A History of Jasper County, Mississippi

Jasper County was formed in 1833 out of Jones and Wayne Counties. It is the only county in the State hat has two old highways crossing in it. The "Old Jackson Military Highway" from New Orleans to Nashville crosses the upper branch of the Federal Horse Path (Road) from Evergreen, Alabama to Natchez about three miles north of Bay Springs. The Federal Road followed the older path "Three Chopped Way" from Savanah, Georgia to Natchez, Mississippi. It was one of the first mail routes and was the first road through Alabama. The name comes from making three slash marks on the trees to show the route to be cut. There were lower branches of the Federal Road that branced off to Pensacola, Mobile and New Orleans also. See map below (Map Guide to American Migration Routes 1735-1815 by William Dollarhide, 1997.) You will note that he points out that the current Federal and State Highways closely follow these old paths.

We will explore the history of Jasper County through various links listed below.