Times have changed. Motor coaches bring dozens of people at a time to spill out onto the grounds of Montaigne during pilgrimage tours. Natchez has many more than one hotel where visitors may stay overnight. And some of the houses opened on the first Pilgrimage, known in the first year as Garden Pilgrimage Week, now operate as bed-and-breakfast inns.

Mary Louise Shields has seen it all. One of the founders of the Pilgrimage in 1932, she was one of the youngest. On Thursday, she celebrated her 100th birthday.

When Natchez Pilgrimage Tours celebrates the 75th anniversary of Pilgrimage early in 2007, she will be the lone representative of that group of garden club members whose pluck and determination beat all the odds &8212; creating a successful tourism event in the middle of an economic depression and in an out-of-the-way small Mississippi town that was anything but easy to find.

Shields &8212; then Mary Louise Kendall, wife of Natchez businessman and civic leader William Kendall &8212; week recalled those first Pilgrimages, reminiscing about preparations and the people who came.

&8220;The first time we talked about opening our houses, Katherine (Miller) said, &8216;we&8217;re going to open our houses to the public,&8217;&8221; Shields recalled. Miller led the club in establishing the Pilgrimage.

&8220;One or two said they just couldn&8217;t do that because they thought their houses were too shabby; they hadn&8217;t had the money to keep them up,&8221; she said.

&8220;But Katherine said, &8216;oh, yes you will,&8217; and she got a group of people and went to those houses and got them ready,&8221; Shields said.

Posters and other advertisements had been sent nationwide. The women hoped for perhaps 50 people to come, Shields said.

&8220;We never dreamed we&8217;d have so many people. I think we had 750 people that first year,&8221; she said.

&8220;There were so many people and with only one hotel, there was no place for some of them to stay,&8221; she said. &8220;We took them into our houses and didn&8217;t charge them anything. It was great fun.&8221;

Pilgrimage is not the only area in which she has been a pioneer. With her husband, William Kendall, she moved to Natchez when his family purchased the Coca-Cola franchise.

&8220;The family owned the business for 80 years,&8221; she said. She was involved and worked in the business for many years. &8220;I loved the business. I have always loved the business world.&8221;

In fact, as a young woman she was interested in studying law. &8220;My mother didn&8217;t think that was very ladylike,&8221; she said.

Along with her love for business, she also enjoyed politics and, like her husband, William, became involved. For 12 years she served as Mississippi&8217;s National Democratic Party committeewoman.

A foreshadowing of her mingling with presidents, senators and other high-ranking national leaders came at an early age.

&8220;The first president I met was Woodrow Wilson,&8221; she said. &8220;I was about 12, and my grandmother took me on the train to Washington.&8221;

A senator from Mississippi took her to the White House and into Wilson&8217;s office. &8220;We sat down, and what I remember most is there was a tremendous moose head on the wall right over his head,&8221; she said.

&8220;President Wilson was very gracious. He wanted to know all about Natchez and Mississippi.&8221;

Shields recalled other presidents she met during her adult years as well as presidential inaugurations and White House functions she attended. She has her favorite presidents and those she didn&8217;t like quite as much, she said.

In Natchez, she has hosted two first ladies, Eleanor Roosevelt and Lady Bird Johnson. She knows Barbara Bush and has met other wives of presidents.

At her Natchez home filled with family heirlooms and treasures collected during her lifetime, Shields reflected on the many decades of living in one of Natchez&8217;s most elegant mansions.

&8220;I&8217;ve been very aware of not letting possessions own me,&8221; she said. &8220;Three or four generations have grown up here. If something breaks, it&8217;s gone. If they spill something, we wipe it up.&8221;

She continues to greet visitors when they tour Montaigne during Spring Pilgrimage. Now, however, she lets her younger greeters stand on the porch and in the grand front hallway. She sits on the back gallery.

&8220;It&8217;s difficult for people to get to Natchez. So the people who come here come because they want to see beautiful things,&8221; she said.

&8220;I think we have the cream of the crop coming to see Natchez. They always are so appreciative. They say thank you so much for opening your home for us. I tell them thank you for coming because you&8217;re giving me so much pleasure.&8221;