Back in 2005, we were in Benoit MS and saw the Hollywood Plantation / J.C. Burris House / “Baby Doll” House. It’s the only antebellum structure in Bolivar County, and is constructed of heart cypress.
It was called the Baby Doll
I’ve read that the reason it survived the war is because Judge Burrus knew the invading Federal officer while he attended UVA. It was also used as a Confederate hospital and headquarters for Confederate officers, including General Jubal Early.
John Wilkes Booth is also said to have lived here for about ten days after shooting President Lincoln (but he was supposedly sixty other places, too, so…).
When the filmmakers for Baby Doll came out to Benoit, they promised the home’s then-owners that in lieu of a fee for shooting, they would make some renovations to the home. Years later, people would come out to the house and actually take pieces of the house as souvenirs from the movie.
The home was placed on the 2001 list of endangered places by the Mississippi Heritage Trust. It’s been under restoration for a few years now, and looks *so* much better now than in the pic above. Here it is.