 Meridian Jaycee Soccer Complex , Sykes Park , and Phil Hardin Park .   There are also several golf courses in the city , including the aforementioned Lakeview Municipal Golf Course , an 18 @-@ hole course open to the public daily . Briarwood County Club , located on Highway 39 North , is a private club with golf , swimming , fishing , and dining facilities . Other golf courses serving the city include Northwood Country Club , Okatibbee Creek Golf Center , and Ponta Creek Golf Course .   = = Transportation = =   = = = Railroads and public transit = = =   Amtrak 's Crescent line connects Meridian with the cities of New York , New York ; Philadelphia , Pennsylvania ; Baltimore , Maryland ; Washington , D.C. ; Charlotte , North Carolina ; Atlanta , Georgia ; Birmingham , Alabama ; and New Orleans , Louisiana . The Union Station Multi @-@ Modal Transportation Center ( MMTC ) is located at 1901 Front Street , part of the Meridian Downtown Historic District , which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places . Originally built in 1906 , but later demolished in 1966 then rebuilt in 1997 , the station includes several modes of transportation including the Meridian Transit System , Amtrak , Norfolk Southern rail corridor , Greyhound buses , Trailways and other providers of transit services . The number of passengers on Amtrak trains , Greyhound buses , and Meridian Transit System buses averages 242 @,@ 360 per year .   = = = Air = = =   The city is served by Meridian Regional Airport , located at Key Field , 2811 Airport Boulevard South , 3 mi ( 4 @.@ 8 km ) southwest of the city . At 10 @,@ 004 foot ( 3 @,@ 049 m ) , the airport 's runway is the longest public runway in Mississippi . The airport , which has been in service since 1930 , offers daily flights to Dallas / Fort Worth , TX .   During the Great Depression , residents of the city contemplated abandoning the airport because of the cost of maintenance , but in 1935 Brothers Fred and Al Key , managers of the airport , thought of a way to keep the airport operating . From June 4 until July 1 , 1935 , the brothers flew over the city in their plane , the " Ole Miss . " The record they established in their 27 days aloft , totaling 653 hours and 34 minutes , attracted enough publicity and funds to the city to keep the airport running . Key Field is therefore named after the brothers , whose flight endurance record remains unbroken in conventional flight .   = = = Highways = = =   Interstate Highways   Interstate 20   Runs west through Jackson , Mississippi , eventually terminating near Kent , Texas , and east through Tuscaloosa , Alabama , eventually terminating in Florence , South Carolina . Interstate 59   Joins with I @-@ 20 in the city and runs north through Tuscaloosa , Alabama , ending in Wildwood , Georgia . It also runs south through Hattiesburg , Mississippi , and on to Slidell , Louisiana .   U.S. Highways   U.S. Highway 11   Runs parallel to Interstate 59 south to New Orleans , Louisiana , and north all the way to the Canada – US border . U.S. Highway 45   Transnational route which runs north through Columbus , Mississippi , to the US @-@ Canada border and south through Quitman , Mississippi , to Mobile , Alabama , and the Gulf of Mexico . U.S. Highway 80   Runs west through Jackson , Mississippi , to Dallas , Texas , and east through Demopolis , Alabama , all the way to Tybee Island , Georgia and the Atlantic Ocean .   State Highways   Mississippi Highway 19   Runs north to West , Mississippi , and south to the Mississippi @-@ Alabama border , where it continues as Alabama State Route 10 . Mississippi Highway 39   Begins in Meridian and runs north to Shuqualak , Mississippi . Mississippi Highway 145   Formerly US 45 , but now only exists as an alternate route in several cities . Mississippi Highway 493   Begins in Meridian and runs north to Lynville , Mississippi .   = = Education = =   Early public education in Meridian was based on the 1870 Mississippi Constitution . From 1870 to 1885 , trustees appointed by the City Council served on the Board of School Directors , which had authority to operate the schools . Although there were several schools in the city before 1884 , they were privately owned and only enrolled about 400 students . The city did not build its first publicly owned school until September 1884 . The first public school for blacks in the city was held in facilities rented from St. Paul Methodist Church . The Mississippi Legislature amended the city charter in January 1888 to allow the city to maintain its own municipal school district , and in March of the same year $ 30 @,@ 000 in bonds was approved for the city to build new public schools . From this bond , the Wechsler School was built in 1894 , becoming the first
ĠMeridian ĠJay ce e ĠSoccer ĠComplex Ġ, ĠSy kes ĠPark Ġ, Ġand ĠPhil ĠHard in ĠPark Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠThere Ġare Ġalso Ġseveral Ġgolf Ġcourses Ġin Ġthe Ġcity Ġ, Ġincluding Ġthe Ġaforementioned ĠLake view ĠMunicipal ĠGolf ĠCourse Ġ, Ġan Ġ18 Ġ@ - @ Ġhole Ġcourse Ġopen Ġto Ġthe Ġpublic Ġdaily Ġ. ĠBri ar wood ĠCounty ĠClub Ġ, Ġlocated Ġon ĠHighway Ġ39 ĠNorth Ġ, Ġis Ġa Ġprivate Ġclub Ġwith Ġgolf Ġ, Ġswimming Ġ, Ġfishing Ġ, Ġand Ġdining Ġfacilities Ġ. ĠOther Ġgolf Ġcourses Ġserving Ġthe Ġcity Ġinclude ĠNorth wood ĠCountry ĠClub Ġ, ĠOk at ib bee ĠCreek ĠGolf ĠCenter Ġ, Ġand ĠPont a ĠCreek ĠGolf ĠCourse Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= ĠTransportation Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= Ġ= ĠRail roads Ġand Ġpublic Ġtransit Ġ= Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ ĠAmtrak Ġ' s ĠCrescent Ġline Ġconnects ĠMeridian Ġwith Ġthe Ġcities Ġof ĠNew ĠYork Ġ, ĠNew ĠYork Ġ; ĠPhiladelphia Ġ, ĠPennsylvania Ġ; ĠBaltimore Ġ, ĠMaryland Ġ; ĠWashington Ġ, ĠD . C . Ġ; ĠCharlotte Ġ, ĠNorth ĠCarolina Ġ; ĠAtlanta Ġ, ĠGeorgia Ġ; ĠBirmingham Ġ, ĠAlabama Ġ; Ġand ĠNew ĠOrleans Ġ, ĠLouisiana Ġ. ĠThe ĠUnion ĠStation ĠMulti Ġ@ - @ ĠMod al ĠTransportation ĠCenter Ġ( ĠMM TC Ġ) Ġis Ġlocated Ġat Ġ1901 ĠFront ĠStreet Ġ, Ġpart Ġof Ġthe ĠMeridian ĠDowntown ĠHistoric ĠDistrict Ġ, Ġwhich Ġis Ġlisted Ġon Ġthe ĠNational ĠRegister Ġof ĠHistoric ĠPlaces Ġ. ĠOriginally Ġbuilt Ġin Ġ1906 Ġ, Ġbut Ġlater Ġdemolished Ġin Ġ1966 Ġthen Ġrebuilt Ġin Ġ1997 Ġ, Ġthe Ġstation Ġincludes Ġseveral Ġmodes Ġof Ġtransportation Ġincluding Ġthe ĠMeridian ĠTransit ĠSystem Ġ, ĠAmtrak Ġ, ĠNorfolk ĠSouthern Ġrail Ġcorridor Ġ, ĠGrey hound Ġbuses Ġ, ĠTrail ways Ġand Ġother Ġproviders Ġof Ġtransit Ġservices Ġ. ĠThe Ġnumber Ġof Ġpassengers Ġon ĠAmtrak Ġtrains Ġ, ĠGrey hound Ġbuses Ġ, Ġand ĠMeridian ĠTransit ĠSystem Ġbuses Ġaverages Ġ242 Ġ@ , @ Ġ360 Ġper Ġyear Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= Ġ= ĠAir Ġ= Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ ĠThe Ġcity Ġis Ġserved Ġby ĠMeridian ĠRegional ĠAirport Ġ, Ġlocated Ġat ĠKey ĠField Ġ, Ġ28 11 ĠAirport ĠBoulevard ĠSouth Ġ, Ġ3 Ġmi Ġ( Ġ4 Ġ@ . @ Ġ8 Ġkm Ġ) Ġsouthwest Ġof Ġthe Ġcity Ġ. ĠAt Ġ10 Ġ@ , @ Ġ00 4 Ġfoot Ġ( Ġ3 Ġ@ , @ Ġ0 49 Ġm Ġ) Ġ, Ġthe Ġairport Ġ' s Ġrunway Ġis Ġthe Ġlongest Ġpublic Ġrunway Ġin ĠMississippi Ġ. ĠThe Ġairport Ġ, Ġwhich Ġhas Ġbeen Ġin Ġservice Ġsince Ġ1930 Ġ, Ġoffers Ġdaily Ġflights Ġto ĠDallas Ġ/ ĠFort ĠWorth Ġ, ĠTX Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠDuring Ġthe ĠGreat ĠDepression Ġ, Ġresidents Ġof Ġthe Ġcity Ġcontemplated Ġabandoning Ġthe Ġairport Ġbecause Ġof Ġthe Ġcost Ġof Ġmaintenance Ġ, Ġbut Ġin Ġ1935 ĠBrothers ĠFred Ġand ĠAl ĠKey Ġ, Ġmanagers Ġof Ġthe Ġairport Ġ, Ġthought Ġof Ġa Ġway Ġto Ġkeep Ġthe Ġairport Ġoperating Ġ. ĠFrom ĠJune Ġ4 Ġuntil ĠJuly Ġ1 Ġ, Ġ1935 Ġ, Ġthe Ġbrothers Ġflew Ġover Ġthe Ġcity Ġin Ġtheir Ġplane Ġ, Ġthe Ġ" ĠOle ĠMiss Ġ. Ġ" ĠThe Ġrecord Ġthey Ġestablished Ġin Ġtheir Ġ27 Ġdays Ġal oft Ġ, Ġtotaling Ġ6 53 Ġhours Ġand Ġ34 Ġminutes Ġ, Ġattracted Ġenough Ġpublicity Ġand Ġfunds Ġto Ġthe Ġcity Ġto Ġkeep Ġthe Ġairport Ġrunning Ġ. ĠKey ĠField Ġis Ġtherefore Ġnamed Ġafter Ġthe Ġbrothers Ġ, Ġwhose Ġflight Ġendurance Ġrecord Ġremains Ġun broken Ġin Ġconventional Ġflight Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= Ġ= ĠHigh ways Ġ= Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ ĠInterstate ĠHigh ways Ġ Ġ ĠInterstate Ġ20 Ġ Ġ ĠRuns Ġwest Ġthrough ĠJackson Ġ, ĠMississippi Ġ, Ġeventually Ġterminating Ġnear ĠKent Ġ, ĠTexas Ġ, Ġand Ġeast Ġthrough ĠT usc alo osa Ġ, ĠAlabama Ġ, Ġeventually Ġterminating Ġin ĠFlorence Ġ, ĠSouth ĠCarolina Ġ. ĠInterstate Ġ59 Ġ Ġ ĠJo ins Ġwith ĠI Ġ@ - @ Ġ20 Ġin Ġthe Ġcity Ġand Ġruns Ġnorth Ġthrough ĠT usc alo osa Ġ, ĠAlabama Ġ, Ġending Ġin ĠWild wood Ġ, ĠGeorgia Ġ. ĠIt Ġalso Ġruns Ġsouth Ġthrough ĠHatt ies burg Ġ, ĠMississippi Ġ, Ġand Ġon Ġto ĠSlide ll Ġ, ĠLouisiana Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠU . S . ĠHigh ways Ġ Ġ ĠU . S . ĠHighway Ġ11 Ġ Ġ ĠRuns Ġparallel Ġto ĠInterstate Ġ59 Ġsouth Ġto ĠNew ĠOrleans Ġ, ĠLouisiana Ġ, Ġand Ġnorth Ġall Ġthe Ġway Ġto Ġthe ĠCanada ĠâĢĵ ĠUS Ġborder Ġ. ĠU . S . ĠHighway Ġ45 Ġ Ġ ĠTrans national Ġroute Ġwhich Ġruns Ġnorth Ġthrough ĠColumbus Ġ, ĠMississippi Ġ, Ġto Ġthe ĠUS Ġ@ - @ ĠCanada Ġborder Ġand Ġsouth Ġthrough ĠQuit man Ġ, ĠMississippi Ġ, Ġto ĠMobile Ġ, ĠAlabama Ġ, Ġand Ġthe ĠGulf Ġof ĠMexico Ġ. ĠU . S . ĠHighway Ġ80 Ġ Ġ ĠRuns Ġwest Ġthrough ĠJackson Ġ, ĠMississippi Ġ, Ġto ĠDallas Ġ, ĠTexas Ġ, Ġand Ġeast Ġthrough ĠDem opolis Ġ, ĠAlabama Ġ, Ġall Ġthe Ġway Ġto ĠTy bee ĠIsland Ġ, ĠGeorgia Ġand Ġthe ĠAtlantic ĠOcean Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠState ĠHigh ways Ġ Ġ ĠMississippi ĠHighway Ġ19 Ġ Ġ ĠRuns Ġnorth Ġto ĠWest Ġ, ĠMississippi Ġ, Ġand Ġsouth Ġto Ġthe ĠMississippi Ġ@ - @ ĠAlabama Ġborder Ġ, Ġwhere Ġit Ġcontinues Ġas ĠAlabama ĠState ĠRoute Ġ10 Ġ. ĠMississippi ĠHighway Ġ39 Ġ Ġ ĠBegins Ġin ĠMeridian Ġand Ġruns Ġnorth Ġto ĠShu qual ak Ġ, ĠMississippi Ġ. ĠMississippi ĠHighway Ġ145 Ġ Ġ ĠFormer ly ĠUS Ġ45 Ġ, Ġbut Ġnow Ġonly Ġexists Ġas Ġan Ġalternate Ġroute Ġin Ġseveral Ġcities Ġ. ĠMississippi ĠHighway Ġ49 3 Ġ Ġ ĠBegins Ġin ĠMeridian Ġand Ġruns Ġnorth Ġto ĠLyn ville Ġ, ĠMississippi Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= ĠEducation Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ ĠEarly Ġpublic Ġeducation Ġin ĠMeridian Ġwas Ġbased Ġon Ġthe Ġ1870 ĠMississippi ĠConstitution Ġ. ĠFrom Ġ1870 Ġto Ġ18 85 Ġ, Ġtrustees Ġappointed Ġby Ġthe ĠCity ĠCouncil Ġserved Ġon Ġthe ĠBoard Ġof ĠSchool ĠDirectors Ġ, Ġwhich Ġhad Ġauthority Ġto Ġoperate Ġthe Ġschools Ġ. ĠAlthough Ġthere Ġwere Ġseveral Ġschools Ġin Ġthe Ġcity Ġbefore Ġ18 84 Ġ, Ġthey Ġwere Ġprivately Ġowned Ġand Ġonly Ġenrolled Ġabout Ġ400 Ġstudents Ġ. ĠThe Ġcity Ġdid Ġnot Ġbuild Ġits Ġfirst Ġpublicly Ġowned Ġschool Ġuntil ĠSeptember Ġ18 84 Ġ. ĠThe Ġfirst Ġpublic Ġschool Ġfor Ġblacks Ġin Ġthe Ġcity Ġwas Ġheld Ġin Ġfacilities Ġrented Ġfrom ĠSt . ĠPaul ĠMethodist ĠChurch Ġ. ĠThe ĠMississippi ĠLegislature Ġamended Ġthe Ġcity Ġcharter Ġin ĠJanuary Ġ1888 Ġto Ġallow Ġthe Ġcity Ġto Ġmaintain Ġits Ġown Ġmunicipal Ġschool Ġdistrict Ġ, Ġand Ġin ĠMarch Ġof Ġthe Ġsame Ġyear Ġ$ Ġ30 Ġ@ , @ Ġ000 Ġin Ġbonds Ġwas Ġapproved Ġfor Ġthe Ġcity Ġto Ġbuild Ġnew Ġpublic Ġschools Ġ. ĠFrom Ġthis Ġbond Ġ, Ġthe ĠWe ch s ler ĠSchool Ġwas Ġbuilt Ġin Ġ18 94 Ġ, Ġbecoming Ġthe Ġfirst