White Hall Plantation House was the home of river boat captain, state senator, and Simmesport founder General Bennett Barton Simmes. Built in the Greek Revival and Italianate styles, it was occupied during the War Between the States by Union General Nathaniel P. Banks and served as his headquarters during the 1863 Seige of Port Hudson and his ill-fated 1864 Red River campaign, which included the nearby Battle of Yellow Bayou. The house was saved three times from the encroaching Atchafalaya River, and seven Union gunboat cannonballs were taken from its walls during its last move in 1939.
