Nashville, Tennessee — Belmont Mansion, Part Two

Monday: The Belmont Mansion is super cool.  They even let me in this time.

Sure, it’s still a house dedicated to some mostly forgotten wealthy white woman, but to her credit, Adelicia Acklin was a crafty, entrepreneurial smooth talker.  She makes for great stories.  And I’m of the opinion that it’s great stories that make great house museums.

Adelicia Acklin was the kind of gal who used both Union and Confederate forces to ship her cotton from Louisiana to England without batting an eye.  She talked her way out of jail, had the good sense to keep her money in London until the end of the Civil War, and gave birth to ten children along the way.

Our docent weaved the narrative of Adelicia Acklin through each room.  The house is filled with high-society Victorian bric-a-brac and artifacts from Mrs. Acklin’s Grand Tour.  Much of it is original and it’s certainly impressive without the stories.  But really, it’s Acklin’s story that makes the home so intriguing.

Unfortunately, the Belmont Mansion doesn’t allow photos.  Fortunately, all was forgiven when our docent took me up to the off-limits third floor viewing platform.

Topics discussed — Egyptian Fads in the Victorian Period, Superstitions Surrounding Cauls, Grand Tours, Alligator Pits.