Philadelphia is a city in and the
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...
of
Neshoba 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 7,118 at the
2020 census.
History
Philadelphia is
incorporated as a municipality; it was given its current name, after
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
,
in 1903, two years before the railroad brought new opportunities and prosperity to the town. The history of the town and its influences- social, political and economic- can be seen in the many points of interest within and beyond the city limits. These range from the large ceremonial
Indian mound
Many pre-Columbian cultures in North America were collectively termed "Mound Builders", but the term has no formal meaning. It does not refer to specific people or archaeological culture but refers to the characteristic mound earthworks that in ...
and cave at
Nanih Waiya, built approximately 1700 years ago and sacred to the
Choctaw
The Choctaw ( ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States, originally based in what is now Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. The Choctaw language is a Western Muskogean language. Today, Choct ...
; to the still thriving Williams Brothers Store, a true old-fashioned
general store
A general merchant store (also known as general merchandise store, general dealer, village shop, or country store) is a rural or small-town store that carries a general line of merchandise. It carries a broad selection of merchandise, someti ...
founded in 1907 and featured in ''
National Geographic
''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...
'' in 1937 as a source of anything from "horse collars to straw hats."
Murders of Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner

In the mid-20th century,
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 ...
was a battleground of the
civil rights movement as, like other states of the South, it had long
disfranchised blacks and subjected them to
racial segregation
Racial segregation is the separation of people into race (human classification), racial or other Ethnicity, ethnic groups in daily life. Segregation can involve the spatial separation of the races, and mandatory use of different institutions, ...
and
Jim Crow laws
The Jim Crow laws were U.S. state, state and local laws introduced in the Southern United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries that enforced Racial segregation in the United States, racial segregation, "Jim Crow (character), Ji ...
. Philadelphia in June 1964 was the scene of the murders of civil rights workers
James Chaney, a 21-year-old
black
Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...
man from
Meridian, Mississippi;
Andrew Goodman, a 20-year-old
Jew
Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...
ish
anthropology
Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, society, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including archaic humans. Social anthropology studies patterns of behav ...
student from
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
; and
Michael Schwerner
Michael Henry Schwerner (November 6, 1939 – June 21, 1964) was an American civil rights activist. He was one of three Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) field workers murdered in rural Neshoba County, Mississippi, by members of the Ku Klux K ...
, a 24-year-old Jewish
CORE
Core or cores may refer to:
Science and technology
* Core (anatomy), everything except the appendages
* Core (laboratory), a highly specialized shared research resource
* Core (manufacturing), used in casting and molding
* Core (optical fiber ...
organizer and former
social worker
Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...
, also from New York. Their deaths demonstrated the risks that civil rights workers took to secure the constitutional rights of African Americans.
Ku Klux Klan
The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian terrorism, Christian extremist, white supremacist, Right-wing terrorism, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction era, ...
members (including
Cecil Price, a deputy sheriff of Neshoba County) released the three young men from jail, took them to an isolated spot, and killed them, then buried them in an earthen dam. It was some time after they disappeared before the bodies were discovered, as a result of an
FBI
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
investigation and national media attention. The national outrage over their deaths helped procure support for Congressional passage of the
Civil Rights Act of 1964
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 () is a landmark civil rights and United States labor law, labor law in the United States that outlaws discrimination based on Race (human categorization), race, Person of color, color, religion, sex, and nationa ...
and 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 movem ...
of 1965. The murders and related conspiracy gave rise to the "Mississippi Burning" trial, ''
United States v. Price''.
Reagan's visit
On August 3, 1980,
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
gave his first post-
convention speech at the
Neshoba County Fair after being officially chosen as the
Republican nominee for
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...
. He said: "I believe in states' rights ... I believe we have distorted the balance of our government today by giving powers that were never intended to be given in the Constitution to that federal establishment." He went on to promise to "restore to states and local governments the power that properly belongs to them".
Dupree's record breaker
Marcus Dupree played high school football for the Philadelphia High School Tornadoes from 1978 to 1981. He was an outstanding athlete who was widely recognized for his achievements.
Dupree scored 87 touchdowns total during his playing time in high school, breaking the record set by
Herschel Walker
Herschel Junior Walker (born March 3, 1962) is an American former professional football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons. He was also the Republican nominee in the 2022 United States Senate election ...
by one.
In 1981, Marcus's final High School football game was played at Warriors Stadium of the
tribal high school at the Choctaw Indian Reservation.
[
] The author
Willie Morris described the audience at Dupree's final high school game as "the most distinctive crowd I had ever seen ... four thousand or so people seemed almost an equal of mix of whites, blacks, and Indians ... "
[
]
First black mayor
In May 2009, Philadelphia elected its first black mayor,
James A. Young, a 53-year-old
Pentecostal
Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a movement within the broader Evangelical wing of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes direct personal experience of God in Christianity, God through Baptism with the Holy Spirit#Cl ...
preacher and a former county supervisor.
He defeated Rayburn Waddell, a white, three-term incumbent, by 46 votes in the
Democratic primary (there was no
Republican challenger).
Jim Prince, publisher of the local ''
The Neshoba Democrat'' newspaper said, "Philadelphia will always be connected to what happened here in 1964, but the fact that Philadelphia, Mississippi, with its notorious past, could elect a black man as mayor, it might be time to quit picking on Philadelphia, Mississippi."
Young's campaign staff credited
Barack Obama's presidential campaign for increasing registration of black and young voters in Philadelphia, many of whom voted for Young.
His term began July 3, 2009. He would serve until 2025, when lost renomination in the Democratic primary.
Past Mayors
Geography
Philadelphia is located at (32.774070, -89.112891).
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 , of which are land and (0.19%) is water.
Demographics
2020 census
As of the
2020 United States census, there were 7,118 people, 2,836 households, and 1,804 families residing in the city.
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 7,303 people, 2,950 households, and 1,899 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 3,302 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 55.54%
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 ...
, 40.12%
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 ...
, 2.01%
Native American, 0.49%
Asian, 0.08%
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 0.55% from
other races, and 1.20% 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 were 1.51% of the population.
There were 2,950 households, out of which 30.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.8% 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, 20.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.6% were non-families. 32.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 3.00.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 26.1% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 25.9% from 25 to 44, 21.0% from 45 to 64, and 17.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 81.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 73.8 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $26,438, and the median income for a family was $30,756. Males had a median income of $30,731 versus $20,735 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 $15,787. About 25.1% of families and 28.1% 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 41.1% of those under age 18 and 16.4% of those age 65 or over.
Government
In 2025, Republican councilman Jim Fulton was elected mayor of Philadelphia.
Arts and culture
Museums and other points of interest
*
Geyser Falls Water Theme Park
*
Silver Star Casino
*
Neshoba County Fair
*Choctaw Indian Fair
*Philadelphia-Neshoba County Museum
*
Marty Stuart
John Marty Stuart (born September 30, 1958) is an American country music, country and bluegrass music singer, songwriter, and musician. Active since 1968, Stuart initially toured with Lester Flatt, and then in Johnny Cash's road band before be ...
Congress of Country Music
Education

Most of the City of Philadelphia is served by the
Philadelphia Public School District. A portion is zoned to the
Neshoba County School District.
Media
''The Neshoba Democrat'' is published in Philadelphia. It is a weekly newspaper that was established in 1881.
Infrastructure
Public utilities
Cable television
Cable television is a system of delivering television programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This contrasts with bro ...
services for the city of Philadelphia are contracted to
MetroCast Communications. Electrical utilities, as well as water and sewer service, are provided by the City of Philadelphia as
Philadelphia Utilities. The natural gas utility is
CenterPoint Energy.
AT&T
AT&T Inc., an abbreviation for its predecessor's former name, the American Telephone and Telegraph Company, is an American multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered at Whitacre Tower in Downtown Dallas, Texas. It is the w ...
is the local telephone service provider.
Notable people
*
J. T. "Blondy" Black, former
NFL player
*
Buck Bounds, member of the
Mississippi House of Representatives
The Mississippi House of Representatives is the lower house of the Mississippi Legislature, the lawmaking body of the U.S. state of Mississippi. According to the state constitution of 1890, it is to comprise no more than 122 members elected for ...
from 1988 to 1992
*
C. Scott Bounds, member of the Mississippi House of Representatives
*
Josh Boyd, former NFL
defensive tackle
A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that typically lines up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the Guard (American football), offensive guards; however, he may also line up opposite one of the offensive Tackle (gridir ...
*
Jenifer Branning, member of the
Mississippi State Senate
The Mississippi State Senate is the upper house of the Mississippi Legislature, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The Senate, along with the Lower house, lower Mississippi House of Represen ...
*
Terry C. Burton, former member of the Mississippi State Senate
*
Adam Monroe Byrd, U.S. Congressman and practicing lawyer in Philadelphia, Mississippi
*
Billy Cannon, college and pro football player, 1959
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy ( ; also known simply as the Heisman) is awarded annually since 1935 to the top player in college football. It is considered the most prestigious award in the sport and is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust followin ...
winner
*
Turner Catledge, former editor-in-chief for the
Chicago Sun
*
William Henry Cook, justice of the
Supreme Court of Mississippi
The Supreme Court of Mississippi is the Supreme court, highest court in the state of Mississippi. It was established in 1818 per the terms of the first constitution of the state and was known as the High Court of Errors and Appeals from 1832 to 1 ...
from 1920 to 1937
*
Mike Dennis, former NFL
running back
A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...
*
Glen Deweese, member of the Mississippi State Senate from 1976 to 1992
*
Marcus Dupree, football player in NFL and
USFL
The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...
, also known for building the Mount Nebo Baptist Church in Philadelphia; subject of "
The Best That Never Was", an episode in
ESPN
ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
's ''
30 for 30
''30 for 30'' is the title for a series of documentary films airing on ESPN, its sister networks, and online highlighting interesting people and events in sports history. This includes four "volumes" of 30 episodes each, a 13-episode series und ...
'' series
*
Mike Eakes, former member of the Mississippi House of Representatives
*
Tim Edwards, former NFL defensive tackle
*
Greg Eiland, NFL
offensive guard
Offensive may refer to:
* Offensive (military), type of military operation
* Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative (Netherlands), Socialist Alternative
* Fighting words, spoken words which would have a tende ...
*
Bob Ferguson,
RCA Victor
RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic ...
record producer and songwriter, known for his song "
Wings of a Dove" that was recorded first by
Ferlin Husky in the early 1960s
*
Stanley C. Fraizer, professional wrestler better known as Uncle Elmer
*
Derek George, singer-songwriter and member of
Pearl River
*
David Goforth,
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...
*
Lideatrick Griffin,
wide receiver
A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...
for
Mississippi State
Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university in Mississippi State, Mississippi, United States. It is classified among "R ...
*
Michael Wilson Hardy, country music singer-songwriter who goes by the name HARDY
*
Jarquez Hunter,
running back
A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...
for
Auburn University
Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 26,800 undergraduate students, over 6,100 post-graduate students, and a tota ...
*
Iris Kelso, journalist
*
Edgar Ray Killen, organized the murders of Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner
*
Florence Mars, civil rights activist
*
Phillip Martin, Chief of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians
*
Fred McAfee, player for
New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...
and
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...
, Director of Player Development for Saints
*
Shadrick McAfee, former NFL player and former head coach of the
Louisiana Swashbucklers
*
Dick Molpus,
Secretary of State of Mississippi from 1984 to 1996
*
Joe H. Mulholland, lawyer and Mississippi state senator
*
Devone Payne, head football coach of
Northeast Louisiana State Indians from 1954 to 1957
*
Lallah Miles Perry, painter and artist
*
William Redd, businessman and philanthropist
*
Earl S. Richardson, longtime Mississippi state legislator
*
Otis Rush, musician in
Blues Hall of Fame
The Blues Hall of Fame is a music museum operated by the Blues Foundation at 421 S. Main Street in Memphis, Tennessee. Initially, the "Blues Hall of Fame" was not a physical building, but a listing of people who have significantly contributed to b ...
*
Marty Stuart
John Marty Stuart (born September 30, 1958) is an American country music, country and bluegrass music singer, songwriter, and musician. Active since 1968, Stuart initially toured with Lester Flatt, and then in Johnny Cash's road band before be ...
, country music entertainer,
Grand Ole Opry
The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a regular live country music, country-music Radio broadcasting, radio broadcast originating from Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville, Tennessee, on WSM (AM), WSM, held between two and five nights per week, depending on the ...
star, and member of the
Country Music Hall of Fame
The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, Tennessee, is one of the world's largest museums and research centers dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of American vernacular music. Chartered in 1964, the museum has amass ...
.
*
Georgia Tann, social worker and
child trafficker
*
Gloria Williamson, member of the Mississippi Senate from 2000 to 2008
*
W. Arthur Winstead, member of the
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
from 1943 to 1965
References
External links
Official webpage for the City of Philadelphia
{{authority control
Cities in Mississippi
Cities in Neshoba County, Mississippi
County seats in Mississippi