Pike
County Mississippi
MSGenWeb Project
Early Settlers
“Pike County was established December 9th, 1815. Prior to the organization of the county a number of South
Carolinians settled on the
Bogue Chitto River. John Magee, Sr., made
the first settlement in the latter part of 1811 as did also Wm. Sibley.
These early pioneers were followed by quite a number of persons who settled on Bogue Chitto, Magee’s Creek, Topisaw and Tangipahoa; among whom were Benjamin Bagley, David Morgan, Bedy Goldman, Henry Goldman, Matthew Cox, James McNulty, Isaac Sadler, David Cleveland, William Bullock, Thos. Heard, William Love, Edmund Andrews, John Brent, Jesse Harper, Vincent Garner, James Andrews, David McGraw, Henry Raglan, John Bond, Wm. Sibley, Jere Smith, Richard Dillon, Chas. King, and Isaac Carter. A year later, mostly from the same State came Willis Prescott, George Hartzog, Peter Felder, Solomon Cole, Allen Carter,
Michael Prescott, John Buck Allen, Derrell Martin, Wm. Martin, Hardwick Vaughn, Green Cook, Wm. Miller, James G. McNab, Robert Handley, Robert Love, Richard Smith, and Isaac Roberts. In 1814, came Ralph Stovall, Daniel, Richard and Henry Quinn, Nathanial Wells, Samuel Prestridge, Zachariah Reeves, Allen Carter, Willis Prescott, Peter and Isaac Felder and Peter Quinn. The greater portion of the persons named located on streams in the country. At that early day the pine woods were covered by switch cane, and afforded a fine pasture for stock the entire year.
The first county site was Jacksonville, on the east side of Bogue Chitto River. As the county increased in population, the settlers on the west side of the Bogue Chitto insisted upon an election for the permanent location of the courthouse. In 1816 an election was held resulting in the moving of the county site to Holmesville, west of the river mentioned. Afterwards, it was removed to Magnolia. John Felder, Laban Bacot, Felix Allen and Peter Felder were appointed commissioners to lay off the new county site.
David Dickson, Wm. J. Minton and James M. McNab were delegates to the Convention that framed the Constitution of 1817.
The first clerk of the court in the county was Henry Quinn, a son of Peter Quinn, Sr., who has a number of descendants in the county at this time. Some years later S. A. Matthews, Esq., still an honored resident of the county, served the people most acceptably as clerk. The first sheriff was Laban Bacot, who held the office for many years and was noted for his systematic business habits.
Pike County was represented in the Constitutional Convention of 1832 by James J. McNab and Laban Bacot.”
From: A History of Mississippi from the
Discovery of the Great River by Hernando DeSoto including
the earliest Settlement
made by the French under Iberville to The Death of Jefferson Davis.
by
Robert Lowery and William H. McCardle, published 1891 by R. H. Henry & Co.,
Jackson, MS