" Back To Natchez"..The Burn, A Buried Statue and A White Rose.

I toured 8 homes on my Natchez visit.
I stayed at The Burn and a tour was included.
It was the first one I toured after check in.



It was built in 1834 by John P. Walworth and
served as a hospital for Union Troops during
" The War".




A night shot of The Burn.................

The Mistress of The Burn, Bridget Green

gives a tour..........

If you notice in this shot, there is a solid marble

statue of two children setting in front of the mantle.

Some years ago this was found buried on the back

grounds by workers digging. It is believed the Walworth

family may have buried it during the war when they were

given 24 hours to vacate and forgot where it was buried!

This is the bedroom suite I stayed in.

" Clara's Room".

This is another B & B bedroom...............

Here is the main floor formal Dining Room.........

Another view in the Dining Room................

Still another Dining Room shot.........

This is the Dining Room used to serve the

fantastic breakfast to B & B Guests...........

The floating spiral staircase...........................

On the back garden patio looking up at

the main floor of the house........

Gardens were everywhere! A side garden........

A back garden............

Another beautiful garden......................

There are one hundred and fifty different varieties

of Camellia's at The Burn and the National Camellia

Society has them labeled and documented.......

This picture in no way does the size of this

Live Oak Tree justice! It was massive !

Even the entrance and exit drives were just beautiful!

A beautiful way to exit.................

An Azaela in all its glory!

The Azalea and Camellia make a perfect picture !

In 1853 the Walworth's 8 year old daughter Lucy

passed away after contracting the "fever". Lucy loved

flowers and had planted and tended her very own garden.

In this garden was a White Rose bush she cherished! After

her death, much TLC was given to this bush. When the war

ended and the family returned to The Burn it seemed the

Rose was gone, trampled by Union horse hooves. The next

Spring up came a small shoot of the rose! For the next 100

years the family descendants cared for the rose and kept it

blooming. When The Burn was sold out of the family, the

Rose was moved and planted at Lucy's grave in Natchez City

Cemetery where it still blooms today! John Walworth's great,

great granddaughter author Louise Wilbourn Collier who is

is now 84 years old and lives in Memphis has made arrangements

for the continual care of Lucy's White Rose................

You have seen 2 of the 8 so far...............

Come back as we continue to visit Natchez..........

" Beautiful Homes, A Ghost Tale and A Haunted Picture"

I returned from Natchez late yesterday afternoon having had not only a wonderful time, but a productive time! Natchez is 150 miles west of me and takes around 2 and1/2
hours to drive.I took close to 150 pictures and no I probably
won't post them all but I will do several post this week on my
experiences during this trip!




Meet the lovely, sweet Bridget Green!
Bridget and her husband own " The Burn".
She was one of the tour guides of her home
which is on tour during " Pilgrimage". She
was my hostess during my stay at The Burn
and told me a Ghost Tale which she said I
could share with you!

The first night they stayed in the house, their oldest

daughter whose bedroom was upstairs on the front right

side, got frightened during the night and moved to another

room. It seems she was awakened by the sounds of an old

wooden clacker toy. When she told her parents the next

morning that " she would not be sleeping in that room again",

Bridget said she pooh pooh'd it and told her it was the floors

settling from construction work. The second night, it happened

again along with "someone" whistling a tune! She refused to

sleep in this room so the parents exchanged rooms with her.

Several months later a man and his young son came to stay

at The Burn. They had stayed many times before at The Burn

in the afore mentioned room along with the wife/mother who

had since past with Cancer. The room was no longer a rented room

but the little boy asked if he could see the room where he had stayed

with his mother. Bridget said sure. She says when she took him up

to the room, he looked at her and said;" you know this room is haunted".

To which she replied; no I didn't, why do you think that?

"It's a little girl he says, she plays with a wooden

clacker toy and if you don't sit up she gets mad and starts

whistling". Bridget says she was stunned because this was

the same story her daughter told! As they were walking

down the stairs he told her he could whistle the tune for her.

He began to whistle and the daughter heard it and came running

from another room asking; whose whistling that tune, it's the same

tune that ghost whistles? Bridget reports that she and her husband

have heard nothing in the room so one can assume the little girl

prefers children! I will do a post on The Burn with pictures later.

I took a walk down North Union Street because there were

so many beautiful homes. I particularly wanted to see the house

next door, Chatawa Cottage, as it was the home of Natchez

Author Alice Walworth Graham. Alice was the great- granddaughter

of John Walworth who built The Burn.

The Natchez Mayor lives here now...................

This is The Devereaux Shields House 1893 , which is also aBed & Breakfast...............

Another pretty Victorian.............

The street is filled with these lovely houses..........

Below is the John Dicks House 1888...............

Here is a photo of a painting that I took a picture of in one

of the houses I toured. I was the only one in the room when

I shot this photo. I had the flash turned off because they had

an art light over it. That night in my room I noticed what appeared

to be an image in the photo that was not supposed to be there.

On the camera it appeared to be one thing, after I had down

loaded it and blew it up, I was leaving the room and looked back

from appox. 10 feet away, I saw an entirely different image from

what I had thought I was seeing. I will give you one clue.

Look to the left side of the picture............

This is a closer view I printed off and scanned that does

not have the frame or art light showing...........Please comment

and tell me what you see. My husband and daughter saw the

same thing I saw without me even giving them a clue........

Ok.....When I first saw the photo on the camera all I saw was the

yellow ribbon next to dark blue in back of the victorian woman in

the front of the painting and what I thought was a clump of red hair

behind the bow at the back of her hat. My first thought was Yankee uniform!

When I downloaded it, I saw it was the figure of a woman with red hair

pulled up on her head! It could not be my reflection as it is facing sideways

and I was standing directly facing the painting and I have very dark hair

past my shoulders that was hanging down. I have since discovered that

Jennie Merrill the murdered woman in the Goat Castle Murder had

red/brown hair and I was in the house that she was murdered in!

I cannot explain it......but it is very strange to me!

As I was driving to The Burn I noticed this old mansion one

street over . It is almost beyond repair, empty and for sale.

I walked over and took some pictures.The woman you see

was there with her husband and like me was curious about it.

I learned from my hosts that it is called Melmont built in 1850

by John Henderson, who was known as the merchant Prince

of Natchez. I do hope someone saves this historical house........

A view from across the street.............................

As I left Natchez yesterday I stopped by a garden center

and was mesmerized by this gorgeous weeping Hibiscus!

I grabbed it and as I was paying for it a reporter from the

local newspaper who had seen it the day before came in and

took pictures of me and this beauty before I whisked it away...........

A close up of the most beautiful flower I've ever seen !!

Don't forget to comment about the haunted painting!

I will be posting on all the houses I toured later.....


I will get caught up with everyones blogs this weekend !!!

" HEADED OUT"

I' m heading out for a few days in Natchez !!



Staying here at The Burn B & B







Sleeping In this bed in " Clara's Room" !
At least I hope I can sleep, I just found out
that "The Burn" was used as a hospital for
wounded Yankee soldiers during the war!
You know one Yankee Soldier has already
shown himself to me!!


I'll post plenty of pics when I return !
Maybe even a Ghost pic !

" A Bad Knee and A Change of Plans"

Due to a hurting right knee and a forecast of severe weather,
I've had a change of plans........just temporary though......
Instead of going to this beautiful place today...........




And Staying in this beautiful room
tonight and tomorrow night.................

Sleeping in this gorgeous Antique bed....

In this wonderful Bed & Breakfast

On Friday I will go down to New Orleans for the day

to attend two of the Master Series Classes................

One class is with John Berendt.......................

Author of ....................

" Midnight In The Garden of Good And Evil...

And................

"The City of Falling Angels"

The other class is with..............

Rick Bragg............

Author of...................

" All Over But The Shoutin' "

And.................

" Ava's Man"

I own and have read all four of these books.

All are great reads. I give 5 stars to each!

John's are based on TRUE stories..........

Rick's are autobiographical of his childhood

growing up in the south but read like novels.

I'm looking forward to meeting the authors

as I have long admired their work!

I'll take lots of pictures..............

And.......next week, I will do all of the

above, same room, same bed in Natchez!