Natchez National Historical Park Honors Veterans
Natchez, Mississippi

Natchez National Historical Park Honors Veterans and their Families on Veteran’s Day Weekend, November 11-13, 2011

As part of Veteran’s Day observances on Veterans Day Weekend, November 11-13th, Natchez National Historical Park will offer free Melrose house tours to everyone in honor of U.S. military veterans, current members of the U.S. armed forces and their families.

Natchez National Historical Park invites visitors to tour not only Melrose, but also the William Johnson House. These two sites provide an excellent opportunity to learn more about the rich history of Natchez.

Melrose, once considered by many to be the finest home in the Natchez region, interprets the wealthy planter class through the lives of John and Mary Louisa McMurran, its first owners. Today Melrose represents one of the most completely preserved antebellum estates in Natchez with many original furnishings and outbuildings.

Visitors also learn about the hundreds of enslaved people of African descent whose forced labor on plantations created the wealth that built Melrose, and how their talents were utilized at the estate.  Their important contributions are recognized through slave cabin exhibits showing a furnished living space and interpreting slavery in this area.

The William Johnson House tells a unique story of the free people of color in Natchez.  Although William Johnson was born a slave, he was freed at age eleven and later became a successful businessman, slaveholder, and diarist in Natchez. Visitors to this free site will be able to see the family home furnished with many of the original furnishings, listen to Johnson’s diary entries, view a variety of interactive exhibits in the visitor center, and shop in the park’s bookstore.

Melrose, located at 1 Melrose-Montebello Parkway offers house tours at the top of the hour with the first tour beginning at 10am and the last tour beginning at 4pm.  The William Johnson House, located at 210 State Street, is a free site open from 9am to 5pm daily.