And right now they have pendants strung from them, to show you where the prettiest and most affordable – and largest – campground in Mississippi is.  So whether you are staying for a short time, or moving in to a new home, this is the place.  Just let the signs lead you on in.

Welcome, and we’re glad you’re here!

First of all this is red clover, so there will be no confusion.  Now sometimes the flowers will look a shade of purple in the sun but they are red clover indeed.

Now, after the first time of searching for our camp it gets much easier.  And, after you’ve been here a while it is said that your truck will start to find it’s own way home.  Cars as well, though it seems that pickup trucks learn the way home much more quickly.

“So What did Tait Tate do?  What was this great idea he had?”

Well hang on a minute.  Let’s talk about why this is so important first.  We’ll use the stories of our very own webmaster, Bill, to demonstrate this.

Years and years ago, about the turn of the century – we had another one of those not that long ago – Bill, our webmaster, came to the Cutoff for his very first time.  It was Fourth of July weekend and his friends Kieth and Karen Johnson had invited Bill to spend his “break” at the camp.  At that time Bill was working on the road doing telecom all month long, except for 4 days per month.

Bill, he followed the directions, but he had been driving all day.  Eventually, he ended up at Mhoon Landing sitting in front of Tunica County’s very first legal casino, Splash.  Well, Splash was closed by then, which left no one there to ask for directions.  His cell phone wouldn’t connect – it was a levee thing – and he had to drive all the way back to Highway 61 to get service again.  To hear Bill tell it he was a tired mess by that time.

Later on, when Bill moved into the Cutoff, his daughter Miranda came to visit him.  He gave her careful instructions, but then came the phone call.  “Dad, I’m lost.”  Bill ran across the levee in his golf cart to guide her in.

Well evidently, Tait Tate heard these sorts of stories, so during the winter-time he took measures to fix this problem.  Now Tait doesn’t really use the internet and he doesn’t get too far off the levee, except for occasional trips to town for supplies, so he didn’t know about the signs, or the map on the website.

“Well, get on with it.  What did Tait do?”

Alright, alright.  Tait got himself some red clover seeds and spread them along the left-hand side of the road which runs along top of the levee.  He stopped spreading these seeds at the yield sign, where the turnoff for Bordeaux Point sets.  In the photo below you can see the yield sign off in the distance on the right side of the road.  See it?

But after you make that turn the road forks left and right.  Well, Tait started seeding that red clover down the left side of the road to Bordeaux Point.  You can’t quite see it as well, since the grass does a fair job of hiding it, but if you look well you can make it out.  Fortunately the sign should be able to guide you from there.   At the “fork” there is a big yella sign pointing left to Bordeaux Point RV Park, with great big letters and an arrow.   And yet, as recent as last year Fed Ex has gone the wrong way and delivered a package to the wrong camp.  The right leads to what was once Charlies Camp, but now is Rickie’s – rather private – Camp.

So first time coming in to Bordeaux Point just follow the red clover, when it ends take that first right off the levee, and a left at the fork, just like the sign tells ya, and you will be home.  After your first trip in you are free to simply admire how pretty the red clover is, and to think for a moment about the elusive Tait Tate, who had such a wonderful idea.

One day Tait Tate came to work there.  It was his second job and he was 16 looking so forward to his first pay check.  He had already spent it and was over-drawn at the bank. This was great, five days work to clear 75 dollars!  You see Tait Tate had been the cook at the Hollywood Restaurant where Ralph Rubin spent most Saturday night singing at the piano.  His favorite song being Why Why Why Delilah singing with Muriel on the piano, and Bob Hall waiting next to sing Tie A Yellow Ribbon ‘Round The Old Oak Tree.

Times were good for young Tait Tate having Mr. Rubin the plant manager at Pillow Tex and Tait Tate’s pal.  Tait Tate could do no wrong.

That summer Tait Tate wasn’t the only youth working.  There were 10 youth summer employees.  The youth would be always messin’ around with something.  But AD on line one was always the star employee.

Tait Tate and John Dulaney were always fighting or goofing off.  AD was always running into boxes that would have to be re-boxed by the two boys.  This was getting old and one day Tait Tate told John he’d bet $5 that he could turn off AD’s gas on the fork lift with out him knowing it.

Well the bet was on, AD rounded Broadway and John yelled at AD “hey dumbass”. When he stopped to look around to see who said that, Tait Tate cut off AD’s gas.  The fork lift went dead AD got off cussin’ and lookin’ for his wrench, another trick on AD.  AD had to walk all the way back to the shop to get the wrench to take off the propane tank.   Then back to the shop for Propane and back to the fork lift to put on the new tank.  Finally, he’d crank up the fork lift and back to work.  Well, it ran about 5 minutes and the two boys cut it off again.

Mr. Potter walked by plant #2 man and asked what was wrong.  AD told him he had replaced the propane tank that had run empty with a misplaced tank in the full rack that was empty too.  AD was all flustered when Mr. Potter said don’t let that happen again.  AD thought something was fishy.  Ad took the tank off, went and got another tank and put that one on.

Back to work, an hour later John went to pull the trick again AD caught him and was cussin’ mad. It was lunch time AD went back to the shop and got a piece of steel to use as a knife the next one to try to cut off his gas he swore he‘d cut their hand off.

Well about 3.30 Tait Tate tries again and this time AD saw him.  AD made good on his pledge but he misses Tait’s hand and cuts the gas line on a full tank instead.   Propane was going ever’where. Mr. Potter came by to see what was going on since AD’s work was all backed up.

AD was demoted to shipping clerk repacking boxes that John Dulaney had run over as new folk lift driver. Tait Tate was promoted to Ms. Gann’s assistance making labels for addresses on out going boxes.

What a life for young Tait Tate.

Tate county was dry and the Junior collage was about 30 miles away. We were opening September 20th, the first Saturday after school started.

We had a spy too.  Brother Chad was in school over there and he and his friends were giving out fliers for free beer. Opening night we were jam packed, with cousins Dooglefish and John Tait as waiters and bouncers it was almost more than they could handle.

Business was good all summer and the new semester brought more thirsty people.  One day Cousin Baby Gayle came up and talked to brother Bard about buying him out.  Our dad had passed away and that January and Bard was going back to school.  That was just right, so he kept the name “The Hollywood” and had live bands.  On weekend’s business was great, food was added and that helped out too.

Baby needed a cook.  I (Tait Tate) applied at 16, ran the kitchen and bought supplies.  One afternoon a girl asked could I fry a pickle for her.  I said, “Sure, how?”

Just quarter it, roll it in flour and fry in hot grease.

I did and that started the main attraction at the Hollywood; Fried Pickles.  This was new and different and with the batter fried onion rings, it started the fried food paradise.  Everyone that came ate lots of both and good steaks and catfish too. What a place.

It wasn’t long before Bob Hall came up talked to Baby about a partner. That went over great, you see Bob Hall was a singer, and a paint contractor, and he was the Delta Crooner.  He could really spread it on thick.  The women loved him, the food was great, and buses loaded with Memphians would come down for the night.  They would all sing with Muriel at the piano
Eat a good steak or Catfish and get on the bus back home to Memphis..

I courted my wife there dancing to Tie A Yellow Ribbon, Darkness On The Delta and more with Muriel at the piano, Bob singing and added The Turn Row Cowboy.  We rocked on for about 10 years until one night after closing  there was a grease and fire The Hollywood went up in smoke.

Keep your line wet.

Tait Tate

When Maw married Paw she got many letters from town folks that had spent their honeymoons in the ole hotel.

You see it was in the town of Hollywood.

Hollywood was named for the native holly trees that Hernando de Soto had given the Indian Chief as a gift to plant for a good omen of friendship.

The town was booming then.  It had seven saloons, three cotton gin, a broom factory, brick plant, a hotel, Tate Brothers Commissary, and three plantations the Perry, the Sledge, and the Tate Brothers Plantation.

Now that’s the history, now the story. (The start of the story)

Tait Tate

We couldn’t find any pictures of the old days, but did find some modern manufactured versions, to give ya an idea.

Next comes cutting switch Willows and nailing them onto pallets making them 3 deep for structure weighted with pyramid blocks dropping them in the deeper parts of the lake.

After that a trip to Helena AR for cotton seed meal.  Putting 15 lbs. in a burlap sack, tied off to bricks with holes, wetting the meal down so it would sour, and drop 3 of these in each mat structure.

The souring meal would attract the fish to the mats, both small and large fish.  Bait and supper for all.

You would give Mat maps to your best customers, so they would bring more customers to your ramp.  This worked well and on any given week it was easy to have 100 boats launch on Saturday.

The same went for the fishing dock, baiting with cotton seed meal was the best.  One mat sack would last a month. So you would do this all season until Dove season rolled around when most fishermen become hunters in the fall.  Then business would drop off until the next January and start all over again.

If you could keep down the dead minnow syndrome you could come out.  A customer would come in and ask for 3 doz.  So, you would weigh out the minnows and it never failed, they’d look in the bucket and say that’s not 3 doz.  Then I would said make it easy on yourself, double or nothing.  What’s that mean?  If there’s less than 3 doz. they’re free, but 3 doz. or more and you pay double. Being the minnows weren’t sized the house always won.  You would get to do this at least 3 times before they’d catch on.

We’d pay 1 cent per minnow and sell them for 3 cents.

The big trick was keeping the minnows alive.  First plenty of fresh water.  Your drain would be 2 inches lower than that of the tank.  You would have a flow restricter that was a 2” pipe over a 1” pipe.  The 2” pipe had 15 1/4” holes, and the top was at your desired depth of the vat.  Minnows have scales.  Sun light let’s the minnow see each other and the males fight for the right to mate with the females.  The top 2” of the tank collect all the waste the minnows put out and that’s why you have to leave a flow of fresh-water, without chlorine or it will kill the minnows.  The water needs to be 55 degrees, so you need a cooler in the water that’s like a water AC unit.  You also need antibiotics to treat the minnows, to keep them from getting sores from fighting.  All that and you can make money selling minnows but only if you do all these things.

Also there was boat and motor rentals.  Someone rents a boat and motor, but doesn’t pay attention to ya about how to crank an outboard motor.  About half would be towed in, mad as hell because the motor won’t crank.  So double or nothing come’s in again.  You’d ask did you listen to me about the motor?  Show me if it will crank.  They would, but it wasn’t the way I told them and I’d say watch.  I’d twist the throttle 2 times, hit the chock, and pull it one time.  It would crank up every time.

Double or nothing; he’d owe me 50.00 instead of 25.00.  Some fishermen will be mad as hell then, so you’d play “get like me”.  Nobody knows about “get like me” but me.  I made it up.  You say we both get a coin flip, and I tell the fisherman he has to have what I have to win.   It never fails as them who won, because whatever it is you say you lost.  They are too embarrassed because they don’t understand.  Half the time you let him win because he is a good sport.  You know they always lose and the good sports it’s up to you 50/50.