My Mother and I left out early Monday morning with a group of ladies from First Baptist Okolona seeking beauty, laughs and knowledge about our wonderful state of Mississippi. Arriving at The Natchez Eola Hotel (which by the way does not stand for East of Louisiana) around 3:30 Monday afternoon, ready to explore and of course find the best fudge in town. First thing, after getting our luggage dropped off, Mom & I had to get our picture taken on our balcony that overlooks the beautiful downtown Natchez and the bridge.
After a couple hours of strolling by the river, fudge finding and antique shopping we had our first tour of Magnolia Hall. We were served dinner similar to the way they dined before the Civil War; a flute pla
ying the most relaxing sounds, large dining rooms, a truly southern meal of gravy covered chicken, beans and grits and of course ending with the best bread pudding I've ever had . After dinner we made our way to the Historic Natchez Pageant, which took us back 300 years to the beginning of Natchez, Mississippi. We had seen all the pictures of the Natchez Queens at the Magnolia Hall but really had no idea how much this town treasures it’s southern heritage.
ying the most relaxing sounds, large dining rooms, a truly southern meal of gravy covered chicken, beans and grits and of course ending with the best bread pudding I've ever had . After dinner we made our way to the Historic Natchez Pageant, which took us back 300 years to the beginning of Natchez, Mississippi. We had seen all the pictures of the Natchez Queens at the Magnolia Hall but really had no idea how much this town treasures it’s southern heritage. 
The next morning we woke up early to enjoy breakfast downstairs at the Eola. Then we were off to our first destination.
The Longwood Plantation
This was simply my favorite home that we saw on the tour. I'm not sure if it was because of the story behind this home or if it was just the beauty and uniqueness of it.
This is an octagonal style home that is six stories tall, and around 30,000 square feet. Five of the six floors were left unfinished due to the beginning of the Civil War.
Fortunately, the exterior was complete at the beginning of the war. The family lived in the basement which was originally designed to be a gentleman's quarters.
This was taken on the first floor looking up at all the floors above. Gosh, we can only imagine how beautiful this home would have been if it could have been finished. But it will forever be in the state it's in.
This is Mother, Irene and I standing in the front of what could have been the Longwood play area for the children.
Stanton Hall
For some strange reason I neglected to take a picture of this home from the front. This is the side view that leads to the back court yard and The Carriage House Restaurant, which is where we had lunch. I have to say that while the inside was beautiful it was a little busy for me. I love the outside courtyard best.
The Burn
This home is actually occupied by its current owners, The Greens and
currently operates as a Bed & Breakfast. The Burn is a Scottish name for "creek" which is one of the reasons this home got its name from the original owner.
It was built in 1836. A few years after it was built the family was given a twenty-four hour notice to vacate the property, like many others during that time, so they buried many of their household treasures in the back yard. Some of the items are on display now and in near perfect condition.
This is the front gallery from the drive-way. Both the front and back are filled with azaleas, roses and of course the real live oak trees.
Our final home was one of the strangest homes I had ever seen.
Richmond
This home has three different architectural styles. It was built in 1784, with the "front" of the home being a Creole design; large front porch sitting high off the ground, stairs that almost cover the entire porch and the ground level that is covered in brick walk-ways and has at least a couple of entrances. 
The second style is the one pictured here, would be the Greek style. This is located on the side of the house and was added by the homes second owner. The drive-way does not come by this entrance. It just opens up to a bare space. Although, located in that bare space was a Michelia plant. I did not know anything about these plants, but the ladies would pick the flowers buds right before they bloom and pop it and place the bud in their bosom. This was their perfume and it smells sweet, like bananas. The third style looks like a downtown building that was added. It is strange.
The Bare Spot
This trip was one of the best and I hope to go back to Natchez soon to see more of their Plantation Homes.
