Tony Turnbo of Franklin, Tenn., past president of the Natchez Trace Parkway Assn., in addressing the Attala Historical Society last week cited Kosciusko as a good place to experience the Trace and its history.
He was guest speaker Tuesday, April 26, at the annual meeting of the Attala Historical Society held at the Mary Ricks Thornton Cultural Center.
His topic was “The Natchez Trace and Its Role in the Early Settlement of Attala County.”
He told the group that he has had a passion for the Trace and a fascination for stories of Andrew Jackson and his trips on the old Trace.
He focused on Jackson, who during the War of 1812, was appointed a major general and traveled what is now known as the old Trace leading Tennessee and Kentucky volunteers to New Orleans to prepare that city’s defenses against an impending attack by the British. From this route a link was established from Nashville to Natchez an artery later becoming the Natchez Trace Parkway which Turnbo termed the first road in the United States and first known as a post road. It was also used by travelers returning north after delivering goods to New Orleans on the Mississippi River, he pointed out.
Through a power point presentation he showed maps and charts detailing areas of settlement along the route. He named Natchez Street in Kosciusko and Highway 43 to Thomastown as being good examples of the route of the old Trace. Through his research, camp sites and wells along the route have been identified as having been established by Jackson and his troops. Turnbo pointed out that two of Andrew Jackson’s soldiers are buried at Isaac Cemetery located just off the old Trace (Highway 43) near the Attala-Leake County line.
Redbud Springs Park on Natchez Street marks the spot of the springs where Turnbo said Jackson and troops stopped to camp and replenish supplies. Bringing those springs back to the surface would be a means of preserving history.
Turnbo, an attorney, is a graduate of Vanderbilt University and University of Tennessee College of Law. He has authored a photo history book for the Natchez Trace Association entitled “Building the Natchez Trace.”
He served on the Tennessee War of 1812 Bicentennial Commission. His article “Natchez Trace in the War of 1812,” was published in the Journal of Mississippi History and he is now writing a book on the same topic.
He was introduced by Donna Holdiness, who is currently serving as coordinator for volunteers who serve as hosts at the Visitors Center in Kosciusko located adjacent to the Natchez Trace Parkway.
