thumb|right|The now-abandoned depot in Winona was a stop for the [[City of New Orleans (train)|City of New Orleans until 1995.]]
Winona is a city in and the county seat of Montgomery County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 4,505 at the 2020 census,
While touring the country in this period, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), made a stop in Winona. He was ambushed by local barber Ryan Lynch, an outspoken white supremacist. King was saved by his assigned bodyguard, a local police officer named Garrit Howard.
In 1996, the owner of the Tardy Furniture store in Winona, Bertha Tardy, and three employees of the store were found fatally shot. Curtis Flowers was arrested in January 1997 and charged with four counts of capital murder. Flowers was tried a total of six times, and in 2020 the Office of the Attorney General filed a motion to dismiss the charges.
2023 tornado
On Friday, March 24, 2023, just after 9:30 p.m. CDT, the southern side of Winona was struck and heavily damaged by a large, destructive and fast-moving EF3 tornado that caused three deaths.
Geography
Winona is in western Montgomery County, north of Jackson, the state capital, and south of Grenada via I-55. U.S. Route 51 passes through the west side of the city, while U.S. Route 82 runs through the north side of the city on a four-lane bypass. US 51 leads north to Duck Hill and south the same distance to Vaiden, while US 82 leads east to Starkville and west to Greenwood. I-55 passes through the westernmost part of the city, with access from Exit 185 (US 82).
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Winona has a total area of , of which , or 0.24%, are water.
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Winona had a population of 4,505. There were 1,916 households and 1,223 families in the city.
The median age was 42.3 years. 24.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 21.0% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females, there were 82.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.0 males.
{| class="wikitable"
|+Winona racial composition
!Race
!Num.
!Perc.
|-
|White (non-Hispanic)
|1,890
|41.95%
|-
|Black or African American (non-Hispanic)
|2,439
|54.14%
|-
|Asian
|15
|0.33%
|-
|Other/Mixed
|121
|2.69%
|-
|Hispanic or Latino
|40
|0.89%
|}
2010 census
As of the 2010 United States census, there were 5,043 people living in the city. 52.8% were Black or African American, 45.8% White, 0.6% Asian, 0.2% Native American, 0.2% of some other race and 0.4% of two or more races. 0.5% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race).
2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 5,482 people, 2,098 households, and 1,456 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 2,344 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 48.10% White, 50.73% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.49% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.04% from other races, and 0.44% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.89% of the population.
There were 2,098 households, out of which 32.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.5% were married couples living together, 24.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.6% were non-families. 28.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.14.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 27.9% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 20.8% from 45 to 64, and 18.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 78.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 70.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $25,160, and the median income for a family was $31,619. Males had a median income of $30,163 versus $17,549 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,700. About 24.5% of families and 27.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 40.6% of those under age 18 and 24.8% of those age 65 or over.
Economy
In May 2005, the economy of Winona got a slight boost with the arrival of Pilot Travel Centers. The company, a large truck-stop/travel-center chain, purchased the High Point truck and travel center, which was previously owned by former NFL player Kent Hull.
In January 2021, Biewer Lumber announced its plan to develop a state-of-the-art sawmill in Winona. As a reported $130 million investment, the company intends to bring more than 150 new jobs to Montgomery County.
Education
Public schools
- Winona- Montgomery County Consolidated School District
- Winona Vocational Complex
Private schools
- Winona Christian Academy
Media
Newspaper
- The Winona Times 1881–present
- The Winona Advance 1869-1890
Radio stations
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Frequency !! Callsign !! Format !! Owner
|-
| 95.1 FM || WONA-FM || Country || Southern Electronics Co., Inc.
|-
|1570
|WLEE-AM
|Country
|Back Forty Broadcasting, LLC
|}
Notable people
- Waldo Emerson Bailey, former U.S. consul
- William Billingsley, naval pilot
- Lydia Chassaniol, member of the Mississippi Senate
- Pearl Conklin, composer
- Little Sammy Davis, blues musician
- Jane Holmes Dixon, Episcopal bishop
- D'Wayne Eskridge, NFL wide receiver
- Chris Faser Jr., member of the Mississippi House of Representatives while living in Winona in the 1950s; later a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives; aide to Louisiana Governor Jimmie Davis in both the 1944 and 1959 campaigns
- Henry Minor Faser, life insurance executive and founding dean of the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy
- Curtis Flowers, tried for murder six times
- Wade Griffin, NFL football player
- George P. Gunn, fifth Episcopal Bishop of Southern Virginia
- E. W. Hammons, film producer
- Bill Harvey, rhythm and blues saxophonist and bandleader
- Frank W. Hunger, former U.S. Assistant Attorney General
- Lafayette Leake, blues and jazz pianist
- L. C. McKinley, Chicago blues guitarist
- Henry Milton, Negro league outfielder
- Howard Mitcham, poet, author, chef
- Chip Oliver, former NFL linebacker
- Karl Oliver, member of the Mississippi House of Representatives
- Donald H. Peterson, astronaut
- Gil Peterson, actor
- Sid Robinson, middle-distance runner who competed in the men's 1500 metres at the 1928 Summer Olympics.
- Thomas U. Sisson, member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1909 to 1923
- William Small, college basketball coach
- Roebuck Staples, gospel and R&B musician
- William V. Sullivan, U.S. senator
- John Tapley, Negro league third baseman
- John Peroutt Taylor, State Treasurer of Mississippi from 1916 to 1920
- James Michael Tyler, actor
- Chris White, NFL football player