Encyclopedia of Mississippi History Comprising Sketches of Counties, Towns, Events, Institutions and Persons, Vol. II, Part 20

Author: Dunbar Rowland
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: Madison, Wis. : S.A. Brant
Number of Pages: 1020

USA > Mississippi > Encyclopedia of Mississippi History Comprising Sketches of Counties, Towns, Events, Institutions and Persons, Vol. II > Part 20

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Its original area was about 23 townships or 828 square miles. In 1870 it gave up part of its territory on the east to Benton county, (q. v.) and in 1873 it gave up another portion of its area to assist in the formation of Tate county, and received, in lieu of the portion surrendered to Tate, all that portion of De Soto county lying with- in townships 1 and 2, R. 5 west. Subsequent slight modifications of its boundaries have resulted in defining its present limits as follows: "Beginning on the line between the States of Mississippi and Tennessee at the center of R. 5 west; thence east on said State line to the line between ranges 1 and 2 west; thence south on said line to the southwest corner of section 6, T. 3, R. 1 west; thence east on section lines to the southeast corner of section 4, T. 3, R. 1 west ; thence due south on section lines to the southwest corner of section 3, T. 6, R. 1 west ; thence east to the basis meridian ; thence south by the said meridian to the Tallahatchie river; thence down said river with its meanderings, to the mouth of Little Spring creek ; thence up said creek to the center of township 6; thence west by section lines to the line between R's 4 and 5, west; thence north to the line between T's 4 and 5; thence west to the center of R. 5 west ; thence due north to the beginning." It is an attractive stretch of country, located on the extreme northern border of the State next to Tennessee, and is bounded on the east by Benton county, on the south by Lafayette county, the Tallahatchie river forming part of the dividing line in the southeastern corner, and on the west by Tate and De Soto counties.

The following is a list of its civil officers for the year 1837: William H. Bourland, Clerk of Probate; James C. Alderson, Clerk of Circuit Court; Thomas Lane, Probate Judge; M. J. Blackwell, Surveyor; Frederick Wells, Assessor and Collector; Thomas J. Oliver, Treasurer ; Benj. Daluron, Coroner ; T. McCrosky, Sheriff ; G. W. Graham, Ranger ; Dickson Rogers, Henry White, Wm. Hicks, W. C. Edmundson, E. H. Patts, Board of Police ; John Roaks, T. L. Treadwell, D. E. Brittonum, Henry Moore, Milton P. Johnson, Geo. W. Wry, T. M. Yancy, J. C. Randolph, J. B. Cockran, Robert

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Carson, Justices of the Peace ; John P. Planes, James Rhodes, Sill- mane Weaver, John M. Malone, Lewis Johnston, Constables.

Marshall county received its full share of settlers during the early rush of emigration into the newly opened Chickasaw cession. By the year 1840, it had a population of about 17,500, and by the year 1850 the population was 29,089. Among these were many prom- inent families and wealthy planters.

Three of the earliest settlements were at Tallaloosa, located about 8 miles southwest of Holly Springs, on the Pigeon Roost creek ; Waterford, one mile west of the station of the same name on the Illinois Central R. R., and the place of muster for the militia of that part of the State; and Hudsonville, about 4 miles southwest of old Lamar, on the stage road from Lagrange, Tenn., to Holly Springs, Miss., and 2 miles southeast of the station of the same name on the Illinois Central R. R. All three places are now practically extinct. Its chief town and county seat is Holly Springs, the "City of Flowers," containing 3,500 inhabitants and located near the center of the county at the junction of the Illinois Central, and the Kansas City, Memphis & Birmingham railways. Mr. Addison Craft, one of the pioneers of Marshall county, states that it was named by the roadsters who traveled from the Chickasaw Bluffs to the land office at Pontotoc. At this spot they found an extensive ravine covered with holly, and having some 30 or more clear, cold springs of water. It was an excellent camping ground and the camp was called Holly Springs. It is the center of a good dairy and market- garden region, has several factories and the most extensive pottery works in the State. It is also the seat of the Mississippi Synodical College, and the North Mississippi Experiment Station. It was here that Gen. Van Dorn made his celebrated raid on the Federal stores left behind by Grant, December 20, 1862. Some of the other more important settlements are Byhalia (pop. 760), Potts Camp (pop. 306), Redbanks on the K. C. M. & B. R. R., Waterford (pop. 128), Hudsonville on the I. C. R. R., and Bethlehem, Corners- ville, Mount Pleasant and Wallhill away from the railroads. The region lies in the yellow loam district, its surface is undulating, level on the river and creek bottoms. The soil on the bottom lands is fertile, on some of the upland ridges poor and sandy and on many of the table lands quite productive. It produces good crops of cotton, corn, small grains, vegetables, and all the large and small fruits do well. The timber consists of oaks, hickory, walnut, poplar, gum, beech, maple, cypress, etc. Excellent pasturage is to be had and the live stock industry is very profitable. In 1900 the live stock was valued at more than $800,000. Its close proximity to the large city of Memphis (50 miles), and the two important lines of rail- road which cross its surface, the Illinois Central and the Kansas City, Memphis & Birmingham, give it a ready outlet for its num- erous products. The more important water courses in the county are the Tallahatchie river on the south and its tributaries, and the numerous creeks flowing west, which constitute the headwaters of the Coldwater river. None of these streams are navigable, how-

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ever. A number of lignite beds and some good marls have been found in the county.

The twelfth census of the United States for the year 1900 gives the following farm, manufacturing and population statistics for Marshall county : Number of farms 4,516, acreage in farms 379,098, acres improved 82,581, value of the land exclusive of the buildings $1,733,630, value of the buildings $813,720, value of live stock $803,- 901, total value of products not fed $1,751,664. Number of manufac- tures 98, capital invested $151,428, wages paid $39,436, cost of ma- terials $77,589, total value of products $192,903. The popu- lation consisted of whites 8,966, colored 18,708, a total of 27,674, or 1,631 more than in the year 1890. There has since been a steady increase in the population and in manufactures. Land values are advancing and good properties are in demand at a good price. The total assessed valuation of real and personal property in Marshall county in 1905 was $3,031,618.86 and in 1906 it was $3,231,123, showing an increase of $199,504.14 during the year.

Martin, an incorporated post-village of Claiborne county, on the Natchez-Jackson branch of the Yazoo & Mississippi Valley R. R., 8 miles southeast of Port Gibson, the county seat. Hermanville is its nearest banking town. It has a money order postoffice, and express, telegraph and telephone facilities. Population in 1900, 151. It was named in honor of General W. T. Martin of Natchez.

Martin, Francois Xavier, Territorial judge, was born in Marseil- les, France, March 17, 1764, removed to Martinique at the age of 18 years, and thence went to the United States, making his home at New Bern, N. C., in 1786. He learned the printer's trade as a means of acquiring the English language, with such success that he became proprietor of a newspaper and publisher of schoolbooks and almanacs. Studying law and gaining admission to the bar, he extended his publishing ventures to law treaties of his own compiling, including a digest of State laws and British statutes in force, and in 1797, his Notes of a Few Decisions of the superior courts of North Carolina and the circuit court of the United States, 1778-97. He also collected materials for a history of North Caro- lina, published in the form of annals at New Orleans in 1829. Af- ter 20 years of successful practice as a lawyer he was appointed judge of the Mississippi territory, March 7, 1809, to succeed the venerable Judge Bruin, and thence, after a brief service, he was transferred to the bench of the Territory of Orleans, where his services gained for him the title of father of the jurisprudence of Louisiana. He was made attorney-general of the State in 1813, judge of the supreme court in 1815, and chief justice in 1837, retir- ing from the bench in 1845. His death occurred in December, 1846, at New Orleans. He was the author of a digest and reports of Louisiana law, and a history of Louisiana from the settlement until 1814.

Martin, W. T. Mr. Martin opposed the doctrine of secession, as he said in the convention of 1865, "with all my energy, in 1851 ; and in 1860 opposed it with such pertinacity that I was accused

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of being unfaithful to the South and not fit to be trusted. The ordinance of secession was an act of revolution. As such alone, I was willing to fight to sustain it."

In 1860 he was captain of the Adams Troop of cavalry, one of the ten companies in the State army, which went to Memphis and was mustered into the service of the Confederate service June 16, 1861. Going to Virginia with other Mississippi cavalry companies, the 2d Mississippi battalion was formed under the command of Martin as major. This was the only representation of Mississippi cav- alry in the east. In July, 1861, the battalion was merged with Love's Alabama battalion, and a Georgia company, to form the Jeff Davis Legion, of which Martin was the commander. In the latter part of 1861 he was on scouting duty toward the Potomac, and was presently promoted to lieutenant-colonel, and colonel. He was particularly distinguished in J. E. B. Stuart's raid around McClellan's army, before Richmond, in the summer of 1862, he and Fitz Lee and W. H. F. Lee leading Stuart's battalions. Pro- moted to brigadier-general December, 1862, he was sent to the west, whence came an urgent demand for assistance. Subsequently the legion, under Cols. William G. Conner and J. Fred Waring, and Majors I. F. Lewis and W. M. Stone, was distinguished in the battles of Brandy Station and Gettysburg, Trevillion and Ream's Station, and made its last fight before Raleigh, N. C., in April, 1865. In Tennessee Gen. Martin, whose reputation was wide- spread as an intrepid cavalry leader, was given command of a divi- sion including the brigades of Roddey and Cosby, with which he took part in VanDorn's brilliant victory at Thompson's Station, March 5, 1863, and rendered important service during the Tulla- homa campaign. He was in command of the cavalry in Long- street's expedition against Knoxville; was promoted to major- general November, 1863, and commanded a division of Wheeler's cavalry during the Atlanta campaign, after. which he was assigned to command in northwest Mississippi. After the surrender of the armies he was elected a delegate to the constitutional convention of 1865 (q. v.), and was a member of the constitutional convention of 1890. In 1905 he was appointed postmaster at Natchez.

Martinsville, a post-hamlet in the south-central part of Copiah county, on the Illinois Central R. R., 5 miles south of Hazlehurst, the county seat. It has express and telegraph offices, two churches, a school, and lumber mills. Population in 1900, 68.

Marydell, a postoffice in the northeastern part of Leake county, 12 miles from Carthage, the county seat.

Mashulaville, a post-village of Noxubee county, situated on Harshuqua creek, 10 miles west of Macon, the county seat, and nearest telegraph, express and banking town. It has three churches, two stores, and a money order postoffice. A fine saw mill and a gin are located here. Population in 1900, 125.

Mason and Harp. The Mississippi river had its pirates, and there is mention of their operations from New Madrid and Chick- asaw Bluffs, in the old chronicles. Emigrants were frequently

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waylaid and robbed of their possessions and occasionally lives were taken. While the Mississippi river had these terrors, the adven- turer from the South Atlantic States had first to pass the dreaded Mussel Shoals, where the Chickamauga Indians levied tribute upon lives and property. When the right to travel the trail from Natchez to Bear Creek was obtained from the Indians, bands of highway- men began to infest that line of travel also. In April, 1802, Gov- ernor Claiborne was informed that a band headed by Samuel Mason and Wiley Harp, had attempted to board the boat of Col. Joshua Baker between the Yazoo and Walnut Hills. The same outlaws had been operating on the trail, and for years had been robbing travelers and committing murders. Col. Daniel Burnet was ordered to take 15 or 20 volunteers and pursue the banditti, and the United States officers at Walnut Hills and Bear Creek were asked to cooperate. A reward of $2,000 was offered for their cap- ture. Harp seems to have separated from the band about this period of time and gone up into Kentucky. John L. Swaney, the old mail rider on the Natchez Trace, claimed to know both Harp and Mason well. He said there were two brothers, one known as Big Harp, and the other as Little Harp. According to this au- thority, Big Harp, after a career of crime in Tennessee and Ken- tucky, was hunted down and killed by a company of men, but his brother, Little Harp, made his escape, and was undoubtedly one of the men hung at Greenville. Mason and most of his gang made their escape from the country, if the following testimony of Swaney is to be credited. He says: "On one of my return trips from Natchez, I fell in with the wife of young Tom Mason (according to Swaney, the elder Mason was known as Tom Mason; he had two sons Tom and John, who, with six or eight other men composed the band), carrying a baby and a small sack of provisions in her arms. She was making for the Chickasaw Agency, to go thence to her friends. She begged me to help her on her way, which I did by placing her on my horse. I did this for a day, and made up the lost time by traveling all night. Mrs. Mason told me they were all safe and out of reach." The usually accepted version of the death of Mason is as follows: Two of his band, tempted by the large reward, concerted a plan by which they might obtain it. An opportunity soon occurred; and while Mason, in company with the two conspirators, was counting out some ill-gotten plunder, a tomahawk was buried in his brain, or, according to another, he was shot, and his severed head brought to Greenville, in Jefferson county, by the two traitors. As Circuit Court was in session at the time, they went before the Judge to make their affidavit and get a certificate to the Governor. The head was duly identified by persons who knew Mason well, but before the certificate was made out, the two miscreants were recognized by two travelers whose father they had recently robbed and murdered. They first recognized the horses of the two bandits at the tavern, where they had just alighted, and at once repaired to the court house, identified the men and demanded their arrest, declaring that they had helped

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rob and murder their father some two months previously on the Natchez Trace. The prisoners gave their names as Sutton and May and were tried, convicted and hung at Greenville, being pros- ecuted by George Poindexter, attorney-general. The leader Mason was now dead, together with two of his gang; Harp had fled the State, and the disheartened gang dispersed, with the result that few robberies were committed thereafter in Mississippi for many years.

The above account of the death of Mason and the dispersal of his band is substantially corroborated by Thomas Reed, Esq., in his Centennial history of Jefferson county and by the historian, Monette. The historian, Claiborne, seems to incline to the belief, in accordance with the testimony of Swanay, above referred to, that the head brought to Greenville was not that of Mason at all, but that Mason and his gang, after the governor's proclamation. were closely hunted by the whites and Indians, and after a num- ber of narrow escapes, made their escape across the Mississippi, to somewhere about Lake Providence, in the Spanish Territory. The account of Capt. W. L. Harper, of Jefferson county, quoted by Claiborne, is as follows: "Governor Claiborne offered a large reward for the capture of Mason, the leader of the band that in- fested the road. Mason's family then resided in this county, not far from old Shankstown, and his wife was generally respected as an honest and virtuous woman, by all her neighbors, and one of her sons was a worthy citizen of Warren county not many years ago. The reward tempted two of his band to kill Mason, or some one they said was Mason, and bring in his head to Greenville for recognition. Many fully identified it by certain marks thereon. except his wife, who as positively denied it. The Governor had sent his carriage for her expressly to come down and testify. But some parties had recognized in the claimants two men who, along with Mason, had robbed them but a short time before, when they were arrested, tried and hung, thus getting their reward, but not exactly in the way they sought. They gave their names as May and Sutton, and many believed Mason fled the country and died in his bed in Canada."

January 16, 1804, George Poindexter, attorney-general of the Territory, informed the acting governor that several persons were confined in the jail of Jefferson district, charged with capital of- fences in the Choctaw country, these persons being "notoriously confederates of Mason's junta, who for a length of time have infested the highway leading from this Territory to the State of Tennessee." Poindexter advised that a special session of oyer and terminer be called to dispose of the cases. There is on file in the Mississippi Department of Archives and History an inter- esting record, in French, of the trial of Samuel Mason for robbery at New Madrid in January, 1803.

Mastodon, a post-hamlet of Panola county, situated on Indian creek, 15 miles west of Sardis, one of the seats of justice for the county. Population in 1900, 45.

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Mate, a postoffice of Lauderdale county.

Matherville, a post-hamlet in the northeastern part of Wayne county, 13 miles north of Waynesboro, the county seat. Popula- tion in 1900, 52. The town is growing and has three stores, a church, a school, a cotton gin, and a saw mill. It lies in the midst of a prairie belt. Population about 100.

Mathiston, an incorporated post-town of Webster county, on the Southern, and the Mobile, Jackson & Kansas City Ry's, 10 miles southeast of Walthall, the county seat, and 8 miles east of Eupora. It has several stores, a saw and planing mill plant, a handle factory, a Munger system cotton gin, two white churches, and a bank, the Bank of Mathiston, established in 1905, with $15,000 capital. The Review is a Democratic weekly, published and edited by Chas. A. McClure. The town is comparatively new and is growing rapidly. It has a good school ; several fine brick business houses have been erected during the year 1906. It is surrounded by a fine agriculture district, cotton and corn being the chief staples. Its water supply is excellent. The population in 1906 was estimated at 600. Three rural mail routes emanate from Mathiston.

Matthews, a post-hamlet of Pontotoc county, about 16 miles from Pontotoc, the county seat. Population in 1900, 19.

Matthews, George, Jr., territorial judge, commissioned July 1, 1805, was born in Oglethorpe county, Ga., the son of General and Governor George Matthews, associated with the history of Mis- sissippi through the Yazoo land schemes. On account of the storm of protest against these laws, young Matthews was persuaded to leave his native State, and his appointment in Mississippi seems to have been only preparatory to making his home in Louisiana, where he was given a Territorial judgeship, January 19, 1806. In Louisiana he married a Miss Flower, of East Feliciana. Gov. Claiborne appointed him chief justice of the State when it was or- ganized and he gained distinction in this office.

Matthews, Joseph W., was born in 1812, near Huntsville, Ala. He came to the State as a government surveyor, and became a planter near the extinct town of Salem, living two miles distant, in Marshall county. In 1840 he was a member of the lower house of the legislature, and he was in the senate in 1844-48. In the militia he had the rank of colonel. He was nominated for governor of the State by the Democrats in 1847, against Maj. A. B. Bradford, a hero of the war then in progress, and was elected by a large ma- jority. (See Brown's Adm.) His simplicity of life was indicated by the campaign names attached to him-"Jo Salem," "Jo, the well-digger." Reuben Davis wrote of him: "He had great prac- tical sense, but was neither brilliant nor oratorical. He was pecu- liar and extremely pleasant. To hear him speak was like listening to a well-told narrative, and you could almost suppose you were listening to his personal experience of public events, and observa- tions of men and things. In all this he had the faculty of being earnest and impressive." He died August 27, 1862, at Palmetto, Ga., on his way to Richmond, Va.

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Matthews' Administration. The inaugural address of Governor Matthews, January 10, 1848, was mainly devoted to national poli- tics, as influenced by the war with Mexico and the prospect of gaining new territory from that republic. (See Brown's Adm.) He said :

"In the constitutional compact between the States, it was ex- pressly stipulated that new States might be admitted into the Union upon the same footing with the original States. The pro- hibition of slavery was not made a condition of the Union of the original States, it cannot therefore be made a condition of the ad- mission of new States. So far from the institution of slavery con- stituting an objection to the union of the original States, it is ex- pressly recognized by the constitution, and guarantees for its pro- tection were incorporated into that instrument; for the States into which fugitives might fly, were bound to deliver them to their owners, although slavery might be prohibited by the laws of such States. The institution of slavery is a right reserved by the States; and if Congress refuses a new State admission into the Union within its limits, such refusal, in my judgment, will be a flagrant disregard of the injunctions of the constitution, and an abandonment of the compact, which, at present, and it may be fondly hoped shall, to the end of time, bind together the States of this glorious Union. Our present territory, or that which may be acquired, is, and will be, the common property of the United States. To prohibit the citizens of one portion of the Union from inhabiting such territory, without first submitting to a disfran- chisement of rights secured to them by the constitution would be a palpable violation of that clause which provides that 'citizens of each state shall be entitled to all the privileges and immunities of citizens in the several States.' This is a momentous question ; one on which is suspended the existence of this happy confederacy. It is useless to evade the question by refusing territorial indem- nity from Mexico. It must be met. We must know whether the compromise of the constitution are to be respected; whether citi- zens of the slave States are to be considered as equals with their northern brethren, and whether slavery is regarded as such a crime that those who hold this species of property are unworthy of an association with the inhabitants of the free States. Experience has proved that no people have ever gained anything by yielding to invasions of their rights, but, generally, in the end, they lose everything ; and while I believe that we should, in reference to this momentous and exciting question, exercise moderation : while I would appeal to the interest, the patriotism and the justice of our brethren of the free States, and entreat them to pause and reflect well, before they take a step which must result in consequences appalling to the heart of every patriot ; yet I would meet any and all attempts to interfere with or invade our constitutional rights with a firmness and decision that should be felt and respected. On this subject they can yield, but we cannot. We have no desire to interfere with their domestic institutions, nor can we submit to

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their interference with ours. We ask not that slavery shall exist in a State, in order to its admission into the Union, but that the people of each State shall establish such domestic institutions as they may deem most conducive to their interests and happiness. To prevent the extension of slavery territory, would prove the greatest calamity to that portion of population. If they were lib- erated they could not remain amongst us. They are prohibited from migrating to most of the free States and denied the right of citizenship, I believe, in all. What, then, should we do with them? Soon their natural increase would lead, either to their extermination, or to the expulsion of the white race."

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Encyclopedia of Mississippi History Comprising Sketches of Counties, Towns, Events, Institutions and Persons, Vol. II, Part 20

Author: Dunbar Rowland Publication date: 1907 Publisher: Madison, Wis. : S.A. Brant Number of Pages: 1020

Author: Dunbar Rowland
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: Madison, Wis. : S.A. Brant
Number of Pages: 1020