| Hernando DeSoto discovers "Rio
Grande" the Mississippi River at Leatherman's Mound
in Tunica County. |
| Chickasaw Cession gives Mississippi
Territory to United States. |
| Treaty of Pontotoc creates 14 northern
Mississippi counties including Tunica County. |
| County opened to settlers, Town of Commerce
founded at Commerce Landing. |
| - Tunica County was one of ten
counties created from Chickasaw Indian territory ceded
to the U.S. in 1816. Commerce named as first county
seat. |
| - Commerce, the first town in
Tunica County, was incorporated. With a population
of 7,000, Commerce was larger than the city of Memphis
in 1839. |
| Flood washes half of Commerce into
the Mississippi River. County Seat is moved to Peyton.
After six months County Seat moves back to Commerce into
brick courthouse and jail. They remain standing today. |
| Austin becomes County Seat. |
| Union army raids Austin taking food
and livestock |
| Union army burns Austin except for two
houses. |
| The town of Austin incorporates |
| During a flood, the Mississippi River
moves two miles west of Austin leaving a giant sandbar
that makes steamboat landings impossible. |
| White Oak Ridge becomes Tunica. Louisville,
Texas and New Orleans Railroad comes through Tunica County.
EL Harris deeds land to the railroad in exchange for a
permanent stop in Tunica. Carnesville changes its name
to Dundee. |
| - Town
of Tunica is incorporated, beating Dundee, Hollywood and
Evansville by 65 votes to become County Seat. |
| Historic Hotel Marie opens in Downtown
Tunica. |
| The total farm population for Tunica
County was 670 persons, with a non-farm population of almost
9,000 persons. |
| Tunica County reported to be one of
twenty-five counties in the United States with the lowest
per capita income. |
| Mississippi legislature legalized gaming
for the state. |
The residents of Tunica County approved
gaming without opposition.
The Mississippi River Amusement Corporation filed the first
notice of intent to apply for a gaming license in Tunica
County. |
| - Tunica's first casino, Splash,
opened its doors, at Mhoon Landing. |
| - Lady Luck Casino opens
at Mhoon Landing |
| - US News & World Report ranks
Mississippi number one in the nation for economic recovery
from the 1990 recession - they site gaming as the major
reason. |
| November 25 - Harrah's Casino opens
in North Tunica County |
| December 6 - President Casino opens
at 10:00 a.m. and Bally's Casino opens at 6:00 p.m., marking
the first time two Mississippi casinos have opened on the
same day and in the same county. |
| February 19 - Southern Belle
Casino opens (now Harrah's). |
| March 30 - Mississippi legislature
establishes Casino Road Fund with Hwy. 61 to be expanded
to four lanes. |
| May 10 - Treasure Bay Casino opens
in Tunica. |
| May 25 - Sam's Town opens
as Tunica's largest casino to date. |
| June 6 - Fitzgeralds Casino
opens. |
| July 8 - President Casino closes
its doors at Mhoon landing. |
| August 1 - Tunica Roadhouse, previously the Sheraton, Casino opens. |
| August 8 - Hollywood Casino opens. |
| August 29 - Circus Circus
(Gold Strike) opens. |
| August 31 - Southern Bell closes. |
| September 5 - Splash Casino welcomes
its three millionth visitor. |
February 4 - Methodist Clinic opens in
North Tunica County. |
| February 13 - Horseshoe Casino opens. |
| May 12 - 5-lane Casino Strip
Boulevard opens |
| June 8 - Tunica County becomes
debt-free by setting aside $4 million in escrow. |
| June 10 - Treasure Bay Casino closes. |
| October 17 - Tunica County is
featured on Good Morning America - Growth of Gaming
Industry outside of the state of Nevada. |
| December 18 - Bally's Casino re-opens
in North Tunica County. |
| December 30 - Hampton Inn, Holiday
Inn and Key West Inn have opened in Tunica County. |
| February 15 - Sam's Town announces
a $40 million expansion with convention facilities and
350 new hotel rooms, bringing their total to 860 rooms. |
| April 8 - Harrah's Casino opens
old Southern Belle - operates two casinos in Tunica. |
| June 18 - Horseshoe Casino breaks
ground on $60 million expansion including Bluesville, Blues & Legends
Hall of Fame Museum, a 300 all-suite hotel and parking
garage. |
| June 24 - Grand Casino opens
a $450 million facility - the largest in Tunica at 340,000
square feet on 2,200 acres. |
| July 22 - Fitzgeralds opens
a $34 million, 507-room hotel. |
| September 12 - Hollywood Casino opens
352 new rooms and 15,000 square feet of convention space. |
| October 22 - Hwy. 61 opens
as a four-lane route from Tennessee to Hwy. 304 in Tunica. |
| January 3 - Tunica Convention
and Visitors Bureau opens. |
| February 20 - Grand Casino announces
plans for $18 million Cottonwoods to be designed
by Hale Irwin - Tunica's second world-class golf course. |
| March 6 - Supervisors vote to
increase Town of Tunica gaming tax from 3% to 8%. |
| July 24 - Grand Convention
Center opens its 48,000-square-foot facility. |
August 15 - Tunica County
Museum Committee is formed.
Town of Tunica budget is set at $3 million with
a 25% cut in property tax. |
| August 20 - Gold Strike opens
31-story hotel and entertainment facility, making it the
tallest building in Mississippi. |
| December 4 - Tunica Roadhouse, previously the Sheraton, Casino opens
140-room all-suite hotel. |
| May 3 - Blues & Legends
Hall of Fame Museum opens in Horseshoe Casino. |
| August 1 - Tunica County Courthouse completes
$1.5 million in renovations, while another $5 million in
construction begins on the Tunica County Justice Complex and
$1.8 million for Phase I of the Tunica County Recreation facility. |
| October 15 - Willows Sporting
Clay Range opens at Grand Casino. |
| November 6 - River Bend Links opens
a 6,900-yard world-class golf course at Casino Strip. |
| December 31 - Bluesville Nightclub opens
at Horseshoe Casino. |
| March 26 - Grand Casino opens
the $72 million, 600-room Terrance Hotel. |
| June 15 - US Supreme Court opened
door to full broadcast gambling, complete with pictures
of bettors at the tables. |
| July 6 - Tunica CVB opens
the Welcome Center and Office Complex on Hwy.61. |
| July 7 - GW Henderson Recreation
Center opens in Tunica. |
| November 23 - Casino Factory
Shoppes opens several retail stores in North Tunica
County. |
| April 8 - Tunica County Chamber
of Commerce and Downtown Tunica are accepted as a Mississippi
Main Street Community. |
| August 4 - Tunica Arena and
Exposition Center opens in Tunica. |
| September 12 - Town of Tunica adopts
a 0 municipal real property tax and flat-rate water billing
system. |
| October 10 - Horseshoe Casino begins
a $40 million expansion. |
| October 12 - Phase II of the Casino
Factory Shoppes opens with an additional 60,000 square
feet of retail space. |
| November 10 - Tunica CVB wins
the "Gold Star for Service Award," the first
bureau from the state of Mississippi to win the award in
its 17-year history. |
| January 23 - Tunica County breaks
ground on $40 million airport expansion. 5,500-foot runway
by 2003, 7,000-foot runway by the end of the first quarter
of 2004. |
| April 2 - The Tunica County casino
industry, Tunica CVB and Premier Transportation of Memphis,
TN, join forces to accommodate the millions of guests who
visit Tunica by providing a casino shuttle service, Casino
Shuttle. |
| October 29 - Tunica breaks ground
on $22 million, 168-acre eco-park, museum and interpretive
center, the Tunica RiverPark. |
| November 14 - MS State Tourism
Department announces results from its Motor Coach survey,
indicating Tunica as growing destination, with 21,929 tours,
bringing a total of 845,568 visitors to Tunica County. |
| June 30 - Tunica County Museum opened
its doors. |
| April 16 - Lennox Lewis and
challenger Mike Tyson chose Tunica for their training
camp, in preparation for a match to take place in Memphis,
TN. |
| November 11 - Oliver North is
guest speaker for dedication of the new Veteran's Memorial in
Downtown Tunica. |
| September - Isle of Capri sold
to neighboring Sam's Town. The casino is closed, but the
hotel and entertainment center remain open. |
| October 17 - Tunica County unveils
plans for a new museum, park and interpretive center to
be constructed on land adjacent to Fitzgeralds Casino.
The newest of the County's reinvestment into it's future, Tunica
RiverPark, will offer people from all walks of life
an up-close and personal interaction with the driving force
of nature which has shaped and molded so much of this entire
country's history, the Mississippi River. |
| October 29 - The Mississippi
Employment Security releases the latest unemployment figures,
ranking Tunica County in a four-way tie for first place
with the lowest unemployment rates in the state. Tunica
County's unemployment rate is at an all-time low at 3.1% |
| U.S. Census Bureau estimates the population
of Tunica County to be 9,575, and increase of 3.8%
from the 2000 census. |
| June 23 - Tunica Queen arrives
to dock at the Tunica RiverPark. |
| June 30 - Tunica Airport opens
5,500-foot runway. |
February 17-21 - US
Olympic Boxing Team Trials held at
Tunica Arena
March 18 – Tunica RiverPark celebrates
their grand opening
May 18 – Tunica National Golf & Tennis
held their grand opening
August – 7,000 feet expansion completed
at Tunica Airport |
January - Tunica Airport
announces all-weather capability
June 2 -5 – Tunica Air Races held
for first time |
| |