Sightseeing Up the Natchez Trace and Caching on the Way Back 4/5/2008

We left early this morning to drive up the Natchez Trace for about 40 miles to see what it was like and if they had sufficient pull-offs to accommodate the motor home next week and also to do a few caches located close to the Trace. Mrs Egbert Jones and Mrs. Ferriday Byrnes, both members of the Mississippi State Daughters of the American Revolution, worked tirelessly to erect markers along the historic trail and campaigned for the development of the Natchez Trace into a scenic national parkway. It was finished and dedicated in May of 2005. We got on at mile 1 and drove 5 miles and came to the first point of interest the Elizabeth Female Academy, the first college for women in the state of Mississippi. The school operated from 1818-1845and primarily served the emerging upper class of Natchez. The famous naturalist and artist John James Audubon once taught here. One of the graduates was Varina Howell, who would later marry Jefferson Davis, The future President of the Confederate States of America. The Academy closed after the Capitol of Mississippi was moved from the nearby community of Washington to Jackson.
Next histroic site was at mile marker 8.7 and that was an exhibit of the Old Trace and a shelter. President Jefferson in 1801 decided that a road from Natchez to Nashville was necessary for the safety and welfare of the nation. Across the Parkway was a portion of the Old Natchez Trace, a wilderness road that originated from a series of trails used by the Southeastern Indian tribes. The Natchez Trace was politically, economically, socially and militarily important for the United States in its early development. Among those that traveled the road were American Indians, traders, soldiers, "Kaintucks", postriders, settlers, slaves, circuit-riding preachers, outlaws and adventurers. The Old Natchez Trace serves as a reminder of those who contributed to events that shaped the broad patterns of our common history. President Jefferson in 1801 decided that a road from Natchez to Nashville was necessary for the safety and welfare of the nation.
Next stop was at mile marker 10.3 to see the Emerald Indian Mound the second largest Temple Mound in the United States. Only Monks Mound in Cahokia, IL, is larger. This eight acre mound, constructed from a natural hill, was built and used from about 1300 to 1600 by the Mississippians, ancestors of the Natchez Indians. Unlike dome shaped mounds constructed only for burials, Emerald Mound supported temples, ceremonial structures, and burials of a complex society's civic and religious leaders. It is a massive flat topped earthen mound rising 35' in the air.
Then it was on to mile marker 12.4 and Loess Bluff. This bluff shows a deep deposit of windblown topsoil known as loess. Loess is basically dust and are more or less spherical, they pack together with many air spaces between them and are amazingly uniform in size and water logged loess becomes a slush. This bluff was formed during the Ice Age when glaciers covered the northern half of the United States. At this time continuous dust storms swept in from the western plainsand covered this area with wind blown dust to a depth of 30 to 90 feet. Here it rests on sands and clay of an ancient clay. It originally covered a vast region but in this area is now confined to a strip east of the Mississippi River from 3 to 30 miles wide extending from Baton Rouge into Tennessee. Where the Old Natchez Trace passed over loess it formed sunken roads, in places 20' deep.
Then we drove to mile marker 15.5 to see Mount Locust a restored historic inn, which was one of the first in Mississippi, but for some reason they had road blocks up and danger do not enter signs up the road to the inn. Driving on farther there were a few sites we didn't stop at like Coles Creek, which was a picnic area, and Bullen Creek, which was a self guided trail through a mixed hardwood pine forest (we had seen enough pine trees so far on our trip and didn't need to see more).
We drove up to mile marker 39.8 and got off the Trace at Port Gibson and did our first cache at Wintergreen Cemetery circa 1807 and was one of the oldest cemeteries in Mississippi. It is the burial site of Samuel Gibson the founder of Port Gibson and of Confederate General Earl Van Dorn. Besides the cache in the cemetery there was a historic marker commemorating the campaign, siege and defense of Vicksburg, 1863 & the Battle of Port Gibson, MS, May 1. We did see the tombstone of Samuel Gibson and many many more tombstones dating back to the early 1800's.
Driving around Port Gibson there was so much to see of historical nature such as: Port Gibson City Hall built in 1838 by Presbyterians to house Port Gibson Academy, Temple Gemiluth Chassed (which means Acts of Loving Kindness) and is the oldest synagogue in Mississippi, and the funny thing is that no Jews now live in Port Gibson, First Presbyterian Church the second oldest Presbyterian church in the Old Southwest Circa 1807 was originally named Bayou Pierre Church and was moved to Port Gibson in 1827 (note the golden hand pointing skyward on the church steeple), the Claiborne County Court House, the CSA Monument, the old Trace movie theater, the Bernheimer B & B Circa 1807, and several old stores and buildings. One other interesting thing was a historical marker put up by the Mississippi Blues Commission saying "Rabbit Foot Minstrels"--During the first half of the 20th century, the African American Rabbit Foot Minstrels entertainers played a major role in spreading the blues via tours across the South. Founded in 1900 the "Foots" were headquartered in Port Gibson between 1918 and 1950 under owner F. S. Wolcott. Notable members included Gertrude "Ma" Rainey, Ida Cox, Louis Jordan and Rufus Thompson.
The Battle of Port Gibson was fought on May 1, 1863, between Union and Confederate forces during the Vicksburg Campaign of the American Civil War. The Union Army was led by Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, and they were victorious. The battle began around midnight near the Schaifer House, four miles west of town. At dawn, the Federals advanced against the flanks of Brig. General John Bowen, line posted on the Rodney and Bruinsburg Road, but separated by deep ravines. Bowen was finally compelled by overwhelming numbers to withdraw after 5 pm. Two months later Vicksburg surrendered. I will post the rest of the historical markers on this battle if anyone is interested in reading them and all you have to do is click on the picture and they will appear full screen.
Then as we drove to the next cache we came across the Bayou Pierre Presbyterian Church, the original building, sitting on a small knoll off the side of the road.Following the arrival of Presbyterian missionaries in 1801, Joesph Bullen and James Smylle organized the Bayou Pierre Church at this site in 1807. After part of the congregation formed Bethel Church Southwest of here in 1824, the remaining members moved to Port Gibson. The church was named First Presbyterian Church of Port Gibson in 1828. During the Battle of Port Gibson, fought on May 1, 1863, the 20th Alabama Infantry was posted here, anchoring the right flank of Confederate Brig. General Edward D. Tracy's Brigade. As you can see by the picture the church was very small but remarkably well preserved.
On to Windsor Ruins near Rodney, MS which at one time covered 2,600 acres. Smith Coffee Daniell II, the son of an Indian fighter turned farmer and landowner constructed the mansion itself in 1859-1861 and in 1849 he married his cousin Catherine Freeland by whom he had three children. Basic construction of the house, which was designed by David Shroder was done by slave labor. The bricks for use in the 45 foot columns were made in a kiln across the road from the house. There were 29 columns which were covered with mortar and plaster. Skilled carpenters were brought in from New England for the finished woodwork and the iron stairs, column capitals and balustrades were manufactured in St. Louis and shipped down the Mississippi River to the Port of Bruinsburg several miles west of Windsor. The mansion cost about $175,000.00 (this would be about 3.5 million dollars today) to build and was completed in 1861. However Smith Daniell lived in the home only a few weeks before he died at the age of 34. When completed, the home contained over 25 rooms, each with its own fireplace and among other innovations, featured interior baths supplied with water from a tank in the attic. On the Main floor, flanking the broad hall, were the master bedroom, a bath, 2 parlors, a study and the library. In the ell off this part of the structure was located the dining room. Directly below in the above ground basement was the kitchen, with the two connected by a dumbwaiter. Also in this basement were a school room, an on-site dairy, several storage rooms, a commissary and a doctor's office. On the third floor were an additional bath and 9 more bedrooms, each with their own fireplace. On the third floor were an additional bath and 9 more bedrooms, each with their own fireplace. Above the smaller 4th floor (which had a ballroom, but was never finished) there was a roof-top observatory. During the American Civil War, the home was used by both Union and Confederate troops. The home survived the war and continued to be used for social gatherings in the area. Mark Twain stayed at the home and is said to have used the roof observatory to observe the Mississippi River. On 17 February 1890, a guest left a lighted cigar on a balcony (it is also said that someone dropped a cigar or cigarette in a pile of wood chips left by carpenters working on the 3rd floor). The family said the fire started around 3:00 in the afternoon. They had planned a seated dinner and had gone into town to pick up the mail. Riding back they saw flames shooting through the shingled roof. The fire burned from top to bottom making it impossible to extinguish, and the house was completely destroyed in the conflagration. The only remnants today are 23 haunting columns, a few pieces of china, and a set of the wrought-iron stairs and portions of the balustrade. Windsor's ruins have appeared in several motion pictures including Raintree County (1957) starring Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift and most recently in the movie Ghosts of Mississippi with Whoopi Goldberg and Alec Baldwin and James Woods.
Now on to Rodney, MS, a ghost town, way out in the boondocks and we mean way out. We had a heck of a time finding it as we went the way the GPS told us first and came to a blocked off road, next try brought us to Alcorn State University and we couldn't go through the campus so we stopped and asked the guard how to get to it and he told us. Well we drove down the road and couldn't find the road he told us to take so we had just about given up and we did see a road similar to the one he described so we took it. We don't think MS ever built a road that was straight as the road wound around and around and down dirt roads for miles and miles but finally after about an hour of looking we pulled down a small hill and there was Rodney, MS. Well it was ghost town of sorts as we did see a few people but for the most part it was deserted. All the homes and barns were collapsed and destroyed all except for the Old Rodney Presbyterian Church where our cache was located. We did the cache and then looked around and read all the historical markers, which there were many of. The Rodney Church was chartered in January 1828, as the Presbyterian Church of Petit Gulf. Shelled by the gunboat "Rattler" when Federal sailors were captured by Confederate cavalry while attending Sunday services, September 13, 1863. Note the one picture with the cannonball still stuck in the front wall of the church above the middle windown on the second floor. Again I will post them so you all can read them and they are very interesting. Then we had to drive back and that was not fun.
Then it was on to another cache located at a boulder that marks the crossing of the Natchez Trace. Then we did our last cache just outside Springfield Plantation Circa 1784 and the site for the marriage of Andrew Jackson to his sweetheart, Rachel Robards in 1791 and is thought to be the first plantation in the state of MS. Then it was on back to the RV for a quick lunch and and I did the logs and we showered and went out for dinner. We went to Bowie's Tavern a small place right in Natchez. I had crawfish pies and potato wedges and a very good dark draft beer. Mom had a Philly cheesesteak sandwich and shared my potato wedges. Then it was on back to the RV and watched TV for awhile and went to bed. Well time to say good bye until tomorrow and we love you all.


Picture List: 1-Windsor Ruins, 2-Natchez Trace Entrance, 3-Loess Bluff, 4,5-Emerald Indian Mound, 6- Elizabeth Female Academy, 7-Old General Store and Post Office, 8-Port Gibson City Hall Circa 1838, 9-Rabbit Foot Minstrels, 10-Mural on a building in downtown Port Gibson, 11-Old Rodney Presbyterian Church, 12-Cannonball in the wall of the Rodney Church, 13-Temple Gemiluth Chassed, 14-Wintergreen Cemetery, 15-Confederate Burial sites in Wintergreen, 16-Burial site Samuel Gibson, Bethel Presbyterian Church, 17,18-First Presbyterian Church Port Gibson, 19,20-Christ Episcopal Church Church Hill Circa 1820, 21-Natchez Trace Boulder Marker, 22-Bernheimer House Circa 1901 note the mosaic tiles on the right side of the house second floor, 23-County Building Port Gibson, 24-CSA Monument Port Gibson, 25,26,27-Bayou Pierre Presbyterian Church Circa 1807, 28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36,37-Old Rodney Historic markers, 38,39,40,41,42-Battle of Port Gibson Historical Markers, 43-Flooding at campgrounds.