The Majestic Magnolia

Our Story

SINCE 1874

The Oldest Home in Hot Springs

Captain George Gray Latta built this house in 1874 for his bride, Fannie Brownlow, a governor's daughter who arrived to find a turret rising above the magnolias. From its hill above Whittington Avenue, the Magnolia has watched Hot Springs grow up around it — the bathhouses, the racetrack, the travelers who came for the waters and stayed for the town.

A century and a half later, the house still keeps her secrets: hand-cut trim, wavy glass, and staircases worn smooth by six generations of hands. Some places carry a spirit. This is one of them.

Historic drawing of the Majestic Magnolia

FROM THE ARCHIVES

A Wedding at the House, 1876

[1876 wedding article text goes here — Rie will provide. Placeholder: Two years after the house rose on Whittington Avenue, it hosted its first celebration…]

THE HOUSE ON PAPER

Drawn Before Photographed

The Magnolia has been sketched, drawn, and painted for a century and a half — long before every guest carried a camera. These drawings from the house's archive show her as artists saw her.

Historic drawing of the house

THE RESTORATION

A House Coming Back to Life

1874 — 2020s The Magnolia before restoration

The Sleeping House

A century and a half of weather, wars, and waiting. The bones held. The turret never fell. The house waited for someone to see it.

Now Restoration in progress

The Waking

Suite by suite, season by season: original trim uncovered, floors brought back, two suites open and welcoming guests while the work goes on.

Next Rendering of the completed Magnolia at night

The Grand Return

Eight suites. A wedding lawn under string lights. A stage, a Southern kitchen, and a veranda full of people again.

THE VISION

Where 1874 Meets the Future

The Majestic Magnolia is being returned to its full glory one room, one story, one season at a time. Coming: a wedding and event venue on the grand curved veranda, a curated pantry and shop, and gardens that give the whole block its evenings back.

Inquire & Follow Along
Rendering of the restored Majestic Magnolia
Front approach rendering Veranda event rendering Evening event rendering

Architectural renderings of the completed restoration — wedding and event venue, gardens, and all eight suites.