Video: Aberdeen, Columbus Offer Double Pilgrimage Treat

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ABERDEEN, Miss. (WCBI) — Lovers of history, Southern charm, story telling and good food get a double bonus this weekend. Two of the state’s three oldest pilgrimages are in full swing in Columbus and Aberdeen.

While the Columbus event runs two weeks, Aberdeen’s three-day Southern Heritage tour Friday with a little something for everyone.

The two-week Columbus Pilgrimage is celebrating its 73rd year, making it the oldest in the state. Aberdeen offers its own share of treats this weekend with its 38th annual tour — third oldest in the state — featuring everything from period costumes and historic homes to cemetery tours, dinners and theater performances.

“It’s our chance once a year to show our historical significance and the beautiful architecture of Aberdeen and the town itself,” said Tina Robbins with the Aberdeen Convention and Visitors Bureau.

The eight magnificently preserved antebellum and Victorian homes offer visitors a unique look into the lives and lifestyles of an era gone by. The Old Homestead is a good example, having spent six generations in the same family. And the new owners take pride in carrying on that legacy.

“This house was built in 1852, still has it’s original doors and windows. It has been in one family all the generations, 6 generations until we bought it so it does have a lot of history going all the way back to the Civil War,” noted owner Linda Dodd.

The original owner’s daughter kept a good diary and Dodd says those personal stories make the home even more special for visitors.

“Some of the interesting things concerning the Civil War were the soldiers were eating in the summer kitchen down in the basement and the family hid the prized carriage horses out, put sacks over their heads and they were not taken because they were hidden away,” Dodd said of the many stories she shares with tour guests.

Residents say it’s a real treat for newcomers.

“It’s like coming home and visiting your cousins, the folks that invite you in total stranger and by the time you leave you’ll be friends forever,” Dodd noted.

Aberdeen Pilgrimage will also include carriage rides, story telling in the cemetery, a formal dinner at one of the homes, a Louisiana-style crawfish boil and more. For a complete schedule of events, click the link below:

http://www.aberdeenpilgrimage.com/

Categories: Local News

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