Mississippi Roads comes to you this week from the “Singing River City” on the Gulf of Mexico. We are in the Jackson County seat of Pascagoula.

Pascagoula has a deep and rich history as a European settlement that goes back over 300 years. Her name is taken from a band of peaceful Native Americans who inhabited the area when Hernando De Soto first made contact with them in the 1540’s. Tragically, these noble people are now extinct having drowned themselves chanting as they waded into the deepening river waters rather than enslave themselves to their enemy, the fierce Biloxi Tribe.

In 1870 the New Orleans and Mobile Railroad was built through town followed by the development of commercial fisheries, a large timber business, pecan culture and shipbuilding.

Today, Pascagoula is still known for shipbuilding; the state’s largest employer, Northrop Grumman Ship Systems is headquartered in Pascagoula. The city truly offers a pro-business environment. Other major industries in the area include a Chevron refinery, Signal International and First Chemical Corporation.

In our first story, we chill at another Pascagoula business and soak up some of the history surrounding ice houses in the state of Mississippi. Block ice plants used to dot the entire state of Mississippi but once refrigerators and ice machines came along block ice plants began to disappear. Today, the plant in Pascagoula is one of the last remaining block ice plants in the state of Mississippi.

Downtown Pascagoula is changing for the better and a good example of that is the historic train depot that has been here for over 100 years. Today it is known as the Jolly McCarty Old Train Depot Art Gallery. They showcase and sell artwork of The Singing River Art Association. Admission is free and visitors are always welcome.

In our next story we visit another art gallery, this one is in the neighboring town of Ocean Springs and it’s just a block behind their old train depot, The Art House (co-op gallery) 921 Cash Alley, Ocean Springs. The gallery is operated by the Ocean Springs Art Association, with thirty working artists exhibiting and two artists in residence each day. Painted floor rugs, sculptures, pottery, painting and weavings and outdoor sculpture erected from found objects on the property will delight the visitor. 

Located in the area originally known as the town of Scranton until it merged into Pascagoula; Scranton’s restaurant is housed in the building that was once home to the city’s original fire station, city hall and city jail. Besides serving great food; Scranton’s is a mini-museum displaying memorabilia and photos from Pascagoula’s past.

And speaking of museums, the Old Spanish Fort in Pascagoula dates back some three hundred years.   A stockaded house built by Joseph Simon de la Pointe. The French relinquished control of this area to the British in 1763.    Spanish troops then took over in 1779, but weren't actually present in any number here until the 1810 Baton Rouge Rebellion. Claiming to be the oldest building in the Mississippi Valley, this structure is made up of 18-inch thick walls of oyster shells, mud and moss.

Pascagoula not only caters to businesses but to the citizens of the area as well. The town offers eleven different parks spanning one hundred acres for family enjoyment. The 14-acre Beach Park has playground areas, picnic tables, barbeque grills and a pavilion. The Beach Park Pier, located directly across the street, overlooks the Mississippi Gulf and the beach below. Come visit Pascagoula, a place where history, business and families live together in harmony.