thirty black men were killed by a white mob. The city quickly recovered and defined an 1872 fire district requiring buildings to be constructed of brick. The remainder of the 1870s saw hard times for the city, including economic troubles during the Panic of 1873, and a yellow fever epidemic in 1878. Yellow fever affected almost 500 residents, leaving at least 86 dead, which resulted in a quarantine in the city. Rail passengers entering the city were required to provide a health certificate certifying that they were free of the disease. Many of the fatalities from the riot and epidemic were buried in McLemore Cemetery. Despite these early troubles, the town experienced an economic boom and entered a "Golden Age" around the start of the 20th century. Golden Age 1880–1900 The city flourished during the 1880s, adding electricity, running water, a sewage system, and paved streets and sidewalks within its limits. By 1885 the city became the railroad center of eastern Mississippi because of its unique location at the junction of the Mobile and Ohio Railroad, the New Orleans and Northeastern Railroad, the Alabama and Vicksburg Railroad, the Alabama Great Southern Railroad, and the Kansas City, Memphis and Birmingham Railroad. The railroads provided for a means of transportation and an influx of industries, which caused a population boom. The 1870 population of 2,709 almost tripled by 1885 to around 8,000 and nearly doubled again to 15,000 by 1898. By 1906 the population had almost doubled again to reach 28,000, and the city was given the nickname "The Queen City." Between 1890 and 1930, Meridian was the largest city in Mississippi and a leading center for manufacturing in the South. As the population grew, a commercial district developed in the downtown area, made accessible by a mule-drawn trolley system that connected different parts of the city. The company that oversaw that system was the Meridian Street Railway Company, organized in 1883. At its peak the mule-drawn line included about four miles of track throughout the city. Industry profits helped finance the construction of most of the city's major buildings, including the Grand Opera House and its associated Marks-Rothenberg Store, which opened in 1890. The opera house, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was combined with the neighboring Marks-Rothenberg Department Store and renovated in 2006 into an upscale theater and conference center. Together the buildings now comprise "The Mississippi State