The Haunted Natchez Trace (Haunted America) - Softcover

Steed, Wilbur "Bud"

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1609495314 ISBN 13: 9781609495312

Publisher: The History Press, 2012

Synopsis

Stretching from Natchez, Mississippi to Nashville, Tennessee, the Natchez Trace is one of the oldest, most historically significant routes in American history.

Beginning as hunting ground for natives, the Trace became the favored path back home for early settlers who floated down the Mississippi River to sell goods in Natchez. Yet the Trace was riddled with bandits, marauders and other perils, and today troubled and tortured voices from the past still echo along the road. Travel to Grinders Stand where famed explorer Meriwether Lewis met his untimely demise, and onto Kings Tavern, built in the late 1700s, and haunted by the ghost of the innkeeper's mistress. Author and ghost expert Bud Steed recounts these tales, and more, all lurking in the shadows of the Haunted Natchez Trace.

About this title

About the Author

Bud Steed is an author, researcher, investigator, and explorer of strange and lost legends; if it's strange, weird or kind of scary, you can bet he's probably interested in it.

Bud has been actively researching and writing for eight years (at the time of this writing)and has written and published six books, five of which were reviewed and accepted for inclusion into the Library of Congress based on their folklore and historical content. Those five books are the Haunted Natchez Trace, the Haunted Mississippi Gulf Coast, Haunted Baton Rouge, Haunted Northwest Arkansas, and Haunted Ft Smith and Van Buren. Additionally, Bud has two other books published, each the start of its own series. Ozarks Ghosts and Hauntings is the first book in America's Ghosts series, and Lost Treasures of the Ozarks is the first book in the America's Lost Treasures series.  

A lot of the content within his books is historical as it relates to the particular story or legend; you could say that he's kind of a self-described "history geek" as it's his opinion that each ghost story, each legend or strange occurrence, has its roots buried somewhere in historical fact. Researching the history behind the story gives us a better sense of why the legend or ghost sighting started in the first place and allows us to separate the fact from the fiction; hopefully, that will lead us down the twisting turning path to the truth.

Bud has been researching the paranormal for over thirty-eight years and has investigated in both Europe and the United States. He is the founder of Backroads Paranormal, a group dedicated to investigating and researching historical sites, and the co-founder of Infinity Paranormal Research.

Currently, Bud resides in the beautiful Ozark Mountains of Southwest Missouri with his amazingly patient wife Jennifer, four great kids, and two Pitbull's named Dixie and Clyde.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

The Haunted Natchez Trace

By Bud Steed

The History Press

Copyright © 2012 Bud Steed
All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-60949-531-2

Contents

Dedication and Acknowledgements, 
Introduction: The History of the Natchez Trace, 
Part 1: Mississippi, 
Natchez North to Jackson, Mississippi, 
Jackson, Mississippi Area, 
Jackson North to the Alabama State Line, 
Part 2: Alabama, 
Cherokee and Florence Area Sites, 
Part 3: Tennessee, 
Alabama State Line to the Northern Terminus near Nashville, 
Conclusion, 
Bibliography, 
About the Author, 

CHAPTER 1

Natchez North To Jackson, Mississippi

We will start our trip up the haunted Natchez Trace at its southern terminus of Natchez, Mississippi, much the same as the Kaintuck boatmen would have done over two hundred years ago. Many things have changed since that time, and the Trace itself would be totally unrecognizable to the Kaintucks much in the same way that the Trace of their time would be so alien to us. We can now drive the entire Trace in a day and can cover in less than twenty minutes what would have taken them an entire day to traverse.

The start of the Natchez Trace begins at Liberty Road. From Highway 61/84 take Liberty Road east, and you will find the entrance to the Trace clearly marked. Natchez itself is a city with a rich history and considered by more than a few to be an extremely haunted place. I will not spend much time covering the haunted tales of Natchez, as that has been done exceptionally well by Alan Brown in his book, Haunted Natchez. A book well worth reading, it is packed with great stories of hauntings, ghosts and legends associated with Natchez.

Some of the haunted stories of Natchez, however, I find to be fascinating, and they are tied in with the Trace and the tales of murder and robbery that go hand in hand with it. Others are merely stories of human tragedy and mourning that, while not directly associated with the Trace itself, are tales worth telling nonetheless.

Two tales of interest originate from the Natchez City Cemetery, a short drive from the start of the Trace and the final resting place of some of the original citizens of Natchez. Old, discolored headstones dot the cemetery, mixed in with more elaborate and unusual monuments placed in memory of those loved and lost. None, however, is more unusual than that of Florence Irene Ford.

Florence Irene Ford

Ten-year-old Florence was by all accounts a lovely child who was born on September 3, 1861, and passed away from yellow fever on October 30, 1871. She was very much afraid of thunderstorms, and whenever one would occur, she would rush to her mother's side for safety and comfort. Her mother always gave comfort to little Florence and loved her very deeply, so when Florence passed away, her mother was nearly overcome with grief. She had little Florence's casket constructed with a glass window at the end where her head would lie, and the grave was dug so that a pit the same depth as the casket could be built with steps that her mother could descend. Metal doors covered the entrance to the pit to provide shelter for the mother, and during thunderstorms she would step down into the pit to provide comfort to poor little Florence. According to some, on the nights when the storms crash and the winds howl, cries and whimpers can be heard to this day coming from Florence's tomb. In the 1950s, officials had a concrete wall constructed to cover the glass window of Florence's coffin to protect it from vandals, but the hinged metal doors are still there and fully operational. Reports have it that after violent thunderstorms, you can find the otherwise closed doors standing open as if someone had entered the stairs leading down to the casket. Could the spirit of Florence's mother still be lingering to provide comfort and protection from the storms to the daughter she loved so deeply?

Louise the Unfortunate

Another tale stemming from the Natchez City Cemetery is that of Louise the Unfortunate. No one knows her full name, where she came from or how old she was when she passed, as the only information contained on her headstone is simply "Louise the Unfortunate." It is believed that she arrived in town to be married and that she searched both Natchez-Under-the-Hill and Natchez for her fiancé. This is where the story takes several turns, with one saying that he had died, leaving her stranded without enough funds to return home, while another states that she found him only to discover that he was already married. Either way, it is evident that she was stuck in Natchez, and by all accounts, she took a number of jobs that would have been considered respectable for a woman of that era.

However, due to unknown circumstances, she eventually drifted down to the rowdy Under-the-Hill section of town and worked as a waitress in the cafés and bars. Her decline continued, and most likely due to desperate circumstances, she found herself working as a "soiled dove" or prostitute in some of the many brothels that were around Natchez-Under-the Hill. The life of a prostitute was hard, and it no doubt took its toll on Louise, both physically and mentally, as I am sure that this was not the life that she had envisioned for herself when she stepped off the boat. She eventually passed away and was buried in the Natchez City Cemetery, but still her story took several turns. One states that a doctor who treated her while she was employed in the brothels paid for her burial, another states that a plantation owner who spent time with her while in town paid for it and yet another story claims that a local reverend paid for her funeral from his paupers' fund. No one knows for sure which story is correct, if any of them are, but one thing is known for sure, and that is that she received a more decent burial than a destitute person would have received, as evidenced by her headstone and burial in the city cemetery. As unhappy as her life would have been, it's no small wonder that sightings of Louise have been passed down through the years, from stories of her weeping apparition walking Silver Street to those who swear that they have seen a woman standing at her grave who suddenly fades away. It's been said by some that if you go to the cemetery on a warm summer night, you can see her standing there weeping, looking at her headstone. Could she be mourning her lost love or simply still in anguish over how her life turned out?

The Devil's Punch Bowl

Just a short drive north on Cemetery Road from the Natchez City Cemetery will bring you to one of the most infamous spots associated with the Natchez Trace and the land pirates. Tales associated with the Devil's Punch Bowl are those of murder and buried treasure, of mistresses buried alive and villains hiding from the law. It has a past associated with nothing but sorrow, so it's little wonder that stories of ghost sightings have sprung up around it.

A geological freak of nature, the Punch Bowl is a deep depression shaped like a cone that sits within sight of the Mississippi River. There are many stories of land pirates faking tragedy to lure unsuspecting river travelers to the Punch Bowl so that they could murder them and make away with their goods.

One of the most famous of the land pirates was Samuel Mason, a captain in the Ohio Militia during the Revolutionary War who, with his gang, used the Punch Bowl as a hideout from the law. By all accounts, he served well in the war and survived an Indian ambush near Fort Henry that decimated most of his company. He even served as a justice of the peace in Washington County, Pennsylvania, before moving on to Kentucky, where for some reason he decided to engage in criminal activity. That decision would lead him to become one of the most feared of the land pirates and would see him operate from Kentucky on down the rivers to Natchez and ultimately the Natchez Trace. Accounts of Mason and his men throwing bodies into the Punch Bowl and then wagering to see which one would hit the water first were often told in those days.

One member of Mason's gang was "Little" Harpe, who, with his brother "Big" Harpe, terrorized the frontier from Knoxville through Kentucky, back down into Tennessee and along the Trace. The brothers were expelled from the gang for being too vicious, having tied an unfortunate victim naked to the back of his horse before running the horse off a cliff to crash into the rocks below. This infuriated Mason and his gang members, I would imagine, not so much because of the unfortunate individual on the horse but because of the loss of a good horse. Little Harpe would later be hanged after he was recognized trying to turn in the severed head of Sam Mason to the authorities to collect the reward offered for him.

Another highwayman to use the Punch Bowl as a hideout was Joseph Thompson Hare, who robbed and killed all along the Trace. He is said to have had his cheating mistress buried alive near the Punch Bowl with nothing but her jewelry. Clearly, he was not a man to forgive her indiscretions.

Stories of both Mason and Hare burying their treasures at the Devil's Punch Bowl have been told for years, and it is a favorite spot for treasure hunters to search. It is also a place that seems to be alive with an energy all its own. Riverboat captains remarked that their compasses would go awry whenever they would pass the Devil's Punch Bowl. Stories of ghosts have been associated with it for many years, with the most well known being that of Hare's mistress. She is said to appear to individuals at night offering her jewels to anyone who will dig her up and give her a decent Christian burial. So far, it seems no one has taken her up on the offer, as the sightings and stories still persist. The ghosts of Hare and his mistress have also been reported seen strolling around Natchez-Under-the-Hill, laughing and walking arm in arm before slowly fading from sight. Other tales of figures being seen at the edge of the Punch Bowl that seem to shimmer then fade and balls of energy that dart about are told as well. Could these be victims of Mason's gang, still stuck in the spot where they met their end? Or could they be the spirits of Mason and his gang themselves, drawn to the spot that they frequented and where they committed their bloody acts of thievery? No one knows for sure, but one thing is known for certain: the reports of sightings and the feeling of creepiness around the Devil's Punch Bowl are still being talked about to this day.

King's Tavern

King's Tavern is thought to be one of the oldest, if not the oldest, buildings in Natchez. The actual date of construction is thought to be around 1798, though some claim that it was in existence as early as 1789 and others claim that it originated in 1769. At any rate, most agree that Richard King is reported to have built the structure after obtaining the property from his brother for the princely sum of fifty dollars. The tavern was used as a gathering place and an inn for weary travelers from the Natchez Trace, as well as the area's first post office.

Local legend has it that King, who was married, reportedly had an affair with a serving girl named Madeline, who by all accounts was quite pretty and lively. When his wife found out about his dalliance, she was understandably less than pleased, and Madeline seems to have disappeared from history at that point. Fast-forward to around 1930, when it became necessary for the owners of the property to do some much-needed repairs to portions of the building. As the story goes, the skeletal remains of two men and a woman were found walled up near the downstairs chimney with a jeweled dagger lying next to them. The theory is that one of them was the serving girl, Madeline, and that Mrs. King had her dispatched with the dagger and then walled up next to the downstairs chimney. No one could venture a guess about just who the two men were, though some thought that they might have been slaves who had vexed Mrs. King at some point, and she had them disposed of. Others thought that they were the actual murderers of Madeline and were dispatched themselves by Mrs. King to cover up the murder.

No one really knows, of course, and quite frankly, no evidence of any of it can be proven, but what can be substantiated is that something, or several somethings, are still calling the tavern home. Numerous witnesses have reported seeing the apparition of a young woman believed to be Madeline moving around the various levels of the tavern. Footsteps are heard, jars are knocked from shelves, lights turn on and off and glasses break. Another ghost said to haunt the tavern is that of a man, sometimes seen wearing a hat, and the cries of a baby have been heard within the confines of the building as well. A mirror in the third-floor bedroom will sometimes show the image of someone who is not quite distinguishable, and it is said that if you hold your hand a few inches above the bed, you can feel the warmth emanating from it as if someone has just gotten up.

The tavern is now a popular restaurant, and whether the ghost stories are true remains to be seen, but both staff and visitors alike can vouch that something not of this world makes King's Tavern its home.

Up The Trace to Mount Locust

Moving up the Trace a short 15.5 miles from Natchez, we come to the turnoff to Mount Locust. A restored home and stand along the Natchez Trace, it is now managed and maintained by the National Park Service. Mount Locust, also known through time as the Chamberlain House and the Mound Plantation, began its storied history around 1780 with John Blommart, who was a successful merchant and fur trader, along with other endeavors, in the Natchez area. He would lead a rebellion against Spain that would cost him his fortune and property, and a business associate of his, William Ferguson, would eventually purchase Mount Locust in 1784. Ferguson would go on to purchase an additional 1,200 acres to add to the original property, and with his wife, Pauline, and their seven children, he would go on to develop it into a plantation.

With the Natchez Trace supplying a steady stream of travelers, it soon became apparent that catering to the needs of travelers could be quite lucrative, so Mount Locust began a portion of its life as an inn. The family prospered, and a short time after William's death in 1801, Pauline married James Chamberlain, an overseer on the plantation, and they raised an additional four children on the property. The family business experienced steady growth, with travelers being offered a meal of corn mush and milk and a spot to sleep on the porch for twenty-five cents. Later, an additional four-room, two-story building was erected some distance behind the house for the purpose of providing lodging to travelers and was given the name of "Sleepy Hollow."

As was the custom of the time, the plantation was built on slave labor, with the 1820 census showing twenty-six slaves residing on the property. By 1850, that number had risen to fifty-one. It is estimated that twelve to sixteen slave cabins housing four to five people each were located a short distance behind the main home. A cemetery on the west side of the property contains the graves of forty-three slaves; a single marker lists the names of some who might be buried there. A short walk to the south of the main home lies the Ferguson Family Cemetery, containing the remains of William Ferguson, four of his six sons, Paulina and two of her sons, with James Chamberlain and a guest, one Robert Law, who died while visiting. It also holds the remains of five generations of the Chamberlain family.

Troops moved up and down the Natchez Trace during the Civil War, and Mount Locust's location, close to both Natchez and the Mississippi River, saw them camping all around the property.

The Civil War brought an end to slavery, and the plantation slowly started slipping into decline. Without slaves to do the work, property was eventually sold off, a little here, a little there, as happened with a number of plantations all throughout the South. All in all, the plantation remained in the Chamberlain family until 1944, and restoration on the home and property began around 1954 with the National Park Service returning the home to its 1820 appearance.

Thousands of men passed through Mount Locust while traveling the Trace, some never to return home. Generations were born and died at the plantation, both slaves and members of the Ferguson/Chamberlain family, so the property saw a lot of suffering and death that have apparently left their imprints on the place.

Stories of workers seeing an elderly lady, believed to be Pauline, started being passed around after the National Park Service started renovations on the property. She would be seen standing on the porch, only to suddenly disappear when noticed. Tools would be moved or go missing, only to turn up in unlikely spots or somewhere that had already been searched. At dusk, figures would be seen moving in the area that used to house the slaves, but upon further examination, no one would be found present. Soft, low singing could frequently be heard, though its source could never be determined. Mysterious lights would be seen in the vicinity of both the slave and the Ferguson family cemeteries, only to slowly fade away upon approach.

(Continues...)

Excerpted from The Haunted Natchez Trace by Bud Steed. Copyright © 2012 Bud Steed. Excerpted by permission of The History Press.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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Edition details

• Publisher: The History Press
• Publication date: 2012
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1609495314
• ISBN 13: 9781609495312
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 112