A history of Belzoni,
then and now
Postcards, papers and photographs of Belzoni from public archives, woven together by decade. Neighbors fill in the gaps.
The story
from WikipediaRead it all ↗The area that eventually became Belzoni was originally known as "Greasy Row" because of saloons along the bank of the Yazoo River, which was the main transportation route until replaced by railroads. In 1895, a charter was granted for the village of Belzoni, although the area had been settled by European Americans and African Americans for several decades previously. It was developed for cotton plantations before the Civil War and relied on agriculture well into the 20th century. Steve Castleman, who secured the charter, was elected as the first mayor of Belzoni. When Humphreys County was formed by the state legislature in 1918, Belzoni was selected as the county seat.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Timeline
built from the dates on the items belowFinish Belzoni’s story
Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.
1 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old viewAfrican Americans fishing in cree…, 1939: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10Famous people from Belzoni
See all 14 →
Belzoni, decade by decade
CommonsAfrican Americans fishing in creek near cotton plantations.…1939
CommonsBelzoni MS fsa.8a411791939
CommonsBelzoni MS fsa.8a411861939
CommonsDaughter of Cube Walker, Negro TP Client Belzoni, Miss. Delt1939
CommonsNegro section of town, Saturday afternoon, Belzoni, Mississi1939
CommonsNegro section of town, Saturday noon Belzoni, Miss., Nov. 1919391990s
1 historic place in Belzoni
1 place in Belzoni is on the National Register of Historic Places, the country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
Where they are
When they were listed
Then & now
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as African Americans fishing in creek near cotton plantations. Belzoni, Mississippi, October 1939 (1939) and it appears here side by side.
🔁 Retake this view · +15Stories next door
nearby towns’ historyFrom Wikimedia Commons (6). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.