Is the Tallahatchie Bridge a real place?

The wooden bridge collapsed in 1972 after being set alight by vandals. It crossed the Tallahatchie River at Money, about ten miles north of Greenwood, Mississippi. The bridge has since been replaced.

Why did Billie Joe McAllister jump off the Tallahatchie Bridge?

Billy Joe and Bobbie Lee (the narrator) are both white and their relationship is never consummated, but Billy Joe jumps off the bridge after a drunken homosexual encounter.

Where is the famous Tallahatchie Bridge?

It crossed the Tallahatchie River at Money, about ten miles (16 km) north of Greenwood, Mississippi, and has since been rebuilt. The November 10, 1967, issue of Life magazine contained a photo of Gentry crossing the original bridge.

Where is the Tallahatchie Bridge located in Mississippi?

Greenwood, MS
On Grand Blvd, on the edge of Greenwood, MS there is a bridge over the Tallahatchie River that has a very nice and comprehensive two-sided historical marker regarding singer Bobbie Gentry, her general career, and the 1967 song and subsequent movie, Ode to Billie Joe.

Who died in the Tallahatchie River?

Emmett Till’s
Emmett Till’s black, broken body was plucked from the Tallahatchie River in Mississippi days after his killing in August 1955, a heavy cotton gin fan tied on his neck with barbed wire. It took 19 days for two white men, Roy Bryant and his brother-in-law J.W.

How old is Bobbie Gentry?

79 years (27 July 1942)
Bobbie Gentry/Age

Where is Bobbie Gentry now?

She was 40 years old. Since that time, she has not recorded, performed or been interviewed. One 2016 news report stated that Gentry lives in a gated community near Memphis, Tennessee. According to another, Gentry lives in a gated community in Los Angeles.

What is the meaning behind the song Tallahatchie Bridge?

Bobbie Gentry explained: “The message of the song revolves around the nonchalant way the family talks about the suicide. The song is a study in unconscious cruelty.” Gentry was familiar with the Tallahatchie Bridge since she was born and raised in Mississippi, where she grew up in a home without electricity.

What’s the story behind Tallahatchie Bridge?

This song tells the story of the fictional Billie Joe McAllister, who kills himself by jumping off the Tallahatchie Bridge. There really is a Tallahatchie Bridge in Money, Mississippi, but Gentry made up the story. The Tallahatchie Bridge, which spans the Tallahatchie River, collapsed in 1972, but was later rebuilt.

What happened at Tallahatchie?

His assailants—the white woman’s husband and her brother—made Emmett carry a 75-pound cotton gin fan to the bank of the Tallahatchie River and ordered him to take off his clothes. …

Is there a Tallahatchie Bridge in Money, Mississippi?

There really is a Tallahatchie Bridge in Money, Mississippi, but Gentry made up the story. The Tallahatchie Bridge, which spans the Tallahatchie River, collapsed in 1972, but was later rebuilt. In this song, a family finds out about the death of Billie Joe and shares gossip about him at the dinner table along with their other mundane concerns.

When did the Tallahatchie Bridge fall into the river?

“TALLAHATCHIE RIVER BRIDGE REMOVAL In 1972 the Leflore County bridge across the Tallahatchie River near Money, Miss., collapsed and fell into the river. The center pier supporting the bridge became undermined and the 225-foot swing span and pier fell upstream into the river. In order to remove the bridge and pier use of explosives was employed.

Where was Bobby Gentry walking across the Tallahatchie Bridge?

Tallahatchie bridge. The bridge that Bobby Gentry is walking across is NOT the bridge where CR 512 crosses over the Tallahatchie River. The one she is walking across in the photo is from 11/20/1967 Life Magazine (P. 99). It is the old bridge she talked about in the song and was located at Money, MS.

Is the Tallahatchie Bridge over the Yazoo River?

That bridge, as documented on the roadside marker was actually over the Yazoo River on the other side of town and was a truss style bridge that the movie people thought looked more authentic. It has since been torn down and replaced.