We come to you this week from where highway 49 meets the Gulf of Mexico, we are in the Harrison County town of Gulfport.

William H. Hardy and Joseph T. Jones were Gulfport's founding fathers. There goal was to create a port town and a railroad to tap into the many acres of pine forest in southern Mississippi.

In 1902, the harbor was completed and the port of Gulfport became a working seaport and the town began to flourish.

Prior to World War I, a population from many countries poured into this ready-made city, causing language problems to a degree that court proceedings were carried on through interpreters. Those people were largely seaman, lured from their ships by high wages on land.   Today, Gulfport has evolved into a diversified community with a downtown mercantile center, and a strong tourist base, thanks in part to the legalization of casino gaming. In 1993, the city annexed 33 square miles north of Gulfport, making it the second largest city in Mississippi.

In our first story we take you to one of the many family attractions available in the Gulfport area. The Lynn Meadows Discovery Center is a museum for children that encourages them to learn by touching and experimenting with the exhibits.

The Blow Fly Inn is a popular Gulf Coast eatery that has been serving residents of the area for over forty years. Don't let the name keep you away from this dining treasure on Bayou Bernard.

Ken Murphy is a life-long resident of the Gulf Coast and he has taken his experiences along with some amazing photographs and combined them in a coffee table book entitled "My South Coast Home."

On this weeks edition of Walt's Way, we go back in history to August 17, 1969 a day that would change the face of Gulfport and the entire Mississippi coast forever. With vintage footage we relive the day Hurricane Camille devastated the area.

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