The letter was also sent to Ninon Parker, who is listed as a site director for the Belle Mont Mansion. Sold by the Acklen family in 1887, the house went to a developer who began one of Nashvilles early suburbs. Isaac Winston owned 114 slaves according to the 1860 census and died August 13, 1863 at Bell Mont during the American Civil War. Went back into the cellar a coupple more times, but never had that akward feeling again. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Google+ (Opens in new window), Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window), Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window), NPS Investigation & Research Education Resource, World Institute for Scientific Exploration (WISE), http://www.mystery411.com/Landing_bellemonttuscumbia.html. At Belmont, several extended families lived in slavery over the course of several generations. 2008-2023 AlabamaHauntedHouses.com. 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. 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. I grew up in Florence and my Great Grandmother lived near the mansion on Colbert Heights mountain. 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. At this time, the family decided to move to a different location but continued to hold Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations in the mansion. Belle Mont isnt included in either of Kathryn Tucker Windhams books about Alabama ghosts. 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? complete with original and period furniture, artwork and statuary. Belle Mont is located south of Tuscumbia in Colbert Couty in northwest Alabama. This design is derived from the neoclassical architectural style of Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio. We have located just two first-hand accounts of slavery at Belmont. Many "ghost hunters" have been arrested because they failed to contact property owners and/or local authorities ahead of time. Violence against blacks and other disenfranchised groups have occurred across our nations landscape, many in popular and well-trod locales, North and South, East and West. And have seen shadows and once a figure of a person. The Belle Mont Mansion in Tuscumbia Alabama was built around 1828 for physician and planter Alexander Williams Mitchell. Related Videos Video #1 Be happy. Its also not as if Dixie estates were the only sites where acts of brutality were committed by one group of Americans against another. According to the letter, Christmas was a disturbing time for the enslaved. 2019 was the year it finally became socially unacceptable to use a historic plantation as a wedding venue. A tour of this Nashville plantation tells the story . Group rates available. "It is unacceptable to subject the descendants of enslaved African Americans to whitewashed versions of history that ignore their ancestors experience.". This 1860 census, also called a Slave Schedule, provides a limited picture of all who were living at Belmont and where they lived. Her aunt, who was only a few years older than her, got busted sneaking in/vandalizing the mansion. The architecture of Belmont Mansion makes it one of the most significant homes of 19th century Tennessee. The Knot, WeddingWire, and Pinterest are seeking to limit content on their websites that promotes Southern plantations as a wedding venue. Contextualizing former slave plantations has been a concern across the nation. It was the centerpiece of a 1,760 acre cotton plantation and had one of the largest slave populations in the state. Positioned on a commanding hilltop, Belle Mont Mansion is one of Alabama's crowning architectural achievements. Will we need Google to warn us that searching for such places or even worse, planning a vacation to visit them are microaggressive acts, as if we are unable to contemplate both the good and bad of such places? You feel things passing by you. Clicks to Website: 293 Then you maybe talk to family members and realize everyone feels the same way. 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. 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. Visit BelmontMansionEvents.com to review options to Elope in Nashville at Belmont Mansion. Last edit to this listing: 1/16/2016 (2604 days ago). Weddings should be a symbol of love and unity. The modern application of this practice is also redolent of any of those ancient heresies that are uncomfortable with the complicated reality that vice and virtue, spiritual and material, co-exist within the human experience. 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. During the 1960s, star-crossed lovers camped inside the rotting mansion in the woods, and the home has long been the site of drunken high school parties. Belle Mont Mansion , built circa 1828, is one of the few examples of Palladian-style houses in Alabama. Although the original architect and builder remain unknown, the style of Belle Mont appears also to have been influenced by past. Off Campus Book Store University of North Alabama, Norton Auditorium University of North Alabama. Located just outside Tuscumbia in Colbert County, the mansion is one of a few Palladian-style houses in the Deep South. Being new to the area, none of us knew of the Belmont Mansion or its location. A graduate of the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, he was a physician, planter, and an early elected official of Franklin (present-day Colbert) County, where he settled around 1820. It once stretched over 5400 acres and hosted celebrities, presidents, and countless southern gentlemen. Happy haunting! If you have lived in a haunted house you will not find this fun. However, while living in Belle Mont and planting the surrounding acres, Dr. Mitchell housed 152 slaves in 13 slave cabins on the property. Ninon Parker puts candles out on the table fully set for dinner at Belle Mont Mansion in Colbert County. 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. Post was not sent - check your email addresses! 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. Belle Mont Mansion has been listed under several names through its history. 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. Be specific. This mansion is believed to have been influenced by Palladian style architecture for which Thomas Jefferson is known. Stories of the Past - Conversations for the Future. Beginning in 1889, the basement of Belmont, which served as the main workspace for many enslaved persons, was significantly remodeled with no care given to historic preservation. Haunted Vacations, Adventures and Mysteries. The Alabama Historical Commission owns this historic site. "The celebration of a 'Plantation Christmas' represents a willful ignorance of the experience of enslaved people and a concocted memory of a joyous, white supremacist Christmas celebration," the letter said. 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. That seems far more justified than puritannical policing of plantations. No haunted tours for me. Is it possible that Dr. Mitchell built Belle Mont in this style, two years after Jeffersons death, to honor the late president? Records of the property's destruction includes information related to the number of slave dwellings on the property. Your email address will not be published. Belle Mont Mansion | Tuscumbia AL The National Paranormal Society is not responsible for individuals, teams and submissions listed on the NPS website. 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? 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. Is it possible that Dr. Mitchell built Belle Mont in this style, two years after Jeffersons death, to honor the late president? The property is located just south of Tuscumbia and west of US Route 43 at 1569 Cook Lane. We might also remember that many of the most celebrated and visited historical sites in our country are Southern manors built and worked by slaves: Mount Vernon (itself a wedding venue), Monticello (another wedding venue), and Montpelier (also a wedding venue) among them. This would have been in the late 60s, early 70s I would guess. The answer will always be a mystery. Visitors to this page: 3,182 Chronological snobbery, as C.S. The Belle Mont Mansion in Tuscumbia Alabama was built around 1828 for physician and planter Alexander Williams Mitchell. A variety of factors have made researching the lives of Belmont's enslaved residents difficult. Sold by the Acklen family in 1887, the house went to a developer who began one of Nashvilles early suburbs. But fewer probably know that it . Unlock premium content, ad-free browsing, and access to comments for just $4/month. The Miracle Worker organ. Even though it is now just 24 acres, many of the important elements remain. Required fields are marked *. The property is located just south of Tuscumbia and west of US Route 43 at 1569 Cook Lane. 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. 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). 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. 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. Things seem to be at their worst after midnight, until early dawn. 1569 Cook Lane, Tuscumbia, Alabama 35674 View Map CONTACT Site Director: Ninon Parker Museum: 256- 381-5052 Email: [email protected] This is not a good thing. "Others feared the upcoming slave auctions commonly held in January and February in north Alabama as well as upcoming contracts for slave labor that was 'hired out.'". Constructed in the 1820s, Belle Mont fell into ruin until the Alabama Historical Commission rescued it in the 1980s. He has a bachelors in history and masters in teaching from the University of Virginia and a masters in theology from Christendom College. William F. Buckleys popularization of Eric Voegelins warning is apt: Dont immanentize the eschaton!. It has a staff of three: a site director, curator, and tour guide. The schooner Clotilda smuggled African captives into the U.S. in 1860, more than 50 years after importing slaves was outlawed. Tell Us About Your Experience(s) at Belle Mont. Strange are there actually any African Americans who have memories of the antebellum period, given that it ended 160 years ago? It was then purchased by two women who in 1890 started a college which evolved into Belmont University. Create your own unique website with customizable templates. 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. Disclaimer: The stories posted here are user-submitted and are, in the nature of "ghost stories," largely unverifiable. 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. Administrative use only. A variety of factors have made researching the lives of Belmont's enslaved residents difficult. Belle Mont was erected in 1828 for a physician from Louisa County, Virginia, Dr. Alexander Williams Mitchell. Belle Mont also illustrates Jeffersons reverence for the neoclassical architectural elements and ideas of the Italian Renaissance architect, Andrea Palladio," (Commission 2). Marble bust of Helen Keller. Colbert County Historical Landmarks Foundation, Inc. is the support group in charge of operating the site. Because of the tragedies that transpired therin, they powerfully communicate how far America has come. n 1832. 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. 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. 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. All of these places, despite their histories, are objectively beautiful. Doors open and close. The Belle Meade Plantation in Nashville hired a black historian to research the site's enslavement history and to offer tours so visitors can learn about the African Americans who were enslaved on the property. 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. Jones says her new title is one she holds . Private property should be respected at all times, as should all posted signs concerning trespassing, hours of operation and other local regulations. Belle Mont is available for special events. 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. Belle Mont's out-buildings are no longer standing, but several foundations, including that of a slave house, have been located by archeologists. You can visit the historic Belle Mont Mansion at 1569 Cook Ln., Tuscumbia, Alabama 35674. 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. As there is not formal cemetery for the slaves it is likely that they were buried on some part of the estate. The home was built. The house is listed on the National Historic Registry (#19820223). Please contact [email protected] for more information. Casey Chalk is a senior contributor at The Federalist and an editor and columnist at The New Oxford Review. She was caught due to a news story that came out in the local paper about the travesties of vandalism happening to the historic landmark by local youth. Just outside the city of Tuscumbia, the 700+ acre Cane Creek Canyon Nature . Their appetites will not be satisfied until all things and persons associated with injustice, real or imagined, are expunged from public experience and memory. Belle Mont is located south of Tuscumbia in Colbert Couty in northwest Alabama. In 1790, John Hipkins purchased the property from the Conway family and in 1791 built Belle Grove for his only child, Fannie. 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. Stay safe. 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. Your email address will not be published. Belle Mont also illustrates Jeffersons reverence for the neoclassical architectural elements and ideas of the Italian Renaissance architect, Andrea Palladio,. My great great great great grandfather used to live at the belle mont mansion ! Its two-story north entrance salon is flanked on either side by a formal dining room and parlor. Group of women standing outside Belle Mont Mansion. Then they could celebrate their wedding reception at a Southern manor and have a hell of a good time. 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. Let us know! In. Following the death of his wife Alexander Mitchell remarried and sold the plantation to Isaac and Catherine Winston and moved to Philadelphia in 1833. The answer will always be a mystery. Located in the heart of Nashville on the Belmont University Campus. At this time, the family decided to move to a different location but continued to hold Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations in the mansion. 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.
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