Could Jefferson Davis and his beloved wife, Varina, return to The Briers today they would be pleased to find it in a perfect state of preservation.

“The Briers”, a typical story-and-a-half country home, was given to Louise Kemp at the time of her marriage to William Burr Howell, who was a cousin of Aaron Burr. And here Varina Howell was born May 7, 1826. This home was the scene of Varina’s marriage to Jefferson Davis on February 12, 1845. Mr. Davis later became “President of the Confederacy”.

The house is situated on a knoll overlooking the Mississippi river, with a view of the cotton lands of Louisiana. The view of the Mississippi shown in the end papers was taken from the lawn of this house. It stands in the center of a forest of oak, pine, and pecan trees, and can be reached by only one narrow winding roadway, through deep woods, around bayous and ravines, hanging heavy with bushes and brambles. The house is quite similar to the Virginia type of country home.

When the present owner, Mrs. W. W. Wall, purchased The Briers a few years ago, it was in a sad state of dilapidation. By great and loving labor, and generous expenditure of money and time, The Briers today is in perfect condition. It is now a charming credit to Natchez and to the memory of Jefferson Davis and his wife, Varina.

The early architectural lines have been followed and materials similar to the original ones have been used. The broad veranda across the entire front, with many small wooden pillars and hand-turned spindle bannisters, the wide entrance steps, the quaint old dormer windows with their 12-pane sashes and heavy green blinds, form the perfect picture of the original plantation home of the Howells and Jefferson Davis.

The simplicity of the floor plan is pleasing. The furniture includes many reproductions of rare original pieces. There is a restful, sacred serenity in The Briers worthy of its illustrious original owners.

For the pleasure of visitors from the outside world, the present mistress keeps open house throughout the year, and hundreds of interested persons from every part of the United States pass through the portals of this home—the shrine of Jefferson Davis and Varina Howell.