The Lsu Rural Life Museum and Windrush Gardens: A Living History

In 1861, Louisiana settler William S. Pike established an incredible five-hundred-acre plantation seven miles from the heart of present-day Baton Rouge. His progeny continued to cherish the land for generations, all while pursuing unique and active lives. William Stephen Pike Burden Jr. became an amateur magician, and Ollie Brice Steele Burden, inspired by the formal gardens of Europe, designed Windrush Gardens. Today, the land is home to Louisiana State University’s Rural Life Museum and houses rare collections of Louisiana folk life and working plantation materials. In this comprehensive history of LSU’s beloved landmark, archivist Faye Phillips brings to life the hardships and toils, vision and determination of families in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Louisiana.