Carthage, Mississippi Explained

Official Name:Carthage, Mississippi
Settlement Type:City
Mapsize:250px
Pushpin Map:USA
Pushpin Map Caption:Location in the United States
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:United States
Subdivision Type1:State
Subdivision Name1:Mississippi
Subdivision Type2:County
Subdivision Name2:Leake
Leader Title:Mayor
Leader Name:Laurie Henderson
Unit Pref:Imperial
Area Footnotes:[1]
Area Total Km2:24.19
Area Land Km2:24.07
Area Water Km2:0.12
Area Total Sq Mi:9.34
Area Land Sq Mi:9.29
Area Water Sq Mi:0.05
Population As Of:2020
Population Total:4901
Population Density Km2:203.63
Population Density Sq Mi:527.39
Timezone:Central (CST)
Utc Offset:-6
Timezone Dst:CDT
Utc Offset Dst:-5
Elevation M:107
Elevation Ft:351
Coordinates:32.7414°N -89.535°W
Postal Code Type:ZIP code
Postal Code:39051
Area Code:601
Blank Name:FIPS code
Blank Info:28-11780
Blank1 Name:GNIS feature ID
Blank1 Info:0668123

The city of Carthage is the county seat of Leake County, Mississippi, United States.[2] The population was 5,075 at the 2010 census.

Carthage is home to the Carthage Historic District including the Leake County Courthouse, a Mississippi Landmark. The largest chicken processing plant in the world is located in Carthage.

History

Carthage was established in 1834, and became the county seat. The Harris family were early settlers, and named the town after their former home of Carthage, Tennessee. A courthouse and jail were built in 1836, and a post office was established the following year. Carthage was incorporated in 1876. A brick courthouse replaced the previous one in 1877, and was replaced again in 1910.[3] [4] The present courthouse was designed by E. L. Malvaney and completed in 1939.[5] The Carthaginian newspaper was established in 1872, and remains in publication today.

By 1900, agriculture was the primary industry in Leake County. The Pearl River, located 2miles south of Carthage, was used to ship goods by steamboat to and from Jackson, the state capital . Although a railroad eventually ran through Carthage, it did not play a significant role in the development of the town. In 1914, the Merrill Brothers Logging Company built a logging railroad from Canton to McAfee, passing through Carthage. The line was taken over in 1927 by the Canton and Carthage Railroad, which then established commercial service to Carthage. The railroad was abandoned in 1960.[4] [6]

In 1927, Jackson's Daily Clarion Ledger wrote an article entitled "Carthage is a Good Progressive and Enterprising City - Thriving Center of Leake County Holds Modern Benefits". By then, Carthage had schools, churches, an ice plant, two banks, a Masonic Hall, and a Coca-Cola bottling plant.[4]

The population had surpassed 2,000 by 1964, and the town was reclassified as a city.[4]

Carthage Historic District includes the county courthouse, commercial and residential properties of various architectural styles and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Carthage Post Office and Jordan House are individually listed.[4]

When Carthage, Texas established in 1848, it was named after Carthage, Mississippi.[7]

Civil Rights Era

As early as 1948, Carthage began holding an annual "Tri-Racial Goodwill Festival", in which all citizens were included. Although the directors of the first festival separated whites, African Americans and Native Americans, this was corrected in subsequent years. The local newspaper reported that at the 1949 festival, "friendship and goodwill fellowship permeated the air".[8]

In 1964, a group known as Americans for the Preservation of the White Race initiated a boycott in Carthage against white-owned businesses that were complying with the Civil Rights Act.[9] When members of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee tried to open a Freedom School in Carthage, local whites told them their deed was invalid, and threatened to burn the school.[10] In 1967, shots were fired into the home of an NAACP worker in Carthage.[11]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 9.4sqmi, of which 9.4sqmi is land and 0.1sqmi (0.53%) is water.

The geographic center of Mississippi is located 9miles west-northwest of Carthage.

Climate

Demographics

2020 census

Carthage Racial Composition[12] !Race!Num.!Perc.
White1,45829.75%
Black or African American2,36648.28%
Native American781.59%
Asian410.84%
Pacific Islander10.02%
Other/Mixed1062.16%
Hispanic or Latino85117.36%
As of the 2020 United States Census, there were 4,901 people, 1,359 households, and 1,024 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the census[13] of 2000, there were 4,637 people, 1,490 households, and 1,065 families residing in the city. The population density was 495.9sp=usNaNsp=us. There were 1,654 housing units at an average density of 176.9sp=usNaNsp=us. The racial makeup of the city was 52.86% White, 44.25% African American, 1.04% Native American, 0.43% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.58% from other races, and 0.82% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.94% of the population.

There were 1,490 households, out of which 37.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.8% were married couples living together, 23.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.5% were non-families. 25.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.12.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 26.1% under the age of 18, 11.7% from 18 to 24, 28.4% from 25 to 44, 18.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $25,052, and the median income for a family was $30,069. Males had a median income of $27,060 versus $17,280 for females. The per capita income for the city was $12,986. About 21.5% of families and 26.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 39.6% of those under age 18 and 18.8% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

The largest chicken processing plant in the world - able to process 2.5 million chickens per week - is located on Highway 35 north of Carthage. Originally owned by Choctaw Maid Farms, the plant was flanked by a large trailer park built in the mid-1990s to house the factory's growing Hispanic migrant workforce, and the Hispanic population of Carthage increased from 1.9 percent to 12.3 percent between 2000 and 2010. The plant was purchased by Tyson Foods in 2003, and employs 1,700.[8] [14] [15]

Arts and culture

The Square Affair is held annually each May, and features walks, runs, a children's fishing rodeo, an idol competition, vendors, fireworks, and a basketball tournament.[16]

Parks and recreation

McMillian Park in Carthage has baseball diamonds, tennis courts, soccer field, disc golf course, two playgrounds, and a fishing pond.

Lincoln Park in Carthage has a baseball diamond, basketball court, walking trail, and community center.

Education

The City of Carthage is served by the Leake County School District including Leake Central High School.

Infrastructure

Highways

Carthage is served by Mississippi Highway 35, Mississippi Highway 16, and Mississippi Highway 25.

Airport

The Carthage-Leake County Airport is located north of the city.

Law enforcement and fire

Carthage is protected by its own police and fire departments.

Health care

The Baptist Medical Center in Carthage provides hospital services and critical care.

Notable people

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files. United States Census Bureau. July 24, 2022.
  2. Web site: Find a County . 2011-06-07 . National Association of Counties . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110531210815/http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx . 2011-05-31 .
  3. Web site: City of Carthage - About . City of Carthage . January 1, 2014.
  4. Web site: National Register of Historic Places Registration Form . Mississippi Department of Archives and History . July 25, 2012 .
  5. Web site: Leake County | US Courthouses .
  6. Web site: Howe . Tony . Canton & Carthage Railroad . Mississippi Rails . January 1, 2014.
  7. Web site: LaGrone . Leila B. . CARTHAGE, TX . Texas State Historical Association . January 1, 2014.
  8. Book: Stuesse, Angela Christine . Globalization "Southern Style": Transnational Migration, the Poultry Industry, and Implications for Organizing Workers Across Difference . 2008 . 9780549764069 .
  9. Book: Irons, Jenny . Reconstituting Whiteness: The Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission . Vanderbilt University Press . 2010 . 9780826516879 .
  10. Book: Hogan, Wesley C. . Many Minds, One Heart: SNCC's Dream for a New America . UNC Press . 2007 . 9780807867891 .
  11. Book: Altschiller, Donald . Hate Crimes: A Reference Handbook . ABC-CLIO . 2005 . registration . 9781851096244 .
  12. Web site: Explore Census Data. 2021-12-08. data.census.gov.
  13. Web site: U.S. Census website . . 2008-01-31 .
  14. Web site: Locations . Tyson Foods . January 1, 2014.
  15. Book: Haviland . William . Prins . Harald . McBride . Bunny . Walrath. Dana . Cultural Anthropology: The Human Challenge . Cengage Learning . 2010 . 978-1111790424 .
  16. Web site: City of Carthage - Events . City of Carthage . January 1, 2014.
  17. Web site: Dane . Barbara . The Chamber Brothers Do That Real Thing . Folkway Records . 1965 . January 28, 2014 . July 2, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130702160140/http://media.smithsonianfolkways.org/liner_notes/folkways/FW02468.pdf . dead .
  18. Pierce . Ponchitta . The Mission of Marian Wright . Ebony . June 1966 .
  19. Web site: John Johnson . Basketball Reference . January 1, 2014.
  20. Book: The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Colin Larkin. Guinness Publishing. 1992. First. 0-85112-939-0. 1578.
  21. Web site: Bennett Malone . Mississippi Legislature . January 1, 2014 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140603150333/http://billstatus.ls.state.ms.us/members/house/malone.xml . June 3, 2014 .
  22. Web site: Marcus Mann . Draft Review . January 1, 2014.
  23. Web site: Jay Mathis. Project Vote Smart. January 14, 2023.
  24. News: Donald M. Rawson. Alexandria Town Talk. October 15, 2014. October 18, 2014.
  25. Web site: Ferr Smith. Project Vote Smart. January 14, 2023.
  26. Web site: Fields . Christopher . 2023-02-03 . Mississippi’s first Black senator since reconstruction honored for Black History Month . live . http://web.archive.org/web/20231219021728/https://www.wlbt.com/2023/02/03/mississippis-first-black-senator-since-reconstruction-honored-black-history-month/ . 2023-12-19 . 2023-12-19 . . en.
  27. Web site: Kenneth Walker. January 14, 2023. billstatus.ls.state.ms.us.
  28. Web site: O'Neal Wilder . Mississippi State University Athletics . January 1, 2014.