The land on which
Como now stands was purchased from local Indians around
1825 for fifty cents an acre. In 1832, Dr. George Tait
arrived from Georgia with his bride, Mildred Ann McGehee.
The Mississippi-Tennessee railroad, the lifeblood of
Como, was completed in 1856, connecting the town with
Memphis to the north and Sardis to the south. About that
same time, the old post office, which used to be located
at the Tate County line stagecoach stop (now Abe's
Chapel), was moved to its current location. The depot and
Dr. Tait's home were the only buildings in the area until
his death in 1865 at which time his daughter, Sallie, and
her husband, Colonel Monroe Pointer, began selling lots
for businesses and homes. With the railroad in place to
transport crops and passengers, the town began to thrive.
Unlike many communities that are centered around a
courthouse, Como's commerce developed facing the railroad
tracks.
There are two versions of
how Como received its name. One comes from the Indians
who named the area Como, meaning "tops of trees," for
that was all that could be seen when looking out over the
land. The other story is that Dr. Tait refused to call
the town "Taitville," preferring to name it for Lake
Como, Italy.
Around the turn of the
20th century when "Cotton was King," Como was known for
having more millionaires per capita than almost anywhere
else in the U.S. Be this fact or fiction, there were
undoubtedly many wealthy and worldly residents in the
area. Some of their homes still stand as a testament to
their success - and to a lifestyle that has faded into
folklore.
Current residents still
love to tell tales and perpetuate the lore of ancestral
antics and events (and some of them are actually
true.)
Como's Celebrity
Connections
For a small town with a
current, estimated population of 1,300, Como has had more
than its share of famous residents and visitors:
Actress
Tallulah
Bankhead
(1903-1968): The mother of this noted stage and
Hollywood film star was Adalaide Sledge, a native of Como
and member of the prominent Sledge family. (Tallulah's
father was Congressman William B. Bankhead of Huntsville,
Alabama.) Tallulah gained fame first as a stage actress
in New York and London before being signed to a long-term
contract with Paramount Pictures in 1931. Her wild and
tempestuous lifestyle off-screen often led to her being
typecast as a femme fatale in her movies. She spent much
of her life in London where she was a member of the
clever and elite Noel Coward set, but she was a frequent
visitor to Como. (Her sister, Eugenia, was married at
least five times but spent her final years alone in
Como.) The Sledge family home still stands at -- East
Street, now home of the William Sledge Mitchell family.
Novelist, playwright,
and drama critic Stark
Young
(1881-1963): Born in Como, Young entered the
University of Mississippi at just fourteen and went on to
Columbia University for postgraduate study. An acclaimed
drama critic for The New York Times, a judicious
selection of his reviews was compiled in Immortal
Shadows: A Book of Dramatic Criticism in 1948. Young went
on to publish numerous books about the theater in
addition to poetry and novels, most notably the Civil War
epic, So Red the Roses. Affiliated with the Agrarian
Movement, along with his friend Robert Penn Warren),
Young's many novels tried to bridge the gap between the
old and new South. Young turned to painting in his later
years exhibiting successfully in New York, Philadelphia
and Chicago. His memoir, The Pavilion, was published in
1951. His home in Como burned in 19--.
Architect Andrew Johnson (1844-1921):
Born and educated as Anders Johnsson in Sweden and honored by the
King of Sweden, Johnson was sent to Mississippi by the Illinois Central
Railroad to design and build depots. He chose to move permanently
to Sardis (seven miles south of Como) where we built one of the area's
first Methodist churches. The prolific "Big Swede" and his son, John
Wright Johnson, went on to design some of the most famous
homes, academies, churches, and private clubs in the Mid-South,
including more than 60 here in Panola County. Their architectural
style, which combined elements of Greek Revival, Gothic Revival, Queen
Anne, Italianate, and French Second Empire, became well known throughout
the United States. Roughly 20 Johnson "works of art" still survive
in Como (see Historic Drive & Walking Tour).
W.C.
Handy (1873
- 1958): Known as the "Father of the Blues," W.C.
Handy is best known as a resident of Memphis' Beale
Street, but he was a frequent visitor to Como. He was
often paid to come perform for Como's wealthier citizens,
who had a reputation for lavish parties. It is also
likely that Handy used his Como trips to research the
area's music. In addition to composing original blues
tunes, Handy, a well-educated and scholarly man, was also
the first to write down and preserve traditional blues
that stemmed from this part of the country.
Musical Arranger Richard
Jones (19-- - 19 --
): After growing up in Como and studying music at the Como High
School, Jones went on to New York where he performed as a pianist
and music arranger for Tommy Dorsey, then Artie Shaw. He also worked
as supervisor of Capital Recordings on the West Coast and as arranger
for Frank Sinatra, through whom he became a close and life-long friend
of Ava Gardner.
Dr.
Lea Williamson (1837
- 1900) : A distinguished surgeon in the Confederate Army, he
also was one of the founders of Mississippi State College for Women.
A beloved eccentric, Willamson was known to helping others, white
and black. If patients needed shoes or clothing, Williamson would
take them to local merchants and instruct them to supply whatever
was needed. Williamson was also known for hating rocking chairs. If
he called on a patient with a rocker in the room, he would throw it
into another room or out the window, whichever was nearest.
Photographer
Annie
Lebovitz:
This internationally-acclaimed, celebrity photographer is
know for her magazine covers, editorial essays and
photography books for clients such as Vanity Fair and
Rolling Stone Magazine and modern-day stars that include
John Lennon and Joko Ono, Demi Moore, and literally
thousands of others. She visited in Como during the
summer of 2000 to photograph the area's famous blues
musicians for an upcoming book. She also enjoyed an
impromptu blues concert and BBQ and the home of a local
Como resident (and blues scholar). By sheer coincidence,
other guests at the event included a documentary film
crew from Great Britain, working on a TV series and
coffee table book for former Rolling Stones guitarist,
Bill Wyman.
Bluesman
Mississippi
Fred McDowell
(1904-1972): "Hill Country Blues" is a type of blues
that many consider to be the most African sounding music
in the U.S. today, and Fred McDowell is often credited
with being the "Father of Hill Country Blues." McDowell's
vocals and guitar riffs made him a hero among blues fans.
He was especially popular in Europe where he often
toured. McDowell's original songs were recorded by many
internationally known artists, including the Rolling
Stones (he was buried in a silver-lame suit the Stones
bought for him while they toured together in Europe.)
Former Rolling Stone Bill Wyman sent a film crew to Como
during the summer of 2000 to film the area's blues
artists for a BBC/Showtime documentary and book. Every
now and then Como residents are a bit surprised to find a
Japanese or German or French tourist in town in eager to
find McDowell's grave to pay their respects. McDowell was
a modest, soft-spoken man whose musical influence can
still be felt around the world.
Grammy-winner
Bonnie
Raitt:
Probably today's best-known female rhythm and blues
artists, Raitt spent a great deal of time in Como during
the early years of her career. The music of Mississippi
Fred McDowell was a major influence on your style, and he
served as her mentor and teacher. It is rumored that
Raitt actually lived with McDowell and his family in
Como. Raitt and McDowell also shared the same manager,
Dick Waterman. As added testament to her admiration of
him, Raitt paid for a marker to be placed on his grave
when she learned that his family had not been able to
afford a gravestone. Still today, when Raitt performs in
concert in the area, she often asks the sell-out crowd,
"Is anyone here from Como?"
Hill
Country
Blues
Como's Current Blue's
Connections
Mississippi, especially
The Delta area, is famous worldwide for its rich Southern
history and for the music it produced: The Blues. Como is
at the heart of the "Hill Country Blues," a style most
closely akin to its African roots. There are two primary
types of this kind of blues, both found in the Como area:
guitar riff-based blues and the drum and fife.
Como is still the site of
many a blues jam and barbecue. Some of Como's acclaimed
blues artists still performing, include:
Otha
Turner (1907-2003):
Turner made his own fifes out of cane that grows wild in the area.
A former sharecropper like so many of
the area's blues musicians, Otha enjoyed the respect of fans and fellow
musicians from all over the world. His music is empowered with the
steady rhythm of African drums, the kora (an African stringed lute),
and the riffs of a bottleneck guitar. His latest CD, "Everybody Hollerin'
Goat," was recorded live at his famous backyard blues jam and BBQ
(goat meat), which is still held every summer.
Napoleon
Strickland:
A close friend of Fred McDowell, Strickland is another
fife player…
Jessie
Mae Hemphill: (19--
to 2006) Was an enthusiastic fixture at many of the area's impromptu
blues fests, Hemphill was an award-winning vocalist whose recordings
are collected and treasured the world over.
Junior
Kimbrough:
It was a sudden and tragic loss when Junior Kimbrough
died a couple of years ago, but lucky for blues fans, his
sons are carrying on the tradition with equal style and
finesse. Known for its slide guitar and attention-getting
lyrics, the Kimbrough magic is alive and well both in
concert and on CD. And their famous juke point, which
burned in April, 2000, is being rebuilt right where it
stood before: between Como and Holly Springs.
R.L.
Burnside:
Burnside often plays at his son Duwayne's club in south
Memphis as well as at blues festivals all over the world.
A master guitarist, he prefers "old time blues" but is
proud of Duwayne's up-tempo style, too. Winner of
numerous music awards, Burnside still records, and his
CDs are available at most record stores.
As you can see our
history is rich and steeped in art and beauty. Please let
us make you welcome in our home, come and see what we
have to share!
