Old Greenville is a

ghost town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * Ghost Town (1936 film), ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * Ghost Town (1956 film), ''Ghost Town'' ...

Jefferson County, Mississippi Jefferson County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi; its western border is formed by the Mississippi River. As of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, the population was 7,726, making it the third ...

, United States. The town was located along the old

Natchez Trace The Natchez Trace, also known as the Old Natchez Trace, is a historic forest trail within the United States which extends roughly from Nashville, Tennessee, to Natchez, Mississippi, linking the Cumberland, Tennessee, and Mississippi rivers. ...

and was once the largest town along the Trace. Nothing exists at the site today except the town's cemetery.

History

Old Greenville was located on Coles Creek, approximately northeast of

Natchez Natchez may refer to: Places * Natchez, Alabama, United States * Natchez, Indiana, United States * Natchez, Louisiana, United States * Natchez, Mississippi, a city in southwestern Mississippi, United States * Grand Village of the Natchez, a site o ...

. The area around Old Greenville was settled prior to 1798 and was originally known as Greenbay in honor of a local landowner, Henry Green. It was then known as Huntley, in honor of Abijah Hunt, who operated a store and the first cotton gin in Jefferson County in the area. In 1803, multiple landowners (including

Ferdinand Claiborne Ferdinand Leigh Claiborne (March 9, 1772 - March 22, 1815) was an American military officer most notable for his command of the militia of the Mississippi Territory during the Creek War and the War of 1812. Early life Born in Sussex County, Vir ...

), donated land that became part of the town of Greenville, named in honor of General

Nathanael Greene Nathanael Greene (June 19, 1786, sometimes misspelled Nathaniel) was a major general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War. He emerged from the war with a reputation as General George Washington's most talented and dependab ...

. Old Greenville became the county seat of Jefferson County and remained the county seat until it was moved to Fayette in 1825.

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...

married

Rachel Jackson Rachel Jackson ( ''née'' Donelson; June 15, 1767 – December 22, 1828) was the wife of Andrew Jackson, the 7th president of the United States.

in 1791 at the home of Thomas Green near Old Greenville. After being captured in 1803, the

highwayman A highwayman was a robber who stole from travellers. This type of thief usually travelled and robbed by horse as compared to a footpad who travelled and robbed on foot; mounted highwaymen were widely considered to be socially superior to footp ...

Samuel Mason Samuel Ross Mason, also spelled Meason (November 8, 1739 – 1803), was a Virginia militia captain, on the American western frontier, during the American Revolutionary War. After the war, he became the leader of the Mason Gang, a criminal gang o ...

was shot while trying to escape. Two of his gang members,

Peter Alston Peter Alston (after 1765 - February 8, 1804) was an American counterfeiter, horse thief, highwayman, and river pirate of the late 18th and early 19th Centuries. He is believed to have been an associate of serial killer Little Harpe, and a memb ...

and Wiley Harpe, attempted to bring his head in to claim the bounty that Governor

William C. C. Claiborne William Charles Cole Claiborne ( 1773–1775 – November 23, 1817) was an American politician, best known as the first non-colonial governor of Louisiana. He also has the distinction of possibly being the youngest member of the United State ...

had placed on Mason. Alston and Harpe were recognized, captured, and hung in Old Greenville. Old Greenville was at one point home to a large number of men who would hold important roles in the future state of Mississippi. David Hunt and

George Poindexter George Poindexter (April 19, 1779 − September 5, 1853) was an American politician, lawyer and judge from Mississippi. Born in Virginia, he moved to the Mississippi Territory in 1802. He served as United States Representative from the newly adm ...

both owned plantations near Old Greenville.

Joseph Emory Davis Joseph Emory Davis (10 December 1784 – 18 September 1870) was an American lawyer who became one of the wealthiest planters in Mississippi in the antebellum era; he owned thousands of acres of land and was among the nine men in Mississippi who ...

, older brother of

Jefferson Davis Jefferson F. Davis (June 3, 1808December 6, 1889) was an American politician who served as the president of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865. He represented Mississippi in the United States Senate and the House of Representatives as a ...

, practiced law in Old Greenville and

. While his elder brother lived in Old Greenville, Jefferson Davis spent summers on his plantation. General

Thomas Hinds Thomas Hinds (January 9, 1780August 23, 1840) was an American soldier and politician from the state of Mississippi, who served in the United States Congress from 1828 to 1831. A hero of the War of 1812, Hinds is best known today as the namesake ...

spent a large part of his life in Old Greenville and died there in 1840. The English travel writer Fortescue Cuming, visit Old Greenville in 1808 and wrote that the community consisted of forty houses (many unoccupied), a small church, courthouse, two stores, two taverns, drug store, a prison, and a pillory. A post office operated under the name Greenville from 1803 to 1834.

Decline

After the county seat was moved, Old Greenville rapidly declined. By 1835, the main street was bordered by dilapidated houses and the town was practically abandoned. The last remaining building in Old Greenville was the Cable Hotel, which burned prior to 1907. Nothing remains of Old Greenville today except the Old Greenville Cemetery. A historical marker describing the community is located on Mississippi Highway 553 six miles west of

U.S. Route 61 U.S. Route 61 or U.S. Highway 61 (U.S. 61) is a major United States highway that extends between New Orleans, Louisiana and the city of Wyoming, Minnesota. The highway generally follows the course of the Mississippi River and is designate ...

References

{{Jefferson County, Mississippi Former populated places in Jefferson County, Mississippi Natchez Trace Ghost towns in Mississippi