate passed to her son Stephen. He sold it in 1886 to Oran D. Brooks, who sold it again in 1889. Harrison Milton Williams acquired the plantation in 1891. During the early twentieth century, the surrounding land was divided among Williams's heirs. The house itself changed ownership again in the 1950s and throughout the 1970s. James and Frances Kermeen Myers later converted the property into a bed-and-breakfast, helping establish its modern role as a visitor destination. John and Teeta Moss are identified as the current owners in the supplied reference material. The architecture reflects the evolution of a Louisiana Creole cottage into a larger nineteenth-century plantation residence. The front veranda extends roughly 125 feet and wraps around the southern side. Decorative cast iron, Doric details, dormers, stained glass, original flooring, historic windows, marble mantels, and elaborate ceiling ornament contribute to the house's architectural significance. The grounds include the pond and gazebo, the General's Store, a restaurant, a brick courtyard, and guest cottages. The property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. Its modern public identity has been strongly shaped by ghost tourism. Accounts of paranormal activity were documented in mid-century publications and became more prominent through tourism marketing, ghost-story guidebooks, evening tours, and television investigations. The site's promotional and popular narratives have often centered on alleged apparitions and stories connected to enslaved residents. Historians and scholars have noted that these accounts can reproduce racial stereotypes and focus on supernatural entertainment while giving insufficient attention to the documented violence and coercion of plantation slavery. A 2014 fire damaged the General's Store, particularly an extension built in 2008. The main house was not damaged, and much of the earlier structure survived. The Myrtles remains open as a historic and tourism property offering daytime tours, paranormal-themed evening programming, hospitality, and related visitor services.
- 2024
Featured in Files of the Unexplained
[1]The plantation was profiled in the first season of the paranormal documentary series Files of the Unexplained.
- 2014
General's Store fire
[1]A fire damaged the General's Store and its later extension, but did not harm the main house.
- 2002
Featured on Unsolved Mysteries
[1]The property appeared in a television segment about alleged hauntings.
- 1978
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places
[1]The Myrtles received recognition as a nationally significant historic property.
- 1891
Williams family ownership begins
[1]Harrison Milton Williams purchased the plantation after a succession of nineteenth-century ownership changes.
- 1871
William Drew Winter killed
[1]William Drew Winter was killed on the house's porch in an incident associated with the property's later historical and ghost-story traditions.
- 1850
Main house enlarged
[1]In the mid-1850s, the original Creole cottage was expanded, nearly doubling the building and creating its nine-bay façade and more elaborate interiors.
- 1834
Stirling acquisition and expansion era begins
[1]Ruffin Gray Stirling acquired the plantation and later carried out the major expansion and remodeling that shaped the present house.
- 1799
Bradford returns to the property
[1]After receiving a presidential pardon related to the Pennsylvania Whiskey Rebellion, Bradford moved his wife and children to the plantation.
- 1796
Laurel Grove established
[1]David Bradford built the original house and established the plantation on approximately 600 acres in the St. Francisville area.
Products and positioning
A Louisiana heritage attraction that combines antebellum architecture, plantation history, lodging, hospitality, and widely publicized ghost folklore. Its visitor proposition spans both daytime historical interpretation and evening paranormal-themed entertainment.
Heritage tourism
Historic house tours
Guided visits interpret the Myrtles house, its architectural features, interior rooms, grounds, and historical associations. The experience presents the property as a Louisiana historic site while also addressing the narratives that have made it a recognizable visitor attraction.
Paranormal tourism
Mystery Tours
Evening programming explores the plantation's ghost legends and reported paranormal activity. These tours are a central part of the property's modern tourism identity, although the stories are folklore and contested interpretations rather than verified historical evidence.
Hospitality
Overnight accommodations
The property offers overnight stays in rooms and modern wooden cottages on the grounds. Lodging extends the visitor experience beyond daytime tours and connects the attraction's historic setting with bed-and-breakfast and destination hospitality.
Food and beverage
Restaurant and breakfast services
A separate building on the grounds houses restaurant operations, while the historic General's Store is also used for guest breakfast service and related visitor facilities.
Sources2 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/myrtles-plantation · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled