These 23 Haunting Columns Are All That’s Left of Mississippi’s Grandest Greek Revival Antebellum Mansion

The Windsor Ruins, Mississippi

These ruins looks like someone dropped a piece of Greece into a Mississippi forest. They’re the only things left from a majestic 1861 mansion that survived the Civil War but got taken down by a party guest’s cigar. Here are some interesting facts about the Windsor Ruins at Rodney Road, Port Gibson.

Over 100 Workers Built This Mansion

Building Windsor Mansion needed more than 100 skilled craftsmen and enslaved workers between 1859 and 1861. The architect David Shroder supervised a crew of skilled artisans to construct each column made from an onsite kiln and used techniques that included layering mortar and plaster.

The fluted columns were later crowned with ornate, iron Corinthian capitals by metalworkers from St.Louise. The mansion contained 25 rooms with fireplaces and mantels made of Georgia and Tennessee marble, including ebony-framed mirrors.

The Owner Died Just Weeks After Completion

Smith Coffee Daniell II watched every step of Windsor’s construction with great care. Sadly, he only got to enjoy his dream home for a few weeks before he died in April 1861 at just 34 years old.

At the time of his death, Daniell owned extensive plantation lands totaling 21,000 acres across Mississippi and Louisiana. After his death, his wife Catherine stayed in the mansion and kept running the estate while raising their children.

It Was a Lookout Post During the Civil War

The mansion’s elevated position made it strategically valuable for the Union Army during the war. They turned the mansion’s high observatory into a lookout post since you could see the Mississippi River clearly from up there.

From 60 feet above the ground, the cupola was used by both Confederate and Union forces for signaling and observing troop movements, including the Battle of Port Gibson in May 1863.

It Was Hidden Hospital for Union Troops

Not many people knew about what went on beneath Windsor during the war. The large basement under the mansion became a secret hospital for Union soldiers. The thick brick walls kept the temperature steady, making it a good place to care for injured soldiers. They say more than 300 to 400 soldiers received care there.

The Original Building Plans Went Up in Flames

When the fire destroyed the mansion in 1890, it probably took all the building plans with it. Only three photographs from the 1880s show what the complete mansion looked like.

In 1991, a sketch of Windsor Mansion made by Union officer Henry Otis Dwight in 1863 was discovered. The mansion’s design included an above-level basement containing a school room, dairy, and supply rooms.

The Columns Are Over a Century Old

The columns that still stand at Windsor have withstood over 150 years of exposure. Each one was covered with stucco and inside each column, wooden pegs and iron rods work together, about 40 feet tall. They sit on top of 10-foot-tall, paneled brick plinths that were almost 5 feet square. The remaining structure includes 23 Corinthian columns.

It’s Blending Into the Forest

Over time, nature has claimed Windsor as its own. Virginia creepers and trumpet vines now grow on the old columns, along with soft green moss. The ruins sit in a forest of magnolia trees, oaks, and cedars that have grown up around them. When spring comes, you’ll see bluebells and primroses blooming between the columns.

You Can See for Miles from the Observatory

Windsor’s roof observatory had a roof section that could turn and special tools for looking at the stars. Standing in the observatory, you could spot steamboats three miles away.

It was the highest point between two major cities, Natchez and Vicksburg, letting you see about 25 miles in any direction. Mark Twain is said to have visited Windsor and used its observatory to observe the Mississippi River.

These Ruins Appeared in Famous Movies

Movie directors have found Windsor Mansion’s Greek Revival style perfect for their films since the 1950s. The columns played a big part in the 1957 movie ‘Raintree County’ with Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift.

The ruins also make an ideal background for horror films like the 1996 movie ‘Ghosts of Mississippi’ and other historical documentaries based around the Civil War.

Combined Different Building Styles

When you look at old photos of Windsor, you can see it involved artisans from New England and Europe. The builders paired Greek-style columns with Italian-inspired brackets.

The mansion includes a covered entrance and a gabled roof. Windsor exhibits a symmetrical façade lined with deep porches, high ceilings, and transom windows. The iron components, including column capitals and balustrades, were manufactured in St. Louis.

The Iron Stairs Tell Their Own Story

Among the ruins, you can still see the iron staircase that once led to Windsor’s front door. These stairs show off detailed patterns that were very modern for the 1860s.

Workers made the stairs in St. Louis and shipped them by steamboat down the Mississippi River. They’re one of the few parts of the mansion that survived both the fire and time.