Demopolis: Gaineswood

It took 18 years for owner and amateur designer Nathan Whitfield to build Gaineswood, his vast plantation home in Demopolis completed in 1861 on the eve of the Civil War. The exterior features 18 fluted Doric columns and 14 plain square pillars that support three porches, the main portico and the coach gate. Inside the Greek Revival-style home are a series of suites with domed ceilings. Three of the original outbuildings survive. Typical of most antebellum mansions, Gaineswood was built primarily with slave labor. Gaineswood today is a museum operated by the Alabama Historical Commission.

Photo Credit: Lewis Kennedy