Excerpts About [Calhoun] City History

Are Taken From County’s Story

 

(Editor’s Note—The following are excerpts from

“Studies in Mississippi History, Course 312;

Mary Lou Peyton, Instructor;

Mississippi State College for Women, Columbus, Miss.: 1935-1936: Vol. 1,”

The contents were written by Students at MSCW from Calhoun County.)

 

Written by Carolyn Murphree Backstrom

 

The railroad, which brought into existence the Town of Calhoun City, was to be built from Okolona to a mile or two beyond the little town of Derma; so the new town of Calhoun City was started in 1905. All of this took its tool [toll] of old Pittsboro. Mr. Going moved his “Dixie-Herald” to Calhoun City.  Merchants moved to the new towns located on the railroad. Calhoun City got a good start and grew steadily. Early in 1908, Dennis and Stanley Murphree purchased the Progressive Farmer outfit or printing plant, which was then located at Starkville, Mississippi. J. Walter Jacobs took the plant to Calhoun City and became editor of The Calhoun Clipper. The Clipper was not a success. The new town was wild, advertising was slow and Mr. Jacobs gave up the publication after about a year. The Murphree Brothers moved the outfit into their printing office. The Calhoun Monitor, at Pittsboro.

 

The Spring and Summer of 1920 continued in the same vein as 1919, but the autumn brought a panic. Prices tumbled; money became scarce. Early in 1920, the Murphree Brothers bought The Dixie Herald, published at Calhoun City by Hon. J. B. Going. They leased this paper to Grady Cook, who edited it. In 1921, Grady Cook bought The Calhoun Monitor and The Dixie Herald, and moving The Monitor machinery to Calhoun City, he consolidated the two papers under the name of The Monitor-Herald. In 1922, Stanley Murphree became editor of The Monitor-Herald, which the Murphree Brothers had purchased from Grady Cook. The paper has continued under the same editor and ownership since that time.

 

However, in October, 1923, The Farmer’s Bank of Pittsboro closed its doors and went into the hands of receivers. This placed Calhoun County in a bad position and hurt business. There were, though, two banks in Calhoun City by this time – The Calhoun County Bank, a branch of the Grenada Bank, of which Mr. J. T. Thomas was President; and the Peoples Bank, which was controlled by local stockholders.

 

The Calhoun City Community club was organized in 1925. One of the first undertakings of the Club was improving and beautifying the town. Other equally important matters were taken up as the necessity became apparent.

 

The Know Mississippi Better Train, founded by Dennis Murphree made its first tour in the summer of 1925. Stanley Murphree and I. R. Bradshaw were Calhoun’s official representatives on this Train which was activated to advertise Mississippi.

 

About this time, Fred Marshall founded a power and light plant in Calhoun City, which was of real value in bringing electric conveniences into the homes and businesses of the town. About a year later, probably 1927, the Inland Utilities established a power and light office at the City and constructed power lines from Eupora to Calhoun City. In 1928, the Mississippi Power Company took over the office and lines and built additional lines over much of the rest of the county. Several years later The Natchez Trace Electric Power Association took over the business that had been operated in South Calhoun County by the Mississippi Power Company and proceeded to electrify the rural areas of the entire Southern part of Calhoun.  This transaction has proved a great asset to Calhoun City and other towns of the county. TVA power and light rates are low and have proved a great inducement to industry to local areas served by the TVA.

 

In 1929, came the panic and the crash of Wall Street. The really bad effects of the depression did not reach the South until later. Around 1930 and 1931 two banks in Calhoun failed—the Peoples Bank of Calhoun City and The Bank of Derma. The Calhoun County Bank, of Calhoun City, the Bank of Bruce and the Bank of Vardaman weathered the storm of the depression and have gained in assets and in business expansion since the depression.

 

The story of this panic is the same as many others, although this one was the worst that the county had ever suffered. Money was scarce, people were thrown out of employment and business was in bad condition. Many thousands saw their entire savings of a lifetime swept away in a few weeks or months.

 

The Democrats won the election in 1932, putting Franklin D. Roosevelt in office with the feeling of “let’s do something about this depression.”  President Roosevelt upon inauguration immediately and boldly began his “New Deal” plans by calling a banking holiday in March, 1933. Every bank in the county was closed, and people were frightened. However, the banks were soon open for business again. Calhoun enthusiastically followed the President’s plans.

 

About this time, a Civilian Conservation Corps Camp was located between Calhoun City and Derma. The CCC workers were put to work on reforestation and soil conservation jobs. They built two look-out towers for fire prevention in the county—One near Wardwell and the other on the summit of Gauley Mountain. This work was the forerunner of the fine system of forestry work now being done in the county.

 

The American Legion Auxiliary through the Works Project Administration, procured funds to build a Legion “Hut” and park in the suburbs of Calhoun City, which has been used “not only by the Legion and Auxiliary, but for many public gatherings and picnics.”

 

Following is a population summary of Calhoun County for the years 1860 to 1930.

 

 

Historical Events Taken From The Town’s Records

 

June 4, 1912 – The Charter of the Town of Calhoun City was recorded.

July 7, 1912 – Lee Martin was awarded a contract to work the streets of Calhoun City. Contract called for 6 mules and grader to work 10 hours per day, at $14.00 per day.

 

August 6, 1912 – An ordinance was passed regulating the putting down and construction of sidewalks in and for the Town of Calhoun City, Mississippi.

 

January 18, 1912 – A meningitis epidemic was declared by the Mayor and Board of Aldermen. It was decided that quarantine was unnecessary.

 

March 4, 1913 – The Mayor and Board of Aldermen passed a resolution, declaring that a sidewalk was necessary from the south side of Railway Avenue north to the south side of the public square and a contract was awarded to H. L. Bowlin & Son. Total cost was $1,917.58.

 

April 23, 1913 – C. V. Beadles was awarded a contract by the Mayor and Board of Aldermen to move 3,336 cubic yards of dirt from the Town Square at 24 cents per cubic yard. This was grading work, which removed a knoll from the center of the public square. (We have been told that much of this dirt was used to fill up a pond in the lots where The Monitor-Herald building now stands.)

 

May 6, 1913 – E. A. Boland, J. B. Going, and J. A. Clements were appointed Election Commissioners to hold a Special Municipal Election on Tuesday, May 20, 1913 to elect a Marshal to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of E. C. Hardin.

 

June 3, 1913 – An order was adopted by the City Fathers in which “The County Board of Supervisors were given the privilege of building a good road through the corporation of Calhoun City.”

 

1913 – Tax levy for Town of Calhoun City was fixed at 10 Mills on the dollar.

 

May 4, 1915 – H. O. Burson was allowed $97.00 out of the General Fund for work done on the mineral well.

 

May 4, 1915 – An ordinance was adopted that no motor car, motorcycle, automobile or other conveyance propelled by gas or steam, or any other conveyance, or any horse or other animal, “shall be driver or ridden at a greater rate of speed than eight miles per hour through or over the streets and highways within the corporate limits of the town of Calhoun City Mississippi.”

 

September 7, 1915 – W. G. Baldwin was given permission to erect, construct, maintain and operate a telephone system in Calhoun City, Mississippi

 

February 1, 1916 – Mrs. W. O. Lawrence was allowed $24.00 for two months’ teacher’s pay.