Carrollton Pioneer Day Festival

Pioneer Day Festival October 7, 2017

Pam Lee — Tue, 19 Sep 2017 20:29:23 +0000

If you like to shop, the Pioneer Day Festival, sponsored by the Carroll Society for the Preservation of Antiquities, is an arts and crafts festival just for you on Saturday, October 7. In addition to shopping, you can learn

about the history of aprons through an exhibit from the Apron Museum in Iuka,
about crayon quilts from the Vaiden Quilters Guild,
about Mississippi John Hurt through an exhibit from the Mississippi John Hurt Museum,
about Mississippi through interactive activities on a giant 16 by 20 foot floor map from the Mississippi Geographic Alliance based at Ole Miss.

All of these activities are free.

More information about the Pilgrimage and Pioneer Day Festival check us out on Facebook or at www.VisitCarrolltonMs.com.

A Walk Through Carrollton with Walt Grayson

Pam Lee — Fri, 15 Sep 2017 01:36:07 +0000

Thanks to a Bicentennial Grant from the Mississippi Humanities Council, you can visit Carrollton on your smart device as well as in person. The annual Pilgrimage and Pioneer Day Festival will be held October 6-7. Five homes will be open for home tours for a fee. But the big excitement will be the free walking tour that you can download to your smart device to learn about the history and architecture of 26 buildings in Carrollton. While the walking tour does not get you in the buildings, it will enhance your walk from home to home.

To Mississippians, Walt Grayson is the voice of Mississippi, taking us along on trips down “Mississippi Roads” for a “Look Around Mississippi.” Now he takes us through Carrollton’s history and architecture. Although the app has been available through the Apple and Google Play stores only a few weeks, visitors are already coming to walk through Carrollton with Walt.”

Pilgrimage homes will be open Friday and Saturday, from 9 am to 5 pm. These are family homes, not museums or staged exhibits. Tickets will be sold at the Town Hall at 701 Lexington Street. Adult tickets are $25. Tickets for students grades 1-12 are $10.

More information about the Pilgrimage and Pioneer Day Festival check us out on Facebook or at www.VisitCarrolltonMs.com.

“Opry on the Square” New to 2016 Carrollton Pilgrimage & Pioneer Day Festival Activities.

CCDA2015 — Fri, 30 Sep 2016 02:15:22 +0000

Margaret Corder as Minnie Pearl

“Opry on the Square” is a new event for the 2016 Pioneer Day Festival. “Minnie Pearl” [Margaret Corder] will host the event.

Featured Opry Musicians

Robert Box

Robert Box – a 5-time Mississippi State Banjo Champion and an International Southern Gospel Instrumentalist of the Year

Donnie Buckner with the Buckner Family Bluegrass Band

Donnie Buckner – both a Mississippi State Fiddle Champion and a Banjo Champion as well as a Mid-South Banjo Champion.

Opry on the Square will begin at 11:00 am, following the presentation of the winners of the Miss Pioneer Day Festival Pageant.

Bring your lawn chairs to the west side of the Carroll County Courthouse in Carrollton to enjoy the wonderful music and fun. Carroll County talent includes Mike Hyde, Bennie Rigby, Jackie McIlwain, LaGatha Abbott, Terry Herbert, Alan Malone and the Cobbins Family.

Come early and shop at the many arts and craft booths, visit the Winterville Mound exhibit, and tour some of our historic homes and buildings.

Carrollton Masonic Lodge Open for 2016 Pilgrimage

CCDA2015 — Wed, 21 Sep 2016 21:30:35 +0000

Carrollton Masonic Lodge F & AM #36 was chartered 3 January 1838. This was the first Masonic Lodge established in Carroll County. The Hall is the second oldest in the state in continuous use as a Masonic Hall.

The Lodge has all but the first twelve years of their minutes. Many of the founding fathers of Carroll County were members of the Lodge. The minutes contain interesting information about the County and Town throughout the years. One being the rates for electricity, the Carrollton Electric Company in 1904 raised the rates from $1.65 per month to $6.00 per month. Members of Lodge felt this was too high and voted to have the power shut off and returned to using oil lamps. This continued for five years when the Electric Company lowered the rate to $1.50 per month.

The cornerstone for the current Masonic Hall was laid in 1899. The cost of the Hall was $1,483.00. John Sidney McCain (Sen. John McCain’s grandfather) served on the Building Committee.

The Carrollton Post Office was located in the north first floor room from 1899 to 1952. In 1919 the Red Cross was located in one of the first floor rooms and in 1946 the State Board of Health rented part of the first floor for the Carroll County Health Department. In 1952 when the Post Office moved out, the Selective Service Board rented space. Through the years the building has housed various Doctor’s offices and a florist shop.

In 1951 the Hall was renovated and in 2005 the Lodge began and extensive renovation/restoration. Work has been done on the foundation, the exterior has been painted, the roof replaced, and the porch repaired. The Lodge room has been painted and the floors refinished. The entire building has been rewired and plumbed. Two years ago HVAC was installed. Work has begun on the first floor rooms.

Carrollton Masonic Lodge

Funding for the restoration has come in the form of grants from the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, donations from the general public, and yearly fundraisers. One of which is selling sausage biscuits and coffee each year early in the morning on Pioneer Day during the Carrollton Pilgrimage.

This information has been provided by the Carrollton Masonic Lodge.

Cotesworth Open for 2016 Pilgrimage

CCDA2015 — Tue, 13 Sep 2016 16:32:34 +0000

Your pilgrimage won’t be complete without taking the short drive to Cotesworth, the home of James Zachariah George from 1861 until his death in 1897. There, you can purchase tickets for a tour of the home. George was a major figure in Mississippi government during Reconstruction and a United States senator from 1881 till 1897. It was at his three-legged desk–still at Cotesworth–that George, having taken a leave of absence from his Washington job, drafted a major portion of the 1890 Mississippi Constitution. A few yards away from the home is George’s library, thought to be the only hexagonal structure still standing in Mississippi.

But Cotesworth is more than a destination for historians, architects, and people interested in old homes. Indeed, the stately Greek Revival mansion amid its pastoral setting has caught the eye of Hollywood. In the 2012 movie The Help, nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award, Cotesworth is the home of Celia Foote, played by Jessica Chastain (nominated for an Oscar for this performance), whose maid is Minnie, played by Octavia Spencer (winner of an Oscar for this performance). More recently, James Franco turned Cotesworth into the Compson home in his film adaptation of Faulkner’s The Sound and the Fury.

Owned by George’s great-granddaughter Katharine Williams until its purchase by the Cotesworth Culture and Heritage Center (CCHC), the Cotesworth house has recently undergone partial restoration and renovation, including the installation of central heating and cooling on the first floor, as well as an ADA-compliant restroom. Cotesworth is now available for weddings, parties, meetings, tours, and other events. Furthermore, plans are in place for a complete restoration and renovation of the house and library, including the addition of period-appropriate furnishings and accoutrements. The goal of the CCHC is to make the house, library, and grounds not only a site for special occasions, but also an interactive educational arena.

You will definitely be glad you took the time to visit Cotesworth. You may even decide to schedule an event there yourself, or you may want to donate to the CCHC. If so, call 662-237-9600 for all the information you need for planning your own Cotesworth experience.

Pilgrimage Tickets are $10 and will be available only at Cotesworth.

Written by Josephine Neill-Browning, Cotesworth Culture and Heritage Board

Winterville Traveling Trunk to be Part of 2016 Pioneer Day Festival

CCDA2015 — Tue, 16 Aug 2016 01:37:56 +0000

To most of us the term “Mississippian” means someone who lives in Mississippi. However, to archeologists the term designates a period in history 1000 to 1700 A.D. and the society that lived during that period. This society was spread across much of the southeastern states. At first glance, their platform mounds appear to be a small hill rise. However, they range in height from eight to almost 60 feet [approximately the height of a 6 story building] and are from 60 to as much as 770 feet in width at the base. There are seven sites in Mississippi that have been designated Mississippi Landmarks and are part of the National Park Service system. Best known are Emerald and Grand Village sites are located near Natchez, Bear Creek located on the Mississippi and Alabama state line near Tupelo and Winterville located just north of Greenville.

According to the National Park Service website, the Winterville site consists of a 43-acre plaza with flat-topped, rectangular ceremonial mounds of various sizes. The largest mound, at the center, is the 55-foot-high Mound A. Archaeologists believe that the site was occupied mainly during ceremonies with the social elite, such as chiefs, priests, and their retainers, being the permanent residents. Buildings were constructed of wooden posts covered with mud plaster and had thatched roofs. It is likely that only members of. Four of the original 23 mounds were destroyed and several others reduced to remnants by agricultural practices before the site became as a state park. Nevertheless, this mound group remains one of the largest and best-preserved in the southeastern United States. Archaeological excavations were conducted at Winterville in 1967-1968. The finds included structural remains, burials, and many ceramic and stone artifacts. From this evidence, the history of the site was reconstructed. The Winterville museum exhibits a large collection of archeological artifacts, including decorated pottery vessels, stone tools, and ornaments from Winterville and other regional sites.

Dr. Mark Howell, Director of Winterville Mounds (administered by the Mississippi Department of Archives and History), will bring the Winterville Traveling Trunk to Carrollton’s Historic Pilgrimages and Pioneer Days on October 8, 2016. On display will be a tri-fold display (3’ x 3’) with pictures of the Winterville archaeological site, artifacts from there and nearby sites; replications of ancient tools and weapons, such as an atlatl (spear thrower) and fire starter; hands-on pottery sherds and lithics (worked stone); replications of high status ceramics; and handouts about the site, public programs, and those from other nearby archaeological sites and attractions—including the newly established Mississippi Mound Trail. Mound Trail t-shirts will be available for sale as well as books on the archaeology of Mississippi. Dr. Howell will answer questions and give demonstrations on the Native American technology on display. Although everyone interested in our first residents is invited to stop by to talk to Dr. Howell, history teachers will find this exhibit especially interesting.

Note: Two sites Carroll County have been identified as Mississippian sites and are registered on the National Register of Historic Places. Both are on private property and are not open to the public.