Tchula, Mississippi facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Tchula, Mississippi
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Location of Tchula, Mississippi
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 Tchula, Mississippi
Location in the United States
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| Country | United States |
| State | Mississippi |
| County | Holmes |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1.44 sq mi (3.73 km2) |
| • Land | 1.41 sq mi (3.65 km2) |
| • Water | 0.03 sq mi (0.09 km2) |
| Elevation | 112 ft (34 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 1,652 |
| • Density | 1,173.30/sq mi (452.90/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP code |
39169
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| Area code(s) | 662 |
| FIPS code | 28-72440 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0678607 |
Tchula is a town in Holmes County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 1,650 at the 2020 census, down from 2,332 in 2000.
A 2015 article in The Guardian described it as the poorest community in the United States.
Contents
History
The first permanent settlement at Tchula was made in the 1830s. The community takes its name from Tchula Lake.
In the 1960s most residents were farmworkers; the properties they worked on belonged to people living in other communities in the area. Mississippi columnist Sid Salter stated that the Tchula area had "Some of the best farmland in America" and "some of the most successful plantations".
In 1982, the city's first Black mayor, Eddie James Carthan, was incarcerated. Chris McGreal of The Guardian stated that the criminal charges were "trumped-up".
In the 2000s the community elected Yvonne Brown as mayor. She was a Republican, and the community hoped this would convince George W. Bush, the President of the United States, to provide additional funding. She was the first black Republican woman to be elected as a mayor in the country.
By 2015 many of the jobs in the area had vanished, partly due to increased use of machines in agriculture. Many businesses formerly in the town had disappeared.
Geography
Tchula is in western Holmes County along Tchula Lake, an old river channel in the Mississippi Delta region of the state. U.S. Route 49E passes through the center of town, leading north 25 miles (40 km) to Greenwood and southwest 27 miles (43 km) to Yazoo. Mississippi Highway 12 leads southeast from Tchula 11 miles (18 km) to Lexington, the Holmes County seat.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.4 square miles (3.7 km2), of which 0.04 square miles (0.1 km2), or 2.31%, is water.
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1880 | 90 | — | |
| 1900 | 398 | — | |
| 1910 | 478 | 20.1% | |
| 1920 | 550 | 15.1% | |
| 1930 | 907 | 64.9% | |
| 1940 | 861 | −5.1% | |
| 1950 | 927 | 7.7% | |
| 1960 | 882 | −4.9% | |
| 1970 | 1,729 | 96.0% | |
| 1980 | 1,931 | 11.7% | |
| 1990 | 2,186 | 13.2% | |
| 2000 | 2,332 | 6.7% | |
| 2010 | 2,096 | −10.1% | |
| 2020 | 1,652 | −21.2% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census | |||
2020 census
| Race | Num. | Perc. |
|---|---|---|
| White | 20 | 1.21% |
| Black or African American | 1,607 | 97.28% |
| Native American | 5 | 0.3% |
| Other/Mixed | 10 | 0.61% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 10 | 0.61% |
As of the 2020 United States Census, there were 1,652 people, 735 households, and 400 families residing in the town.
Transportation
Amtrak’s City of New Orleans, which operates between New Orleans and Chicago, passes through the town on CN tracks, but makes no stop. The nearest station is located in Greenwood, 25 miles (40 km) to the north.
Education
The town of Tchula is served by the Holmes County School District.
Current schools in the area include S.V. Marshall Elementary School and Holmes County Central High School.
The Holmes County Learning Center is in Tchula itself.
Previously Marshall's campus housed S.V. Marshall High School.
Mississippi Blues Trail marker
Notable people
- Woodrow Adams, Delta blues guitarist and harmonica player
- Yvonne Brown (1952–2012), politician elected in Tchula as the first black Republican female mayor in Mississippi, serving from 2001 to 2009. She was the Republican nominee for Mississippi's 2nd congressional district in 2006.
- Jimmy Dawkins (1936–2013), blues guitarist and singer, who moved to Chicago at 18 or 19
- Bess Phipps Dawson, painter and gallerist
- Lester Davenport (1932–2009), blues musician
- Chris Epps, former commissioner of the Mississippi Department of Corrections, pleaded guilty to corruption-related charges
- Addison Grace Hadley - Miss United States 2023
- Johnny Mitchell, former National Football League tight end
- Little Smokey Smothers (1939–2010), blues guitarist and singer
- Hartman Turnbow (1905–1988), first black person in Mississippi to register to vote in the 1960s, following disfranchisement in 1890
See also
In Spanish: Tchula para niños
