Tishomingo County Mississippi Genealogy & History Network










A History of Woodall Mountain - Highest Point in Mississippi


Submitted by: Paul Richardson



At 806 feet above sea level, Woodall Mountain is the highest point in Mississippi. Prior to 1878, Woodall Mountain was called Yow Hill or Yow Mountain. It was renamed for Zephaniah H. Woodall, who was the sheriff of Tishomingo County at the time the courthouse and the county records inside burned to the ground in 1887. It was suspected at the time that the fire was set to dwestroy evidence in a murder case.


On September 19, 1862, the Union Army of Mississippi, commanded by Major General William S. Rosecrans, and the Confederate Army of the West, commanded by Major General Sterling Price fought a fierce and bloody battle approximately 1 1/2 miles southwest of Iuka. Casualties numbered over 2300 - about a third of the combatants.


The battle of Iuka took place at the current location of US Hwy 72 at State Hwy 25. Because of the wide views afforded at the summit, Woodall Mountain was used as an observation point by both armies during their campaigns in this region.


The armies met again October 3-4, 1862, during the battle for control of the railroad junction at Corinth, approximately 22 miles west-northwest of Iuka. Some Civil War historians believe the defeats suffered by the Confederates at Iuka and Corinth forever turned the tide of the war for the Confederacy.



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