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Pilgrimage To Natchez, Part Two
by Brian Sands
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA

After a day of Natchez' Spring Pilgrimage Tours, you begin to expect hoop- skirted ladies offering information whenever you walk into a room. You also begin to realize that "tin brice" is their way of saying "ten brass" and that "porch" can be a two syllable word.

And you begin to be spoiled by Southern hospitality and friendliness, by young'uns who address you as "sir" or "ma'am" and by strangers who seem genuinely pleased to see you.

Our last issue visited the homes that were open on this year's annual Spring Pilgrimage Pink Tour. The following day's Red Tour offered the following equally impressive houses.

THE ELMS
A recent New York Times article gave you the sense that Alma Kellogg Carpenter is a delightful person. Meeting her confirms it. Greeting you at the entrance to her home, The Elms, her animated pixyish face displays warmth, joy, pride and the fun she has at welcoming guests to her three-story, pink house.

Built around 1804, Miss Alma's great-great-grandfather Magruder Drake bought The Elms in 1879. One of the earliest documented houses in Natchez, a two-storied wing was added to this Greek Revival villa in 1856. Literally pushed against the building, the new wing enclosed the front porch and created a new entryway, ninety degrees to the west of the old one.

A graceful wraparound balcony gives a fluidity to the exterior. Inside, a cast-iron stairway, the only one in Mississippi, connects the first and second floors. Interesting items in the sitting room include a fan for swatting away flies, a rent table where each tenant's accounts had their own drawer and a letter of reference for the first Carpenter who came to town from a not-yet-president Millard Fillmore.

The dining room features wallpaper designed for Napoleon, Empire silver, a Viennese lace tablecloth and an English dessert service. On the walls hang pictures made of dried leaves and flower petals done by one of Miss Alma's relatives. Asked to be borrowed for a show of folk art, they are too delicate to be moved. In fact, one of them has a pile of displaced leaves settled at the bottom, victims of an unfortunate accident.

In the fall of 1995 Little Alma, as Miss Alma's daughter is known, was married in the parlor. The reception was held in the old-fashioned garden with sumptuous food and a string quartet followed by a dance band. After one of the guests, an attractively butch woman, sang "Mustang Sally", the groom's father was heard to remark, "Who's that guy singing? He's awfully good." Pass the mint juleps, please.

THE HOUSE ON ELLICOTT'S HILL
Master surveyor Andrew Ellicott knew George Washington and, in defiance of Spain, flew the American flag on this hill in 1797. The Spanish didn't like that. After a year of negotiations, presumably encompassing other things as well, they pulled out of Mississippi allowing it to become an American territory. The flag that flies on Ellicott's Hill today is a copy of the flag that he raised -15 stars and 15 stripes.

Built in 1798, in the 1800s the House on Ellicott's Hill was transformed into apartments and then, around the turn of the century, it became the Natchez High School for Boys for about 30 years. Afterwards, the Notches Garden Club acquired it, renovated it and made it their headquarters. It is now one of their ongoing historic restoration projects and a National Historic Landmark.

Looking out the windows from this house once afforded a magnificent view of the Mississippi River until a post office was built across the street. It still provides a lovely overall vista, however. Inside on display are a Sheffield silver coffee urn and two tea cups and saucers, wedding gifts received by the original owners of the house in 1775.

In keeping with this house's founding time frame, the docents here eschew hoop skirts for the straight loose dresses of the Empire Period. Nice touch.

STANTON HALL
Entering Stanton Hall you can't help but let out a "Wow!" As you pass by four immense Corinthian columns on the front gallery, you come into the seventy-two foot long arched hallway with its twenty foot high ceilings. Welcome to an American palace.

Frederick Stanton, the wealthiest man in Natchez at the time (1857), ostensibly built Stanton Hall to showcase what Natchez could accomplish and as such used local architects, builders, artists and finishers to construct this edifice. Some say, however, that Stanton built this residence just to "show off his own money." Either way, he succeeded.

This white stuccoed mansion sits on tree shaded property taking up an entire block of downtown Natchez. Inside, 14-foot high French mirrors, the city's tallest, at either end of the double parlor, make the room go on and on. What fun it must have been when the carpets were rolled up and balls were held there!

In every room sculptural bronze chandeliers depict a part of Natchez history. Mantels and fireplace fronts were created from white carrara marble. A 200-piece set of old Paris porcelain is displayed. Perhaps Gen. Douglas MacArthur ate off of these plates when he stayed here in 1952.

An 1858 article described the newly completed Stanton Hall as "magnificent and princely." 140 years later that remains most accurate.

Where To Stay

If hearing of such places as The Elms and Richmond makes you yearn, "Gee, I wish I could live there," you can, at least for a little while. Over thirty of Natchez' antebellum and Victorian houses, including nine open for Spring Pilgrimage, welcome overnight visitors. Most include a Southern style breakfast and a tour of the house. For not much more money than you'd spend at a hotel or motel, this is a unique opportunity to see a more personal side of Natchez. To get a listing of B & B accommodations call 800.647.6742.

A friend and I chose to stay at HOPE FARM, the oldest (c.1775) of all the B & B homes. once the residence of the Spanish Governor of the Territory it is now owned by Ethel Green Banta who is a most genial host. Surrounded by lovely gardens, Hope Farm exudes an aura of homeyness. In fact, the front door wasn't even locked when we arrived!

Our room was fabulously furnished with rare antiques including rocking chairs, a chamber pot and a New Orleans four-poster Apostle Bed ("Matthew, Mark, Luke and John/Bless this bed we sleep upon") from 1810. The private bathroom, however, was as modern as could be. A scrumptious breakfast was served to us and the other guests on a Duncan Phyffe table underneath a Waterford crystal chandelier.

Miss Ethel, sans hoop skirt, gave us a fascinating tour of her home which Lady Bird Johnson visited in 1972. The Millers bought Hope Farm in 1920 from the Montgomerys who had lived there for 100 years. After restoring it in 1926, Mrs. J. Balfour Miller went on to found the annual Pilgrimage.

Twelve years ago, after the Millers had passed away, their nephew Buddy Miller sold it with all of its furnishings to Miss Ethel who had recently moved back to her home town. Among many interesting tales she told us was how she discovered a set of Limoges china hiding underneath a cabinet. Since it wasn't on her purchase inventory, she called Buddy Miller. When she told him what she had found, his response was "Good for you!" and never asked her for an additional nickel.

Through parlors, a children's bedroom, a Republican room (the Millers were staunch Republicans in what was once a solidly Democratic state) and the old kitchen where resides the figurehead from the Natchez, which lost the Great Mississippi Steamboat Race to the R.E. Lee in 1870, Miss Ethel provided us with wonderful insights about Hope Farm, Pilgrimage and Natchez.

What Else To Do

Associated with the Spring Pilgrimage is the Confederate Pageant, which depicts scenes of the Old South with a cast of 200; Southern Road to Freedom, a gospel musical tribute to the African-American experience in Natchez; and, Southern Exposure, which pokes good-natured fun at the Pilgrimage tradition. Other entertainments are presented during the Fall Pilgrimage. Time and ticket information for these can be obtained at the Pilgrimage offices at Canal and State Streets.

While not officially part of Pilgrimage, outside many of the homes sit women selling pralines and homemade preserves, using recipes handed down through generations. We decided that Sophronia's pralines were the best but had to admire the marketing technique of another lady who chided us with, "Don't you dare turn my pralines down!"

If you have time after the home tours you may want to visit some of the many churches in the downtown area and the synagogue Temple B'nai Israel, a testament to Natchez' once thriving Jewish community. With only a few Jews still residing in Natchez, this beautiful building no longer seems to be used for services but is open for tours.

Natchez provides an excellent opportunity for antiquing with many shops on Franklin St. Like our Magazine St., some stores have better quality items than others. With a keen eye and good negotiating skills you just might be able to acquire what you've been longing for at a great price.

Eat, Drink and Be Merry

If, when it comes to dining, Natchez isn't exactly New Orleans, the city offers a surprising number of fine restaurants. Here are three very enjoyable ones:
Magnolia Grill (49 Silver St.)-Its Under-the-Hill location was once a notorious lair for gamblers, thieves and other undesirable types, but has now been restored and houses, shops, restaurants and, docked nearby, the Lady Luck Casino. Overlooking the Mississippi River, the Magnolia Grill has a country atmosphere and served excellent gumbo, a tasty lemon-grilled catfish with scalloped potatoes and, new to me, boula boula, a delicious cream-based turtle soup with crabmeat.

Pearl Street Pasta (105 S. Pearl Street)-Run by Guy and David, Pearl Street Pasta just recently reopened after fixing up the damage caused by a February tornado. An attractive bistro, Pearl Street Pasta seems to attract some of Natchez' more oversized personalities. Be prepared for lots of table-hopping, bumping-into-friends and, perhaps, a wait if you don't have reservations during prime dinner hours. It's worth it though-I finished every bit of my veal picatta and I believe all the other plates at our ever-expanding table were left empty, too.

Carriage House Restaurant (401 High Street)-owned and operated by the Pilgrimage Garden Club on the grounds of Stanton Hall, the Carriage House provides Southern cooking at its best. Fried chicken, mashed potatoes, glazed ham, string beans, fried oysters and hot little biscuits so yummy that I recall saying, "If anyone wants any of these biscuits, you better grab 'em now before I eat 'em all!" With perfect mint juleps and very reasonable prices, a visit to Natchez is not complete without a meal at the Carriage House.

As for Natchez' Gay scene, well, it's not quite Bourbon and St. Ann. There are a number of bars and clubs that attract a very mixed crowd. I was taken to Andrew's (325 Main St.) which had a festive atmosphere and a Gay, Lesbian and Gay-friendly clientele.

If Natchez doesn't have any Gay bars, I think it has less to do with any negative attitudes than the fact that Natchez is a relatively small town of only 25,000. In my two days there, I met some of the warmest, friendliest and surprisingly open-minded people I've ever encountered. I'm already looking forward to going back.

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