Page 18 - Hancock County Tourism ~ 2021 History

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The late 19th and early 20th centuries brought progress and prosperity to the densely forested regions along the banks of the Pearl River in Hancock County. This area south of I-10 was originally known as Cabanage Latanier, or “palmetto camp.” After settlers arrived and began taking advantage of the vast natural resources at their disposal, it was renamed Logtown with the burgeoning timber industry. Nearly a dozen sawmills were operating by the mid-1800s. One of these mills, the H. Weston Lumber Company, opened
in 1889 and grew into one
of the largest sawmills in the world. Owner Henry Weston employed over 1,200 people
at his mill alone. South Mississippi’s timber industry supplied lumber to many foreign countries, including Europe, their largest consumer.
At its heyday in the early 1900s, most of Logtown’s 3,000 residents were employed in the lumber industry. There was a post office, hotel, school, bank, two churches (Methodist and Baptist), an ice factory, and
a swimming pool. By 1930 however, the lumber supply was exhausted. Weston had attempted a reforestation
H. Weston Lumber Company planer mill, 1920s
Logtown
project but it couldn’t keep up with demand. The mills closed, and the population in Logtown and other nearby logging communities rapidly declined.
NASA purchased the Logtown property in 1961
as a buffer zone for their
rocket engine testing at
nearby Stennis Space Center. The Center is named for Senator John C. Stennis, who convinced the remaining 250 residents why they should give up their homes and relocate for the progression of the space program. All that remains of Logtown today is the Logtown Cemetery, with graves dating as far back as the 1850s. NASA
Logtown Cemetery
had the area surveyed for old property lines and historic artifacts, and much of their findings and recommendations were incorporated into the NASA Stennis Historic Preservation Plan.
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