Hattiesburg Mississippi

#TravelThursday continues, and in this edition we visit “The Hub City” of Hattiesburg Mississippi.

It got its nickname “The Hub City” because it was a hub – a central point – of several railroad lines at the time (1910s) with a thriving lumber industry. Nowadays it’s known as “The Hub City” because it’s where old U.S. Routes 49 and 98 meet at the south end of the city. U.S. Route 11 also passes through the core of the city. It extends southward to near the Gulf Of Mexico, and northward to the Canadian border with New York. I-59 bypasses much of the city to the west. It is definitely “The Hub City” in the southeastern part of Mississippi. It’s a little less than 100 miles northwestward from Mobile Alabama, and it’s a little more than 100 miles north-northeastward from New Orleans Louisiana.

I’ve driven through Hattiesburg several times en route to and from North Texas. I’ve even spent a couple of hotel nights in Hattiesburg. On one of those hotel nights I had driven 657 miles from Wichita Falls Texas. I checked-in to my hotel room, and I looked at my iPhone. I had a voice mail from my Pastor. He told me to call him. I did. He asked me if I wanted to preach on Sunday. (That was a Thursday night.) An exhausted me gladly accepted. On that Sunday (October 02ND 2016) I preached my very first sermon to my church family. I was ready for that day. I had plenty of time on the road to think about and to pray about that first sermon.

I really want to spend more than a hotel night in and around the Hattiesburg area. There are lots of places to see and things to do there. The Hattiesburg Zoo and the Mississippi Armed Forces Museum would be on that list. #VisitHattiesburg.

Hattiesburg is a young college and military town with about 45,000 residents within the city limits and about 170,000 residents within the metro area. It is the home of the University Of Southern Mississippi and the black and gold Golden Eagles.

Join me next #TravelThursday as we visit another location on the face of this earth.

They keep you safe on your way, and your feet will not stumble. You can go to bed without fear. You will lie down and sleep soundly. You need not be afraid of sudden disaster or the destruction that comes upon the wicked, for the LORD is your security. He will keep your foot from being caught in a trap. (Proverbs 3:23-26 NLT)