The John Ford Home is the elevated, frontier-style home of one of Columbia’s first settlers. It was built in 1809 by the Rev. John Ford. According to the National Register of Historic Places, the house is a classic example of the architectural style popular in the lower Mississippi Valley along the Pearl River. The house has played host to several important visitors in its near 100-year history, including the Second Annual Conference of the Methodist Church in the Mississippi Territory in 1814. The conference met at the Ford home again for its sixth annual convention in 1818. In November 1842, Gen. Andrew Jackson spent the night there in preparation for the Battle of New Orleans. The home and its property were sold to the Marion County Historical Society in 1962 and are open for tours on the weekends and during the week by appointment.