Blue Mountain

Blue Mountain Home was built by Frederic Brougher, a pioneer of Tippah county, a native of North Carolina. He came with his wife and seven children to Mississippi in 1836 and bought a large tract of land;  pitched tents to shelter his family while the home was building.  Before the first stick of timber had been cut Mr. Brougher was stricken with fever and was ill for weeks. They had no neighbors, were surrounded by Indians; and no physician within reach.  Mrs. Brougher sought and found medicine for her sick husband in the herbs that grew on the mountain side, she provided food for her family with the aid of her shot gun. 

As soon as Mr. Broughet recovered he began the erection of a double log cabin two stories in height. This was their home for seven years.  In this home was born Charles Brougher, who afterward became Secretary of State. 

In 1841 a more commodious dwelling was planned. The lumber for this building was all sawed with a “whip saw” as there were no saw mills in the country;  the bricks were also made at home. The house was two and a half stories high.  Broad verandas extended the length of the house on the second and third floors, the lower veranda was approached by a broad flight of steps from the beautiful grounds in front of the home. The building of a large house in those days was not a holiday job; for every stick of timber was handcut and handdressed, and window sashes, doors and outside blinds, were also made by hand.

The family were settled in the new home in the fall of 1843, ‘tho it was not finished until the summer of 1844.  The “house warming” was the wedding of the oldest daughter. In the years that followed the occupation of the new home, it was the center of lavish hospitality characteristic of the homes of the old South. Large parties of young people from Ripley, six miles away, would often drive out in the early morning to drink from the famous spring that flows from the foot of the mountain.  Many were the “house parties” entertained in this lovely home with its crowd of merry boys and girls.

Three sons of the home took up arms in defense of the “Lost cause.” Only one returned;  the other two gave their lives to their country, and sleep in a distant State. The father, Frederic Brougher, was Senator from Tippah in 1842, 1843 and 1844.

The mountain near which this home was built is covered with a growth of short leaf pine and at a distance, and in the morning light, has a blue appearance, hence the name “Blue Mountain.”