The
scenic Longleaf Trace, a recreational trail that winds through three
south Mississippi counties for more than forty miles, is the remnant
of the Mississippi Central Railroad that a century ago supported
sawmills, logging camps, and towns now forever abandoned and
extinct. Between Hattiesburg and Prentiss, a century of history is
hidden among the canopies of hardwoods and pine meadows now
connected by county roads and state highways. Where the echo of the
steam locomotive’s whistle once broke the silence of the morning,
thousands of joggers, bicyclists and equestrians enjoy the serenity
of the piney woods’ countryside on a ribbon of asphalt ten feet
wide.
The Longleaf Trace Companion, the official guidebook of the Longleaf
Trace, is a user-friendly, mile-by-mile field manual that brings the
Trace alive by highlighting its contemporary features and
resurrecting its lost history. In the book, colorful and accurately
detailed maps are enhanced by historical anecdotes, photographs and
practical tips throughout. With the Longleaf Trace Companion as a
guide, one may more fully appreciate and understand the features of
the Trace while learning about the railroad and timber industries
that framed the area’s history.
The
scenic Longleaf Trace, a recreational trail that winds through three
south Mississippi counties for more than forty miles, is the remnant
of the Mississippi Central Railroad that a century ago supported
sawmills, logging camps, and towns now forever abandoned and
extinct. Between Hattiesburg and Prentiss, a century of history is
hidden among the canopies of hardwoods and pine meadows now
connected by county roads and state highways. Where the echo of the
steam locomotive’s whistle once broke the silence of the morning,
thousands of joggers, bicyclists and equestrians enjoy the serenity
of the piney woods’ countryside on a ribbon of asphalt ten feet
wide.