Built in 1912 by "Judge" Thomas Fitzgerald Porter and his wife Wilhelmina, the home was  located on property that once stretched from Second Street to Bayou Amulet.  The Blunt  Lodge Hall, an existing building already located on the property,  was carefully dismantled piece by piece so that materials could be used for the construction of the house which took only 3 months to build at a total cost of $1,500.

​

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Judge Porter  died in 1928 leaving the house to his wife, Wilhelmina, who died in 1935.  She passed the house on to her daughter Louisa Elizabeth "Betty" Porter, who lived here until her death in  1962.

​

Betty's two brothers and a sister sold the house the following year to the Charles E. Kirsh family.  It remained in that family for two generations before it was purchased in 1987 by the Rachals. 

 

In 1987, Mark and Sharon Rachal began a monumental restoration project on the house and in 1994 the current owner totally redecorated the interior and landscaped the grounds.

 

In 1995 the house was opened to the public for the first time on the Natchitoches Historic Foundation's annual Fall Pilgrimage.

In June of 1996 the house was opened as the "Judge" Porter House Bed and Breakfast.  The Bed and Breakfast  features four bedrooms with two parlors and a Guest House.

 

The architectural style of the house is eclectic, using styles common for the Turn of the Century.  The two story gallery which wraps around two sides of the house suggest a Queen Anne influence, while the colossal columns resting on brick pillars suggest Colonial Revival.

 

Located in the heart of the National Historic District, the house is embraced with lofty live oak trees  planted by the original owner, Judge Porter.   ust over 3,000 square feet, there are 33 windows in this house with 15 over 8 feet in height.  These windows were commonly used as passageways onto the gallery.  The ceilings are 11.5 feet and there are  five fireplaces.  The floors, which are all original to the house, are heart pine.