Purvis, Mississippi
Purvis, Mississippi | ||
---|---|---|
FIPS code 28-60480 | | |
GNIS feature ID | 0676425 |
Purvis is a U.S. city in and the county seat of Lamar County, Mississippi.[3] It is part of the Hattiesburg, Mississippi Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,175 at the 2010 census. The Town of Purvis was incorporated on February 25, 1888 [4] and was founded by and named after Thomas Melville Purves, originally of Marion County, Alabama. Purves, born March 8, 1820, was a second generation Scottish-American; his grandfather emigrated to Charleston, South Carolina in 1765.[5]
History
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/ThomasPurves.jpg/165px-ThomasPurves.jpg)
Purves acquired a land grant in 1870 for a parcel of real estate which was located, at that time, in Marion County, Mississippi.[6] In 1871, Purves moved from his home in Greene County and homesteaded the 160 acres (0.65 km2), along with his wife, Dorothy Abney, born May 14, 1826, in Hinds County, and their five surviving children, to the rural property. Dorothy, also known as Dollie or Dolly, was a doctor who tended the sick of the area and delivered babies. Purves built a two-room log cabin for his family with an open fireplace in one room used for cooking and heating. John, Thomas Purves' third surviving child, was the town's first Mayor.[7]
In 1884, the
Lamar became a county on February 19, 1904, in House Bill 166 and was formed from the second Judicial District of
Purvis began as a sawmill town and is noted to be located on the highest point on the Southern Railroad between Meridian and New Orleans by James Bounds, land surveyor, MS REG # L.S.1021.
James Bounds, surveyor, stated:
It may be of interest to note the location of the old Pass Christian Road on a map of Stone and Pearl River Counties. This road was used very much by the early settlers of Lamar County to travel south to the coast for supplies. This road followed a natural divide between the water-sheds of Wolf River and Big Black Creek, of which the head waters originate in Lamar County. This road was one of necessity. It crossed no branches or streams of any kind and was one of the main roads of travel until modern means of transportation came into use after the American Civil War.[9]
When the town was in its infancy, lumber companies bought large tracts of virgin pine forested land and erected sawmills at sites along the newly developing rail line. A special meeting of the board of supervisors was held in January 1905, for the purpose of giving a contract for a new courthouse to be built for the sum of $43,516 to
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New Lamar County Courthouse.
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Historic Purvis Depot. Moved from original location beside railroad tracks to current location beside Purvis Public Library.
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Purvis War Memorial, located on the grounds of the Lamar County Courthouse.
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Close up of War Memorial engraving.
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Time capsule located on the grounds of the Old Lamar County Courthouse.
Geography
Purvis is located at 31°8′33″N 89°24′28″W / 31.14250°N 89.40778°W (31.142616, -89.407724).[12]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.9 square miles (10 km2), of which 3.9 square miles (10 km2) is land and 0.25% is water. Because of a well-known system of aquifers and sand mines, this area was selected for "project dribble" to be the site of nuclear tests by the US government during 1961 to 1968 to measure seismic activity.
- Major highways
Interstate 59
- US 11 (MS)
Mississippi Highway 589
Purvis is part of the area known as the Pine Belt due to the overwhelming number of longleaf pine trees that populate the forests.[13]
Climate
Purvis is located in the
Summers are long, with 80 degree temperatures beginning in May or sometimes sooner, and lasting normally until the first weeks of October. Night temperatures do not usually vary greatly from daytime temperatures, usually dropping only 21 -24 degrees. Heat indexes can soar during the summer months, due to high humidity and long hours of sunshine, causing a 93 degree day to feel as if it were 101 degrees. Afternoon showers and
Snowfall is rare, and when it does occur it usually is only 3 inches (76 mm) or less. Purvis averages freezing temperatures only a few times a winter. The record high was in 1951 at 106 degrees and the record low in 1985 at 4 degrees.[14] On February 23, 2016, a tornado hit Purvis, killing one.
Climate data for Purvis, Mississippi | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 67 (19) |
68 (20) |
72 (22) |
79 (26) |
86 (30) |
94 (34) |
92 (33) |
93 (34) |
88 (31) |
81 (27) |
69 (21) |
63 (17) |
79 (26) |
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 43 (6) |
44 (7) |
48 (9) |
53 (12) |
66 (19) |
69 (21) |
70 (21) |
70 (21) |
64 (18) |
52 (11) |
40 (4) |
39 (4) |
55 (13) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 5.5 (140) |
6.4 (160) |
8.8 (220) |
5.3 (130) |
4.8 (120) |
4.8 (120) |
5.8 (150) |
4.9 (120) |
4.4 (110) |
3.7 (94) |
4.5 (110) |
5.6 (140) |
64.5 (1,640) |
Source: Weatherbase [15] |
Demographics
Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1890 | 287 | — | |
1900 | 564 | 96.5% | |
1910 | 724 | 28.4% | |
1920 | 919 | 26.9% | |
1930 | 881 | −4.1% | |
1940 | 1,000 | 13.5% | |
1950 | 1,270 | 27.0% | |
1960 | 1,614 | 27.1% | |
1970 | 1,860 | 15.2% | |
1980 | 2,256 | 21.3% | |
1990 | 2,140 | −5.1% | |
2000 | 2,164 | 1.1% | |
2010 | 2,175 | 0.5% | |
2020 | 1,909 | −12.2% | |
U.S. Decennial Census[16] |
Race | Num. | Perc. |
---|---|---|
White (non-Hispanic)
|
1,274 | 66.74% |
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)
|
491 | 25.72% |
Native American
|
3 | 0.16% |
Asian
|
2 | 0.1% |
Pacific Islander
|
2 | 0.1% |
Other/Mixed
|
65 | 3.4% |
Latino
|
72 | 3.77% |
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,909 people, 821 households, and 496 families residing in the city.
Government
The United States Postal Service operates the Purvis Post Office in Purvis.[18]
The Mississippi Department of Mental Health operates the South Mississippi State Hospital in unincorporated Lamar County, near Purvis.[19]
Education
The Purvis School System's mascot is a tornado as a testament of the courage of those who endured the Tornadoes of 1908, which changed the face of the emerging town, and in honor of those who lost their lives that day. The city of Purvis is serviced by the Lamar County School District which includes the following:
- Purvis Lower Elementary School K-2
- Purvis Upper Elementary School 3-5
- Purvis Middle School 6-8
- Purvis High School 9-12
Private Schools include:
- Lamar Christian School
- Bass Memorial Academy
Noteworthy events
This section needs additional citations for verification. (May 2024) |
Military contributions
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ac/PurvisCityPark.jpg/220px-PurvisCityPark.jpg)
The citizens of Purvis have contributed greatly to the various branches of the
Tornadoes of 1908
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bb/TornadoMarker.jpg/220px-TornadoMarker.jpg)
On April 24, 1908, three F4 (207-260 mph) tornadoes left a line of destruction from
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/08/Tornado1908Front.jpg/220px-Tornado1908Front.jpg)
An excerpt from the booklet "The Purvis Tornado" by the Lamar County Historical Society, 2004: "The first thought was of Hattiesburg for help. All the wires were down, and they could not telegraph this city for help, so Sheriff George W. Holleman saddled his horse and W.B. Alsworth mounted the steed, and started across the country for Richburg, 10 miles distance toward Hattiesburg. Mr. Alsworth urged the horse for all he was worth, dashing three veritable creeks, and over rough roads. He made the trip in less than fifty minutes. A second messenger was sent behind Mr. Alsworth, so that if anything happened, the other man might reach the goal and send the news. The other messenger was J.C. Calhoun. Both men reached Richburg about 3 o'clock, Mr. Alsworth sometime ahead of Mr. Calhoun.
Alsworth wired direct over the telephone to Mayor J.D. Donald, asking for physicians to come to the relief of the stricken town.
Mayor Donald immediately made the fact known in the city. A special train over the North Eastern was the result. Thus the news of the terrible disaster was communicated to the outside world."
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Tornado1908Back.jpg/220px-Tornado1908Back.jpg)
The depot of the New Orleans and Northeastern Railroad, which was responsible for the success of the bustling, growing town, was one of the first public buildings demolished by the twisters and was thrown across the tracks. Railroad cars standing in front of the depot were carried away by the winds. Over 115 businesses, buildings and homes were completely demolished or partially destroyed and the entire African-American section of town was wiped out. The Purvis High School graduating Class of 1908's commencement exercises were due to start the night the tornado hit and part of the exercises had been previously performed the morning of the tornado. The morning exercises were completed at the two story brick schoolhouse on Mitchell Street just one hour before the storm hit and had it lasted one hour longer, the death toll would have been far greater for the entire second floor of the schoolhouse was removed by the twister.
Hurricanes
Purvis has felt the winds of quite a few tropical systems over the years; especially considering how many miles from the Mississippi Gulf Coast the city is located. Category 3 Hurricane Ethel came in 1960 but died down to a tropical storm by the time she had reached the area. Hurricane Hilda in 1964 was not a Category 4 but an extratropical low when she deposited rain in Lamar County. Due to the close proximity of Lamar County to Louisiana, Hurricane Betsy in 1965 also left Purvis some rain. The eye of Hurricane Camille came directly over Lamar County in 1969 and was the largest, costliest and most deadly hurricane to hit the Mississippi Gulf Coast until the monster storm Katrina in 2005. Hurricane Edith came in 1971, followed by Hurricane Carmen in 1974 that drenched us with 7 inches (180 mm) of rain before heading off to Texas.
Hurricane Bob made an appearance in 1979 but was quickly forgotten when Hurricane Elena made her way over the area in 1985 as a Category 3 storm. That same year, Purvis received more rain than wind from Category 1 Hurricane Juan. Hurricane Florence passed by in 1988, leaving only rain as a weakening Category 1 storm. In 1992, Hurricane Andrew had thankfully died down from its original Category 5 when it came over and dropped 5 inches (130 mm) of rain. Hurricane Georges gave Purvis 5–7 inches of precipitation in 1998, and also some wind before curving back over Alabama. Tropical Storm Allison oddly stayed together long enough to still have an eye like feature over Purvis after traveling from Texas and Louisiana in 2001 and dumped 10–15 inches of rain on Lamar County.
Mississippi felt the effects of The Hurricane in 2005, Hurricane Katrina, which hit the area as a weakening Category 2 hurricane after reaching Category 5 strength in the Gulf of Mexico. This storm killed 1,836 people, 238 of them in Mississippi. The effects from this hurricane can still be seen four years later in the forests around Purvis. Hurricane Gustav passed a little south of the area in 2008 but was close enough to leave wind and rain in its wake.
1960s Vela Uniform/Project Dribble Nuclear Tests
The Project Dribble program involved two nuclear detonations called Salmon and Sterling that were conducted within Tatum Salt Dome southwest of the
The Sterling Event was the fourth nuclear detonation involved in a study, identified as Project Dribble, sponsored by the Department of Defense's Advanced Research Project Agency. Project Dribble involved the recording and identification of seismic signals from underground detonations. These studies are part of a seismic research program called Vela Uniform which is designed to improve the United States' capability to detect, identify, and locate underground nuclear detonations.
Project Dribble's purpose was to give U.S. scientists experience in detecting underground nuclear tests in the
Notable people
- William Andrews III, former member of the Mississippi House of Representatives[20]
- Lacey Chabert, film and television actress.
- Lillian McMurry, record producer and owner of Trumpet Records[21]
- Johnny Rawls, soul blues singer and guitarist[22]
- Willie Shelby, collegiate and NFL football player.
- Ronald J. Slay, first head football coach for the University of Southern Mississippi[23]
- Walter Young, major league baseball player.
In popular culture
Referenced in the song "Mississippi" off the 2001 album The Good Times by Afroman. Afroman is said to be "swerving his Cadillac through Purvis."[24]
References
- ^ "Lamar County v4.5 - One of the fastest growing counties in Mississippi - Offline". Archived from the original on July 13, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2008.
- ^ "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
- ^ a b Lamar County Heritage by Leonard Slade. Gateway Press Inc.
- ^ "Family Tree Maker's Genealogy Site: User Home Page Book: Melody's Family: Register Report of John Purvis, Sr". Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved July 21, 2009.
- ^ a b Beckwith, W. N. (January 1, 1989). "Thomas Melville Purves". Siris-artinventories.si.edu. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
- ^ a b c d "Formation of Lamar County MS WPA History". Rootsweb.ancestry.com. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
- ^ Leonard Slade. Lamar County Heritage. Gateway Press Inc.
- ^ a b Leonard Slade. Lamar County Heritage. Gateway Press Inc.
- ^ Mississippi Supervisor. October 1983.
- ^ [1][dead link]
- ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
- ^ "Longleaf Pine Ecosystem". April 17, 2010. Archived from the original on April 17, 2010. Retrieved April 27, 2023.
- ^ "National and Local Weather Forecast, Hurricane, Radar and Report". The Weather Channel. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
- ^ "Weatherbase.com". Weatherbase. 2013.Retrieved September 21, 2013.
- ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
- ^ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 16, 2021.
- ^ "Post Office Location - PURVIS Archived 2010-05-23 at the Wayback Machine." United States Postal Service. Retrieved on November 1, 2010.
- ^ "Contact Us Archived 2012-03-14 at the Wayback Machine." South Mississippi State Hospital. Retrieved on November 1, 2010. "South Mississippi State Hospital 823 Highway 589 Purvis, MS 39475."
- ^ "William Andrews III's Biography". Project Vote Smart. Retrieved September 18, 2022.
- ^ Johnson, Greg. "Lillian Shedd McMurray and Trumpet Records". Mississippi Encyclopedia. Retrieved September 18, 2022.
- ^ "Interview with Johnny Rawls, Purvis, Mississippi". Indiana University Media Collections Online. Retrieved September 18, 2022.
- ^ Bulletin of the University of Mississippi. Oxford, Mississippi: University of Mississippi. 1911. p. 150.
- ^ "Afroman Mississippi Lyrics". Lyrics007.com. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- The CLUI Land Use Database: Salmon and Sterling Nuclear Test Sites
- Significant Past Weather Occurrences in the South Central States
- Epic Disasters
- Fact Sheet on Purvis, Salmon Nuclear Test Site
- Lamar County School District Website
- Purvis Lower Elementary Website
- Purvis Upper Elementary Website
- Purvis High School Website
- Lamar Christian School Website
- Bass Memorial Academy Website
- Lamar County Public Library
- Little Black Creek Water Park