The Sugar Train Traditional Cache
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(regular)
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You are looking for an ammo can hidden with permission.
There is a "Private Road" sign but you can park there. Just don't go too far down the road.
Sitting near Brusly and nestled among acres upon acres of land lies a glimpse into the role of sugarcane in West Baton Rouge Parish history. The Cinclare Sugar Mill Historic District, until just a few years ago, was a hub of sugarcane production just across the river from Baton Rouge. The nearly 200-acre site benefited from railroad access to move the industry forward for more than 100 years. “We were a sugar business since 1878,” said Butch Plauche, president of Harry L. Laws & Co./Cinclare. Harry Laws purchased the property not long after the Civil War. However, Plauche said the business really grew later, when Laws’ grandson Langdon Laws served as president in the early 1900s. Business blossomed throughout the 20th century. Then in 2002 the gears started shifting toward the mill’s end. That year, a farm bill was passed that limited the amount of sugar a company could sell, said Plauche, who’s been with the company 30 years. This created storage issues, since Cinclare was able to process more sugarcane than it could sell. So in 2005, Cinclare had to make a choice. The company decided to enter a purchase agreement with Alma Plantation near False River. Alma would purchase Cinclare’s equipment and process the company’s sugarcane on its own site, but the mill would remain Cinclare’s. But Cinclare’s story doesn’t end there – in fact, it’s still being written. Today, Plauche spends his days in the real estate business. The grounds feature 23 houses, which were once occupied by the mill’s workers. While some former workers still call Cinclare home, some of the dwellings are available for rent by the general public. “We try to look for good tenants,” Plauche said, adding it’s a quiet area between Interstate 10 and Brusly. Plauche lives in a large eight-bedroom house on the east end of the grounds. He said the house might someday become a bed and breakfast, but no plans have been etched in stone. Looking to the future means also looking to the past. “We want to try to preserve the history (of Cinclare),” Plauche said. Plans are in the works to refurbish an old blacksmith’s shop there. The building’s tenants build furniture and sell antiques. A strategic plan for Cinclare’s future is in the works. Ideas being thrown around include the possibility of refurbishing the mill as a tourist draw. “A lot of people would be interested in walking through the factory,” Plauche said. Cinclare is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. And the West Baton Rouge Museum is doing its part to ensure Cinclare’s legacy. “We have a tremendous number of Cinclare artifacts,” said Julie Rose, the museum’s executive director. The 3-acre museum site, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary, features a comprehensive glimpse into the parish’s sugarcane history. There is a model sugarcane mill, as well as other buildings used in the industry. One group that regularly benefits from those offerings is Elderhostel, a national program for senior citizens, Rose said. The group brings tourists from all over the country to catch a glimpse of West Baton Rouge’s sugarcane industry. Plauche takes Elderhostel groups through the old mill before they visit the museum. And everyone who visits the museum leaves with a small piece of the industry’s history: “Everybody leaves with a sugar packet that came from our parish,” Rose said. Cinclare sits in an important spot in the parish, something the company isn’t blind to. “We’ve got some valuable property on Highway 1,” Plauche said, explaining that part of the strategic plan is deciding what to do with the land. “I think the west side is growing, and I think it will continue to grow,” he said.
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