Louisiana Architecture, 1820-1840 continues Fred Daspit's examination of both the major and minor structures built from 1820 to 1840 in Louisiana and the adjacent Mississippi regions from Port Gibson to Woodville and the Gulf Coast. As anyone who has researched this particular era will realize, it is impossible to catalogue all buildings of historical and architectural interest in the state. Few of these structures have remained in the possession of the families instrumental in their inception or original construction. Some have been altered beyond recognition in attempts to adapt to changing styles and fashions, while others have ceased to serve their original purpose and currently serve different needs.

The styles of the homes covered in this book are as diverse as the people who built them. Louisiana is divided into a number of cultural regions, each with a distinct background, architecture, and social style. New Orleans presents the greatest profusion of periods, styles, and ethnic differences, yet is almost invariably characterized as French. The Felicianas retained much of the character of the nation's eastern seaboard and reflect definite Anglo-American traditions. North Louisiana's hill country boasts its Scots-Irish influences. Residents of southwestern Louisiana take pride in their heritage, referring to themselves as Acadians or Cajuns. There are also German, Irish, Italian, African American, and Hispanic settlements, each maintaining a cultural distinctiveness, yet all blending into an unverified whole that is Louisiana. This process of cultural amalgamation is perhaps seen most clearly in the state's architectural history.

The second volume in Daspit's projected three-volume series covering Louisiana architecture from 1714 to the Civil War, this book represents one man's labor of love over several decades and illustrates the varied architectural history of the Pelican State. Replete with photographs of existing structures, line drawings of homes since destroyed, and detailed floor plans, the work guides the reader through the state and its historic structures. The solid scholarship, peppered with family anecdotes and local legends, is sure to be a welcome addition to any library. Buy it today to companion the first volume, and expect the third volume in 2006.