belle mont mansion slaves
Belle Mont Mansion By Ken Weigandin Ashley Ann Lewis, Haunted Locations Belle Mont was erected in 1828 for a physician from Louisa County, Virginia, Dr. Alexander Williams Mitchell. Wesley Thompson of Bethel Colbert Missionary Baptists Church also signed the letter. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. 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. Weddings should be a symbol of love and unity. Be happy. For more information, click here. Belle Mont Mansion, known for its architecture, was built in 1828 for Alexander Williams Mitchell. It is said to be haunted by slaves who died on the grounds and also by former owners. Three years later, during the middle of the. At Belmont, several extended families lived in slavery over the course of several generations. Ticket options include: General Admission, Guided Tour, Curator Tour & Civil War at Belmont. However, while living in Belle Mont and planting the surrounding acres, Dr. Mitchell housed 152 slaves in 13 slave cabins on the property. I mention this because Gay Mont was his home. Off Campus Book Store University of North Alabama, Norton Auditorium University of North Alabama. I asked, Do you see him now? in a jested way as I awkwardly half-smile to my wife. Even though it is now just 24 acres, many of the important elements remain. Group of women standing outside Belle Mont 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. Chronological snobbery, as C.S. Whats good for the goose is good for the gander, and one would have to be a clinical narcissist to think future generations wont find us at fault for any number of things. It has a staff of three: a site director, curator, and tour guide. Belle Mont was erected in 1828 for a physician from Louisa County, Virginia, Dr. Alexander Williams Mitchell. Located just outside Tuscumbia in Colbert County, the mansion is one of a few . Contextualizing former slave plantations has been a concern across the nation. The letter was also sent to Ninon Parker, who is listed as a site director for the Belle Mont Mansion. The house and surrounding property are reportedly haunted by the former slaves that lived and died on the plantation. The coalition said the event celebrated white supremacy by ignoring the enslaved people who labored at the cotton plantation. One was a bluish light, the other one looked golden. Belle Mont Mansion is being restored and partially furnished to reflect the antebellum, or pre-Civil War, time period. Click "thumbs up" if you think its haunted, or "thumbs down" if you think its all just a tall tale. You feel things passing by you. Now, thats poetic justice. Required fields are marked *. Group rates available. 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. 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. The Conway family purchased the property in 1670 and it remained in the family for 120 years. Being new to the area, none of us knew of the Belmont Mansion or its location. Slavery Plantation Agriculture Robert J. Vejnar, Kennesaw State University Dogtrot Cabin at Belle Mont Plantation Plantation agriculture was a form of large-scale farming that was most prevalent during the colonial and antebellum periods of American history. 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. Administrative use only. 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. Four bedrooms surround the rear or south courtyard, forming its U-shaped brick exterior. At this time, the family decided to move to a different location but continued to hold Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations in the mansion. Yes, its true that some historical artifacts across Americas landscape are honored in ways that belittle or demean our fellow countrymen. . Share Your Experience or Comments - Belle Mont. The tell when I was growing up was that the book 13 Alabama Ghosts held a tell from that house. Would like to know if anyone does know anything about it and any info in accordance with that reference. But she never mentioned any slave ghosts. The property is located just south of Tuscumbia and west of US Route 43 at 1569 Cook Lane. 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. This 1860 census, also called a Slave Schedule, provides a limited picture of all who were living at Belmont and where they lived. The Miracle Worker organ. Ken is a graphic designer, web developer and co-founder of One True Paranormal, a para-group in southwest Missouri. 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. Stay safe. Went back into the cellar a coupple more times, but never had that akward feeling again. 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. Countless Haunt Hunters have been arrested, ticketed, and reprimanded by the authorities for trespassing. Its also not as if Dixie estates were the only sites where acts of brutality were committed by one group of Americans against another. Their appetites will not be satisfied until all things and persons associated with injustice, real or imagined, are expunged from public experience and memory. What county in Alabama had the most slaves? Belle Mont also illustrates Jeffersons reverence for the neoclassical architectural elements and ideas of the Italian Renaissance architect, Andrea Palladio,The Winston family maintained ownership and continued living in Belle Mont through the Civil War and until around 1940. Protest movements that perceive victimization and microaggression under every rock also wreak havoc on our countrys economy. General Martin retired to his Belle Mont plantation at Leatherwood, which he purchased in 1796 from Benjamin Harrison V of Berkeley Plantation. Jonece Starr Dunigan | jdunigan@reckonmedia.com, hired a black historian to research the site's enslavement history, Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. However, while living in Belle Mont and planting the surrounding acres, Dr. Mitchell housed 152 slaves in 13 slave cabins on the property. Most Americans know that George Washington owned enslaved people at his Mount Vernon home. Please contact nps.submissions@gmail.com for more information. The article included a large photo of an interior shot of the mansion with my great aunts name first and last blazoned across the room in graffiti! Yet self-righteous assaults on these places and the many ways they are used will not bring restorative justice. Plantation Christmas at Belle Mont is held annually the first Sunday in December and features period costumed interpreters, decorations, refreshments, and entertainment. The architecture of Belmont Mansion makes it one of the most significant homes of 19th century Tennessee. 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. Small items like dimes and nails are moved. 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. 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. Slave child's doll inside Belle Mont Mansion. Not sure if it did or not but sure does fit. Blanket from Belle Mont Mansion. Tell Us About Your Experience(s) at Belle Mont. Last edit to this listing: 1/16/2016 (2604 days ago). Voice your opinion here! Let us know! 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. I grew up in Florence and my Great Grandmother lived near the mansion on Colbert Heights mountain. The underlying premise of the anti-plantation movement is that Southern plantations cannot be romanticized. My Dad bought it at that time. You can imagine me trying to picture my great aunt doing this, haha! n 1832. 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. 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. Have a haunt/halloween related news story or a tip? 3. 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. Discover the largest house built in Tennessee prior to the Civil War. Your email address will not be published. The house is listed on the National Historic Registry (#19820223). She said he would come out shooting if he caught trespassers. Belle Mont's out-buildings are no longer standing, but several foundations, including that of a slave house, have been located by archeologists. 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. 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. It once stretched over 5400 acres and hosted celebrities, presidents, and countless southern gentlemen. This style stems from the neoclassical architectural design of Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio. "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. 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. complete with original and period furniture, artwork and statuary. Disclaimer: Alabama Haunted Houses does not endorse or support trespassing to visit real haunts. I got chills then tried to write it off. Belle Mont Mansion | Tuscumbia AL My son says, Yes, hes walking to the house. Having passed the sign and turn to the house, I realized there is no way he could have known of the house based on his not being able to read and having no pre-exposure to the houses existence. Post was not sent - check your email addresses! 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. Belle Mont was erected in 1828 for a physician from Louisa County, Virginia, Dr. Alexander Williams Mitchell. I was born and raised in Tuscumbia. The answer will always be a mystery. 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. Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. 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. 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. Moreover, blacks, both free and slave, provided the bulk of labor that built the White House, the U.S. Capitol, and other early government buildings. The property is also available for tours Thursday through Sunday and for special event rentals. Belle Mont is located south of Tuscumbia in Colbert Couty in northwest Alabama. It's currently operated as a museum, and tours are available. The voices in the night are the hardest to explain away. By the following year, in 1890, all the houses occupied by enslaved Blacks on the estate had been destroyed, leaving no physical presence for interpretation. LGBTQ advocacy organization Equality Shoals, Shoals Young Democrats and Rev. Disclaimer: The stories posted here are user-submitted and are, in the nature of "ghost stories," largely unverifiable. This design is derived from the neoclassical architectural style of Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio. Mr. Winston was a cousin of Dolly Madison, Patrick Henry, and Isaac Cole, who was a personal friend and secretary of President Thomas Jefferson. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. It remained in the Winston family for over a century, and is currently used as a historic house museum open for tours by appointment.