A variety of factors have made researching the lives of Belmont's enslaved residents difficult. Small items like dimes and nails are moved. 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. We also dont need to police their repurposing. Went back into the cellar a coupple more times, but never had that akward feeling again. Haunted Vacations, Adventures and Mysteries. 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. 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. 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. 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. 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. 68 were here. Casey Chalk is a senior contributor at The Federalist and an editor and columnist at The New Oxford Review. For more information, click here. 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. Affordable Nashville Elopements start here! Ken is a graphic designer, web developer and co-founder of One True Paranormal, a para-group in southwest Missouri. 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. Their appetites will not be satisfied until all things and persons associated with injustice, real or imagined, are expunged from public experience and memory. Moreover, the entire country was once the land of American Indians, and a good deal of it deceptively or violently taken from them. The underlying premise of the anti-plantation movement is that Southern plantations cannot be romanticized. Her eyes, big as saucers, alarm me. 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. That seems far more justified than puritannical policing of plantations. I mention this because Gay Mont was his home. Its two-story north entrance salon is flanked on either side by a formal dining room and parlor. This was just word of mouth and may not have been accurate, but Im glad to hear it can be toured. Would like to know if anyone does know anything about it and any info in accordance with that reference. She said he would come out shooting if he caught trespassers. 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. It remained in the Winston family for over a century, and is currently used as a historic house museum open for tours by appointment. Is it possible that Dr. Mitchell built Belle Mont in this style, two years after Jeffersons death, to honor the late president? Click "thumbs up" if you think its haunted, or "thumbs down" if you think its all just a tall tale. 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. Surely, we do not want to pretend these places dont have a violent, racist past. The Winston family maintained ownership and continued living in Belle Mont through the Civil War and until around 1940. One was a bluish light, the other one looked golden. Countless Haunt Hunters have been arrested, ticketed, and reprimanded by the authorities for trespassing. Use of the directory is at the discretion of the individual. In. 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. Belle Mont Mansion, known for its architecture, was built in 1828 for Alexander Williams Mitchell. 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. Belle Mont Mansion has resumed normal operating hours and will be operating at reduced capacity to safeguard against COVID-19. In each society and in each generation slaves adjusted and . Indeed, it was brutal and terrifying. 2008-2023 AlabamaHauntedHouses.com. At Belmont, several extended families lived in slavery over the course of several generations. Please note: It is your responsibility to acquire appropriate permissions before investigating any location listed on this site. Not sure if it did or not but sure does fit. Affordable Nashville Elopements start here! 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. 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. Please report any inaccuracies. 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. Disclaimer: Alabama Haunted Houses does not endorse or support trespassing to visit real haunts. 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. 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. 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. The site is 1/4 mile west of US 43 South on Cook Lane, three miles south of intersection US 43 and US 72. It has a staff of three: a site director, curator, and tour guide. The house and surrounding property are reportedly haunted by the former slaves that lived and died on the plantation. Happy haunting! Belle Mont was erected in 1828 for a physician from Louisa County, Virginia, Dr. Alexander Williams Mitchell. I have experienced some very strange things in my home. 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. Catholics in the 19th century suffered violent assaults at the hands of anti-papist mobs on the streets of Boston, Philadelphia, and New York. Belle Mont Mansion has been listed under several names through its history. It was the centerpiece of a 1,760 acre cotton plantation and had one of the largest slave populations in the state. "It is unacceptable to subject the descendants of enslaved African Americans to whitewashed versions of history that ignore their ancestors experience.". It is best to play gospel or Christian radio in your house 24/7 to make them move on. Create your own unique website with customizable templates. The historic home is the site of the annual Art of the Dish this week. Just outside the city of Tuscumbia, the 700+ acre Cane Creek Canyon Nature . Plantation Christmas at Belle Mont is held annually the first Sunday in December and features period costumed interpreters, decorations, refreshments, and entertainment. Peace to everyone. According to census records, Mitchell enslaved 115 people at the cotton plantation. But she never mentioned any slave ghosts. Belle Mont isnt included in either of Kathryn Tucker Windhams books about Alabama ghosts. Stay safe. Strange are there actually any African Americans who have memories of the antebellum period, given that it ended 160 years ago? A majority of rooms in Belmont Mansion have been meticulously restored. It was one of those drizzly unpleasant days, so after a while I went into the Cellar area of the plantation. Disclaimer: The stories posted here are user-submitted and are, in the nature of "ghost stories," largely unverifiable. It was then purchased by two women who in 1890 started a college which evolved into Belmont University. Group of women standing outside Belle Mont Mansion. Do not use all capital letters. Is it possible that Dr. Mitchell built Belle Mont in this style, two years after Jeffersons death, to honor the late president? It remained in the Winston family for over a century, and is currently used as a historic house museum open for tours by appointment. Slave child's doll inside Belle Mont Mansion. He has a bachelors in history and masters in teaching from the University of Virginia and a masters in theology from Christendom College. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Belle Mont is located south of Tuscumbia in Colbert Couty in northwest Alabama. The tell when I was growing up was that the book 13 Alabama Ghosts held a tell from that house. Belle Mont attracts approximately 5,000 visitors each year. complete with original and period furniture, artwork and statuary. Doors open and close. However, the staff continues to research as we endeavor to tell the stories of all who lived at Belmont. The Conway family purchased the property in 1670 and it remained in the family for 120 years. 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. 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. 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. Tell Us About Your Experience(s) at Belle Mont. 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. 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. This style stems from the neoclassical architectural design of Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio. Post was not sent - check your email addresses! Be happy. My great great great great grandfather used to live at the belle mont mansion ! Belle Mont Mansion is being restored and partially furnished to reflect the antebellum, or pre-Civil War, time period. Chronological snobbery, as C.S. As there is not formal cemetery for the slaves it is likely that they were buried on some part of the estate. 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). 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. 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. Couple looking at a car in the Alabama Music Hall of Fame. The Alabama Historical Commission owns this historic site. If you've had a paranormal experience here, or have any additional information about this location, please let us know! This would have been in the late 60s, early 70s I would guess. 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. 2023 The Federalist, A wholly independent division of FDRLST Media. Join now to unlock comments, browse ad-free, and access exclusive content from your favorite FDRLST writers. Indeed, I wonder how many black Americans even have a deceased grandparent who could have had a memory of antebellum America. 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. Nanyehi was among the first Cherokee to own African-American slaves. 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. Off Campus Book Store University of North Alabama, Norton Auditorium University of North Alabama. Nearby, an early 1800s mansion, Belle Mont, is available for touring. It's currently operated as a museum, and tours are available.
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