Vermillionville

An ethnographic museum with so much to offer!

This year for our 8 year anniversary, we decided to dive into some Louisiana culture. Being back home made us curious about surrounding areas that tourists might visit or foods that we need to try. Vermillionville was one of the top things on our list.

What is Vermillionville?

Vermillionville is an outdoor, walkable museum (also known as an ethnographic museum or living museum). There is a main visitor center in the front with surrounding buildings that were once homes, barns, churches, and more throughout the state. Each of the homes came from different time periods and/or regions of the state to share about the history of the architecture and the people who lived there.

Our Time There

This is definitely a day or afternoon trip as there is a lot to see. At the visitor center you are given a map of the grounds and then sent off to explore the area.

The area has concrete smooth paths and lots of shade trees, making a hot day more pleasant.

Each of the buildings has a display about the family who originally built the home, the time period, and a description of why the home has certain features.

Many of the homes are set up to look lived-in and have animals, gardens, or historical actors who will answer questions or display a skill of the time.

One of the homes even had a front garden with native medicinal plants kept by the local Master Gardeners in the area. We loved seeing these prettily trained muscadines!

We spent about 3 hours walking among the different homes, reading about school in creole Louisiana, and studying the plants chosen for the area. There were so many things that we had never learned or heard of previously, so we felt that we learned quite a bit during our visit.

Be sure to check out the living museum of Vermillionville if you have the chance!