Editing Tchula, Mississippi

{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
|official_name            = Tchula, Mississippi
|settlement_type          = [[Town]]
|nickname                 = 
|motto                    =

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|image_seal               =

<!-- Maps -->
|image_map = Holmes_County_Mississippi_Incorporated_and_Unincorporated_areas_Tchula_Highlighted.svg
|mapsize                  = 250px
|map_caption              = Location of Tchula, Mississippi
|image_map1               = 
|mapsize1                 = 
|map_caption1             = 
| pushpin_map = USA
| pushpin_map_caption = Location in the United States

<!-- Location -->
|subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
|subdivision_name         = United States
|subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
|subdivision_name1        = [[Mississippi]]
|subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Mississippi|County]]
|subdivision_name2        = [[Holmes County, Mississippi|Holmes]]
|government_footnotes     = 
|government_type          = 
|leader_title             = [[Mayor]]
|leader_name              = 
|leader_title1            = 
|leader_name1             = 
|established_title        = 
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<!-- Area -->
|unit_pref  = Imperial
|area_footnotes           = <ref name="CenPopGazetteer2020">{{cite web|title=2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2020_Gazetteer/2020_gaz_place_28.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=July 24, 2022}}</ref>
|area_magnitude           = 
|area_total_km2           = 3.73
|area_land_km2            = 3.65
|area_water_km2           = 0.09
|area_total_sq_mi         = 1.44
|area_land_sq_mi          = 1.41
|area_water_sq_mi         = 0.03

<!-- Population -->
|population_as_of         = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
|population_footnotes     = 
|population_total         = 1652
|population_density_km2   = 452.90
|population_density_sq_mi = 1173.30

<!-- General information -->
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|utc_offset               = -6
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|elevation_footnotes      = 
|elevation_m              = 34
|elevation_ft             = 112
|coordinates              = {{coord|33|10|51|N|90|13|21|W|region:US_type:city|display=inline,title}}
|postal_code_type         = [[ZIP code]]
|postal_code              = 39169
|area_code                = [[Area code 662|662]]
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 28-72440
|blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
|blank1_info              = 0678607
|website                  = 
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}}
'''Tchula''' is a town in [[Holmes County, Mississippi|Holmes County]], [[Mississippi]], United States. The population was 1,650 at the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]],<ref name="Census 2010">{{cite web| url=https://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_SF1/G001/1600000US2872440| title=Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Census Summary File 1 (G001): Tchula town, Mississippi| work=American Factfinder| publisher=U.S. Census Bureau| access-date=August 18, 2017| archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213111521/https://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_SF1/G001/1600000US2872440| archive-date=February 13, 2020| url-status=dead}}</ref> down from 2,332 in 2000.

A 2015 article in ''[[The Guardian]]'' described it as the poorest community in the United States.<ref name=McGreal>{{cite news |author=McGreal, Chris |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/nov/15/poorest-town-in-poorest-state-segregation-is-gone-but-so-are-the-jobs |title=Poorest town in poorest state: Segregation is gone but so are the jobs |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |date=November 15, 2015 |access-date=July 9, 2017}}</ref>

==History==
The first permanent settlement at Tchula was made in the 1830s. The community takes its name from [[Tchula Lake]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Baca|first=Keith A.|title=Native American Place Names in Mississippi|url=https://epdf.pub/native-american-place-names-in-mississippi.html|year=2007|publisher=University Press of Mississippi|isbn=978-1-60473-483-6|page=108}}</ref>

In the 1960s most residents were farmworkers; the properties they worked on belonged to people living in other communities in the area. Mississippi columnist Sid Salter stated that the Tchula area had "Some of the best farmland in America" and "some of the most successful plantations".<ref name="Samaha">{{cite web|url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/albertsamaha/the-rise-and-fall-of-mississippis-top-prison-reformer|title=The Prison Reform Blues|author=Samaha, Albert|date=December 5, 2014|publisher=[[BuzzFeed]]|access-date=May 26, 2017}}</ref>

In 1982, the city's first Black mayor, [[Eddie James Carthan]], was incarcerated. Chris McGreal of ''[[The Guardian]]'' stated that the criminal charges were "trumped-up".<ref name=McGreal/><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-mississippi-holmes-county-eddie-carthan-20190426-story.html|title=He's a felon and a politician. Mississippi says he can't be both, and wants him to pay up|last=Jarvie|first=Jenny|date=May 3, 2019|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=May 3, 2019}}</ref>

In the 2000s the community elected Yvonne Brown as mayor. She was a [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]], and the community hoped this would convince [[George W. Bush]], the [[President of the United States]], to provide additional funding. She was the first black Republican woman to be elected as a mayor in the country.<ref name=McGreal/>

By 2015 many of the jobs in the area had vanished, partly due to increased use of machines in agriculture. Many businesses formerly in the town had disappeared.<ref name=McGreal/>

==Geography==
Tchula is in western Holmes County along Tchula Lake, an old river channel in the [[Mississippi Delta]] region of the state. [[U.S. Route 49E]] passes through the center of town, leading north {{convert|25|mi}} to [[Greenwood, Mississippi|Greenwood]] and southwest {{convert|27|mi}} to [[Yazoo City, Mississippi|Yazoo]]. [[Mississippi Highway 12]] leads southeast from Tchula {{convert|11|mi}} to [[Lexington, Mississippi|Lexington]], the Holmes County seat.

According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the town has a total area of {{convert|3.7|km2|order=flip}}, of which {{convert|0.1|km2|order=flip|2}}, or 2.31%, is water.<ref name="Census 2010"/>

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1880= 90
|1900= 398
|1910= 478
|1920= 550
|1930= 907
|1940= 861
|1950= 927
|1960= 882
|1970= 1729
|1980= 1931
|1990= 2186
|2000= 2332
|2010= 2096
|2020= 1652
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref name="DecennialCensus">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=Census of Population and Housing|publisher=Census.gov|access-date=June 4, 2015}}</ref>
}}

===2020 census===
{| class="wikitable"
|+Tchula Racial Composition<ref>{{Cite web|title=Explore Census Data|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=1600000US2872440&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P2|access-date=December 7, 2021|website=data.census.gov}}</ref>
!Race
!Num.
!Perc.
|-
|[[White (U.S. Census)|White]]
|20
|1.21%
|-
|[[African American (U.S. Census)|Black or African American]]
|1,607
|97.28%
|-
|[[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]]
|5
|0.3%
|-
|[[Race (United States Census)|Other/Mixed]]
|10
|0.61%
|-
|[[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]]
|10
|0.61%
|}
As of the [[2020 United States census]], there were 1,652 people, 735 households, and 400 families residing in the town.

===2000 census===
As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=January 31, 2008|title=U.S. Census website}}</ref> of 2000, there were 2,332 people, 724 households, and 524 families residing in the town. The population density was {{convert|1,683.6|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 772 housing units at an average density of {{convert|557.4|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of the town was 3.43% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 95.93% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.09% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], and 0.56% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 0.47% of the population.

There were 724 households, out of which 38.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 21.4% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 45.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.5% were non-families. 25.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.22 and the average family size was 3.92.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 37.9% under the age of 18, 13.0% from 18 to 24, 25.1% from 25 to 44, 14.7% from 45 to 64, and 9.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 24 years. For every 100 females, there were 80.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 71.5 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $11,571, and the median income for a family was $14,773. Males had a median income of $22,250 versus $16,310 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the town was $6,373. About 49.4% of families and 54.4% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 66.6% of those under age 18 and 55.8% of those age 65 or over.

In 2010, Tchula had the [[List of the poorest places in the United States|fifth-lowest median household income]] of all places in the United States with a population over 1,000.<ref>{{cite web|title=US Census|url=http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_12_5YR_DP03&prodType=table|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200212210359/http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_12_5YR_DP03&prodType=table|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 12, 2020|access-date=January 18, 2014}}</ref>

==Government and infrastructure==
In 2015 McGreal stated that the police forces were under-equipped. The police chief himself had a second job.<ref name=McGreal/>

==Transportation==
[[Amtrak]]’s ''[[City of New Orleans (train)|City of New Orleans]]'', which operates between [[New Orleans]] and [[Chicago]], passes through the town on [[Canadian National Railway|CN]] tracks, but makes no stop. The [[Greenwood station (Mississippi)|nearest station]] is located in [[Greenwood, Mississippi|Greenwood]], {{convert|25|mi}} to the north.

==Education==
The town of Tchula is served by the [[Holmes County School District (Mississippi)|Holmes County School District]].

Current schools in the area include S.V. Marshall Elementary School and [[Holmes County Central High School]].

The Holmes County Learning Center is in Tchula itself.<ref>"[https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/dc10map/GUBlock/st28_ms/place/p2872440_tchula/DC10BLK_P2872440_001.pdf 2010 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP: Tchula town, MS]." [[U.S. Census Bureau]]. Retrieved on July 9, 2017.</ref><ref>"[http://www.holmes.k12.ms.us/schools  Schools]." [[Holmes County School District (Mississippi)|Holmes County School District]]. Retrieved on July 9, 2017. "Holmes County Learning Center 32 School Street Tchula, Mississippi 39169"</ref>

Previously Marshall's campus housed [[S.V. Marshall High School]].

==Mississippi Blues Trail marker==
[[File:HolmesCountyBluesTchulaMississippiBluesTrailMarker.jpg|thumb|150px|[[Mississippi Blues Trail]] marker documents the importance of Tchula in the development of the blues]]

==Notable people==
* [[Woodrow Adams]], [[Delta blues]] guitarist and [[harmonica]] player<ref name="LarkinBlues">{{cite book|title=[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music|The Guinness Who's Who of Blues]]|editor=[[Colin Larkin (writer)|Colin Larkin]]|publisher=[[Guinness Publishing]]|date=1995|edition=Second|isbn=0-85112-673-1|pages=11/12}}</ref>
* [[Yvonne Brown]] (1952–2012), mayor of Tchula and the first black Republican female mayor in Mississippi, served from 2001 to 2009. She was the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] nominee for [[Mississippi's 2nd congressional district]] in [[United States House of Representatives elections in Mississippi, 2006#District 2|2006]].
* [[Jimmy Dawkins]] (1936–2013), blues guitarist and singer,<ref name=Samaha/> who moved to [[Chicago]] at 18 or 19
* [[Bess Phipps Dawson]], painter and gallerist<ref name=missstory>{{cite book|last1=Black|first1=Patti Carr|title=The Mississippi Story|date=2007|publisher=University Press of Mississippi|location=Oxford, Mississippi|isbn=9781887422147|page=37|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D932HeqCSxgC&dq=Bess+Phipps+Dawson&pg=PA37}}</ref>
* [[Lester Davenport]] (1932–2009), blues musician<ref name=Samaha/>
* [[Chris Epps]], former commissioner of the [[Mississippi Department of Corrections]],<ref>Pettus, Emily Wagster. "[http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/nov/8/epps-star-falls-in-miss-after-federal-indictment/?page=all Epps’ star falls in Miss. after federal indictment]" ([https://web.archive.org/web/20150227203150/http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/nov/8/epps-star-falls-in-miss-after-federal-indictment/?page=all Archive]). ''[[Washington Times]]''. November 8, 2014. Retrieved on February 27, 2015.</ref> pleaded guilty to corruption-related charges<ref name=Blinder>{{cite news|author=Blinder, Alan|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/26/us/christopher-epps-former-mississipi-prisons-chief-pleads-guilty-in-corruption-case.html|title=Former Mississippi Officials Plead Guilty in a Graft Case Involving Private Prisons|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=February 25, 2015|access-date=February 27, 2015}}</ref>
* [[Addison Grace Hadley]] - [[Miss United States]] 2023
* [[Johnny Mitchell]], former [[National Football League]] [[tight end]]<ref>{{cite news |last1=Smith |first1=Timothy W. |title=Mitchell is Part City and Part Country |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/04/28/sports/pro-football-part-city-part-country-and-perhaps-one-day-all-pro.html |access-date=May 30, 2021 |work=New York Times |date=April 28, 1992}}</ref>
* [[Little Smokey Smothers]] (1939–2010), blues guitarist and singer
* [[Hartman Turnbow]] (1905–1988), one of the first blacks in Mississippi to register to vote in the 1960s since  disfranchisement in 1890<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mscivilrightsproject.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=49:hartman-turnbow&catid=308:person&Itemid=34|title=Hartman Turnbow – Mississippi Civil Rights Project|publisher=mscivilrightsproject.org|access-date=February 28, 2015}}</ref>

==References==
{{Portal|Mississippi}}
<references />

==External links==
* {{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/nov/15/poorest-town-in-poorest-state-segregation-is-gone-but-so-are-the-jobs |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |title=Poorest town in poorest state: segregation is gone but so are the jobs |first=Chris |last=McGreal |author-link=Chris McGreal |date=November 15, 2015 |access-date=November 16, 2015 }}

{{Holmes County, Mississippi}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Towns in Holmes County, Mississippi]]
[[Category:Towns in Mississippi]]