Mhoon Landing, Mississippi

Mhoon Landing, Mississippi
Unincorporated community
Mhoon Landing, Mississippi
Mhoon Landing, Mississippi
Coordinates: 34°44′30″N 90°26′31″W / 34.74167°N 90.44194°W / 34.74167; -90.44194Coordinates: 34°44′30″N 90°26′31″W / 34.74167°N 90.44194°W / 34.74167; -90.44194
Country United States
State Mississippi
County Tunica
Elevation 194 ft (59 m)
Time zone Central (CST) (UTC-6)
 • Summer (DST) CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code 38676
Area code(s) 662
GNIS feature ID 692069[1]

Mhoon Landing is an unincorporated community located on the Mississippi River in Tunica County, Mississippi. It is approximately 6 miles (9.7 km) northwest of North Tunica and approximately 12 miles (19 km) southwest of Tunica Resorts.

History

The landing was named in 1859 for Feyton Mhoon (nicknamed "Faithful"), an African-American settler who each night would take his wagon to Rabbit Island, north of Mhoon Landing, and place a lantern in the lighthouse for river boats to see. Commodities would be ferried by barge to and from Rabbit Island, and Mhoon would transport them to the market in Austin.[2]

During the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, Mhoon Landing served as a Red Cross headquarters.[3]

The land surrounding Mhoon Landing was rarely used as farmland due to its proximity to the Mississippi River and the high risk of flooding. In the early 1990s, it was one of Tunica County's least expensive land acreages.[4]

Casinos

In 1992, "Splash" casino opened in Mhoon Landing, the first casino in Northern Mississippi. Splash was so successful that patrons waited in line up to three hours to enter, then paid a $10 admission fee. Within a year, three other casinos opened--"Lady Luck", "President", and "Bally's"—located on ships docked at Mhoon Landing. By 1995, Splash had closed, President and Bally's had sailed closer to Memphis, and the Splash Casino remained closed in dry dock. Soon, larger casinos in Tunica Resorts gained control of the market.[5][6] In 2004, a company brought the former SS Nantucket up from Biloxi with the intent of opening the "Splash Back Casino". It languished in a spot with almost no water until it was dismantled in 2012.[6] The Lady Luck moved south to the spot at the 49 highway crossing to Helena, Arkansas before Splash closed.

Today

The riverside area south of the former casinos has been developed into the Mhoon Landing Park, a city park with a walking track, playground, and picnic pavilions.[7]

References

  1. ↑ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Mhoon Landing, Mississippi
  2. ↑ Wells-Dunn, Mildred (2006). The Delta Blues: We Have Come A Long Ways. Xlibris.com.
  3. ↑ "Communities of Tunica County, Mississippi". MSGenWeb. Retrieved Sep 9, 2013.
  4. ↑ Wright Austin, Sharon D. (2006). The Transformation of Plantation Politics: Black Politics, Concentrated Poverty, and Social Capital in the Mississippi Delta. State University of New York.
  5. ↑ Susman, Lori Beth (August 2012). "Industry Celebrates 20 Years in Mississippi". Mississippi Gaming News.
  6. 1 2 Fujoshi (July 15, 2011). "The Abandoned Casinos of Mhoon Landing". Convozine.
  7. ↑ Tunica Parks and Recreation. "Mhoon Landing Park - Tunica". Retrieved 2012-08-11.
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