A Walk Through Time- The Long Mansion in Cordova

This historic antebellum mansion overlooking the town of Cordova was once the stately home of Captain Benjamin McFarland Long. Thought to have been built around 1883-85, the yellow heart pine used in the construction of this Greek revival-style home was hauled to Cordova by ox cart from Shield’s Mill on Blackwater Creek.A native of Carrollton, Georgia, Captain Long had fought in the Mexican war (1846-1848) under Robert E. Lee and served in the Confederacy. When Long came to Walker County around 1855, Cordova was a small village known as Dent. In 1859, Long changed its name to Cordova after a Mexican town. His relatives supposedly told the story that Capt. Long was wounded and rendered unconscious in the Mexican war. When he regained consciousness, he heard birds singing and saw flowers blooming amid beautiful scenery. Believing he had died and gone to Heaven, Long asked a nurse where he was and was told “Cordova.”Captain Long’s daughter, Lou, was said to have carved her name and date on a pane of the fanlight flanking the front doorway and second story hall.After being sold in 1969, the house passed through several owners. In April 2011, it suffered extensive damage when two tornadoes ripped through Cordova in the same day. In August 2011, it was purchased by Cordova native and Jasper attorney Andrea Lewis Pate. The Long House has undergone several renovations since 2011, including the addition of a new roof and replacement of the east wall. In 2018, the house became the wedding venue of Cordova natives Cathy Wylie Savage and Michael Stewart, who exchanged vows on the front lawn.