Blue Mountain is a village in Tippah County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 926 at the 2023 census.

History

Blue Mountain is rooted in the community that developed around Blue Mountain Christian University, which was founded in 1873. The Town of Blue Mountain was incorporated in 1877. The name refers to the blueish morning hue of the surrounding hills.

Geography

Blue Mountain lies in southwestern Tippah County at the intersection of

Mississippi Highway 2 Mississippi Highway 2 (MS 2) is a designation for two highways in northern Mississippi. The westernmost segment starts at MS 5 in Hickory Flat, and ends at MS 15 and MS 368 in Blue Mountain. The eastern segment starts at MS 4 near Ripley ...

and

Mississippi Highway 15 Mississippi Highway 15 (MS 15) is a state highway in Mississippi. At almost , it is the longest highway in the Mississippi Highway System. MS 15 is divided into two sections due to a large gap between Stone County and Perry County. The south ...

. The latter highway connects the town with Ripley to the northeast and New Albany to the south, while the former highway connects the town with Hickory Flat to the west. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , all land.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 670 people, 241 households, and 161 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 268 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 82.84%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 13.73%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.45% Native American, 0.45% Asian, 1.94% from other races, and 0.60% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 3.73% of the population. There were 241 households, out of which 33.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.0% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 12.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.8% were non-families. 28.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.00. In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.2% under the age of 18, 21.0% from 18 to 24, 22.7% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 12.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females, there were 78.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 76.4 males. The median income for a household in the town was $27,969, and the median income for a family was $40,833. Males had a median income of $28,661 versus $23,750 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $12,870. About 17.3% of families and 20.6% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 24.6% of those under age 18 and 25.3% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The Town of Blue Mountain is served by the

South Tippah School District The South Tippah School District is a public school district based in Ripley, Mississippi (USA). In addition to Ripley, the district also serves the towns of Dumas and Blue Mountain as well as rural areas in southern Tippah County. Schools ...

.
Text list
/ref> Blue Mountain Christian University, a private liberal arts college supported by the Mississippi Baptist Convention is located there.

Cultural References

Blue Mountain is the town where the character of Amanda Wingfield in

Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the three ...

' ''

The Glass Menagerie ''The Glass Menagerie'' is a memory play by Tennessee Williams that premiered in 1944 and catapulted Williams from obscurity to fame. The play has strong autobiographical elements, featuring characters based on its author, his histrionic mo ...

'' recalls growing up.

References

External links

* {{authority control Towns in Tippah County, Mississippi Towns in Mississippi