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Natchez, Mississippi - History and Hoopskirts, Festival and Food

From March 7 through April 11, 2009 visitors to Natchez, Mississippi's annual Spring Pilgrimage can step into the mid-nineteenth century. The five week festival of pre-Civil War life offers antebellum home tours, gospel shows, light comedy and carriage rides amidst profuse multi-hued azaleas and fragrant trailing wisteria. In the 1840's Natchez claimed more millionaires per capita than any other city in America. The twenty-five late colonial and pre-Civil War townhouses, mansions and plantation homes open for touring during Spring Pilgrimage attest to the fortunes made in nineteenth century Natchez by cotton planters, bankers and other entrepreneurs.  The present owners of these homes open their doors to local, national and international visitors for guided tours led by docents dressed in period costume.

Natchez survived the Civil War far better than did many southern towns and boasts more pre-1860 buildings than any other U.S. city of its size, plus thirteen National landmarks and more than 1000 buildings listed on the National Register - all rich in history, with finely crafted furnishings and traditions of genuine southern hospitality.

 

A few of the mansions to be seen are:

• Longwood, a six story octagonal house designed as an oriental villa but never completed due to the onset of the war in 1861 - a lasting reminder of the rapid rise and inevitable decline of wealth built on King Cotton and slavery.
• The House on Ellicott hill, where in 1798, by order of George Washington, American soldiers raised the U.S. flag and took possession of the area from the Spanish.
• Lansdowne, where the present occupant's great-great grandmother confronted Union soldiers who broke into the house in 1865.

 

In these houses you will see:

• Handmade rosewood furniture imported from France.
• The Thomas Sully portrait of a planter/banker/investor who opposed the Civil War and left the area on a Union gunboat.
• A sword from the 1815 battle of Waterloo, now a family heirloom in a house where, amidst original drapes, carpet, and wallpaper, the same family has lived for more than 150 years.
• Gas-lit chandeliers made by a Philadelphia company that produced fixtures for the White House, Buckingham Palace and the Kremlin.
• Chamber pots cleverly hidden in bed steps, overstuffed chairs and other odd pieces of furniture.

The area is also rich in African American history.  While driving or walking through the Natchez visitors can see:

• The African-American church whose first minister Hiram Revels was the first African-American to serve in either house of the U.S. Congress.
• The site of the second largest slave market in America.
• The home of John Roy Lynch who was born a slave and became, at the age of 21, the first African-American to hold office in Mississippi and later the first to chair a major political party convention.

Evening entertainment is offered throughout Spring Pilgrimage.  At the Historic Natchez Pageant townspeople of all ages don authentic period attire to present the history of Natchez, beginning with its founding by the French in 1716. In addition to lovely belles in hoop-skirted ball gowns,

Some of the characters and scenes you will see are:

• William Johnson, a free African-American businessman, as a family boards a Mississippi river steamboat bound for New Orleans.  Later, tour his home, now restored and operated by the National Park Service.
• The Great Sun, chief of the Natchez Indians, who like the Aztecs were mound builders and practiced ritual sacrifice.  During the day, see the Grand Village of the Natchez and climb the Temple Mound, site of the Great Sun's home.
• Ibrahima, an African prince captured by a rival tribe and sold as a slave.  Bought by a Natchez planter, he was freed after 20 years and returned to his homeland through the efforts of a Scottish doctor whose life had been saved by  Ibrahima's father years earlier in Africa. 
• Toddlers and school children rolling hoops, playing hopscotch, dancing around a Maypole or enjoying a lively Virginia Reel.

 

In other evening entertainment, witness the struggle and triumph of African-Americans in the Natchez area, presented in song and first person narrative by the award-winning gospel choir of the Holy Family church, the oldest African American Catholic Church in Mississippi. Chuckle at the satire and light romance of Southern Exposure, a stage play produced by the Natchez Little theatre.  Hear songs of the South, presented by the nationally acclaimed Alcorn State University Choir  and the Natchez Festival of Music

 

 

Just a few of the seasonal festivals and special events in Natchez:

 

January

    Storytelling Festival

    Martin Luther King Day Celebrations

 

February

    Mardi Gras

    Black History Month Celebrations

    Natchez Literary and Cinema Celebrations

 

March and April

    Spring Pilgrimage

    Pow Wow at the Grand Village of the Natchez Indians

    St. Patrick's Day Parade

 

April

    Bluff City Blues Fest

    Delta Music Festival

 

May

    Natchez Festival of Music - Jazz, Broadway and Opera

    Arts in the Park

    Symphony of Gardens Tour

    Natchez Classic Car Show

 

June

    Juneteenth Celebrations

    Pioneer Week

 

July

    Fabulous Fireworks over the River!

    Blessing of the Flotilla

 

August

    Natchez Food and Wine Festival

    Wildlife Expo

   

September

    Fall Pilgrimage begins September 26th, 2009

    Bark in the Park- Humane Society's Pet Contest

    Jim Bowie Festival and duel reenactment

 

October

    Fall Pilgrimage continues through October 10, 2009

    Great Mississippi River Balloon Race

    Kayak Race

    Ghost Tales at Historic Jefferson College

 

November

    Art and Soul Festival

    Downtown Arts Walk

    Civil War reenactment

    Angels on the Bluff - evening cemetery tour with reenactments

 

December

    A Natchez-themed adaptation of Charles Dickens's Christmas Carol

    Jeweled Christmas at the Towers - vintage costume jewelry decorates trees in every room of this exquisite mansion

 

Year-Round

    Ten mansions open for tours daily

    Bike rides on the Natchez Trace

    Spectacular view of the Muddy Mississippi

    Hiking and bird-watching in nature preserves

    Natchez Little Theatre productions

    Fine restaurants

    Bed and Breakfast mansions, cottages and hideaways

    African-American heritage tours

    Historic City Cemetery tours

    Guided Motor coach tours

    Walking tours

    Interactive living history presentations

    Grand Village of the Natchez Indians - Temple mounds, museums and walking trail

 

How to get there:

 

Best airports:

   

    Jackson, Mississippi - approximately two hours

 

    Baton Rouge, Louisiana -  less than two hours

 

    New Orleans, Louisiana - less than three hours

 

Other airports - Alexandria or Monroe, Louisiana - about two hours

 

Media Contact:

 

Marsha Colson

Natchez Pilgrimage Tours

P.O. Box 347

Natchez, MS 39121

800-647-6742

601-446-6631

Direct 601-442-8618

natchezpilgrimage.com

nptcolson@bellsouth.net

  

 

   

 

   

Group and Bus Tours

A well-coordinated tour is the best way to see Natchez and her historic wonders!  We have a number of tour options available, and we can customize your visit just about any way you'd like.  See our Group Tours page for more information.

 

 

 

Natchez Pilgrimage Tours

640 S. Canal St.
P.O. Box 347
Natchez, MS 39121

Phone     601-446-6631
Toll-Free 800-647-6742

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