CLINTON, Miss. (WJTV) – Founded in 1823, Clinton was originally known as Mount Salus, which means “Mountain of Health.” Nowadays, Clinton is known for their downtown historic brick streets, which adds to a charming Olde Towne community.

The city is thriving with jobs, opportunity and education.

“We want to be a diverse town in that everybody’s welcome. That’s why our mantra, ‘You belong here,’ is so important, and we really emphasize that. We have been able to go from unranked to the third safest city in the state, and we’re very proud of that. So, you can come to Clinton, have your children, you can have a child born here, be educated here, go through college here,” said Clinton Mayor Phil Fisher.

Clinton High School is currently taking part in a three-year program that focuses on the culinary arts. In the classroom, students are learning how to book by actually cooking.

They learn the ins and outs of baking pastries, cooking meat, and culinary techniques. The students have won multiple first place awards in many competitions.

Chef Catherine Bruce said she wants her students ready for whatever life has to throw at them after high school.

“Our students have a real life, hands on experience of what a commercial kitchen looks like and how all of the equipment operates. And so, we’re able to really send them out into the industry, fully aware of what to expect so they know what a working kitchen entails,” Bruce explained.

“My favorite part about this class is that it kind of creates a very good community of people in all different activities and gives us a thing that we can bring on into our later years. I’m very thankful that I had the chance to see it just as culinary arts program,” said Shetavia, a junior at Clinton High School.

The students said the teachers are one of the best parts of the program.

For more than 40 years, people in Clinton have loved and supported Clinton High School’s Attaché Show Choir.

Little did Winona Costello know when she started teaching choir to 35 students in 1980, that it would turn into a multi-award-winning show choir known worldwide.

“I mean it was humbling, very humbling to see what has transpired, because it’s not that you don’t have goals and expectations as teachers. I believe, and I know I had some, but I can’t say that I saw this long range ever. I saw it getting better and better with every year that we did our new show, and that we went to different competitions,” she said.

Forty-three years of performances, including numerous competitions have led to very crowded trophy cases. The first gold they brought home was in 1983 at Opryland in Nashville.

“I do remember that we won. And that was just, you know, it was a confidence builder. And so by the fourth year, that’s when I really remember that the change occurred, and you know, you had, really talented kids at Clinton that wanted to be a part of it,” Costello said.

By the fourth year, students had to audition for a spot. A choreographer was brought in to teach dance moves. The rehearsals were intense and mandatory.

“When we first started, we did just three shows. We did a Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and we were selling out. So, then it seemed like, you know, well, the next year, we added a Wednesday, and the next year we needed to add a Tuesday,” Costello explained.

By 1992, Attaché was bringing in $50,000 a year in ticket sales.

Costello turned the reins over to David and Mary Fehr that same year. The Fehrs were well known in the show choir circuit, and they moved to Mississippi. Since then, Attaché never missed a beat or a note.

David Fehr said esteem is what other people think of you. He said what his team is building is self-confidence.

“Self-confidence, confidence is gaining skills or gaining knowledge. So if they do that, then they learn more about who they are. It’s watching each kid become themselves and growing up. That’s such a great time in life where there are so many changes, and yet we give them something stable,” he said.

The students said being in Attaché has taught them discipline, diversity, community and the love of music and the stage.

The Clinton community, the residents, and the businesses have all been a part of the success of the show choir. Costello said it never could have been done without the support of Clinton.

Attaché’s fall review will be held December 6-9 at Clinton High School.

Another staple in the Clinton community is Mississippi College (MC). The college was founded in 1826 and is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state.

The college strives for academic excellence with a commitment to the Christian faith.

One of the more recent developments to the campus is the Gore Arts Complex. The complex has cutting edge technology for MC’s studio art programs.

Dr. Blake Thompson, MC president, said the Speed Scholarship has brought in more than 1,000 new students for the 2023-24 school year.

“We’ve worked really hard to make Mississippi College the place to be in Christian higher education. A number of things contribute to that. The beauty of our campus, but also the Speed Scholarship, a very generous gift to us by the estate of of Mr. Leland Speed, long serving trustee,” Thompson said. “Mississippi College is a classic liberal arts university. We’re well known for our pre-med program and our outstanding art program, but we also have an excellent business program, education program. The humanities are incredibly strong.”

Clinton has plenty of fun places for kids and families, including Lions Club Park, which is a playground designed for children of all abilities.

Another place you’ve probably heard of is Funtime Skateland, which has been around since 1971. Funtime was one of the first businesses on Highway 80 in Clinton.

The business had been remodeled and updated many times over the years, adding a state-of-the-art intelligent lighting system that other skating rinks only dream about.

Funtime does birthday parties and has an after-school program.

Another hot spot in Clinton is Indian Lanes on Northside Drive. The bowling alley has been in the city since 1990. Every day of the week, Indian Lanes rumbles with activity as bowlers of all ages rack up points on the facility’s 16 lanes.

Along with the bowling center, they offer a jump arena, arcade and a party venue.

Clinton is also home to many talented people. Writer Barry Hanna called Clinton home. A lot of talented musicians have gone into their careers after being part of the Attaché Show Choir.

A lot of artists are from Clinton. One of the painters is water colorist Wyatt Waters.

“I’ve been painting all my life. I started art lessons before I was in school. It’s always been the thing that I’ve done in life,” he said.

Waters took a brief recess from painting while he was in high school, but then dove right back in again in college.

“I did not paint for three years. That’s called high school. I didn’t want anybody to know I did this. You don’t get a lot dates in high school when you paint. At least not at that time. So, when I went to college, I went to Mississippi College, and I got a chance to reinvent myself. These buildings were vacant. But I remember thinking, I could have a gallery here. You know. I didn’t have a car. That was just a dream, you know, A dream. But a dream with work gets stuff done,” Waters said.

His gallery is in Olde Towne Clinton, just as he dreamed it would be, so is his home.

“We live two blocks away from the gallery. Clinton is a community where everybody knows everybody. And you can’t walk too far without somebody stopping to say hello. It is a community and not just a bunch of people that live here,” said Waters.

He seems to have found his creative zone in Clinton, a town that is ever-evolving yet enough of the right parts of it stays the same. It’s commitment to education and family and community.

If you haven’t visited here in a while, Waters said you haven’t seen what it is now.

“It’s not the Clinton you thought of 20 years ago. It’s very different, and it’s a good time to come visit,” he said.

Waters’ gallery is located on Jefferson Street and is currently under renovations. If you’d like to check out some of his work, he’s set up at another location on Leake Street.

The gallery isn’t the only business on the brick streets. There are restaurants, a bakery, clothes and hair salons.

Everyone who works and shops along the roads agree this tight-nit community is what drives business.

“In the historical district, we are very proud to be part of the history of this restaurant. It’s been around since 1870s, and we’re very proud to serve the city of Clinton,” said David Joseph with 303 Jefferson.

“Lovely has clothing for women of all ages. We also have jewelry and headbands, candles and gifts, all kinds of stuff. So, yes, it’s pretty much a one stop shop. We do get a lot of MC students, Hinds students, and we do 10% off for all students. I love to be down here. I feel like everybody works as a community in Clinton, and, you know, are across the street grabbing a tea or a popsicle,” said Sara Allen, the owner of Lovely.