Our History

Green Leaves was built in 1838 by Edward P. Fourniquet, a Natchez lawyer who built a number of homes in the area. It was constructed in the Greek Revival architectural style, which is modeled on ancient Greek architecture. In 1849, the home was purchased by George Washington Koontz, a banker. Koontz married Mary Roane Beltzhoover, and they had eight children and expanded the house to accommodate their family. Their youngest daughter, Virginia Lee Koontz Beltzhoover, inherited the home, and six generations later, Green Leaves is still owned by the descendants of George and Mary Koontz. The home was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. 

Green Leaves contains original family portraits, furniture, books, china, decorations, documents, and a wide variety of family heirlooms. From a British cavalry sword from the Battle of Waterloo now used to cut wedding cakes, to a set of china which was once believed to have been painted by John James Audubon, Green Leaves is a living museum to life in the 19th century South. The backyard is shaded by a massive live oak that is more than 400 years old which legend says the Natchez people held council under. The front yard contains a smaller live oak that is more than 200 years old, and one of the largest magnolia trees in the world. The gardens were designed in 1928 by landscape architect Paul L. Mueller. Here you will find a diversity of flowering plants, including a wide variety of camellias and azaleas, some planted as early as the 1920s and 1930s and still cared for to this day.