Carolinas, Georgia & South Trips (Lonely Planet, 1st Edition) - Alex Leviton [10]
Located in one of Mobile’s eight National Register Historic Districts, the main T-shaped Greek Revival mansion at the Oakleigh Historic Complex dates back to 1833. Its distinct cantilevered front staircase and grand double parlors offer a peek in to the Gulf Coast’s high society lifestyle, while the Cook’s House (1850), originally built for slaves, and Cox-Deasy Cottage (1850), built by a brick mason for his wife and 11 kids, show how the working and servant classes lived. Spend your evening in the classic Pillars restaurant; they do wonderful things with blackened cow.
Before hopping on I-10 (west bound) towards Natchez, stop off at the Bragg-Mitchell Mansion (1855), one of the most splendid Greek Revival mansions on the Gulf Coast. It closes without notice for special events though, so call ahead. From there, it’s a 4½ hour drive to southwest Mississippi, where Natchez, Mississippi, the oldest civilized settlement on the Mississippi River (beating out New Orleans by two years), stands perched on a bluff. Settled by the French in 1716, it remains a living antebellum museum (when it’s not getting pounded by hurricanes) and boasts more antebellum homes than any other US city. If you can get here during spring and fall pilgrimage, many private residences are open to the public – but there is plenty to do and see here year-round.
Longwood Plantation, a six-story, 30,000 sq ft, Greek Revival monster is considered the grandest octagonal house in America (rumor has it a sassy hexagonal number from Tallahassee is looking to unseat Longwood for most striking geometric dwelling). When the Civil War broke out during construction, the workers hightailed it out of here (damn straight), leaving the home unfinished. It’s still unfinished (not cool, yet fascinating). You can sleep in Natchez most well-known antebellum attraction, the Federal-style Monmouth Plantation (1818). Union soldiers almost took this one out, due to the succession cries of its original owner, Mexican War hero General John A Quitman. He died before war broke out, but if it weren’t for his two daughters pleading with Union soldiers on their way to declaring allegiance to the United States, Monmouth would have been a smoldering mess in no time. Toast to the daughters’ quick-thinking resilience over mint juleps at the Carriage House on the grounds of Stanton Hall (1857). It’s famous for fried chicken and tiny buttered biscuits.
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“The historic homes are certainly the main attraction, but we also have a vineyard and winery, Old South Winery, and a great exhibit of photographs of life in Natchez from the mid-1800s to about 1920 at the Stratton Chapel. We have seasonal pilgrimages in the spring and fall, when more of the homes are open to the public for tour than usual, and that’s when we enjoy more visitors because the seasons are milder.”
Charles Burns, Natchez
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A little over two hours’ travel south along the Mississippi River’s scenic Great River Rd lands you in Darrow, Louisiana, worth a stop for the Houmas House Plantation and its excellent restaurant, Latil’s Landing. The former is a grand mansion so unmistakably Cribs-worthy, it sold for $1 million in 1857, and is notable as one of the few antebellum homes that remain an active residence (no, Snoop Dogg doesn’t live here). The restaurant is set inside the 230-year-old French House on the same grounds, complete with original beamed ceilings, cypress mantels, wood-burning fireplaces and original wood floors. It’s the foodie highlight of the trip.
Continue east along Great River Rd to the Louisiana’s two most adored plantations. Laura Plantation, built in 1805, stands out for its whimsical exterior (canary yellow with a bright-red roof, pine-green shutters, and mauve and grey trim) and its fascinating tour – far and away the most interesting along the road for its deep-rooted