MERIDIAN, MISSISSIPPI

'Meridian' is a city located in, and the county seat of, Lauderdale County in Mississippi, a state of the United States of America. Meridian is the fifth largest city in Mississippi and the principal city of the Meridian, Mississippi Micropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 39,968 at the 2000 census. The current population is larger than in the 2000 census. A recent annexation, in addition to seeing many displaced coastal residents after Hurricane Katrina (many of them have made Meridian their permanent residence), have put the population over 40,000.

Contents

History

City Government

Geography and Climate

Education

Demographics

Media and Publishing

Newspapers, Magazines, and Journals

Television

Radio

AM

FM

Transportation

Railroads

Air Transportation

Highways

Interstate Highways

U.S. Highways

State Highways

Sites of interest

Famous Meridianites

Notes

External links

History

The area which is now Meridian was originally inhabited by the Choctaw Indians, who agreed to vacate their land via the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek in 1830. Caucasian settlers soon moved into the area, the first of whom was a Virginian named Richard McLemore, who tried to attract people to the area by offering them free land.
The original settlement was located in 1854 at the junction of the Mobile & Ohio and the Vicksburg & Montgomery Railroad lines, and was named 'Sowashee Station' after the nearby Sowashee Creek. The town was officially incorporated as "Meridian" in 1860. Even at this time, it was only inhabited by some fifteen families.
The American Civil War broke out shortly after the town was incorporated, and the town's strategic position at the railroad junction made it the home of a Confederate arsenal, military hospital, and prisoner-of-war stockade as well as the headquarters for a number of state offices. After the 1863 Vicksburg campaign, in which Federal troops succeeded in capturing Vicksburg and burning the state capital, Jackson, Union forces under General William Tecumseh Sherman turned eastward. In February 1864, Sherman's army reached Meridian, where they destroyed the railroads and burned much of the area to the ground. After completing this task, Sherman is reputed to have said, "Meridian no longer exists."
Despite these traumatic events, the railroad lines at Meridian were repaired in a remarkable turnaround of twenty-six days, and the town experienced a boom in the aftermath of the war. Apparently, Meridian entered a sort of "Golden Age" around the turn of the twentieth century. Between 1890 and 1930 Meridian could claim to be the largest city in Mississippi, becoming a leading center for manufacturing. This period saw the construction of much of Meridian's present-day skyline, including the Grand Opera House, which opened in 1890. By 1900 the city counted some 25,000 residents.
After the turn of the century, Meridian saw the construction of a Carnegie library, which now houses the municipal Museum of Art. Later, the Threefoot Building, Meridian's tallest skyscraper, became an important Art Deco architectural landmark. Today the city includes nine separate historic districts and neighborhoods, and boasts the largest collection of downtown historic buildings in Mississippi.^[1]

City Government

Meridian is governed by a city council, headed by the Mayor, John Robert Smith.

★ Current Council Members:

★
★ George Thomas (Ward 1, Vice-President)

★
★ Mary Perry (Ward 2)

★
★ Barbara Henson (Ward 3)

★
★ Jesse Palmer, Sr. (Ward 4, President)

★
★ John Harris (Ward 5)
The Council Clerk is Pam McInnis.

★ Judiciary Officials:

★
★ Robbie Jones, City Court Judge

★
★ Beauchamp Jones, Judge Pro Tempore

★
★ Alfred Cory, City Prosecutor

★
★ Amanda Rainey, Assistant Prosecutor

★
★ Joseph Denson, Public Defender

★ Executive Officials:

★
★ Bill Hammack, City Attorney

★
★ Ken Storms, Chief Administrative Officer

★
★ Ed Skipper, Finance and Records Director

★
★ Monty Jackson, Public Works Director

★
★ Mark Naylor, Parks and Recreation Director

★
★ Don Farrar, Community Development Director

★
★ Tim Miller, Fire Chief

★
★ Benny Dubose, Police Chief

★
★ H. C. Partridge, Homeland Security Director

Geography and Climate

Meridian is located at (32.374841, -88.704160).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 118.8 km² (45.9 mi²). 116.9 km² (45.1 mi²) of it is land and 1.9 km² (0.8 mi²) of it (1.64%) is water.

Monthly Normal and Record High and Low Temperatures
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Rec High °F	83	85	90	95	99	104	107	106	105	97	87	84
Norm High °F	57.5	62.6	70.3	77.1	83.9	90.1	92.9	92.9	88	78.3	68.5	60.5
Norm Low °F	34.7	37.7	44.3	50.4	59.5	66.8	70.5	69.8	64.2	51.3	42.8	37.2
Rec Low °F	0	8	15	28	38	42	55	51	34	24	16	2
Precip (in)	5.92	5.35	6.93	5.62	4.87	3.99	5.45	3.34	3.64	3.28	4.95	5.31
''Source: USTravelWeather.com [2]''

Education

★ Post-Secondary Institutions:

★
★ Mississippi State University-Meridian Campus

★
★ Meridian Community College [3]

★ Public Schools:

★
★ Meridian Public School District [4]

★ Private Schools

★
★ Lamar School

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 39,968 people, 15,966 households, and 10,026 families residing in the city. The population density was 342.0/km² (885.9/mi²). There were 17,890 housing units at an average density of 153.1/km² (396.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 54.37% African American, 43.99% White, 0.17% Native American, 0.60% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.28% from other races, and 0.57% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.08% of the population.
There were 15,966 households out of which 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.2% were married couples living together, 23.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.2% were non-families. 33.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 3.06.
In the city the population was spread out with 27.2% under the age of 18, 9.9% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 19.7% from 45 to 64, and 16.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 84.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $25,085, and the median income for a family was $31,062. Males had a median income of $29,404 versus $19,702 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,255. About 24.6% of families and 28.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 40.8% of those under age 18 and 22.0% of those age 65 or over.

Media and Publishing

Newspapers, Magazines, and Journals

★ ''Meridian Star'' (published daily) [5]

★ ''Memo Digest'' (weekly)

★ ''East MS Business Journal'' (monthly) [6]

★ ''Mississippi Business Journal Online'' [7]

Television

★ WGBC, NBC Affiliate, (Analog 30, Digital 30.1)

★ WMDN, CBS Affiliate, (Analog 24, Digital 26.1)

★ WTOK, ABC/Fox/The CW Affiliate, (Analog 11, Digital 11.1)

★ WMAW, Public Broadcasting (Analog 14, Digital 14.1)

Radio

AM

★ WFFX (1450 AM)

★ WMER (1390 AM)

★ WNBN (1290 AM)

★ WMOX (1010 AM)

★ WALT (910 AM)

FM

★ WKZB (106.9 FM)

★ WJXM (105.7 FM)

★ WZKR (103.3 FM)

★ WMMZ (102.1 FM)

★ WMSO (101.3 FM)

★ WYKK (98.9 FM)

★ WOKK (97.1 FM)

★ WJDQ (95.1 FM)

★ WMLV (93.5 FM)

★ WMAW-FM (88.1 FM)

Transportation

Railroads

Amtrak's Crescent train connects Meridian with the cities of New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, Charlotte, Atlanta, Birmingham and New Orleans. The Amtrak station is located at 1901 Front Street.

Air Transportation

The town is served by Meridian Regional Airport to the southwest, located at Key Field, 2811 Airport Boulevard South.

Highways

Interstate Highways

★ Interstate 20, runs west to Jackson, Mississippi and east to Tuscaloosa, Alabama

★ Interstate 59, joining with I-20 at Meridian, runs north to Tuscaloosa, Alabama and south to Laurel, Mississippi, and New Orleans.

★ An addition to Interstate 85 is planned, and will terminate just across the Alabama state line from Meridian through Demopolis and Selma, Alabama to Montgomery.^[2]

U.S. Highways

★ U.S. Highway 11 runs parallel to Interstate 59.

★ U.S. Highway 45 runs north to Columbus, Mississippi and south to Quitman, Mississippi and Mobile, Alabama.

★ U.S. Highway 80 runs west to Jackson, Mississippi and east to Demopolis, Alabama and Montgomery, Alabama.

State Highways

★ Mississippi Highway 19

★ Mississippi Highway 39

★ Mississippi Highway 145

★ Mississippi Highway 493

Sites of interest

The ''Causeyville General Store'', opened in 1895, contains a gristmill and has been placed on National Register of Historic Places.
The ''Frank W. Williams Home'', built in 1886, is a fine example of the Queen Anne style of residential architecture. ''Merrehope'' is an historical home off of 8th street. General S.D. Lee resided here during the war, and is one of few homes that remained standing after the Civil War.[9]
The city's ''Grand Opera House,'' (MSU Riley Center for Education and Performing Arts[10]) is remarkable for being preserved to its original beauty while incorporating the latest in modern technology and amenities. The Grand Opera House and the adjacent Marks Rothenberg Department store were built in 1889 by two half brothers, I. Marks and Levi Rothenberg. In addition to the extensive theatre renovation, the department store was completely transformed into a state of the art conference facility. Together the theatre and conference space make up the Mississippi State University Riley Center for Education and Performing Arts [11]. Owned and operated by Mississippi State University-Meridian Campus, [12] the MSU Riley Center opened in September 2006.
The ''Hamasa Shrine Temple Theater'' houses a 778-pipe organ, the equivalent of a 100-piece symphony orchestra, one of two organs of its kind known to exist. This beautiful theater, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was completed in 1928 in the Moorish Revival style and opened as a movie house. At the time, it was one of the largest stages in the United States, second only to the Roxie Theater in New York City.
''Highland Park'' houses a ''Jimmie Rodgers Museum'', as well as a 19th century carousel manufactured by Gustav Dentzel. Highland Park Dentzel Carousel has been in operation since 1909, the carousel is a National Historic Landmark and the world's only two-row stationary Dentzel menagerie in existence. The Dentzel Carousel arrived in Meridian in 1909 and has occupied its same location in Highland Park. Its house is the only remaining original carousel building built from a Dentzel blueprint.[13]
''Key Field'' is the site of a record setting flight by brothers Fred and Al Key in 1935, and the home of Meridian's Aviation Museum.
''Peavey Electronics'' maintains a museum, featuring memorabilia related to the company and many of the musicians using its equipment, open to the public on the northeast side of Meridian (the company maintains its headquarters in Meridian).
''Bonita Lakes'' is a city-owned, 3,300 acre (13 km²) park on three lakes with hiking trails, golf courses, and the future home of the Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Center, which is pending government legislature for funding. [14].

Famous Meridianites

★ Pat Sansone, multi-instrumentalist in bands Wilco and The Autumn Defense

★ Winfield Dunn, Former Governer of Tennessee

★ John Luther Adams, composer

★ Susan Akin, 1986 Miss America

★ Moe Bandy, country music singer

★ Alex Loeb, famous Mississippi painter

★ Jamaal Barksdale, local leader

★ James Chaney, slain civil rights worker

★ Alvin Childress, actor

★ George Cummings, guitarist, songwriter

★ Paul Davis, singer

★ Steve Forbert, recording artist

★ Al Key, aviator and former mayor of Meridian

★ Fred Key, aviator

★ Greg Keyes, author

★ LisaRaye McCoy, actress

★ Derrick McKey, professional basketball player

★ Fred Phelps, Baptist Preacher and anti-gay crusader

★ Jimmie Rodgers, country music singer

★ David Ruffin, former lead singer of The Temptations

★ Kevin Ivey, Emmy Award Winner

★ Taylor Ivey, Musician

★ Will Ivy, Musician

★ Jimmy Ruffin, singer

★ J. H. Rush, founder of Rush's Infirmary, the first private hospital in Meridian

★ Elliott Street, actor, formerly known as Bill Elliott

★ Sela Ward, actress

★ Skeeter Webb, professional baseball player

★ Diane Ladd, actress

★ Hartley Peavey, Electrical Engineer & founder of Peavey Electronics (which remains headquartered in Meridian)

★ Al Wilson, singer and drummer

★ Oil Can Boyd, former Major League Pitcher

★ Tyler Scarbrough, former Mississippi State baseball player

★ Sonny Montgomery, late U.S. representative; much of the town is named for him.

★ David Holloway, father of missing teen Natalee Holloway.

★ Gayle Wardlow, Delta Blues historian and author of ''Chasin' That Devil Music''[15]

★ Hayley Williams, Lead singer of Paramore

★ Samuel Mockbee, Architect; MacArthur Fellow

★ John Alexander, New York Metropolitan Opera star

★ Chanin Barker, Gospel Music Evangelist

Notes

1. This information was gathered from the city's website, [1].
2. According to the I-85 Extension website, [8].

External links

★ City of Meridian website

★ The Meridian Star Newspaper

★ History of Meridian's Jewish community (from the Institute of Southern Jewish Life)

★ MeridianOnline.info