NATCHEZ — Perched on the highest bluff north of the Gulf of Mexico, Natchez is the oldest settlement on the entire Mississippi river — older by two years than New Orleans. The crown jewel of southwest Mississippi, Natchez is a grand city steeped in rich history. The city with a picture-postcard view of the Mississippi River is filled with antebellum homes, historic churches and special attractions that transport visitors back to an era when cotton was king and money was no object.

For that and many other reasons, Natchez is the destination for thousands of tourists from across the nation and world who visit the city to tour homes, enjoy fine dining restaurants or homemade Southern delicacies; stay in quaint bed-and-breakfast inns and shop for antiques, said Sally Durkin, a tourism official with Natchez Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Durkin said with so many things to see and do in Natchez, many visitors are surprised to discover that many of the city’s most interesting attractions are within walking distance from one another. While Natchez is noted among America’s historic cities for its architecturally and historically significant antebellum structures, there is also a wealth of other interesting and exciting places of interest.

Historic antebellum homes take center stage in Natchez, but they also have an outstanding supporting cast of interesting and exciting co-stars. These include numerous historic churches and buildings open for tours; the Grand Village of the Natchez Indians, Jefferson College, Natchez City Cemetery and Natchez Museum of African American Heritage.

Durkin said Natchez’ rich, enthralling history is one of the primary reasons visitors and travel writers from around the globe flock to the city year-round.

“There is so much history here that you really can’t see or take everything in during just one visit,” said Durkin. “Also, those that primarily come to tour the homes and churches and stay in historic inns are often surprised to find there are so many other things to do. We have special events and activities taking place every month in Natchez. There’s never a lack of things to do.”

Natchez is named for the Natchez Indians, who first settled there on the almost-mile-wide banks of the Mississippi. The area’s tropical climate, fish, fruits and live oak and magnolia trees soon attracted white invaders, including French, Spanish and British, who ultimately dispatched the eponymous natives.

By the 1800’s, when the area became part of the Mississippi Territory, Natchez was a desirable town, with prosperous trade generated from the Mississippi River and surrounding plantations. Its European heritage and successful economy encouraged fine architecture, and plantation owners vied with each other in building town houses to repair to when plantation life palled.

Unlike many parts of the South, Natchez escaped much of the pillage and burning that took place during the Civil War. Even the houses that were occupied by the opposing armies were treated with care except in a very few cases, and thus when the war was over the sense of continuity was comparatively easy to sustain.

A small oil boom in the 1970’s infused the town with some much-needed new funds, most of which have dried up now, but which allowed the tourist industry to get a solid footing by restoring and promoting 30 or so antebellum houses out of the hundreds still existent in the town, attractions that are now the pride of Mississippi and a riveting experience for the first-time visitor.

Two Pilgrimages are held during the year; one in the spring and one in the fall. Over 30 houses — most privately owned, all restored to varying degrees — are opened to the public on a shift system, organized into morning and afternoon tours. However, many homes are open throughout the year to allow visitors to tour on their own or participate in organized group tours.

Rosalie, built around 1820, is one of the most important houses in Natchez for both esthetic and historic reasons. It is situated on a small knoll overlooking the Mississippi, perfectly placed for admiring the view and for military occupation. With its sturdy brick facade and solid white columns, it looks ready for any invasion, even the hordes of tourists who now traipse through its noble, high-ceilinged rooms.

During the Civil War, the Union Army occupied Rosalie, treating it with respect. The only room to sustain damage was the dining room (a cracked mantel), which was used by the soldiers as a mess hall. Two huge mirrors in the front parlor were taken down, wrapped in quilts and stored in a cave during hostilities, and were later re-hung in perfect condition.

Rosalie’s furnishings are typical of the mid-19th-century Southern houses one sees all over Natchez — Belter or Belter-style furniture, rosewood pianos, heavy damask fabrics and finely-carved cornices and moldings.

Lansdowne, built in 1852, is a one-story structure of pale pink painted brick, giving it an Italianate feel. Jean Zuber contributed scenic wallpapers to the interior, which is also filled with rosewood and mahogany furniture, and Egyptian marble mantelpieces. The 140 acres of grounds are evocative — trees hung with Spanish moss, streams, woodland. Inside, the wallpapers are particularly interesting, many of Italianate scenes in subtle monochromatic colors by Zuber.

Edgewood also has a beautiful approach, including the fascinating sight of bayou-like lakes with trees growing out of the water. Its facade is dark pink stucco, unabashedly Italianate, with slim columns running the full length of the house.

Montaigne is another stucco house painted in the subtle pinkish terra cotta of Edgewood, with gray shutters, enhanced by a supremely elegant portico and pediment. Built in 1855, the interior of Montaigne was destroyed by runaway slaves and white scalawags during the Civil War; chandeliers were smashed, silver and brass melted down, fine furniture and moldings cut down for firewood. Today, it houses Chippendale furniture, marble mantelpieces, Zuber wallpapers, and a lovely staircase.

Most of the other houses on the tours have some elements of those described above, with fine antique furnishings, historical details and beautiful wallpapers. Like English country houses, the majority of them are lived in year-round by descendants of the original owners, thus exuding a loved and cherished feeling, with family photographs and heirlooms displayed everywhere.

Stanton Hall, the Pilgrimage showcase, is grand and well landscaped and has restaurants and overnight accommodation. Dunleith and Hawthorne have been glamorously modernized, diminishing some of their period interior interest. Melrose has a unique floor-through hallway, with doors opening to gardens at each end, like some English houses. Melrose also has hand-painted canvas-covered floors, originally installed to protect the wood.

Longwood is an octagonal Oriental fantasy on the lines of Brighton Pavilion, built for Dr. Howard Nutt and his family. The drama about this house is that it was never finished.

Eighteen months after it was begun in 1859, the Philadelphia masons and artisans imported by the architect rushed back North. Dr. Nutt, a Union sympathizer, lost all his money and died at 48 during the war, leaving his wife and eight children and their servants to live in the basement of the half-built house. At the end of the war the house was sold.

The exterior of Longwood is in perfect condition, down to its Byzantine arches and splendid onion dome. Inside, the house is a shell — uncovered brick walls, bare supporting beams, naked niches for statuary and lighting. One can look up right up to the top of the dome’s skeleton and admire the many wooden planks crisscrossing in a spiral of consummate carpentry.

Visitors may actually stay the night in some of the houses, which offer a bed-and-breakfast service.

Durkin said one of the best ways to participate in the Natchez experience is to take a guided tour. This will insure that you are exposed to everything Natchez has to offer, she said.

“Whether you choose the romantic carriage ride method or tour the historic district aboard the City Tour Bus, you’ll gain a lot of knowledge about the history of many Natchez homes before ever crossing their thresholds,” said Durkin. “A great many of the homes that you will hear about on the guided tours are not open to the public during the year, nor are they open during spring and fall Pilgrimage. So, being able to view them, learn about their history and even some things about the present owners are things you won’t get on your own.”

Natchez’ historic downtown area is something visitors should plan to see while in town, Durkin said. The best way to learn about the area and its buildings is to take the self-guided walking tour.

“An excellent way to become familiar with Natchez is by touring the historic downtown area on foot,” said Durkin. “Most walking tours begin at the Bluff Park, the grassy promenade that skirts Broadway and overlooks the River. Visitors can pick up a map and Visitors Guide at the Visitor Center. Many of the historic sites located on the map are available to stop in and tour year-round, such as the beautifully restored interior of St. Mary Basilica, the historic fountain in Memorial Park just behind St. Mary’s, Magnolia Hall, Stanton Hall, First Presbyterian Church, The House on Ellicotts Hill, and Rosalie Mansion.”

To make sure every visitor has an opportunity to take home a special souvenir of their trip, Natchez is filled with a wealth of locally-owned antiques, art and specialty stores; gift shops and shopping centers.

For more information about tours and other attractions in Natchez, contact the Natchez CVB at 1-800-647-6724.