Tutwiler, Mississippi
Encyclopedia
Tutwiler is a town in Tallahatchie County
, Mississippi
, United States
. The population was 1,364 at the 2000 census.
In 1905 the town was incorporated, and W.E. Fite was Mayor, and J.O. Clay was the depot agent. In 1900 the Illinois Central Railroad, running from Yazoo City to Lambert, crossed at Tutwiler where the company built a railroad yard.
In 1928 a high school was built at a cost of $40,000. The town grew rapidly until 1929 when the railroad yard was moved to Clarksdale
. At that time the population and business began to decline. The population in 1929 before the railroad yard was moved was 1,010 people.
Like many other towns in the Mississippi Delta
, Tutwiler stakes a claim to being the "birthplace of the blues". This is the site where W. C. Handy
reportedly "discovered" the blues in 1903, on a train platform in the town. Handy had heard something akin to the blues as early as 1892, but it was while waiting for an overdue train to Memphis that he heard an itinerant bluesman (legend says it was a local field hand named Henry Sloan
) playing slide guitar and singing about "goin' where the Southern cross the Dog," referring to the junction of the Southern Railway and Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad farther south. (The Y&D railroad was locally called the "Yellow Dog".) Handy called it "the weirdest music I had ever heard." A Mississippi Blues Trail
marker honoring Handy was erected at the site on November 25, 2009. http://www.bolivarcom.com/index.cfm?event=news.view&id=3D80AEA2-19B9-E2E2-6755EE1A3FB05F8A
Tutwiler was also the childhood home of seminal Memphis bluesman Frank Stokes.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the town has a total area of 1.3 square miles (3.4 km²), all of it land.
Tutwiler is 70 miles (112.7 km) south of Memphis, Tennessee
.
of 2000, there were 1,364 people, 410 households, and 316 families residing in the town. The population density
was 1,020.6 people per square mile (393.0/km²). There were 429 housing units at an average density of 321.0 per square mile (123.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 11.80% White, 87.32% African American, 0.29% Native American, 0.37% Asian, and 0.22% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.44% of the population.
There were 410 households out of which 35.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.4% were married couples
living together, 34.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.7% were non-families. 20.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.33 and the average family size was 3.82.
In the town the population was spread out with 33.6% under the age of 18, 11.7% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 16.3% from 45 to 64, and 12.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 80.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 76.3 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $18,958, and the median income for a family was $22,857. Males had a median income of $21,364 versus $17,222 for females. The per capita income
for the town was $7,177. About 32.1% of families and 38.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 45.5% of those under age 18 and 31.1% of those age 65 or over.
said in 2001 "Except for cotton, there has never been much to Tutwiler's economy." As of 2001, Tutwiler residents work in prisons located throughout the Mississippi Delta
, casinos in Tunica
, and poultry and chicken processing plants in the surrounding area.
The town's sole bank and the town's grain elevator closed in 2000. As of 2001 Tutwiler does not have any clothing stores, drugstores, and restaurants.
Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility
, a private prison operated by the Corrections Corporation of America
on behalf of the Mississippi Department of Corrections, is located in an unincorporated area
in the county, near Tutwiler. Due to the town's economic status and reliance on charity from Christian officials, around 1998 the leaders of Tutwiler decided to allow for the construction of a prison. To help facilitate the prison, the Town of Tutwiler constructed a sewage lagoon and a water tower. The State of Mississippi and Tallahatchie County paid half of the cost of training of the correctional officers at the new prison. Kilborn said that when the $35 million facility opened in 2000 with 351 prisoners, including 322 from Wisconsin, it "seemed the salvation of" Tutwiler. Some area residents quit their jobs and began working as prison guards at the facility. After the prison's opening its monthly payroll was $467,000.
In March and April 2001 Wisconsin moved its prisoners out of the prison, leaving about 20 to 125 prisoners per period. Before the move the prison had 208 employees. The prison's employees were reduced to 40 people. Some people who worked at the prison were laid off. As of 2001, per year, the prison paid $600,000 to the county in property taxes and $5,350 per month to the town for water. By 2001 the total monthly payroll decreased to $80,000. Kilborn said that by November 2001 the prison "left the town little better off than it ever was." In June 2003 the prison received 1,423 inmates from Alabama, and the prison hired 250 employees during that year.
(Parchman) in Sunflower County, Mississippi
.
The United States Postal Service
operates the Tutwiler Post Office.
Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility
, a private prison operated by the Corrections Corporation of America
on behalf of the Mississippi Department of Corrections, is located in an unincorporated area
in Tallahatchie County
, near Tutwiler. As of 2010 the prison serves as the Tallahatchie County's jail facility, in addition to housing prison inmates sentenced in California.
. Residents are zoned to R.H. Bearden Elementary School in Sumner
and West Tallahatchie High School in Webb
.
As of 2002 some children in Tutwiler attended the North Sunflower Academy
in unincorporated
Sunflower County
.
. In November 2010 the nuns opened a gymnasium, funded by donors not from the area. Peter T. Kilborn said that the facility was "worthy of a university." In 1983, one of the nuns, Anne Brooks, came to Tutwiler to manage the Tutwiler Clinic after she earned a medical degree. Before Brooks came, the clinic had two waiting rooms marked as being reserved for different racial groups, with one for whites and one for blacks. As of 2010 the clinic had been in operation for 27 years.
Tallahatchie County, Mississippi
-National protected areas:*Coldwater River National Wildlife Refuge *Tallahatchie National Wildlife Refuge -Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 14,903 people, 5,263 households, and 3,826 families residing in the county. The population density was 23 people per square mile...
, Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 1,364 at the 2000 census.
History
In 1899 Tom Tutwiler, a civil engineer for a local railroad, made his headquarters seven miles northeast of Sumner. The town of Tutwiler was founded and named for him. When the railroad was built the first depot erected was a two story building and the town was given the top floor for a school. Captain H.B. Fitch built and operated the first store. His wife took charge of the school, which began with five pupils.In 1905 the town was incorporated, and W.E. Fite was Mayor, and J.O. Clay was the depot agent. In 1900 the Illinois Central Railroad, running from Yazoo City to Lambert, crossed at Tutwiler where the company built a railroad yard.
In 1928 a high school was built at a cost of $40,000. The town grew rapidly until 1929 when the railroad yard was moved to Clarksdale
Clarksdale, Mississippi
Clarksdale is a city in Coahoma County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 20,645 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Coahoma County....
. At that time the population and business began to decline. The population in 1929 before the railroad yard was moved was 1,010 people.
Like many other towns in the Mississippi Delta
Mississippi Delta
The Mississippi Delta is the distinctive northwest section of the U.S. state of Mississippi that lies between the Mississippi and Yazoo Rivers. The region has been called "The Most Southern Place on Earth" because of its unique racial, cultural, and economic history...
, Tutwiler stakes a claim to being the "birthplace of the blues". This is the site where W. C. Handy
W. C. Handy
William Christopher Handy was a blues composer and musician. He was widely known as the "Father of the Blues"....
reportedly "discovered" the blues in 1903, on a train platform in the town. Handy had heard something akin to the blues as early as 1892, but it was while waiting for an overdue train to Memphis that he heard an itinerant bluesman (legend says it was a local field hand named Henry Sloan
Henry Sloan
Henry Sloan was an African American musician, one of the earliest figures in the history of Delta Blues. Very little is known for certain about his life, other than he tutored Charlie Patton in the ways of the blues. There have been suggestions that he moved to Chicago shortly after World War I...
) playing slide guitar and singing about "goin' where the Southern cross the Dog," referring to the junction of the Southern Railway and Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad farther south. (The Y&D railroad was locally called the "Yellow Dog".) Handy called it "the weirdest music I had ever heard." A Mississippi Blues Trail
Mississippi Blues Trail
The Mississippi Blues Trail, created by the Mississippi Blues Commission, is a project to place interpretive markers at the most notable historical sites related to the growth of the blues throughout the state of Mississippi. The trail extends from the border of Louisiana in southern Mississippi...
marker honoring Handy was erected at the site on November 25, 2009. http://www.bolivarcom.com/index.cfm?event=news.view&id=3D80AEA2-19B9-E2E2-6755EE1A3FB05F8A
Tutwiler was also the childhood home of seminal Memphis bluesman Frank Stokes.
Geography
Tutwiler is located at 34°0′53"N 90°25′54"W (34.014797, -90.431642).According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the town has a total area of 1.3 square miles (3.4 km²), all of it land.
Tutwiler is 70 miles (112.7 km) south of Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 1,364 people, 410 households, and 316 families residing in the town. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 1,020.6 people per square mile (393.0/km²). There were 429 housing units at an average density of 321.0 per square mile (123.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 11.80% White, 87.32% African American, 0.29% Native American, 0.37% Asian, and 0.22% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.44% of the population.
There were 410 households out of which 35.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.4% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 34.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.7% were non-families. 20.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.33 and the average family size was 3.82.
In the town the population was spread out with 33.6% under the age of 18, 11.7% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 16.3% from 45 to 64, and 12.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 80.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 76.3 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $18,958, and the median income for a family was $22,857. Males had a median income of $21,364 versus $17,222 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the town was $7,177. About 32.1% of families and 38.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 45.5% of those under age 18 and 31.1% of those age 65 or over.
Economy
Peter T. Kilborn of The New York TimesThe New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
said in 2001 "Except for cotton, there has never been much to Tutwiler's economy." As of 2001, Tutwiler residents work in prisons located throughout the Mississippi Delta
Mississippi Delta
The Mississippi Delta is the distinctive northwest section of the U.S. state of Mississippi that lies between the Mississippi and Yazoo Rivers. The region has been called "The Most Southern Place on Earth" because of its unique racial, cultural, and economic history...
, casinos in Tunica
Tunica, Mississippi
Tunica is a town in Tunica County, Mississippi, United States, located near the Mississippi River. Until the early 1990s the town was one of the most impoverished places in the United States, semi-famous for the particularly deprived neighbourhood known as "Sugar Ditch Alley", named for the open...
, and poultry and chicken processing plants in the surrounding area.
The town's sole bank and the town's grain elevator closed in 2000. As of 2001 Tutwiler does not have any clothing stores, drugstores, and restaurants.
Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility
Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility
Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility is a private prison for men, authorized by the Tallahatchie County Correctional Authority and operated by the Corrections Corporation of America on behalf of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. The facility is located in unincorporated Tallahatchie...
, a private prison operated by the Corrections Corporation of America
Corrections Corporation of America
Corrections Corporation of America is a company that owns and manages private prisons and detention centers and operates others on a concession basis. The company is the largest private corrections company in the United States and manages more than 60 facilities with a designed capacity of 90,000...
on behalf of the Mississippi Department of Corrections, is located in an unincorporated area
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
in the county, near Tutwiler. Due to the town's economic status and reliance on charity from Christian officials, around 1998 the leaders of Tutwiler decided to allow for the construction of a prison. To help facilitate the prison, the Town of Tutwiler constructed a sewage lagoon and a water tower. The State of Mississippi and Tallahatchie County paid half of the cost of training of the correctional officers at the new prison. Kilborn said that when the $35 million facility opened in 2000 with 351 prisoners, including 322 from Wisconsin, it "seemed the salvation of" Tutwiler. Some area residents quit their jobs and began working as prison guards at the facility. After the prison's opening its monthly payroll was $467,000.
In March and April 2001 Wisconsin moved its prisoners out of the prison, leaving about 20 to 125 prisoners per period. Before the move the prison had 208 employees. The prison's employees were reduced to 40 people. Some people who worked at the prison were laid off. As of 2001, per year, the prison paid $600,000 to the county in property taxes and $5,350 per month to the town for water. By 2001 the total monthly payroll decreased to $80,000. Kilborn said that by November 2001 the prison "left the town little better off than it ever was." In June 2003 the prison received 1,423 inmates from Alabama, and the prison hired 250 employees during that year.
Government and infrastructure
As of 2001 Robert Grayson, the mayor of Tutwiler, is a prison guard at the Mississippi State PenitentiaryMississippi State Penitentiary
Mississippi State Penitentiary , also known as Parchman Farm, is the oldest prison and the only maximum security prison for men in the state of Mississippi, USA....
(Parchman) in Sunflower County, Mississippi
Sunflower County, Mississippi
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 34,369 people, 9,637 households, and 7,314 families residing in the county. The population density was 50 people per square mile . There were 10,338 housing units at an average density of 15 per square mile...
.
The United States Postal Service
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
operates the Tutwiler Post Office.
Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility
Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility
Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility is a private prison for men, authorized by the Tallahatchie County Correctional Authority and operated by the Corrections Corporation of America on behalf of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. The facility is located in unincorporated Tallahatchie...
, a private prison operated by the Corrections Corporation of America
Corrections Corporation of America
Corrections Corporation of America is a company that owns and manages private prisons and detention centers and operates others on a concession basis. The company is the largest private corrections company in the United States and manages more than 60 facilities with a designed capacity of 90,000...
on behalf of the Mississippi Department of Corrections, is located in an unincorporated area
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
in Tallahatchie County
Tallahatchie County, Mississippi
-National protected areas:*Coldwater River National Wildlife Refuge *Tallahatchie National Wildlife Refuge -Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 14,903 people, 5,263 households, and 3,826 families residing in the county. The population density was 23 people per square mile...
, near Tutwiler. As of 2010 the prison serves as the Tallahatchie County's jail facility, in addition to housing prison inmates sentenced in California.
Education
The Town of Tutwiler is served by the West Tallahatchie School DistrictWest Tallahatchie School District
The West Tallahatchie School District is a public school district with its headquarters in the Charles M. George Facility for Educational Services in Webb, Mississippi ....
. Residents are zoned to R.H. Bearden Elementary School in Sumner
Sumner, Mississippi
Sumner is a town in Tallahatchie County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 407 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Sumner is located at ....
and West Tallahatchie High School in Webb
Webb, Mississippi
Webb is a town in Tallahatchie County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 587 at the 2000 census.-History:Webb was founded around 1880. The first post office was founded in 1880 and named Hood for one of the earlier settlers. In 1882, Judge James L.A...
.
As of 2002 some children in Tutwiler attended the North Sunflower Academy
North Sunflower Academy
North Sunflower Academy is a private school in unincorporated Sunflower County, Mississippi, in the Mississippi Delta area. The school is about north of Ruleville and about south of Drew. The school has grades Kindergarten through 12...
in unincorporated
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
Sunflower County
Sunflower County, Mississippi
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 34,369 people, 9,637 households, and 7,314 families residing in the county. The population density was 50 people per square mile . There were 10,338 housing units at an average density of 15 per square mile...
.
Religion
As of 2001 all of Tutwiler's churches are Protestant. As of the same year, seven Catholic nuns and their staff operate community services in the town. The services include the operation of the site of town meetings and voting, the direction of outreach programs for children and senior citizens, the operation of a health clinic, and the maintenance of the grave of Sonny Boy WilliamsonSonny Boy Williamson II
Willie "Sonny Boy" Williamson was an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter, from Mississippi. He is acknowledged as one of the most charismatic and influential blues musicians, with considerable prowess on the harmonica and highly creative songwriting skills...
. In November 2010 the nuns opened a gymnasium, funded by donors not from the area. Peter T. Kilborn said that the facility was "worthy of a university." In 1983, one of the nuns, Anne Brooks, came to Tutwiler to manage the Tutwiler Clinic after she earned a medical degree. Before Brooks came, the clinic had two waiting rooms marked as being reserved for different racial groups, with one for whites and one for blacks. As of 2010 the clinic had been in operation for 27 years.