Our long weekend is coming to an end, but fortunately, we are less than 4.5 hours from home so there was still time left to enjoy some sights. This morning we headed to Biloxi, MS. We started at the Biloxi Visitor's Center (well worth the stop) and a tour of the
Biloxi Lighthouse.
The Biloxi Lighthouse is unique in that it sits in the middle of a major highway through Biloxi. The lighthouse is cast iron and was built in Baltimore, Maryland and arrived in Biloxi in 1848. It has been tended by several lighthouse keepers over the years, including several females. The light was turned out during the civil war so as not to aid the north who was using Ship Island as a launching point. It has withstood many storms, suffering a bit of damage when Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. But even after Hurricane Katrina, it was still standing and thus is a symbol for Biloxi. They offer tours first thing in the morning which gives you a chance to climb to the top and get a view of the gulf and city.
After our tour, we walked out to the beach to get some shots of the shorebirds hanging around.
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| Laughing Gulls |
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| Laughing Gull |
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| Brown Pelican |
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| Brown Pelican |
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| Osprey |
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| Laughing Gulls |
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| Laughing Gulls |
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| Brown Pelicans |
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| Laughing Gull and a Great Blue Heron |
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| Laughing Gull, Osprey, and a Double-crested Cormorant |
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| Brown Pelican |
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| Laughing Gull |
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| Laughing Gull |
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| Brown Pelican - This photo and the next 6 photos show this pelican's strange stretching routine after waking up from a nap. |
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| Brown Pelican, Royal Tern, and a Great Blue Heron |
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| Royal Tern and Brown Pelicans |
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| Laughing Gull |
After checking out the beach, we walked back across the street to the Visitor's Center and watched a really interesting film on Hurricane Katrina. Our timing was perfect as there was a brief rain shower while we were watching the film but by the time we came out, the sun was again peaking through the clouds.
Lunch was at
Slap Ya Mama's Smokehouse and BBQ with seating on the deck right on the beach. Temperatures were in the mid 70s with just a little sun peaking from behind the clouds.
After lunch we visited
Beauvoir, the Jefferson Davis Home and Presidential Library. We took a guided tour of the house he lived in after the Civil War and then walked the grounds which included a cemetery with the grave of the Unknown Confederate Soldier, several small cottages, a museum, and the Jefferson Davis Presidential Library.
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| Museum and Jefferson Davis Presidential Library |
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| Main house |
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| Visitor's cottage - you can actually rent this out by the night |
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| Main house |
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| Another cabin - this is where Jefferson Davis stayed before purchasing the property - he wrote his book here. |
Photos inside the main house
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| A harp in the ladies' sitting room |
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| The mens' sitting room |
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| Men's sitting room |
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| Ladies' sitting room |
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| Jefferson Davis's bedroom |
Around the grounds
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| The kitchen with a covered walkway to the main house |
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| The front of the main house |
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| Cemetery |
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| Tomb of the Unknown Confederate Soldier |
From the museum
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| This carriage carried Jefferson Davis during his funeral procession. |
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| This is the raincoat he was captured in during the Civil War. |
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| Jefferson Davis Presidential Library |
We drove down highway 90 on our way out of Biloxi and enjoyed final views of the beach and Gulf of Mexico before heading north to go home. It was an amazing weekend and we hope to go back again someday.
