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| The newly-restored Greenwood Underpass in August 2010. |
GREENWOOD - The City of Greenwood will unveil its newest historic marker at the Greenwood Underpass on Main Street at Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive this Thursday, August 12, at 9 a.m. The Art-Deco underpass, which was opened to traffic in 1940, was listed on that National Register of Historic Places in November 2008.
Momentum for rehabilitating the structure picked up when local historian Marion Howard began raising funds for a historic marker to be located on the site. Main Street Greenwood, Inc., the Greenwood-Leflore Chamber of Commerce, and the Greenwood Convention and Visitors Bureau all pitched in to purchase the marker, which reads:
GREENWOOD UNDERPASS
The Greenwood Underpass was constructed in 1938 by the Mississippi State Highway Department with funding from the Federal Aid Highway Program. In accordance with WPA goals, the Greenwood Underpass was designed to improve the Y. & M.V. railroad crossing by elevating the track and eliminating the railway-grade crossing. Adding a four-lane highway and sidewalk under the railway created an entrance into Greenwood. This Art Deco-style structure was engineered by Eli Abbott, Jr.
Following the delivery of the marker to City Hall, Mayor Carolyn McAdams, with support from the Greenwood City Council, began a campaign to clean the underpass and the surrounding area. "The Greenwood Underpass is one of the city's most prominent entrances and was in need of some attention," said Mayor McAdams. "This project truly was a community effort, with many entities and individuals working together to improve the area."
An Urban Youth Corps. Grant from the Mississippi Department of Transportation provided funding for stamped-in-place concrete and sod grass to be installed in the median of Main Street at the underpass. The City of Greenwood and Leflore County pressure washed the entire underpass structure and Greenwood Utilities and the City worked to restore the original Crouse-Hinds down-lighting underneath the structure.
The unveiling of the marker will take place at 9 a.m. on the south side of the underpass at Main Street and Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive. A presentation of the colors by the Greenwood Police Department will be accompanied by remarks from city officials. The event is open to the public. For more information, contact Thomas Gregory, CAO, at 662-453-2246.
An Urban Youth Corps. Grant from the Mississippi Department of Transportation provided funding for stamped-in-place concrete and sod grass to be installed in the median of Main Street at the underpass. The City of Greenwood and Leflore County pressure washed the entire underpass structure and Greenwood Utilities and the City worked to restore the original Crouse-Hinds down-lighting underneath the structure.
The unveiling of the marker will take place at 9 a.m. on the south side of the underpass at Main Street and Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive. A presentation of the colors by the Greenwood Police Department will be accompanied by remarks from city officials. The event is open to the public. For more information, contact Thomas Gregory, CAO, at 662-453-2246.
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