Loch Leven, Mississippi

Loch Leven is a ghost town in Wilkinson County, Mississippi, United States.[1]

Loch Leven, Mississippi
Ghost town
Loch Leven, Mississippi
Coordinates: 31°12′32″N 91°34′30″W
Country	United States
State	Mississippi
County	Wilkinson
Elevation	52 ft (16 m)
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
GNIS feature ID	692009[1]

History

Loch Leven began as a cotton plantation located directly on the Mississippi River.

The plantation was abandoned early in the Civil War, and its owner, S. Chase, was listed in Union Army records as "absent" but "loyal".[2]^:122 By 1864, a lease was granted to renew production of cotton on the property.[2]

In 1866, Loch Leven Plantation was 1,557 acres (630 ha) in size.[2]

In the 1870s, Loch Leven and the plantation at nearby Artonish were owned by J.K. Elgee and Josiah Chambers.[3]

The settlement was noted in both 1872 and 1891 as having a post office.[4][5]

The Union Church was located west of the settlement, and Loch Leven Cemetery to the east. Both are now extinct.[6][7]

Current uses

An 8,000-acre (3,200 ha) parcel of private property called the Loch Leven Plantation surrounds the former settlement and is used for "maintenance, control, and preservation".[8] East of the former settlement, the Loch Leven Plantation grows cotton, wheat and corn. Another part of the plantation is leased to hunters.[9] In 2003, a man was accidentally shot and killed while hunting there.[10]

References

1. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Loch Leven
2. Anderson, Aaron D. (2013). Builders of a New South: Merchants, Capital, and the Remaking of Natchez, 1865–1914. University Press of Mississippi. pp. 82, 82, 119, 122.
3. Cases decided in the United States Court of Claims. 7. U.S. Government Printing Office. 1873. p. 607.
4. Official Register of the United States. U.S. Government Printing Office. 1872. pp. 658.
5. Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Mississippi: Embracing an Authentic and Comprehensive Account of the Chief Events in the History of the State and a Record of the Lives of Many of the Most Worthy and Illustrious Families and Individuals. Goodspeed. 1891. pp. 175.
6. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Union Church
7. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Loch Leven Cemetery
8. "Loch Leven Protection, LLC V. Adams". Leagle, Inc. June 14, 2011.
9. "State of Louisiana Court of Appeals First Circuit - Number 2002 CA0366" (PDF). Louisiana Court of Appeal, First Circuit. February 14, 2003.
10. "Louisiana Man Killed in 'Tragic' Accident". The Natchez Democrat. January 3, 2000.