The three coastal counties are very different than the rest of the state and a large percentage of the population migrated from elsewhere. There are numerous government installations along the coast that brought in a lot of people to the coast. My father was born in Minier IL but spent most of his life as a civilian at Keesler Air Force Base as an electronics instructor. He preferred the sand to the snow
I moved to central IL in 1989 just after finishing my PhD in the dusty flatlands of Lubbock TX and it feels like home. My daughter intends to come back to the area after finishing her education, it is a great place to raise a family-especially in the small villages and surrounding rural areas.
My daughter was also a big fan of those cannons. These photos were from a trip back to visit Mississippi relatives when she was four.
Rodger
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