Kick Back and Relax
The Clark Family Compound at Linn Lake near Houston, Mississippi is a quiet, rural retreat. It features a retreat cabin (the Lake House) and a modest four-bedroom home (the Road House) on 124 acres, including a 45 acre lake. Most of the acreage is wooded. The lake is crystal clear and large enough for water skiing and fishing. It is stocked with bass, bluegill, red ear sunfish, redbreast sunfish, channel catfish and crappie. There is a dirt road that leads from the property entrance to each of the residences and around the lake. The property is on the north side of HWY 8, about 12 miles east of Houston, MS. It is easily accessible from Memphis (about 2 hours via I-55 and HWY 8 East), Jackson, MS. (about 2.5 hours via the Natchez Trace to HWY 8) and New Orleans (5 hours via I-59, HWY 45 and HWY 8.
The Lake House features two bedrooms, a full kitchen, a game room with pool table, a large Great Room and a screened porch which overlooks the lake. It is located on the smaller peninsula on the west side of the lake. The four-bedroom Road House is located in the southwest corner of the property (about a 5 minute walk from the Lake House). In addition to the four bedrooms it has a small kitchen and living room, dining room, a carport and a laundry room. At the front of the property, near the dam and entrance to the property, there is a small fish house with livewells, sink and a toilet (that may someday be functional again).
The History of Linn Lake
Linn Lake was built in 1963-64 by Mr. Willie Jim Linn to provide a retreat for his family where they could enjoy fishing and water skiing in a peaceful setting. The land had been in the Linn Family since the late 1860s and was part of the family farm.
Mr. Linn started construction of the two levees that created the lake in 1963. In addition to building the levees, he cleared the land to be flooded so there would be no hazards to water skiers. The earth for the levees was excavated from the future lake bed adding additional depth in front of the first peninsula.
The levees were completed in 1964. It took about three years for the lake to fill completely. Bass, channel catfish and bluegill were stocked in 1966.
Linn Lake has been the site of many Linn/Murphree family get-togethers, business retreats and local Boy Scout events. The site has also hosted several Easter Sunrise services for local churches.
Linn Lake was purchased from the Murphree family in October 2007 by Gus and Dan Clark to serve as a retreat for the Clark families, relatives and friends.