68 were here. Now, thats poetic justice. Belle Mont was erected in 1828 for a physician from Louisa County, Virginia, Dr. Alexander Williams Mitchell. Come to Belle Mont to learn more about Palladian architecture and to see first-hand the tantalizing clues suggesting the direct influence of Thomas Jefferson himself. If you have lived in a haunted house you will not find this fun. At this time, the family decided to move to a different location but continued to hold Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations in the mansion. Owning 1,680 acres of cotton and corn, Dr. Mitchell became known as one of the largest planters in the area before he quickly sold the mansion and the surrounding land one year after its completion. The historic home is the site of the annual Art of the Dish this week. We have located just two first-hand accounts of slavery at Belmont. complete with original and period furniture, artwork and statuary. 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. Following the death of his wife Alexander Mitchell remarried and sold the plantation to Isaac and Catherine Winston and moved to Philadelphia in 1833. Art of the Dish at the Historic Belle Mont Mansion | Gallery Mr. Winston was a cousin of Dolly Madison, Patrick Henry, and Isaac Cole, who was a personal friend and secretary of President Thomas Jefferson. Weddings should be a symbol of love and unity. Plantation Agriculture | Encyclopedia of Alabama The property is located just south of Tuscumbia and west of US Route 43 at 1569 Cook Lane. The answer will always be a mystery. Then you maybe talk to family members and realize everyone feels the same way. We also dont need to police their repurposing. Society of slaves: stereotypes fall - Baltimore Sun The letter was also sent to Ninon Parker, who is listed as a site director for the Belle Mont Mansion. Her aunt, who was only a few years older than her, got busted sneaking in/vandalizing the mansion. Colbert County Historical Landmarks Foundation, Inc. is the support group in charge of operating the site. Your CommentsHave a photograph taken from this location? So all the people who work at these historic plantations, regardless of their race, sex, or income, must suffer the economic consequences of what feelings their employers history might provoke. Isaac Winston owned 114 slaves according to the 1860 census and died August 13, 1863 at Bell Mont during the American Civil War. 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. Is it possible that Dr. Mitchell built Belle Mont in this style, two years after Jeffersons death, to honor the late president? Plantation Christmas at Belle Mont is held annually the first Sunday in December and features period costumed interpreters, decorations, refreshments, and entertainment. The house is listed on the National Historic Registry (#19820223). Chronological snobbery, as C.S. 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 No profanity. Plantations used for bourgeois ceremonies with language that obscures or even glorifies the estates dark past are one example. Is it possible that Dr. Mitchell built Belle Mont in this style, two years after Jeffersons death, to honor the late president? Group of women standing outside Belle Mont Mansion. 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. Many "ghost hunters" have been arrested because they failed to contact property owners and/or local authorities ahead of time. Indeed, it is the Christian character of America that has allowed us to recognize and seek to rectify our past errors. Belle Meade plantation takes a deeper look into the lives of its slaves One night while we were both watching TV in the den with the lights off, we both saw two colored orbs gliding through the room from the back door toward the closet, then they disappeared. Intimate and elegant elopement ceremonies are popular at Belmont Mansion! This is not to say there isnt something a bit discomforting about vendors labeling slave cabins on these properties as evoking an elaborate past, as if blacks were happy, willing participants in a fanciful world of white gentry as portrayed in Gone with the Wind. All the same, targeting Southern wedding venues for bigotry reflects yet another manifestation of a purification of our culture and history. The house and surrounding property are reportedly haunted by the former slaves that lived and died on the plantation. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. Forts, Battlefields & Archaeological Sites, Alabama Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit Program, Documenting the Civil Rights Movement in Montgomery, Pond Spring, the General Joe Wheeler Home, To apply for film/photo permit, please send requests to. Built between 1828 and 1832 in the Jeffersonian style, Belle Mont was originally the home of Dr. Alexander Mitchell, who quickly sold the building to one Isaac Winston in 1833. Built between 1828 and 1832 in the Jeffersonian style, Belle Mont was originally the home of Dr. Alexander Mitchell, who quickly sold the building to one Isaac Winston in 1833. Would like to know if anyone does know anything about it and any info in accordance with that reference. It was one of those drizzly unpleasant days, so after a while I went into the Cellar area of the plantation. Magnificently sited on a commanding hilltop, Belle Mont is one of early Alabama's crowning architectural achievements.. Mitchell became known as one of the largest planters in the area before he quickly sold the mansion and the surrounding land one year after its completion. Plantation Christmas celebrations should be canceled. The answer will always be a mystery. Affordable Nashville Elopements start here! Belle Mont | Tuscumbia Alabama | Real Haunted Place Plantation Home Tours in Alabama | Getaway USA - The Arizona Republic Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. Visitors to this page: 3,182
Belle Mont Mansion, known for its architecture, was built in 1828 for Alexander Williams Mitchell. Jonece Starr Dunigan | jdunigan@reckonmedia.com, hired a black historian to research the site's enslavement history, Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. Indeed, it was brutal and terrifying. Black people dont have happy memories of the antebellum period and plantations, where our ancestors were beaten and tortured, said senior campaign director Jade Magnus Ogunnaike. These families included the Baker and Snowden families, among others. The Belle Mont Mansion was constructed from 1828-1832. Visiting here is an opportunity to explore one of the few 1850s era homes still standing in Nashville while learning about the place and the people -- both free and enslaved -- who make this site worth understanding. A Pinterest representative, for example, announced that the website is working on de-indexing Google searches for plantation wedding. In December, a coalition of Alabama activists protested a Plantation Christmas event held at the Belle Mont Mansion near Tuscumbia, Alabama, because it memorialized white supremacist celebrations of Christmas. All of these places, despite their histories, are objectively beautiful. As there is not formal cemetery for the slaves it is likely that they were buried on some part of the estate. Four bedrooms surround the rear or south courtyard, forming its U-shaped brick exterior. Lewis called our tendency to view our own age as superior to others, is a dark chasm ending in our own destruction. One account is from young William Acklin, a enslaved worker, and the other from a visitor to the estate. 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. 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. Violence against blacks and other disenfranchised groups have occurred across our nation's landscape, many in popular and well-trod locales, North and South, East and West. Off Campus Book Store University of North Alabama, Norton Auditorium University of North Alabama. belle mont mansion slaves July 3, 2022 July 3, 2022 July 3, 2022 July 3, 2022. Belle Mont Mansion , built circa 1828, is one of the few examples of Palladian-style houses in Alabama. But fewer probably know that it . It once stretched over 5400 acres and hosted celebrities, presidents, and countless southern gentlemen. Owning 1,680 acres of cotton and corn, Dr. Mitchell became known as one of the largest planters in the area before he quickly sold the mansion and the surrounding land one year after its completion. Intimate and elegant elopement ceremonies are popular at Belmont Mansion! HauntedPlaces.org makes no claims that any of the statements posted here are factually accurate. Their appetites will not be satisfied until all things and persons associated with injustice, real or imagined, are expunged from public experience and memory. This is not a good thing. Then they could celebrate their wedding reception at a Southern manor and have a hell of a good time. Let us know! Yes, its true that some historical artifacts across Americas landscape are honored in ways that belittle or demean our fellow countrymen. Belle Mont was built for Alexander Williams Mitchell, who grew up in Louisa County, Virginia, only 25 miles from Jefferson's home at Monticello. 379 Tuscumbia Alabama Premium High Res Photos - Getty Images === A monument was errected in 2008 on the old Henry Courthouse square in Martinsville, VA. . Belle Mont isnt included in either of Kathryn Tucker Windhams books about Alabama ghosts. Tickets are available at Belle Mont Mansion and at Fiddledee D! Moreover, the entire country was once the land of American Indians, and a good deal of it deceptively or violently taken from them. Very little historic data, including census records, include last names of those who were enslaved, making it challenging to locate descendents through geneaology records. The celebration of a Plantation Christmas is racist, the letter reads. The house is listed on the National Historic Registry (#19820223). According to census records, Mitchell enslaved 115 people at the cotton plantation. In its zealous desire to right previous wrongs, this goes too far in the other direction, and in the process, undermines the historical fabric of our nation. Will NOT be displayed. Visitors to the mansion have reported seeing dark shadowy figures walking the fields and have heard the sound of chains rattling near the house. At first you think this is all in your imagination. It was then purchased by two women who in 1890 started a college which evolved into Belmont University. Officials from multiple wedding-planning websites recently announced they are either no longer advertising plantation wedding venues or making those venues harder to find on their websites. And have seen shadows and once a figure of a person. The use of the NPS name for any unauthorized events or activities is strictly prohibited. I have heard quiet voices in the night. The Knot, WeddingWire, and Pinterest are seeking to limit content on their websites that promotes Southern plantations as a wedding venue. I dont think only certain places are as haunted, as the belief that there are paranormal things happening all around us everywhere, and just certain people are allowed to witness these things at certain times. Administrative use only. Related Videos Video #1 Sold by the Acklen family in 1887, the house went to a developer who began one of Nashvilles early suburbs. Peace to everyone. Belle Mont is available for special events. I know someone who used to volunteer at Belle Mont, which is open for tours, and she said the house was definitely haunted by a woman, possibility a former mistress or daughter who once lived in the house. View all AHC Owned Historic Houses & Museums. Yet self-righteous assaults on these places and the many ways they are used will not bring restorative justice. Visitors to the mansion have reported seeing dark shadowy figures walking the fields and have heard the sound of chains rattling near the house.http://bellemont.weebly.com/history.htmlhttp://www.mystery411.com/Landing_bellemonttuscumbia.html. 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. . Just one if many weird, cant explain it things that have happened here. I was born and raised in Tuscumbia. Nanyehi was among the first Cherokee to own African-American slaves. Belle Mont Mansion Tuscumbia, Alabama 65.4 miles from Tupelo, MS. 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. The site is 1/4 mile west of US 43 South on Cook Lane, three miles south of intersection US 43 and US 72. Art of the Dish at Belle Mont | This Week | courierjournal.net Click "thumbs up" if you think its haunted, or "thumbs down" if you think its all just a tall tale. The architecture of Belmont Mansion makes it one of the most significant homes of 19th century Tennessee. Tell Us About Your Experience(s) at Belle Mont. Small items like dimes and nails are moved. Some visitors say that the building . 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. What do you think? It was built by Joseph and Adelicia Acklen to serve as the center of their 180-acre summer estate in what was then country outside the city, and featured elaborate gardens and a zoo. Belle Mont also illustrates Jeffersons reverence for the neoclassical architectural elements and ideas of the Italian Renaissance architect, Andrea Palladio," (Commission 2). The coalition said the event celebrated white supremacy by ignoring the enslaved people who labored at the cotton plantation. Casey Chalk is a senior contributor at The Federalist and an editor and columnist at The New Oxford Review. And in the process, these attacks have unintended economic consequences on working-class Americans. At the time, the name of the plantation was not Gay Mont, but Rose Hill. You can imagine me trying to picture my great aunt doing this, haha! 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. Then he didnt snap back and unadded me and my Freinds girlfriend said a woman followed us back to the car and as soon as we pulled out a car came out of no where like we seen no headlights the whole time and we get home And another Freind of mine gets a text and said we know you was here no trespassing and Said I had a picture taker (dont really know what that means) and he had a drink and a bag of chips and he threw it down and they said we found your snack. I got chills then tried to write it off. In. It was built in 1940 on some of the land near General John Coffees home. Belle mont mansion slaves - wqgme.astula.shop In addition, volunteers from the Colbert County Historical Landmarks Foundation assist as docents for special events and participate in fund-raising activities. Advertised as an event where people can experience the "hospitality of the Old South", "A Plantation Christmas" was held at the Belle Mont Mansion on Sunday evening. Catholics in the 19th century suffered violent assaults at the hands of anti-papist mobs on the streets of Boston, Philadelphia, and New York. Emerging Civil War Your email address will not be published. The National Paranormal Society is not responsible for individuals, teams and submissions listed on the NPS website. 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. Haunted Places in Tupelo, Mississippi The organization behind this growing movement, Color of Change, indicts vendors for using words like breathtaking to describe plantations. Marble bust of Helen Keller. Happy haunting! It was the centerpiece of a 1,760 acre cotton plantation and had one of the largest slave populations in the state. Plantations represent none of those things, declared a Pinterest spokesman, calling the glamorization of these estates a disrespectful practice. Pinterest visitors who search for plantation weddings or similar terms will now be warned that some results may violate the sites policies, de facto making plantations the equivalent of pornography. Visitors to the mansion have reported seeing dark shadowy figures walking the fields and have heard the sound of chains rattling near the house. 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. 2008-2023 AlabamaHauntedHouses.com. Owning 1,680 acres of cotton and corn, Dr. Mitchell became known as one of the largest planters in the area before he quickly sold the mansion and the surrounding land one year after its completion.However, while living in Belle Mont and planting the surrounding acres, Dr. Mitchell housed 152 slaves in 13 slave cabins on the property. Belmont Mansion, also known as Acklen Hall, and originally known as Belle Monte, Belle Mont or Belmont, is a historic mansion located in Nashville, Tennessee. 2023 The Federalist, A wholly independent division of FDRLST Media. Stay safe. A variety of factors have made researching the lives of Belmont's enslaved residents difficult. 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. My wife, son (age 5) and I were heading from Muscle Shoals to our home in Littleville after a night of shopping and eating. This gets to the broader dilemma with our zeitgeist, which combines woke deconstructionism with a modern version of damnatio memoriae, or condemnation of memory, an ancient Roman practice whereby persons vilified by the state were erased from public memory. Is it possible that Dr. Mitchell built Belle Mont in this style, two years after Jeffersons death, to honor the late president? Belle Mont Mansion - The National Paranormal Society Visiting here is an opportunity to explore one of the few 1850s era homes still standing in Nashville while learning about the place and the people -- both free and enslaved -- who make this site worth understanding. 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. Stories of the Past - Conversations for the Future. I grew up in Florence and my Great Grandmother lived near the mansion on Colbert Heights mountain. Ticket options include: General Admission, Guided Tour, Curator Tour & Civil War at Belmont. Belle Meade plantation is one of the premier plantations in Tennessee and one of the top attractions in the state. Simply by virtue of ones social justice warrior credentials and alleged victimhood status, these people deputize themselves the cultural police of our history, our language, and now apparently our wedding venues. Please report any inaccuracies. Earlier this month, prodded by the group Color of Change, four wedding websites said they . Belle Mont Mansion | Tuscumbia AL - Facebook My great great great great grandfather used to live at the belle mont mansion ! All rights reserved. In 1833, the property was bought by Issac Williams, who owned 119 enslaved people by 1855. 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). Slaves in the plantation generations were members of what Berlin calls "slave societies," where slavery was the primary source of labor. This would have been in the late 60s, early 70s I would guess. Belle Mont's out-buildings are no longer standing, but several foundations, including that of a slave house, have been located by archeologists. Voice your opinion here! The 7 Best Plantation Day Trips And Tours In Alabama - OnlyInYourState 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. Use the "Browse" or "Choose File" button below to select an image to upload along with your comment. n 1832. Constructed between 1849 and 1860, Belmont Mansion was the home of Adelicia and Joseph Acklen. Belle Mont Mansion | Encyclopedia of Alabama A variety of factors have made researching the lives of Belmont's enslaved residents difficult. Moreover, the entire. I have lived here since 1963. The site originally served as the centerpiece for the large scale cotton.
Its important the reality of what happened in these spaces is present, versus a romanticization of human rights abuses.. How many of the great nations of human history have so actively beat their breasts over their sins, both against their own citizens and the peoples of the world? My mother also said that there was a man, a caretaker of some sort, that lived in a house at the foot of the hill at some point during this time. Belle Mont Mansion is located outside of Tuscumbia. Protest movements that perceive victimization and microaggression under every rock also wreak havoc on our countrys economy. As there is not formal cemetery for the slaves it is likely that they were buried on some part of the estate. My daughter and I have both heard clear voices that sound kind of far away, but you can understand them. Positioned on a commanding hilltop, Belle Mont Mansion is one of Alabama's crowning architectural achievements. The underlying premise of the anti-plantation movement is that Southern plantations cannot be romanticized. Countless Haunt Hunters have been arrested, ticketed, and reprimanded by the authorities for trespassing. The Belle Mont Mansion in Tuscumbia Alabama was built around 1828 for physician and planter Alexander Williams Mitchell. 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. I came out of the cellar and saw Ronnie sitting in my truck, so I asked if he had came into the cellar, he told me no. It has been referred to as the Isaac Winston House and is listed as Belmont in the National Register of Historic Places and as the Henry B. Thornton Plantation House in the Historic American Buildings Survey. Ticket options include: General Admission, Guided Tour, Curator Tour & Civil War at Belmont, Discover the largest house built in Tennesse. This style stems from the neoclassical architectural design of Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio. 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. I was amazed at the huge floor joist under the house, then I had that feeling someone had walked up behind me, I thought it was Ronnie, at that time I noticed some graffiti that had been put there, and asked Ronnie what he thought about, but when I turned around, Iwas there by myself. Ken is a graphic designer, web developer and co-founder of One True Paranormal, a para-group in southwest Missouri. Sold by the Acklen family in 1887, the house went to a developer who began one of Nashvilles early suburbs. Her eyes, big as saucers, alarm me. Moreover, are the perpetrators of our historical-cultural cleansing so naive to think their children and grandchildren wont do the same thing to them, who have fostered and encouraged a paradigm of national seppuku? The other residents seem to tolerate it OK, but I hate it. An Alabama Historical Commission site, Belle Mont was built 1828-1832 and is one of the state's first great plantation houses. 1569 Cook Lane, Tuscumbia, Alabama 35674 View Map CONTACT Site Director: Ninon Parker Museum: 256- 381-5052 Email: bellemontmansion@gmail.com Not-So-Scary Haunted Houses (Kid Friendly). All rights reserved. Owned by the Alabama Historical Commission and operated by the Colbert County Historical Landmarks Foundation. General Martin retired to his Belle Mont plantation at Leatherwood, which he purchased in 1796 from Benjamin Harrison V of Berkeley Plantation. One day toward the end of the project, My friend Ronnie and I went down to remove what was left from an old tree my Dad had cut down the day before and other light work. If you've had a paranormal experience here, or have any additional information about this location, please let us know! It is said to be haunted by slaves who died on the grounds and also by former owners. Many of them, even their detractors must admit, are beautiful, both in reference to their natural surroundings and their architecture. He has a bachelors in history and masters in teaching from the University of Virginia and a masters in theology from Christendom College. Located just outside Tuscumbia in Colbert County, the mansion is one of a few . The Massive, Overlooked Role of Female Slave Owners Located just outside Tuscumbia in Colbert County, the mansion is one of a few Palladian-style houses in the Deep South. It has a staff of three: a site director, curator, and tour guide. 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. Belle Mont Mansion (Tuscumbia) - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go