Memphis Facts
DID YOU KNOW:
DID YOU KNOW:
- James Winchester named the city of Memphis after the ancient city of Memphis, Egypt. The city was on the Nile river. The Mississippi River is referred to as the "American Nile" so the name fit! The next time you see the pyramid in downtown Memphis, make sure you think about our sister city in Egypt.
- The name Memphis means: "A place of good abode" or "A good place to live"
- There was a series of earthquakes in 1812 that were so powerful they made waves in the Mississippi River that were as big as waves in the ocean.
- The Yellow Fever Epidemic in 1878 reduced the population of Memphis by half. About 50,000 people lived in the city, but once the epidemic struck, there were only around 25,000 people left. Around 19,000 people got sick and 5,000 died. The epidemic devastated the city so much, that Memphis lost their city charter and they were forced to start over again. There were positive effects of the epidemic. City officials recognized the need to clean up the city so they build an all new sewer system. They also discovered underground aquifers where they could get fresh water to the citizens of Memphis. A wealthy black business owner, Robert Church, bought up land on Beale Street and helped turn it into a mecca of soulful music.
- The Memphis Pyramid was built in 1991 and is the sixth largest pyramid in the world.
- The Mississippi River begins in Lake Itasca in Northern Minnesota. It runs over 2500 miles to the Gulf of Mexico. The name "Mississippi" comes from the Ojibwe tribe and means "Big River".