Visit the "Magnolia State"

You may see the name GRIT and picture a treasured staple of Southern food, but study the blackboard along the back wall of GRIT Taylor and you will find another definition:

Grit in psychology is a positive, non-cognitive trait based on an individual's passion for a particular long-term goal or end state, coupled with a powerful motivation to achieve their respective objective…

Husband-and-wife owners Nick Reppond and Angie Sicurezza take both definitions to heart. At GRIT, they offer sophisticated Southern cuisine with a passion for tradition and experimentation. Nick recreates dishes from his grandmother’s table in Memphis, while incorporating bold flavor combinations from Old World and international cuisine. Guests can find comfort in familiarity while opening their minds to exciting new flavors.

Nick and Angie have made their mark on Oxford’s restaurant scene as veterans of the City Grocery Restaurant Group and as owners of their own company, A&N Catering. The couple now calls Taylor home. GRIT is committed to instilling that sense of home through friendly service and impeccable, locally sourced dishes, offset by the welcoming atmosphere of Taylor’s Plein Air neighborhood. GRIT also honors Taylor’s vibrant arts community, acting as a gallery space for local artists. 

Whether driving in from Oxford or Taylor, or coming from farther away, guests can cozy up to a table at GRIT (or enjoy a delicious signature cocktail at the bar) and feel perfectly at home

Founded in 1848, the University of Mississippi, affectionately known to alumni, students and friends as Ole Miss, is Mississippi's flagship university. Included in the elite group of R-1: Doctoral Universities - Highest Research Activity by the Carnegie Classification, it has a long history of producing leaders in public service, academics and business. With more than 24,000 students, Ole Miss is the state's largest university and is ranked among the nation's fastest-growing institutions. Its 15 academic divisions include a major medical school, nationally recognized schools of accountancy, law and pharmacy, and the Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College, renowned for a blend of academic rigor, experiential learning and opportunities for community action.

The plein air painter’s movement started in France in the 1800’s. Artists emphasized outdoor painting to capture the beauty and simplicity of nature as it was meant to be seen. The light at different times of the day. The shadows in the winter. Simple canvas and easel. Portable. It is with that spirit in mind that we introduce Plein Air—the neighborhood.

Plein Air is an old fashioned traditional southern neighborhood with a vibrant town square. The way it used to be before the automobiles came to dominate our lives. Houses close together with front porches that encourage interaction with your neighbor. Sidewalks that make it easy to walk to dinner, the art gallery, a movie, a concert on the square. A place where kids can roam free and you call them home before supper. You know—the way it used to be

The Mill at Plein Air and The Chapel at Plein Air offer a truly unique wedding opportunity. Get married in the gorgeous chapel and walk a few steps to the most unique reception venue in the Oxford area. Both The Chapel and The Mill are built from almost 100% salvaged material reclaimed from century old warehouses, mills, churches, and estate homes. If you are looking for elegance in a timeless atmosphere you have found it.

Welcome to Rowan Oak

Home to William Faulkner and his family for over 40 years, Rowan Oak was originally built in 1844, and stands on over 29 acres of land just south of the Square in Oxford, MS.

The property & grounds at Rowan Oak are open year round, from dawn to dusk. While there’s no fee to visit the grounds, there is a $5 cost for house admission (cash only, please).

In 1930, William Faulkner purchased what was then known as “The Bailey Place”, a primitive Greek revival house sitting on four acres of hardwood and cedar. Colonel Robert Sheegog, and Irish immigrant planter from Tennessee, built the home when he settled in the tiny frontier settlement of Oxford in the 1840s. Faulkner renamed it Rowan Oak in 1931 after the rowan tree, a symbol of security and peace. The house was unoccupied for seven years before the Faulkners purchased it in 1930.

Soon thereafter, he optioned the surrounding acreage (Bailey’s Woods) and settled in with his wife, Estelle, and her two children from a previous marriage, Malcolm and Victoria. Within a few years, their own daughter, Jill, was born. Rowan Oak was the family home of the Faulkners until 1962, the year of William Faulkner’s death. In 1972, Jill Faulkner Summers sold the house to the University of Mississippi to secure it as a place for people worldwide to learn about her father and his work.

Rowan Oak was William Faulkner’s private world, in reality and imagination, and he was fascinated with its history. His writings were inspired by local stories of Indians, runaway slaves, old colonels and spinsters who gave china-painting lessons and are interwoven with his own memories of coming of age in a South torn between traditional ways and modern development. Faulkner’s years spent at Rowan Oak were productive as he set stories and novels to paper, ultimately winning the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1949, and the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award in 1954 for ‘A Fable’. William Faulkner remains one of the most celebrated and studied authors in the world, with conferences, societies and journals dedicated to his life and work.

Nestled in the Hills of North Mississippi, Oxford, Mississippi is the home of the University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss. Nobel Prize winning author William Faulkner made his home here and found inspiration in the people and places of Oxford and Lafayette County which he fictionalized in his Jefferson and Yoknpatawpha County. Oxford has been featured in a publications such as Conde Nast Traveler, Budget Travel, Southern Living and Garden and Gun. Many writers have followed in Faulkner’s footsteps, making Oxford their home over the years adding to the literary reputation Oxford has become renowned for including: Larry Brown, Barry Hannah, Willie Morris and John Grisham to name a few. Touted as the “Cultural Mecca of the South”, creativity abounds in Oxford as musicians, artists and writers alike find inspiration in Oxford’s rich history, small town charm and creative community. Over the years Oxford has also been known for offering exceptional culinary experiences including James Beard award-winning chef and owner of five restaurants, John Currence. From down home cooking to upscale culinary creations, Oxford is a food lovers delight.

OXFORD'S PREMIER OUTDOOR SHOOTING RANGE

Sardis Lake is a 98,520-acre (398.7 km2) reservoir on the Little Tallahatchie River in Lafayette, Panola, and Marshall counties, Mississippi.[2] Sardis Lake is impounded by Sardis Dam, located nine miles (14 km) southeast of the town of Sardis. It is approximately an hour drive from Memphis, Tennessee. The dam is 15,300 feet (4,700 m) long, has an average height of 97 feet (30 m), and a maximum height of 117 feet (36 m).[1]

History

Sardis Dam was the first of the Yazoo River headwaters projects to be built by the federal government for flood control. Authorization for the project came when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Flood Control Act of 1936. Construction took four years and required thousands of men to clear fourteen miles (23 km) along the Little Tallahatchie River, which was characterized by dense woods and undergrowth, and meandering sloughs.[1]

The dam was constructed using a "hydraulic fill" technique that required soil to be dredged from below the dam site and pumped to form the earth fill, which forms the majority of the dam. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built and operated the "Pontotoc", a special dredge powered by two 3,000 hp (2,200 kW) electric motors to accomplish this task. The 425-acre (1.72 km2) "Lower Lake" on the downstream side of Sardis Dam was created by the dredging operation. It has numerous recreation facilities, including John W. Kyle State Park. Mississippi Highway 315 splits while crossing the dam, with one route crossing the top and the other half crossing the base.[1]

Sardis Lake has a maximum storage capacity of 1,512,000 acre feet (1.865×109 m3) of water. The lake is gradually drawn down during the fall and winter months to a "conservation pool" of 9,800 acres (40 km2). This permits spring rains across the lake's 1,545 square miles (4,000 km2) watershed to fill the reservoir without flooding downstream. Since the dam became operational, the dam's emergency spillway has been overtopped only three times by high water - in 1973, 1983 and 1991. The lake's typical "recreation pool" is 32,500 acres.

The lake is popular with anglers and has a reputation for its abundant bass and crappie. Other recreation activities include hunting, camping, boating, skiing, swimming and picnicking

Marina

The Sardis Lake Marina services the lake with access to fuel docks, 140 wet slips (both covered and uncovered), a restaurant, and a ship store. They offer rental boats as well as rental skis, tubes, and knee/wake boards.

Guided Crappie Fishing Tours on Enid Lake, Arkabutla Lake, Grenada Lake, and Sardis Lake

Come fish our trophy crappie lakes with experienced, knowledgeable guides who will not only put you on fish but teach you techniques for locating and catching crappie on The Big Four year-round.

No-Limit Guided White Bass Fishing

If you’re a fighter not a lover, you’ll become both on a white bass fishing charter with Mississippi white bass fishing guide service Barton Outfitters. These trips take place year round, with peak white bass fishing in Mississippi typically occurring in March, but with ample opportunities for size and numbers April - late November.

Book today, fish tomorrow!

Whether you’re looking to catch white crappie or white bass, bowfin or bowfish, catch and release or catch cook eat, Mississippi Fishing Guide Service Barton Outfitters has you covered. Call or text 469-763-1885 24/7 to book or for more information.

Guided crappie fishing tours on Enid and Sardis Lakes. Contact Dennis Barfield at (662) 719-0601 or email enidlakecharters@gmail.com.