House Resolution 141

(As Adopted by House)

A RESOLUTION COMMENDING AND CONGRATULATING THE CITY OF CLEVELAND, MISSISSIPPI, ON BEING NAMED AS ONE OF THE 20 BEST SMALL TOWNS TO VISIT IN 2013 BY SMITHSONIAN MAGAZINE.

WHEREAS, Cleveland, Mississippi, was named as the Number 2 best small town in Smithsonian Magazine's 20 Best Small Towns to Visit in 2013 which rates small towns in the United States based on cultural assets; and

WHEREAS, Cleveland, named after President Grover Cleveland, began its formation in 1869 as people moved inland from the Mississippi River and records indicate that the community was called Fontaine in 1884, later called Coleman's Station and officially named Sims in 1885 until it was chartered as Cleveland on March 25, 1886; and

WHEREAS, Cleveland was chiefly shaped by white Methodists and black Baptists but it benefited by infusions of Chinese, Italian, Jewish, Irish and Mexican immigrants who all contributed to the diverse culture that thrives today; and

WHEREAS, Delta State University, which was established by the Mississippi Legislature in 1924 as Delta State Teachers College, has been a major force in the cultural life of Cleveland, through the Bologna Performing Arts Center which keeps the city alive by drawing audiences for concerts, dance, theater and film; the Delta Center for Culture and Learning which offers tours, lectures and workshops; the Delta Music Institute which provides an outstanding education for students interested in the music business; and the university's Dave "Boo" Ferriss Museum which celebrates the Delta-born Boston Red Sox pitcher and longtime Delta State baseball coach; and

WHEREAS, the countryside around Cleveland yields many cultural and historic attributes such as Dockery Farms where Charlie Patton helped develop the Blues, Mound Bayou which was the first haven of its kind in the United States founded in 1887 by former slaves and now home to Peter's Pottery which was started by the Woods Brothers who learned the art of working clay at McCarty Pottery, a world-renown ceramics gallery and garden in Merigold which is also the home of Po' Monkey's, one of the areas most celebrated rural juke joints; and

WHEREAS, the greatest asset of Cleveland is her people who contribute daily to the quality of life as evidenced by the restoration of the Historic Crosstie business district with its Railroad Heritage Museum, the arts alliance in the old Ellis movie theater and the filling of rehabbed warehouses with galleries and restaurants; and

WHEREAS, a Grammy Museum is slated to open in 2015 on the campus of Delta State University which will stand as a permanent monument to the enormous contribution that the Mississippi Delta has made and continues to make to the world of music; and

WHEREAS, it is the policy of the House of Representatives to recognize and commend excellence especially when evidenced by such an outstanding honor as that bestowed upon Cleveland, Mississippi, by Smithsonian Magazine:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby commend and congratulate the City of Cleveland, Mississippi, on being named as one of the 20 Best Small Towns to Visit in 2013 by Smithsonian Magazine.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be furnished to the City of Cleveland and to the members of the Capitol Press Corps.