Day 8 -- Natches MS to Tupelo MS

Tracing the footsteps of the flatboatmen...



If we had skipped the Southern-most portion of the Natchez Trace, we would have missed the very best.





Natchez has a fascinating history that I cannot began to do justice to. I'll just talk about some of the things that stuck with me. Natchez was an important trading outpost very early in the settlement of the Southeastern portion of the continent. It has been under Indian, French, Spanish, English, and US control. After the Natchez Trace was made into a "road" of sorts by the Army in 1801 to 1802, Natchez was tied fairly directly to the North. Thus when talks of secession began, Natchez was more of a Northern town than a Southern; still, when Mississippi voted to secede from the Union, Natchez threw it's support behind the state, causing families and neighbors to divide their allegiances. Being so far removed from the main areas of conflict, Natchez was undamaged from the Civil War and thus retains most of its historic buildings, including businesses, homes, and the mansions of wealthy plantation owners, lawyers, and businessmen. In 1830 the first steamboat docked at Natchez, and from that time on, the Natchez Trace, and the town of Natchez, declined in importance as the port of New Orleans and the Mississippi River took their places. The Civil War took a huge toll on the South in terms of financial strength, and once the war was over, the Cotton Boll Weavel completed the devastation of one of the South's key industries. In talking to some of the locals, it is my impression that many areas of the South, Natchez included, are only now making any kind of a come back, and most of that is based on tourism. Pictured here is the Kings Tavern, reputed to be haunted, with great prime rib, and the oldest building in Natchez.



We found the Natchez Coffee Company, a very nice espresso and ice cream shop, for our morning wake-me-up, and then decided to tour one of the magnificent antebellum homes nearby. We chose the "Melrose" -- http://www.nps.gov/natc/historyculture/places.htm -- and -- http://travel.yahoo.com/p-travelguide-2990729-melrose_natchez-i -- as it is the best-preserved of all the Natchez homes, due to its being in the ownership of only two families before its sale to the National Park Service.


Built by a wealthy lawyer who later became a plantation owner, as well, the house, grounds, and outbuildings are stunning examples of the very best craftsmanship of its time. All the original furniture and furnishings still exist. The style is Neo-Grecian, with columns supporting the upper stories. After several family tragedies, the first owners sold the entire estate to another family who passed it down until the last one, still making her home there, died in, I think, 1979. The tour is well done, and we were allowed access to the first and second floors of the home, and one building that was one of the slave quarters. This brings up the juxtaposition of exquisite beauty and profound misery, as all of the manual labor required to run the house and keep the grounds came from slaves who lived on the grounds.

Architectural features helped make the house livable -- the attic features opening windows that served to draw air up through the structure, which would have helped cool it. A full basement was used to store furnishings not in use and various food items in relative coolness.



A foot trail used by several different Indian tribes and nations between Natchez and the Nashville area existed for centuries. The Mound Builders, or "Upper Woodland People" build burial and ceremonial mounds along the Trace. Natchez was an important port city, and became a banking center, home to plantation owners, and supply depot.



Traders and trappers would journey from their homes in the Northeast into the Missouri and Mississippi River systems, build "flat boats" -- glorified rafts, really, and start downstream gathering furs and trading as they went, until they reached Natchez. There they would sell their boats for the lumber in them, sell any remaining goods, buy supplies, and start North on the Natchez Trace either on foot or horseback. The journey back to their homes could take as long as 6 months through the snake and insect-infested swamps and woodlands, and at any point they could be set upon by thieves, wild animals, or renegade Indians. Places to sleep or get a meal were scarce -- known as "stands", they may or may not have anything to offer, as they themselves were dependant on the Trace for supplies. Still, the Trace was the only reasonable way to make your North at that time, and unlike the Oregon Trail, where wagons would spread out for miles across the prairie, the Trace was essentially a single-file foot path that countless feet and years of erosion wore deep into the land. Today there are places where the Trace is 8 feet or more below grade, a U-shaped cut that is twenty or so feet across.



The section of the Trace between Natchez and Jackson contained many examples of "sunken" traces, and is, I think, the most scenic portion of the modern 2-lane road which comprises the Trace today. Traces of the original Trace can be seen in many areas, and there are many historic sites just short walks from the road. And there are places where one can walk on the original Trace, literally in the foot steps of such legendary figures as Davy Crockett, Daniel Boone, and Meriweather Lewis. More on him, next time.