USA > Mississippi > Mississippi : comprising sketches of towns, events, institutions, and persons, arranged in cyclopedic form Vol. II > Part 100
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91 | Part 92 | Part 93 | Part 94 | Part 95 | Part 96 | Part 97 | Part 98 | Part 99 | Part 100 | Part 101 | Part 102 | Part 103 | Part 104 | Part 105 | Part 106 | Part 107 | Part 108 | Part 109 | Part 110 | Part 111 | Part 112 | Part 113 | Part 114 | Part 115 | Part 116 | Part 117 | Part 118 | Part 119 | Part 120 | Part 121 | Part 122 | Part 123
Twins, a postoffice of Yazoo county.
Two Percent Fund. This trust fund originated in the act of congress, 1817, providing for the admission of the State. The United States agreed to reserve five per cent. of the receipts from sale of public lands, two-fifths of the same to be appropriated by congress in making roads within the State, and three-fifths to making public roads and canals within the State, under the control of the legislature. The Two percent fund accumulated from 1825 to 1841, when the legislature projected the railroad from Brandon to the Alabama line, later known as the · Southern railroad, the eastern terminus of which was to be West Point, on the Chattahoochee river. Congress was memorialized to appropriate the fund accordingly. September 4, 1841, congress passed an act giving each of the new States 500,000 acres of land for Internal improvements and appropriating the Two percent fund of Mississippi for a railroad from Brandon in the direction of Montgomery, and half the fund due Alabama for the building of the line west from West Point. The legislature, by act of February
833
MISSISSIPPI
26, 1842, accepted the fund and conditions and purposes, and au- thorized the governor to employ an engineer to survey the road, also to survey a levee from Memphis to the mouth of the Yazoo and from Ellis Cliffs to the mouth of Homochitto, to be paid out of the Two percent fund and reimbursed from sale of the Internal Improvement lands. The act also authorized a loan to the Jackson & Brandon railroad of $25,000 of the Two percent fund, which was subsequently made. The legislatures of Alabama and Mississippi granted a joint charter to the Southern railroad company in Jan- uary and February, 1846, to build from Brandon to Montgomery and operate a continuous line from Vicksburg to the Chattahoo- chee. Mississippi agreed to invest all the Two percent fund in the road, and merge the Brandon road in it. Until the Southern com- pany was organized, commissioners of the State managed the Bran- . don road, and in 1848, the Southern company being yet unready to receive the trust fund, the Governor was authorized to appoint five commissioners, vested with all the powers of the Southern and the Jackson & Brandon roads, including the drawing of the Two per cent. fund, of which $70,000 was to be invested in negroes to work on construction. These commissioners were reduced to three in 1850. They drew and expended $227,500, and paid back from sale of slaves, etc., $14,326.
The act of March, 1852, revived the charter of the Southern rail- road, provided for turning the Two percent fund on hand over to it, also the Jackson & Brandon road, and all property connected therewith, including lands, slaves, engines and cars. The delivery was made by Governor Foote, July 19, 1852, to T. A. Marshall, president of the Southern company, and under authority of an act of legislature, the Vicksburg & Jackson railroad was purchased by the same company January 1, 1857.
Of the Two percent fund it was reported in 1858 that the United States Register's statements showed that $379,500 had been paid to the agents of the State, and the State accounts revealed but a slight discrepancy. The auditor's books showed that the State owed the fund $81,570, but Alexander H. Arthur, commissioner, reported that the true balance was $57,691. The default of Treasurer Graves was mainly on account of this fund. (Arthur's report, Senate Journal, 1858, appendix, p. 29.)
Governor Lowry reported in 1884 that the last payment on the two funds was in 1879, of $6,000, and the $25,000 that had accumu- lated since then had been withheld to apply on the Direct tax of 1861. The governor visited Washington in April, 1884, to secure the payment, and an action was brought before the court of claims. E. M. Watson, acting as attorney for the governor, asked a man- damus to compel the comptroller to issue a warrant for the amount due. In reply the comptroller admitted that the claim was just and no set off should be made, but he could not reverse the decision of his predecessor in office, and the court held it had no jurisdiction. In 1886 the United States supreme court ruled that the withholding of the fund as a set off to the war tax, was unauthorized. The
53-II
834
MISSISSIPPI
amount accumulated was then about $40,000. After this the pay- ments were made. By 1890 about $78,500 had been paid to the State on the 5% fund, which, by act of legislature, was distributed among the counties for school-house purposes.
Tylertown, a village in the southeastern part of Pike county, situated on McGees creek, a tributary of Bogue Chitto, and a station on the Fernwood & Gulf R. R., 20 miles east of Magnolia, the county seat, and nearest banking town. It has a money order postoffice and an express office. A bank building is in course of construction and as soon as completed the Bank of Tylertown will be established. The population in 1906 was estimated at 500.
Tyro, a post-hamlet in the southeastern part of Tate county, 16 miles east of Senatobia, the county seat. It has a church, an academy, the Tyro High School, a money order postoffice, several stores, a cotton gin, and a saw mill. Population in 1900, 110.
Una, a post-hamlet in the northern part of Clay county, about 22 miles northwest of Westpoint, the county seat, and nearest bank- ing town. Population in 1900, 35.
Union, a village in the north-central part of Newton county, 9 miles north of Decatur, the county seat. It is on the new exten- sion of the Mobile, Jackson & Kansas City R. R. It has 2 churches, a money order postoffice, several stores and The Bank of Union, established in 1905. The old town of Union was established in 1834 and was the place where courts were held before the counties of Neshoba and Newton were divided. Union is situated in a fine farming district and is destined to become a town of much impor- tance. It has a population of about 250.
Union Church, an old village in the eastern part of Jefferson county, 17 miles east of Fayette, the county seat, and nearest bank- ing town, and about 40 miles east by north of Natchez. It has an academy, The Union Church High School, non-sectarian and co- educational ; 3 churches; and a money order postoffice. Population in 1900, 136.
Union County was established during the reconstruction era after the War, April 7th, 1870, and was named to express the now existing sentiment between the States. The county has a land surface of 418 square miles. It was formerly a part of the counties of Tippah and Pontotoc and some of the early history of the region will be found treated under those titles. It is situated in the northeastern part of the State, between the counties of Tippah and Pontotoc, and is counted one of the best of the northern counties. A little north of New Albany was the old Indian trading post of Alberson, called for the first citizen and trader at the place. Booker Foster and Moses Collins were merchants there in the early days, as were John N. Wiley, and Powers and Morgan, who manufac- tured wheat fans here from 1839 to 1844. Moses Collins built a good grist mill and saw mill in 1840 on the present site of New Albany, and the business of the older settlement soon moved to this place. Not even a trace of the old village is left. (See Dr. F. L. Riley's Extinct Towns and Villages of Miss.) During the
es th fa an po
a
0
1 0
1
vid T cer
W pa and bla is
gra pea
835
MISSISSIPPI
late 30's and early 40's, the States of Alabama, Georgia, Virginia and Tennessee, contributed many settlers of wealth and enterprise to this region of the State, among whom may be mentioned, Rev. Joseph Edwards, Col. John S. Doxey, Berry and John Hodges, Allen and Barton Sloan, Samuel Knowles, William D. Sloan, Vin- cent and John Wages, William Hamilton, Davis Pannel, Dr. Thompson, Ira Kemp, Frank and Alexander Morgan, Dr. H. N. Moss, John Y. and Milas Nesbit, Ezekiel Millsaps, Zack Tate, J. C. and Wiley D. Robbins, Carey Snider, B. C. S. and Dr. Porter McAllister, Dr. M. Wilson, John and Robert McAllister, Rev. Isaac Smith, Eli Cornwell, Benjamin Parker, William Liddell and Rev. James Boswell. (See Lowry & McCardle, History of Mis- sissippi, page 590, for an excellent roll of the early settlers of Union.) In the year 1857 Moses Parker was conducting a school - at the old town of Myrtle, two miles south of the present town of Myrtle, on the line of the Kansas City, Memphis & Birmingham R. R. From an incident of the time, the place was first known as "Candy Hill," but after the War, when a postoffice was established here, it took the name of Myrtle. Hill and Murray, and W. C. and B. F. Whittington were merchants in old Myrtle, and it had an excellent school conducted by Mr. Chosen Myers. The advent of the railroad two miles away caused the removal of the postoffice and business of the old town to the new station of the same name on the railroad. The postoffice and little store on the old site are now known as "Avanelle." The county seat of Union is the thriv- ing town of New Albany above mentioned, situated near the center of the county, on the line of the Mobile, Jackson & Kansas City R. R., where it crosses the Kansas City, Memphis & Birmingham R. R. The town grew from a place of 548 inhabitants in 1890 to one of 1,033 people, according to the census of 1900, and to an estimated population in 1906 of 3,000. It is on what is known as the "Pontotoc Ridge," the highest land in the State, has a rich farming country all about it, with plenty of good springs and water, and is rapidly forging to the front as a business place, and shipping point. Wallerville, (pop. 184), Blue Springs (pop. 198), and Myr- tle, above mentioned (pop. 165), are other prosperous railroad vil- lages in the county. The two lines of road above mentioned pro- vide the region with excellent shipping facilities in every direction. The streams are the Tallahatchie river, which runs through the center of the county, and its tributary creeks the Oconitahatchie, Wilhite, Locks, Lappatubba, and Jones; the head streams of the West Fork of the Tombigbee river take their rise in the eastern part of the county. There are 82,641 acres of improved farm lands and much of the balance is well timbered with white, red and black oak, poplar, hickory, ash, pine, gum, walnut, etc. The soil is loamy with a red clay sub-soil, and produces cotton, corn, wheat, oats, rye, sweet and Irish potatoes, sorghum and various kinds of grasses. All kinds of vegetables, and fruits such as apples, pears, peaches, figs, strawberries, blackberries, dewberries, etc., are grown in abundance. Stock do very well here, alfalfa, cow-peas, and
-
836
MISSISSIPPI
Japan clover on the hills and bottoms affording extensive pasturage, and those who have gone into stock raising have found it very profitable. Some lignite (brown coal) has been found, also beds of marl and limestone in some portions of the county. There has been a tremendous growth of manufactures since the data for the U. S. census of 1900 were obtained.
1
The following statistics, taken from the twelfth census of the United States for 1900, relate to farms, manufactures and popula- tion :- Number of farms 2,895, acreage in farms 218,437, acres improved 82,641, value of land exclusive of buildings $1,051,830, value of buildings $359,400, value of live stock $546,722, total value of products not fed to stock $946,446. Number of manufac- turing establishments 45, capital invested $89,776, wages paid $18,- 860, cost of materials used $63,862, total value of products $131,804. Population in 1900 consisted of whites 12,380, colored 4,142, total 16,522, increase of 916 over the year 1890; in 1906 the population was estimated at 18,000. Land values in the last 5 years have in- creased fully 200 per cent. Artesian water has been found in various parts of the county. It will be noted that the capital in- vested in manufactures in 1900 was only $89,776, but in 1906 a conservative estimate places the capital invested in the county at fully $600,000. The total assessed valuation of real and personal property in Union county in 1905 was $2,084,346 and in 1906 it was $2,688,900, which shows an increase of $604,554 during the year.
Uniontown, an extinct town in Jefferson county situated on the south side of Cole's creek, and the next station above Selsertown on the old Natchez Trace. It was a place of importance in the early history of Jefferson county and platted into streets. Col. John A. Watkins, of New Orleans describes its business life in the following terms: "At Union Town, Shackleford established an extensive tannery, and had branches at the old Cable place and at Mrs. Wallace's. Ellis had a public gin, as few at that day were able to run one for private use. Farley made all the hats. We killed coons and took the skins to him, and in return got a hat. Jake Warner made boots at Uniontown, Pintard was cabinet-maker, McMurchy made wagons, plows, etc., and old Getzendmar made bull-whips. Weaving was extensively carried on, but it was done by hand. Greenleaf, about 1797, established a cotton-gin factory, and that, the first gin ever used in Mississippi, was made by a negro.'
See Publications Miss. His. Soc., Vol .. V., pp. 344-345. Good- speed's Biog. and His. Mem. of Miss. Vol. I, p. 176. .
United Confederate Veterans. As soon as the South began to re- cover from the effects of the war local associations of Confederate veterans were organized in different regions. There was a notable reunion of Confederate veterans at New Orleans February 13, 1888, at which Generals S. D. Lee, J. R. Chalmers and Wirt Adams were among the representatives of Mississippi. An organization was formed of the Confederate States Cavalry, with Gen. S. D. Lee as president, and vice presidents for the various States, among
2
de na
165
be thi
.
837
MISSISSIPPI
whom were George Moorman for Louisiana, Wirt Adams for Mis- sissippi, Joseph Wheeler for Alabama, W. H. Jackson for Tennes- see, Fitzhugh Lee for Virginia, Wade Hampton for South Carolina. General Adams was chairman of the committee that reported the plan of organization. June 10, 1889 a convention was held at New Orleans to form a federation of Confederate associations. The Adams county Mississippi Veteran association was represented at this convention by L. D. Aldrich and E. L. Hopkins. This con- vention organized the United Confederate Veterans, and elected Gen. John B. Gordon commander-in-chief. As a State federation the grand camp of Confederate Veterans was organized at Aber- deen, October 15, 1889. Gen. E. C. Walthall was elected grand commander ; Gen. W. S. Featherston, and three lieutenant grand commanders, Gen. S. D. Lee, Gen. Will T. Martin. The staff officers were Maj. E. T. Sykes, adjutant-general ; Maj. L. W. Ma- gruder and Capt. T. C. Carter, aides-de-camp. The State organiza- tion began with three local organizations. Gen. Walthall was suc- ceeded in command, October 15, 1890, by Gen. W. S. Featherston, who served until his death May 28, 1891.
The first general reunion of the United Confederate Veterans was held at Chattanooga, Tenn., July 3-5, 1890, and the second at Jackson, Miss., June 2, 1891. At this reunion Mississippi was rep- resented by ten camps, the number being much larger than any other State except Louisiana, which was represented by the same number. The meeting was in the hall of the house of representa- tives of the old capitol, and was opened with prayer by Rev. H. F. Sproles. The address of welcome by Gov. John M. Stone was responded to by Gen. John B. Gordon, commander-in-chief. At this reunion Col. George Moorman, of New Orleans, was the ad- jutant-general and chief of staff, having been appointed to that position by Gen. Gordon, July 23, 1891. Gen. Moorman had com- manded a body of Mississippi cavalry during the war. As adjutant- general and chief of staff he worked with zeal and energy for many years, and much of the success of the organization is due to his efforts. At this reunion the principal event was the perfecting of the constitution. Resolutions were adopted in memory of Gens. W. S. Featherston and Joseph E. Johnston, and a committee was appointed to confer with Mrs. Jefferson Davis in regard to the lo- cation of a monument to the president of the Confederacy.
· The Mississippi division has been well represented, and its mem- bers have played a prominent part in all the general reunions. The third of these was at New Orleans, April 8-9, 1892, when the re- port showed 188 camps in the organization ; the fourth at Birming- ham, April 25-26, 1894, where Gen. Stephen D. Lee was elected deputy commander of the army of Tennesse, and was also memo- rial orator ; the fifth at Houston, Texas, May 20-24, 1895. At this reunion Gen. Stephen D. Lee was chairman of the committee on resolutions, and the constitution adopted at the Jackson reunion took the place of the one adopted at Birmingham. The introduc- tion of Winnie Davis caused great enthusiasm. The sixth reunion
838
MISSISSIPPI
was at Richmond, when there were 856 camps representing every Southern State. Gen. Stephen D. Lee delivered the oration at the laying of the cornerstone of the Jefferson Davis monument. The seventh reunion was at Nashville, June 22-24, 1897, where the gen- eral body was divided into three departments, with Gen. Stephen D. Lee commanding the army of Tennessee. At the eighth re- union, Atlanta, July 20-23, 1898, Col. Chas. E. Hooker, of Missis- sippi, delivered the annual oration. This was the last reunion at- tended by Winnie Davis. At the ninth reunion, at Charleston, May 10-13, 1899, there were memorial exercises in her honor. At this reunion Gen. Moorman's report showed 1,209 camps, a num- ber of them being in the North. At the tenth reunion, Louisville, May 30-June 3, 1900, Gov. Robert Lowry and Col. Chas. E. Hooker were conspicuous figures. The surviving members of Jefferson Davis' family attended, and his granddaughter, Miss Varina How- ell Davis Hayes, was sponsor for the South. At the eleventh re- union, Memphis, May 28-30, 1901, Mississippi had 70 camps repre- sented, more than any other State except Texas. Of the 2,309 delegates, she sent 233. The twelfth reunion was held at Dallas, April 23-25, 1902. At this meeting Mississippi had 57 camps rep- resented and Private John Allen was one of the chief orators. The thirteenth reunion was at New Orleans, May 19-21, 1903. At this meeting Mississippi had 207 delegates representing 107 camps.
The fourteenth reunion was held at Nashville, June 14-16, 1904. Gen. Mickle's report showed 1,575 camps and a membership of about 75,000. The 1905 reunion of the veterans was at Louisville, Ky., June 14-16, 1905, when the report showed 1,600 camps. The reunion of 1906 was held at New Orleans.
At the Jackson reunion, June 2, 1891, the Grand Camp of Con- federate Veterans, and all the other local organizations of Veterans in the State were united in the Mississippi Division, U. C. V. Gov. J. M. Stone was chosen major-general commanding. The succeeding commanding generals have been as follows in the order named: W. D. Holder, John A. Webb, Robert Lowry, W. D. Holder, D. A. Campbell W. D. Cameron, Robert Lowry, B. V. White, W. D. Cameron, Robert Lowry, the present incumbent, who has held the position for several years. The next meeting of the Mississippi division, after the Jackson reunion, was at Meridian. After that, the meetings were held at the time and place of the gen- eral reunion, until 1899, when the division met at Vicksburg. Other meetings have been at Meridian, 1900; Hattiesburg, 1902; Jackson, 1903. The present commander of the army of Tennessee depart- ment is Lieut .- Gen. Clement A. Evans, Atlanta ; the adjutant-gen- eral is Gen. E. T. Sykes, Columbus, Miss. The present comman- der-in-chief of the United Confederate Veterans is Gen. Stephen D. Lee, who succeeded Gen. John B. Gordon. The adjutant-gen- eral and chief of staff is Wm. E. Mickle.
The purposes of the U. C. V. organization are stated to be "strictly social, literary, historical and benevolent, and its labors shall be directed to cultivating the ties of friendship between all
839
MISSISSIPPI
the survivors of the armies and navies of the late Confederate States ; to keep fresh the memories of our comrades, who gave up their lives for the lost cause, in battle or in other fields of service, or who have died since the war; to the perpetuation of the records of their deeds of heroism by the collection and disposition in the manner they judge best, of all materials of value for future histo- rians; to the aiding and relieving to the extent of its ability all members, their widows and orphans, in extreme cases of sickness and want, and to provide homes for them when necessary."
United Daughters of the Confederacy. This organization was formed at Nashville, Tenn., Sept. 10, 1894, and is composed of the widows, wives, mothers, sisters and lineal female descendents of men who served honorably in the armies and navies of the Confed- erate States, or who served in the civil service of the Confederate States or one of the Southern States, or who gave personal services to the Confederate cause. It is made up of local federations, gov- erned by State divisions, which are in turn subordinate to the general organization. The constitution of the Society states its objects to be "social, literary, historical, monumental, benevolent, and honorable in every degree, without any political signification whatever." It will endeavor (1) "To unite in the federation all bodies of Southern women now organized or that may hereafter be formed; (2) to cultivate ties of friendship among our women whose fathers, sons, and, in numberless cases, mothers, shared common dangers, sufferings, and privations, and to perpetuate honor, integrity, valor, and other noble attributes of true Southern character ; (3) to instruct and instill into the descendents of the people of the South a proper respect for and pride in the glorious war history, with a veneration and love for the deeds of their fore- fathers which have created such a monument of military renown, and to perpetuate a truthful record of the noble and chivalric achievements of their ancestors. All with the view of furnishing authentic information from which a conscientious historian will be enabled to write a correct and impartial history of the Con- federate side during the struggle for Southern independence."
The present membership of the organization is 35,890, embracing 746 chapters, South and North. Its present officers are: presi- dent, Mrs. Lizzie George Henderson of Greenwood, Miss .; 1st vice-president, Mrs. Alfred Hunter Vorhees of San Francisco, Cal .; 2d vice-president, Mrs. D. A. S. Vaught of New Orleans, La .; recording secretary, Mrs. John P. Hickman of Nashville, Tenn .; corresponding secretary, Mrs. Annie W. Rapley of St. Louis, Mo .; treasurer, Mrs. James Y. Leigh of Norfolk, Va .; honorary presi- dents for life, Mrs. M. C. Goodlett of Nashville, Tenn .; Mrs. Clem- ent C. Clopton of Alabama ; Mrs. Albert Sydney Johnston Pritch- ard of California ; Mrs. Stonewall Jackson of Charlotte, N. C.
The State organization known as the Mississippi Division of the United Daughters of the Confederacy was organized at Meridian by Mrs. Albert Weems, April 27, 1897. It represented five chap- ters : the Columbus chapter; the Ben G. Humphreys chapter, of
840
MISSISSIPPI
Greenville; the Okolona chapter; the Vicksburg chapter; and the Winnie Davis Chapter, of Meridian, the first chapter organized in the State. The Division was organized with a total membership of 303. The objects of the organization, as stated in the constitu- tion, are: "Educational, literary, social and benevolent; to collect and preserve the material for a true history of the war; to honor the memory of those who served and those who fell in defense of the Confederacy; to record the patient endurance and patriotic devotion of Southern women in the war and in reconstruction; to care for the survivors and those dependent upon them. Mrs. Annie Wright Duncan, of Vicksburg, was the first president of the or- ganization, and the other presidents have been, in the order named : Mrs. Lizzie George Henderson, of Greenwood; Mrs. Pinkie Mor- rison Moody, of Grenada; Mrs. John D. McInnis, of Meridian; Mrs. Helen D. Bell, of Jackson; and Mrs. Lilly McDowell, of Holly Springs, the present incumbent.
This division has been very active and enthusiastic in its work. It played a prominent part in having the cornerstone of the new capitol laid on Jefferson Davis' birthday, and in making that day a State holiday. It has erected most of the Confederate monuments on the soil of Mississippi; placed hundreds of headstones at the graves of Confederate dead; fenced in, sodded and beautified plots where soldiers were buried, in some instances purchasing the ground ; assisted in building many Confederate monuments in other States; raised a part of the money for the Jefferson Davis monu- ment at Richmond, and contributed to the Rouss Battle Abbey fund. When Beauvoir was purchased for a Home for Confederate veterans, it repaired and maintained it from December 1903 to March 1904 when an appropriation was made by the Legislature. It also built annexes to the Home for Confederate veterans and their wives and widows. The J. Z. George Chapter of Green- wood pays the expenses of a girl each year at the industrial In- stitute and College at Columbus; and the W. D. Holder Chapter of Jackson, through the initiative of Mrs. Dunbar Rowland, with the assistance of the State Division, presented to the Department of Archives and History the magnificent oil portrait of Jefferson Davis which hangs in the Hall of Fame.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.