Quitman is a city in Clarke County, Mississippi, United States, along the Chickasawhay River. The population was 2,323 at the 2010 census. Quitman is the county seat of Clarke County.

History

Quitman was established in 1839 and named as the county seat.

During the Civil War, a hospital built with funds raised in Galveston and Houston, among other places, was built there for the care of Confederate soldiers from Texas. Originally staffed by Louis Bryan with supplies purchased in Mexico, he was joined, and later supplanted, by Enos Bonney, a surgeon from Enterprise, Mississippi, who stayed until the hospital was burned down. Though it cared for troops from any state, the hospital was colloquially known as "The Texas Hospital." Wounded soldiers from the Second Battle of Corinth, Battle of Iuka, Battle of Jackson, Tennessee, and more local engagements, as well as those suffering from wartime diseases, were treated at the hospital. A cemetery was established adjacent to the hospital for those who succumbed to disease or wounds.

During General Sherman's Meridian Campaign, Brigadier General Walter Q. Gresham, Commander of the Third Brigade, Fourth Division, 17th Army Corps, was detached and sent to Quitman to destroy bridges crossing the Chickasawhay river and through Alligator Swamp, as well as any other infrastructure that could be of any use to the Confederacy. The force arrived at Quitman and proceeded to burn the town jail, courthouse, various stores, the railroad depot, and the Methodist Church, which was being used as a hospital. Troops then burned down the entire Texas Hospital complex, which included two main buildings as well as twelve to fifteen barracks. The hospital was never rebuilt.

Quitman was officially recognized by the Mississippi Legislature on February 13, 1839, and was named for the second Chancellor of the State, Gen. John A. Quitman, a strongly pro-slavery politician, leading Fire Eater, veteran of the Mexican–American War.

Geography

Quitman is located near the center of Clarke County. Mississippi Highway 18 passes through the center of the city.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 5.9 square miles (15.3 km), of which 5.2 square miles (13.4 km) is land and 0.73 square miles (1.9 km), or 12.28%, is water.

Climate

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1880	410		—
1890	395		−3.7%
1900	498		26.1%
1910	950		90.8%
1920	1,375		44.7%
1930	1,872		36.1%
1940	1,471		−21.4%
1950	1,817		23.5%
1960	2,030		11.7%
1970	2,702		33.1%
1980	2,632		−2.6%
1990	2,736		4.0%
2000	2,463		−10.0%
2010	2,323		−5.7%
2020	2,061		−11.3%
U.S. Decennial Census

Quitman by race as of 2020

Race	Num.	Perc.
White	1,189	57.69%
Black or African American	759	36.83%
Native American	9	0.44%
Asian	4	0.19%
Pacific Islander	2	0.01%
Other/Mixed	72	3.49%
Hispanic or Latino	28	1.36%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 2,061 people, 897 households, and 619 families residing in the city.

Education

The city is served by the Quitman School District.

Notable people

• Andy Blakeney, jazz trumpeter
• Wyatt Emory Cooper, writer
• Oscar W. Gillespie, U.S. Representative for the state of Texas
• Dustin J. Lee, Corporal in the United States Marine Corps who was killed in Fallujah, Iraq
• Sam C. Massingale, American politician and a U.S. Representative from Oklahoma
• Kelly McCarty, former NBA player
• Antonio McDyess, former NBA power forward
• Tarvarius Moore, NFL defensive back
• Homer Smith, Jr, journalist
• Samuel H. Terral, Justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court from 1897 to 1903
• James Yates (activist), labor organizer, political activist, and veteran of the Spanish Civil War

See also

• Quitman Depot