Dr. Robert Clingan is so proud of the work his wife, Joyce, has overseen at their home, the 1906 Great Hope Manor on Cherry Street, that he’ll be happy to show it off when the third annual Tapestry begins this week.

Likewise, Steve and Donna Saunders think opening to the public their 1903 home on Cherry at South Street will entice others to buy into purchasing old houses in Vicksburg.

“We love living here and we want to share it,” said Donna Saunders. “We want to encourage people who are thinking about buying old houses.”

The two homes, the Blum-Levy Home at 1420 Cherry and the Craig-Flowers — or Great Hope — at 2011 Cherry, are the newest additions to the list of 16 historic homes and buildings that will be showcased beginning Friday.

Sponsored by the Vicksburg Bed and Breakfast Association and the Vicksburg Convention and Visitors Bureau, Tapestry tells the story of local structures from the antebellum era through the Civil War and into the 20th century.

Before 2009 the event was known as the Vicksburg Pilgrimage, but after a decline in ticket sales, the bed and breakfast association decided to go with a new theme.

“The pilgrimage had run its course,” association vice president Betty Bullard said. “In this age of credible information, we needed to be more attuned to what people wanted.”

After the 2008 Pilgrimage averaged only three people per day, the association considered not running a program at all the next year.

“The idea behind Tapestry is the many different threads that run through this community form a picture or tapestry,” Bullard said.

The program’s popularity jumped significantly from the first to second season with 700 tickets being sold in 2010 vs. 157 in 2009, association president Carolyn Stephenson said.

“We are looking for Tapestry to not only attract tourists, but locals as well,” Stephenson said. “Some locals will say that they have been in a certain house, but if that was 10 years ago, the decor could be completely changed.”

“We are looking for it to grow even more this year,” Bullard said. “We have a big study going on and we have had a secret shopper to find out where we are weak. We also have another study that has not been completed yet to find out what people want.”

Other changes include the addition of new programs and properties and moving the program’s start date from mid-March to the beginning of April, in the hopes of more favorable weather.

The Blum-Levy House, which the Saunderses have owned for five years, was designed by Theodore Link, a St. Louis architect who also is credited with designing the Capitol building in Jackson and several buildings on the campuses of Mississippi State University, the University of Mississippi and Louisiana State University.

Construction was started by Simon Blum, who died before the home was finished. His widow and children moved in when it was completed. One of Blum’s daughters married into the Levy family and took up residence at the home. The house stayed under the ownership of the Levy family until the late 1990s, when it was bought by Laurence Leyens who restored and updated the house. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the home is considered one of the best examples of neoclassical revival style architecture in Vicksburg.

The Craig-Flowers Home’s three floors cover 14,000 square feet and contain 13 fireplaces, seven bathrooms, an American walnut staircase, original stained glass windows and lighting and J.L. Mott bath fixtures.

It was built by a cotton broker and farmer named W.C. Craig who was living in Yazoo County in 1898 when two of his children died during a yellow fever outbreak. He decided to move his wife and five children out of the swamps, Robert Clingan said.

Craig bought and demolished a two-story brick house that had belonged to John Wesley Vick, the son of Vicksburg founder Newit Vick. Craig then hired New York architect W.W. Knowles to design a house suitable for his family.

It was renamed Great Hope Manor because on one of the original stained glass windows is the Craig family crest which translates from French, “I have great hope.”

“My wife has done a lot of decorating, and it is in the best shape it’s been in a long time,” Clingan said. “It is a place that people should see. It was built to live in and entertain.”

Two special programs will also be added to the Tapestry mix this year. A bridal tea ,with all of the traditional delicacies of high tea, will be at the George Washington Ball House at 4 p.m. Sunday. Local models will appear in vintage wedding gowns and accessories. The cost is $20.

Also featured will be an Old Town walking tour on Fridays and Saturdays throughout the montth, except for April 22. The tour starts at Christ Episcopal Church on Main Street and will last about an hour. It will highlight the history of 25 homes and establishments in that area. Tickets are $15.

Tickets to the special events are sold separately from the tours.

All tickets are available at each venue and at the Vicksburg Convention & Visitors Bureau.

                                                                                               

If you go

Tickets are $30 for three homes or $15 for one home. New features this year will be a traditional bridal high tea at 4 p.m. Sunday at the George Washington Ball House. Tickets are $20. Another event will be a walking tour through historic districts around Christ Episcopal Church on Main Street. Tours will start at 6 p.m. each Friday in April except the 22nd and every Saturday. Tickets are $15. All tickets are available at each venue and at the Vicksburg Convention & Visitors Bureau.

Throughout the month of April each house will be open on certain days of the week.

• Sundays except Easter: Old Court House Museum, 1008 Cherry St., tours led by local author Gordon Cotton will begin at 1 p.m.

Duff Green Mansion, 1114 First East St., 2:30 p.m.

• Mondays: Jacqueline House African-American Museum, 1325 Main St., 9:30 a.m.

Baer House Inn, 1117 Grove St., 11 a.m.

Shlenker House, 2212 Cherry St., 1 p.m.

• Tuesdays: Martha Vick House, 1300 Grove St., 9:30 a.m.

The Mary Harwood, 600 Fort Hill Drive, 11 a.m.

Old Court House Museum, 1 p.m.

Duff Green Mansion, 1114 First East St., 2:30 p.m.

George Washington Ball House, 921 Main St., 4  p.m.

• Wednesdays: Jacqueline House African-American Museum, 1325 Main St., 9:30 a.m.

Anchuca, 1010 First East St., 11 a.m.

Martha Vick House, 1300 Grove St., 9:30 a.m.

Blum-Levy House, 1420 Cherry St., 2:30 p.m.

Great Hope Manor, 2011 Cherry St., 4 p.m.

• Thursdays: George Washington Ball House, 921 Main St., 9:30  p.m.

Cobb House, 1302 Adams St., 11 a.m.

The Corners Mansion Inn, 601 Klein St., 1 p.m.

Annabelle, 501 Speed St., 2:30 p.m.

Cedar Grove Mansion Inn, 2200 Oak St., 4 p.m.

• Fridays: Cobb House, 1302 Adams St., 9:30 a.m.

Shlenker House, 2212 Cherry St., 11 a.m.

The Corners Mansion Inn, 601 Klein St., 1 p.m.

Annabelle, 501 Speed St., 2:30 p.m.

Cedar Grove Mansion Inn, 2200 Oak St., 4 p.m.

Maggio Historic Tours at Christ Episcopal Church, 6 p.m.

• Saturdays: The Mary Harwood, 600 Fort Hill Drive, 9:30 a.m.

Anchuca, 1010 First East St., 11 a.m.

Baer House Inn, 1117 Grove St., 1 p.m.

Blum-Levy House, 1420 Cherry St., 2:30 p.m.

Great Hope Manor, 2011 Cherry St., 4 p.m.