Greenwood is situated in Leflore County, Mississippi at the
eastern edge of the Mississippi Delta, approximately 96 miles north of
Jackson, Mississippi, and 130 miles south of Memphis, Tennessee. The population was 18,425 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Leflore County6 and the principal city of the Greenwood Micropolitan Statistical Area. The Tallahatchie River and the Yalobusha River meet at Greenwood
to form the Yazoo River. Greenwood is the gateway to the Delta and has an array of things to
do, places to visit, shopping and dining, and lodging options. It is home to such corporations as Viking Range Corp., Milwaukee Electric Tool
Company, Staplcotn([1]), America's
Catch([2]),Heartland Catfish([3], John-Richard([4]), Balkamp([5]) (distribution center) and more. Greenwood is alive with cultural opportunities, including live
blues music, live theater productions, museum exhibits, offerings of various art and culinary
classes and much more.
History
The flood plain of the Mississippi River has
long been an area rich in vegetation and wildlife, feeding off the Mississippi and its numerous tributaries. Long before Europeans migrated to
America, the Choctaw and Chickasaw Indian nations settled in the Delta’s marsh and swampland. In 1830, the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek was signed by Choctaw Chief Greenwood Leflore, opening the swampland to European settlers. The first settlement on the banks of
the Yazoo River was a trading post founded by John Williams in 1830 and known as Williams
Landing. The settlement quickly blossomed, and in 1844 was incorporated as “Greenwood,” named after Chief Greenwood Leflore. Growing into a strong cotton market, the key to the
city’s success was based on its strategic location in the heart of the Delta; on the easternmost point of the alluvial plain and astride the Tallahatchie River and the
Yazoo River. The city served as a shipping point to New Orleans, Louisiana, Vicksburg, Mississippi,
Memphis, Tennessee and St. Louis,
Missouri. Greenwood continued to prosper until the latter part of the American Civil
War.
During that war, Greenwood played an important, if little-known, role in the famous Siege of Vicksburg. In early 1863, it was clear that the Union intended to attack the strategic port of Vicksburg on the Mississippi River. After failed attempts at a frontal assault of the city, General Ulysses S. Grant hatched a new plan to attack from the rear by way of the Tallahatchie and Yazoo
Rivers. A hastily constructed Confederate fort was placed between the two rivers at Fort
Pemberton. Here the Confederates met the oncoming Union flotilla with fierce resistance
and the sinking of the paddle wheeler "Star of the West" in the channel of the Tallahatchie River, successfully stopping their
advance. As a result, Grant abandoned the Yazoo Expedition and retreated north to the Mississippi River to assault Vicksburg by another route.
The end of the Civil War in the mid-1860’s and the following year of Reconstruction
severely diminished the cotton industry and crippled the city’s previously thriving economy. Greenwood saw very little growth
during these years of hardship.
The arrival of railroads in the 1880’s saved the city – with two lines running to
downtown Greenwood, close to the Yazoo River. Once again, Greenwood emerged as a prime
shipping point for cotton. Downtown’s Front Street bordering the Yazoo bustled with cotton factors and other related businesses,
earning that section the name Cotton Row. The city continued to prosper in this way well into the
1940’s.
Today, in the twenty-first century, Greenwood is experiencing a cultural renaissance. Its
historic downtown boasts dozens of completed renovations with several others in progress. There are upscale shops, unique dining
experiences, a boutique hotel, galleries and museums. All the while, Greenwood has retained its small-town beauty, Delta
personality and deep-South hospitality.
(from the Greenwood Convention and Visitor’s
Bureau)
Tourism
The establishment of Greenwood as a tourist destination came with the revitalization of Howard Street in historic Downtown
Greenwood.
Notable businesses that make their home on Howard Street include The Alluvian Hotel, The Alluvian Spa, The Viking Cooking
School, The Mississippi Gift Company [6], Blue Parrot Restaurant and Veronica's Bakery, Olde World Antiques, Russell's Antiques, Turnrow Books, Matties,
Melon Patch, Sweet Pea, Fincher's Gifts, Traditions, Ashley's Rug World, The Cat Walk and several bank headquarters.
African-American Heritage
The African-American contribution to the Greenwood region is invaluable. In fact,
the Delta has exported as much music as cotton, sprouted from the spirit of the people. That
spirit rose from historic neighborhoods such as Browning Community in Greenwood, the oldest African-American community in
Mississippi, and home to the important Browning Artesian Well. The spirit was fed by the town and country churches, including the
areas oldest African-American church, Wesley United Methodist in downtown Greenwood, organized in 1870. The spirit was shaped by
centers of learning such as Mississippi Valley State University,
which has borne generation of historic figures, from sports stars and Olympians to
Civil Rights leader and present-day civic leaders.
Leflore County has produced extraordinary music stars, from the early
bluesmen such as Mississippi John Hurt and Walter
"Furry" Lewis to the talent of today including B.B. King, Hubert Sumlin and Denise LaSalle. Another famous blues musician,
Robert Johnson, has three memorial gravestones in the Greenwood area. In the
area of sports, Greenwood native Willye White followed the advice of her father and found
her future far outside the cotton fields as a five-time Olympian and a medalist.
Radio station WGRM was the location of B.B. King's first live broadcast in 1940. In dedication to this event, the
Mississippi Blues Trail has placed its third historic marker at this
site.[1]
Not all great African-Americans left the Delta. Others stayed and forged freedom a day at a time, through their own efforts.
Noted Civil Rights leaders such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. King held a
rally in the summer of 1966, along with Stokely Carmichael of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and Floyd McKissick of the Congress of Racial Equality
(CORE). Sites such as East Percy Street Christian Church and the home of Dewey Greene were Civil Rights-era meeting places.
The Mississippi Delta is rich in the accomplishments of African-Americans who
struggled, transcended, created, inspired and motivated.
(from the Greenwood Convention and Visitor’s
Bureau)
Greenwood Culture
The small, yet rapidly growing, city of Greenwood, MS hosts some of the world's most amazing annual events. The numerous
festivals, productions, parades, celebrations, and concerts all bring dazzling, spectacular, family fun that draws people from
all over the world. From large religious organization events to the classy formal school homecoming coronations and parades,
Greenwood prides itself on making these events bigger and better each year, often times drawing international accolades. The list
is extensive, but a few of the notable events are:
- First Presbyterian Church Singing Christmas Tree - December
- Roy Martin Delta Band Festival - December
- Holiday Open House - November
- Upstairs Downtown Loft Tour - November
- Art Alfresco - October
- Stars and Stripes in the Park - July
- River to the Rails Arts Festival - April
Famous Greenwoodians
- Valerie Brisco-Hooks, Olympian
- Fred Carl, Jr., founder and CEO of Viking Range
Corp.
- William V. Chambers, personality psychologist
- Byron De La Beckwith, ordered assassination of Civil Rights leader Medgar Evers
- Betty Everett, R&B vocalist and pianist
- Alphonso Ford, professional basketball player
- Webb Franklin, United States Congressman
- Morgan Freeman, Oscar-winning actor
- Jim Gallagher, Jr., professional golfer
- Bobbie Gentry, vocalist
- Gerald Glass, professional basketball player
- Guitar Slim, blues musician
- Kent Hull, professional football player
- Mississippi John Hurt, songster and blues musician
- Robert Johnson, blues musician (presumed buried in Greenwood)
- Stephen LaVere, Grammy Award-winning record producer and music historian
- Walter "Furry" Lewis, songster and blues musician
- Bernie Machen, President of University of
Florida
- Matt Miller, baseball pitcher
- Carrie Nye, actress
- Mary Ann Pearce, first wife of novelist Mickey
Spillane (who lived in Greenwood in 1945)
- John A. Pittman, Congressional Medal of Honor winner
- Fenton Robinson, blues singer and guitarist
- Hubert Sumlin, blues guitarist
- Donna Tartt, novelist of The Little
Friend (set in Mississippi), was born in Greenwood
- Emmett Till, Civil Rights figure
- Willye White, Olympian
- William Madison Whittington, United States Congressman (1925-1951)
Greenwood trivia
- Greenwood is one of the few places in the world where you can stand between two rivers flowing in the opposite direction: the
Yazoo River and the Tallahatchie River.
- Legend has it that the Leflore County Courthouse in Greenwood stands on Choctaw land once
used for rituals and sacraments.
- The City of Greenwood is named after Choctaw Indian Chief Greenwood Leflore, who
negotiated the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek with the U.S.
Government.
- Cottonlandia Museum in Greenwood houses furniture from Chief Greenwood Leflore’s
mansion Malmaison, which was destroyed by fire in 1942.
- Greenwood known as the Cotton Capital of the World and boasts the second largest cotton
exchange in the nation located on Cotton Row.
- The Tallahatchie River in Greenwood contains relics of the Union side-wheel
steamship, Star of the West, sunk to prevent passage of the Union flotilla to
Vicksburg.
- Walter "Furry" Lewis was born in Greenwood in March 1899 and became the first bluesman
to record the bottleneck method of playing guitar.
- Keesler Bridge in Greenwood is a swing bridge of the Howe Truss design and a dedicated
Mississippi landmark.
- Helen Keller gave a speech about happiness in Greenwood on March 29, 1916. Unfortunately, she was not able to hear the applause.
- John Phillip Sousa conducted a concert in Greenwood in 1930.
- Robert Johnson died and was buried just north of Greenwood in August 1938
and now has three memorial gravestones set across the county in his memory.
- B.B. King, King of the Blues, was born near Itta
Bena at Berclair in Leflore County in 1925 and initiated his career
in the mid-1940s on a broadcast over Greenwood’s WGRM [then located at 222 Howard Street - upstairs (now home of the Greenwood
Blues Heritage Museum & Gallery)] as guitarist for the St. John’s Gospel Singers quartet from nearby Indianola.
- In 1944, Time covered the Greenwood Mule Race, attended by over 5,000
people.
- Academy Award-winning actor Morgan Freeman graduated from high school in Greenwood in
1955.
- Young Emmett Till's abduction from the home of relatives at Money, Mississippi (just
north of Greenwood) and subsequent murder in August 1955 sparked the civil rights movement.
- Little Richard sang a song titled, Greenwood, Mississippi and William Eggleston captured his photograph Greenwood, Mississippi,
1973 there.
- The movies Home from the Hill (1960), The Streets of Greenwood (1962), Ode
to Billie Joe, The Reivers, Mississippi
Masala, and The Gun in Betty Lou's Handbag were filmed on location
in Greenwood.
- Greenwood sites used in the filming of John Grisham's “The Chamber” include Webster’s Restaurant where you can sit and eat steak and seafood on the same
barstool as Chris O’Donnell.
- The largest Bible-binding plant in the nation is Norris Bookbinding located in Greenwood.
City government
Greenwood is governed by city council form of government composed of council members
from seven wards and headed by a mayor.
Current city officials (as of 2006):
Mayor:
Council Members:
- Ward 1: Johnny Jennings (R)
- Ward 2: John Lee (R)
- Ward 3: Ronnie Stevenson (D)
- Ward 4: Charles McCoy, Sr. (D)
- Ward 5: Tennill Cannon (D)
- Ward 6: David Jordan (D)
- Ward 7: Taylor Dillard (D)
Education
Post-Secondary Institutions:
Greenwood Public Schools: ([9])
-
- Greenwood High School
- Greenwood Middle School
- Threadgill Elementary School
- Davis Elemtary School
- W. C. Williams Elementary School
- Bankston Elementary School
Leflore County Schools:
- Amanda Elzy High School
- Amanda Elzy Elementary School
- East Middle School
- Leflore County High School
- Leflore County Elementary School
- Leflore County Middle School
- Claudine Brown Elementary School
- Rising Sun Elementary School
Private Schools:
- Pillow Academy ([10])
- New Delta Preparatory School
Parochial Schools:
Media and publishing
Newspapers, Magazines and Journals
- The Greenwood Commonwealth (published daily except Saturday) ([11])
- Leflore Illustrated (published yearly)
Television:
- WABG, ABC Affiliate (Channel 6)([12])
- WMAO, PBS Affiliate (Channel 23)([13])
AM/FM Radio:
Transportation
Railroads Greenwood is served by two major rail lines. Amtrak, the national passenger
rail system, provides service to Greenwood, connecting New Orleans to Chicago.
Air Transportation Greenwood (GWO) is served by Greenwood-Leflore Airport to the east and is located midway between
Jackson, Mississippi and Memphis,
Tennessee and about halfway between Dallas, Texas and Atlanta, Georgia.
Highways
Employers
The largest employers in Leflore County are:
- Viking Range
- Greenwood Leflore Hospital
- Greenwood Public Schools
- Mississippi Valley State University
- Heartland Catfish
- America’s Catch Catfish
- The John-Richard Collection
- Milwaukee Electric Tool Corp.
- J.J. Ferguson Sand and Gravel
- Staplcotn
Sites of interest
Museums and History
- Greenwood Blues Heritage Museum & Gallery
- Cottonlandia Museum
- Fort Pemberton and Star of the West
Historic Downtown:
- The Mississippi Gift Company
- Three Deuces Building - 222 Howard Street
- Greenwood Blues Heritage Museum & Gallery
- Veronica's Custom Bakery
- Viking Range Corporate Headquarters
- The Viking Cooking School
- The Viking Culinary Arts Center
- The Alluvian Hotel
- The Alluvian Spa
- Mockingbird Bakery
- Staplcotn Corporate Headquarters
- Cotton Row
- TurnRow Book Co.
Fine Dining:
- Blue Parrot Cafe
- Crystal Grill
- Delta Fresh Market
- Flatland Grill
- Giardina’s
- Greenwood Country Club
- Lusco’s
- M&M Grocery
- Webster’s
- Yianni’s
Geography
Greenwood is located at 33°31′7″N, 90°11′2″W (33.518719,
-90.183883)1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area
of 24.7 km² (9.5 mi²). 23.9 km² (9.2 mi²) of it is
land and 0.8 km² (0.3 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 3.15% water.
Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there were 18,425 people, 6,916 households, and 4,523 families residing
in the city. The population density was 771.6/km² (1,997.8/mi²). There are 7,565
housing units at an average density of 316.8/km² (820.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was
32.82% White, 65.36% Black, 0.11% Native American, 0.91% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 0.24% from other races, and 0.48% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.03% of the population.
There were 6,916 households out of which 34.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 33.4% are married couples living together, 27.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.6% were
non-families. 31.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or
older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.29.
In the city the population was spread out with 31.0% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 26.7% from 25 to 44, 18.6% from
45 to 64, and 13.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 84.2 males.
For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 75.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $21,867, and the median income for a family
was $26,393. Males had a median income of $27,267 versus $18,578 for females. The per capita
income for the city was $14,461. 33.9% of the population and 28.8% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 47.0% of those under the age of 18 and 20.0% of those
65 and older were living below the poverty line.
Notes
- ^ Historical marker placed on Mississippi Blues Trail. Associated Press. Retrieved on
2007-02-09.
Watch
External links
Coordinates:
33.518719° N 90.183883°
W
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