The town of Tylertown was first known as the Magee Settlement. It was settled by emigrants of the Magee and Thornhill families, who came from South Carolina. J. Thornhill acquired the first tract of land for the settlement on September 20, 1816, after Native Americans were pushed out of the area. Cullen Conerly went there in 1850 and bought out the Garland Hart store and established a post office which was called Conerly's post office. The store and post office served as the social center of the community for over a half century. The town bore the name Conerly's from 1848 to 1879. It was renamed as Tyler Town in honor of William G. Tyler; the name was shortened to one word in 1894. Cullen Conerly sold his mercantile interest to his brother-in-law Benjamin Lampton. He laid the foundation of the mercantile business of Tylertown. Tylertown was part of Pike County until 1912, when Walthall County was formed from Pike and Marion counties. The Tylertown Times was started in 1907. Tylertown Insurance Agency, Inc. has been serving Tylertown's insurance needs since 1924. Luter's Supply, established in 1944, is a retail center for tubs, showers, and whirlpools. Jones Furniture opened in 1939. Tylertown's oldest pharmacy, Pigott's Drug Store, has been around since 1919. WTYL radio station came to Tylertown in 1969.
Geography
Tylertown is located at . According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of, of which is land and 0.33% is water.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,910 people, 707 households, and 461 families residing in the town. The population density was 625.9 people per square mile. There were 825 housing units at an average density of 270.3 per square mile. The racial makeup of the town was 56.34% White, 41.41% African American, 0.16% Native American, 0.84% Asian, 0.47% from other races, and 0.79% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.10% of the population. There were 707 households out of which 31.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.5% were married couplesliving together, 21.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.7% were non-families. 32.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.15. In the town, the population was spread out with 26.6% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 21.6% from 25 to 44, 20.2% from 45 to 64, and 22.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 75.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 69.5 males. The median income for a household in the town was $20,515, and the median income for a family was $30,125. Males had a median income of $30,625 versus $16,094 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,712. About 28.9% of families and 32.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 48.0% of those under age 18 and 18.2% of those age 65 or over.
Education
Tylertown is served by the Walthall County School District. The schools are Tylertown High School,and Salem Attendance Center.
