MERIDIAN, Miss., city, cotmty-seat of Lauderdale County, on Alabama and Vicksburg, Alabama Great Southern, Meridian and Mem phis, Mobile and Ohio, New Orleans and Northeastern and Southern railroads. It is the largest city in Mississippi in population, manu ufactures and commerce, surrounded by fertile farm land of which cotton and vegetables are the chief agricultural products. Among numer ous industrial establishments are lumber mills, fertilizer factories, cotton-seed-oil mills, cotton mills, cotton compresses and railroad shops. The annual wholesale trade is $20,000,000; the average annual hank clearings approximate $17,000,000. Meridian is the seat of the East Mississippi Female College (M. E.), founded in 1867 and opened in 1869, the Lincoln School (Congregational), the Meridian Academy (Methodist Episcopal South), both for colored students, a Catholic high school and Saint Aloysius Academy for Girls. Among promi
nent features are the municipal building, county courthouse, public library, Scottish Rite Cathe dral, Stonewall Club, handsome churches and fine business and banking buildings. The Mis sissippi-Alabama Fair, held annually at Merid ian, is the second largest agricultural and stock exhibition in the South in number of exhibits and attendance. Since 1912 the commission form of government is in operation; the city owns the waterworks and has a modern equipped and salaried department. Elec tnc car service, electric and gas lighting are furnished by a company with a plant of suffi dent capacity for a city of 100,000 inhabitants. During the Civil War, Meridian was devas tated by General Sherman, 14-20 Feb. 1864, and in March 1906 a large portion of the city was destroyed by a tornado. Pop. 30,000.