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A 1794 date makes the two-story brick Governor Holmes House one of the oldest in Natchez. It was the residence of Governor David Holmes both when he was territorial governor and when he became the first Mississippi governor upon the state’s admission to the Union in December 1817. According to Robert Pully, owner/manager, this is one of the buildings in John James Audubon’s painting of Natchez, and it may have once belonged to Jefferson Davis. Today it is filled with antique canopied beds, Oriental carpets, and period paintings.
Pully has had thirty years’ experience at the Algonquin Hotel in New York, making him uniquely qualified to pamper guests, which he does. Our suite consisted of a small sitting room, bedroom, and bath. Hand-hewn support timbers, complete with adz marks, were visible in the brick outer and plaster inner walls. The unit opened onto a balcony furnished with wooden rocking chairs, and grape-loaded vines clung to the railing. The balcony looked out over a cozy brick-paved courtyard with a magnificent magnolia tree that was a full story taller than the two-story house. Antiques and tasteful decorative touches were everywhere. A large glass-fronted cabinet, which covered one wall of our bathroom, was filled with Oriental porcelain, and more pieces adorned the mantel in the sitting room.
Bob’s full breakfast varies when guests stay more than one night. One offering is French toast with honey-mandarin sauce, and another is called pig-in-a-poke, a sort of Yorkshire pudding with bacon and hot maple syrup. Pully also serves an apple, egg, and bacon casserole, as well as chopped ham and gravy over English muffins. Fruit, muffins, juice, and coffee or tea round out breakfast, and for other meals, Pully will make restaurant recommendations and reservations. Pays commission to travel agents. Also available through Natchez Pilgrimage Tours.
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