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Oxford is a city in, and the county seat of, Lafayette County, Mississippi, United States. Founded in 1837, it was named after the British university city of Oxford in hopes of having the state university located there, which it did successfully attract. As of the 2010 US Census, the population is 18,916; the Census Bureau estimates the city's 2013 population at 20,865.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/28/2854840.html )〕 Oxford is the home of the University of Mississippi, founded in 1848, also commonly known as "Ole Miss". Oxford has been named by ''USA Today'' as one of the top six college towns in the nation. It is included in ''The Best 100 Small Towns in America''. Lafayette County consistently leads the state rankings in the lowest unemployment rate per quarter. Oxford City Schools are ranked as "Star" schools, the highest ranking available, and Lafayette County school systems are consistently ranked as "5-star" systems. ==History== Oxford and Lafayette County were formed from lands ceded by the Chickasaw in the treaty of Pontotoc Creek in 1832. The county was organized in 1836, and in 1837 three pioneers—John Martin, John Chisom, and John Craig—purchased land from Hoka, a female Chickasaw landowner, as a site for the town.〔Jack Lamar Mayfield. ''Oxford and Ole Miss''. Arcadia Publishing, 2009, p. 7.〕 They named it Oxford, intending to promote it as a center of learning in the Old Southwest. In 1841, the Mississippi legislature selected Oxford as the site of the state university, which opened in 1848. During the American Civil War, Oxford suffered invasion by federal troops under Generals Ulysses S. Grant and William T. Sherman in 1862; in 1864 Major General Andrew Jackson Smith burned the buildings in the town square, including the county courthouse. In the postwar Reconstruction Era, the town recovered slowly, aided by federal judge Robert Andrews Hill, who secured funds to build a new courthouse in 1872. During this period many African American freedmen moved from farms into town and established a neighborhood known as "Freedmen Town", where they built houses, businesses, churches and schools, and exercised all the rights of citizenship.〔(Freedmen Town, Lafayette County, History Markers of Mississippi ), accessed 30 May 2008,〕 Even after Mississippi disfranchised most African Americans in the Constitution of 1890, they continued to build their lives in the face of discrimination. During the Civil Rights Movement, Oxford drew national attention in the Ole Miss riot of 1962. State officials, including Governor Ross Barnett, prevented James Meredith, an African American, from enrolling at the University of Mississippi, even after the federal courts had ruled that he be admitted. In late September 1962, President John F. Kennedy, following secret face-saving negotiations with Barnett, ordered United States Marshals to accompany Meredith, while Barnett agreed to use Highway State Police to keep the peace. Thousands of armed "volunteers" flowed into the Oxford area. Meredith traveled to Oxford under armed guard to register. But riots by segregationists broke out in protest of his admittance. That evening, cars were burned, federal marshals were pelted with rocks, bricks and small arms fire, and university property was damaged by three thousand rioters. Two men were killed by gunshot wounds. The riot spread into adjacent areas of the city of Oxford.〔Doyle, William. ''An American Insurrection: James Meredith and the Battle of Oxford, Mississippi, 1962.'' New York: Anchor Books, 2003.〕 Order was finally restored to the campus with the early morning arrival of nationalized Mississippi National Guard and regular U.S. Army units, who camped in the City.〔Eagles. Charles W. "'The Fight for Men's Minds': The Aftermath of the Ole Miss Riot of 1962" http://mdah.state.ms.us/new/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/riot.pdf〕 More than 3000 journalists came to Oxford on September 26, 2008 to cover the first presidential debate of 2008, which was held at the University of Mississippi.〔(2008 Presidential Debate | The University of Mississippi - Official Home Page )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Oxford, Mississippi」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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