Day 9 - Tour of Natchez, Mississippi

Submitted by:  Chuck and Gayle Ingham, #10

Hi,

We are Chuck and Gayle Ingham, Healdsburg, CA and want to share with you, our day in Vidalia, LA and Natchez, MS.

We woke up to a beautiful sunrise over the “Mighty Mississippi” River and about an hour later, we watched the American Queen steamboat taking her passengers to her next stop in Natchez, just across the river from where we were camped.

Not a better way to start our day in which we would explore the role of the steamboat, and story of Natchez, its history and culture on the Mississippi. 

After boarding the bus, Rose our bus driver, took us from Vidalia, over the bridge, into the state of Mississippi, to the Natchez Visitor and Welcome Center.  We watched a movie showing the history of the city of Natchez from the colonial period (1700-1800), through the cotton boom, the Civil War, and the reconstruction era.

After doing our self-guided tour of the Center, Rose, our bus driver, took us to downtown Natchez to meet James and Norma Jean.  James drove a buggy and described himself as a Cajun Redneck. Norma Jean was his horse.

Norma Jean took us through the Natchez streets, past antebellum and post-civil war buildings, houses, churches, and beautiful homes, while James gave us a history and, of course, a few jokes.

It was time for lunch, when James and Norma Jean took us back to where we had gotten on the buggy.  We thanked James, crossed the street to have lunch at the Pig out Inn, a delicious quick serve barbeque place.

After lunch we strolled down the street and around the corner to browse in an antique store, walk along the river, and over to the William T. Johnson Home, a Natchez National Historical Park.

We had the pleasure to have a park ranger, Barney Schoby, tell us about the life of William T. Johnson, a freed black man, who grew up to own barber shops in Natchez.  

In 1809, at the time of his birth,his mother, Amy, and sister, Adelia, were  owned by Captain William Johnson, presumed to be his father, having the same name. 

At the age of 11, he was emancipated and educated by Captain Johnson. We know this because he documented his life in a diary. His diary is now published, and it was clear that Ranger Barney was a scholar of Mr. Johnson’s life.

Our bus then took us to Longwood Antebellum mansion. The mansion, a huge brick octagon shape with a huge dome, was built by Dr. Haller Nutt in 1858, and never finished. The only interior completed was the basement where the family lived.

Rose, our bus driver, then drove us out to Frogmore, a working cotton plantation.

We were greeted by Mrs. Tanner, the owner of the plantation and watched a movie about the cotton business. It showed us how Eli Whitney’s cotton gin influenced the great cotton boom, bringing great wealth to Natchez.  We were able to pick and feel the cotton and shown old farm implements and an old steam cotton gin.

We were taken to Tanners’ present day processing plant where the cotton is seeded and all the bi-products, such as the seeds, linters, and oil are created.  The Tanners’ plant processes not only the cotton from the Frogmore Plantation, but contracts with other plantations. We saw a new processor/gin which seeds, rolls, and wraps the cotton into large bales, weighing several tons, for shipping and storage.

Our bus then took us back to campground where we watched the sunset and said goodnight.