Cleveland is a city in Bolivar County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 13,841 at the 2000 census.

It is best known as the home of Delta State University. In addition, Cleveland has a fairly large commercial economy, with numerous restaurants, stores, and services along U.S. Highway 61. The city is served by a 5-day-a-week newspaper called The Bolivar Commercial. Cleveland is one of the two county seats (the other being Rosedale) of Bolivar County, Mississippi, which was named for the South American liberator Simon Bolivar.

History

Named after President Grover Cleveland, the town began formation in 1869 as people moved inland from the Mississippi River. The Louisville, New Orleans & Texas Railroad ran through the town and a portion of the railroad remains there today. Early records show the community was called Fontaine in 1884 and at some point Coleman's Station. Moses W. Coleman built the first home on the bayou in the area. In 1885, it was officially named Sims after Rueben T. Sim, who owned part of the land on which the town stood. The village of Cleveland was chartered on March 25, 1886, and the United States Post Office recognized the town as such on August 5, 1887. It was Sims' son, B.C. Sims, who was responsible for the name change to Cleveland.

Geography

Cleveland is located at (33.742027, -90.726548).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 7.3 square miles (18.9 km²).7.3 square miles (18.9 km²) of it is land and none of it is covered by water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 13,841 people, 4,718 households, and 3,132 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,892.2 people per square mile (731.1/km²). There were 4,988 housing units at an average density of 681.9/sq mi (263.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 49.90% White, 48.26% African American, 0.12% Native American, 0.99% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.25% from other races, and 0.46% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.94% of the population.

There were 4,718 households out of which 31.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.9% were married couples living together, 21.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.6% were non-families. 27.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.21.

In the city the population was spread out with 24.2% under the age of 18, 20.2% from 18 to 24, 24.4% from 25 to 44, 19.7% from 45 to 64, and 11.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 83.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $29,466, and the median income for a family was $40,242. Males had a median income of $32,979 versus $23,643 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,585. About 18.1% of families and 25.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.4% of those under age 18 and 28.8% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The City of Cleveland is served by the Cleveland School District.

Health care

• Bolivar Medical Center

Police Department

The city of Cleveland is served and protected by the Cleveland Police Department and is located on South Sharpe Avenue. Currently, forty-five people are employed by the department. Of the forty-five, thirty-nine are sworn police officers and six civilians serve in a support role. Sworn officers average out to one officer per three-hundred fifty-seven citizens.

Famous residents

• Bobby Bradford (jazz trumpeter, b. 1934)
• Floyd "Pork Chop" Womack (National Football League football player, b. 1978)
• Ken Lucas (NFL football player, b. 1979)
• Dave "Boo" Ferriss (1945 American League rookie of the year, famed college baseball coach)
• Floyd Shaman (sculptor, b. 1935)
• Margaret Wade (women's basketball coach for whom national trophy is named)
• Amzie Moore (well-known civil rights activist for whom public park is named)

Lucy Somerville Howorth (pioneering feminist and lawyer who served on the U.S. War Claims Commission). Known as "Judge Lucy"

Wirt Williams (journalist and novelist whose writing was nominated on three separate occasions for Pulitzer prizes - twice for novels and once for journalistic work)

David Bowen, who served five terms in Congress, grew up in Cleveland, Miss. He was a member of the Harvard University class of 1954.

Georgia Lee Tatum, author of pathbreaking monograph Disloyalty in the Confederacy (which dealt with differences of opinion among Southerners during the Civil War). Ms. Tatum taught at Delta State Teachers College in Cleveland, which is now Delta State University. Cain-Tatum Hall, a women's dorm, is partly named for her.

Historic Marker

A marker was placed in Cleveland designating the nearby Dockery Plantation, built by Will Dockery, as a site on the Mississippi Blues Trail is an acknowledgment of the important contribution of the plantation to the development of the blues in Mississippi.

Governor Haley Barbour stated

Trivia

• Cleveland, MS was recognized as one of the best "100 small towns in America".

References

External links

• Cleveland, Mississippi Chamber of Commerce
• Delta News Online: Hometown News For the Mississippi Delta
• Mississippi Teacher Corps
• History of Cleveland's Jewish community (from the Institute of Southern Jewish Life)
• Delta K-9 Search and Rescue Unit