Plantation homes in the south during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries are excellent examples of how the early settlers deliberately adapted familiar old world designs to conditions in their new world. The designs of Southern plantation homes were a direct response to the materials that were available in that area, the special attributes of the land, the climate, and the social customs of the period.

     New building forms responding to this unique environment were creatively developed in the architecture of the Southern plantation homes. These conditions often influenced the design configuration by creating an arrangement

of rooms around a central hall to allow for adequate air circulation or the total lack of hallways. Deep, wrap-around porches were often included to shade the home from the harsh, southern heat and provide outside living spaces that were protected from the rain. These design elements