Editing Columbus, Mississippi (section)

==History==
[[File:Postcard of Steamer "American" on Tombigbee River at Columbus, Mississippi.jpg|thumb|right|Postcard of steamer ''American'' on Tombigbee River at Columbus, c. 1890-1920]]
The first record of the site of Columbus in Western history is found in the annals of the explorer [[Hernando de Soto (explorer)|Hernando de Soto]], who is reputed to have crossed the nearby [[Tombigbee River]] on his search for [[El Dorado]]. However, the site does not enter the main continuity of United States history until December 1810, when [[John Pitchlynn]], the U.S. Indian agent and interpreter for the [[Choctaw]] Nation, moved to [[Plymouth Bluff]], where he built a home, established a farm, and transacted Choctaw Agency business.{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

After the [[Battle of New Orleans]], [[Andrew Jackson]] recognized the urgent need for roads to connect New Orleans to the rest of the country. In 1817 Jackson ordered a [[Jackson's Military Road|road]] be built to provide a direct route from [[Nashville, Tennessee|Nashville]] to [[New Orleans]]. His surveyor, Captain Hugh Young, chose a place on the Tombigbee River where high ground approached the river on both sides as the location for a ferry to be used for crossing the river when high water prevented fording the river. A military bridge was constructed where the present-day Tombigbee Bridge was later developed in Columbus, Mississippi. Jackson's Military Road opened the way for development in the area.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Ward|first1=Rufus|title=Ask Rufus: Andrew Jackson's Military Road|url=http://www.cdispatch.com/opinions/article.asp?aid=28506|publisher=Commercial Dispatch|access-date=22 December 2017|date=4 November 2013|archive-date=22 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171222220210/http://www.cdispatch.com/opinions/article.asp?aid=28506|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Founding===
Columbus was founded in 1819, and, as it was believed to be in Alabama, it was first officially recognized by an Alabama Legislative act as the Town of Columbus on December 6, 1819.<ref name="A Digest of the Laws of the State of Alabama">{{cite book |last1=Toulmin |first1=Harry |title=1825 |publisher=Ginn and Curtis |location=Cahawba, Alabama}}</ref> Before its incorporation, the town site was referred to informally as ''Possum Town'', a name which was given by the local Native Americans, who were primarily Choctaw and Chickasaw. The name Possum Town remains the town's nickname among locals. The town was settled where Jackson's Military Road crossed the Tombigbee River 4 miles south of John Pitchlynn's residence at Plymouth Bluff. In 1820 the post office that had been at Pitchlynn's relocated in Columbus. Pitchlynn's which had been settled in 1810 became the town of Plymouth in 1836 and is now the location of an environmental center for Mississippi University for Women.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Sherman |first1=Harry L |title=A Very Remarkable Bluff |date=2007 |publisher=Mississippi University for Women |pages=34–45}}</ref> Silas McBee suggested the name ''Columbus''; in return, a small local creek was named after him.<ref>Rowland, Dunbar, ed. ''Mississippi, Comprising Sketches of Counties, Towns, Events, Institutions, and Persons arranged in Cyclopedic Form'' in three volumes. Vol. 2. Atlanta: Southern Historical Publishing Association, 1907, pp. 134-137.</ref>

The city's founders soon established a school known as Franklin Academy. It continues to operate and is known as Mississippi's first public school. The territorial boundary of Mississippi and Alabama had to be corrected as, a year earlier, Franklin Academy was indicated as being in Alabama. In fact, during its early post-Mississippi-founding history, the city of Columbus was still referred to as ''Columbus, Alabama.''{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

===Civil War and aftermath===
[[File:Mississippi - Clinton through Columbus - NARA - 23941661 (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Columbus in the 1940s]]
During the [[American Civil War]], Columbus was a hospital town. Its arsenal manufactured gunpowder, handguns and a few cannons. Because of this, the Union ordered the invasion of Columbus, but was stopped by Confederate General [[Nathan Bedford Forrest]]. This is substantiated in the book ''The Battle of West Point: Confederate Triumph at Ellis Bridge'' by John McBride. Many of the casualties from the [[Battle of Shiloh]] were brought to Columbus. Thousands were eventually buried in the town's [[Friendship Cemetery]].{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

One of the hospitals was located at Annunciation Catholic Church, built in 1863 and still operating in the 21st century. The decision of a group of ladies to decorate the Union and Confederate graves with flowers together on April 25, 1866, is an early example of what became known as [[Memorial Day]]. A poet, [[Francis Miles Finch]], read about it in the New York newspapers and commemorated the occasion with the poem "[[Francis Miles Finch|The Blue and the Grey]]".<ref>Fallows, Deborah. [https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/05/a-real-story-of-memorial-day/371497/  "A Real Story of Memorial Day"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170613232901/https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/05/a-real-story-of-memorial-day/371497/ |date=2017-06-13 }}, ''The Atlantic'', May 2014</ref> Bellware and Gardiner noted this observance of the holiday in ''The Genesis of the Memorial Day Holiday in America'' (2014). They recognized the events in Columbus as the earliest manifestation of an annual spring holiday to decorate the grave of Southern soldiers. While the call was to celebrate on April 26, several newspapers reported that the day was the 25th, in error.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Genesis of the Memorial Day Holiday in America|last=Bellware|first=Daniel |author2= Richard Gardiner|publisher=Columbus State University|year=2014|isbn=978-0-692-29225-9|pages=63–65}}</ref>

As a result of Forrest preventing the Union Army from reaching Columbus, its antebellum homes were spared from being burned or destroyed, making its collection second only to [[Natchez, Mississippi|Natchez]] as the most extensive in Mississippi.<ref>John McBride, ''The Battle of West Point: Confederate Triumph at Ellis Bridge'', The History Press, 2013</ref>{{page needed|date=April 2018}} These antebellum homes may be toured during the annual Pilgrimage, in which the Columbus residences open their homes to tourists from around the country.{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

When Union troops approached Jackson, the state capital was briefly moved to Columbus before moving to a more permanent home in [[Macon, Mississippi|Macon]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Governor's Mansion during the Civil War|url=http://www.mdah.ms.gov/senseofplace/2010/11/17/governors-mansion-during-the-civil-war/|access-date=16 December 2017|archive-date=22 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171222050819/http://www.mdah.ms.gov/senseofplace/2010/11/17/governors-mansion-during-the-civil-war/|url-status=live}}</ref>

During the war, Columbus attorney [[Jacob H. Sharp]] served as a [[Brigadier General (CSA)|brigadier general]] in the [[Confederate States Army|Confederate Army]]. After the war, he owned the Columbus ''Independent'' newspaper. He was elected to two terms in the State House, serving four years representing the district in the [[Mississippi House of Representatives]].<ref>Eicher, John H., and [[David J. Eicher|Eicher, David J.]], ''Civil War High Commands'', Stanford University Press, 2001, page 481. {{ISBN|0-8047-3641-3}}.</ref>

===WPA mural===
The mural ''Out of the Soil'' was completed in 1939 for the Columbus post office by [[Works Progress Administration|WPA]] [[Section of Painting and Sculpture]] artist [[Beulah Bettersworth]].<ref>{{cite news|last1=Burnett|first1=Garthia Elena|title=Post office mural raises questions of racial sensitivity|url=http://www.cdispatch.com/news/article.asp?aid=9619&TRID=1&TID=|access-date=14 May 2016|newspaper=The Dispatch|date=January 15, 2011|location=Columbus, Mississippi|archive-date=7 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160507222759/http://www.cdispatch.com/news/article.asp?aid=9619&TRID=1&TID=|url-status=live}}</ref> Murals were produced from 1934 to 1943 in the United States through "the Section" of the [[United States Department of the Treasury|U.S. Treasury Department]].{{citation needed|date=October 2021}}

===20th century===
Columbus has hosted [[Columbus Air Force Base]] (CAFB) since [[World War II]]. CAFB was founded as a flight training school. After a stint in the 1950s and 1960s as a [[Strategic Air Command]] (SAC) base (earning Columbus a spot in [[Soviet Union]] target lists), CAFB returned to its original role. Today, it is one of only four basic Air Force flight training bases in the United States, and prized as the only one where regular flight conditions may be experienced. Despite this, CAFB has repeatedly hung in the balance during [[Base Realignment and Closure]] (BRAC) hearings.{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

Columbus boasted a number of industries during the mid-20th century, including the world's largest [[toilet seat]] manufacturer, Sanderson Plumbing Products, and major mattress, furniture and textile plants. Most of these had closed by 2000. A series of new plants at the [[Golden Triangle Regional Airport]], including the [[Severstal]] mill, the [[American Eurocopter]] factory, the [[Paccar]] engine plant and the [[Aurora Flight Sciences]] facility, are revitalizing the local economy.{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

===Recent history===
On June 12, 1990, a fireworks factory in Columbus exploded, detonating a blast felt as far as 30 miles away from Columbus. Two workers were killed in the blast.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-06-13-mn-207-story.html | work=Los Angeles Times | title=Two Killed as Explosions Destroy Fireworks Factory | date=June 13, 1990 | access-date=2013-04-16 | archive-date=2013-11-10 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131110221633/http://articles.latimes.com/1990-06-13/news/mn-207_1_fireworks-factory | url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://apnews.com/b6bf032a0255a80153130be35b43e3be |title=Explosions At Mississippi Fireworks Plant Kill Two |publisher=Apnewsarchive.com |date=1990-06-12 |access-date=2014-07-14 |archive-date=2014-07-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140702031601/http://www.apnewsarchive.com/1990/Explosions-At-Mississippi-Fireworks-Plant-Kill-Two/id-b6bf032a0255a80153130be35b43e3be |url-status=live }}</ref>

On February 16, 2001, straightline winds measured at 74 miles per hour destroyed many homes and trees but resulted in no fatalities. The city was declared a federal disaster area the next day by President [[George W. Bush]]. On [[2002 Veterans Day weekend tornado outbreak|November 10, 2002]], a tornado hit Columbus and caused more damage to the city,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tornadoproject.com/past/pastts02.htm |title=Tornadoes in the Past: 2002 |website=tornadoproject.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131109205737/http://www.tornadoproject.com/past/pastts02.htm|archive-date=November 9, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.nws.noaa.gov/os/assessments/pdfs/veteran.pdf |title=Veterans Day Weekend Tornado Outbreak of November 9-11, 2002 |publisher=U.S. Department of Commerce |access-date=2013-04-16 |archive-date=2013-02-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130228003959/http://www.nws.noaa.gov/os/assessments/pdfs/veteran.pdf }}</ref> including the Mississippi University for Women.<ref>{{cite web |last=Amy |first=Jeff |url=http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/14/16963369-tornado-damage-to-university-of-southern-mississippi-estimated-in-tens-of-millions?lite |title=Tornado damage to University of Southern Mississippi estimated in tens of millions |publisher=NBC News |date=2013-02-14 |access-date=2014-07-14 |archive-date=2014-06-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140630215949/http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/14/16963369-tornado-damage-to-university-of-southern-mississippi-estimated-in-tens-of-millions?lite }}</ref><ref>{{cite press release |url=http://www.muw.edu/publicaffairs/2006_prnews/061003_miller.html |title=Miller to present at conference on disaster relief |publisher=Mississippi University for Women |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131110220116/http://www.muw.edu/publicaffairs/2006_prnews/061003_miller.html|archive-date=November 10, 2013}}</ref>

In 2010, Columbus won a Great American Main Street Award from the National Trust for Historic Preservation.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.columbusmainstreet.com | title=Welcome to the Columbus Main Street Website | work=Columbus Main Street | access-date=December 29, 2010 | archive-date=February 7, 2011 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110207130542/http://www.columbusmainstreet.com/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

In February 2019, Columbus took a direct hit from [[2019 Columbus, Mississippi, tornado|an EF-3 tornado]] that caused devastating damage to homes and businesses and killed one woman after a structure fell on her.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.wcbi.com/tornado-victim-remembered-loving-mother-daughter-caring-person/ |title=Tornado Victim Remembered As Loving Mother, Daughter And Caring Person | work=WCBI News |date=February 25, 2019 | access-date=January 26, 2022 }}</ref>