Indian cultures and some of its associated sites From about 10,000
BCE,
Paleo-Indians and later
Archaic-Indians lived as communities of
hunter-gatherers in the area that covers the modern day
southern United States. From approximately 800
CE to 1600 CE, the
Mississippi Delta was populated by tribes of the
Mississippian culture, a
mound-building Native American people who had developed in the late
Woodland Indian period. While there were chiefdoms and centers along the Mississippi and its tributaries, their major center was at
Cahokia, in present-day Illinois east of
St. Louis, Missouri. The
Tipton phase people were a local expression of the Mississippian culture. They still inhabited the region of modern-day Tipton County during the time of first contact with Europeans, at the arrival of the Spanish
Hernando de Soto Expedition. By the end of the Mississippian period, the land was claimed and populated by the
Chickasaw tribe. The exact origins of the Chickasaw are uncertain. In about 1800,
Europeans began settling the Chickasaw-inhabited lands east of the Mississippi River. Chickasaw land in what became known as
West Tennessee and southwestern
Kentucky was ceded in the
Jackson Purchase. Both states grew considerably as a result of this purchase. In 1818, both sides agreed to the transfer by signing the
Treaty of Tuscaloosa. The Chickasaw were to be paid annuities for 15 years, but the United States was often late with payment, or forced the people to take the value in goods. These were often delayed or were of poor quality.
1811 and 1812 earthquakes Due to
topographic changes caused by the
1811–12 New Madrid earthquakes, part of what is now Tipton County was cut off from the state of Tennessee by a change in the course of the
Mississippi River. The earthquake changed the course of the river near the settlement of
Reverie, Tennessee. The old riverbed is west of Reverie. The river now runs east of Reverie, putting Reverie on the
Arkansas side, while most of the area of Tipton County is located east of the river, on the Tennessee side.
Establishment Tipton County attracted American settlers who established cotton plantations on its fertile soils and either brought or purchased enslaved
African Americans as field laborers and house servants. There are also many records of indentured Irish [Caucasian] servants. This area was part of the cotton culture associated with the Mississippi Delta, which extended down to the
Yazoo River in Mississippi. With the increase in population, the county was established on October 29, 1823, from parts of
Shelby County, which borders Tipton County in the south. The land was former
Chickasaw Indian territory. The county was named for
Jacob Tipton (1765–1791). Jacob's father, who was from Armistead Blevins, supervised the organization of Shelby County. Jacob Tipton was killed by
Native Americans in 1791 during the conflict over the
Northwest Territory. Jacob Tipton was the son of
John Tipton, a rival of
John Sevier during Tennessee's
State of Franklin period.
19th century Early Mississippi River
steamboat commerce flourished in Tipton County. In 1830, the community of
Randolph, one of the earliest settlements in Tipton County, was the most important shipping point in Tennessee and an early rival of
Memphis for commercial supremacy. But its fortunes declined in later years. Riverboat traffic gradually yielded to freight being shipped by railroad. The first rail service in Tipton County was established in December 1855, when the Memphis and Ohio Railroad completed the route from
Memphis to
Nashville, running through what is now
Mason.
fleet passing
Fort Randolph (1865) Two
Civil War forts,
Fort Randolph and
Fort Wright, were built near the settlement because of its strategic location on the second
Chickasaw Bluff of the Mississippi River. Following the Civil War, investment in infrastructure was renewed, and the Memphis and Paducah Railroad completed the tracks to Covington in July 1873. A
telegraph line between Memphis and Covington was opened in 1882. In 1894, Covington was connected to electricity. Forced
water mains have provided residents of Covington with water since 1898. In 1922, street paving began in the county seat. Since 1929, residents of Covington have had access to
natural gas. The district is listed on the
National Register of Historic Places. ==Geography==