In 1540 Hernando de Soto and his
Spanish soldiers marched into the area in search of gold; they discovered
the Mississippi River in 1541. The French, under d’Iberville, made
the first settlement at Old Biloxi (now Ocean Springs) in 1699. In
1716 the French built Fort Rosalie at what was to become Natchez.
In 1798 Mississippi became a territory of the United States, with Natchez
as the capital. The War of 1812 ended the European power in the region.
On Dec. 10, 1817, Mississippi became the 20th state.
By 1815, William Clower, born August 1790 in Greene County,
Georgia, had mitigated to the Mississippi territory. William’s father,
John Clower, was either the son of George Clower or the brother of George
Clower. The Clowers, mitigated from Pennsylvania, Virginia, North
Carolina, Georgia and onto the new territories of Mississippi, Alabama
and Arkansas. William ancestors served in the American Revolutionary
War as members of the 10 Regt. N.C. Continental Line. Also, secondary
documentation indicates that George Clower married Elizabeth Morgan, the
sister of General Daniel Morgan of the American Revolutionary War.
|
Initially, William, his wife Purity and their family
probably settled near the Pearl River in what became Lawrence County, Ms.
By the 1830's, William and his family had mitigated up the Yazoo River
and settled on the banks of the Bophumpa Creek, located six miles north
of Lexington, Ms. In
1851, William and Purity Clower “sold” for $5 to the Methodist Episcopal
Church 15 acres “to preach and expound God’s Holy word therein”.
A portion of this land became the location of the Clower or Sweetwater
Cemetery. The church has disbanded and the cemetery is on a hill,
near the creek in a wooded area. The Clower portion of the cemetery
has been cleared of undergrowth1
and has an iron fence around it. William, Purity, and many of their
descendants are buried in this cemetery.
By 1860 William and his sons had accumulated significant
property on the Bophumpa Creek. Two of William’s sons died in 1845
and 1855. William’s remaining sons, John, Benjamin and Green Berry,
fought in the Civil War.
William’s oldest daughter, Lavina, second oldest son was Rueben Webster Millsaps. Ruben, a major in the Confederate Army, was a financier and philanthropist. He was a trustee of Vanderbilt University, founded Millsaps College, and President of Capital State Bank of Jackson. He built a Victorian residence on State Street in Jackson, Ms. His home, the Millsaps Buie House, is now an elegant historic inn in downtown Jackson. Ruben is listed in Who’s Who in America (1897 – 1942). Although William and his family accumulated wealth in this new land, the cemetery tells a story of lives cut short by early death. The house that William built near the banks of the Bophumpa Creek and the church are gone. But on portions of this land cotton is still grown. Note:
|
See pictures. |