Shannon is a town in Lee 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 ...

. The population was 1,496 at the 2020 Census. Shannon is located on

Mississippi Highway 145 Mississippi Highway 145 (MS 145) is the designation for the parts of the old U.S. Route 45 (US 45) roadbed that the state continues to maintain or has designated. Those ten sections travel through Waynesboro, near Boice, th ...

, west of

U.S. Route 45 U.S. Route 45 (US 45) is a major north-south United States highway and a border-to-border route, from Lake Superior to the Gulf of Mexico. A sign at the highway's northern terminus notes the total distance as . US 45 is notable for incorporatin ...

. Chiwapa Creek flows south of the town.

History

The town is named for Samuel Shannon, who purchased land at that location from

Chickasaw The Chickasaw ( ) are an indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands. Their traditional territory was in the Southeastern United States of Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee as well in southwestern Kentucky. Their language is classified as ...

Chief Itawamba in the early 1800s, then built a cabin and a farm. More settlers arrived following the Treaty of Pontotoc, which ceding Chickasaw land in exchange for financial compensation. In the early 1800s, Constantine Shannon brought strawberry plants from Shannon to

Plant City, Florida Plant City is an incorporated city in Hillsborough County, Florida, Hillsborough County, Florida, United States, approximately midway between Brandon, Florida, Brandon and Lakeland, Florida, Lakeland along Interstate 4. The population was 39,764 at ...

, enabling the creation of a multimillion-dollar industry in Plant City. A church was established in 1839. The original townsite was north of the present location, and was moved when the

Mobile and Ohio Railroad The Mobile and Ohio Railroad was a railroad in the Southern U.S. The M&O was chartered in January and February 1848 by the states of Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee. It was planned to span the distance between the seaport of Mobil ...

was constructed through the community in the 1850s. Shannon was incorporated in 1860 and a post office was established. Shannon was originally part of Itawamba County, but became part of Lee county after that county formed in 1866. Commerce expanded in Shannon, and there was a corn elevator, grain elevator, and three cotton gins. Around 1915, Coca-Cola was bottled in Shannon. The old Francis Store, one of the town's original buildings, is now a restaurant owned by the Town of Shannon.

Gay bar controversy

From 1998 until 2007, Shannon was home to Rumors, the gay bar featured in the

Kevin Smith Kevin Patrick Smith (born August 2, 1970) is an American filmmaker, actor, comedian, comic book writer, author, YouTuber, and podcaster. He came to prominence with the low-budget comedy buddy film ''Clerks'' (1994), which he wrote, directed, co ...

Malcolm Ingram Malcolm "Mo" Ingram (born 1968) is a Canadian independent film director and podcaster. Directing Ingram wrote and directed '' Drawing Flies'', which was produced by Scott Mosier and Kevin Smith of View Askew Productions. He also made '' Tail ...

film ''

Small Town Gay Bar ''Small Town Gay Bar'' is a 2006 documentary film directed by Malcolm Ingram that focuses on two gay bars in the rural deep Southeast United States, one in Shannon, Mississippi, and one in Meridian, Mississippi. The documentary was produced by V ...

''. In 2013, after a hiatus, local businesspeople tried to reopen the bar. The town refused. This refusal led to a lawsuit claiming the town had refused the application out of concern of having a gay bar in its jurisdiction. A message on the town's website reads: "we take pride in being on the quiet side of county with our relaxed country living where traditions of family, faith, and brotherly love make up who we are today."

Geography

Shannon is located at (34.116826, -88.701520). 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 the ...

, the town 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 of ...

, there were 1,496 people, 700 households, and 416 families residing in the town.

2000 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2000, there were 1,657 people, 632 households, and 437 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was 403.5 people per square mile (155.7/km). There were 691 housing units at an average density of 168.3 per square mile (64.9/km). The racial makeup of the town was 44.42%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 54.19%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.06% Native American, 0.12%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.84% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 0.36% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 1.57% of the population. There were 632 households, out of which 40.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.4% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 23.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.7% were non-families. 27.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.18. In the town, the population was spread out, with 32.0% under the age of 18, 10.6% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 19.1% from 45 to 64, and 8.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.3 males. The median income for a household in the town was $29,773, and the median income for a family was $30,848. Males had a median income of $25,313 versus $20,149 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the town was $13,592. About 16.3% of families and 18.4% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 21.6% of those under age 18 and 21.4% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

In 2005,

General Atomics General Atomics is an American energy and defense corporation headquartered in San Diego, California, specializing in research and technology development. This includes physics research in support of nuclear fission and nuclear fusion energy. The ...

opened a $38 million manufacturing and test facility in Shannon. Much of the work at the facility is for the U.S. Navy, including advanced launch and recovery systems for aircraft carriers. The Natchez Trace Parkway RV Park is located in Shannon.

Education

The Town of Shannon is served by the Lee County School District.

Notable people

* Cousins Bertha Barbee and Norma Barbee of

The Velvelettes The Velvelettes were an American singing girl group, signed to Motown in the 1960s. Their biggest chart success occurred in 1964, when Norman Whitfield produced "Needle in a Haystack", which peaked at number 45 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, an ...

were born in Shannon. *

Guy Bush Guy Terrell Bush (August 23, 1901 – July 2, 1985) was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball, nicknamed ''the Mississippi Mudcat.'' Bush played in the major leagues from 1923 to 1938 and again in 1945. The pitcher played fo ...

, professional baseball player; retired to Shannon. *

George Washington Forbes George W. Forbes (1864-1927) was an American journalist who advocated for Civil rights movement (1896–1954), African-American civil rights in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He is best known for co-founding the ''Boston Guardian'', an Afri ...

, co-founder of the ''

Boston Guardian The ''Boston Guardian'' was an African-American newspaper, co-founded by William Monroe Trotter and George W. Forbes in 1901 in Boston, Massachusetts, and published until the 1950s. In April 2016, an unrelated publisher launched its own ''Boston ...

''.

References

External links

Town of Shannon
{{authority control Towns in Lee County, Mississippi Towns in Mississippi Towns in Tupelo micropolitan area 2013 in LGBT history