While the weather did not always cooperate and ticket sales were not exactly through the roof, those who participated in the inaugural run of “Tapestry: A Living History of Vicksburg” are calling the new spring tourism emphasis successful and they plan to build on it.

“It exceeded our expectations for the first year,” said Carolyn Stephenson, Annabelle Bed and Breakfast owner and Vicksburg Bed and Breakfast Association president. “We have received nothing but accolades for what we have done and we will definitely go forward with this format.”

Without counting tickets sold at individual homes participating in Tapestry, a total of 157 tickets were purchased at the main ticket outlet, Stephenson said.

Tapestry was created by a group of bed and breakfast owners and Vicksburg Convention and Visitors Bureau Executive Director Bill Seratt to replace and add more dimensions to the Pilgrimage series, which was scrapped in October after more than 50 years.

Promoted intensely by the VCVB, Tapestry closed Monday after four consecutive weekends of home tours, demonstrations and evening events at 16 properties in Vicksburg. The first weekend was slow due to thunderstorms, Stephenson said, but the weather and attendance got progressively better each weekend.

“It was much more well-attended by local people than Pilgrimage ever had been in the past,” she said. “It was heartwarming to see that local support and it was due to the presentations.”

All of the properties participating in Tapestry added interpretive events to their traditional home tour, and had one scheduled presentation each of the four weekends. Among them were jewelry-making and stained-glass workshops, as well as a presentation on the history of the Vicksburg slave trade and demonstrations of Civil War-era surgical techniques. Tour home operators dressed in period clothing for the presentations.

“It was about what we expected, but we did not expect miracles,” said Harry Sharp, owner of The Duff Green Mansion. “The encouraging and rewarding part was the people who came were extremely interested and appreciative of the presentations.”

Sharp said heydays for tour homes were in the early 1990s. Back then, as many as 50 to 60 tourists would pass through Duff Green to admire the antebellum architecture and furnishings on an average day. By last spring, when the final Pilgrimage took place, Sharp said there were days when he did not receive a single visitor. 

Sharp’s best Tapestry day drew in 17 people. Stephenson said she averaged 15 to 20 visitors at her home each day. Both said they prefer the Tapestry format over Pilgrimage, whereby they can focus on one hourlong presentation per week instead of keeping their homes open all day.  Both also believe attendance will increase as Tapestry develops a brand regionally and evolves through the years.

“I think next year will be a phenomenal year, and we will see a dramatic increase in attendance,” Sharp said. “Bill Seratt and Carolyn Stephenson, who have worked so hard to put this together, will have a whole year to market it.”

The VCVB spent about $25,000 designing a 12-page glossy brochure, purchasing advertising across the South and hiring a public relations firm to promote Tapestry to about 600 news outlets regionally. Considering the VCVB and participants only had a few months to promote the new brand of home tours, Seratt said he was encouraged by the ticket sales but added the event needs more work to meet its full potential.

“This year was really a matter of getting the word out. There weren’t throngs of people, but for a dress rehearsal of what we hope Tapestry will be for many years to come, we were very pleased,” he said. “The brand has to be built upon. There will be some modifications to the overall program and work will begin immediately to build a stronger program for next year, but the bottom line is was Pilgrimage doing any better.”

Seratt said ticket sales and attendance only tell one side of the Tapestry story. The biggest success of the event, he said, was the spirit of cooperation the stakeholders showed in coming together to develop the home tour series.

“Everybody told me when I got here, ‘You’ll never get these people to work together,’” said Seratt, who came to Vicksburg in April 2007 to head the VCVB. “Tapestry has proved the naysayers wrong. This town is eager to work together to present and promote itself as a cultural heritage tourism destination.

Stephenson said a home tour series with demonstrations similar to Tapestry is being planned for November, and will likely carry a Christmas theme. She hopes more homeowners will want to participate in the event, as well as next year’s Tapestry.

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Contact Steve Sanoski at ssanoski@vicksburgpost.com