The People, River & History That Shaped Natchez: A Pilgrimage Garden Club Symposium

SATURDAY – SEPTEMBER 26, 2026
2:00 PM – 5:00 PM

TICKETS $25 – GET YOURS HERE

AGES 21+
LIGHT REFRESHMENTS INCLUDED

SUBJECT AND SPEAKERS TO BE ANNOUNCED AT A LATER DATE. STAY TUNED!
The People, River, and History That Shaped Natchez
Join the Pilgrimage Garden Club for an afternoon of discovery, in memory of the late James McHenry Wade, Curator of Longwood, at The Carriage House on the grounds of Historic Stanton Hall. Through a series of engaging presentations, explore the people, places, and events that shaped Natchez before the Civil War.

The symposium will examine the lives of the enslaved families who lived and worked at Longwood, highlighting how dependency buildings provide invaluable insight into their daily experiences. Additional presentations will explore the impact of the Mississippi River through La Salle’s exploration, the transformation of the cotton industry following Eli Whitney’s invention of the cotton gin, and the importance of preserving these stories and historic resources for future generations.

Together, these topics offer a deeper understanding of the history, culture, and legacy of Natchez and the lower Mississippi River Valley.

Itinerary
2:00 p.m. Welcome &amp; Opening Remarks
Terrel Williams, MD, President, Pilgrimage Garden Club.

2:15 p.m. The Discovery of the Mississippi River by René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle
Stephen Perkins, Co-Founder of ForrestPerkins, Washington, D.C., a leading luxury hospitality architect and designer, storyteller and conceptual project planner.

2:45 p.m. Natchez Indians on the Bluff of the Mississippi
Becky Anderson, Educator/Historian, The Grand Village of the Natchez Indians.

3:00 p.m. Dread and Dreams: The Mississippi River and the Journey of Prince Ibrahima
Rosco Barnes, Ph.D. in Church History and Polity at the University of Pretoria, South Africa.

**3:15 pm: 15-Minute Break for Light Refreshments **

3:30 p.m. Cotton: White Gold on the River
Lynette Tanner, Owner of Frogmore Plantation, Frogmore, Louisiana.

4:00 p.m. Plantation Dependency Study and Longwood’s Dependency
Carter Burns, Executive Director of Historic Natchez Foundation.

4:30 p.m. Longwood Dependency and How We Got There. Dedication of the Enslaved Quarters Exhibit at Longwood
Douglas Lanfear, Longwood Docent, former Rosalie staff member, and U.S. Air Force Veteran.

4:45 p.m. Closing Remarks, Terrel Williams, MD, President of the Pilgrimage Garden Club.