Amite County is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

located in the state of

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 ...

on its southern border with Louisiana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 12,720. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

Liberty Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom. In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society fr ...

. The county is named after the

Amite River The Amite River (french: Rivière Amite) is a tributary of Lake Maurepas in Mississippi and Louisiana in the United States. It is about long. It starts as two forks in southwestern Mississippi and flows south through Louisiana, passing Greate ...

, which runs through the county. Amite County is part of the McComb, MS Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Amite County was established in February 1809 from the eastern portion of Wilkinson County. It was named after the

. French explorers had named the latter for the friendly (''amitié'' in French) indigenous

Houma people The Houma () are a historic Native American people of Louisiana on the east side of the Red River of the South. Their descendants, the Houma people or organization "The United Houma Nation", have been recognized by the state as a tribe since 1 ...

they encountered in the region. The legislation that established the county authorized the appointment of five commissioners to find a site for the county seat, near the county's center and near a good spring; its name was to be Liberty. At this time, the total population of the county numbered about 4000 people, about 80% of whom were middle-class families of seventeenth-century Virginia stock who had gradually migrated through other frontier states. Primary religious groups were all Protestant, including Baptists, Presbyterians, and Methodists. Completed in 1840, the courthouse in Liberty is the oldest courthouse in Mississippi in continuous use. Liberty eventually became the county's justice and business center. The county economy was based on timber from

longleaf pine The longleaf pine (''Pinus palustris'') is a pine species native to the Southeastern United States, found along the coastal plain from East Texas to southern Virginia, extending into northern and central Florida. In this area it is also known as ...

and the cultivation of commodity crops of cotton,

indigo Indigo is a deep color close to the color wheel blue (a primary color in the RGB color space), as well as to some variants of ultramarine, based on the ancient dye of the same name. The word "indigo" comes from the Latin word ''indicum'', m ...

, and tobacco, usually on plantations worked by enslaved African Americans. Given the reliance of planters on labor-intensive crops such as tobacco and cotton, the county soon had a majority population of enslaved African Americans. Even in the antebellum period, the county seat attracted entertainers and lecturers on tour. In the 1850s, Liberty hosted opera singer Jenny Lind, known as the "Swedish Nightingale," at the Walsh building. In 1861, the state legislature called a convention to vote on

secession Secession is the withdrawal of a group from a larger entity, especially a political entity, but also from any organization, union or military alliance. Some of the most famous and significant secessions have been: the former Soviet republics le ...

from the United States. David Hurst, the delegate from Amite County, voted against secession, but the majority of the state's delegates voted for it. Led by South Carolina, the largest slave-owning states were the first in the South to secede. Mississippi voted to join the

Confederate States of America The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly referred to as the Confederate States or the Confederacy was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States that existed from February 8, 1861, to May 9, 1865. The Confeder ...

. During the Civil War, Captain George H. Tichenor married Margaret Anne Drane at the Liberty Baptist Church; Tichenor developed an antiseptic to treat wounds suffered by soldiers in the war. By the end of the war, 279 men from Amite County had died for the Confederate cause. Amite County was not in a theater of war. A raiding party of Union cavalry, under the command of Colonel Benjamin Grierson, is known to have camped in the county nine miles east of

on the evening of April 28, 1863, while conducting a deep penetration raid as part of the

Vicksburg Campaign The Vicksburg campaign was a series of maneuvers and battles in the Western Theater of the American Civil War directed against Vicksburg, Mississippi, a fortress city that dominated the last Confederate-controlled section of the Mississippi Ri ...

. As part of that raid, Union forces pillages many homes and plantations. Most of the buildings of the Amite Female Seminary, with 13 pianos, were burnt; one building was spared, the small Mary Van Norman Ratcliff Building, commonly known as the "Little Red Schoolhouse." At the end of the Civil War, Amite County's population was 60% African American. During Reconstruction,

freedmen A freedman or freedwoman is a formerly enslaved person who has been released from slavery, usually by legal means. Historically, enslaved people were freed by manumission (granted freedom by their captor-owners), emancipation (granted freedom a ...

elected several African Americans to local office as county sheriff. After Reconstruction, white Democrats regained power in the state legislature through a combination of violent voter repression and fraud. They

disenfranchised Disfranchisement, also called disenfranchisement, or voter disqualification is the restriction of suffrage (the right to vote) of a person or group of people, or a practice that has the effect of preventing a person exercising the right to vote. D ...

most African Americans and many poor whites in the state by the new 1890 state constitution, which imposed a poll tax, literacy tests, and other requirements as barriers to voter registration. These were administered by whites in a discriminatory way. Most black voters and many poor whites were dropped from the voter rolls.

20th century to present

Racial violence, including lynchings, escalated during the Jim Crow years."Amite County"
Mississippi Civil Rights Project. Retrieved March 16, 2014 The county had 14 documented lynchings in the period from 1877 to 1950; most took place around the turn of the century when disenfranchisement and imposition of Jim Crow was underway.''Lynching in America'', 2nd edition
, Supplement by County, p. 4 Blacks were excluded from the political process in the county and state until the late 1960s. African Americans were a majority in the state until the 1930s but excluded from voting, they were also excluded from juries and the entire political system. The county continued to be based on agriculture, with cotton the basis of the economy into the 1930s. A

boll weevil The boll weevil (''Anthonomus grandis'') is a beetle that feeds on cotton buds and flowers. Thought to be native to Central Mexico, it migrated into the United States from Mexico in the late 19th century and had infested all U.S. cotton-growin ...

invasion damaged many cotton crops. Planters shifted to logging and dairy farming in the 1930s, during the Great Depression. As agriculture was mechanized, reducing the need for farm labor, many blacks left Amite County during the first half of the 20th century in two waves of the Great Migration. In the first wave, before World War II, many moved north to Chicago and other industrial cities of the Midwest. In the second wave, they moved to the West Coast, where the burgeoning defense industry created jobs before, during, and after the war. From 1940 to 1960, the county population declined by 29%, as can be seen on the census tables below. Some rural whites also left the county for industrialized cities. In the 1950s, local farmer E.W. Steptoe founded a chapter of the

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E. ...

( NAACP) in the county. Herbert Lee, a married farmer with nine children, was among its charter members. They were working to regain constitutional civil rights, including the ability to vote. In the summer of 1961, Bob Moses from the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee worked in the county to organize African Americans for voter registration. He was beaten by Bill Caston, a cousin to the sheriff, near the county courthouse, and arrested. He was told to leave the county for his own safety."Murder of Herbert Lee and Louis Allen"
Amite County, Mississippi Civil Rights Project. Retrieved March 16, 2014. In the 1960s, only one African American of the total of 5,500 in Amite County was a registered voter. Even after the

Voting Rights Act The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is a landmark piece of federal legislation in the United States that prohibits racial discrimination in voting. It was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson during the height of the civil rights movement ...

was passed in 1965, extensive grassroots efforts were required to register eligible voters. Racial violence against blacks in the county escalated during the years of the

Civil Rights Movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...

. On September 25, 1961, at the Westbrook Cotton Gin, about a dozen witnesses, both white and black, saw E.H. Hurst, a white state legislator, murder Herbert Lee in broad daylight. At the inquest that day, Hurst claimed self-defense and witnesses, intimidated by the armed white men in the courtroom, supported him. Learning that the federal government might hold a grand jury in the case,

Louis Allen Louis Allen (April 25, 1919 – January 31, 1964) was an African-American businessman in Liberty, Mississippi, who was shot and killed on his land during the civil rights era. He had previously tried to register to vote and had allegedly talked ...

, an African-American veteran of World War II and witness to Lee's murder, talked to the FBI to try to gain protection if he were to testify truthfully to what he saw. They said they could not help him. Whites suspected he had talked with the FBI and began to harass him. Allen's business was boycotted by whites, and the veteran was beaten and arrested more than once by the county sheriff. He stayed in the area to help his aging parents, but planned to leave. On January 31, 1964, he was shot and killed on his land. No one was ever prosecuted for Allen's death. Investigations since 1994 suggest that Allen was killed by Daniel (Danny) Jones, the county sheriff and son of the Ku Klux Klan's leader in the county.Cold case: "The murder of Louis Allen"
''60 Minutes'' (CBS), April 10, 2011 Danny Jones was featured as a likely perpetrator in the Allen case, in a 2011 episode of ''60 Minutes'' focusing on civil rights cold cases, but he denied an interview. He died in 2012 or 2013. Following the repression of the civil rights era and a continuing poor economy, younger African Americans continued to leave the county, seeking jobs in bigger cities. The population declined more than 11 percent from 1960 to 1970, and further declines occurred to 1980 (see census tables below.) Because of the murders of Lee and Allen, voter registration efforts had stopped in the early 1960s. African Americans did not register until after passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which provided federal protection and oversight. Today the county is majority white in population. Noted historic sites listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

include the Amite County Courthouse and the Westbrook Cotton Gin, the only one surviving of seven in the county. In addition, 19th-century plantation houses and the

and Bethany Presbyterian churches are listed on the Register.

Geography

According to the

U.S. 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 county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.2%) is water.

Major highways

U.S. Highway 98 * Circle sign 24

Mississippi Highway 24 Mississippi Highway 24 (MS 24) is a state highway in Mississippi, United States. The highway runs from Fort Adams east to an interchange with Interstate 55 (I-55) and U.S. Highway 98 (US 98) in McComb. The roadway passes through Wilkinson, ...

Mississippi Highway 33 Mississippi Highway 33 (MS 33) is a state highway in southwestern Mississippi. It runs from north to south for and serves the counties of Jefferson, Franklin, Amite, and Wilkinson. Route description MS 33 begins in Wilkinson County at the ...

Mississippi Highway 48 Mississippi Highway 48 (MS 48) is a state highway in southern Mississippi. It runs from east to west for , serving a total of four counties: Marion, Walthall, Pike, and Amite. Route description MS 48 begins in Amite County in the town of Ce ...

* Mississippi Highway 569 * Mississippi Highway 570 * Mississippi Highway 567 * Mississippi Highway 568 * Mississippi Highway 571 * Mississippi Highway 584

Adjacent counties

* Franklin County (north) * Lincoln County (northeast) * Pike County (east) *

Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana Tangipahoa Parish (; French: ''Paroisse de Tangipahoa'') is a parish located in the southeast corner of the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2010 census, the population was 121,097. The parish seat is Amite City, while the largest city is ...

(southeast) * St. Helena Parish, Louisiana (south) * East Feliciana Parish, Louisiana (southwest) * Wilkinson County (west)

National protected area

Homochitto National Forest Homochitto National Forest is a U.S. National Forest in southwestern Mississippi comprising . In the mid-1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) began reforestation of the area and developing a system of roadways and recreational areas. Ge ...

(part)

State protected area

* Ethel Stratton Vance Natural Area

Flora and fauna

The

flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous (ecology), indigenous) native plant, native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' ...

of Amite County includes about 1000 species of

vascular plants Vascular plants (), also called tracheophytes () or collectively Tracheophyta (), form a large group of land plants ( accepted known species) that have lignified tissues (the xylem) for conducting water and minerals throughout the plant. They ...

. File:Illicium floridanum illiciaceae.jpg, ''

Illicium floridanum ''Illicium floridanum'' (also known as purple anise, Florida anise, stink-bush, or star-anise) is an evergreen shrub native to the Gulf Coast area of the Southern United States, from Florida to Louisiana. Description The Florida anise tree has ...

'', Florida anise or stinkbush, a plant species

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to the southeastern U.S. File:Bottomland hardwood forest amite river.jpg, Bottomland mixed hardwood-spruce pine forest along the West Fork

File:Stewartia malacodendron 1130.jpg, '' Stewartia malacodendron'', or silky camellia, an uncommon species of the southeastern U.S.

Demographics

As mechanization of agriculture decreased the need for farm labor, the population has dropped since its peak in 1910 as people left in search of work in other areas. Continuing urbanization and suburbanization in other areas has also drawn people to cities of more opportunity. From a peak of population in 1910, the county had declined through 1990. In the early part of the 20th century, particularly from 1910 to 1930, and from 1940 to 1970, it was affected by the Great Migration of blacks out of the segregated society for jobs and opportunities in Midwest and later, West Coast cities. From 1910 to 1920, the population declined more than 17%, as may be seen from the Census table at right. Particularly in the early 20th century, Blacks left to escape the oppression and violence associated with Jim Crow, lynchings, and their

disenfranchisement Disfranchisement, also called disenfranchisement, or voter disqualification is the restriction of suffrage (the right to vote) of a person or group of people, or a practice that has the effect of preventing a person exercising the right to vote. D ...

after 1890. From 1940 to 1960, the population declined by more than 29%. Rural whites also left in those years, but a much greater number of African Americans migrated to other areas. After 1930 they became a minority in the county. In 2000, they constituted nearly 43% of the population.

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 12,720 people, 5,218 households, and 3,401 families residing in the county.

2010 census

As 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 servi ...

, there were 13,131 people living in the county. 57.7% were

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 o ...

, 41.3% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American, 0.1% Asian, 0.2% of some other race and 0.6% of two or more races. 0.8% were

Hispanic or Latino ''Hispanic'' and '' Latino'' are ethnonyms used to refer collectively to the inhabitants of the United States who are of Spanish or Latin American ancestry (). While the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, for example, by the United States ...

(of any race).

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 13,599 people, 5,271 households, and 3,879 families living in the county. The population density was 19 people per square mile (7/km²). There were 6,446 housing units at an average density of 9 per square mile (3/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 56.42%

, 42.65%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...

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 ...

, 0.13% Native American, 0.08% Asian, 0.01%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 0.21% 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 0.49% from two or more races. 0.83% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, 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 viceroyalties forme ...

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. There were 5,271 households, out of which 31.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.10% were married couples living together, 16.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.40% were non-families. 24.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.06. In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.00% under the age of 18, 8.50% from 18 to 24, 25.60% from 25 to 44, 24.60% from 45 to 64, and 15.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.80 males. The median income for a household in the county was $26,033, and the median income for a family was $31,256. Males had a median income of $28,306 versus $16,173 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,048. About 19.30% of families and 22.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 29.70% of those under age 18 and 22.20% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Towns

* Centreville (mostly in Wilkinson County) *

Crosby Crosby may refer to: Places ;Canada *Crosby, Ontario, part of the township of Rideau Lakes, Ontario *Crosby, Ontario, a neighbourhood in the city of Markham, Ontario ;England *Crosby, Cumbria *Crosby, Lincolnshire *Crosby, Merseyside ** Crosby (U ...

(partly in Wilkinson County) * Gloster *

(county seat)

Unincorporated communities

Bewelcome Social networking services where hosts do not receive payments are called hospitality exchange services (HospEx). The relationships on hospitality exchange services are shaped by altruism and are related to the cyber-utopianism on the Web in its ...

* Coles * Gillsburg * Homochitto *

Hustler Hustler or hustlers may also refer to: Professions * Hustler, an American slang word, e.g., for a: ** Con man, a practitioner of confidence tricks ** Drug dealer, seller of illegal drugs ** Male prostitute ** Pimp ** Business man, more gener ...

* Smithdale

Ghost town

* Elysian Fields

Politics

Political affiliation and voting patterns in federal elections generally follow those of other traditional southern states, where strong affiliation of conservative whites to the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

dominated during the period up to and just beyond the

Civil Rights era The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the United ...

of the 1960s and 1970s. With the rise of the Republican Party of

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

and Ronald Reagan, the white population gradually began to support Republican national candidates, and ultimately shifted into the party. Given the support of the national Democratic Party leaders through the civil rights years, African-American voters affiliated with that party. In several elections between World War II and the Civil Rights period, in a period of increasing social change, the white people of Amite County (who were the only ones able to vote in that period) voted for third-party candidates, including Dixiecrat candidate Strom Thurmond in 1948 (after Democratic President

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...

had taken action that year to integrate the military),

Harry F. Byrd Harry Flood Byrd Sr. (June 10, 1887 – October 20, 1966) was an American newspaper publisher, politician, and leader of the Democratic Party in Virginia for four decades as head of a political faction that became known as the Byrd Organization. ...

in 1960, and segregationist George Wallace in 1968.

Notable people

, African-American property owner and logger, murdered for civil rights activities * L. C. Bates, African-American civil rights activist and the husband of Daisy Bates * Robert P. Briscoe,

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

Navy Cross The Navy Cross is the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps' second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is eq ...

recipient and US Navy four-star Admiral * Will D. Campbell, white Baptist minister, author, and civil rights activist *

Jerry Clower Howard Gerald "Jerry" Clower (September 28, 1926 – August 24, 1998) was an American stand-up comedian. Born and raised in the state of Mississippi, Clower was best known for his stories of the rural South and was given the nickname "The Mouth o ...

, country comedian *

J. C. Gilbert ''J. The Jewish News of Northern California'', formerly known as ''Jweekly'', is a weekly print newspaper in Northern California, with its online edition updated daily. It is owned and operated by San Francisco Jewish Community Publications In ...

, member of Louisiana State Senate and Louisiana House of Representatives *

David Green David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

, Mississippi state legislator and businessman *

Carl Augustus Hansberry Carl Augustus Hansberry (April 30, 1895 – March 17, 1946) was an American real estate broker and political activist, and was plaintiff in the 1940 Supreme Court decision ''Hansberry v. Lee''. He was also the father of award-winning playwright Lor ...

, businessman and plaintiff in '' Hansberry v. Lee'' U.S. Supreme Court case; father of playwright

Lorraine Hansberry Lorraine Vivian Hansberry (May 19, 1930 – January 12, 1965) was a playwright and writer. She was the first African-American female author to have a play performed on Broadway. Her best-known work, the play ''A Raisin in the Sun'', highli ...

* William Leo Hansberry, scholar. Uncle of playwright

* E.H. Hurst, white Mississippi state legislator who murdered activist Herbert Lee in cold blood and was not prosecuted * Gabe Jackson, American football player for the Oakland Raiders of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL) * Herbert Lee, married African-American farmer and father of nine, murdered in cold blood in front of witnesses in 1961 by E.L. Hurst in a civil rights case *

William F. Love William Franklin Love (March 29, 1850 – October 16, 1898) was a U.S. representative from Mississippi. Born near Liberty in Amite County, Mississippi, Love attended the common schools and the University of Mississippi at Oxford. He engaged in a ...

, U.S. Representative from Mississippi * T. T. Martin, evangelist and prominent figure in the

anti-evolution Objections to evolution have been raised since evolutionary ideas came to prominence in the 19th century. When Charles Darwin published his 1859 book ''On the Origin of Species'', his theory of evolution (the idea that species arose through desc ...

movement in the 1920s; buried in Gloster * Frank A. McLain, U.S. Representative from Mississippi * Anne Moody, civil rights activist and author of '' Coming of Age in Mississippi'' * Glenn Moore, softball coach * Leon Perry, American football player * Barney Poole, American football player *

Clyde V. Ratcliff Clyde Vernon Ratcliff, Sr. (July 26, 1879 – October 2, 1952), was an American cotton planter and politician from Newellton, Louisiana, who served as a Democrat from 1944 to 1948 in the Louisiana State Senate. He represented the delta p ...

, member of the Louisiana Senate from 1944 to 1948Obituary of Clyde V. Ratcliff Sr., ''Tensas Gazette'', October 8, 1952 * Andy Rodgers, Delta blues harmonicist, guitarist, singer and songwriter * George H. Tichenor, inventor of an antiseptic, briefly lived and married in Liberty * E. M. Toler, physician and coroner who served in the Louisiana State Senate from

East East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...

and West Feliciana parishes * Linda T. Walker, federal magistrate; judge for the

United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia The United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia (in case citations, N.D. Ga.) is a United States district court which serves the residents of forty-six counties. These are divided up into four divisions. Appeals from cases ...

* James W. Washington Jr., African-American painter and sculptor *

Franklin Delano Williams Franklin Delano Williams ( in Smithdale, Mississippi – in Savannah, Georgia) was an American gospel music singer. Musical career As a child and during his early teens he joined the Southern Gospel Singers and later, The Williams Brothers. ...

, Gospel music singer * Damien Wilson, NFL player for the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divi ...

References

External links

Amite County Official Website

from Chapter: "Racist Power & Terror in Southwest Mississippi" (1960), in ''A Prophetic Minority'' (1966) {{authority control Mississippi counties McComb micropolitan area 1809 establishments in Mississippi Territory Populated places established in 1809