Mississippi Highway 27 (MS 27) is a

state highway A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either Route number, numbered or maintained by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered ...

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

. It runs from south to north for across the western and south-central parts of the state, serving 5 counties: Walthall,

Lawrence Lawrence may refer to: Education Colleges and universities * Lawrence Technological University, a university in Southfield, Michigan, United States * Lawrence University, a liberal arts university in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States Preparator ...

, Copiah,

Hinds Hinds may refer to: Places *Hinds, New Zealand, a small town *Hinds County, Mississippi, a US county *Hinds Lake, a lake in Minnesota *Hinds River, a river that flows through Hinds, New Zealand Other * A plural of deer, especially female deer (do ...

, and

Warren Warren most commonly refers to: * Warren (burrow), a network dug by rabbits * Warren (name), a given name and a surname, including lists of persons so named Warren may also refer to: Places Australia * Warren (biogeographic region) * War ...

. The segment between Vicksburg and Crystal Springs is known vernacularly as the " Utica cutoff" because it facilitates a circumvention of

Jackson Jackson may refer to: Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson South, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson oil field in Durham, ...

for

I-20 I20, I 20 or I-20 may refer to: * Interstate 20, a highway in the southeastern United States * I-20 (form), a United States government document that provides supporting information for the issuance of a student visa or change of status * I-20 (rap ...

I-55 Interstate 55 (I-55) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route, connecting the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes. The ...

traffic flowing between Vicksburg and

Hammond Hammond may refer to: People * Hammond Innes (1913–1998), English novelist * Hammond (surname) * Justice Hammond (disambiguation) Places Antarctica * Hammond Glacier, Antarctica Australia *Hammond, South Australia, a small settlement in Sout ...

Route description

MS 27 begins in Walthall County at the

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

state line along the banks of the

Bogue Chitto River The Bogue Chitto River is a stream in the U.S. states of Louisiana and Mississippi. It is a tributary of the Pearl River. The river passes through the Bogue Chitto State Park in Washington Parish, Louisiana. ''Bogue Chitto'' is a name deriv ...

, with the road continuing south toward the town of Franklinton as

Louisiana Highway 25 Louisiana Highway 25 (LA 25) is a state highway located in southeastern Louisiana. It runs in a north–south direction from U.S. Highway 190 (US 190) in Covington to the Mississippi state line north of Warnerton. The route exten ...

(LA 25). It heads northeast as a two-lane highway to pull away from the Bogue Chitto River as it travels through farmland for several miles, passing through the community of Lexie, before entering the

Tylertown Tylertown is a town in and the county seat of Walthall County, Mississippi, United States. Its population was 1,515 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is approximately fifty-five miles southwest from the Hattiesburg metropolitan ...

city limits. The highway enters town along Franklinton Street, passing by the city cemetery and through neighborhoods before entering downtown, where it has an intersection with MS 48/ MS 198 (Beulah Avenue). MS 27 heads north from this intersection as Ball Avenue, which quickly becomes Tyler Avenue as it leaves downtown and re-enters neighborhoods. The highway has an intersection with MS 583 (Tyler Avenue), becoming Union Road before having an intersection with

US 98 U.S. Route 98 (US 98) is an east–west United States Highway in the Southeastern United States that runs from western Mississippi to southern Florida. It was established in 1933 as a route between Pensacola, Florida, Pensacola and Apalachicola, ...

and leaving Tylertown. MS 27 travels north through mostly wooded areas for the next several miles, passing through the community of

Salem Salem may refer to: Places Canada * Salem, Ontario, various places Germany * Salem, Baden-Württemberg, a municipality in the Bodensee district ** Salem Abbey (Reichskloster Salem), a monastery * Salem, Schleswig-Holstein Israel * Salem (B ...

before entering Lawrence County. MS 27 has an intersection with the western section of MS 44 near the community of

Topeka Topeka ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Shawnee County, Kansas, Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, in northeaste ...

before traveling through remote woodlands for several miles to enter the

Monticello Monticello ( ) was the primary residence and plantation of Thomas Jefferson, a Founding Father, author of the Declaration of Independence, and the third president of the United States. Jefferson began designing Monticello after inheriting l ...

city limits, with MS 27 completely bypassing the town along its western side, having an intersection with MS 184 (W Broad Street), as well as an interchange with

US 84 U.S. Route 84 (US 84) is an east–westUS 84 was signed north-south in parts of Colorado and New Mexico. United States Numbered Highway that started as a short Georgia–Alabama route in the original 1926 scheme. Later, in 1941, it ha ...

. The highway now leaves Monticello as it heads north through rural farmland and woodlands parallel to the

Pearl River The Pearl River (, or ) is an extensive river system in southern China. "Pearl River" is often also used as a catch-all for the watersheds of the Pearl tributaries within Guangdong, specifically the Xi ('west'), Bei ('north'), and Dong ( ...

for the next several miles, with it traveling through the communities of

Rosella Rosellas are in a genus that consists of six species and nineteen subspecies. These colourful parrots from Australia are in the genus ''Platycercus''. ''Platycercus'' means "broad-tailed" or "flat-tailed", reflecting a feature common to the ...

(where it has an intersection with N.A. Sandifer Highway and crosses the Fair River), Wanilla (where it has an intersection with unsigned MS 904/Smith Ferry Road), and Oma before entering

Copiah County Copiah County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 28,368. The county seat is Hazlehurst, Mississippi, Hazlehurst. With an eastern bo ...

. MS 27 travels through woodlands as it passes through the communities of Cowanville and Rockport, where it has intersections with both MS 478 and MS 472, before passing through the town of Georgetown, where it has an intersection with MS 28. The highway curves northwest as it passes through the community of Hopewell, where it pulls away from the Pearl River, before traveling along the northern edge of the Crystal Springs city limits, where it temporarily widens to a four-lane divided highway, has an intersection with MS 801 and an extremely short concurrency (overlap) with

US 51 U.S. Route 51 or U.S. Highway 51 (US 51) is a major south–north United States highway that extends from the western suburbs of New Orleans, Louisiana, to within of the Wisconsin–Michigan state line. As most of the United States Numbered Hi ...

, as well as an interchange with

(Exit 72). MS 27 narrows back down to two-lanes as it leaves the Crystal Springs area and travels northwest through remote woodlands for several miles to enter

Hinds County Hinds County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. With its county seats (Raymond, Mississippi, Raymond and the state's capital, Jackson, Mississippi, Jackson), Hinds is the most populous county in Missis ...

a few miles south of Dabney Crossroads. MS 27 travels west through a mix of farmland and wooded areas for several miles to the town of Utica, which it bypasses along its eastern side via a concurrency with MS 18. The highway leaves Utica and travels northwest through mostly wooded terrain for the next several miles to have an interchange with the

Natchez Trace Parkway The Natchez Trace Parkway is a limited-access national parkway in the Southeastern United States that commemorates the historic Natchez Trace and preserves sections of that original trail. Its central feature is a two-lane road that extends 44 ...

before crossing the Big Black River into Warren County. MS 27 continues through woodlands to travel through the suburb of

Beechwood Beechwood may refer to: Plants * Beech wood, the wood from any of ten species of beech trees * Malay beechwood, tree ''Gmelina arborea'', and its wood * Willow beechwood '' Faurea saligna'', and its wood Places Canada * Beechwood, Ontario ...

, where it passes by the Vicksburg campus of

Hinds Community College Hinds Community College is a public community college with its main campus in Raymond, Mississippi, United States and branches in Jackson, Pearl, Utica, and Vicksburg. The Hinds Community College District includes the counties of Hinds, Cla ...

and widens to a four-lane undivided highway, before entering a business district and the Vicksburg city limits at an intersection with MS 822 (Old U.S. 80). MS 27 comes to an end shortly thereafter at a large interchange with

US 80 U.S. Route 80 or U.S. Highway 80 (US 80) is a major east–west United States Numbered Highway in the Southern United States, much of which was once part of the early auto trail known as the Dixie Overland Highway. As the "0" in the ...

US 61 U.S. Route 61 or U.S. Highway 61 (U.S. 61) is a major United States highway that extends between New Orleans, Louisiana and the city of Wyoming, Minnesota. The highway generally follows the course of the Mississippi River and is designat ...

(Exit 5 A/B), with the road continuing north as northbound US 61.

Major intersections

References

External links

*{{commons category-inline
Magnolia Meanderings
027 Transportation in Walthall County, Mississippi Transportation in Lawrence County, Mississippi Transportation in Copiah County, Mississippi Transportation in Hinds County, Mississippi Transportation in Warren County, Mississippi