Mocpoix

Mocpoix is a hamlet located on the commune of Castle-Landon in Seine-et-Marne (77), located very above marshy banks of Loing, which makes fun of pitch, the marsh , called in the past “Mocquepois” on the Carte of Cassini of 1756 (see below extracts of the chart n°8, area of Orleans).

Mocpoix culminates with 99 meters above the sea level under a Latitude of 48°8' 60 North and a Longitude of 2°43' 60 Is. “Not only one house is not marked between the valley of Chaintréauville, in the south of Nemours and the village of Mocpoix, occupying a blunt spur, above the valley of the Charcoal of Loing, is on 11 km as the crow flies”.

Pitch (of Latin pix, picis ), sticky and black matter which is obtained by distillation of coniferous timber (pines, fir trees) was used by the hunters, as of prehistory, to trap game. This termination " is found; poix" in Chancepoix, hamlet located at the Western North of Mocpoix.

Near Mocpoix, are located Néronville (with 0.0km); Varennes (with 1.9km); The Street Mangine (with 2.2km); Toury (with 2.2km); Castle-Landon (with 2.5km); Souppes-sur-Loing (with 3.7km); Dordives (with 2.5km); Villiers (with 3.9km); Fonteneilles (with 3.9km); Aulnois (with 3.1km); Large Ceriseaux (with 4.5km); Cornou (with 5.6km); Bruzelles (with 3.7km); Coudray (with 5.6km); Nargis (with 5.7km); Large Gasson (with 4.1km); Prouville (with 5.2km); Fontenay-on-Loing (with 6.1km); Préfontaines (with 6.7km).

Mocpoix is presented in the form of a whole of dwellings organized in market-gardening houses, along the street of Louvetière which is the main street, directed of west in east.

In the west, the way of the Polishing machines evokes the industrial past of the prehistoric men who had elected residence in the surroundings of Souppes-sur-Loing.

To the east, the coast of Mocpoix leads until the lock Canal of Loing to the locality of " Large Moulin".

September 7th, 1943, the radio diffuses the coded message: “On the highest branch, the nightingale will sing”. A plane, party of England, release 10 parachutes ballasted each of 250 kg of goods on the ground of the Brush, close to Chaintreaux. Under the initiative of the Resistant Gilbert Gaillardon, the material will be hidden in the mushroom beds of Mocpoix . “One arrives at the accesses of the mushroom beds. The containers, large 2 meters length cylinders on 45 centimetres in diameter, are discharged and dismounted. It is now a question of transporting them in the galleries to the selected place. It is necessary to make a course of 150 meters in lime, curved into two. Per moment, one advances almost on the knees. And all that in the blackest night. At five o'clock in the morning, all is in place! Harassed but happy, each one returns at home, carrying a parachute like remembering and, before lying down, one brushes oneself conscientiously to make disappear any trace from the night-work. The following days, all the team tightens the ear with the noises which circulate downtown because it is possible that the plane, with its many turns, alerted the population somewhat. Saturday evening, it gathers with tricks of iroquois near the coast of Rolling; each one tells what he heard, there is nothing serious good but, nevertheless, it is decided that the parachutes would go, next Tuesday, to find the containers in the careers for more safety, The team thus finds complete next Tuesday and takes part in the disassembling and the inventory of the containers: eighty machine-guns are there with ammunition” of the cans and cigarettes.

Old the underground career of limestone of Mocpoix , also known of the speleologists, is a site of hibernation which lodges important populations several species of chiroptères, such as Murine Grand (Myotis myotis), Grand Rhinolophe (Rhinolophus ferrum-equinum), Vespertilion with indented ears (Myotis emarginatus), Vespertilion de Bechstein (Myotis bechsteini) from which the habitat must be protected. Except this historical and geological curiosity, the visit of Mocpoix is of an extremely limited interest. The impassioned tourist of history or archeology will move towards Castle-Landon by the street of the Cross Bumblebee . Far from the luxury and spangles, Mocpoix appears in good place in the heart of those which can recognize the character simple and authentic place.

One will retain of Mocpoix this famous remained anonymous quotation: Who passes by chance to Mocpoix, never returns there by Hasard.

Foot-note: “Mocquepois” (today Mocpoix) is located at 42 km in the north of “Moquepoix” (today Mocquepoix, on the commune of Cortrat in the department of the Loiret).

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