unleith stands on the site originally occupied by "Routhland," a
house built by Job Routh and his wife during the late 18th century. Their
daughter, Mary, a widow at only fifteen years of age, took Charles Dahlgren
as her second husband and inherited the house.
Tragic circumstances led to the naming of Dunleith. In 1855 lightning
struck a chimney, and Routhland burned to the ground. Dahlgren built a new
house in its place in 1856, but his young wife died just three years later.
In order to settle the estate, Charles sold the house to Alfred Vidal Davis
for $30,000, and Davis gave the house the Scottish name of Dunleith.
Traditionally, a newly engaged daughter would inscribe her name in a
window pane with the diamond of her ring. A look at some of Dunleith's
panes provides anecdotal evidence of one of its most prominent owners,
Joseph Carpenter, who purchased the home in 1886 and whose family played
host to some of the most lavish social gatherings in Natchez, including
the engagement parties of his daughters.
William F. Heins purchased the home in 1976 and operated a bed and
breakfast there. In 1999, Mrs. Edward Worley and her son, Michael Worley,
purchased the house and immediately undertook a large-scale restoration and
renovation.
Dunleith is set upon forty acres, which also includes a carriage house,
dairy barn, poultry house and three-story brick dependency. The dependency
features a nineteenth-century toilet and bathtub, which were considered to
be rare amenities for the time.
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