Drew is a city in Sunflower County,

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

, United States. The population was 1,927 at the 2010 census. Drew is in the vicinity of several plantations and the

Mississippi State Penitentiary Mississippi State Penitentiary (MSP), also known as Parchman Farm, is a maximum-security prison farm located in the unincorporated community of Parchman in Sunflower County, Mississippi, in the Mississippi Delta region. Occupying about of la ...

, a

Mississippi Department of Corrections The Mississippi Department of Corrections (MDOC) is a state agency of Mississippi that operates prisons. It has its headquarters in Jackson. Burl Cain is the commissioner. History In 1843 a penitentiary in four city squares in central Jack ...

prison for men. It is noted for being the site of several racist murders, including the

lynching Lynching is an extrajudicial killing by a group. It is most often used to characterize informal public executions by a mob in order to punish an alleged or convicted transgressor or to intimidate others. It can also be an extreme form of i ...

of Joe Pullen in 1923 and of

Emmett Till Emmett Louis Till (July 25, 1941 – August 28, 1955) was an African American youth, who was 14 years old when he was abducted and Lynching in the United States, lynched in Mississippi in 1955 after being accused of offending a white woman, ...

in 1955.

History

When the

Yellow Dog Railroad The Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad (Y&MV) was incorporated in 1882 and was part of the Illinois Central Railroad system (IC). Construction began in Jackson, Mississippi, and continued to Yazoo City, Mississippi. The line was later expand ...

was extended through what is now Drew, the post office was moved from the Promised Land Plantation to the Drew location. The settlement and the post office were named for Miss Drew Daniel, daughter of Andrew Jackson Daniel. A school called the Little Red Schoolhouse was built by matching funds from the

Rosenwald Fund The Rosenwald Fund (also known as the Rosenwald Foundation, the Julius Rosenwald Fund, and the Julius Rosenwald Foundation) was established in 1917 by Julius Rosenwald and his family for "the well-being of mankind." Rosenwald became part-owner of ...

in 1928. In the 21st century it received a grant for renovation of the large school. In the 1920s, a man named Joe Pullen was

lynched Lynching is an extrajudicial killing by a group. It is most often used to characterize informal public executions by a mob in order to punish an alleged or convicted transgressor or to intimidate others. It can also be an extreme form of in ...

near Drew after killing at least three members and wounding other members of a posse seeking him after he shot and killed another man. One historian wrote that the white residents of Drew had "traditionally been regarded as the most recalcitrant in the county on racial matters."Moye, p
28
The author wrote that whites in Drew were "considered the most recalcitrant of Sunflower County, and perhaps the state."Moye, p
128
He also claimed that Drew's proximity to the

made Drew "a dangerous place to be black", and claimed that during the 1930s and 1940s many police officers arbitrarily shot blacks, saying that they appeared to look like escaped prisoners. That historian also claimed that during the Civil Rights Movement, when attempts were made to move

Fannie Lou Hamer Fannie Lou Hamer (; Townsend; October 6, 1917 – March 14, 1977) was an American voting and women's rights activist, community organizer, and leader of the civil rights movement. She was the vice-chair of the Freedom Democratic Party, ...

's movement for poor people from Ruleville to Drew, the organizers "faced stiff resistance".

Mae Bertha Carter Mae Bertha Carter (January 13, 1923 – April 28, 1999) was an activist during the Civil Rights Movement from Drew, Mississippi.Moye, J. Todd. '' Let the People Decide: Black Freedom and White Resistance Movements in Sunflower County, Mississippi, ...

, an activist during the Civil Rights Movement, was from Drew. In 1955, 14-year-old African-American teenager

Emmett Louis Till Emmett Louis Till (July 25, 1941 – August 28, 1955) was an African American youth, who was 14 years old when he was abducted and lynched in Mississippi in 1955 after being accused of offending a white woman, Carolyn Bryant, in her family' ...

was abducted, tortured, and shot to death in a barn near Drew. The killing attracted national attention. Some locals have raised money to purchase the barn for a memorial.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of , all land. Because of its small size, Billy Turner of ''

The Times-Picayune ''The Times-Picayune , The New Orleans Advocate'' (commonly called ''The Times-Picayune'' or the ''T-P'') is an American newspaper published in New Orleans, Louisiana. Ancestral publications of other names date back to January 25, 1837. The cu ...

'' said " u can travel all over town in a few minutes."Turner, Billy.
The hometown Archie once knew is no more
" ''

''. Saturday January 26, 2009. Retrieved March 30, 2012. Drew is in the vicinity of several plantations and the

(Parchman), a

prison for men. Drew, in northern Sunflower County,Wright, Chance.
Students protest merger
" '' The Bolivar Commercial''. April 8, 2012. Retrieved April 12, 2012. is located on U.S. Route 49W, on the route between

Jackson Jackson may refer to: Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson South, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson oil field in Durham, ...

and Clarksdale. Drew is south of the Mississippi State Penitentiary,Buntin, John.
Down on Parchman Farm
" ''

Governing Magazine ''Governing'' is a website, edited and published in Washington, D.C., that covers state and local government in the United States. Originally a national monthly magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print ...

''. July 27, 2010. Retrieved August 13, 2010. and it is north of Ruleville.

Cleveland, Mississippi Cleveland is a city and one of two county seats of Bolivar County, Mississippi, United States, the other seat being Rosedale, Mississippi, Rosedale. The Cleveland population was 11,199 as of the 2020 United States census. Cleveland has a large c ...

is from Drew. Drew is north of

Yazoo City Yazoo City is the county seat of Yazoo County, Mississippi, United States. It was named after the Yazoo River, which, in turn was named by the French explorer Robert La Salle in 1682 as "Rivière des Yazous" in reference to the Yazoo tribe livi ...

. Many houses in Drew are government-owned. Some houses sold for $6,000 to $8,000 in the year until 2008. Some Drew residents stated in 2008 that, if put on the market, some houses would sell for over $120,000.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,852 people, 729 households, and 503 families residing in the city.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 1,927 people living in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 82.7% Black, 16.0% White, 0.2% Native American, 0.2% Asian and 0.2% from two or more races. 0.7% were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

2000 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 2,434 people, 811 households, and 606 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 922 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 25.27%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 73.58%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.12% Native American, 0.16% Asian, 0.37% from other races, and 0.49% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.56% of the population. There were 811 households, out of which 42.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.3% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 35.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.2% were non-families. 21.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.00 and the average family size was 3.51. In the city, the population was spread out, with 36.6% under the age of 18, 10.1% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 16.2% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 27 years. For every 100 females, there were 82.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 71.9 males. The median income for a household in the city was $19,167, and the median income for a family was $20,469. Males had a median income of $22,351 versus $18,693 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $8,569. About 36.1% of families and 40.5% 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 ...

, including 54.6% of those under age 18 and 23.0% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

At one time, Drew was the locality in the United States that had the most

cotton gin A cotton gin—meaning "cotton engine"—is a machine that quickly and easily separates cotton fibers from their seeds, enabling much greater productivity than manual cotton separation.. Reprinted by McGraw-Hill, New York and London, 1926 (); ...

s. In 2008, it only had one cotton gin. Billy Turner of ''

'' said " ere's some corn, some beans, but mostly, there's no business." By 2012 the SuperValu grocery store had closed. Melanie Townsend, a woman quoted in a 2012 '' Bolivar Commercial'' article, said that since the grocery store closed, few employment opportunities were available in Drew and that the

Drew School District The Drew School District was a public school district based in Drew, Mississippi. The school district's attendance boundary included Drew, Rome, and the employee residences of the Mississippi State Penitentiary (Parchman), located in an unincorpo ...

was the largest employer in the area.

Education

Drew was first served by the predominantly African-American

.Drew School District Audited Financial Statements For the Year Ended June 30, 2005
." Office of the State Auditor, State of Mississippi. 12 (18/82). Retrieved on July 20, 2010. The City of Drew is currently served by the Sunflower County Consolidated School District. Elementary and middle school students attend schools in Drew: A. W. James Elementary School (K-5) and Drew Hunter Middle School (6-8).Handbook 2012-2013
"
Archive
Sunflower County School District. Retrieved October 9, 2013. High school students attend

Ruleville Central High School Thomas E. Edwards, Sr. High School, formerly Ruleville Central High School (RCHS), is a public high school located in Ruleville, Mississippi, United States. It is a part of the Sunflower County Consolidated School District and had 381 students en ...

in Ruleville.Amy, Jeff.
Mississippi to return Okolona schools to local control; district merger ends Drew High School
" ''

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

'' at '' The Republic''. May 17, 2012. Retrieved June 12, 2012. The North Sunflower Academy is in an

unincorporated area An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

of Sunflower County, about south of Drew. The school originated as a

segregation academy Segregation academies are private schools in the Southern United States that were founded in the mid-20th century by white parents to avoid having their children attend Racial segregation in the United States, desegregated public schools. They ...

Mississippi Delta Community College Mississippi Delta Community College is a public community college serving the Mississippi Delta region with its main campus in Moorhead, Mississippi. It also offers courses at locations in Greenville, Greenwood, and Indianola. Its mascot is th ...

has the Drew Center in Drew. The Sunflower County Library operates the Drew Public Library.

Transportation

Ruleville-Drew Airport is in unincorporated Sunflower County, between Drew and Ruleville. - Retrieved on September 23, 2010. The airport is jointly operated by the cities of Drew and Ruleville.Poplarville, Hattiesburg among airports receiving grants
."

WDAM WDAM-TV (channel 7) is a television station licensed to Laurel, Mississippi, United States, serving the Hattiesburg area as an affiliate of NBC and ABC. It is owned by Gray Media alongside low-power Telemundo affiliate WLHA-LD (channel 18). The ...

. March 12, 2010. Retrieved on September 23, 2010.

Notable people

, civil rights activistRavo, Nick.
Mae Bertha Carter, 76, Mother Who Defied Segregation Law
" ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. May 6, 1999. Retrieved on March 30, 2012. *

Boo Boo Davis James "Boo Boo" Davis (born November 4, 1943) is an American electric blues musician. Davis is one of the few remaining blues musicians who gained experience singing the blues in the Mississippi Delta, having sung to help pass the time while pic ...

, blues singer who released an album entitled ''Drew, Mississippi'' * Al Dixon, former

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...

Harold Dorman Harold Kenneth Dorman (December 23, 1931 – October 8, 1988) was an American rock and roll singer and songwriter. Biography Dorman was born in Drew, Mississippi.William Eggleston William Eggleston, (born July 27, 1939) is an American photographer. He is widely credited with increasing recognition of color photography as a legitimate artistic medium. Eggleston's books include ''William Eggleston's Guide'' (1976) and ''The ...

, photographer who grew up in Drew * Willie Louis, born Willie Reed, witness to the murder of

Archie Manning Elisha Archibald Manning III (born May 19, 1949) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons, primarily with the New Orleans Saints from 1971 to 1982. He also h ...

, former NFL

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

, patriarch of the

Manning family The Mannings are an American family who have gained fame via numerous family members playing American football (specifically the position of quarterback) and are considered to be a dynasty within the sport. Archie Manning from Mississippi was th ...

Billy Stacy Billy McGovern Stacy (July 30, 1936 – September 10, 2019) was an American professional football player who played five seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Chicago/St. Louis Cardinals. He was selected to one Pro Bowl. He later ...

, former NFL

safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...

Pops Staples Roebuck "Pops" Staples (December 28, 1914 – December 19, 2000) was an American gospel and R&B musician. A "pivotal figure in gospel in the 1960s and 1970s", he was a songwriter, guitarist and singer. He was the patriarch and member of singing ...

and Cleotha Staples, members of

the Staple Singers The Staple Singers were an American Gospel music, gospel, soul music, soul, and Rhythm and blues, R&B singing group. Pops Staples, Roebuck "Pops" Staples (December 28, 1914 – December 19, 2000), the patriarch of the family, formed the group w ...

References

External links

Drew Chamber of Commerce
(Archive) {{authority control Emmett Till Cities in Mississippi Cities in Sunflower County, Mississippi