Editing Meridian, Mississippi (section)

=== Golden Age and the Great Depression ===
The town boomed in the aftermath of the Civil War, and experienced its "Golden Age" from 1880 to 1910.<ref name="mra" /> The railroads in the area provided for both passenger transportation and industrial needs, stimulating industry, businesses and a population boom.<ref name="mra"/> Related commercial activity increased in the downtown area. Between 1890 and 1930, Meridian was the largest city in Mississippi and a leading center for manufacturing in the South.<ref name="website"/>

The wealth generated by this strong economy resulted in residents constructing many fine buildings, now preserved as historic structures, including the [[Grand Opera House (Meridian, Mississippi)|Grand Opera House]] in 1890,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.meridianms.org/2000project.htm |title=Grand Opera House Project |access-date=June 6, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100209005620/http://www.meridianms.org/2000project.htm |archive-date=February 9, 2010 }}</ref> the [[Wechsler School]] in 1894,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.meridianms.org/artwechsler.htm |title=The Wechsler Project |access-date=June 6, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090713201017/http://www.meridianms.org/artwechsler.htm |archive-date=July 13, 2009 }}</ref> two [[Carnegie libraries]] in 1913,<ref>{{cite news |last=McKee |first=Anne |url=http://meridianstar.com/editorials/x681098601/I-could-write-a-book |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120710223345/http://meridianstar.com/editorials/x681098601/I-could-write-a-book |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 10, 2012 |title=I could write a book... |newspaper=The Meridian Star |date=January 10, 2008 |access-date=June 6, 2010 }}</ref> and the [[Threefoot Building]], Meridian's tallest skyscraper, in 1929.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://intelligenttravel.typepad.com/it/2007/11/the-tallest-thr.html|title=Intelligent Travel: The Tallest Threefoot Building in Town|access-date=June 6, 2010}}</ref>

[[File:Meridian downtown postcard.jpg|thumb|Downtown Meridian in the early 1900s (photo taken near intersection of 22nd Ave and 4th St looking north)]]
[[File:Meridian Union Station Postcard.jpg|thumb|[[Union Station (Meridian, Mississippi)|Meridian Union Station]] in the early 1900s]]
The city continued to grow thanks to a [[city commission government|commission government]]'s efforts to bring in 90 new industrial plants in 1913 and a booming automobile industry in the 1920s. Even through the [[stock market crash of 1929]] and the following [[Great Depression]], the city continued to attract new businesses. With [[escapism]] becoming popular in the culture during the depth of the Depression, the [[S. H. Kress & Co.]] building, built to "provide luxury to the common man,"<ref name=DowntownHD>National Register of Historic Places nomination form for Meridian Downtown Historic District. January 16, 2007. National Park Service.</ref> opened in downtown Meridian, as did the [[Temple Theater (Meridian, Mississippi)|Temple Theater]], which was first used as a movie house.<ref name=DowntownHD/> The federal courthouse was built in 1933 as a [[Works Progress Administration|WPA]] project.<ref name="Robertson"/>

After a brief slowdown of the economy at the end of the Depression, the country entered World War II, which renewed the importance of railroads. The rails were essential to transport gasoline and scrap metal to build military vehicles, so Meridian became the region's rail center again. This renewed prosperity continued until the 1950s, when the affordability of automobiles and the subsidized [[Interstate Highway System]] drew off passengers from the trains.<ref name=DowntownHD/> The decline of the railroad industry, which went through considerable restructuring among freight lines as well, caused significant job losses. The city's population declined as workers left for other areas.<ref name="mra"/>