Her aunt, who was only a few years older than her, got busted sneaking in/vandalizing the mansion. Belle Mont attracts approximately 5,000 visitors each year. It has a staff of three: a site director, curator, and tour guide. Will NOT be displayed. If you have lived in a haunted house you will not find this fun. All of these places, despite their histories, are objectively beautiful. The 7 Best Plantation Day Trips And Tours In Alabama - OnlyInYourState The Knot, WeddingWire, and Pinterest are seeking to limit content on their websites that promotes Southern plantations as a wedding venue. 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. Belle Mont Mansion | Tuscumbia AL - Facebook 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. I was amazed at the huge floor joist under the house, then I had that feeling someone had walked up behind me, I thought it was Ronnie, at that time I noticed some graffiti that had been put there, and asked Ronnie what he thought about, but when I turned around, Iwas there by myself. My great great great great grandfather used to live at the belle mont mansion ! Blue Star Museum: Belle Mont proudly offers free admission to active duty military personnel and their families between Memorial Day and Labor Day. The property remained in the family until 1941 and in 1983 the house and 35 acres was donated to the State of Alabama by the Fennel family. It was the centerpiece of a 1,760 acre cotton plantation and had one of the largest slave populations in the state. 68 were here. ?????? Sold by the Acklen family in 1887, the house went to a developer who began one of Nashvilles early suburbs. The Conway family purchased the property in 1670 and it remained in the family for 120 years. Plantation Christmas event near Tuscumbia 'racist', groups say 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). 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. 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. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Went back into the cellar a coupple more times, but never had that akward feeling again. First, there is no such thing as a slave plantation. There are cotton plantations, sugar plantations, tobacco plantations, etc., etc., but no slave plantations. The voices in the night are the hardest to explain away. Stories of the Past - Conversations for the Future. Couple looking at a car in the Alabama Music Hall of Fame. I mention this because Gay Mont was his home. Belle Mont Mansion has resumed normal operating hours and will be operating at reduced capacity to safeguard against COVID-19. Be happy. I dont know any ghost stories but my mother tells a few funny stories. 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. The celebration of a Plantation Christmas is racist, the letter reads. 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. 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. Its just really weird that we both saw this happen at the exact same time. Located just outside Tuscumbia in Colbert County, the mansion is one of a few Palladian-style houses in the Deep South. Well, all in all, me and my fellow troop members and family members spent about six weeks there, clearing underbrush, old trash, planting grass, removing small trees, etc. Disclaimer: Alabama Haunted Houses does not endorse or support trespassing to visit real haunts. View all AHC Owned Historic Houses & Museums. Belle mont mansion slaves - nxggc.soterik.de Casey Chalk is a senior contributor at The Federalist and an editor and columnist at The New Oxford Review. Three years later, during the middle of the. Plantations used for bourgeois ceremonies with language that obscures or even glorifies the estates dark past are one example. The Massive, Overlooked Role of Female Slave Owners Constructed between 1849 and 1860, Belmont Mansion was the home of Adelicia and Joseph Acklen. Belle Mont is available for special events. The answer will always be a mystery. One account is from young William Acklin, a enslaved worker, and the other from a visitor to the estate. A tour of this Nashville plantation tells the story . Constructed in the 1820s, Belle Mont fell into ruin until the Alabama Historical Commission rescued it in the 1980s. Catholics in the 19th century suffered violent assaults at the hands of anti-papist mobs on the streets of Boston, Philadelphia, and New York. I got chills then tried to write it off. William F. Buckleys popularization of Eric Voegelins warning is apt: Dont immanentize the eschaton!. All information on this page was submitted to Alabama Haunted Houses and was believed to be accurate at the time it was posted. But she never mentioned any slave ghosts. Located in the middle of the Belmont University campusbehind Freeman Hall. This is not a good thing. Discover the largest house built in Tennessee prior to the Civil War. 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. Although the original architect and builder remain unknown, the style of Belle Mont appears also to have been influenced by past. 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. Be specific. Is it possible that Dr. Mitchell built Belle Mont in this style, two years after Jeffersons death, to honor the late president? Belmont Mansion | Nashville Historic House Museum While slavery is often associated with large plantations, the institution permeated Southern culture. Visitors to this page: 3,182 Off Campus Book Store University of North Alabama, Norton Auditorium University of North Alabama. 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. Positioned on a commanding hilltop, Belle Mont Mansion is one of Alabama's crowning architectural achievements. Contextualizing former slave plantations has been a concern across the nation. 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. As there is not formal cemetery for the slaves it is likely that they were buried on some part of the estate. 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. How Did Slaves Get To Alabama? - CLJ Open Letter Plantation Christmas by Jonece on Scribd. All rights reserved (About Us). The abandonment of the home was the largest cause of its deterioration and the vandalism that occurred at Belle Mont. 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. It was then purchased by two women who in 1890 started a college which evolved into Belmont University. At the time, the name of the plantation was not Gay Mont, but Rose Hill. I dont think only certain places are as haunted, as the belief that there are paranormal things happening all around us everywhere, and just certain people are allowed to witness these things at certain times. The property is also available for tours Thursday through Sunday and for special event rentals. Ken is a graphic designer, web developer and co-founder of One True Paranormal, a para-group in southwest Missouri. Please note: It is your responsibility to acquire appropriate permissions before investigating any location listed on this site. The answer will always be a mystery. I have heard quiet voices in the night. Dr. Mitchell and his family of seven were already living in Belle Mont when it was fully completed in 1832. Stay safe. In a letter sent to multiple Alabama Historical Commission officials Tuesday night, the coalition demanded an apology as well as a promise to no longer hold events supporting tours and events that "deny the brutality of the past." Slavery at Belmont - old page | belmontmansion 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 site is 1/4 mile west of US 43 South on Cook Lane, three miles south of intersection US 43 and US 72. The only way to avoid offending anyone would be to stop celebrating anything, anywhere, at any time. 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. It was then purchased by two women who in 1890 started a college which evolved into Belmont University. The house is listed on the National Historic Registry (#19820223). BG Joseph Lynch Martin Jr. (1740-1808) - Find a Grave Memorial The schooner Clotilda smuggled African captives into the U.S. in 1860, more than 50 years after importing slaves was outlawed. The site originally served as the centerpiece for the large scale cotton. Belle Mont Mansion | Tuscumbia AL Your email address will not be published. It remained in the Winston family for over a century, and is currently used as a historic house museum open for tours by appointment. 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. complete with original and period furniture, artwork and statuary. You can imagine me trying to picture my great aunt doing this, haha! History - Belle Mont Mansion 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 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. Belle Mont Mansion - Muscle Shoals National Heritage Area 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. Happy haunting! Emerging Civil War If such locales have tragic histories, this is all the more reason to reimagine them in ways that both recognize and overcome that past. The Belle Mont Mansion in Tuscumbia Alabama was built around 1828 for physician and planter Alexander Williams Mitchell. The coalition said the event celebrated white supremacy by ignoring the enslaved people who labored at the cotton plantation. Then he didnt snap back and unadded me and my Freinds girlfriend said a woman followed us back to the car and as soon as we pulled out a car came out of no where like we seen no headlights the whole time and we get home And another Freind of mine gets a text and said we know you was here no trespassing and Said I had a picture taker (dont really know what that means) and he had a drink and a bag of chips and he threw it down and they said we found your snack. 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. This style stems from the neoclassical architectural design of Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio. Be lovers of freedom and anxious for the fray, Georgia Senate Passes Bill To Close Sneaky 'Zuckbucks 2.0' Loopholes, 3 Things Anti-America Agitator Angela Davis Can Learn From Her Pilgrim Ancestors, Just Like Real Socialism, Real Feudalism Has Never Been Tried, Amid Personal Loss, Washington And Lincoln Became Fathers Of Their Country. Multiple north Alabama organizations are demanding an apology after a Christmas event was held at a Colbert County plantation mansion where enslaved people once labored. Heading south about to pass by the Belmont sign, and not having said a word in at least 15 Min, my son asks a question pointing precisely in the direction of the house, not visible in the daytime, let alone at pitch black night, Daddy, who is that man? to which I reply, What man? Located just outside Tuscumbia in Colbert County, the mansion is one of a few . Belle Mont Mansion | Haunted Places | Tuscumbia, AL 35674