In a recent blog post, I mentioned Natchez, Mississippi, and the Windsor Ruins as two of my five final locations to visit before we move. And this long Easter Weekend break provided the perfect opportunity for our family to make the drive over. So Saturday morning, we left the house and made our way to Natchez.
The building which is now King's Tavern, is the oldest standing building in Natchez, circa 1789. For me, this home/building/structure was a must-see. Legend has it, that this structure is haunted by a young servant woman, found buried behind the fireplace after being murdered for having an affair with the past owner.
Today, King's Tavern is a... tavern. They offer lunch and dinner menus to their guests, with their top-selling menu item being Wood-Fired Braised Brisket Flatbread.
Did we order it? Yes.
Was it divine? Yes!
Brad even said that he had never had brisket that was so tender. But just so we could enjoy more than one thing from the menu, I ordered their Veggie Flatbread, with caramelized onions, artichoke hearts, kalamata olives, and mushrooms.
There were no leftovers.
And BONUS for you Dads and Moms out there! There is a spacious grassy area behind the tavern where Your Littles can run around and explore while you enjoy a taste of white rum distilled from neighboring
Charboneau Distillery, the first to LEGALLY distill rum in Mississippi.
Here's what our visit to King's Tavern looked like.
|| SECOND STOP(S) || Walking Her Streets
The Natchez Visitor's Center offers a free map that includes five walking trails through Downtown Natchez. The King's Tavern is one of the stops noted on the Green Walking Trail. After leaving the tavern, we thought we'd try to see a few more historic locations downtown, so we walked north to High Street and then west toward Stanton Hall.
Along the way, we passed the Kyle House, pictured above. Apparently, back in 1820, Christopher Kyle and Nancy Kyle built this home, and later welcomed their daughter, Caroline. Only Christopher was a white man and Nancy was a free black woman. Scandalous for 1820.
"This is one of the few remaining examples of the small pre-Civil War houses that were home to working class white people and free people of color. The Historic Natchez Foundation saved this house from demolition in the 1980s."
Construction of
Stanton Hall, formally known as Belfast, began in 1857. We were unwilling to pay the $15 entrance fee to tour the interior (no pictures allowed inside), but we were allowed to have a look around the grounds, which I very much enjoyed.
This beautiful antebellum home offers guided tours daily or rental for a special event.
Documented in the picture above is the second time Wyatt exclaimed, "I love Natchez!" while giving a power line a big ole hug. The first time was during lunch at the King's Tavern.
How charming is the former fire station?!
Our children were getting tired, so we made our way back to the truck, but then I spotted a steeple off in the distance. I wanted a closer look, so Brad drove over.
Construction of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Mississippi's first cathedral,
Saint Mary Minor Basilica, began in 1842. It took over 15 years to complete.
We traveled about a mile down the road from the Cathedral and arrived at the Dunleith Plantation on Homochitto Street.
In the late 1790's, John Routh built a home, The Routhland, as well as a carriage house, dairy barn, poultry house, and greenhouse on this 40-acre estate. Years later, lightning set the home ablaze and burnt it down. The home that stands there now was completed in 1856 and renamed Dunleith by a new owner, Alfred Vidal Davis, who purchased the home around 1859.
The Dairy Barn is now a three-bedroom, two-story cottage available for rental.
The Greenhouse.
||
FOURTH STOP ||
Monmouth Historic InnDriving a short mile east from Dunleith, we arrived at Monmouth. In 1824, John Quitman purchased the home for his family. It was only six years old at the time. In 1850, John became the Governor of Mississippi.
The wisteria-wrapped pergola on the grounds was absolutely breathtaking, and the scent was heavenly.
||
FIFTH STOP ||
Windsor RuinsBefore we ran out of daylight, we made our way north to Port Gibson, Mississippi, to see the Windsor Ruins.
Construction of the twenty-three-room mansion was completed in early 1861. In April of the same year the owner of the home, Smith Coffee Daniell II, passed away. His wife and children continued to live in the home. The home survived the Civil War, only to be destroyed by an accidental fire in 1890.
"In 1991, historians discovered a drawing of Windsor sketched in 1863 by a Union soldier in Major General Ulysses S. Grant's army." Quote from the information marker at the location.
Saturday was a full day. We left our house at 9:30 am, and were gone for over twelve hours, but I enjoyed every bit of it! And we checked off two of the five bucket lists items. Who-Hoo!
