McComb, Mississippi | |
|---|---|
 Flag  Seal | |
 Location of McComb | |
  McComb, Mississippi Location in the United States | |
| Coordinates:31°14′40.10″N90°28′17.73″W / 31.2444722°N 90.4715917°W /31.2444722; -90.4715917 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Mississippi |
| County | Pike |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Quordiniah Lockley (D)[1][2] |
| Area | |
• Total | 11.84 sq mi (30.66 km2) |
| • Land | 11.78 sq mi (30.51 km2) |
| • Water | 0.058 sq mi (0.15 km2) |
| Elevation | 423 ft (129 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 12,413 |
| • Density | 1,053.7/sq mi (406.85/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| ZIP Codes | 39648-39649 |
| Area code | 601/769 |
| FIPS code | 28-43280 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0673307 |
| Website | www |
McComb is a city inPike County,Mississippi, United States. The city is approximately 80 miles (130 km) south ofJackson. As of the2010 census, the city had a total population of 12,790.[4] It is the principal city of the McComb, MississippiMicropolitan Statistical Area.
McComb was founded in 1872 after Henry Simpson McComb of the New Orleans, Jackson and Great Northern Railroad, a predecessor of theIllinois Central Railroad (now part of theCanadian National Railway), decided to move the railroad's maintenance shops away fromNew Orleans, Louisiana, to avoid the attractions of that city's bars.[citation needed]
The railroad purchased land in Pike County. Three nearby communities, Elizabethtown, Burglund, and Harveytown, agreed to consolidate to form this town. Main Street developed with the downtown's shops, attractions, and business.[citation needed]
The rail center in McComb was one of flashpoints in the violentIllinois Central shopmen's strike of 1911. Riots took place here that resulted in many injuries, at least three black strikebreakers killed, and authorities bringing in state militia to suppress the emergency soon after the strike started on September 30.[5]
During the 1960s, McComb and nearby areas were the sites of extreme violence byKKK and otherwhite supremacist opponents to theCivil Rights Movement. In 1961,SNCC conducted its first voter registration project in Mississippi in this city. White officials and localKKK members countered it with violence and intimidation to suppress black voters.
In 1961,Brenda Travis, Robert Talbert, and Ike Lewis were arrested for staging a sit-in at a Greyhound station. They were charged with trespassing and kept in jail for 28 days. Following their release, Travis was expelled from school. In response to the expulsion and the murder of Herbert Lee, 115 students staged a walk out on October 4, 1961, known as theBurglund High School Walk Out. At the walk out, many students were beaten by the police and arrested. Students continued protesting by refusing to return to school until Travis was allowed to reenroll. As a result, they too were expelled. The 16 seniors who participated were unable to graduate. Travis' fate for participating in the march was more serious. Travis was arrested, again, and sent to a state juvenile facility without a trial. After6+1⁄2 months, Travis was released by the governor and exiled from Mississippi.[6][7][8]
After whites severely beat several staff members, staff members being jailed for their involvement with the walkout, and receiving backlash from the community for putting students on the "frontlines", SNCC pulled out of the region in early 1962. They moved north in Mississippi to work in slightly less dangerous conditions.[9]
In 1964, civil rights activists began the Mississippi Project and what would be calledFreedom Summer, with teams returning to southwest Mississippi. They sang, "We'll Never Turn Back." SNCC members of theCouncil of Federated Organizations (COFO) returned to McComb in mid-July 1964 to work on voter registration. From late August 1964 through September, after passage of theCivil Rights Act of 1964, McComb was the site of eleven bombings directed against African Americans.[10]Malcolm Boyd took part ofCOFO's Freedom House as a member of a clerical delegation to assist African-American voter registration.
The following summer, Congress passed theVoting Rights Act of 1965 authorizing federal oversight and enforcement to enable blacks to register and vote again in the South. In Mississippi, most blacks had beendisenfranchised since 1890. Even with enforcement, it took time to overcome local white resistance to black voting.
On January 10, 1975, during theGreat Storm of 1975, an F4 tornado caused major damage to 38 blocks in the city, severely damaging or destroying many homes, businesses, vehicles, and trees within the town and surrounding areas along the tornado's track. The tornado killed 9 people and injured 210 others along its 56.5-mile (90.9 km) path.[11]: 10
On October 20, 1977, a chartered plane carrying members and crew of rock bandLynyrd Skynyrd crashed in a swamp near McComb, killing lead singerRonnie Van Zant, guitaristSteve Gaines, Steve's sisterCassie (a backup singer), road manager Dean Kilpatrick, as well as both pilots.
In 2006, Zach Patterson was elected as McComb's first African American mayor.[12]
In 2018, voters in the city of McComb elected Quordiniah Lockley as mayor, and for the first time elected a city board consisting of an African American majority.[13][14]
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 11.6 square miles (30 km2), of which 11.6 square miles (30 km2) is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km2) (0.54%) is water.
The climate in McComb is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to theKöppen Climate Classification system, McComb has ahumid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.[15]
| Climate data for McComb, Mississippi (McComb–Pike County Airport), 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1948–present | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 86 (30) | 85 (29) | 88 (31) | 95 (35) | 100 (38) | 103 (39) | 105 (41) | 106 (41) | 105 (41) | 99 (37) | 87 (31) | 84 (29) | 106 (41) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 75.6 (24.2) | 78.9 (26.1) | 83.8 (28.8) | 86.4 (30.2) | 91.9 (33.3) | 96.0 (35.6) | 97.3 (36.3) | 97.5 (36.4) | 94.7 (34.8) | 89.7 (32.1) | 82.1 (27.8) | 77.5 (25.3) | 98.9 (37.2) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 59.8 (15.4) | 64.2 (17.9) | 71.0 (21.7) | 77.0 (25.0) | 84.1 (28.9) | 89.4 (31.9) | 91.0 (32.8) | 91.1 (32.8) | 87.2 (30.7) | 79.1 (26.2) | 68.6 (20.3) | 61.7 (16.5) | 77.0 (25.0) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 49.1 (9.5) | 53.0 (11.7) | 59.5 (15.3) | 65.5 (18.6) | 73.1 (22.8) | 79.2 (26.2) | 81.1 (27.3) | 81.0 (27.2) | 76.9 (24.9) | 67.5 (19.7) | 56.9 (13.8) | 51.1 (10.6) | 66.2 (19.0) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 38.4 (3.6) | 41.9 (5.5) | 47.9 (8.8) | 54.0 (12.2) | 62.1 (16.7) | 68.9 (20.5) | 71.1 (21.7) | 70.9 (21.6) | 66.6 (19.2) | 55.9 (13.3) | 45.3 (7.4) | 40.6 (4.8) | 55.3 (12.9) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | 20.9 (−6.2) | 25.5 (−3.6) | 29.5 (−1.4) | 37.2 (2.9) | 47.9 (8.8) | 60.6 (15.9) | 66.3 (19.1) | 64.8 (18.2) | 54.3 (12.4) | 38.3 (3.5) | 28.9 (−1.7) | 25.0 (−3.9) | 19.2 (−7.1) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 2 (−17) | 8 (−13) | 14 (−10) | 28 (−2) | 35 (2) | 46 (8) | 56 (13) | 55 (13) | 39 (4) | 27 (−3) | 16 (−9) | 4 (−16) | 2 (−17) |
| Averageprecipitation inches (mm) | 6.40 (163) | 5.13 (130) | 5.51 (140) | 5.02 (128) | 4.55 (116) | 5.18 (132) | 5.95 (151) | 5.83 (148) | 4.30 (109) | 3.79 (96) | 3.91 (99) | 5.03 (128) | 60.60 (1,539) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.1 (0.25) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.1 (0.25) | 0.2 (0.5) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.01 in) | 10.5 | 10.3 | 10.3 | 8.5 | 9.2 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 11.9 | 8.6 | 7.3 | 8.7 | 10.8 | 121.4 |
| Average snowy days(≥ 0.1 in) | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.3 |
| Source 1: NOAA[16] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: National Weather Service[17] | |||||||||||||
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880 | 1,982 | — | |
| 1890 | 2,383 | 20.2% | |
| 1900 | 4,477 | 87.9% | |
| 1910 | 6,237 | 39.3% | |
| 1920 | 7,775 | 24.7% | |
| 1930 | 10,057 | 29.4% | |
| 1940 | 9,898 | −1.6% | |
| 1950 | 10,401 | 5.1% | |
| 1960 | 12,020 | 15.6% | |
| 1970 | 11,969 | −0.4% | |
| 1980 | 12,331 | 3.0% | |
| 1990 | 11,591 | −6.0% | |
| 2000 | 13,337 | 15.1% | |
| 2010 | 12,790 | −4.1% | |
| 2020 | 12,413 | −2.9% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[18] | |||
| Num. | Perc. | |
|---|---|---|
| White | 2,907 | 23.42% |
| Black or African American | 8,762 | 70.59% |
| Native American | 18 | 0.15% |
| Asian | 144 | 1.16% |
| Pacific Islander | 7 | 0.06% |
| Other/Mixed | 317 | 2.55% |
| Hispanic orLatino | 258 | 2.08% |
As of the2020 United States census, there were 12,413 people, 4,478 households, and 2,210 families residing in the city.
An annual Earth Day Fest organized by Pike School of Art – Mississippi is celebrated in April on the Saturday of or followingEarth Day. The Summit Street Unity Festival is celebrated annually on the third Saturday in October. The Black History Gallery annually celebratesJuneteenth.[20][21][22]
Almost all of the city of McComb is served by theMcComb School District,[23] In addition to the McComb School District, the surrounding Pike County area has two other school districts:North Pike School District andSouth Pike School District. These districts collectively serve various parts of McComb and the greater Pike County area. A portion of the McComb city limits extends into the South Pike district.[23]
McComb also offers private education atParklane Academy, a K4 through 12th-grade private college preparatory school located in the central part of the city. McComb was also home to St. Alphonsus Catholic Church, which provided classes from kindergarten through seventh grade until the school closed in 2014.
For higher education,Southwest Mississippi Community College is located just 7 miles (11 km) north of McComb, near Summit. Pike County is in the district of Southwest Mississippi Community College.[24]
McComb is the principal city of the McComb media market for radio.
McComb is part of the Jackson media market for television.
Amtrak, the national passenger rail system, provides service to McComb. Amtrak trains 58 & 59, theCity of New Orleans stop here.[25]
Dr. Mollegen was a widely-known apologist for classical Christianity to modern intellectuals and had lectured widely on campuses.
He was most noted as an apologist for liberal evangelicalism, and in 1947 he founded an association called Christianity and Modern Man.
Municipalities and communities ofPike County, Mississippi,United States | ||
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