I’ve never been to Amite County, Mississippi. The closest I’ve been is about 120 miles away while driving on Interstate-10 to New Orleans, and with any luck, I’ll never go. The County Seat is Liberty, with a population of about 700. Gloster is the largest town wholly within the county, with a population of around 1,200. Centreville is split between Amite County and Wilkinson County, and roughly 1,600 people live there. The entire County had 12,451 people at last count, and it isn’t a fit place to live.
Amite County is older, poorer, and less densely populated than Mississippi and the U.S. as a whole. One could say the County has retained its rural character and heritage. But in a county with 14 recorded lynchings, I don’t think that’s a plus. Rev. Isaac Simmons was lynched for his land in 1944. The white men who committed the lynching took possession of the land. …
