Travel Guide Columbus

Columbus, the seat of the county of Lowndes, is located 92 miles north of Meridian and 63 miles south of Tupelo. The town is bordered to the south by the Tombigbee River and to the east by the Luxapalila Creek. Its population is approximately 26 000 inhabitants. It is part of the northeastern area of the state called the Golden Triangle (Columbus - West Point - Starkville).Despite its beautiful antebellum architecture, the city is first known as the birthplace of playwright Tennessee Williams (1911-1983). Columbus is also the birthplace of Henry Armstrong (1912-1988), which won at the end of the 1930 s the world boxing championship in different categories (weight feathers, light and welters).The city has a university, the Mississippi University for Women or MUW, established in 1884, and a few other renowned educational institutions.Although the Columbus site was in the annals of the explorer Hernando de Soto, it was only in 1810 that a first settler built his house on the site of Plymouth Bluff on the west bank of the river Tombigbee River. The city, moved on the shore following flooding, was founded only in 1821. Prior to that, she was designated as Possum Town, a name given by the Choctaws who occupied the region, and still used today by the inhabitants.During the war of Secession, Columbus was a town town held by the Confederate. However, it had an arsenal that the Union wanted to destroy. The city failed thanks to General Nathan Bedford Forrest (1821-1877) who blocked opposing forces and prevented Columbus from probably being razed. The historic quarter of the city has been outstanding, with many well-preserved maisons houses. Spring Pilgrimage (the first two weeks of April), is designed to enhance this heritage.Many soldiers injured at the battle of Shiloh died in the hospitals in Columbus. They were buried with others, southerners but also territorially, at the Friendship Cemetery. The decision by a group of women to decorate the graves of both sides by flowers on 25 April 1966 is one of the acts that contributed many years later to the creation of Memorial Day (every year, the last Monday in May).Today Columbus hosts one of four American air military training bases, the Columbus Air Force Base (CAFB), as well as large industries in the Golden Triangle Regional Airport area: Severstal (steel), American Eurocopter (aeronautics), Paccar Engine Company (engines), Aurora Flight Sciences (unmanned aerial vehicles and defence systems), etc., 12 miles west of town. Other major employers include the Baptist Memorial Hospital and the Mississippi University for Women. A TV station, WCBI-TV, is located in the city centre.In October 2013, the Old Tombigbee River Bridge (1927), located south of the city centre, was reopened after deep restoration. It gives access to the Riverwalk, a beautiful walk on the banks of the river.