Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-03-31
HAVEN FOR SOLDIERS
Home of Jefferson Davis Shell
tiers Many Veterans.
ON MISSISSIPPI SOUND
Plantation Bears Name "Beauvoir
for Many Generations.
MANY ACRES OF PINE FOREST
Description of the Estate That For
merly Belonged to Ancestors
Of Mrs. Sarah Dorsey.
MANY ACRES OF PINE FOREST
BY WILLIAM f. CURTIS

BY WILLIAM f. CURTIS.
Special Correspondence Of The Star and the
Chicago Record Herald.
BILOXI. Missy March %, 1909.
The home of Jefferson Davis. on the
bank Of Mississippi sound about four
miles west Of Biloxi. is now snug har-
Dor for 135 aged and infirm veterans Of
the Confederate army, and twenty-seven
widows and wives Of veterans Unlike the
homes for Union soldiers In the north.
women are admitted upon the same terms
as men. and have a barracks and a mess
room set apart for their use. The planta-
ton has been known as Beauvoir for gen
erations. In England the name is pro-
nounced Beaver. but here 1t is given the
French pronunciation-bo-vaw. It en-
braces eighty-seven acres of land, chiefly
pine forest. The place has never been
cultivated to any extent-only garden
and a vineyard of scuppernong grapes.
from which good deal of wine has been
made both for family use and for sale in
years past.
Beauvoir belonged to the ancestors of
Mrs Sarah Dorsey, an ancient Mississippi
family, and was inherited by her. She
was an intimate friend Of Mr.. and Mrs.
Davis, and when he determined to write
his memoirs Mrs. Dorsey invited him to
came originally as her guest, but after he
had been here two years he bought the
place for $4,000 paying $1,000 down and
giving his notes for the balance. When
Mrs. Dorsey died a year or SO later she
bequeathed Beauvoir to him, and after
him. to Miss Winnie Davis. his daughter.
and instructed her executors to cancel the
notes and refund the 5000 he had al
ready paid.
Declines to Accept Home.
You will remember that after the United
States court at Richmond, In May, 1867.
ordered the release Of Jefferson Davis
upon a bail bond signed by Horace Greeley,
Gerritt Smith and Augustus Schell of
New York, he spent the summer in Can
ada In the early winter he went to Eu
rope, visiting London and Paris, and
/ after time came home to accept the
presidency of Memphis life insurance
company. The people of that city Of
| fered to buy him home, with the pur-
pose of getting him as permanent resi-
dent. but he declined to accept 1t. which
showed his wisdom, because the insurance
| company was not a success. and he re-
signed the presidency after a year or so
of dsagreeable experience. At Beauvoir
| he wrote his book. 1.-The Rise and Fall
of the Confederate States of America,
tached from the bungalow in which, the
| family resided. 1t is now used as the
office of the superintendent Of the Sol
diers' Home. It is surrounded by wide
porch. with overhanging caves to pro
| tect the interior from the sun. and Is SINH
| lar to many plantation offices and Ii
braries down in this hot country. On the
| other side of the residence is duplicate
of the library. which was used as a plan
tation office by the Dorseys and also by
Mr.. Davis. and is now occupied by the
superintendent as a residence.
The bungalow is large and comfortable.
1t is built upon brick pillars about twelve
feet high. in order to escape the damp
ness of the soil, and Is surrounded by a
wide veranda with overhanging roof,
which is called gallery in local par
! lance Within are four large square
rooms, two on either side Of wide hall
extending through the building, and at the
rear an additional sleeping chamber and
connecting bath has been built as an ex-
| tension on either side. The ceilings are
high; the windows are large. and the
rear veranda is inclosed by blinds, so that
| it can be used for dining room or living
| room If desired. The kitchen and ser
wants quarters were in detached buildings
| in the rear, as was customary in the time
of slavery. Under the rear of the house Is
a wine cellar and a large room. which
was formerly used for storage and other
purposes, and is now fitted up as a dining
room for the inmates of the home.
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