Austin, Mississippi

Austin, Mississippi
Unincorporated community
Austin, Mississippi
Austin, Mississippi
Coordinates: 34°38′26″N 90°26′57″W / 34.64056°N 90.44917°W / 34.64056; -90.44917Coordinates: 34°38′26″N 90°26′57″W / 34.64056°N 90.44917°W / 34.64056; -90.44917
Country United States
State Mississippi
County Tunica
Elevation 197 ft (60 m)
Time zone Central (CST) (UTC-6)
 • Summer (DST) CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code 38676
GNIS feature ID 666428

Austin is an unincorporated community in Tunica County, Mississippi.[1]

Once a thriving shipping port on the Mississippi River, Austin served as county seat from 1847 to 1888. Earlier county seats were Commerce and Peyton.[2][3]

History

Austin was founded in 1847 and named for Austin Miller, who donation land on which the town and a courthouse were built.[3]

Austin was burned in 1863 by Union soldiers of the Mississippi Marine Brigade under the command of Alfred W. Ellet. Two houses were spared.[4]

The town rebuilt and was incorporated in 1871, though it is no longer incorporated.[3]

In 1884, the area was flooded when a nearby levee broke. When waters receded, a large sandbar had been left between the town and the Mississippi River, and steamboats could no longer land. The completion of the Louisville, New Orleans and Texas Railway 3 mi (4.8 km) east of Austin in the late 1880s further contributed to its isolation.

In 1888, the county seat was moved to Tunica, a more accessible location.[3]

The construction of the Hardin Cutoff in 1942, which created Tunica Lake, moved the Mississippi River an additional 7 mi (11 km) west of Austin.[5]

Notable person

References

  1. ↑ "Austin". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey.
  2. ↑ Ensign, Bridgman & Fanning's Lake and River Guide: Being a Traveler's Companion to the Cities, Towns, and Villages on the Western Waters of the United States. Ensign, Bridgman & Fanning. 1856.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Communities of Tunica County, Mississippi". MSGenWeb. Retrieved December 2013. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  4. ↑ Jones, Terry L. (2002). Historical Dictionary of the Civil War. Scarecrow Press.
  5. ↑ Bragg, Marion (1977). "Historic Names and Places on the Lower Mississippi River" (PDF). Mississippi River Commission. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-02-24.
  6. ↑ "Sport McAllister". BaseballReference.com. Retrieved December 2013. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
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