Chippewa Valley Times

The debate over how to remember the legacy of slavery in the American South has intensified following a fire that destroyed Nottoway Plantation, the largest antebellum mansion in the region, in May 2025. The incident has highlighted ongoing tensions around plantation tourism and its economic and cultural impact.

Nottoway Plantation, located in Louisiana, was completed in 1859 by 155 enslaved people. Over time, it became a major tourist attraction and served as a resort and wedding venue. While some local historians and tourism advocates lamented the loss of what they considered a landmark site, others who are critical of how plantations represent history saw its destruction as an opportunity to challenge narratives that romanticize slavery.

After the fire, Nottoway’s owner announced plans to rebuild. Within weeks, a new restaurant opened elsewhere on the property. This rapid response reflects how intertwined memory, history, and economic interests have become at such sites.

There are more than 300 plantation sites across the United States that collectively generate significant revenue through tourism. Such attractions often serve as anchors for regional economies by encouraging longer visitor stays and supporting local businesses.

However, critics argue that commercial uses of these historic sites frequently minimize or ignore their roots in slavery and racial exploitation. For example, as of June 2025, Nottoway’s website did not mention slavery on its “History” page.

Plantation venues attract different types of visitors: some seek architectural heritage or historical education; others engage in what scholars term “dark tourism,” visiting places associated with tragedy to confront difficult truths about collective memory. The way these sites present their history can either promote understanding or perpetuate distortion if they focus only on aesthetics while minimizing suffering.

In recent years, some locations have shifted their approach to better address these concerns. The Whitney Plantation museum in Louisiana opened to the public in 2014 with exhibits centered on first-person slave narratives and memorials dedicated to those who were enslaved there. Its educational programming aims to present an honest account of slavery rather than nostalgia for plantation life.

This development marks a move toward heritage travel experiences that engage visitors with more complex aspects of American history. Sites like Donato House—built by Martin Donato, a formerly enslaved man who later became both landowner and slaveholder—offer additional perspectives beyond grand mansions like Nottoway.

The debate over which stories are preserved at such locations remains central: “What is chosen to be preserved – or let go of – shapes not only our memory of the past but our vision for the future.”

“My late father, a high school history teacher, often reminded his students and his children to study the full spectrum of history: the good, the bad and the profoundly uncomfortable,” said one source quoted in this discussion about historical interpretation.

“He believed one must dive deep into its complexity to better understand human behavior and motivation.”

“He was right. Tourism has always echoed the layered realities of the human experience. Now, as Americans reckon with what was lost at Nottoway, we’re left with the question: ‘What story will be told – and who will get to tell it?’”