unavoidably ubiquitous -- the world of william faulkner

to mississippi and back, part 3

photos by j.a. & author

recently i had a chance to go on a road trip to oxford, mississippi -- the mythical land inspiring william faulkner's yoknapatawpha county, where in 1962 the african-american veteran james meredith had to fight for admission to ole miss university to become its first black student, and overly caring waitresses call you honey when serving fried catfish with hush puppies.

if it is in the studio of an artist in the tiny town of taylor about 15 car minutes south of oxford,
















a barely visible short cut between two town square houses,














or on a park bench next to the city hall of oxford,























the city of oxford, mississippi, and its surrounding area will not let you forget its probably most famous inhabitant: writer william faulkner. again, searching for his home turned into a small odyssey as a lack of signs but presence of confusing historical markers prolonged the quest.























but that's not his house, which by the way is just a cross one of the many fried chicken fast food chains. faulkner's home is further from the city center, tucked away in a forest named after him.























we had to find out that his forest is just as mythical and confusing as i found reading his stream of consciousness novel absalom, absalom! (1936). after trying to detect some trail on different unbeaten paths that kept petering off into scrub or creeks, we gave up and headed for a building we could discern behind the trees. unfortunately we had to trespass a piece of private property in order to gain access to a public road again. our goal to take the short cut through the forest that allegedly connects the campus of ole miss to rowan oak "by leisurely 20 minute walk" failed miserably. again our theory that signs and markers are seen to be only for wimps was confirmed. maybe that is where still today the frontier spirit lurks...























lucky enough we started off from rowan oak and already got a good look at the place before we got lost. nestled next to the forest with several different gardens, a couple of sheds, stands the house faulkner lived for over thirty years between 1930, when he purchased the then called "Bailey Place,"* and 1962, the year of his death. he named it rowan oak.

















it's a beautiful place that is not visible from the small road that on a corner piece turns into a dirt road, faulkner's drive way. his house was built by colonel robert sheegog, an irish immigrant farmer who came from tennessee. when he built the greek style architecture, oxford was a frontier town. the curator of rowan oak said faulkner bought it for a rather cheap price since in the 1930s nobody wanted to buy old, antebellum houses that reminded people of an inglorious past.















faulkner moved in with his wife, estelle, and her two children from a previous marriage, malcom and victoria. a few years later their daughter jill was born. estelle liked to paint and her water colors are displayed in the house. in her bedroom an aisle hints at her artistic hobby.

















faulkner's office on the first floor still shows most of the things that where in there when he used it. it also became his bedroom when after a riding accident he couldn't climb the stairs to the second floor anymore.

















the most prominent detail in his office is the plot outline on the wall for his novel a fable (1954), which won a pulitzer price and a national book award. the curator of rowan oak said he wrote the outline on the wall because the paper sheets he had attached to the wall before with his notes kept being blown off by the wind. estelle was not home but on vacation far away, so he decided to write on the wall.












curious about faulkner's works you'll find enough choice of his many books in the probably nicest book store in oxford located at the picturesque oxford town square. a whole section is dedicated to him.























here we go, old friends greeted me from the shelves: absalom, absalom! (1936) and light in august (1932). and so much more to explore.























for your further exploration of rowan oak and faulkner in oxford, see the dedicated rowan oak website of the university of mississippi which comes with a virtual tour. by the way, the university owns faulkner's house since in 1972 jill faulkner sold it to ole miss.



to mississippi and back, part 1: a pretty piece of land -- where lincoln was born

to mississippi and back, part 2: the romantic south -- oxford & ole miss

to mississippi and back, part 3: unavoidably ubiquitous -- the world of william faulkner

to mississippi and back, part 4: honey, sweetie & fried fish -- our southern food history

to mississippi and back, part 5: mammoth cave: "the world's largest network of natural caves"

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* all information about rowan oak and its rooms comes from a brochure about the place published by the university of mississippi: william faulkner's rowan oak.