The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1909-12-24
6REfMNOoN

There is much about Greenwood
that the citizens do not know. Little
do those of today who are enjoying
the prospelo Gus growth Of the city
about its early history. and
there are nov only q few who know
the history OF the early days. In
til about 1850 it was known az vii.
liams Landing. Even as early as
1920 or 1921 the flat boats and
keel boats and other craft that could
be guided in the river, made land
ings there and traded with the set
tiers who occupied the near by hill
country. There we're no roads
opened to the river, but the Indian
trails were followed and over them
the purchasers for the produce of
the fiat boats came and loaded their
pack horses. Very few white peo-
pie occupied the country and tiled
the soil. The white men could not
own any land and would not i'm
prove the land after the treaty of
Dancing Rabbit Greek. There was
a rush to the land Office at Choc-
chuma to secure titles to land. AZ
ter the organization of Carroll
county in March, 1884, public lands
were laid out and opened up and
the villages that had already been
settled began to grow. Carrollton,
Shougals, Black Hawk, Marion, Le-
fore Town, Middleton, Duck Hill,
Greenville, and Williams Landing
all were known as business points.
The first clearing of land done near
Greenwood was superintendent by
Pass Williams, a son of the owner
of the landing for Governor Bib of
Alabama on the border of Swan
Lake, which clearing is now a part
of r. T. Jones' Mayfield plantation.
Col. Lefore had settled the Malmai.
son place and had taken up lands
along the Big Sand and Pelucia
creeks, and was clearing it up rap
idly. Lands along the valley were
taken up by Kinds, Sharkey, Meek
Skipwith, Hall, Terry and others,
and later, Bowie Markham, Ham
mond, Murdoch, Booth, Sharkoy,
the Robinsons, Prince, Gayden,
Fisher, Poinde1ter and others OPEN
ed lands along and near the Yazoo
River. In laying off lots for a town
at the landing a contest arose be.
tween one Howard and one Douglas,
and in the map of the city now the
subdivisions are marked Douglas,
and Howard divisions. During
those early days Col. Greenwood
Leflore, who was the largest land
owner in this section, had some dis
agreement with leading business
men of Williams Landing and de-
termined to kill the village if he
could by building a rival town three
miles above at the junction of the
Tallahatchie and Yallobusha rivers.
spent much time and money in
building a road from the hills to
Point Lefore. and for a few years a
good business was done there.
Traces of the work done under his
direction r plainly visible along
that public highway which now
leads to Greenwood from the hills.
While Col. Le1ore was working go
diligently on his road to Point. Le-
fore, the business men of Green
wood organized a road company and
built a plank road four miles long
from this town ON the Carrollton
road. A toll gate was established
where J. T. Flanagan now lives and
although tolls were charged the
trade of Greenwood increased, and
it became the most important trad.
ing point above Yazoo City, which
place was known for many years as
Manchester. Marion, which after
wards became Sidon, was a right
business point. OF the
men who did business at Marion or
l do not now recall any who
are living except Captain Edwin
For several years he OPP
Grated the most extensive saw mill
that was above Vicksburg, on the
Capt. Crippans was then an
young man and is yet hale
and hearty though more than four
score years of age. Some of the
business firms who did business