Clinton dates to 1823, and 4 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 58% of U.S. towns · #44 of 100 in Mississippi. What drives it
Most of Clinton was built recently: 0.7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1982. 4 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 127 buildings between them. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1937 on, and the census since 1880.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Clinton is more historic than 58% of U.S. towns, #44 of 100 in Mississippi. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Clinton’s overall grade.
Mississippi towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Mississippi town has 71.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Clinton’s 47.4 sits near the middle of its state (63% of Mississippi towns have fewer) while its 129 historic buildings outnumber those of 91% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A−. The pre-1940 share (±0.7 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1823.
Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Clinton’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds
Clinton’s post office has been open since 1829. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Mount Salus
1825–1829
Clinton
1829–today
Mc Raven
1883–1918
18201920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Bottom AcresBreckenridgeByrd HeightsCherry ParkCountry WoodsEasthavenEdgewood AcresForest GreenGreen AcresHuntcliffKentwoodLakeridgeLakesideMcRavenMeadow OaksMeadowhillPinehaven EstatesShady Springs Mobile Home CommunitySpeedway Mobile Home ParkSpringridge Mobile EstatesThe BriarsThe CascadesThe IslandsThe Meadows of Trailwood
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Clinton
ClintonCowles MeadeOdd Fellows
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Help out
Start Clinton’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Clinton’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Founded in 1823, Clinton was originally known as Mt. Salus, which means "Mountain of health". It was named for the plantation home of Walter Leake, third governor of Mississippi, which was located in Clinton and built in 1812. The road east from Vicksburg was completed to Mount Salus and the federal government located the United States General Land Office at Mount Salus in 1822. The original federal survey in 1822 references a spring called "Swafford's Spring" at the site of the town. In 1828, the city changed its name to Clinton in honor of DeWitt Clinton, the former governor of New York who led completion of the Erie Canal.
Passages that mention Clinton, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Hinds County, Mississippi, 1821-19221922Read the page →
Read the text
in educational aspiration and advancement. As early as 1826 the Hemstead Academy, afterwards by an act approved February 5, 1827, called Mississippi Academy, was incorporated and located at Clinton, then Mount Salus. In 1827 under the guidance of F. G. Hopkins it began a useful, though changeful, career. A lottery, an institution not then viewed with the disapproval it is today, was authorized by the trustees for its support. The Hinds
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Hinds County, Mississippi, 1821-1922. Published in commemoration of the centenary of the city of Jackson ... by Mrs. Dunbar Rowland (Eron O. Rowland)1922 · page 19Read the page →
Read the text
in educational aspiration and advancement. As early as 1826 the Hemstead Academy, afterwards by an act approved February 5, 1827, called Mississippi Academy, was incorporated and located at Clinton, then Mount Salus. In 1827 under the guidance of F. G. Hopkins it began a useful, though changeful, career. A lottery, an institution not then viewed with the disapproval it is today, was authorized by the trustees for its support. The Hinds
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Hinds County, Mississippi, 1821-1922. Published in commemoration of the centenary of the city of Jackson ... by Mrs. Dunbar Rowland (Eron O. Rowland)1922Read the page →
Read the text
Clinton, another landmark which has been often referred to in these pages, is an old college town of much historical interest about ten miles west of Jackson, a paved street after many years threatening to make the two places one. In 1831, Mississippi College, which is largely responsible for the atmosphere of culture and refinement pervading the town, had its beginning. Next to Jefferson College, near Natchez in Adams county, this is the oldest male col-
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Clinton, 1823 to 2020
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
In 1823, according to Wikidata. Clinton’s post office opened in 1825, and the census of 1880 counted 569 people here.
How does Clinton rank for history?
Clinton is more historic than 58% of U.S. towns, #44 of 100 in Mississippi. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Clinton?
4 listings: 2 buildings, among them the Cedars, The (listed 1977, the first), and 2 historic districts, the East Clinton Historic District and the Clinton Olde Towne Historic District, with 127 contributing buildings. 129 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Clinton?
0.7% of Clinton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 4.5% for a Mississippi town; the median home was built in 1982.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (9), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (4), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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