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NATCHEZ — Coming this fall, Natchez will once again be home to an independent bookstore.

John and Ginger Weaver and Walter and Jennifer Boone, all of the Jackson area, bought The Dixon building at 514 Main St. in 2021.

The first floor of the building was home to the whimsical Olivina gift shop, which left the Natchez market several months ago to open a store in the Towne Center at Cedar Lodge in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

The building also includes a luxury short-term rental with a spectacular balcony overlooking Main Street.

John Weaver said Jennifer Boone came up with the idea of opening a bookstore here.

“Though we live in Jackson, we all enjoy being a part of Natchez so much. The bookstore will give us a reason to get down there more,” Weaver said.

He said the bookstore was the brainchild and dream of Jennifer Boone, and she will be the majority owner and operator of it. According to social media posts, Dixon Books should open this fall.

“When Walter and John expressed an interest in renovating the Dixon Building a few years ago, it was truly an answered prayer,” said Natchez Mayor Dan Gibson. “Now, for Walter’s wife Jennifer to be embarking upon another great chapter in The Dixon building story is icing on the cake. We have for several years missed having a bookstore downtown. Locals have missed it. And our tourists have missed it. Jennifer is about to experience some ‘pent up demand,’ and this will be a game changer for downtown Natchez. I am excited. And grateful.”

Chesney Doyle, Downtown Natchez Alliance board member, said she was thrilled by the news.

“A downtown bookstore has been identified in our studies and community surveys over the years as one of our market needs,” Doyle said. “This is a great example of matching an available property to an identified market need. That’s one of the things we at the Downtown Natchez Alliance aim to do through our economic vitality programs and efforts.”

Jennifer Boone was not immediately available to comment on the new bookstore.