Editor, Sun-Sentinel:
I ask for help in locating a very old plantation that was formed by Col. George Washington Martin in 1833, in a part of Grenada County that was then in Tallahatchie County.
My research indicates that Auvergne Plantation was in the Oxberry community and only 16 miles west of Grenada.
In recent years, the land was owned by Martin’s descendants, the Lake and Hoffa families. Some indicate that the community of Holcomb may be nearby and the plantation may be off of Highway 8.
In 1932, the granddaughter of Martin, Stella McKnight Hoffa Lake, wrote a great article about life on the plantation and highlighted a servant named Robert Brown. Brown would by 1861 be working for Jefferson Davis, who would become president of the Confederacy. Brown remained with Davis through his capture in 1865.
Col. Martin’s will was probated in Tallahatchie County on July 10, 1854, and named Robert Brown and his young children, James and Elizabeth, to receive his land and personal effects.
Talley Bailey
988 Reynolds Road, Chepachet, Rhode Island 02814
