About MDAH

Empowering people through Mississippi’s many stories is our vision.

Whether you are interested in researching Mississippi history, visiting historic places, preserving history, attending or sponsoring history-themed events, engaging students with history, properly managing government records or finding opportunities for volunteering, internships and careers, MDAH can connect you with the experiences and information you seek.

By preserving Mississippi’s diverse historic resources and sharing them with people around the world, MDAH inspires discovery of stories that connect our lives and shape our future.

Who We Are

The Mississippi Department of Archives and History was founded in 1902 to collect, preserve, and provide access to the archival resources of the state. Our commitment to preservation continues today through the work of the department’s five divisions.

MDAH is governed by a nine-member board of trustees whose president is Spence Flatgard of Ridgeland. The department has been led by outgoing director Katie Blount, retiring June 30, 2026, since February 2015. Barry White has been named the incoming director, beginning July 1, 2026.

Administration

Administration comprises human resources, financial services, operations, and information systems.

Archives and Records Services

Archives and Records Services oversees the state archives and public reading rooms, where documents, photographs, and other items from the state’s vast collection are made available free of charge to the public.

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Historic Preservation

Historic Preservation works with property owners to preserve the state’s historic sites and structures.

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Programs and Communication

Programs and Communication focuses on programming, education, public relations, and marketing for the entire department.

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Museums

The Museum Division oversees the Museum of Mississippi History, Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, Eudora Welty House & Garden, Manship House Museum, Old Capitol Museum, and the historic section of the Mississippi Governor’s Mansion in Jackson; the Grand Village of the Natchez Indians in Natchez; Historic Jefferson College in Washington, and Winterville Mounds in Greenville.

Eudora Welty House

See where the Pulitzer Prize-winning author lived, entertained, and wrote all her stories.

Mississippi Civil Rights Museum

Discover stories of Mississippians such as Medgar Evers, Fannie Lou Hamer, and Vernon Dahmer, who changed America as local leaders in the Civil Rights Movement.

Museum of Mississippi History

Explore 15,000 years of history and learn how our shared past influences our future together.

Old Capitol Museum

The Old Capitol is the site of some of the state's most significant history.

Grand Village of the Natchez Indians

The Grand Village is a museum and 128-acre park featuring three prehistoric Native American mounds, a reconstructed Natchez Indian house, and a nature trail.

Historic Jefferson College

Historic Jefferson College is the birthplace of Mississippi’s statehood in 1817.

Manship House Museum

The Manship House Museum interprets the daily life of a 19th-century Mississippi family through the house the family lived in for so many years.

Winterville Mounds

For hundreds of years, travelers have visited the communal gathering space at Winterville Mounds.

Governor's Mansion

The Governor’s Mansion has been the residence of Mississippi governors and their families since 1842.

News & Articles

An MDAH Resource for the Public: Genealogy Workshops

7/14/2026

The Mississippi Department of Archives and History hosts several genealogy workshops a year, teaching individuals how to trace their family history. During a recent workshop, Joyce Dixon-Lawson shared how the Dawes Rolls are a research tool for Native American genealogy.

History Is Lunch Presenter: Post-Civil War Religious Rifts Factored into Reconstruction Divisions

7/13/2026

During a recent History Is Lunch presentation, author April Holm put forth that theological conflicts between the North and the South that preceded the Civil War, existed long after the war's end and reunion, shaping major evangelical denominations and influencing the relationship between the federal government and churches.

Niece of Ralph Boston Shares the Reason Her Family Loaned His Olympic Medals and Shoes to the Mississippi Made Exhibit

7/8/2026

Ralph Boston, a native of Laurel, competed in three Olympic games – and won medals in each, including gold in 1960. His record-breaking track and field achievements are highlighted in the Mississippi Made exhibit at the Two Mississippi Museums – all thanks to his family who have loaned the artifacts for display.

Betty Bobo Pearson Remembered for Unwavering Civil Rights Activism

7/6/2026

Betty Bobo Pearson, whose life is highlighted as a Point of Light in the Two Mississippi Museums, is remembered by the Mississippi Department of Archives and History for her lifelong civic engagement, including advocacy for civil rights and voting rights.

MDAH Remembers Ed King As Key Figure in Mississippi’s Civil Rights Movement

7/6/2026

The Rev. Ed King, a United Methodist Church minister and co-founder of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP), is remembered by the Mississippi Department of Archives and History as a key figure in the Civil Rights Movement.

19 People Become American Citizens During Ceremony at the Two Mississippi Museums

7/2/2026

Two days before our nation marked 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence, 19 people became American citizens during a ceremony at the Two Mississippi Museums.

Free Sundays at the Two Mississippi Museums

July 19, 2026, 11:00 am - 5:00 pm

Admission to the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson is free every Sunday.

Sunday Screening: Everlasting

July 19, 2026, 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Join us for a free event featuring a screening of Everlasting: Life and Legacy of Medgar Evers at 2 p.m. on Sunday, July 19, in the Craig H. Neilsen Auditorium at the Two Mississippi Museums. A 60-minute showing of this two hour documentary features interviews with Evers’s family, colleagues, and historians

Welty Wednesdays

July 22, 2026, 8:30 am - 4:00 pm

Join the Eudora Welty House & Garden (EWHG) for Welty Wednesdays beginning Wednesday, January 8. In honor of 1119 Pinehurst Street's 100-year anniversary, free admission will be offered every Wednesday, in addition to the long-standing tradition of free admission on the 13th of each month honoring Welty’s April 13 birthday.

Articles and Publications

MDAH and our partner organizations produce a number of detailed publications related to Mississippi history and prehistory. Select a publication for information on topics, purchasing or subscribing.