Place // Tupelo, MS

At long last, my ship has struck shore at the Golden Coast. It was an arduous journey, not only because of the time and mental stamina required to drive 2300 miles over four days, but also because it was hot as blue blazes pretty much everywhere we went. Note to self: do NOT drive through Arkansas in the middle of August ever again.

But now that I'm here, it's time to reflect. Most of the following posts will be brief portraits of places and towns that inspired me, or at least gave me some reason to stop and think, or wander about, so enjoy!

[Downtown Tupelo. Check the extreme width of the main street.]

>Tupelo, Mississippi

Founded: 1870

Population: 34,000 (inc) 134,000 (metro)

Claim to Fame: Birthplace of Elvis Presley. Long Live the King, baby...

The story of Tupelo is an interesting case of one of the first truly modern municipalities established in the Deep South. Founded in 1870, Tupelo, like most Southern towns, was extremely slow to industrialize after the Civil War and consequently sparsely populated until 1934 when it became the first city electrified by the Tennessee Valley Authority, prompting President Roosevelt to dub it "The First TVA City." It evokes the same hospitality and gentility as Southern towns of similar stature, but Tupelo's modern roots reveal themselves in its urban features.

The initial plan obviously caters to the newly-popular automobile culture; the primary thoroughfare is 6 lanes across - 4 for traffic, 2 for parking - and approx. 12' wide sidewalks provide an almost excessive buffer for the storefronts against the cars. Though some homes from the initial settlement survive, most of the primary commercial/civic buildings - Fire Station No. 1, the city high school, theater, etc. - date from 1925 and later, which coincides with the TVA intervention. Many are designed in the Art Deco style - also popular in the 1920s and 30s. Plantation homes and other iconic examples of Antebellum architecture that appear in older, more traditional Southern cities like Savannah, Madison, Augusta, or Charleston, do not exist in Tupelo.

And yet, the town still retains the down-home, laid-back Southern vibe that makes the region so unique and wonderful. Excepting the brief flurry of activity brought about by Federal involvement, the town has been slow to develop and slow to grow, typical of the pace of Southern life. It is a snapshot of the earliest period of American Modernism.

Sweet tea, anyone?

[Lyric Theater.]

[Vintage home, early modern.]

[Tupelo Police Dept.]

[Fire Station No. 1. Art Deco Pilaster Caps.]

[Milam High School, ca. 1928. Architect - Ben Price.]