Ebenezer, Mississippi facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ebenezer, Mississippi
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 Ebenezer, Mississippi
Location in Mississippi
Ebenezer, Mississippi
Location in the United States
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| Country | United States |
| State | Mississippi |
| County | Holmes |
| Elevation | 331 ft (101 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP code |
39146
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| Area code(s) | 662 |
| GNIS feature ID | 669637 |
Ebenezer is a small, unincorporated community in Holmes County, Mississippi, United States. An "unincorporated community" means it's a place with a shared identity but no official local government.
Ebenezer is located about 10 miles (16 km) south of Lexington, which is the county seat. It's also about 4 miles (6.4 km) west of Goodman. You can find it near the western end of the eastern part of Mississippi Highway 14.
The community got its name from early settlers. A source from 1905 suggests they named it after an "old Jewish city." Some German-Jewish immigrants came to this area starting in the 1830s. Later, Russian Jewish immigrants also settled here. Many of them lived in Lexington. They built a place of worship called Temple Beth El in Lexington in 1905. This temple closed in 2009 because fewer people lived in the area.
People from Ebenezer
Ebenezer has been home to some important people who made a difference in history.
Perry Wilbon Howard
Perry Wilbon Howard was born in Ebenezer in 1877. His parents were African American and had been enslaved. He grew up to become a lawyer, one of the first African American attorneys in Mississippi. He had his law practice in Jackson, the state capital.
Even after new state laws made it harder for most Black people to vote in 1890, Howard stayed active in the Republican Party. He worked as a national leader for the party from Mississippi. He also fought for civil rights, which means equal rights for all people.
Howard was appointed to a high position in the government under President Warren G. Harding. He worked in the office of the United States Attorney General. At that time, he was the highest-ranking African American in the government.
Robert G. Clark Jr.
Robert G. Clark Jr. was born in Ebenezer on October 3, 1928. He still lives there today. In 1967, he made history. He was the first African American person elected to the Mississippi State Legislature since the time after the Civil War, known as the Reconstruction era.
For many years, until 1976, he was the only African American representative in the state house. He was re-elected many times. In 1992, he was chosen as the Speaker Pro Tempore of the Mississippi House of Representatives. This is a very important leadership role. He continued to serve in that position until he retired in 2003.
