Pontotoc 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 Pontotoc 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 ...

, located to the west of the larger city of Tupelo. The population was 5,640 at the 2020 census. Pontotoc is a

Chickasaw The Chickasaw ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands, United States. Their traditional territory was in northern Mississippi, northwestern and northern Alabama, western Tennessee and southwestern Kentucky. Their language is ...

word that means, “Land of the Hanging Grapes.” A section of the city largely along Main Street and Liberty Street has been designated the Pontotoc Historic District and is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. The Treaty of Pontotoc Site is also listed on the National Register. The

Treaty of Pontotoc Creek The Treaty of Pontotoc Creek was a treaty signed on October 20, 1832 by representatives of the United States and the Chiefs of the Chickasaw Chickasaw Nation, Nation assembled at the National Council House on Pontotoc Creek in Pontotoc, Mississipp ...

, part of U.S. president

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before Presidency of Andrew Jackson, his presidency, he rose to fame as a general in the U.S. Army and served in both houses ...

's Indian Removal policy, ceded millions of acres of Native American lands and relocated the Chicakasaw west of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

History

The Chickasaw nation occupied this area long before Europeans colonized the Southeast, the last in a succession of indigenous peoples who had this territory for thousands of years. In the early 1830s they were forced to

Indian Territory Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United States, ...

west of the Mississippi River through the federal program of Indian removal. Pontotoc is a

word meaning "Land of Hanging Grapes". In the late 19th century, the outlaws Jesse and

Frank James Alexander Franklin James (January 10, 1843 – February 18, 1915) was a Confederate States Army, Confederate American Civil War, soldier and Guerrilla warfare in the American Civil War, guerrilla; in the Reconstruction era, post-Civil War p ...

and their gang came into this area. They once hid at an old house that had been used as a Union Army hospital during the Battle of Harrisburg or Battle of Tupelo in the Civil War. The house was located at a crossroad in east Pontotoc County, near the Lee County line. The Town Square Museum is located in the historic US post office near the county courthouse. This space is used to house and display Pontotoc memorabilia. A full-service post office continues to operate in the building, which was built in 1937 during the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

. It was one of numerous projects of the

Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; from 1935 to 1939, then known as the Work Projects Administration from 1939 to 1943) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to car ...

(WPA) under President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

. Investment in this program created work opportunities in construction of needed public buildings and infrastructure across the country, employing thousands of workers. A mural in the post office lobby, titled ''The Wedding of Ortez and SaOwana - Christmas 1540'' (1939), was commissioned as public art. It depicts a legendary feast given by

Hernando de Soto Hernando de Soto (; ; 1497 – 21 May 1542) was a Spanish explorer and conquistador who was involved in expeditions in Nicaragua and the Yucatan Peninsula. He played an important role in Francisco Pizarro's conquest of the Inca Empire in Peru, ...

to celebrate what was said to be the first recorded Christian marriage on the North American continent. The account appears to be local myth. The groom was said to be Juan Ortez (his name was spelled Ortiz in Spanish), an interpreter for the expedition. He was a Spanish national who had been captured in Florida years before and held by Chief Uceta. He was finally released as a slave and lived for years with the Mocoso people. His bride was said to be Princess Saowana, daughter of Chief Uceta. But Uceta's daughter was documented as Uleleh and she married a

cacique A cacique, sometimes spelled as cazique (; ; feminine form: ), was a tribal chieftain of the Taíno people, who were the Indigenous inhabitants of the Bahamas, the Greater Antilles, and the northern Lesser Antilles at the time of European cont ...

, another Chickasaw chief. The wedding is said to have taken place in Pontotoc County during a visit by de Soto's party, but there is little documentation of such an event. The mural was painted in 1939 by artist Joseph Pollet, who had immigrated to the US as a child with his family from Germany. He was commissioned under the arts program that was also part of the federal WPA program. Many artists and writers were employed by such projects, in addition to the workers who built federal buildings. Many murals and other art were created for post offices and other public buildings.Meghan Navarro, "The Wedding of Ortez and SaOwana - Christmas, 1540"
Exhibit: ''Indians at the Post Office: Native Themes in New Deal-Era Murals'', National Postal Museum, Smithsonian Institution The city holds an annual festival in the Town Square during the last week of the month of September, called the Bodock Festival. It celebrates the Maclura pomifera (Osage orange) (also known as ''bois d'arc'', or bowdock) tree located next to the historic mansion, Lochinvar; both survived a massive tornado in 2001.

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 , of which is land and (1.66%) is covered by water.

Climate

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 5,640 people, 1,906 households, and 1,342 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 2010, 5,625 people, 2,325 households, and 2,129 families resided in the city. The population density was . The 2,250 housing units averaged 238.1/sq mi (91.9/km). The racial makeup of the city was 70.08% White, 20.42% African American, 0.35% Native American, 0.24% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 7.39% from other races, and 1.45% from two or more races. Hispanics of any race were 2.76% of the population. Of the 2,325 households, 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.1% 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, 16.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.9% were not families. About 29.2% 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 2.41, and the average family size was 2.97. In the city, the population was distributed as 25.7% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 26.3% from 25 to 44, 21.5% from 45 to 64, and 18.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 84.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.6 males. The median income for a household in the city was $28,491, and for a family was $39,306. Males had a median income of $31,403 versus $23,491 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 $17,324. About 12.0% of families and 17.6% 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 18.5% of those under age 18 and 23.0% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The almost all of the city of Pontotoc is served by the Pontotoc City School District while a small portion of the city limits is in the Pontotoc County School District.
Text list
/ref> Pontotoc High School and South Pontotoc High School are in Pontotoc. The Pontotoc County School District, serving surrounding areas, has its headquarters in Pontotoc. They are two of the top academic schools in the state of Mississippi. North received the Blue Ribbon Award and South received Level 5, the highest rating for a school in Mississippi. The city's band was the Grand Champion in the state in 2017.

Notable people

* Marshal T. Adams, 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 ...

from 1916 to 1924 * Terry "Harmonica" Bean, bluesman; lifelong resident of Pontotoc * N. W. Bradford, former 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 ...

and Mississippi Senate *

Delaney Bramlett Delaine Alvin "Delaney" Bramlett (July 1, 1939 – December 27, 2008) was an American singer and guitarist. He was best known for his musical partnership with his wife Bonnie Bramlett in the band Delaney & Bonnie and Friends, which included a ...

, singer, songwriter and musician; born in Pontotoc * Nickey Browning, member of the Mississippi State Senate from 1996 to 2020 * Thad Cochran, former U.S. Senator from Mississippi * Alfred Oscar Coffin (born 1861), first African-American man to earn a Ph.D. in biological sciences; professor of Romance languages at Langston University * DeVan Dallas, member of the Mississippi House of Representatives from 1964 to 1976 * Glen H. Davidson,

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

United States district judge * Borden Deal, novelist and short-story writer; from Pontotoc * Ruby Elzy, pioneer black opera singer; played the soprano role of Serena in

George Gershwin George Gershwin (; born Jacob Gershwine; September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist whose compositions spanned jazz, popular music, popular and classical music. Among his best-known works are the songs "Swan ...

's ''

Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' ( ) is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play ''Porgy (play), ...

'' * Lanny Flaherty, actor known for the role of Big Al in the 1993 film Blood In Blood Out. * Wayne Flynt, former history professor and author * Lee Gates (1937–2020), blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter * Cyrus Harris (1817–1888,

), politician; he was among the Chickasaw removed to Indian Territory. * Mac Huddleston, member of the Mississippi House of Representatives from 2008 to 2023 * Kent Hull, former NFL

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

center; from Pontotoc * Cowan F. "Bubba" Hyde (born 1908),

Negro league baseball The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be used narrowly for the seven relativel ...

player who played for the Birmingham Black Barons * William H. Inzer, 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 1965 to 1978 * Cordell Jackson, guitarist; born in Pontotoc * Estes C. McDaniel, member of the Mississippi House of Representatives from 1964 to 1972 * Max Palmer, professional wrestler; from Pontotoc * Romie J. Palmer, Illinois jurist and legislator; born in Pontotoc * Steve Pegues, former

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 ...

player; from Pontotoc * R. C. Pitts, basketball player who played in the

1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and officially branded as London 1948, were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus cau ...

* James L. Roberts Jr., justice of the Supreme Court of Mississippi from 1992 to 1999 * Kermit Scott, professor of philosophy, once presumed to be the namesake of Kermit the Frog * Wesley Walls, former

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, 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 ...

tight end * Jim Weatherly, singer, songwriter and musician * Elizabeth H. West (born 1873), librarian and archivist *

Roger Wicker Roger Frederick Wicker (born July 5, 1951) is an American politician, attorney, and United States Air Force, Air Force veteran serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Mississi ...

, U.S. Senator from Mississippi * Thomas Hickman Williams, U.S. Senator from 1838 to 1839 * Thomas J. Word, member of the United States House of Representatives from 1838 to 1839 * Daniel W. Wright, justice of the Supreme Court of Mississippi from 1832 to 1838

References

External links

Old Pontotoc Post Office
{{authority control Cities in Mississippi Cities in Pontotoc County, Mississippi County seats in Mississippi Cities in Tupelo micropolitan area Mississippi placenames of Native American origin