| There is perhaps no other historic structure in Mississippi which enjoys such remarkable integrity as Lansdowne, a highly significant Greek Revival residence located three miles north of Natchez. When it was constructed c.1853, the interior was lavishly decorated in the prevailing Rococo Revival taste with many items imported from Europe along with domestic arts and manufactures. The most significant feature of the interior scheme is the Zuber "fresco paper," which, according to Catherine L. Frangiamore, may be the only example of this popular mid-nineteenth-century treatment to survive in an American house. In addition, original draperies, furniture, graining, marbling, hardware, and fixtures, although often tattered and worn, have been carefully preserved by three generations of the Marshall family, who have occupied Lansdowne since it was constructed. Because of their responsible stewardship, this remarkable document has survived as one of the nation's most significant examples of a sophisticated Rococo Revival interior scheme. The house retains several outbuildings, including two two-story brick dependencies, a smokehouse, and a play-house. This house was listed on the National Register on 24 July 1978, with 20.5 acres of land. Lansdowne is the subject of an article by Regina Cole, 'Plantation Classic,' in the Spring 1996 issue of "Old House Interiors" magazine. It is included in "A Guide to Early American Homes – South" (1956), "Shrines to Yesterday" (1968), "The Majesty of Natchez" (1969/1981/1986) (pp. 30-31), "Old Homes of Mississippi, Volume I: Natchez and the South" (1977) (pp. 49-50), "The Great Houses of Natchez" (1986) (pp. 60-61), "Classic Natchez" (1996) (pp. 120-123), "Natchez Images, 1880-1960" (2002) (p. 51), "Natchez: Houses and History …" (2003) (pp. 136-141), and "Louisiana Architecture 1840-1860" (2006) (pp. 394-396). |