Columbia

Columbia, city, seat (1819) of Marion county, southern Mississippi, U.S. It lies on a bluff along the Pearl River, about 80 miles (130 km) south-southeast of Jackson. The site was settled as a river port in the early 1800s, and for several months in 1821 it served as the state capital. It thrived as a lumber town until 1929, when its sawmill shut down.

Modern manufactures include parachutes, clothing, furniture, and electrical equipment. The John Ford House, a pioneer home south of the city, was the site of the Pearl River Convention (1816), at which the delegates agreed on Mississippi’s boundaries and began the petition process for its admission to the Union. Inc. 1819. Pop. (2000) 6,603; (2010) 6,582.