Columbus got its name during a town meeting in 1819. According to local historian Rufus Ward, there wasn’t much fanfare associated with naming the young town located on the banks of the Tombigbee River. Silas McBee, one of the town’s founders and leading citizens, suggested the name Columbus. And that was about it.
Those who gathered to choose the name could have gone a different route, of course, by choosing a name from among their own ranks: McBee, Miss? Or maybe, Lincecum, Miss.?
Neither would have been a bad choice.
This weekend, Columbus and the Golden Triangle will continue the celebration of spring with numerous events, including a tribute to Dr. Gideon Lincecum, one of the most fascinating figures in the early history of Columbus.
Dr. Peggy Redshaw and Dr. Jerry Lincecum will discuss the life of Lincecum as part of the Saturday at the Bluff program at 1 p.m. at the Plymouth Bluff Center. Admission is free and open to the public.
The adventures of Dr. Gideon Lincecum, frontier naturalist, writer, civic leader and self-taught physician in the early days of Columbus, will be the focus of a lecture titled “A Columbus Pioneer Returns: Dr. Gideon Lincecum.”
Ward said Lincecum arrived in Columbus in 1818 and, aside from a seven-month sojourn to Texas in 1835, remained in Columbus until 1848 when he, his wife and 10 children permanently relocated to Texas.
Lincecum left quite a legacy, Ward said.
“His fingerprints are on so many things,” Ward said. “He was one of the founders of the Masonic Lodge here. He was instrumental in the founding of Franklin Academy. He was the town’s first postmaster. He was a self-taught doctor and naturalist. In fact, he studied the evolution of ants and wrote to Charles Darwin, telling him about his findings. Darwin wrote back asking for more information and eventually his work became one of the major supporting efforts in Darwin’s Origin of Species.”
Dressed in 19th century costume, Dr. Jerry Lincecum will join Redshaw in citing more of the insightful writings and opinions contained in the notes of his great, great, great grandfather. The sketches will be based upon Gideon Lincecum’s documentation of his movements from Georgia to Mississippi and finally to Texas, where he is recognized as one of the state’s most influential early citizens.
The theme of paying homage to the city’s history is not limited to the Lincecum tribute, of course.
The 73rd annual Columbus Pilgrimage will hold its final tours on Saturday while the final showing of the Tennessee Williams play “Kingdom of Earth” will be held at 7:30 p.m. In addition, Ward will be signing copies of his latest work, “Columbus Chronicles: Tales from East Mississippi,” at 10 a.m. at the Tennessee Williams Welcome Center.
At the nearby Riverwalk, the Grilling on the River barbecue competition continues. Gates are open from 9 a.m. until 6 p.m. and will feature activities, music and the awards presentation.
The popular West Point Art Walk, a day-long event featuring art and music, will be held from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. A concert by HanaLena (formerly Nash Street) beings at 7 p.m. at Center Stage.
In Starkville, the Alabama-Mississippi Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society will hold its annual MS Walk at 9 a.m. at the Research Park.
Starkville will also take a moment to pay homage to its history at 1 p.m. at George Evans Park with the dedication of the Needmore Community historical marker. The dedication will be followed by a celebration at the park featuring food and music.
If music is your preference, there are several options on Saturday.
The Columbus Choral Society will hold its spring concert at Poindexter Hall on the campus of Mississippi University for Women at 6 p.m. It is a free concert and open to the public.
Meanwhile, the Red Cross Concert will feature Aaron Vance and the Silver Eagle Band to raise funds for The North Mississippi Chapter of the American Red Cross. The concert will be held at the American Legion facility on Chubby Drive. Tickets for the 6:30 p.m. concert are $7 in advance and $10 at the door.
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 40 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
