The Port of South Louisiana’s Guest House, although antebellum in style, was built between 1911 and 1917.

The house was conceptualized by the Leon Godchaux family, who originally lived in New Orleans. Leon Godchaux purchased the sugarcane plantation in Reserve in 1865 from the family of Mr. Antoine Boudousquie, who is credited with naming the town by “reserving” it for him. The two-story structure, which pre-dates the levee it parallels, has been utilized through the years as a recreational and business venue throughout its storied history.

The prominent Godchaux family used the house as a summer cottage and a place to entertain family, friends and business associates. On the first floor of the original house was a large foyer with living and dining rooms to either side, a spacious hall leading to the kitchen, a butler’s pantry and a bathroom.

Ascending to the second floor, you’d find four bedrooms with fireplaces, two bathrooms and a balcony. After the Godchaux family sold the refinery in 1958, a large formal living room and a new dining room were added to the rear of the house.

During the 1960s, a series of ownership changes modernized the house, which began to undergo a series of makeovers in order to restore it to its natural beauty for all guests to enjoy. The modifications included restoration of the original cypress floors and repairs to the porch, which wraps around the entire front of the house.

A bricked rose garden and swimming pool were added during the renovations. As a result of a decline in world sugar markets, the refinery was shut down in 1985. In September 1992, the house was damaged by a first-floor fire, but the mansion and surrounding grounds were fully restored by the Port of South Louisiana, which purchased the Godchaux Sugary Refinery property in April 1992.

A new addition to the Guest House grounds is one of Godchaux Sugar Refinery’s original steam engines.

Around 1890, Godchaux began using a tramway along a 20-mile stretch to transport sugar cane from the fields to the refinery. Locomotive number 3, which was purchased in 1898, had been away from Reserve since the mid-1980s. A few years after the Port of South Louisiana acquired the property, which was transformed into what is now Globalplex Intermodal Terminal, the search began to locate the locomotive(s).

After extensive research, engine No. 3 was found, sitting idle and in disrepair at the Republic of West Florida Historical Museum in Jackson, Louisiana. It had resided there since 1984, on loan from the Godchaux’s. A year or two later, steam engine No. 3 was transferred back to Reserve and placed on the southeast corner of River Road and West 10th Street, adjacent to the Godchaux  family  home currently being restored.

Thanks to community sponsorships from the River Road Historical Society, Marathon Petroleum Corporation, Highland Fabricators Inc. and Environmental Coating Services, the steam engine’s structure was restored back to its original glory. When the locomotive was moved to the grounds of the Guesthouse, the Port of South Louisiana invested in further renovations.

It was sandblasted, and woodwork and brass parts were replaced. Accessories such as a bell and whistle were installed after it was painted and pin-striped.

Lastly, to keep it in tip-top shape, a steel building, mocking the appearance of a train station, was erected over and around it to protect it from the elements.

Today, the Port of South Louisiana uses the Guest House for business meetings and special events such as economic development project announcements, visits from foreign delegations and dignitaries.

Alexandra “Alex” Hernández is the public information officer for the Port of South Louisiana. She can be reached at ahernandez@portsl.com.