In the early frontier days a large portion of South
Mississippi was part of West Florida. There was disagreement among the English, French,
and Spanish for control. This caused lawlessness, but after the Battle of New Orleans in
January, 181, although the war had not already ended, it left no doubt that the United
States was in control. The speeded the inhabitance of the area.
The state of Mississippi was organized in 1817, and
it was divided into two large counties. Later those counties were subdivided and in 1872
portions of Marion and Hancock counties were used by the State Legislature to organize
"Pearl" County. The name "Pearl" was chosen because the new county
bordered Louisiana at the Pearl River. The new county seat in Byrd's Chapel and the
Masonic Building was used as a church and the Court House.
Pearl County lasted only a few years because the
building used as the Court House burned, and since the South had recently lost the Civil
War, there was simply on tax-base with which to re-build. There was only one white land
owner in the new county. His name was "Poplar" Jim Smith who had traded ten
bushels of corn to Indians for his claim.
By act of the State Legislature in 1878, Pearl
County was abolished and the area went back to Marion and Hancock Counties as it was
before the county was formed.
Northern Syndicates later bought large parcels of
virgin forest land in the area and with the coming of the railroad in 1884, it brought
dynamic changes. Sawmills from Gainesville, Mississippi, which had used the slow Pearl
River for transportation, were moved to Nicholson and other places north along the
railroad to speed transportation of their products.
By act of the State Legislature in 1890, the county
was again formed from portions of Marion and Hancock Counties. This time the single name
"Pearl" could not legally be reused, so the word "River" was added by
the Legislature to complete the name "Pearl River County."
A site was chosen for the new county seat which was
on the railroad. Since the land was owned by Mr. "Poplar" Jim Smith, the county
seat was named Poplarville.
The first court house for Pearl River County was
built in 1892.
The same year, a boarding school was also built in
Poplarville which was the largest of any similar institution in the state.
In 1900, the town of Lumberton withdrew from Pearl
River County and was annexed by Lamar County.
In 1908, Picayune, which was a part of Hancock
County, was annexed to Pearl River County.
In 1909, an accredited high school was organized. In
1923, it was made a junior college and was named Pearl River Junior College. Through the
years, this junior college has been one of the most prominent in the United States.
When World War I came, the area was buzzing with
sawmills. Fortunes were made in the forestry industries. Citrus fruits, strawberries and
other farm products were experimented with by a highly innovative and successful business
family who lived in Picayune.
Although there was a drastic slow-down caused by the
Great Depression of the thirties, World War II brought back high demand for lumber and
other forest products.
After World War II, dairies, beef cattle and tung
oil products played an important role in local economy.
In the early 1960's, the National Aeronautical Space
Administration (NASA) brought high technology to the area by building the
"Mississippi Test Facility," part of which extends into Pearl River County. This
new test facility was constructed to test the first two stages of the Saturn V vehicles
for traveling to the moon.
About ten years later, after the Moon Mission was
achieved, the Mississippi Test Facility was renamed the "National Space Technology
Laboratories" (NSTL).
The U. S. Navy, U. S. Geological Survey, Earth
Resources Laboratory, Environmental Protection Agency are among the agencies which demand
high technology. Scientists have moved into the area from all over the United States. Of
the U. S. civil servants stationed at NSTL, one of eight has a formal education of PhD.D.,
many of which became residents of Pearl River County,.
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