Mississippi towns with a historic, southern gothic feel? (Vicksburg, Columbus: appointed, for rent)

[ck2007]

Ugh I just dislike Moss Point! I get so angry because there are tons of BEAUTIFUL historic homes often on the market for very reasonable prices, but the town is just awful. By awful I mean way too much crime. Their crime statistics are higher then any other coastal town, not to mention way higher then the US average. The local police forces can't even get their crap together here. The town is almost all black, which there's nothing wrong with that but we all know it could be tough being the minority ANYWHERE you go. Not to mention the schools are just as awful as the town itself and have been in trouble with the school board for several years recently. Moss Point USED to be (a looong time ago) a beautiful southern town with the houses and buildings to go with it. Now it's nothing but a breeding area for crime and is turning "ghetto" or run down as the other poster said. Such a shame.

[LCSDays]

Oxford is very cool.

[auntbee]

Crystal Springs is another small town with some beautiful old homes in it.

[smarino]

Oxford. Neat place, and beautiful because the Yankee armies didn't burn it to the ground like they did many Mississippi towns.Unfortunately, it feels as if the college runs everything. It's a small town, isolated in a way (well there's Batesville, but that sure ain't much), and the people are friendly. The architecture isn't like Natchez, but it's a much more progressive place that's still held onto it's roots. It feels Southern, not some made up version of it.

[John Ryder]

we dont have a gothic feel, that i have seen, not alot of large cathedrals and such if thats the gothic you are talking about, mostly known for antebellum type structures and homes, most of our old building were burnt to the ground during the civil war by Sherman and other Northern armies.

[brickpatio]

I've got a new one for the list. I think by gothic he means in the literary sense (I think...), which means quirky and eccentric but with a certain kind of unique beauty and feel (i.e. sultry, due to mixture of Spanish moss, humidity, lushness, architecture, and smallness...i.e. its own little world).

Magnolia, MS fits that description perfectly. Just a few minutes north of the Louisiana border, it is small, but large enough to definitely have a distinct sense of place.

On the outskirts it has its share of shacks and trailers, but in town it's quite exquisite, with tree-lined streets and elegant homes with front porches and historic architectural styles. It has its own main street area by the railroad, which is charming in its own right. It looks like a place that Eudora Welty or William Faulkner could live or that John Grisham or Beth Henley could write about. It feels like a movie set but authentic.

[Ginsaw]

Well let's see. You want something not real pricey. Right? But you want as much historic feel as possible. I take that as meaning the traditional Southern small town look. I'll define that for you. In that genre I think white frame, green roof, green shudders in a pre-war era home with as much custom woodwork and character as possible right down to the real hardwood floors and a big front porch with a swing. But not big like with columns in front and an historical sign containing the word "plantation". That's overkill and gets into serious coin. And where you can work from home via internet (you didn't say if dish is adequate or if you need the cable - that makes a difference). And you want some Spanish moss and live oaks and a smattering of decadence, and whatever Goth would be. Am I on the right track?

First, forget "Goth". Wrong state and frankly wrong country. Think Europe for that. Like Cologne, Lubeck or Hamburg. Or maybe somewhere in New England.

Forget the moss too unless you're interested in the Gulf Coast. There's a bit of it down there. But MS is not your real home for that look. For that think Mobile or head on down to the Land Of Dreams, NOLA.

Decadence? Well, just how MUCH decadence are you up for? If some Faulkner-esque of that type suits you, then it's the Delta you want. Remember what they say, the Delta "begins in the lobby of the Hotel Peabody and ends on Catfish Row in Vicksburg". Anywhere in between is fine. I love that country myself, but I'm one of those who's real comfortable with anyone. Regardless whether educated or not. There are a number of towns in the Delta that would oblige you, Greenville would be fine, so would Helena (that's AR actually but still Great River Road), and good old Tunica. But, Clarksdale would be my number one for you.

Oxford you would probably like best for what you are interested in overall. It "looks" like what you want, and unlike the others it's a liberal college town. One thing though. Older homes with the traditional Southern look there are NOT inexpensive. They can be real pricey.

Good luck and welcome to my personal favorite part of America in which to live. The Mid-South.

[missgulfsouth]

Originally Posted by brickpatio

Natchez is the most like Charleston and Savannah with Vicksburg probably second.

Also McComb, Brookhaven, Columbia, Port Gibson, Laurel, Corinth, Greenwood, Carrollton, Kosciusko, and Columbus all have their own character.

Oxford does but it's not decaying in any way. Canton, Holly Springs, Moss Point and Yazoo City have some character also but a little too run down.

Pass Chrisitan , Bay St Louis and Ocean Springs are too beautiful and don't fit your gothic feeling requirements. Same for Brookhaven.

I would say of all those...for the gothic with Spanish moss, huge draping live oaks, and dripping with humidity, but it's own unique feel, while Natchez is obvious, I think elegant Laurel, cozy Columbia on the Pearl, and rail town McComb have that Deep Southern feel. You're still in Mississippi's wooded hills but psychologically you can almost smell the gulf and taste the New Orleans food once you get that far south, about an hour south of Jackson.

I live in BSL, it is beautiful here, and mostly newly rebuilt after Katrina. But we do have an historic old town and plenty of mossy live oaks.

[ColdAilment]

I did a picture thread on Meridian awhile back. The 3 Foot Building in downtown Meridian has some of that historic gothic feel about it that you describe. Thread may be found here:

//www.city-data.com/forum/missi...ssissippi.html

Also, tell me if that's not too rundown for you. If it is, I also did a doppleganger type thread to mirror Meridian and showcase its good side, which can be found here:

//www.city-data.com/forum/missi...ippi-mega.html

Hope this helps!

[RetroPhoto]

Wow, lots of great information added to this thread since I was here last! Thanks to everyone!

I'm definitely taking a huge interest in the Delta area now, as researching Clarksdale in particular and the Delta in general I saw some very interesting things such as blues in Clarksdale and the backroads nature of the whole Delta -- I failed to mention my love of traveling backroads, documentary photography and music, which I have found myself gravitating toward blues adn Americana music more these days. And with Clarksdale, Oxford and Vicksburg so close together, you really got some of all three when you choose one. Plus Memphis not too far away.

I'm in Beaufort SC right now and going through Savannah tomorrow on my southern "Find a Cool Place to Live Tour" but I think after a couple of Savannah touristy stops (too expensive to live there) I'm heading for the Delta and maybe a stop in Natchez. I'll probably swing through Meridian but I saw that triangle on the map of Oxford, Clarksdale and Memphis and thought "Oohhh, that would be a nice mix of places close by..."

Now I'm going to go research photo studios in those areas to see what kind of competition there is. BTW, how big of a deal are high school senior photos in the south? They are HUGE in the midwest, but I know the midwest is the best market for that type of photography. How is the south?