Epes A Thriving Little Town

 At the foot of one of these bluffs is the ferry. Occasionally you can hear the ferryman’s oar, as he ferries travelers across the river. If there at the time of the arrival of some steamer you can see one of those beautiful scenes—a scene of which the sunny South alone can boast—the loading of the fleecy staple on a steamer. To hear the merry song of the deck hands as they roll large bales of cotton down these steep banks. To hear the Captain’s bell sound and echo through the trees. Up the river from this bluff on which we stand, we can see the large saw mill of J.A. Lloyd and Co. There in the boom of the river are many logs waiting for the sawyer. 

Fishermen, or possibly a jolly crowd of young people are out in skiffs fishing, and while sitting so quietly watching for corks to go under, the shrill whistle of a train is heard. We wait and see the heavy laden freight or passenger, whichever it may be, run so smoothly over the large iron bridge which spans the river. Turning from these beautiful river scenes we walk down the railroad track to the compress, and there for an hour amuse ourselves by watching the immense machinery compress the cotton. The large shed is full of the fleecy staple, and for yards around us nothing is to be seen but cotton. 

Leaving the compress and going about fifty yards we will notice cedar poles piled for a long distance down each side of the railroad track. These poles are being gotten out by a firm in St. Joseph, Mo. 

Next we will visit the oil mills and the Munger gins, and amuse ourselves by going through this and seeing the vast amount of machinery in operation. We come out by the Artesian Well which is near the depot. The water of this well is very healthful, and numbers of people stop here for weeks at a time to drink it for their health. À great amount is shipped in jugs to other points. It contains soda, sulphur, iron, salt and other milder minerals. 

Across the river are the Lum & Cooper sand pits, where 10 to 12 cars of sand are loaded daily, plans are now being made to put in larger machinery, and when this is completed 25 to 30 cars will be shipped daily. 

The Casey Hotel which has been known for years has lately received improvements which make it one of the most attractive and up-to-date country hotels to be found within the State. It is lighted throughout with gasoline, and has advantage of bath rooms which have hot and cold water attachments. This in itself is a luxury to travelers. 

The Bowers Boarding House will soon have new additions and improvements and then Epes can boast of two of the finest hotels of any little village of its size in the state. 

We can boast of a splendid school here, as Prof. R.B. Callaway has charge of it, he having been County Superintendent of Education for a number of years and a teacher all his life. Any one thinking of moving to this little village need not stand back on account of schools as our school is first class. We have five months free school and the other four months are private, but Prof Callaway finishes out the full nine months. 

At night the streets and stores are lit with electric and gasoline The Alabama Great Southern Rail Road works a night operator, an agent and a freight clerk, this force goes to prove the vast amount of shipping carried on through this point. 

Having advantage of four mails per day, two local passengers, to fast trains and two local freights, all the upper country get their freight through Epes, the towns of Gainesville, which has about 900 inhabitants, Sumterville, Hamner, Ramsey, Bodka, Warsaw, Sherman and several other smaller places giving us trade for forty and fifty miles up the river. 

While Epes has now only about 550 inhabitants new families are moving in and land has been purchased on which to build a $2,000,000 cement plant which will bring two or three hundred families. With seven general merchandising, two grocery, one drug store and two livery stables we have a thriving little business center. 

Epes on account of its fertile prairie lands and advantage of the upper river bottom crops bids fair to be a fine business center as well as a rail road center before three more years have rolled over its cedar bedecked prairies. 

Epes is known to be very healthy on account of being so high, no low marsh lands are near it. Sickness generally being caused by the sudden changes in the weather. Three doctors reside here but neither of them can boast of a very good business. 

Three churches, Presbyterian, Methodist and Baptist. The Methodist and Baptist churches having been built in the past two years. The Presbyterian being almost new having only been built six years ago. The old Union church, after the Methodist had moved to their new church was taken for a school house, being recovered and repaired so that now we have a comfortable school house nicely furnished with new desks. 

Many pretty new residences dot the streets and nearly every one is having a new coat of paint put on their old one which makes things look new. The town authorities are putting some splendid work on the streets and Epes is not now as muddy as in former times. By another year, after the town puts down ifs new cinder walks, we will not hear as much grumbling about the mud as there has been in the past. This is really the only drawback to Epes, but in dry weather the streets and country roads are like pavement, the limestone making them hard and smooth. The ground being so hard we are not troubled in dry weather with the dust. 

There is fine advantage for most any kind of manufactures here as we have access to the main line of the Alabama Great Southern Rail Road and also the steamers which make regular trips between Columbus, Mississippi, about sixty miles above here, and Mobile. Large forest of hard woods are above here, ash, oak, gum, poplar cottonwood, and hickory, affording fine opportunity for some manufactory using hardwoods. Fine harbors for the landing of logs that are floated down the river near the rail road bridge makes it easy to get the logs down and landed within half a mile of the rail road. There being plenty of pine up the river this would be a good place for a saw mill to saw the lumber for the local trade as the saw mill of JA. Lloyd & Co., only deal in hardwoods. Al the lumber for local trade having to be shipped, a lumber yard would do well here. 

Great changes are expected to take place next fall, new manufacturies will be built, the cement plant will be in operation and a general boom with a strong backbone is expected. This will bring more merchants and other business here. 

The people of Epes are noted for their hospitality and the saying is, ‘If ever a man gets the Epes mud on his feet once he will come back.” 

People are just commencing to realize and wake up to the fact that Epes has a future before her of which any small town may well boast. 

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