Terry is a town in Hinds County

Hinds County, Mississippi

As of the census of 2000, there were 250,800 people, 91,030 households, and 62,355 families residing in the county. The population density was 288 people per square mile . There were 100,287 housing units at an average density of 115 per square mile...

, Mississippi

Mississippi

Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The population was 664 at the 2000 census. It is located near Interstate 55

Interstate 55

Interstate 55 is an Interstate Highway in the central United States. Its odd number indicates that it is a north–south Interstate Highway. I-55 goes from LaPlace, Louisiana at Interstate 10 to Chicago at U.S. Route 41 , at McCormick Place. A common nickname for the highway is "double...

, about 15 miles southwest of Jackson, Mississippi

Jackson, Mississippi

Jackson is the capital and the most populous city of the US state of Mississippi. It is one of two county seats of Hinds County ,. The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census...

 and located in Supervisors District Five of Hinds County. The town is part of the Jackson Metropolitan Statistical Area

Jackson metropolitan area

The Jackson Metropolitan Statistical Area is a metropolitan area in the central region of the U.S. state of Mississippi that covers five counties: Copiah, Hinds, Madison, Rankin, and Simpson. As of the 2000 census, the MSA had a population of 497,197...

.

History

The area to become known as "Terry" was first settled in 1811 by settlers from Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

. In 1867, the town of Terry was established when the railroad was built through the area. For a number of years, Terry was the home of Mississippi governor Albert G. Brown

Albert G. Brown

Albert Gallatin Brown was Governor of Mississippi from 1844 to 1848 and a United States Senator from Mississippi from 1854 through 1861. Brown attended Mississippi College. He was a Democrat....

. The town of Terry, originally known as Dry Grove, changed its name in honor of W. D. Terry, whose land the town was built on. This information comes from the bronze plaque in the town's center at Utica and Cunningham Streets.

Geography

Terry is located at 32°6′5"N 90°17′40"W (32.101443, -90.294572).

According to the United States Census Bureau

United States Census Bureau

The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...

, the town has a total area of 2.3 square miles (6 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

As of the census

Census

A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

of 2000, there were 664 people, 263 households, and 181 families residing in the town. The population density

Population density

Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 287.4 people per square mile (111.0/km²). There were 288 housing units at an average density of 124.7 per square mile (48.1/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 48.80% White, 50.45% African American, and 0.75% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.30% of the population.

There were 263 households out of which 35.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.4% were married couples

Marriage

Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 15.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.8% were non-families. 26.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the town the population was spread out with 27.7% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 28.8% from 25 to 44, 20.6% from 45 to 64, and 15.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 88.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.6 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $30,192, and the median income for a family was $35,875. Males had a median income of $25,781 versus $24,167 for females. The per capita income

Per capita income

Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 for the town was $19,011. About 17.0% of families and 16.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.6% of those under age 18 and 18.5% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The Town of Terry is served by the Hinds County School District

Hinds County School District

The Hinds County School District is a public school district based in Raymond, Mississippi .In addition to Raymond, the district serves the communities of Bolton, Edwards, Learned, Terry, Utica, and a portion of Byram.-Elementary/Middle Schools:...

 and is home to Terry High School. Pharmistist J. W. Combs was the president of the board of trustees for many years.

The football field at the high school is named after B. C. Lee.

Newspapers

The Terry Mississippi Magazine is an online magazine and newspaper about bringing local news, events, opinions, and reviews in Terry and the surrounding area. This includes the 39170 zip code and all mailing addresses for Terry, MS, Hinds County and the city of Terry, MS. It is at http://www.theterrymsmagazine.co.cc

Notable natives

Terry is the birthplace of influential blues musician Tommy Johnson, who had claimed to have sold his soul to the devil at a secluded Mississippi crossroads in exchange for fame and fortune, a legend that was later popularized by its attribution to bluesman Robert Johnson.

Other persons of note who have lived in Terry include author Rick Bass, former chairman of the Mississippi Democratic Party Rickey Cole, and Bobby DeLaughter

Bobby DeLaughter

Robert "Bobby" DeLaughter is an American Mississippi state prosecutor, judge, and author. He is notable for prosecuting and securing the conviction in 1994 of Byron De La Beckwith, charged with the murder of the civil rights leader Medgar Evers on June 12, 1963...

, prosecutor in the Byron De La Beckwith

Byron De La Beckwith

Byron De La Beckwith, Jr. was an American white supremacist and Klansman from Greenwood, Mississippi who was convicted in the 1994 state trial of assassinating the civil rights leader Medgar Evers on June 12, 1963....

 murder trial.

R.B. Walden, an attorney who served as director of the Louisiana Department of Hospitals and the mayor of Winnsboro

Winnsboro, Louisiana

Winnsboro is a city in and the parish seat of Franklin Parish, Louisiana, United States. As of July 2009, the estimated city population was 4,377...

, Louisiana

Louisiana

Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...

, from 1926–1934, was born in Terry in 1901.

Churches

There are several church buildings of note in Terry. The First Baptist Church (formerly Terry Baptist Church) is the largest of the houses of worship. The Episcopal Church of the Good Shepard is located near where the town's water tower once stood. This building was a hospital during the Civil War. A grave lies behind the church. It supposedly belongs to a Gypsy girl who fell out of her wagon when the Gypsies were not allowed to drive through the middle of town.

One former church which has closed but served the town for many years is the Terry United Methodist Church.

A smaller church, located in the middle of a neighborhood, is known as Little Bethel C.M.E. Church. The pastor is Pastor Eugene McLamore and the superintendent is Nathan Slater.

Elected Officials

Roderick "Rod" Nicholson is the current mayor. The Board of Aldermen includes Virginia Smith Bailey, Joseph Kendrick, Elzena Kitchens Johnson, Greg Moore, and Doris Young. These town officers are elected every four years in non-partisan elections, that is they are independent of any party labels.

Three Hinds County officials are from the Terry area: George S. Smith (supervisor for District Five), Clyde Chapman (Justice Court Judge for District Five), and Bennie Buckner (Constable for District Five).

The state senator representing the district that includes Terry is David Blount. Terry is represented by both Jim Ellington and Greggory Holloway in the state House of Representatives.