Natchez in Adams County, Mississippi — The American South (East South Central)
Prentiss Club
211 North Pearl Street
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, June 24, 2025
1. Prentiss Club Marker
placed on the
National Register
of Historic Places
by the United States
Department of the Interior
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Fraternal or Sororal Organizations. In addition, it is included in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1905.
Location. 31° 33.692′ N, 91° 24.106′ W. Marker is in Natchez, Mississippi, in Adams County. It is on North Pearl Street. The marker is mounted on the Prentiss Club building, on the right side of the west/front entrance. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 211 North Pearl Street, Natchez MS 39120, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Southwest Mississippi and in Natchez Trace Corridor. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Deep South, and in the Great River Road Region. Globally, it is in North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain, the Viceroyalty of New France, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Intersection of Jefferson and North Pearl streets (a few steps from this marker); Intersection of North Pearl and Franklin streets (within shouting distance of this marker); Old Natchez Hotel (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Dr. Dubs Town House (about 400 feet away); Intersection of High and North Pearl streets (about 400 feet away); Andrew Marschalk (about 500 feet away); Site of Cokesbury Chapel
this page online
Regarding Prentiss Club. National Register of Historic Places № 79001298. Also a contributing property in Natchez On-Top-of-the-Hill Historic District, NRHP № 79003381.
From the National Register Nomination prepared by William C. Allen & Mary Warren Miller, 11/25/1978:
The Prentiss Club is a large L-shaped structure. Its two principal elevations, which face west and north, are designed in the Second Renaissance Revival style, with arched fenestration, loggias, sculptured decoration, bracketed eaves, and a low hipped roof covered with red tiles.
The facade, or west elevation, is divided horizontally into three successively taller sections: a raised terrace surrounded by a wooden balustrade between pedestals, a low entrance level, and a high main floor, or piano nobile. Flanked by pairs of glazed-double-leaf doors opening onto the terrace, the main entrance consists of a simple double-leaf paneled-oak door, recessed behind a screen of columns, pilastered piers, and an open frontispiece, which is designed with an arched pediment framing a center disk bearing the monogram of the club. Egg-and-dartmoldings and carved acroteria are additional ornaments of the handsome frontispiece.Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, June 24, 20252. Prentiss Club MarkerThe marker is mounted at eye level on the right side of the front entrance.
The principal, or second floor, is lit by four arched casement windows, the outer two of which are extended to the floor to provide access to small balconies supported by consoles. Adamesque pilasters, decorated with lyres, vases, and floral motifs, flank each window and support archivolts capped with large acroteria.
The north elevation, which fronts onto Jefferson Street, is designed with a less formal ground floor, with both casement and six-over-one double-hung windows flanking an off-center recessed doorway. To promote the image of the ground floor as the podium for the piano nobile above, the brick veneer is laid to simulate wide bands of masonry. Placed in the center of the upper level is a three-bay loggia with arches springing from pairs of coupled Tuscan columns. Like the large casement windows which flank it, the loggia is detailed with the same Adamesque motifs found on the principal elevation. The interior of the ground floor of the Prentiss Club includes three large rooms, used originally as a library, club room, and billiard room.
The clubhouse of the Prentiss Club, a private men's organization chartered by the State of Mississippi in 1903, is architecturally probably the most significant public building constructed in Natchez in the present century. Erected in 1905 inthe Second Renaissance Revival style, the building is one of the finest examples of the style in the state and certainly the best example in Natchez. Named in honor of Seargent Prentiss, a Natchez attorney and nationally acclaimed orator, the club was the center for much of the social activity in Natchez until the opening of the Eola Hotel in 1927. The ten charter members of the club, which was created for social and literary purposes, were primarily professional men and merchants who lived in the downtown area.Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, June 24, 20253. Prentiss Club (northwest elevation)
The facility, erected at a cost of $35,000, was designed by the New Orleans architectural firm of Soule and MacDonald, and was constructed by the local contracting firm of Stietenroth and Dowda.
In 1928 the facility was sold to local Masonic lodges to be used as a Masonic temple. Deposit Guaranty National Bank, one of the largest banking institutions in the state, purchased the property in 1973, and in 1976, arguing that it had unsuccessfully attempted to sell the Prentiss Club and that the building was unattractive and a public nuisance, applied to the City of Natchez for a permit to raze the structure for parking space. After intervention by local preservationists, who successfully blocked demolition, the property was acquired by the present owners, who initiated a compatible rehabilitation of the prominent downtown property.
Also see . . .
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, June 24, 2025
4. Prentiss Club (north elevation)
(By Natchez Democrat Staff, 5/15/2023, includes video tour) Excerpt: While the Historic Natchez Foundation, which owns the building, has worked to restore its exterior and shore up the stability of the interior, not done much else has happened since it burned on Sept. 2, 2018. And ownership of the Prentiss Club requires more than simply ponying up $80,000. Historic Natchez Foundation will also need to know the proposed use of the property, timeline for completing the rehabilitation and the new owners financial ability to complete the rehabilitation. Carter Burns, Historic Natchez Foundation executive director, estimates rehab of the building will require $800,000 to $1 million. Throughout its life, the building has served a variety of uses. Built as a private club, it has been a restaurant, nightclub, event venue, Masonic lodge, and a luxurious private residence when interior designer and antiques dealer Buzz Harper lived in the building and decorated it in his signature ornate style, Burns said in the press release.(Submitted on February 8, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, June 24, 2025
5. Prentiss Club (southwest elevation)
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, June 24, 2025
6. Prentiss Club
Credits. This page was last revised on March 3, 2026. It was originally submitted on February 4, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 58 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on February 8, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
