dn english
Here are some more Haywood Co. Tennessee facts followed by a story about spirits that are still close to their homes..
HILLVILLE: Located in southern part of county and first called Moore’s as the first elections were held in Alfred Moore’s home. Later it was named Hillville for Fountain P. Hill in whose home the post office was established. Mt. Pleasant United Methodist Church, “Do-Me-Good,” was organized circa 1830. Hillville was a stage coach stop between Nashville and Memphis and the coach crossed Hatchie River by ferry at Estanaula. A Chickasaw Indian Burial Ground is located here and is now part of Hatchie National Wildlife Refuge.*
Mt Pleasant United Methodist Cemetery another beautiful historic cemetery.
This story was shared with me years ago by a gentleman(Mr. Edwards) who hung around Grandfather’s store. I remember this story because it was during the time they were constructing the “interstate”.
Mr. Edwards was from the Hillville community a hunter and a fisherman. His family he told me arrived in the Hillville area in 1835. He said his grandfather told him this story when he was a little boy.
Hillville was one of the stops on the stage coach route from Nashville to Memphis in the 1840’s . His grandfather told him there was an Inn for the travelers to have a meal or even spend the night. They would trade out the horses for the next part of their journey, From Hillville they would cross the Hatchie River at Estanaula by ferry. Estanaula at that time had a hotel and several other businesses. Lumber ,cotton and other goods were shipped and received at this location.
Since there would be a lot of money trading hands this made this area a prime site for robbers.
According to Mr. Edwards there was on gang that terrified the area for a few years. Finally the plantation owners, lumberman and concerned citizens formed a vigilante group . Then one day they caught the gang in the act of terrifying a group on a stage coach. After they got the stage on it’s way they took the guilty parties and hung them from the trees in the Hatchie Bottom. Far enough in the bottoms no one would see them hanging.
The robberies stopped but odd sightings and sounds could be heard in the area the men were hung. It was said the hanging trees died and the area would not grow vegetation. The moans of the hanging men can still be heard according to what Mr Edward’s grandfather told him.
Mr. Edwards said he and his friends would go looking for the site but every time they got close something would scare them off. They were told Mr. Powell’s men would not go close to the area when they were harvesting lumber.
He just laughed and said “this is just one of the stories that would curl your hair”.
Sometime I will share some of the other stories I heard siting by the stove in “Pop’s store.
HistoryandstoriesoftheHatchieRiver 