Why you can’t help but love Madison, Mississippi
You can take the girl out of Brick City, but you can’t take the Brick City out of the girl
Madison is a town like no other, and everyone who grew up there knows exactly why. Deemed the “Brick City,” Madison is not short on fancy buildings or new construction. We also aren’t short on tradition or love for our city. If you grew up in Madison, these five things will send you right back to your middle school glory days.
Liberty Park
As a teen in Madison, you probably spent way too much time hanging out on child-sized playground equipment or walking around the baseball fields while children used the park as intended. Almost every community event is held at Liberty. You may have played baseball or softball here, or watched your sibling or friends play. Either way, there’s no denying that Liberty is a staple of Madison life.
Football games
Whether you went to Madison Central, Germantown, MRA, St. Andrews, or any of the many other high schools, you know that football is central to life in Madison. Almost every student was either a football player, cheerleader, on the dance team, or in the band. If they weren’t, they more than likely were in the stands every Friday cheering on their school. Football games were also big events for the kids in Madison. Face painting, carnival games, and opportunities to get on the field with the “big kids” kept the kids of Madison excited for the Friday night lights.
Churches
Madison has no shortage of churches. Almost everyone here attends one of many options. However, Madison is home to two of the biggest churches in the state. First Baptist Madison, located on Main Street, just recently finished building a new sanctuary and is still growing. Broadmoor Baptist Church on Highland Colony Parkway has long been the largest church around and is the only building large enough in Madison to house the crowds that attend graduation ceremonies.
The Red Caboose
Far before I was born, this train car stood as the unmistakable symbol of our town. Madison owes its birth to the railroad that runs across Main Street. After a nice lunch at Strawberry Café, you can simply cross the street to admire our red beauty. If it’s around Christmas time, you might get lucky and see the creepy Santa mannequin that sits inside.
Malco Grandview
The day our movie theater opened, Madison was forever changed. No more drives to Jackson just to find out the movie AND the popcorn were sold out. On any night of the week, you can find Malco packed full of people of all ages. We all remember when it was cool to hang out in the lobby with your Icee from the concession stand after the movie and before your mom picked you all up at promptly 8:30. If you were particularly crafty, you probably even snuck into an R-rated movie thanks to a friend’s older sibling.
Constant growth
The first thing anyone from Madison will tell you about their city is that it never stops growing and there is never a shortage of road work or new construction. The population seems to double every few years, creating a need for more schools, churches, and neighborhoods. In the 12 years I was in school, Madison added at least 5 new schools to the district. What was once dense forest when I was a child is now a Walmart, 2 strip malls, a movie theater, and a Sam’s Club. Sprawling neighborhoods cover every foot of Madison that isn’t a school, church, or business.
The insanely fast growth can be annoying to some residents, but I guess it just means more people want to be like us. And who can blame them? Madison, Mississippi is an amazing place to grow up.