Belmont Mansion

The Belmont Mansion, located on the Campus of Belmont University is rich, both in history, and in wealth. It astounded me how one lady could have so much stuff when living in the era that Adelicia Acklen lived in – an era where men and women were not equal. Adelicia Acklen had not only this property, which spanned not only across what we call Belmont’s campus today, but farther. She also had much more property in other places like Louisiana. She was so cultured and clearly valued her social status, which was evident in all of the items in her house. She had a copy of a young self-portrait of Rembrandt in her dining room, as well as a very large portrait of a young Queen Victoria on the grand staircase. These things, along with all the other aspects of the house show the grandiose appearance, and the riches this woman had.

Upstairs in the mansion was the newly restored children’s bedrooms. There was a crib, and two large canopy beds in the bedrooms once again with beautiful, intricate detailing on the frames. Adelicia Acklen did not have anything cheap—even her children’s chess set that was to be played, and not seen by guests, was magnificent. The history of all the items in the house is truly remarkable in many ways—especially since women were viewed so low in that generation.