Vardaman, Mississippi
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Vardaman is a town in Calhoun County, Mississippi. The town's population was 1,316 at the time of the
2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...
.


History

The town is named after James Kimble Vardaman, Mississippi governor from 1904 to 1908. Vardaman was a Democrat who later became a member of the United States Senate. In the early days of the town, its post office was named "Timberville" while the town was still known as "Vardaman," leading to confusion in various letterheads. Postmaster Henry Clay Payne refused to name a post office after James K. Vardaman who had been accused of attacking Theodore Roosevelt in newspaper editorials published in the '' Greenwood Commonwealth''. The town's post office was officially named "Vardaman" in 1912. Vardaman, MS was made in 1909.


Geography

Vardaman is located in eastern Calhoun County.
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 ...
passes through the town, leading west to Calhoun City and east to Houston, as well as
Mississippi Highway 341 Mississippi Highway 341 (MS 341) is a north–south state highway in the North Central Hills region of northern Mississippi, connecting Hohenlinden (via Atlanta and Vardaman) with MS 9 near Pontotoc. Route description MS 341 begins in Ch ...
, leading north to Pontotoc and south to Atlanta and Woodland. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all land. The
Yalobusha River The Yalobusha River is a river, long, in north-central Mississippi in the United States. It is a principal tributary of the Yazoo River, via which it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River. The name "Yalobusha" comes from the Ch ...
, a tributary of the Yazoo River, flows past the town less than one mile to the south. Vardaman is located in one of Mississippi's top five
sweet potato The sweet potato or sweetpotato (''Ipomoea batatas'') is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the Convolvulus, bindweed or morning glory family (biology), family, Convolvulaceae. Its large, starchy, sweet-tasting tuberous roots are used as a r ...
-producing counties. The Vardaman Sweet Potato Festival, also known as the National Sweet Potato Festival, is held there annually the entire first week in November. Vardaman has been proclaimed as the "Sweet Potato Capital of the World".


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 1,110 people, 440 households, and 318 families residing in the town.


2000 census

, there were 1,065 people, 426 households, and 276 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 471 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 58.69% White, 33.90% African American, 0.19% Native American, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 6.38% from other races, and 0.75% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 9.77% of the population. There were 426 households, out of which 31.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.3% 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, 18.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.0% were non-families. 31.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.16. In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.2% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 27.0% from 25 to 44, 22.1% from 45 to 64, and 14.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.1 males. The median income for a household in the town was $21,518, and the median income for a family was $29,205. Males had a median income of $25,000 versus $17,750 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,530. About 22.0% of families and 24.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.8% of those under age 18 and 27.3% of those age 65 or over.


Education

Vardaman is served by the Calhoun County School District. Children in the Vardaman area attend either Vardaman Elementary School (Grades K-6) or Vardaman High School (Grades 7-12). Vardaman High School's sports teams are known as the Rams. The Vardaman Rams football program has won 14 division titles in school history and has advanced to the North Half State Finals six times. The Rams also have appeared in the playoffs 29 times, which is tied for the 5th most all-time in the state and 2nd most in the 1A classification. Odie Armstrong, a running back that broke numerous records in the arena football league, played football at Vardaman. In his high school career, Armstrong rushed for 5,838 yards and 104 touchdowns, including 39 scores in a record-breaking senior season. The Vardaman Lady Rams basketball team has won two state championships, one in 1959 and another in 1969. The Lady Rams also appeared in the state championship tournament in 2016. The Rams are now coached by Connor Hudspeth or Tupelo, MS.


Notable people

* Odie Armstrong, player in the Arena Football League *
Mary Wilma Hodge Mary Wilma Hodge (October 20, 1909 – February 10, 1999) was an American physicist and college professor, best known for her work on instruments to measure conditions in the earth's atmosphere, during her long career with the National Oceanogra ...
, physicist *
Barbara Yancy Barbara Young Yancy ( Young; March 25, 1934 – April 24, 1996) was an American politician who served in the Mississippi State Senate from 1971 to 1972. A member of the Democratic Party, she won the special election to fill the Senate seat of her ...
, politician


References


External links


Vardaman Sweet Potato Festival
{{authority control Towns in Calhoun County, Mississippi Towns in Mississippi