Pachuta

Pachuta, Mississippi

History

Evidence shows the establishment in Pachuta of a Post Office, with James P. Hayes as Post Master, in 1856 and closing in 1857, although historians agree that Pachuta was not founded until 1892 at which time the post office re-opened.

The town was named after an old Choctaw cabin called “Pachuta” and is located in the east central part of Clarke County, or was it named for the nearby creek, or possibly for a family with a surname of Pachuta? The stories all differ.

Early settlers in the area were the families of William Ellis, Isaac Herrington, John Parker, and James Rogers. This names or found on a map of the area dated 1858. Others families associated with the earlier times were an educator named Captain W. C. Days, an army surgeon and family doctor named Dr. L. S. Brownlee, and a Brigadier General of the Confederate Army named Major M. F. Berry.

A turpentine mill is what the town was centered around and relied mostly on it’s forestry for prosperity.

Merchants such as J. K. Evans, J. E. Hand, John Hand and R. C. McLeod were pioneers that set up shop.

Pachuta gained its economic boom with the opening of the New Orleans and Northeastern Railroad came to town in 1882.