Verona, Mississippi

Verona, Mississippi
City
City of Verona
Flag
Location within Lee County and the State of Mississippi
Verona, Mississippi Location within the contiguous United States of America
Coordinates: 34°11′18″N88°43′5″W / 34.18833°N 88.71806°W / 34.18833; -88.71806
Country	United States
State	Mississippi
County	Lee
Settled	1857 [1]
Chartered	July 1860 [1]
Named for	Verona, Italy
Area [2]
• Total	3.71 sq mi (9.60 km2)
• Land	3.67 sq mi (9.51 km2)
• Water	0.04 sq mi (0.09 km2)
Elevation	325 ft (99 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	2,792
• Density	760.35/sq mi (293.54/km2)
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code	38879
Area code	662
FIPS code	28-76560
GNIS feature ID	0679211
Website	cityofverona.org

Verona is a city in Lee County, Mississippi. The population was 2,792 at the 2020 census, down from 3,006 at the 2010 census.

History

Verona was settled in 1857 with the construction of the Mobile and Ohio Railroad, and was chartered in July 1860, making it the oldest city in Lee County. ^[1]

In 1863 during the American Civil War, Confederate general Nathan Bedford Forrest set up his headquarters in Verona. On December 25, 1864, Union cavalry led by general Benjamin Grierson raided Verona's supply depot. ^[1]

Geography

Verona is located at 34°11′18″N88°43′5″W / 34.18833°N 88.71806°W / 34.18833; -88.71806 (34.188350, -88.718083). ^[3]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.8 square miles (9.8 km²), of which 3.7 square miles (9.6 km²) is land and 0.04 square miles (0.10 km²) (0.80%) is water.

Climate

Climate data for Verona Experiment Station, Mississippi (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1987–present)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °F (°C)	78 (26)	82 (28)	88 (31)	94 (34)	99 (37)	104 (40)	104 (40)	106 (41)	101 (38)	95 (35)	90 (32)	80 (27)	106 (41)
Mean daily maximum °F (°C)	52.8 (11.6)	57.2 (14.0)	66.3 (19.1)	74.8 (23.8)	83.1 (28.4)	89.5 (31.9)	92.4 (33.6)	92.3 (33.5)	87.6 (30.9)	76.8 (24.9)	64.7 (18.2)	55.7 (13.2)	74.4 (23.6)
Daily mean °F (°C)	42.6 (5.9)	46.2 (7.9)	54.6 (12.6)	62.9 (17.2)	71.7 (22.1)	78.9 (26.1)	82.1 (27.8)	81.3 (27.4)	75.6 (24.2)	64.0 (17.8)	52.7 (11.5)	45.4 (7.4)	63.2 (17.3)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C)	32.5 (0.3)	35.2 (1.8)	42.9 (6.1)	51.0 (10.6)	60.4 (15.8)	68.4 (20.2)	71.8 (22.1)	70.4 (21.3)	63.7 (17.6)	51.1 (10.6)	40.8 (4.9)	35.1 (1.7)	51.9 (11.1)
Record low °F (°C)	5 (−15)	3 (−16)	14 (−10)	27 (−3)	37 (3)	49 (9)	52 (11)	53 (12)	41 (5)	28 (−2)	18 (−8)	−4 (−20)	−4 (−20)
Average precipitation inches (mm)	5.19 (132)	5.29 (134)	5.64 (143)	5.54 (141)	5.34 (136)	4.80 (122)	4.65 (118)	4.04 (103)	3.82 (97)	4.35 (110)	4.58 (116)	6.10 (155)	59.34 (1,507)
Average snowfall inches (cm)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in)	9.9	9.7	10.3	8.3	9.6	9.8	9.2	7.6	6.4	6.8	9.0	11.0	107.6
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in)	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
Source: NOAA [4] [5]

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1880	596		—
1890	465		−22.0%
1900	456		−1.9%
1910	558		22.4%
1920	500		−10.4%
1930	554		10.8%
1940	526		−5.1%
1950	589		12.0%
1960	824		39.9%
1970	1,877		127.8%
1980	2,497		33.0%
1990	2,893		15.9%
2000	3,334		15.2%
2010	3,006		−9.8%
2020	2,792		−7.1%
U.S. Decennial Census [6]

2020 census

Verona Racial Composition ^[7]

Race	Num.	Perc.
White	441	15.8%
Black or African American	2,205	78.98%
Native American	5	0.18%
Asian	1	0.04%
Pacific Islander	3	0.11%
Other/Mixed	82	2.94%
Hispanic or Latino	55	1.97%

As of the 2020 United States Census, there were 2,792 people, 1,282 households, and 636 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the census ^[8] of 2000, there were 3,334 people, 1,276 households, and 831 families residing in the city. The population density was 891.4 inhabitants per square mile (344.2/km²). There were 1,472 housing units at an average density of 393.6 per square mile (152.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 38.78% White, 57.68% African American, 0.42% Native American, 0.33% Asian, 1.65% from other races, and 1.14% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.22% of the population.

There were 1,276 households, out of which 37.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.1% were married couples living together, 22.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.8% were non-families. 28.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.22.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 33.1% under the age of 18, 9.5% from 18 to 24, 30.6% from 25 to 44, 17.0% from 45 to 64, and 9.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $26,117, and the median income for a family was $30,255. Males had a median income of $25,000 versus $18,305 for females. The per capita income for the city was $12,092. About 18.5% of families and 22.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 29.9% of those under age 18 and 22.6% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Verona is served by the Lee County School District. ^[9]

Notable people

• Roddy Burdine, former owner of the now-defunct department store Burdines ^[10]
• Winfield R. Gaylord, minister and member of the Wisconsin State Senate from 1909 to 1913 ^[11]
• Chester W. Taylor, member of the United States House of Representatives from 1921 to 1923 ^[12]

References

1. "Raymond family's Heritage House part of Verona's history". Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. June 17, 2021. Archived from the original on November 4, 2023. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
2. "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
3. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
4. "NOWData - NOAA Online Weather Data". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
5. "Summary of Monthly Normals 1991-2020". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
6. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
7. "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 8, 2021.
8. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved January 31, 2008.
9. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Lee County, MS" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 1, 2022. Retrieved July 31, 2022. - Text list
10. "Miami Pioneer Freeman Burdine". miami-history.com. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
11. The Wisconsin Blue Book. Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. 1909. p. 1095.
12. Pruden, William H. III. "Taylor, Chester William". Encyclopedia of Arkansas. Retrieved January 19, 2023.