Aberdeen: Gold in the Hills.

It’s probably no surprise that Aberdeen was founded by a Scotsman, Robert Gordon, who correctly foresaw a bright future for the spot on the hill just above the Tombigbee River. With cotton going out and steamboats coming in, in twelve short years from its founding Aberdeen became the second largest city in Mississippi.  As the bustling river port met the thriving agricultural market, so too did the proud planter meet the upstanding merchant, and as fortunes expanded so did vanity.  The collisions were unstoppable, the duels inevitable…Only, why shoot your rival when you can out-build him?

Today, those dueling mansions, with their outsized magnificence, stand as a testament to the fantastic fortunes made during those years, and while the Civil War dampened prospects for some, a second wave of prosperity hit the city at the turn of the century.  What that means today is a spectrum of architectural styles that run the gamut from the four-square elegant Greek Revival to Queen Anne to intricately detailed Victorian, the style that dominates the city’s “Silk Stocking Row.”  At the Magnolias, perhaps the most famous of the city’s Greek Revival homes, the tri-level mahogany staircase is a sight in and of itself.  To see a perfect specimen of Queen Ann style, look no farther than the Sanders Place, sheathed in clapboard and decorative shingles.  One of only four surviving examples of Second Empire architecture in the state, Belle Vide is wrapped in Bohemian glass and topped by a three-story, thirty-five foot tower.

All these homes and dozens more can be seen on Aberdeen’s “Search for the Gold” self-guided driving tour, which takes you through the city’s five different historic districts, which include six historic churches, the massive Monroe County courthouse, the historic boulevard on Commerce Street, and two antebellum graveyards.  The graveyard is the site for ghost stories during Spring Pilgrimage, when many of the homes open their doors to entertain grandly, with horse-drawn carriage rides, symposiums and high teas.

If the idea of high tea doesn’t refresh you, there’s more liquid ahead for you, at the Blue Bluff recreational area on the Tenn-Tom Waterway, where prized picnic spots put you high above the water on limestone cliffs. There are also white sand beaches here, and plenty of hiking trails.

When you’re finished trekking, start north again, on the water or on the road, to a place where stars don’t just bring light to the sky, they bring enlightenment to the children of the community.