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Tupelo (IPA: [tu:pəlo]) is the largest city in and the county seat of Lee County, Mississippi, United States. It is the seventh largest city in the state of Mississippi, smaller than Meridian, and larger than Greenville. The Tupelo area — specifically the nearby village of Blue Springs — was selected during the spring of 2007 as the site for Toyota's eleventh U.S. automobile manufacturing plant. As of the 2000 United States Census, the city's population was 34,211. By 2008, the population was 36,223, with a micropolitan area population of 133,318, encompassing Lee, Pontotoc and Itawamba counties. The city is best known as the birthplace of Elvis Presley [1] Situated in northeast Mississippi, the city lies between Memphis, Tennessee, and Birmingham, Alabama, along U.S. Highway 78 — slated to become Interstate 22 within a few years.
[edit] HistoryThe town was originally named Gum Pond prior to the American Civil War, supposedly due to the high number of tupelo trees, locally known as blackgum, that grow in the area. The city still hosts the Gumtree Arts Festival [2] each year. In the post-Civil War era, Tupelo became the northern Mississippi site for the crossing of a railroad, which encouraged industry in the town. Once the town began to grow, Gum Pond took on the name Tupelo, naming the town after the small Civil War battle that took place on the site. That site is now designated as Tupelo National Battlefield. That Battle of Tupelo was in turn named for the tupelo trees of the area. Tupelo was incorporated in 1870 with a population of 618.[citation needed] In 1934 Tupelo was electrified by the new Tennessee Valley Authority. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt visited this "First TVA City". [edit] Cultural and attractions
[edit] Industry
[edit] Demographics As of the census[3][page needed] of 2000, there are 34,211 people, 13,395 households, and 9,108 families residing in the city. The population density is 669.4 people per square mile (258.4/km²). There are 14,551 housing units at an average density of 284.7/sq mi (109.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city is 69.40% White, 28.28% African American, 0.10% Native American, 0.88% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.47% from other races, and 0.85% from two or more races. 1.41% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.[citation needed] There are 13,395 households out of which 34.9% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.3% are married couples living together, 16.2% have a female householder with no husband present, and 32.0% are non-families. 28.0% of all households are made up of individuals and 8.8% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.47 and the average family size is 3.04.[citation needed] In the city the population is spread out with 27.5% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 25, 30.5% from 25 to 45, 21.4% from 45 to 65, and 12.4% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 35 years. For every 100 females there are 88.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 82.6 males.[citation needed] The median income for a household in the city is $38,401. Males have a median income of $35,027 versus $23,988 for females. The per capita income for the city is $22,024.[citation needed] [edit] GovernmentTupelo's current mayor is Republican Jack Reed Jr.. The president of the Tupelo City Council is Fred Pitts. The other six council members are Markel Whittenton, Jim Newll, Nettie Davis, Johnny Davis, Mike Bryan, and Willie Jennings. In December 2007, Sen. Trent Lott retired leaving a vacancy in his unfinished six-year term. Governor Haley Barbour appointed Rep. Roger Wicker as Lott's replacement. Mississippi's First Congressional District seat was open and a special election was held. After a much heated campaign, Travis Childers (D) was elected to represent Mississippi's First Congressional District. [edit] MediaThe local daily newspaper is The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. Tupelo is home to three television stations serving the 133rd-ranked designated market area among 210 markets nationwide as determined by Nielsen Media Research: WTVA (9), an NBC affiliate; WLOV (27), a Fox affiliate, and WKDH (45), an ABC affiliate. All three stations are located just outside the Tupelo city limits and were controlled by Frank K. Spain until his death on April 25, 2006. Tupelo is included in the chorus of The Proclaimers' songs [[Sean]]: "Sean I'd say the best one came from Tupelo, Mississippi; I'll tell you now that grown men cry and Irish girls are pretty." [edit] GeographyTupelo is located in northeast Mississippi, north of Columbus, on Highway 78 mid way between Memphis, Tennessee (northwest) and Birmingham, Alabama (southeast). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 51.4 square miles (133.2 km²), of which, 51.1 square miles (132.4 km²) of it is land and 0.3 square miles (0.8 km²) of it (0.62%) is water. [edit] Climate
[edit] EducationThe Tupelo is served by the Tupelo Public School District. The 2008 Tupelo Golden Wave high school baseball team was ranked #1 in the nation for 2 weeks. The Tupelo High School Athletic department was ranked #3 in the nation in 2008 by Sports Illustrated as best athletic department. Tupelo is home to satellite campuses of the University of Mississippi, Itawamba Community College, and the Mississippi University for Women. [edit] Notable people Elvis Presley was born in east Tupelo in 1935. There is a life-sized bronze statue of "Elvis at 13" by sculptor Michiel Van der Sommen close by the little wooden house where Elvis was born (which is open to the public). The annual Elvis Presley Festival held in early June attracts music lovers from all over the world. Nearby is Johnnie's Drive-in, a local eatery that was frequented by the singer, and has several menu items he was said to favor. Tupelo has received a Mississippi Blues Trail marker commemorating it as a site on the Mississippi Blues Trail for being the birthplace of Elvis Presley.[5] John Michael McCarthy's Teenage Tupelo is a film about the sex life of the filmmaker's mother, who believes he was fathered by Presley.[6] John Lee Hooker released a song called "Tupelo", about a flood in Tupelo in the 1930s. Inspired by John Lee Hooker's song, Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds recorded a song titled "Tupelo", mixing imagery of the flood and birth of Elvis Presley. Rockabilly singer-songwriter Jumpin' Gene Simmons, who had a hit in 1964 with the song "Haunted House" was born and died in Tupelo. He also co-wrote the Tim McGraw hit "Indian Outlaw" with Tommy Barnes and John Loudermilk. Newspaper publisher George McLean bought Tupelo's Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal in June, 1934 and remained publisher until his death in 1983. Using his newspaper to promote the cultural development of the area, he was one of the foremost community development figures in the United States, being named "Man of the Year" in 1937 by Nation Magazine at age 34. Tupelo native Glenn L. McCullough Jr., a sixth-generation Mississippian, was named chairman of the Tennessee Valley Authority Board of Directors by President George W. Bush on July 19, 2001. In December, 2004, Congress passed Public Law No. 108-447, which stripped the TVA Board of its full-time status and required management experience for future members of the Board. Serving until 2005, he was the first TVA chairman from Mississippi since the John F. Kennedy era. McCullough began serving on the TVA board in 1999 following his appointment by President Bill Clinton. In 1992, he had been appointed director of the Mississippi office of the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) by Governor Kirk Fordice. In June, 1997, McCullough had been elected Tupelo's 23rd mayor, with 61 percent of the vote. During his administration, the genesis of the future downtown Fairpark District began as well as the rebirth and redevelopment of the Historic Downtown Tupelo Neighborhood and the city was also awarded "All-American City" status for the third time in its history. Allie Grant (actress) - The Suite Life of Zack and Cody. Jim Fraiser (author) - "Majesty of Eatern Mississippi and the Coast" (2004), "The French Quarter of New Orleans" (2003), "Vanished Mississippi Gulf Coast" (2007) and "Shadow Seed: A Novel" (1997) are four of his 12 books; (actor) - "My Dog Skip" (2000), "BLind Vengeance" (1989) and "Good Ole Boy" (1990) are his three feature films. Controversial U.S. Congressman John E. Rankin of Tupelo served his district for sixteen terms (1921-53), co-authoring the bill to create the Tennessee Valley Authority as well as being a member of the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC). Singer Guy Hovis was born in Tupelo in 1941. In 1970, he joined his wife on the Lawrence Welk Show as one half of "Guy & Ralna," one of the show's most popular acts. Actor John Dye (China Beach, Touched By An Angel) graduated from Tupelo High School in 1981. Tupelo was a "knock down spot", or place for hiding and relaxing for infamous State Line Mob and Dixie Mafia members like Carl Douglas "Towhead" White, Jack Hathcock, W.O. Hathcock, Kirksey Nix, and Louise Hathcock. Singer/songwriter Paul Thorn hails from Tupelo and always introduces himself at shows as being from the birthplace of Elvis Presley. Famous prohibition-era gangster Machine Gun Kelly's last known bank robbery occurred on November 30, 1932 at the Citizen’s State Bank in Tupelo netting his gang $38,000. After the robbery the bank’s chief teller would say of Kelly, “He was the kind of guy that, if you looked at him, you would never thought he was a bank robber.”[7] 1987 Playboy Bunny of the year, Madi Martin, was born in Tupelo. [edit] Notes
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