belle mont mansion slaves

Even though it is now just 24 acres, many of the important elements remain. Ninon Parker puts candles out on the table fully set for dinner at Belle Mont Mansion in Colbert County. I grew up in Florence and my Great Grandmother lived near the mansion on Colbert Heights mountain. Blue Star Museum: Belle Mont proudly offers free admission to active duty military personnel and their families between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). Some visitors say that the building is haunted, having seen ghosts of former owners or of the slaves that lived and died on the plantation. A mural of the Clotilda adorns a concrete embankment in Africatown, a community near Mobile founded by Africans illegally transported to Alabama aboard the slave ship. It has a staff of three: a site director, curator, and tour guide. Stay safe. Gift Shop (111 S. Main St., Tuscumbia). This mansion is believed to have been influenced by Palladian style architecture for which Thomas Jefferson is known. The architecture of Belmont Mansion makes it one of the most significant homes of 19th century Tennessee. Constructed between 1849 and 1860, Belmont Mansion was the home of Adelicia and Joseph Acklen. She said that at times, she, and others, would smell a floral scent like a womans perfume and get a cold feeling for no reason as if in the presence of a ghost. Weddings should be a symbol of love and unity. No haunted tours for me. Belmont Mansion, or Belle Monte as it was known in the 19th century, was not a plantation but still relied on a large number of enslaved workers to maintain the estate. He was not buried on the property as many legends say but in the Winston Family Cemetery in Tuscumbia as was his wife Catherine who died July 25, 1884. So I like have some family history about the mansion and my aunt found a man and fell in love with him and they both LOVE history and so they both had there wedding at the Belle mont mansion and I was the flower girl and I havent seen the upstairs of the mansion so Im not sure if it really is haunted I really want to find out more the reason why I started searching this up was bc my great aunt works at my school library and she started talking about it and reading us storys about it. Is it possible that Dr. Mitchell built Belle Mont in this style, two years after Jeffersons death, to honor the late president? The source of Belle Monts design is shrouded in mystery, but tantalizing clues suggest the direct influence of President Thomas Jefferson, gentlemen architect of the early Republic, the official Belle Mont pamphlet states (Commission 2). In 1983, concerned about the condition of the house, members of the Winston family donated Belle Mont and 33 surrounding acres to the Alabama Historical Commission.The house and surrounding property are reportedly haunted by the former slaves that lived and died on the plantation. However, the pamphlet continues by claiming that, characteristics of Jeffersonian Classicism are exhibited at Belle Mont, including finely executed brickwork with contrasting woodwork and a hilltop setting. Is it possible that Dr. Mitchell built Belle Mont in this style, two years after Jeffersons death, to honor the late president? The house is listed on the National Historic Registry (#19820223). Founded in 2008, AlabamaHauntedHouses.com is a simple and unique online haunted event & attraction resource created to make it easy for locals to find Haunted House, Spook Walk, Corn Maze, and other Halloween Attractions in their local area. He was also a founding member of a Presbyterian church in Tuscumbia and among the area's largest owners of, Throughout the antebellum period, Isaac Winston operated Belle Mont as a cotton plantation, and the 1860 Census lists him as the owner of 114 enslaved African Americans. It also reflects the vulnerability of American businesses to the whims of leftist protest movements. Please contact [email protected] for more information. Your email address will not be published. Belle Mont Mansion, known for its architecture, was built in 1828 for Alexander Williams Mitchell. It has a staff of three: a site director, curator, and tour guide. Click "thumbs up" if you think its haunted, or "thumbs down" if you think its all just a tall tale. This would have been in the late 60s, early 70s I would guess. A variety of factors have made researching the lives of Belmont's enslaved residents difficult. Post was not sent - check your email addresses! "It is unacceptable to subject the descendants of enslaved African Americans to whitewashed versions of history that ignore their ancestors experience.". This is a list of plantations and/or plantation houses in the U.S. state of Virginia that are National Historic Landmarks, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, other historic registers, or are otherwise significant for their history, association with significant events or people, or their architecture and design. Small items like dimes and nails are moved. Today the Belmont Mansion Association, which was formed in 1972, owns the collection, runs the museum, and shares this unique story of 19th century Nashville with visitors from far and near. Only a country with a conscience in our case informed by the Christian beliefs of our ancestors would bother to engage in the kinds of self-criticism and atonement visible in American society. Sign up for our newsletter and receive Halloween event updates, discounts and more! Sold by the Acklen family in 1887, the house went to a developer who began one of Nashvilles early suburbs. After finding lesson plans asking Alabama fourth-graders to write their own slave narratives, experts talk about the hardships of teaching slavery on an elementary school level. Belle Mont Mansion is being restored and partially furnished to reflect the antebellum, or pre-Civil War, time period. Home > Historical Buildings > Belle Mont Mansion A former slave plantation, it is believed to be haunted by slaves that lived and died here and also possibly by the ghosts of its former owners. Id suggest a far better solution for prospective newlyweds, regardless of race or ethnicity, would be to get married where they should: in a church. Plantations used for bourgeois ceremonies with language that obscures or even glorifies the estates dark past are one example. I havent asked in years the last I remember I think I may have heard it was being restored but privately owned and with no plans to open to the public. Dr. Mitchell and his family of seven were already living in Belle Mont when it was fully completed in 1832. According to the Times Daily, the event, which has been a holiday tradition in the Muscle Shoals area for over 30 years, offered vintage ballroom dancing, food and tour guides dressed in Antebellum garb. It remained in the Winston family for over a century, and is currently used as a historic house museum open for tours by appointment. I mention this because Gay Mont was his home. 10 years later, I relayed the story for the first time to him the day my wife and I decided to visit the place and asked him if he would like to go see the man he saw that night. he respectfully declined. Montvale, the farm at Belmont, was destroyed in 1864. The use of the NPS name for any unauthorized events or activities is strictly prohibited. Is this place really haunted? Belle Mont Mansion, known for its architecture, was built in 1828 for Alexander Williams Mitchell. However, while living in Belle Mont and planting the surrounding acres, Dr. Mitchell housed 152 slaves in 13 slave cabins on the property. The first slaves arrived to Belle Meade in 1807, and as decades rolled on, the number of slaves tripled to 136 of by 1860 based on the 1860 census record. It was the centerpiece of a 1,760 acre cotton plantation and had one of the largest slave populations in the state. I have experienced some very strange things in my home. The house and surrounding property are reportedly haunted by the former slaves that lived and died on the plantation. In addition, volunteers from the Colbert County Historical Landmarks Foundation assist as docents for special events and participate in fund-raising activities. The only way to avoid offending anyone would be to stop celebrating anything, anywhere, at any time. He says, the man that lives in that house. still pointing. Open Letter Plantation Christmas by Jonece on Scribd. She said he would come out shooting if he caught trespassers. Belle Mont also illustrates Jeffersons reverence for the neoclassical architectural elements and ideas of the Italian Renaissance architect, Andrea Palladio," (Commission 2). Peace to everyone. Top ways to experience Belle Mont Mansion and nearby attractions Florence, Muscle Shoals Multi-Attraction Pass 2 Attractions & Museums from $25.00 per adult Muscle Shoals Sound Studio Tour in Sheffield Alabama 72 Recommended Walking Tours from $20.00 per adult The Raptor, High Rope Course and Zipline Tickets, Wheeler Lake KOA 1 An example of this occurred in December, when a number of black medical students posed for a photo at a former slave plantation, a site some of them called holy. Heck, why not celebrate their graduation there? The home was built. However, while living in Belle Mont and planting the surrounding acres, Dr. Mitchell housed 152 slaves in 13 slave cabins on the property. Belle Mont was erected in 1828 for a physician from Louisa County, Virginia, Dr. Alexander Williams Mitchell. Some visitors say that the building . Constructed in the 1820s, Belle Mont fell into ruin until the Alabama Historical Commission rescued it in the 1980s. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. The Mitchell family sold Belle Mont and 33 of the surrounding acres to their friends Isaac and Catherine Baker Jones Winston, who were also from Virginia, in 1833. At first you think this is all in your imagination. Visit BelmontMansionEvents.com to review options to Elope in Nashville at Belmont Mansion. One account is from young William Acklin, a enslaved worker, and the other from a visitor to the estate. Strange are there actually any African Americans who have memories of the antebellum period, given that it ended 160 years ago? Belle Mont was erected in 1828 for a physician from Louisa County, Virginia, Dr. Alexander Williams Mitchell. Your CommentsHave a photograph taken from this location? Tell Us About Your Experience(s) at Belle Mont. The vast majority of information provided on this web site is anecdotal, and as such, should be viewed in the same light as local folklore and urban legends. Plantation Christmas at Belle Mont is held annually the first Sunday in December and features period costumed interpreters, decorations, refreshments, and entertainment. What do you think? First, there is no such thing as a slave plantation. There are cotton plantations, sugar plantations, tobacco plantations, etc., etc., but no slave plantations. . Be lovers of freedom and anxious for the fray, Georgia Senate Passes Bill To Close Sneaky 'Zuckbucks 2.0' Loopholes, 3 Things Anti-America Agitator Angela Davis Can Learn From Her Pilgrim Ancestors, Just Like Real Socialism, Real Feudalism Has Never Been Tried, Amid Personal Loss, Washington And Lincoln Became Fathers Of Their Country. This was just word of mouth and may not have been accurate, but Im glad to hear it can be toured. Multiple north Alabama organizations are demanding an apology after a Christmas event was held at a Colbert County plantation mansion where enslaved people once labored. Its just really weird that we both saw this happen at the exact same time. Let us know! This area of the property can be accessed from the master bedroom through a large door with a window that leads directly to the courtyard area, which is where the detached kitchen would have been accessed as well.The Mitchell family sold Belle Mont and 33 of the surrounding acres to their friends Isaac and Catherine Baker Jones Winston, who were also from Virginia, in 1833.