Category Archives: Historic Downtowns

Perkins-Timberlake on the Decatur Square

Posted on December 1, 2018 by

Back in 1897, J. J. Perkins opened his first dry goods store on the Decatur, Texas square.  Known as The Red Store, Perkins ‘Shouted the glad tidings’ in the Decatur Wise County Messenger: The reign of High Prices is over. … Continue reading →

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Keesler Bridge, Greenwood

Posted on September 8, 2018 by

Keesler Bridge spans the Yazoo River from Fulton Street on the south side of the river to Grand Boulevard on the north side.  As part of his January-October 1986 survey of historic bridges in Mississippi, Jack D. Elliott, Jr. surveyed … Continue reading →

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J. Riely Gordon’s Wise County, Texas Courthouse

Posted on August 5, 2018 by

J. Riely Gordon’s 1895-1897 courthouse in Decatur replaced one that burned in 1895.  Fire had also consumed the 1881 courthouse and it burned to the ground destroying all records.  Both fires were thought to be arson.  Of the 1881 fire, … Continue reading →

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Majestic Theatre of Decatur TX

Posted on July 27, 2018 by

Decatur, TX has a great town square–one of my favorite things in visiting new places.  I actually stopped off to photograph the New Deal post office and got caught up on the beautiful square.  As I was heading back to … Continue reading →

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Former First National Bank of Itta Bena

Posted on July 17, 2018 by

William Gatlin and Susan Tietz (2009) completed the nomination form for the Itta Bena Historic District, National Register of Historic Places, and indicated the former First National Bank Building would be among buildings eligible on its own.  The 1918-1919 Neo-Classical … Continue reading →

Posted in Bank buildings, Historic Downtowns, Mississippi Delta Towns, Neo-Classical | Tagged , , | 9 Comments

Morrow Grocery: Meats Feeds

Posted on July 10, 2018 by

Morrow Grocery on Main Street, Graford, Texas, was established in 1903 according to their Facebook page.  They operated a meat market in conjunction with the grocery store–you know, the way we bought meat before butchers were phased out of many … Continue reading →

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First National Bank of Graford

Posted on July 9, 2018 by

Graford is a small town in Palo Pinto County, Texas, with a estimated current population of 601 persons.  The town name comes from Graham and Weatherford–a fact I never knew before today (Handbook of Texas Online, Claudia Hazlewood, “GRAFORD, TX,” … Continue reading →

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“Old” Itta Bena Post Office

Posted on May 13, 2018 by

Which building do you think was the post office?  According to the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, the “old post office” was 110 E. Humphreys Street, the red brick, two-story building at the right. They give the date as … Continue reading →

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Corner of Humphreys and Schley

Posted on May 11, 2018 by

The corner of Humphreys and Schley streets in Itta Bena looks like many of the small towns in the Delta, including the “unsympathetic remodel” of storefronts.  Imagine in 1902, and the excitement that electric lights brought to this street!  On … Continue reading →

Posted in Historic Downtowns, Ironwork, Mississippi Delta Towns | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Former Bank of Itta Bena

Posted on May 9, 2018 by

The Bank of Itta Bena was chartered by Governor Longino in 1900 with a capital stock of $25,000 (Vicksburg Herald, 07 Jun 1900, p. 2).  In 1902, the bank let a contract for a $10,000 building “to be completed by fall” … Continue reading →

Posted in Bank buildings, City Hall buildings, Historic Downtowns, Mississippi, Mississippi Delta Towns | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments