Last updated: August 6, 2022
Place
Oakland Plantation Store
NPS
Quick Facts
Location:
Natchez, LA
Amenities
13 listed
Benches/Seating, Captioned Media, Fire Extinguisher, First Aid Kit Available, First Aid/Medical Care Available, Gifts/Souvenirs/Books, Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Information, Information - Maps Available, Information - Ranger/Staff Member Present, Junior Ranger Booklet Available, Water - Bottle-Filling Station, Wheelchair Accessible
The store was constructed after the Civil War and quickly became a focal point of the community. In the words of historian Ann Malone, “the postbellum rural merchant was all things to his community…His store was the hub of the local universe. It was the marketplace, banking and credit source, recreational center, public forum, and news exchange.” Oakland’s store also served as a post office on and off during its existence, further enhancing its importance in the community.
The plantation store could also prove to be a financial burden to the sharecroppers. Quite often sharecroppers could not get out from under the mountain of debt that they accumulated at the stores. Historian Carol Breedlove noted, “Perhaps the Prud’hommes could have done more, or been more generous [with the sharecroppers]. On the other hand, they could certainly, in their environment and historical period, have done less, been less supportive and more selfish.” As the numbers of sharecroppers dwindled, so did the importance of the plantation stores. The Prud’hommes closed their store for good in 1982.
The Oakland Plantation Store is the park's main visitor contact station. Inside the store you will find historic exhibits, NPS passport stamps, Junior Ranger books, and a gift shop.
The plantation store could also prove to be a financial burden to the sharecroppers. Quite often sharecroppers could not get out from under the mountain of debt that they accumulated at the stores. Historian Carol Breedlove noted, “Perhaps the Prud’hommes could have done more, or been more generous [with the sharecroppers]. On the other hand, they could certainly, in their environment and historical period, have done less, been less supportive and more selfish.” As the numbers of sharecroppers dwindled, so did the importance of the plantation stores. The Prud’hommes closed their store for good in 1982.
The Oakland Plantation Store is the park's main visitor contact station. Inside the store you will find historic exhibits, NPS passport stamps, Junior Ranger books, and a gift shop.