Mississippi
11 Relaxing Mississippi Towns
Trademark Southern charm, alluring natural scenery, and an engrossing cultural landscape vividly depict what to expect from the Magnolia State. Mississippi has vibrant communities, history, and serene small towns that offer a perfect escape. Here, you can find picturesque landscapes, friendly locals, and a pace of living that encourages relaxation and reflection.
Whether you’re strolling through Civil War battle sites in Port Gibson or simply taking in the beauty of the coastal landscapes of Bay St. Louis, Mississippi’s most relaxing communities invite you to slow down and appreciate life’s simple pleasures. The following towns invite you to slow down and gravitate toward what truly matters.
Natchez
This quaint community on the Mississippi River exudes Southern charm. Natchez is famous for several antebellum mansions that transport guests through time. A tour of Melrose offers a window into the pre-Civil War period, with a chance to browse rare furnishings from the times and admire its Greek Revival architecture. Additionally, Stanton Hall represents an excellent example of Classical Revival structures in the town. Constructed in the mid-19th century, it has a palatial facade that compels first-timers to snap a photo.
While Natchez hosts a string of festivals throughout the year, visiting during the Natchez Food and Wine Festival puts you in the ideal setting to let loose and forget your troubles. This fun extravaganza incorporates everything from Southern dishes and fine wines to intimate art to ensure guests have a memorable experience.
Bay St. Louis
Visitors can relax and rejuvenate in the welcoming atmosphere of Bay St. Louis. This Gulf Coast community beckons: convenient, clean, and uncrowded.
Bay St. Louis Theatre offers family-friendly theatrical productions that promise to induce a laugh. Meanwhile, history lovers will enjoy a tour of the Bay St. Louis Historic L & N Train Depot, which tells the story of rail in town.
Hattiesburg
With its green parks, welcoming community, and family-friendly attractions, Hattiesburg endears itself to travelers of all preferences. It encourages them to embrace the beautiful outdoors at Paul B Johnson State Park and make the most of countless recreational activities. These range from picnicking and boating to swimming and fishing on the shores of Geiger Lake. Meanwhile, the Longleaf Trace offers the perfect avenue to let your hair down and feel the wind on your face during a remarkable biking excursion along the paved 44-mile route.
Vacationing families can expect to have a blast at the Hattiesburg Zoo. This 12-acre sanctuary promises rare encounters with exotic wildlife species from across the globe, including flamingoes, emus, wallabies, and alligators.
Laurel
An eclectic arts scene draws holidayers to this pleasant Jones County locality. Laurel is home to multiple art venues, highlighted by the Lauren Rogers Museum of Art. The facility boasts a world-class collection of over 2,000 items, including rare Native Indian antiques. Meanwhile, theatergoers can get inspired by watching performances at the Laurel Little Theatre. Beyond the arts, military heritage is on display at the Veterans Memorial Museum.
Alternatively, you can blow off steam in the quiet environment of Mason Memorial Park. This 25-acre nature space allows holidayers to reconnect with nature through lazy strolls and nonchalant picnics under shady trees.
Greenville
Greenville has something for everyone. Guests are spoilt for choice whenever they want to experience the open spaces. However, you can’t go wrong at Warfield Point Park. The little sanctuary has a cool environment and grassy picnic areas with unprecedented panoramas of the Mississippi River. The downtown area boasts a cluster of taverns like Spectators Pub & Patio.
Finally, the Greenville History Museum has eye-opening exhibits, including one about the Jewish community in Greenville.
Cleveland
Cleveland stands out among relaxing Mississippi towns because of the variety of experiences offered to tourists. It is home to the Grammy Museum of Mississippi, a music-centered venue paying tribute to the contributions of Mississippi residents to the music industry and the evolution of the Grammy Awards. Cleveland is also home to the Bologna Performing Arts Center, where local talent and college groups perform. This world-class venue at Delta State University stages entertaining theatrical performances, such as concerts, plays, and musicals.
Elsewhere, historically inclined visitors can peruse rare memorabilia and listen to fascinating stories depicting Asian heritage at the Mississippi Delta Chinese Heritage Museum. Additionally, the Martin & Sue King Railroad Museum has exhibits on the railroad history in the south.
Columbus
Travelers should expect positive vibes in Columbus, Mississippi. Its residents are delightfully welcoming, earning the nickname the “Friendly City.” The town is along the Tombigbee River and the Columbus Riverwalk & Trail. This 4.4-mile route is a great attraction. But if you don’t mind a little commotion, you can catch an adrenaline-filled spectacle at the Magnolia Motor Speedway. The dirt track treats natives and visitors to fun races in a family-friendly atmosphere.
Meanwhile, downtown Columbus has an exciting display of antebellum structures. In addition to admiring the architecture of the Tennessee Williams Home & Welcome Center, stepping inside exposes tourists to the inspiring life of the celebrated playwright.
Port Gibson
Home to less than 2,000 residents, Port Gibson has a quintessential, small-town feel. The Grand Gulf Military State Park is located in Port Gibson. This 400-acre site hosted the Battle of Port Gibson, preserving the town’s landmark role during the historic conflict. Unsurprisingly, several historic homes provide a window into the bygone eras. The A.K. Shaifer House is prominent among them and transports you back to the 1820s, where the first shot marking the start of the Battle of Port Gibson was fired.
After the immersive trip down the region’s war heritage, you can free your mind and relax with a low-key round of golf at the beautiful Mosswood Golf Course. Or explore the Windsor Ruins ten miles outside of town: 23 standing Corinthian columns of the largest antebellum Greek Revival mansion ever built in the state
Ocean Springs
Ocean Springs, Mississippi, is a quiet town. A laid-back coastal atmosphere allows visitors to let their guard down and revel in the tranquility of Ocean Springs Beach. Its smooth sands are ideal for lazy lounging as you wait for the spectacular sunsets over the water. Alternatively, you can mingle with the hospitable townspeople while shopping for assorted goods at the Ocean Springs Fresh Market. This is also an opportunity to savor delicious Southern-style seafood.
On the other hand, the indoor inclined will have a great time watching intimate artistic creations at the Walter Anderson Museum of Art. Furthermore, a charming experience awaits at the Charnley-Norwood House, which dates back to the 1890s and was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and Louis Sullivan.
Clarksdale
The Clarksdale community honors the blues. The Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale exhibits memorabilia and artifacts about blues music. Numerous entertainment venues throughout downtown welcome guests to partake in their musical culture, including Ground Zero Blues Club. You can find a quiet corner spot and order booze as you listen to the live band play sweet tunes.
Clarksdale is also home to the landmark Cutrer Mansion. Built in 1916 by Bayard Cairnes, the Italian Renaissance building portrays various aspects of culture and history in the Mississippi Delta area.
Meridian
This charming Lauderdale County village has a vibrant art scene. Expect an immersive cultural experience, starting with a tour of the Meridian Museum of Art. The venue is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and supports local arts through exhibitions, programs, and classes. For a dose of local culture, those who prefer live performances can opt for a show at the MSU Riley Center.
When not engrossed in the arts, you can relax on the green grounds of Bonita Lakes Park. The 3,300-acre nature area is an outdoor lover’s playground, rewarding travelers with recreations like hiking, fishing, horseback riding, and paddling on the lake’s calm waters.
Final Thought
Every once in a while, escape to any of the above relaxing Mississippi towns for a deserved break from the everyday hustle in the United States. These charming destinations invite you to unwind, offering a perfect blend of natural beauty, rich history, and welcoming communities. Between taking nonchalant strolls on the sandy beaches of Ocean Springs and exploring the captivating history of Natchez, it is an invitation to embrace the slower pace of life in Mississippi and discover the tranquility that awaits in these hidden gems.
Mississippi
Mississippi Lottery Mississippi Match 5, Cash 3 results for July 16, 2026
Odds of winning the Powerball and Mega Millions are NOT in your favor
Odds of hitting the jackpot in Mega Millions or Powerball are around 1-in-292 million. Here are things that you’re more likely to land than big bucks.
The Mississippi Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at July 16, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Mississippi Match 5 numbers from July 16 drawing
02-09-28-33-35
Check Mississippi Match 5 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash 3 numbers from July 16 drawing
Midday: 8-1-2, FB: 5
Evening: 8-7-4, FB: 5
Check Cash 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash 4 numbers from July 16 drawing
Midday: 2-0-5-6, FB: 5
Evening: 5-3-9-0, FB: 5
Check Cash 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash Pop numbers from July 16 drawing
Midday: 14
Evening: 10
Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Story continues below gallery.
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
Winnings of $599 or less can be claimed at any authorized Mississippi Lottery retailer.
Prizes between $600 and $99,999, may be claimed at the Mississippi Lottery Headquarters or by mail. Mississippi Lottery Winner Claim form, proper identification (ID) and the original ticket must be provided for all claims of $600 or more. If mailing, send required documentation to:
Mississippi Lottery Corporation
P.O. Box 321462
Flowood, MS
39232
If your prize is $100,000 or more, the claim must be made in person at the Mississippi Lottery headquarters. Please bring identification, such as a government-issued photo ID and a Social Security card to verify your identity. Winners of large prizes may also have the option of setting up electronic funds transfer (EFT) for direct deposits into a bank account.
Mississippi Lottery Headquarters
1080 River Oaks Drive, Bldg. B-100
Flowood, MS
39232
Mississippi Lottery prizes must be claimed within 180 days of the drawing date. For detailed instructions and necessary forms, please visit the Mississippi Lottery claim page.
When are the Mississippi Lottery drawings held?
- Cash 3: Daily at 2:30 p.m. (Midday) and 9:30 p.m. (Evening).
- Cash 4: Daily at 2:30 p.m. (Midday) and 9:30 p.m. (Evening).
- Match 5: Daily at 9:30 p.m. CT.
- Cash Pop: Daily at 2:30 p.m. (Midday) and 9:30 p.m. (Evening).
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Mississippi editor. You can send feedback using this form.
Mississippi
Mississippi homeowners blame a noisy data center plant for sleepless nights. The mayor’s advice? “Consider selling.”
It was 4 a.m. on a Sunday and 46-year-old Jason Haley was once again wide awake.
The suburban silence that Haley had grown used to in his two decades as a resident of Southaven, Mississippi, had, for the last few months, been replaced by a constant whirring, like an airplane hovering over his home, he said.
The noise keeping Haley awake was coming from a plant powering Elon Musk’s xAI data centers in the area, according to a lawsuit filed in June against the company and its subsidiary, MZX Tech. Haley and two other Southaven residents, who live within a mile of the plant, allege in the suit that “near-constant” noise and vibrations are causing negative physical and psychological health effects.
The filing comes amid growing resistance toward data center development, with the majority of Americans opposing local construction of a data center, according to a Gallup poll published earlier this year.
Similar disputes are playing out across the country, like in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin, where a lawsuit this month filed by residents alleges a data center emits “unreasonable and excessive noise” onto residents’ properties and in Lowell, Massachusetts, where noise from a data center’s cooling center “disrupts neighbors’ sleep,” according to an April suit.
There are more than 4,000 data centers in the U.S., according to a recent United Nations report. To power the data centers, developers are building their own plants, sometimes with little warning to residents like Haley.
Haley reached out to Southaven Mayor Darren Musselwhite about the noise in emails he shared with CBS News. In one last November, he urged Musselwhite to drive through the neighborhood “and take a listen to the constant high pitch noises.”
“I am aware of the noise and working on a solution with xAI officials,” Musselwhite had responded to Haley an hour later. “It is a problem,” he said in another email later in the day.
But soon, another sleepless night rolled around and Haley was emailing the mayor again.
“Anyone else I can reach out to?” Haley wrote to Musselwhite. “It’s almost 4 am and I can hear it from my bed. The high pitch and roaring combined is full force at this time. My ears are ringing. I can’t live in this. How was this ever approved?”
“I don’t care that this is Elon’s project”
Just north of Southaven, which sits on the Mississippi-Tennessee border, xAI’s data center Colossus went online in Memphis in September 2024. The company dubbed it “the world’s largest AI supercomputer.”
By late July 2025, Musk was announcing that another data center, Colossus 2, was set to begin operation in the area within weeks.
Days later, an announcement popped into the Facebook feeds of Southaven residents: An energy facility that had been dormant for decades will be revived to support xAI’s expanding data center operations in the area, Musselwhite said.
The post was met by a flood of comments, with some lauding the development and others expressing concern about the plant’s impact on the environment and strain on local resources.
Meanwhile, Haley started hearing sounds.
“My first thought was somebody’s got a leaf blower going all the time,” he said.
By December, the noise had become a fixture. He started getting headaches, stopped getting sleep and slipped into feelings of hopelessness and depression. The noise was inescapable, he said, and despite his best efforts to drown it out (sleeping with earplugs, getting a box fan for white noise), it continued to drone on.
So Haley began speaking up — at city government meetings, on Facebook and through TikTok, where he posts videos of himself measuring the noise with a sound meter. He later became involved in a grassroots coalition called Safe and Sound, drawing awareness to concerns surrounding xAI’s undertakings in the region.
The “activist” label is one he’s reluctantly accepted.
“I’ve never been into any kind of activism, never really kept up with politics a whole lot,” he said. “I’m just a guy that has a problem with this noise, and started speaking out and trying to raise awareness.”
When he emailed Musselwhite about the noise again in December, his message came with a disclosure: “I am not a republican or democrat, I don’t care that this is Elon’s project. I didn’t know whose it was when I started complaining about the noise that started in August.”
Musselwhite responded a few days later.
“As I mentioned to you in the public meeting, you seem to be a reasonable person,” he said. “I will give you some unsolicited advice from an older man, be careful with whom you associate so you don’t damage your credibility.”
By January, xAI was expanding its footprint with a third data center in Southaven, MACROHARDDR. As residents like Haley continued pushing back online and in city meetings, Musselwhite had a new message.
Southaven, he said in a Facebook post, was “under attack by all who choose to oppose Elon Musk because of his high-profile political stances.” He warned residents to “beware of the smokescreen of radical politics.”
In his emails to Haley, Musselwhite continued to acknowledge the noise as a problem.
“The noise issue is one of my highest priorities and I have been in detailed discussions with xAI and many independent professionals to resolve this,” he wrote in March.
But in the same email, he offered Haley more advice: “I know they want houses for employees, so you may want to consider selling your home.”
CBS News made multiple attempts to speak with Musselwhite and did not receive a reply.
Migraines, ringing ears and sleepless nights
Moving isn’t Haley’s preference, but he said he is in the financial position to do so if he chooses.
That’s not the case for everyone.
A little over a decade ago, 31-year-old Taylor Logsdon bought a home for her growing family in Southaven and began building her life around it.
“We loved it here,” she said. “It was peaceful, it was quiet, didn’t have to worry about nothing.”
But that was before the noise, so loud, she said, that it sometimes shakes her home. Logsdon, who is also involved in the Safe and Sound coalition and is suing xAI with Haley and one other Southaven resident, said she has experienced migraines and anxiety as a result of the noise.
She said she has persistent ringing in her ears and so do her children. A full night of sleep has become rare for the family.
“I would move tomorrow if I could,” she said, adding that she needs to save money before she can afford to move.
Her children, all under the age of 13, are having trouble staying awake at school.
“One of them is extra angry all the time — never, never has been that way, but he’s just irritable like all the time,” she said. “I feel like I’m snappier too.”
xAI spent millions of dollars trying to mitigate the sound with a sound wall, a berm and evergreen trees, Musselwhite said in a February Facebook post.
“It still hasn’t helped. It hasn’t even put a dent in it,” Logsdon said.
People living in areas where there is “constant humming or buzzing” report headaches, stress and sleep disturbance, said Dr. Samoon Ahmad, a clinical professor of psychiatry at New York University.
A 2023 study found that environmental noise exposure can lead to adverse associations for cardiovascular disease and mortality, diabetes, hearing impairment, neurological disorders and adverse reproductive outcomes.
“People think of annoyance as an abstract term,” Ahmad said. “It’s not an abstract term because it has real physiological ramifications.”
The World Health Organization recommends less than 40 decibels of annual average nighttime noise outside of bedrooms to prevent adverse health effects. Haley has recorded noise levels over 60 decibels as late as 10:15 p.m. from his Southaven backyard.
Musk’s Memphis
Even before Logsdon and Haley decided to take action against xAI, Musk’s growing presence in the Memphis area garnered attention from advocacy groups over health and environmental concerns.
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People filed a lawsuit in April against xAI claiming the Southaven plant emits “significant” amounts of harmful pollutants from its 27 gas turbines, which has since increased to 59, according to a court filing reviewed by CBS News. The NAACP has also filed an appeal to challenge the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality’s decision to issue an air permit allowing the Southaven plant to operate 41 permanent methane gas turbines. An independent study found their operation would increase air pollution in an area already grappling with a disproportionate number of asthma-related emergency room visits.
CBS News has reached out to xAI for comment.
Musk’s investment in the latest Southaven data center brings his company’s contribution to the area to $20 billion, according to the office of Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves. The governor called it “the largest economic development project in Mississippi’s history.”
Musk’s financial footprint has also extended beyond the data centers — MZX Tech donated over $1.3 million to the Southaven Police Department in February, according to the donation agreement obtained by CBS News, and has offered half-priced Starlink for those in the Memphis region.
But Logsdon says the cost to her and her family’s health has her wondering why it feels like her city is willing to “hurt the few to get the benefits.”
“We were not a failure town before,” Logsdon said. “It’s not like our economics were terrible here.”
Southaven had a median household income of over $70,000 in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau — $20,000 more than the state average.
Logsdon, currently a stay-at-home mom, will be searching for work this fall so she and her husband can start saving up to move away from the plant. For now, her goal is a full night’s sleep.
“I hope that my family can go back to having our normal,” she said. “Being able to sleep at night, being able to enjoy my backyard, being able to go swimming.”
Mississippi
GPS data tracks boat Mississippi teen Nolan Wells was on before he went missing
GPS data from the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources, obtained by CBS News, tracks the movements of the boat that carried Nolan Wells to Horn Island on July 4. Wells was found dead after going missing following an outing on the island.
The vessel left a dock at approximately 9:56 a.m. that morning and arrived at Horn Island at 11:14 a.m. CBS News has previously reported that Wells was not on the boat when it departed the island.
According to the GPS data, the boat left Horn Island at 4:31 p.m. and returned to its original departure dock. It then traveled into Fort Bayou around 5:52 p.m. before returning to the dock at 6:06 p.m.
Later that evening, the boat went to the Fort Bayou boat launch at 7:19 p.m., according to the MSDMR report. From there, it traveled over land — presumably towed by a vehicle — to the Biloxi, Mississippi, residence of the boat’s owners.
The MSDMR report indicates that the boat’s owner, his mother and one other individual who was reportedly with Wells on the day of the incident have cooperated with the investigation.
The department’s report ends on July 5, following notification that the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office would take over as the lead investigative agency.
Wells, 18, was last seen on July 4 on Horn Island, where he had taken a boat trip with friends to celebrate the holiday, officials said. Wells traveled to the island with his friends but did not return to the mainland with them that afternoon, Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter has said.
He was last seen on the island at 3 p.m., according to attorney Ben Crump’s office. His mother reported him missing later that night and a search began.
His body was discovered July 6 off the coast of the island, which is about 10 miles south of the Mississippi mainland, following a search that involved the U.S. Coast Guard, the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources and the National Park Service.
Dental records confirmed the body was Wells, Jackson County coroner Bruce Lynd told CBS News. An autopsy took place on July 7, Lynd said, but the results were not immediately made public. Wells’ body was flown to Washington, D.C., for an independent autopsy, according to Crump.
Wells’ parents have said they don’t believe their son would’ve stayed behind on the island by choice when his friends left by boat.
“No, he wouldn’t. Nolan always stays with the group,” Elmore Wonsley, Nolan’s father, told “CBS Mornings” last week. “If you be with me, you come back with me. So that I don’t understand, and with me being a parent, if I was in that situation, I would have told them, ‘You’re going to get back on this boat with me because I don’t want to answer to your parents if something happens to you.’”
When directly asked if he believed Nolan was left behind on the island, his father responded, “Yes. I don’t believe he decided to stay on the island by himself. It just doesn’t — that’s not his character.”
Wells went to Ocean Springs High School and was a rising sophomore on Southwest Mississippi Community College’s football team. Crump said Wells was a good swimmer.
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