Valcour Aime kept a plantation diary from 1823 to 1854 documenting temperature, farming techniques, and various experiments with new varieties of cane and equipment.

His innovative technique gave him a competitive edge, made him the richest man in Louisiana, and earned him the title "father of white sugar."

[1][2] Over his lifetime, this man who lived the life of a "feudal lord" enslaved 233 people, whose births and assignments he documented in his plantation diary, along with their cause of death and purported value.

He and his wife sent cart loads of provisions to those in need along the banks of the Mississippi; and in their house were two rooms dedicated exclusively to strangers, and these were never empty.

[5] He helped build Jefferson College in Convent, and when it experienced financial difficulties and was on the verge of total collapse, Valcour rescued the complex by purchasing it.

[6] According to some accounts, his motivation in securing this transfer to a sectarian entity was to prevent the state from obligating the school to open its doors to freed blacks.

Aime also donated to the St. James Catholic Church priceless treasures such as two four-feet-tall solid silver candle holders, an organ, statues of the apostles, and a communion rail.

He gave his son-in-law, Florent Fortier, complete authority over the operations of the sugar refinery and withdrew from public life.

With a growing family and a friendly rivalry with his brother-in-law Jacques, Valcour remodeled the Romans' old French Colonial house into a spectacular new mansion.

It has been suggested that Aime was inspired by Joséphine Bonaparte's English gardens at the Château de Malmaison, and it is said that over 120 enslaved people labored to create the botanical wonder at Petit Versailles.

A large artificial lake filled with exotic fish was built and a stream known as La Riviere was supplied with pumped water from the nearby Mississippi River.

A large hill was constructed, covered entirely with violets, with a grotto below used as an ice house, and on top a crowning Chinese pagoda contained stained-glass windows and chiming bells.