April 13th - Mount Locust Inn and Plantation

Mount Locust is one of the oldest structures still standing in an area known for historic homes. John Blommart began what would become Mt. Locust by 1780, but his stay was short. After leading a failed rebellion against the Spanish, he was jailed; forfeiting his furtune and Mt. Locust. Blommarts's former business associate, William Ferguson, and his wife Paulina purchased Mt. Locust in 1784 and operated the farm until William's death in 1801. A short time later, Paulina married James Chamberlain, an overseer at Mt. Locust, and the continued to build the growing farm. Mt. Locust was home to five generations of Chamberlains, with the last leaving in 1944. The National Park Service began restoration in 1954; returning the historic home to it's 1820 appearance.

Only 20 percent of the building is constructed of the original materials. The balance of the restoration has been done with new materials that closest resemble those of the original structure.

An increasing number of boatmen, known as "Kaintucks", were floating flatboats down the Mississippi River to sell their goods at the markets in Natchez and New Orleans. Without an efficient way to navigate up the Mississippi River, the boatmen walked north on the Natchez Trace to make their way home. A day's walk from Natchez brought the Kaintucks and their gold to Mt. Locust. They would have walked in to the plantation over this portion of the Trace. The growing number of travelers forced the Fergusons to turn their home into a "stand", which was nothing more than a crude inn. A staple corn crop enabled the family to offer a meal of corn mush and milk with sleeping arrangements on the porches and grounds. As business prospered, a four-room, two-story annex was erected behind the house and became known as Sleepy Hollow. The simple structure was a luxury not readily found on the Old Natchez Trace. A wear traveller would pay the Fergusons twenty-five cents for the luxury of a be out of the elements and a simple meal.

The kitchen and common living area.
The master bedroom.
The boy's room.
The daughter's room.
Back porch and storage area.
In an era when women were typically shunned from business or making important decisions, Paulina proved to be extraordinary. Despite losing two husbands and raising 11 children (7 with William and 4 with James, only 1 of which was a girl) Paulina kept Mt. Locust bustling. Sometime after 1810, James was gone, leaving her and the children to raise the family and run the farm and inn, which provided a comfortable living for the family By the mid 1820's the steamboat and other roads all but brought an end to the Natchez Trace. After 1825, the inn no longer catered to travelers but instead to Natchezeans who sought the rural solitude of Mt. Locust.

During her life, Paulina oversaw a small corn farm that became a thriving cotton plantation. After her death in 1849 at the age of 80, the Civil War grought an end to the plantation system and Mt. Locust began a slow decline. In a testemony to her spirit and the lasting impression she made on her family, her descendants still refer to her as "Grandma Polly".

There were a small number of slave families at Mt. Locust prior to the "flush" times of King Cotton. The 1820 census list 26 slaves at Mt. Locust, and by the middle of the 19th century, the number had reached 51. In 1834, the average prices for enslaved men and women to work the cotton fields were $800 and $600 repectively. Archeologists believe 12 to 16 slave cabins onece stood on the property, with four to five people occupying each dwelling. On the west side of Mt. Locust, a cemetery holds the remains of about 43 enslaved workers. A marker lists the names of some who may be buried there, and a single headstone marks the area. The Ferguson-Chamberlain family burial area sits on the southwest corner of the grounds.