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Voted the best annual event in Mississippi by readers of Mississippi Magazine. The Balloon Race happens every year on the third weekend of October. Two flights take place each day, in addition to a "balloon glow" Friday night and great musical acts all weekend. The actual festival takes place on the grounds of Rosalie Mansion, and you can catch a great view of the balloons from many places around town. Make your reservations for a room early as this is a very busy weekend in Natchez.
Longwood is probably the most famous of the antebellum mansions in Natchez. It is the largest octagonal (eight-sided) house in the United States. Construction of Longwood was started in 1860. When the Civil War broke out in 1861, all of the workers (who were from Pennsylvania) returned to the north, leaving the house unfinished. Dr. Haller Nutt, the owner of the house, finished out the basement (6000 sq feet) for his family to live in. Dr. Nutt died of pneumonia in 1864 without ever having finished the house, and the upper floors of the house remain unfinished to this day. The house was donated to the Pilgrimage Garden Club in the 1970s and is on tour daily.