Photo by Pete Verbois

July 2011. Historic lodgings for the “hip-at-heart.”

For most of us the phrase “historic structure” conjures up images of palatial mansions, soaring cathedrals, and other architectural remnants of days gone by. And while St. Francisville has its fair share of these, one of its most unusual historic properties is something humbler. Built in the mid-nineteen-thirties and offering overnight accommodation to travelers ever since, 3V Tourist Court is one of just three motor courts that survive in Louisiana (the others are in Shreveport and New Iberia), and it’s the oldest of the lot. In the early days of widespread car ownership, St. Francisville’s three Vinci brothers opened their 3V Motor Court—twelve cabins, each connected to its neighbor by a little carport—near the corner of Commerce and Ferdinand streets. Since that corner was also anchored by the 3V Café and the 3V Bar, the Vinci brothers appear to have had something of a monopoly on the corner at the time. In the forties they added the gas station that would evolve into the iconic Magnolia Café once Robin Marshall got her hands on it. Robin bought the Vincis’ 3V Tourist Court in the ‘eighties—by which time America’s Best Westerns and Motel 6’s had more or less sent humble little motor courts like 3V the way of the dinosaur.

“This is one of the truest examples of Americana,” says Kevin Ford, who manages and maintains 3V today. With fresh paint and attractively updated interiors courtesy of a recent renovation, the cabins are looking smart, although they still retain the higgledy-piggledy charm peculiar to things that have stood for a long time. “This is not the whole B&B experience,” explained Ford. “The best description I ever heard was that 3V is for the ‘hip-at-heart’—folks coming to St. Francisville to hang out, go to The Magnolia, hear a band, have a few drinks, then stroll back to the room. And with the [Birdman] coffee shop right there for breakfast, it’s a perfect overnight.”

The rate has gone up a bit since the ‘thirties, but you can still get a newly renovated cabin complete with ensuite, flatscreen TV, queen bed and high-thread-count linens for well under $100 a night. Or cheaper, if you show up on a bike or in a canoe. Ford offers a special “Adventurer’s Rate” for road- and paddle-weary travelers. “We’re on the national cyclists’ map,” he noted. “We’ve had everybody. There was a Swiss guy who had kayaked from the headwaters of the Mississippi. He’d been through seventeen days of hell—storms, insects, high water … sleeping in a tent. When he got here, he was so happy he about cried.”  

Details. Details. Details.

3V Tourist Court
5689 Commerce Street
St. Francisville, La
(225) 721-7003

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