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DOMAINE LES MAGASINS
The origin of the Domaine Les
Magasins dates back to the end of the 18th century. Since 1650 the
grounds were the property of 'Les Lordat' seigneur of Bram. Its
total area was 39 hectares and the grounds were run by a manager. In
1681, the Canal Royal des Deux Mers (Canal du Midi) was passing just
alongside the domain. In 1766, Louise-Marguerite Colbert de
Seignelay, widow of Joseph-Marie de Lordat had the idea of taking
advantage of the traffic of goods passing every day on the canal at
the 'Port de Bram'. She leased to Antoine Barascou, dealer/merchant
in Castelnaudary a large area of land in return for building a
warehouse 'Magasin' to house grain, wheat, steel and various other
goods before loading them onto the barges on the canal. This
'Magasin' was to include accommodation for staff, a courtyard,
stables and generally everything needed to run the domain. Building
work started but for various reasons the merchant was unable to
finish it. After a 6 year long court case (from 1778 to 1784), the
Count François de Lordat, got back the domain and finished the work
in 1785 under his own plan. Until the second half of the 20th
Century, the property did not change a lot. Any changes made were
mainly connected with farming needs around the domain. Unfortunately,
the property was in a state of ruin when the present owners bought
it. However, it is now being renovated to its former glory, mixing
original features with a touch of modernism. |
