Pearl River and Jackson's Military Road
determined to a large extent the locations of the
earliest
settlements in Marion County. It is
true that the county was organized before Jackson
cut the historical road in 1814 but only a few
settlers had founded homes in the county before
that time. After the road was opened, easier
access was obtained to the interior sections, and
many of the first settlers found more desirable
locations along its sides. During the War Between
the States those settlements thus located suffered
more or less from the Union forces when they
invaded the state because of the easy
accessibility made possible by the road. E. R.
Ford of Hub tells how a band of Union troops
stripped the John Ford place of 4,500 bushels of
corn, 2,400 bushels of sweet potatoes, 2,000
gallons of syrup, seventeen head of horses and
mules, and twenty-four head of hogs. After taking
all of the foodstuff the soldiers set fire to all
the buildings, dwellings, barns, and slave
quarters, forcing the occupants to flee to
neighbor houses for shelter.
Interesting stories concerning Jackson and his
men while they were crossing the county are handed
down to the present generation. It seems that the
army stopped for a couple of weeks in the county
on its way to New Orleans. The time was given to
crossing Pearl River and perhaps for a few days of
rest before assuming their journey again. The army
marched down the river across from the Reverend
John Ford place near Sandy Hook to cross. Jackson,
feeling the need of domestic comforts, asked
Reverend Ford for permission to spend time in his
home while his army camped near by. The story goes
that Jackson was in the habit of using more or
less profanity in his speech, a fact Mr. Ford was
aware of. Upon asking permission to be admitted to
the home as a guest the general was told by the
minister that he would take him in on one
condition and that was he must refrain from his
swear words while a guest there. Jackson agreed
and did not violate his promise while in the home.
Another interesting fact handed down
concerning Jackson's army in the county is that a
stump now standing in the little stream of
Sweetwater, and in a perfect state of
preservation, is in the exact place where
Jackson's men forded the stream and still bears
the marks of their axes. Near this same ford a
human skeleton was dug up and buttons from a
United States soldier's uniform were found with
the skeleton, a mute testimony that the army was
really in that vicinity.
Pearl River crosses the county in a diagonal
direction, entering the county from the northwest
corner near the community of Hathorn and flowing
toward the southeast corner leaving the county a
few miles from the village of Sandy Hook. The
county seat, Columbia, is located on the east bank
of the river very nearly half way between the
northern and southern boundary. The oldest
settlements of the county are located near the
banks of the stream either on the east or west
side. The Gulf, Mobile, and Northern Railroad
follows it across the entire county on the west
side, and the Illinois Central follows it along
its eastern bank for a distance in the north
central section. The river furnishes opportunity
for fishing and rowing sports in the late spring
and summer but it is a source of uneasiness and
cause of anxiety in the early spring because of
the likelihood of overflows. The river was once
used as the chief highway of travel and supplies
were brought to the early settlers by means of
small stream boats. Logs were rafted and floated
down to the coast for many years after the
railroads were built through the county.
In 1908 the Great Northern Railroad was
constructed through Marion County. It enters the
county near White Bluff on the west side of Pearl
River, follows the stream across the county and
crosses the southern boundary line near Sandy
Hook. This road connects the county with the state
capitol and the Gulf of Mexico. Points on this
line are Sandy Hook, Cheraw, Jamestown, Foxworth,
Columbia, Morgantown, and White Bluff.
The Fernwood, Columbia and Gulf is another
railroad which has a terminal station at Columbia.
This road was constructed in 1920 and extends from
Fernwood, Mississippi to Columbia, a distance of
forty-four miles. The original intentions of the
company was to extend the line to Mobile on the
Gulf of Mexico, but due to some reason the road
has never been completed. The points on this
railroad are Columbia, Foxworth, Neb, Hamage,
Sunbax, and Kokomo.
The first railroad to cross the county was a
branch line of the Gulf and Ship Island, which
extended from Maxie in the southern part of the
state to Mendenhall in Simpson County. The
construction of the line was begun at Maxie and
progressed northward reaching Columbia in
September, 1900. A Y was built there and trains
were operated between Columbia and Maxie until the
road was completed in 1906. This road gave the
county connections with the state capitol and the
gulf through another section of the country. It
entered the county near the village of Pinebur and
crossed to Columbia in a northwestern direction,
turned more northward and left the county near
Hathorn, lying wholly on the east side of Pearl
River.
In 1925 the Illinois Central Railroad system
bought over the Gulf & Ship Island System and the
href was changed accordingly. Since the timber and
forest products are no longer plentiful the road
is not used so much. During the last few years the
rails between Columbia and Maxie have been taken
up and Columbia is the terminal of the line
extending from Mendenhall. The points are
Columbia, Expose, Goss, and Hathorn on the
northern end and the points that were on the
southern end were Nason, Pinebur, and Hub.
The county sear of the county, Columbia, was
one time the temporary capitol of the state; one
noted convention, the famous Pearl River
Convention, and the fourth annual Mississippi
Conference was held at the ante-bellum home of
Reverend John Ford.
