Bogue Chitto, Lincoln County, Mississippi

For Bogue Chitto in Neshoba/Kemper county, see Bogue Chitto, Mississippi.

Bogue Chitto is an unincorporated community in Lincoln County, Mississippi. Bogue Chitto is the only municipal hamlet in the state of Mississippi.[1] The population at the last census was 522.

Geography

Bogue Chitto is located at 31°26'19.00"N 90°27'8.00"W. It is situated to the east of U.S. Route 51 and Interstate 55.

Demographics

As of the 2010 census, the population was 522. White: 234 (44.83%) Black: 280 (53.64%) Hispanic: 6 (1.15%) Asian: 1 (0.19%) Native (American Indian, Alaska Native, Hawaiian Native, etc.): 0 (0.00%) One Race, Other: 3 (0.57%) Two or More Races: 4 (0.77%)

History

Named for the nearby river, the Bogue Chitto River. Bogue Chitto derives from "bok chito", meaning big creek in Choctaw.[2] The phrase is used to refer to clear, swift-flowing rivers as opposed to "hatchie" which refers to a sluggish, broad, deep river. The pronunciation is close to the original Choctaw. It should be pronounced like bow-guh chit-uh.[2]

The following documentation was produced by the Bicentennial Community on August 17, 1976.

Bogue Chitto is a rural village, located some 67 miles (108 km) south of Jackson, Mississippi, on Highway 51. It was settled before the coming of the New Orleans, Jackson and Great Northern Railroad. The first train came through Bogue Chitto, from New Orleans to Brookhaven, in 1856. Mr. Joseph Hart, Stephen Sasser and T.J. Gill were big landowners along the railroad who wanted the depot on their property. The site was settled when Joseph Hart offered his lumber from his water powered sawmill.

Bogue Chitto was chartered as a village July 3, 1892 and was raised to the status of a town December 12, 1904. J. H. Curtis was the village's first mayor, with B. E. Brister, F. H. McLaurin and W. L. Lewis as aldermen.[3] The first town officials were J. B. Bailey, L. C. Crosby, V. V. Busby, T. S. Heuck, and R. L. Brent. Mr. Leslie Bolian was the last town Mayor and Mr. Sidney B. Spencer last town clerk.

The first known Baptist Church in our post office area was Mt. Moriah, organized in 1821, by John Bryan Hart and others. Mr. J.E. (Dude) Morgan states that his mother walked from Bogue Chitto to Mt. Moriah to church, about 6 miles (9.7 km). The present white Baptist Church was organized in 1885; the Presbyterian Church in 1889 and Methodist Church in 1890. Land for the cemetery was donated by John Z. and Emily Sutton, in a deed dated February 7, 1880. The oldest tombstone is dated 1870. The cemetery association was charted by an act of the City Board on September 3, 1907. All 3 churches used the cemetery as did some residents of Norfield, Mississippi.

The oldest organization in Bogue Chitto is the Masonic Lodge #260 which received its dispensation in 1860 and was chartered January 15, 1866.

The Order of the Eastern Star Chapter #132, was organized in 1915 but lost its charter after a few years. Chapter #263 was organized in 1925.

The Bogue Chitto Garden Club was organized by Mrs. A.W. (Sue) Noland in 1922.

The Chloe Holt Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, was organized in September 1969 by Bonnie L. Cole with 27 charter members.

During the Civil War, "The Bogue Chitto Rifles Company" with Bob Charter, the school teacher, as Captain was formed. Joe Hart and Melt Brister served as first and second lieutenants.

Although Bogue Chitto is no longer the boom-town of the early 20th century, it still has a school, several churches, truck stop, post office, restaurant, several stores, and a volunteer fire department.

From the public records of the State of MS:

Bogue Chitto, MS was approved as a municipal territory on March 18, 1871, and whose boundaries were later amended by act of the legislature on February 25, 1882. That on June 8, 1944, the Town of Bogue Chitto was abolished as a municipal corporation by proclamation of Governor Thomas Bailey.

That on April 3, 2009, a Petition was filed pursuant to an Act of the 2009 Mississippi Legislature to grant Bogue Chitto the status of a Hamlet. After approval by the Lincoln Board of Supervisors, Bogue Chitto in Lincoln County became Mississippi's first previously incorporated area to receive the status of a Hamlet.

Education

Bogue Chitto is part of the Lincoln County School District. The Bogue Chitto Attendance Center serves area students in grades K-12. The community's first school was built in 1924. The original Art Deco style building was demolished in 2003 by Jackson Salvage Company.

References

  1. ↑ "Bogue Chitto Gets Grant for Street Work". The Daily Leader. 21 February 2012.
  2. 1 2 Baca, Keith (2007-06-01). Native American place names in Mississippi. University Press of Mississippi. p. 10. ISBN 978-1-57806-955-2.
  3. ↑ James F. Brieger: Hometown, Mississippi, Town Square Books, Inc., Jackson, Miss., 2nd Edn., 1990, pp. 442-443.
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