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Benton County, Mississippi
Benton County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2010 census, the population was 8,729. Its county seat is Ashland. It is locally believed that residents convinced the post-Civil War Reconstruction government that Benton County was named after U.S. Senator Thomas Hart Benton, but the name actually honored Confederate Brigadier General Samuel Benton of nearby Holly Springs in Marshall County, nephew of the senator. Benton County is included in the Memphis, TN-MS-AR Metropolitan Statistical Area. Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.5%) is water. It is the fifth-smallest county by area in Mississippi. The headwaters of the Wolf River meander and braid their way north and west across northern Benton County from Baker's Pond, the river's source spring (highest origin of continuous flow) in the Holly Springs National Forest approximately one mile southwest of where U.S. H ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Samuel Benton
Samuel Benton (1820–1864) was an American attorney, newspaper publisher and politician. He served as a colonel in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. He was promoted to brigadier general but died two days later before the notification of his promotion reached him. Early life Samuel Benton was born on October 18, 1820, in Williamson County, Tennessee. He was a prominent lawyer in Holly Springs, Mississippi. He was also the publisher of a newspaper, ''The Mississippi Times''; Number I of which appeared in April 1853. In politics he was an Old Line Whig and in favor of states' rights. He was a member of both the Union Convention of 1855 and the Mississippi Secession Convention of 1861. He served on the Ways and Means Committee at the Secession Convention. In 1852, he served in the Mississippi state legislature. Civil War During the American Civil War, Benton enlisted for Mississippi state service in early 1861. He was elected captain in the "Old" 9th Miss ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
