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

This information has been provided by the Carrollton Masonic Lodge.

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

One of the primary means of doing this is during the yearly Pilgrimage when homes and churches open their doors for a weekend in October. This year the Pilgrimage dates are October 7-8. Four of the churches will be open with a hostess to greet you as you tour our places of worship. Some of the churches began before the Civil War and minutes offer interesting bits of history. A stroll through the business district leads you to the Merrill Museum which contains a number of clues to the history of the town as well as the county.

Wayside

On Saturday there will be vendors hawking their wares and selling food so you can maintain your energy to take it all in. Also there will be live entertainment throughout the day, our very own “Opry on the Square.” Now, what more could you ask for except to enjoy some of the nicest people in the state who will be glad to show you why we are proud of our hometown?

Comments provided by Barbara Rayburn, chairman of ticket sales. For more information about the Carrollton Pilgrimage and Pioneer Day Festival, visit our website – VisitCarrolltonMs.com or email us at CarrolltonMsTours@gmail.com.

Organized in 1859 and incorporated a year later, Vaiden was named for Dr. C. M. Vaiden an early settler. In the 1837, Dr. Vaiden hired architect and master builder James Clark Harris to build Prairie Mont which closely resembled another of Harris’ masterpieces, Malmaison, the home of Greenwood LeFlore in northwestern Carroll County. Dr. Vaiden was buried at the Vaiden Cemetery with a beautiful monument made of Italy marble making the spot.

In the early days, Vaiden and the surrounding area grew rapidly, thanks to farming, transportation routes, and rail travel. The town became one of the wealthiest towns in Mississippi with its abundance of planters, lawyers, merchants and other business professionals.

Noah House – 1875

Churches also played an important role in the development of the area. In 1840-41, the Baptist Church at Vaiden was built. In 1877-78, the Vaiden Presbyterian Church was built.

Shongolo Church, Vaiden, Mississippi

As the area grew, so did the need for education. Among the schools was Richland Academy, founded in 1836 by a Mr. Hughes, a graduate of a University in Ireland. The school offered elementary and classical education. James Z. George was one of the students. He would later buy a stage coach inn just north of Carrollton for his growing family and name it Cotesworth. He served in the U.S. Senate from 1881-1897. Known among his constituents as “the Great Commoner” George was influential in the creation of the Sherman Antitrust Act, and worked to aid education and civil service reform. J.Z. George’s statue stands in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., one of two representing Mississippi. George and a number of his family are buried at Evergreen Cemetery at North Carrollton, Mississippi.

Because of the vast size of Carroll County, the county was divided into two districts. Vaiden became the county seat for the second district in 1874. In 1898 the first telephone exchange was installed in Vaiden by the Cumberland Telephone Company. The next year, a furniture factory and brick factory were opened.

The old Courthouse at Vaiden, demolished after the making of Mississippi Burning in 1988, stood on the hillside where a children’s park is located today. The bell from that courthouse stands in front of the new Courthouse, located where a row of stores and businesses once stood. Shelving from some of those businesses can be seen in the Merrill Museum in Carrollton.

Vaiden Courthouse

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.

In the half-century since the movie was made, not much has changed in Carrollton. Visitors still find its 1878 courthouse sitting on the town square, with exterior doors that are never locked. Church designs range from the Gothic Stick Style jewel that is Grace Episcopal to more formal classical buildings used by the Presbyterian, Methodist and Baptist congregations. The 1870s jail survives, as does an entire block of mid-1800s storefronts on the south side of the square. Merrill’s Store, now a museum, dates back to the town’s 1830s origins. Winding residential roads are lined with antebellum showplaces and Victorian cottages, most in excellent condition and some handed down over multiple generations.

There are many historic towns in Mississippi where you can find the old interspersed with modern life. But only in Carrollton can you find a town that truly seems like it has been preserved in amber for more than a century. It’s well worth the trip.

Mary Carol Miller, author of Written in the Bricks: A Visual and Historical Tour of Fifteen Mississippi Hometowns

Carrollton’s rustic style community house was constructed of native pine logs in 1935-1936 by the Works Progress Administration.  Carroll Van West, who has documented a number of New Deal Administration works in Tennessee, indicates that the two primary architectural styles associated with depression-era buildings were the “government rustic” and PWA Moderne or WPA Moderne, depending upon which agency funded the construction.  The rustic style originated in the early park designs, using the natural resources of timber and stone, thought appropriate for a concept of “rising out of the ground.”

Superintendent of construction  was David Felts, a builder and contractor from Carrollton.  The community house was restored in 2001, and received the 2002 Heritage Award of Merit for restoration (Mississippi Heritage Trust).

New Deal in Mississippi: Carrollton Community House