What we're building next.
For generations, people who looked like us built these houses with our hands, our backs, and our unpaid labor — and were then turned away at the front door.
We are done building them for someone else.
This time we own it. We shape its future. We decide which stories these rooms tell. We are taking a house the cotton economy built and using it to build something that economy never imagined — a place that belongs to the people it was built to exclude, and holds the door open for everyone else to walk in beside them.
A cultural institution, a Leadership Academy, a library, a museum — something Natchez has never seen.
If this campaign succeeds, we intend to give the people who run this house a real stake in owning it.
An open-air gathering space designed for year-round use — concerts, dinners, storytelling, with heating in winter and misting in summer so the South doesn't stop for weather.
Long-table dinners with writers, historians, and chefs. The conversations the South still needs.
A quieter room. Cocktails, late piano, the kind of place a city is lucky to have.
A hospitality and leadership pipeline for Natchez youth — culinary arts, tourism, entrepreneurship, certifications, and workforce development, built inside a live hotel. The Natchez program of Legacy Hotel Institute(opens in a new tab).
A canvas for the next generation.
The Guest House Natchez is becoming a living museum. We are inviting creators—painters, writers, sculptors, and storytellers—to participate in our Artist in Residency program. You stay for free, immerse yourself in the rich, complex history of this mansion, and create art inspired by what you feel.
Whether you create on-site or reach out to contribute pieces to be displayed in the mansion, your work will become part of our permanent collection. Together, we are curating museum-style storytelling experiences that expand Black history and cultural programming throughout the property.
A place for our stories.
There is a library on the second floor where guests and the community can come read, borrow, or donate books. It is designed as a quiet space to engage with the stories that shaped the South—and those writing its future.
We invite you to contribute to our growing collection. Whether it is a historical text, a classic Southern novel, or something entirely new, the library belongs to everyone who passes through.
Name a piece of the House.
Very limited. For those who want to help shape the physical heart of what The Guest House becomes. Two of these are separate spaces: the Courtyard is the existing courtyard at the house today; the Outdoor Gathering Courtyard is a different, new space still to be built.
Our existing courtyard, reimagined as a year-round gathering place for dinners, storytelling, celebrations, and music — heated in winter, misted in summer.
- Naming rights
- Permanent recognition
- Premium Family Tree placement
- Private dedication event
- VIP invitations to annual Guest House experiences
- Optional Leadership Academy support designation
A separate, planned space: a new second courtyard and BBQ area, or a dedicated children's playground — the next chapter of the grounds, distinct from the existing Courtyard above.
- Naming rights
- Permanent recognition
- Premium Family Tree placement
- VIP Guest House event access
- Leadership Academy support designation opportunity
An intimate bar experience unlike anything else in Natchez — cocktails, late piano, founding recognition inside the room itself.
- Naming rights
- Founding recognition inside the space
- Premium Family Tree placement
- Private preview event
- VIP access to curated experiences
- Legacy dedication opportunity