CARROLLTON, Miss. — One of the oldest homes in Carroll County, and all of Mississippi for that matter, has changed hands this month.
The Cotesworth Greek Revival mansion has been sold from the George family, who has owned it since it was built around 150 years ago, to the Cotesworth Culture and Heritage Center.
“It belonged to J.Z. George who was a Mississippi Supreme Court Justice and a U.S. Senator,” said historian Mary Carol Miller. “One of the main movers and shakers of the nineteenth century.”
She said it’s an extremely rare type of house for that part of the state, and there’s a little known fact about it that most Mississippians don’t know.
“The Mississippi constitution that we still operate under was written at the house,” she said. “We still have the table where it was hammered out basically.”
The primary mission now for the CCHC will be to share the history and culture of the Cotesworth and J.Z. George library, which sits just a bit away from the house, with the public.
“It will be a very unique place where Mississippians come come to learn about architectural history, agricultural history, pioneer skills, and life in the 1900’s,” said Miller. “It will be a learning center.”
It has been about four years in the making to acquire the property for the CCHC and in 2013 the Mississippi Legislature passed a $2 million bond bill to underwrite the purchase of the mansion.
