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Mississippi Roads
comes to you this week from one of America’s “100
Best Small Towns. We are in the Attala County
seat of Kosciusko.
Originally known as Red Bud Springs, Kosciusko
is one of the oldest remaining settlements
on the Natchez Trace. The community was first
an Indian campsite, then was home to a tavern
and inn where weary travelers could refresh
themselves.
In 1830 the Choctaw Indians signed the Treaty
of Dancing Rabbit Creek, relinquishing their
lands in central and east Mississippi. From this,
Attala county was formed. The county seat, Kosciusko,
was named by the area’s state representative
William Dodd. His grandfather, a Revolutionary
War Veteran, had greatly admired the polish patriot
Tadeusz Kosciuszko, who served on George Washington’s
staff during the war and contributed to the colonies
freedom.
A permanent exhibit about the towns namesake
Tadeusz Kosciuszko is on display inside the
Kosciusko Museum and Information center located
on the Natchez Trace. This is a great place
to begin your visit to the town in order
to obtain brochures, maps and valuable tips
from the staff here at the museum.
Oprah Winfrey is Kosciusko’s most
celebrated native. While her birthplace is
no longer standing; fans can visit this church
where Oprah gave her first public performance.
She recited the Easter story. In this same
area, you can also see her family cemetery
and the site of this famous residents birthplace.
And speaking of famous residents of Kosciusko;
people from as far away as Australia stop
by this ladies house to view her collection
of interesting assortment of yard art. She
paints whatever comes her way and has been
featured in many national publications. The
subject of our first story is L. V. Hull.
The Mary Ricks Thornton Cultural Center
is located on the corner of East Washington
and North Huntington. Formerly a Presbyterian
Church built in the country gothic style,
this 1899 building now serves as a cultural
center. The sanctuary features outstanding
stained glass windows. The Kosciusko-Attala
Historical Society purchased the building
in 1987 and restored it. The Delta Gamma
Founder's Room is also a feature of the center.
A portrait of the three founders, Eva Webb
Dodd, Anna Boyd Ellington and Mary Comfort
Leonard, hangs in this memorial room which
has been recently decorated and furnished
beautifully with new draperies, red oak flooring,
oriental rugs and antiques. Listed on the
National Register of Historic Places. A Mississippi
Historic Landmark.
In our next story, we take you to another
gothic style structure in downtown Jackson
that has a little history of its own. The
Lamar Life Building was the first skyscraper
to go up in downtown Jackson and we discover
the history of this unique building.
Peeler House Antiques on the square in Kosciusko
offers ten thousand square feet of European
antiques, a full scale working carousel,
a café and pottery and gifts from
Mississippi artists.
A good selection of the pottery and art
you will find in the store comes from the
Attala Art Gallery located just a few miles
from here; and that is the subject of our
next story.
Attala
Art Gallery & Studios is the "turn-of-the-century
farmhouse turned art gallery & studios," located
in rural Attala County, Mississippi, nestled
amidst flowers on the side of a hill, and
cradled between the woods and Long Creek.
In this rural paradise, Brad, Ginger, and
seven-year-old son Zakary Joyner create
wheel-thrown and slab-built pottery, paintings,
including Ginger's one-of-a-kind works
of delta blues musicians, and other art.
The Kelly Statue is one of the few statues
dedicated to the memory of a Mississippi
resident is in the city cemetery in Kosciusko.
There, the bereaved widower of Laura Mitchell
Kelly immortalized his wife in sculpture.
Story has it that Mr. Kelly sent photos of
his bride in her 1890's wedding dress to
a sculptor in Italy where the statue was
made. From an upper story window of his East
Jefferson Street home, Kelly viewed the statue
erected in the family burial plot. However,
its perfect likeness to his deceased love
saddened him so much, he could hardly bear
to look upon his tribute.
In our next story we uncover some of the
unique cemetery art that is scattered about
the state of Mississippi.
After all we have shown you there is still
more to see and do in Kosciusko. There are
many beautiful homes in the town; as well
as, festivals and events. Stop in on the
last Saturday in April for the Natchez Trace
Festival which takes place on the square
or come here to the Kosciusko Fairgrounds
for the Central Mississippi Fair held each
year during the first week of August. So
come to Kosciusko and visit one of America’s
one hundred best small towns.
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