Mount Locust

"MOUNT LOCUST, is the first site we've visited north of Natchez, Mississippi, that falls into the era of the national road, 1800 to 1820.

"MOUNT LOCUST is one of the oldest structures in the state of Mississippi, possibly dating from 1779. It began as a house; the center room was the first part, built to satisfy the provisions of a British land grant, which required the building of... "One good dwelling house to contain at least twenty feet in length, sixteen feet in breadth."

"William Ferguson married Paulina Burch in 1783 and in 1784 bought Mount Locust and received an additional land grant from the Spanish. In 1801 William Ferguson died and a year later his widow, Paulina, Married James Chamberlain.

"During the years that the Natchez Trace was a National road, the Ferguson-Chamberlain family ran Mount Locust as an Inn where travelers stopped for food and rest. Business was so brisk during that time that behind the house the family built a two-story annex that became known as 'Sleepy Hollow.'

"Next time we'll hear more of the story of Mount Locust. I'm Frank Thomas, your guide along the Natchez Trace, A Road Through the Wilderness."

For more about Natchez Trace: A Road Through the Wilderness, visit eddieandfrank.com