12/12/2024
Ravennaside is an outstanding example of Neo-Classical residential architecture. It js noteworthy as the former home of Roane Fleming Byrnes (1890-1970), internationally known for her promotion of the Natchez Trace Parkway. Ravennaside was built by Mrs. Byrnes' parents, Anna Metealfe Fleming and James S. Fleming. The site adjoins the property of Ravenna (ca. 1837), home of the Metealfe family since 1857. Roane,eldest child of Anna and James, was twelve in 1902 when her family moved from Ravenna intotheir new house, Ravennaside. In 1917 Roane married Charles Ferriday Byrnes, and they lived with her parents and brother at Ravennaside. In 1943 Mrs. Byrnes inherited thehouse, which she occupied until her death in 1970. Mrs. Byrnes became associated with the Mississippi Natchez Trace Association in 1934 and served as president of the organization from 1935 until a few months before her death. Onbehalf of the Trace, she wrote letters, sent telegrams, entertained whatever she felt was necessary to promote the Natchez Trace Parkway on local, state, national, and internationallevels. She was recognized in 1936 for her efforts toward getting a $500,000 bill for right-of-way purchases through the Mississippi legislature. On May 13, 1938, the Natchez Trace Parkway became a permanent part of the National Park Service. The pen used by Pres-ident Franklin D. Roosevelt to sign the bill into law was sent to Mrs. Byrnes and kept in the Trace Room at Ravennaside. The American Association for State and Local History selected Mrs. Byrnes.for an Award of .Merit in 1966. The citation read: "For the leadership that led to the creation and development of the Natchez Trace Parkway of the National Park Service." Mrs. Byrnes was also active in the areas of historic preservation and race relations. She was a charter member of the Garden Club and promoted the tour of homeswhich evolved into the annual Pilgrimage. She was instrumental in the preservation of Connelly's Tavern, the Priest House, and Lawyers' Lodge. For a woman of her time andplace, Mrs. Byrnes was advanced in her view of racial harmony. She made frequent contributions to black churches and worked with the Negro Civic and Business League in Natchez to finance a community center for young African Americans . In 1960 she called on her fellow citizens to support the Mary Lynch Fund, which sponsored a young African American woman in the Ninth International Games for the Deaf in Helsinki. Mrs. Byrnes stated her philosophy: "I hate those words communism, integration, and segregation. I like the word, friendship. That's what we are working for" (Buck Peden, "Down the Middle,, " Natchez Times, Mar. 19, 1961).At Mrs. Byrnes' funeral service in 1970, black and white members of the clergy formed the cortège. Now lovingly owned and maintained by Wanda and Ricky Smith
