Walls, Mississippi
Encyclopedia
Walls, is a village located in Northern DeSoto County, Mississippi
DeSoto County, Mississippi
-Demographics:As of the census of 2005 estimate, there were 137,004 people, 38,792 households, and 30,102 families residing in the county. The population density was 224 people per square mile . There were 40,795 housing units at an average density of 85 per square mile...
near the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
, part of the larger region known as "The Delta
Mississippi Delta
The Mississippi Delta is the distinctive northwest section of the U.S. state of Mississippi that lies between the Mississippi and Yazoo Rivers. The region has been called "The Most Southern Place on Earth" because of its unique racial, cultural, and economic history...
", and known for its rich, dark soil.
History
A relatively young community, Walls was originally named Alpika, an old ChickasawChickasaw
The Chickasaw are Native American people originally from the region that would become the Southeastern United States...
Indian word. The name was changed to Walls in 1906.
Walls was named after Captain June Walls, who served in the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. Captain Walls was an early settler and merchant of the region in the 1880s.
A Mississippian culture
Mississippian culture
The Mississippian culture was a mound-building Native American culture that flourished in what is now the Midwestern, Eastern, and Southeastern United States from approximately 800 CE to 1500 CE, varying regionally....
village site near Walls, the Walls Site, gives its name to the Walls Phase
Walls Phase
The Walls Phase is an archaeological phase in southwestern Tennessee and northwestern Mississippi of the Late Mississippian culture. Chucalissa Indian Village is a Walls Phase mound and plaza complex located on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River. Other contemporaneous groups in the area...
, the last prehistoric cultural expression before European contact. The historic trail of Hernando de Soto
Hernando de Soto (explorer)
Hernando de Soto was a Spanish explorer and conquistador who, while leading the first European expedition deep into the territory of the modern-day United States, was the first European documented to have crossed the Mississippi River....
leads through DeSoto County to near Walls.
Today, Walls is a community rich in agriculture. Cotton, soybeans, rice and corn are planted each spring. The railroad played a vital part in the growth of the area in the early to mid 1900s. The mechanical revolution of the 1950s and 1960s changed Walls, as well as many other Delta communities.
Memphis Minnie
Memphis Minnie was an American blues guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. She was the only female blues artist considered a match to male contemporaries as both a singer and an instrumentalist.-Career:...
, who came from Algiers, Louisiana to play the Memphis
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
Beale Street
Beale Street
Beale Street is a street in Downtown Memphis, Tennessee, which runs from the Mississippi River to East Street, a distance of approximately . It is a significant location in the city's history, as well as in the history of the blues. Today, the blues clubs and restaurants that line Beale Street are...
circuit in 1904. She won top female vocalist in the first Blues Unlimited Readers' Poll in 1973. In 1980, she was elected to the Hall of Fame at the inaugural W.C. Handy Awards. Memphis Minnie died August 6, 1973, and is buried in New Hope Cemetery in Walls. Her headstone was made possible by contributions from Bonnie Raitt
Bonnie Raitt
Bonnie Lynn Raitt is an American blues singer-songwriter and a renowned slide guitar player. During the 1970s, Raitt released a series of acclaimed roots-influenced albums which incorporated elements of blues, rock, folk and country, but she is perhaps best known for her more commercially...
and John Fogerty
John Fogerty
John Cameron Fogerty is an American rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist, best known for his time with the swamp rock/roots rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival and as a #1 solo recording artist. Fogerty has a rare distinction of being named on Rolling Stone magazine's list of 100 Greatest...
.
A significant part of the community is the Sacred Heart League, operator of the Sacred Heart School in Walls. The league raised funds through the sale of a famous statue of Jesus Christ. In the 1960s, the statue could be found on the dashboards of vehicles across America.
The town of Walls, which has been a community since the early 1900s, was connected to the tiny village of Memphis
Memphis, Mississippi
Memphis was a village in DeSoto County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 87 at the 2000 census. In 2004, the village of Memphis officially became part of the town of Walls.Population in July 2007: 119.Males: 54 Females: 65...
which was incorporated in the early 1970s and was located just south of the Walls community. In 2003/2004, the village of Memphis was annexed, thereby giving the town of Walls the official status of a municipality. Today Walls is experiencing a population and economic resurgence under the leadership of the Mayor and Board of Aldermen.
Neighboring cities
- MemphisMemphis, TennesseeMemphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
, TennesseeTennesseeTennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area... - Horn LakeHorn Lake, MississippiHorn Lake is a city in DeSoto County, Mississippi, United States. Horn Lake is a suburb of Memphis, Tennessee, which is located just a few miles to the north. As of the 2000 U.S...
- Tunica Resorts
- LynchburgLynchburg, MississippiLynchburg is a census-designated place in DeSoto County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 2,959 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Lynchburg is located at ....
Secondary Schools
- Lake Cormorant Middle School
- Lake Cormorant High School (opening fall 2010)
Riverbend Crossing Development
Planned to include a 200 acre (0.809372 km²) MGM entertainment district, three hotels, four golf courses, a 600 acres (2.4 km²) lake, 6,750 single family houses and 2,750 multi-family housing units including townhouses, apartments and condominiums; and a 300 acres (1.2 km²) technology/light industrial park.Leatherman Development
The Leatherman family has begun to develop industrial, commercial and residential projects in the middle of Walls. The first industrial tenant, Sigma Supply Co. is moving into a new 254000 square feet (23,597.4 m²) building off US 61 and Star Landing Road in the Leatherman 325 acres (1.3 km²) industrial park. Sigma Supply is a distributor of industrial and packaging equipment and facilities supplies. The 1900 acres (7.7 km²) Leatherman Planned Unit Development in Walls also touts a new elementary school with 900 students, which is scheduled to open in August 2008, joining Lake Cormorant middle school that currently has 700 students. A high school is scheduled to open in 2009. A residential development of 117 single-family homes by Sweeney Bronze LLC , a joint venture between developers Jeff Bronze and Jeff Sweeney is under way and will be open in the fall of 2007. The homes will range in price from around $160,000 to $200,000 and will be located off Star Landing Road adjoining Lake Cormorant Elementary.[2]External links
- Town of Walls, Official Website
- Walls Police Department, Official Website
- Walls Fire Dept, Official Website
- DeSoto County Schools
- DeSoto County website