TownTapestry
Sign inJoin
ShelbyGood night
History · Shelby

Shelby’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold no old photos of Shelby. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.

0old images & papers
12recent photos

The story so far

from Wikipedia & the U.S. Census

Shelby is a city in Bolivar County, Mississippi, United States. As of the 2020 census, Shelby had a population of 2,021. The town of Shelby was established in 1853 by Tom Shelby, who had purchased a block of land there from the federal government.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 2,229 to 2,021 (-9%). Half of its homes were built before 1973.

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Shelby yet — the old photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Intro from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Population and housing: U.S. Census Bureau.

Be one of the first

Start Shelby’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Shelby’s history is told.

0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Famous people from Shelby

See all 12 →
Gerald WilsonGerald WilsonMusicEFErma FranklinMusicHenry TownsendHenry TownsendMusicBFBarbara Siggers FranklinMusicDDDorsett DavisSportsHLHattie LittlesMusic
By decade

Shelby, decade by decade

Before
2000
No old photos in the archives yetWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your album
Today12 photos
The Shelby Police DepartmentCommonsThe Shelby Police Department2009The Walking Trails InCommonsThe Walking Trails In2007The Shelby, MS Public LibraryCommonsThe Shelby, MS Public Library2007Saint Andrew Missionary Baptist ChurchCommonsSaint Andrew Missionary Baptist Church2007Public LibraryCommonsPublic Library2007Police DepartmentCommonsPolice Department2007Local GroceryCommonsLocal Grocery2007James Quality MartCommonsJames Quality Mart2007Full View, Shelby, MS Public LibraryCommonsFull View, Shelby, MS Public Library2007Friends 026CommonsFriends 0262007Broad Street High SchoolCommonsBroad Street High School2007Another view of Broad Street High School inCommonsAnother view of Broad Street High School in2007
National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Shelby is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Shelby has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Mound Bayou Historic District in Mound Bayou, 5.2 miles away.

Shelby and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Shelby. Tap a dot.
Mound Bayou Historic DistrictTaborian HospitalDonelson HouseI. T. Montgomery HouseMound Bayou BankDowntown Cleveland Historic District

Closest to Shelby

Mound Bayou Historic DistrictMound Bayou · District5.2miTaborian HospitalMound Bayou · Built 19415.3miDonelson HouseDuncan · Building5.3miI. T. Montgomery HouseMound Bayou · Built 19105.5miMound Bayou BankMound Bayou · Built 19045.6mi

How a place gets listed

1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Mound Bayou Historic District’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Shelby?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Shelby’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old place
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons

Then & now

When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Winstonville📜 Mound Bayou📜 Duncan📜 Merigold

From Wikimedia Commons (12). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.

We left the porch light on

Where to, neighbor?

You’re in Shelby, MSView boundary

Nearby

All towns & citiesExplore the map

Local begins with a boundary.

See what belongs to your selected town.

Loading boundary…

Shelby is your selected town. The feed includes posts assigned to this town, not a distance radius or ZIP code.

Neighborhoods narrow the feed further, while townwide announcements, events, and issues remain visible.

Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01
Open detailed map