Cleveland is a city in Bolivar County,

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

, United States. The population was 11,199 as of the 2020 United States Census. Cleveland has a large commercial economy, with numerous restaurants, stores, and services along U.S. 61. Cleveland is one of the two county seats of Bolivar County (the other being Rosedale).

History

Named after President

Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...

, the town began formation in 1869 as people moved inland from the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest Drainage system (geomorphology), drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson B ...

. The Louisville, New Orleans & Texas Railroad ran through the town and a portion of the railroad remains there today. Early records show the community was called Fontaine in 1884 and at some point Coleman's Station. Moses W. Coleman built the first home on the

bayou In usage in the Southern United States, a bayou () is a body of water typically found in a flat, low-lying area. It may refer to an extremely slow-moving stream, river (often with a poorly defined shoreline), marshy lake, wetland, or creek. They ...

in the area. In 1885, it was officially named Sims after Rueben T. Sims, who owned part of the land on which the town stood. The village of Cleveland was chartered on March 25, 1886, and the United States Post Office recognized the town as such on August 5, 1887. It was Sims's son, B.C. Sims, who was responsible for the name change to Cleveland. In 1967, Senators Robert F. Kennedy and

Joseph S. Clark Jr. Joseph Sill Clark Jr. (October 21, 1901January 12, 1990) was an American writer, lawyer and politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 90th Mayor of Philadelphia from 1952 to 1956 and as a United States Senator from Pennsylvani ...

began Senate hearings to assess the effectiveness of the

War on Poverty The war on poverty is the unofficial name for legislation first introduced by United States President Lyndon B. Johnson during his State of the Union address on January 8, 1964. This legislation was proposed by Johnson in response to a nationa ...

programs. The first field hearings were held in

Jackson Jackson may refer to: People and fictional characters * Jackson (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname or given name Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Qu ...

, Mississippi, and the following day Kennedy and Clark set out to visit "pockets of poverty" in the

Mississippi Delta The Mississippi Delta, also known as the Yazoo–Mississippi Delta, or simply the Delta, is the distinctive northwest section of the U.S. state of Mississippi (and portions of Arkansas and Louisiana) that lies between the Mississippi and Yaz ...

. They arrived in Cleveland, along with Marian Wright and Peter Edelman, for a tour conducted by Amzie Moore. There they observed barefoot, underfed African-American children in tattered clothing, with vacant expressions and distended bellies. Kennedy told Edelman that he thought he had seen the worst poverty in the nation in West Virginia, but it paled in comparison to the poverty he observed in Cleveland.

Geography and climate

Cleveland is located southeast of Rosedale and the

along

Mississippi Highway 8 Mississippi Highway 8 (MS 8) is an east–west state highway in northern Mississippi, running from MS 1 in Rosedale to U.S. Route 278 (US 278) northeast of Aberdeen. Points of interest along the route include Great River Road State Park, Del ...

. U.S. Route 61 (N-S) and route 8 (E-W) are the main highways serving Cleveland. Jones Bayou and the old

Illinois Central Railroad The Illinois Central Railroad , sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, was a railroad in the Central United States, with its primary routes connecting Chicago, Illinois, with New Orleans, Louisiana, and Mobile, Alabama. A line al ...

pass through the city from south to north. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of th ...

, the city has a total area of , all land.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the

2020 United States Census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to off ...

, there were 11,199 people, 4,266 households, and 2,611 families residing in the city.

Arts and culture

Mississippi Blues Trail

Four

Mississippi Blues Trail The Mississippi Blues Trail was created by the Mississippi Blues Commission in 2006 to place interpretive markers at the most notable historical sites related to the birth, growth, and influence of the blues throughout (and in some cases beyond) ...

markers are located in Cleveland. The first marker recognizes Chrisman Street, which once served as the center of African-American business and social life in Cleveland. The second marker celebrates blues musician W. C. Handy. The third marker is located at the Grammy Museum Mississippi. The fourth marker recognizes Rev. C.L. Franklin, who preached at St. Peter's Rock M.B. Church here, influenced gospel, R&B and blues artists, and his daughters Aretha, Erma and

Carolyn Carolyn is a female given name, a variant of Caroline. Other spellings include Karolyn, Carolyne, Carolynn or Carolynne. Caroline itself is one of the feminine forms of Charles. List of Notable People *Carolyn Bennett (born 1950), Canadian po ...

became noted soul singers after starting out singing in church.

Education

Colleges and universities

Delta State University Delta State University (DSU) is a public university in Cleveland, Mississippi, a city in the Mississippi Delta. History The school was established in 1924 by the State of Mississippi, using the facilities of the former Bolivar County Agricult ...

Bolivar County residents have residency for two community colleges:

Coahoma Community College Coahoma Community College (CCC) is a public historically black community college in Coahoma County, Mississippi. The college was founded in 1949 and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. It offe ...

and Mississippi Delta Community College. Their main campuses respectively are in

unincorporated Unincorporated may refer to: * Unincorporated area, land not governed by a local municipality * Unincorporated entity, a type of organization * Unincorporated territories of the United States, territories under U.S. jurisdiction, to which Congress ...

Coahoma County Coahoma County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2010 census, the population was 26,151. Its county seat is Clarksdale. The Clarksdale, MS Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Coahoma County. It is lo ...

and Moorhead in

Sunflower County Sunflower County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2010 census, the population was 29,450. Its largest city and county seat is Indianola. Sunflower County comprises the Indianola, MS Micropolitan Statistical Are ...

Primary and secondary schools

The City of Cleveland is served by the

Cleveland School District The Cleveland School District (CSD) is a public school district based in Cleveland, Mississippi (USA). In addition to Cleveland, the district also serves the towns of Boyle, Renova, and Merigold. History In the post-''Brown v. Board of Edu ...

. Schools within the Cleveland city limits include: *

Cleveland Central High School ''For other schools, see Cleveland High School (disambiguation)'' Cleveland Central High School is a public high school in Cleveland, Mississippi. The sole high school of the Cleveland School District, it serves Cleveland, Boyle, Renova, and ...

– Formed in mid-2017 by the consolidation of Cleveland High School and East Side High School, occupying the former Cleveland High School and Margaret Green Junior High School.Home
Cleveland School District. Retrieved on July 2, 2017. *Cleveland Central Middle School – Formed in mid-2017 by the consolidation of D.M. Smith Middle School and Margaret Green Junior High School, located at the former East Side High School campus. ; Elementary schools * Nailor Elementary School * Cypress Parks Elementary School * Pearman Elementary School * Parks Elementary School *D. M. Smith Elementary Other: * Alternative School * Cleveland Voc Tech Complex ;Private schools *K-12:

Bayou Academy Bayou Academy is a non-profit school located in unincorporated Bolivar County, Mississippi, near the City of Cleveland on Highway 8. The school serves about 500 students in grades Pre-Kindergarten through 12. The school is accredited by the Mids ...

*K-6: Presbyterian Day School Previously ethnic Chinese students were required to attend separate schools, something that persisted into the 1940s. The Chinese Mission School educated them. This building was demolished in 2003.

Media

Newspapers

* ''

The Bolivar Commercial ''The Bolivar Commercial'' was a newspaper in Cleveland, Mississippi from 1916 to 2020. It was owned by Walls Newspapers. Amid large revenue losses associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, ''Commercial'' owner Lee Walls in April 2020 announced that ...

'' (Defunct) * ''

The Cleveland News Leader The Cleveland News Leader was a Sunday morning newspaper printed from 2004 to 2009 in Cleveland, Mississippi. The newspaper was founded by David Johnson, who served as its editor and publisher. The paper earned a reputation as an unusually hard- ...

'' (Defunct) * ''The Cleveland Current'' (Defunct)

Television

* Channel 8,

WHCQ-LD WHCQ-LD, virtual channel 8 (VHF digital channel 9), is a low-powered Antenna TV- affiliated television station licensed to Cleveland, Mississippi, United States. The station is within the Greenwood and Greenville, Mississippi market, which is e ...

* Channel 17,

WXVT-LD ...

FM radio

* 88.1

WDSW-LP WDSW-LP is a radio station broadcasting an Adult Album Alternative, Roots, Blues, and Classic Rock format. WDSW-LP licensed to Cleveland, Mississippi and Cleveland, Renova, and Boyle in Mississippi. WDSW-LP is owned and operated by Delta St ...

: (Cleveland, Delta State University)

Adult Album Alternative Adult album alternative (also triple-A, AAA, or adult alternative) is a radio format. See pages 9 and 10Mills, Joshua. "A New Radio Music Format: Rock for Prosperous Adults" New York Times, Feb 28 1994, p. 2. ProQuest. Web. Accessed September 4, 2 ...

Americana (music) Americana (also known as American roots music) is an amalgam of Music of the United States, American music formed by the confluence of the shared and varied traditions that make up the musical ethos of the United States, specifically those sounds ...

Blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

* 98.3

WBYB (FM) WBYB (98.3 MHz) is an FM radio station licensed to Cleveland, Mississippi. The station broadcasts an oldies Oldies is a term for musical genres such as pop music, rock and roll, doo-wop, surf music (broadly characterized as classic r ...

: Oldies

Infrastructure

Police services

The city of Cleveland is served and protected by the Cleveland Police Department and is located on South Sharpe Avenue. Currently, 45 people are employed by the department. Of the 45, 39 are sworn police officers and six civilians serve in a support role. Sworn officers average out to one officer per 357 citizens.

Fire services

The Cleveland Volunteer Fire Department is currently rated Class 4 by the State Rating Bureau and has three paid employees and 37 volunteer fire fighters. The paid employees include a Fire Inspector, Maintenance Engineer and Maintenance Assistant. All other positions are volunteer. The department operates from three separate fire stations, including a new station at the Cleveland Municipal Airport that opened in late 2011 and utilizes four front line pumpers, two rescue/utility vehicles, an aerial platform pumper, an airport/crash rescue truck, one Ford F-2500 with a bed mounted deluge gun, a Hazardous Materials Response Unit and one backup pumper for its daily operations. The department also operates a training facility that is home to a rope rescue tower, smoke house, ventilation simulator, confined space maze, drafting pit, and a Class A burn facility.

Health care

Bolivar Medical Center is a hospital in Cleveland with emergency services.

Notable people

* Bobby Bradford – jazz trumpeter, cornetist, bandleader, and composer * Amzie Moore – Civil rights activist * Walter Rhodes – blues accordionist and singer *

Bobbie L. Steele Bobbie L. Steele was sworn in as the 32nd president of the Cook County Board of Commissioners on August 1, 2006.Steve Patterson. "Steele vows changes". ''Chicago Sun-Times''. August 2, 2006. 10. She had been commissioner for the 2nd district of C ...

– 32nd president of Chicago's Cook County Board of Commissioners *

Larry Speakes Larry Melvin Speakes (September 13, 1939 – January 10, 2014) was an American journalist and spokesperson who acted as White House Press Secretary under President Ronald Reagan from 1981 to 1987. He assumed the role after Press Secretary James ...

– acting spokesman for the White House under President Ronald Reagan *Professional baseball players: **

Dave Ferriss David Meadow Ferriss (December 5, 1921 – November 24, 2016) was an American Major League Baseball player who pitched for the Boston Red Sox from 1945 through 1950. Ferriss was given the nickname 'Boo' as the result of a childhood inability to p ...

** Chet "Chick" Morgan **

Josh Hancock Joshua Morgan Hancock (April 11, 1978 – April 29, 2007) was a professional baseball pitcher, who played Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox, Philadelphia Phillies, Cincinnati Reds, and St. Louis Cardinals. He was killed in an au ...

** Kevin Rogers *Professional football players: **

Shane Matthews Michael Shane Matthews (born June 1, 1970) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for all or part of fourteen seasons during the 1990s and 2000s. He played college footba ...

Floyd Womack Floyd (Pork Chop) Seneca Womack (born November 15, 1978) is a former American football guard. He was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the fourth round of the 2001 NFL Draft. He played college football at Mississippi State. He also played fo ...

Pat Coleman Patrick Darryl Coleman (born April 8, 1967) is a former American football player who played wide receiver for five seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played for the New England Patriots and Houston Oilers. He was selected by th ...

** Ken Lucas **

John Eubanks John Eubanks (born July 13, 1983) is a former professional American and Canadian football cornerback. He most recently played for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was signed by the Washington Redskins as an ...

Lou Rash Lou Rash (born June 5, 1960) is a former defensive back in the National Football League. Biography Rash was born Louis Clyde Rash on June 5, 1960 in Cleveland, Mississippi. Career Rash played with the Philadelphia Eagles during the 1984 NFL sea ...

Johnny O'Bryant III Johnny Lee O'Bryant III (born June 1, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for the Shanghai Sharks of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). He played college basketball for Louisiana State University. High school career Conside ...

– professional basketball player * Margaret Wade – Basketball Hall of Fame Coach, namesake of the Wade Trophy

References

External links

City of Cleveland

Cleveland Chamber of Commerce

Cleveland-Bolivar County Chamber of Commerce/Tourism
{{Authority control Cities in Mississippi Cities in Bolivar County, Mississippi County seats in Mississippi Populated places established in 1869 Micropolitan areas of Mississippi Mississippi Blues Trail 1869 establishments in Mississippi