Natchez, Mississippi (Location Key)

Originally established by French colonists at the beginning of the 18th century at the western end of the Indian path - the 'Natchez Trace' - that ran over four hundred miles between the Mississippi and the Ohio Rivers, Natchez played an important role in the early history of Mississippi. It was a major port on the Mississippi River, and the capital of the Mississippi Territory. The first fact accounts for the fictional way in "A Courtship" Natchez is the the home port of Captain Studenmare's steamboat. The second explains why, in "A Name for the City" and Requiem for a Nun, the unnamed settlement that will become Jefferson sends a courier to Natchez to inquire about a reward for capturing the outlaw gang. Natchez is still the largest city in the state.