Lucedale, Mississippi


Lucedale is a city in George County, Mississippi, United States. It is part of the Pascagoula, Mississippi Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,923 at the 2010 census, up from 2,458 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of George County.
WWW Official Site

History

Lucedale was one of several settlements created after the Mobile, Jackson and Kansas City Railroad penetrated northern Jackson County in the late 1890s.
Lucedale was founded in 1901, and was named after Gregory Marston Luce, who operated a lumber business there.
In 1906, a black man was hanged from a telegraph pole near the Lucedale railroad depot by a crowd of 300, after allegedly assaulting a white woman.
Mississippi's first execution by electrocution was administered to a convicted wife-killer in Lucedale in 1940, using the only portable electric chair ever employed in the United States. The "death wagon" and chair had been on display outside the Mississippi capitol prior to arriving in Lucedale, and photos of the execution were published in state newspapers, the executioner commenting: "he died with tears in his eyes for the efficient care I took to give him a good clean burning".

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, Lucedale has a total area of, all land.

Demographics

RaceNum.Perc.
White 1,85864.76%
Black or African American 75326.25%
Native American120.42%
Asian301.05%
Pacific Islander10.03%
Other/Mixed1194.15%
Hispanic or Latino963.35%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 2,869 people, 975 households, and 504 families residing in the city.

Arts and culture

Lucedale Public Library is part of the Jackson-George Regional Library System.

Education

Lucedale is served by the George County School District. As of 2010, the district spends US$6,732 per pupil—63% on instruction, 30% on support services, and 7% on other elementary and secondary expenditures—and 15 students existed for every full-time equivalent teacher.

Infrastructure

Highways

Public safety

Lucedale Police Department consists of a police chief, 11 patrolmen, and one investigator. Lucedale Fire Department was established in 1901, and consists of a fire chief, three firemen, and four volunteer firemen.

Healthcare

George Regional Hospital in Lucedale is a 50-bed, non-profit, community owned hospital serving George County, Greene County, Stone County, and northern Jackson County.

Notable people