At the time this stamp was cancelled, the Gulf and Ship Island Railroad ran its mainline from Gulfport to Hattiesburg, Mississippi. By July 1900 the mainline extended to Jackson, the capital of the State. The railroad also ran a line to the Pearl River.
I grew up between New Orleans and Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, and spent my summers around Gulfport, Biloxi and Pass Christian. The L&N maintained a bridge across the mouth of Bay St. Louis and the tracks curled north behind Gulfport.
The charter for Gulf and Ship Island Railroad gave it an easement out into the Mississippi Sound to Ship Island. How they used this water access I don't know other than it must have inspired the name of the railroad. As for the Gulf part of the name, Ship Island is a barrier island. The Mississippi sound is the body of water between the mainland and the barrier islands, with the Gulf of Mexico beyond.
As a child I would fish off the shores of Ship and Cat Island.
No comments:
Post a Comment