Varina Anne “Winnie” Davis Memorial Room
Margaret Davis Hayes Memorial Room
MRS. DAVIS ROOM
This room, opening into Jefferson Davis’ room, has the added attraction of having in it two of the five closets in Beauvoir House, as well as a north window overlooking Mrs. Davis’ rose garden. The original furnishings are the armoire, sewing machine, spool washstand table, washstand set, the candle stand or bedside table, and a treasured book, “Manual of Family Devotion”, presented to Mrs. Davis by Bishop C. T. Quintard (Bishop of Tennessee—1865-1898), and inscribed as follows: “To Mrs. Davis with God’s blessing from C. T. Quintard”. The sampler over the mantel was made by a granddaughter out of a black alpaca dress that belonged to Mrs. Davis. The wild turkey feather fan, displayed in a frame, was made for and used by Mrs. Davis. Two interesting pictures in the room are the picture of the Davis children made in 1865, and the one of Jefferson Davis, Jr., the last one made of him before he died.
DINING ROOM
The table, chairs, and large sideboard in the dining room are original Davis pieces, given to Judge and Mrs. A. McC. Kimbrough of Greenwood, Mississippi and the Gulf Coast, when Beauvoir was dismantled. They were kept intact by them as long as they lived, and by their family after their deaths. Later, responding to the need of these original pieces in making Beauvoir a Jefferson Davis Shrine, the Kimbrough family loaned them for use in their original setting. The painting on the board, forming a part of the mantel in this small but attractive dining room, was done by Winnie Davis. Draperies and glass curtains are replacements.
BUTLER’S PANTRY AND CHILDREN’S DINING ROOM
These rooms have been restored to their original state. In the children’s dining room separated from the well arranged butler’s pantry by a partial partition are a round oak table and chairs in a size suitable for children. The willow ware seen on the shelves was used by the Davis family when they lived at Beauvoir. The original kitchen, used first by the Brown family then the Davis family, was burned about 1927. A covered walkway connected the old kitchen with Beauvoir House, where the back stairway led to the butler’s pantry for dining room service.