I
had been to Beauvoir many times in the past but this was
the first time since Katrina. As I drove up to the gate,
I was happy to see the new white picket fence. I drove
in and parked under a tree and got out of the car. I
decided to look around a little on my own before I
started the tour. After awhile I realized that I was
looking at the empty spaces of buildings that were no
longer there. Buildings that had been destroyed by the
storm are now being temporarily replaced with trailers.
There were many men at work and the sounds of their
heavy equipment machines filled the air. The
ten-year-old Jefferson Davis Presidential Library was
being torn down. I learned that the building could have
been repaired, but since it was located in a flood zone,
it will be rebuilt 150 feet to the west on higher ground
at a 45 degree angle facing the Beauvoir house instead
of the Gulf. About a hundred yards to the west of where
I was standing was the Beauvoir House. It seemed to be
shinning in the early afternoon sun like a sign of hope
for the future rebuilding. I was ready to start the
tour.
I walked over to the Gift Shop that is housed along with
the Katrina Damage Exhibit in two FEMA trailers. Mr.
Richard V. Forte, Sr. who is Chairman of the combined
Boards of Beauvoir met me there, and I was delighted to
learn he would be my tour guide. “Rick” as he is known,
has been the acting director for two years and has been
employed in various positions at Beauvoir for the past
twenty-eight years. He informed me that Beauvoir is a
National Historic Landmark and also a Mississippi
Historic Landmark that is privately owned and managed by
the Mississippi Division, United Sons of Confederate
Veterans. This historic site encompasses 51 acres of the
original Beauvoir estate.
Several tourists joined us as we began the tour with the
Katrina Damaged Artifacts Exhibit in the trailers. After
the storm, employees and volunteers spent 18 months
searching the grounds for anything they could find, and
even today they continue to find artifacts from the
museum. Presently there is not enough room in the
trailers to display all the damaged artifacts that were
found, but eventually there will be a special “Katrina
Damaged Artifacts Exhibit” that will include everything
that was found.
For now, there are display cabinets in which everything
from broken pieces of china to guns and swords are
displayed. It is remarkable to see a china teacup that
survived and metal containers that were smashed like
accordions. In one display cabinet there was a dainty
wristwatch that was bent and rusty. In my imagination, I
wondered if it might have been a gift from Jefferson
Davis to Mrs. Davis, and I pictured her smiling as he
placed it on her wrist.
After viewing the exhibit, we left the trailers and
walked about 100 yards down the pathway to the Beauvoir
House. Mr. Forte explained that from the first moment
Jefferson Davis saw Beauvoir he thought of it as a
“writer’s” retreat and an ideal environment for his
retirement. In 1879, fourteen years after the war, he
bought the estate from his good friend Mrs. Sarah Dorsey
who had named the house “Beauvoir,” or “Beautiful View.”
As we approached the house, I could not help but think
about the people who had lived there. It is a museum
now, but at one time, it was the Davis’ home with real
people living in it. History tells us that this family
experienced joys and sorrows along with happiness and
tragedy.
Jefferson Davis certainly had his share of tragedy. In
1832 while serving in the military under Colonel Zachary
Taylor (later to be President Taylor), he met and fell
in love with Taylor’s daughter, the lovely Sarah Knox
Taylor. Her father reluctantly gave his blessing and
they were married in June of 1835. Three months later on
a trip to Louisiana, both of the newlyweds contracted
malaria and consequently, Sarah died.
Davis was heartbroken, and although he thought he would
never love again, ten years later he met, and married
the beautiful Varina Howell. They had six children, four
boys and two girls, Samuel Emory, Margaret Howell,
Jefferson Davis, Jr., Joseph Evan, William Howell and
Varina Anne (Winnie). Sadly, the only child who lived in
the house was Winnie. All four boys died before he
purchased the house and the oldest daughter Margaret had
married two years earlier.
