The Two Mississippi Museums, Eudora Welty House & Garden, and the archives library will be closed Tuesday, August 30, 2022, due to the low water pressure in Jackson.
Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter for updates. Visit www.mdah.ms.gov/explore-mississippi for more information about our one-of-a-kind museums, historical sites and cultural attractions throughout the state. Learn more about researching at archives here.
MDAH offices, archives library, and Grand Village of the Natchez Indians will be closed Monday, September 5, in observance of Labor Day.
Visit www.mdah.ms.gov/explore-mississippi for more information about our one-of-a-kind museums, historical sites and cultural attractions throughout the state. Learn more about researching at archives here.
The Mississippi Historical Society is pleased to announce a call for individual papers and complete panels on topics related to the study of Mississippi history for presentation at its annual meeting March 2-3, 2023, in Jackson, Mississippi.
“Mississippi’s history is full of compelling stories,” said Mississippi Historical Society (MHS) president Daphne Chamberlain. "Our annual meeting provides a space for us to appreciate the diverse contributors to our history and its preservation. From teachers to public historians and archivists, our community benefits from the various investments that have made our history so vibrant and accessible."
Founded in 1858, MHS proudly embraces the contributions of scholars and laypersons interested in the study and dissemination of all aspects of Mississippi history. Undergraduate and graduate student participation is encouraged, in addition to scholarly work from professional historians in a variety of practices—archival, teaching faculty, and public historians. MHS values the ongoing work of educators across the state and would welcome proposals from elementary and secondary teachers offering unique deliveries of Mississippi history curriculum, community-engaged learning practices with local archives/libraries, or other partner-oriented learning opportunities. While all proposals are welcome, we are especially interested in topics and approaches that broaden our shared understanding of Mississippi’s culture, economy, political landscape, and social history. MHS encourages interactive presentations that engage our participants’ interest and knowledge of Mississippi’s history through a collaborative approach that solicits feedback.
Individual paper proposals should include a 250-word abstract of the topic, name and affiliation (institution of higher learning, school, business, government entity, museum, archive, etc.), and presenter’s contact information. Panel proposals should include a 500-word abstract that contains a brief description of each proposed topic and includes the names, affiliations, and contact information for each presenter. Proposals are due Friday, October 7, 2022. Please send directly to mhs@mdah.ms.gov. For more information visit the Mississippi Historical Society website at www.mississippihistory.org.
Isabel Wilkerson, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Humanities Medal, will deliver the Medgar Wiley Evers Lecture on Thursday, September 8, at 6:30 p.m. at Galloway United Methodist Church in Jackson. The event will be hosted in partnership with the Mississippi Museum of Art (MMA) as part of their joint year-long initiative to expand understanding of the Great Migration and its impact on Mississippi and the nation. The event is free to the public, and registration is required.
“We are honored to have Isabel Wilkerson give this fall’s Medgar Wiley Evers Lecture,” said MDAH director Katie Blount. “Her examination of the Great Migration and its impact nationally, and on Mississippi, will be the culmination of our shared initiative with the Mississippi Museum of Art to examine this pivotal moment through history and art.”
Wilkerson is author of critically acclaimed New York Times bestsellers The Warmth of Other Suns and Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents. She won the Pulitzer Prize for her “deeply humane narrative writing” while serving as Chicago Bureau Chief of The New York Times in 1994, making her the first Black woman in the history of American journalism to win a Pulitzer Prize and the first African American to win for individual reporting. In 2016, President Barack Obama awarded Wilkerson the National Humanities Medal for "championing the stories of an unsung history."
The event is free to the public, and book sales will follow. Registration is required. Reserve now at msmuseumart.org/rsvp/.
MMA’s partnership on this lecture is a part of closing weekend for their exhibit, A Movement in Every Direction: Legacies of The Great Migration. MMA will host other events such as "Two Wings: The Music of Black America in Migration" and a final gallery talk with Leslie Hewitt.
The Medgar Wiley Evers Lecture Series was established in 2003 to honor the legacy of civil rights leader Medgar Evers, one year after Myrlie Evers made an extraordinary gift to the people of Mississippi when she presented the Medgar and Myrlie Evers papers to the Mississippi Department of Archives and History (MDAH). Previous Evers lecturers include Eddie S. Glaude Jr., Lonnie Bunch, Henry Louis Gates, Robert P. Moses, and Manning Marable.
In 2014, the Kellogg Foundation awarded $2.3 million to MDAH to support programming at the Two Mississippi Museums and fund a partnership between MDAH and the Medgar and Myrlie Evers Institute. Wilkerson’s lecture is also supported by the Mississippi Museum of Art and The Chisholm Foundation. The event will be held at Galloway United Methodist Church, located at 305 North Congress Street in Jackson. For more information, call 601-576-6850. To register, go to msmuseumart.org/rsvp/.
The Mississippi Department of Archives and History (MDAH) is accepting grant applications for preservation projects across the state. The 2022 Mississippi Legislature has provided funding for the Community Heritage Preservation Grant Program (CHPG) and the Mississippi Historic Site Preservation Grant Program (MHSPG).
“For over 20 years, the state legislature has offered generous support for CHPG funding, which has aided in the rehabilitation of hundreds of Mississippi's historic courthouses, schools, and other landmark buildings,” said Barry White, director of the Historic Preservation Division at MDAH. “The addition of the Historic Sites Grant Program expands our role in preservation, providing support for the acquisition of significant historic properties. These grants offer incredible opportunities to preserve historic properties, tell their broader stories, and attract new visitors.”
CHPG grants help preserve, restore, rehabilitate, and interpret Mississippi courthouses and schools across the state. In communities that participate in the Certified Local Government (CLG) Program, buildings other than courthouses and schools are also eligible, as long as they are Mississippi Landmarks.
The fifty-six Certified Local Government communities in Mississippi are Aberdeen, Baldwyn, Biloxi, Booneville, Brandon, Canton, Carrollton, Carthage, Claiborne County, Clarksdale, Cleveland, Clinton, Columbia, Columbus, Como, Corinth, Durant, Gautier, Greenville, Greenwood, Hattiesburg, Hazlehurst, Hernando, Holly Springs, Indianola, Jackson, Kosciusko, Laurel, Leland, Lexington, Louisville, McComb, Meridian, Mound Bayou, Mount Olive, Natchez, New Albany, Newton, Ocean Springs, Oxford, Pascagoula, Philadelphia, Port Gibson, Quitman, Raymond, Senatobia, Sharkey County, Starkville, Tunica, Tupelo, Vicksburg, Water Valley, West, West Point, and Woodville, and Yazoo City.
State agencies, county or municipal governments, school districts, and nonprofit organizations granted 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status may submit applications. A cash match of at least twenty percent is required, and grants will be paid on a reimbursable basis upon successful completion of the project.
The Historic Sites Grant Program offers grants for the acquisition of sites related to Civil War battles, Native American archaeology, and civil rights history. Grants, which require a one-to-one match, can be used for land acquisition and property preservation costs. Colleges and universities, historical societies, state agencies, local governments, and 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations are eligible to apply.
CHPG guidelines and applications may be downloaded from the following link: CHPG Application. HSPG guidelines and applications may be downloaded from the following link: HSPG Application. The deadline to submit completed applications is September 30, 2022. The MDAH Board of Trustees will award the grants at its quarterly meeting in January 2023. For more information call 601-576-6940 or email info@mdah.ms.gov.
Higher Purpose Co. (HPC) and the National Museum of African American History and Culture are supporting free admission to the Museum of Mississippi History and the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum on Friday, July 8, and Saturday, July 9, in conjunction with the presentation of The Negro Motorist Green Book exhibit. Admission to the Two Mississippi Museums is free every Sunday.
The Two Mississippi Museums will host an entrepreneur fair in partnership with HPC Saturday, July 9, from 10 a.m.–2 p.m. in the Mississippi Hall of History.
“We are grateful to Higher Purpose Co. and the National Museum of African American History and Culture for making it possible for Mississippians to visit the Two Mississippi Museums and increase their knowledge of entrepreneurship,” said Katie Blount, director of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History.
“Higher Purpose Co. is excited to collaborate on this timely initiative,” said Tim Lampkin, Founder & CEO of Higher Purpose Co. “HPC is committed to amplifying positive narratives of African Americans and providing business resources to reduce the racial wealth gap in our state. This partnership is yet another example of our consistent strategy to improve the state of Mississippi.”
Support for this collaborative community program is made possible by the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.
The Negro Motorist Green Book offers an immersive look at the reality of travel for African Americans in mid-century America and how the annual guide served as an indispensable resource for the nation’s rising African American middle class. The exhibition was developed by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) in collaboration with award-winning author, photographer and cultural documentarian, Candacy Taylor, and made possible through the support of Exxon Mobil Corporation.
Museum hours are Tuesday–Saturday, 9 a.m.–5 p.m., and Sunday, 11 a.m.–5 p.m. The Museum of Mississippi History and the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum—Two Mississippi Museums—are located at 222 North Street in Jackson. For more information visit the MDAH Facebook page or email info@mdah.ms.gov.
The Negro Motorist Green Book will open Saturday, July 2, at the Two Mississippi Museums, part of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, a Smithsonian Affiliate. This exhibition offers an immersive look at the reality of travel for African Americans in mid-century America and how the annual guide served as an indispensable resource for the nation’s rising African American middle class. The exhibition was developed by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) in collaboration with award-winning author, photographer and cultural documentarian, Candacy Taylor, and made possible through the support of Exxon Mobil Corporation.
“I am ecstatic to have this exhibition housed at the Two Mississippi Museums,” said Two Mississippi Museums director Pamela D.C. Junior. “During the Great Migration families moved across the US, thus the necessity to travel and visit relatives was born. Postal worker Victor Green, innovatively responded to this need with a roadmap of havens to eat, rest, and visit. This safety net was a key guide for people of color throughout the Jim Crow south and other parts of America.”
The exhibition will include artifacts from business signs and postcards to historic footage, images, and firsthand accounts to convey not only the apprehension felt by African American travelers, but also the resilience, innovation, and elegance of people choosing to live a full American existence. Mississippi artifacts include items from the historic Riverside Hotel in Clarksdale, Hotel E.F. Young Jr. in Meridian, and many more locations listed in a Mississippi Green Book.
The exhibition will run from Saturday, July 2, through Sunday, September 25, in the Medgar and Myrlie Evers Exhibition Hall at the Two Mississippi Museums.
Museum ticket prices are $15 for adults and $8 for youth ages 4–22. Discounts are available for students, seniors, active duty military, veterans, and groups of ten or more. Admission for children under the age of three is free. Ticket price includes admission to the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, Museum of Mississippi History, and all special exhibitions. Admission on Sunday is also free.
SITES and Smithsonian Affiliations are critical national outreach units at the Smithsonian Institution. For more than 70 years, SITES has been connecting Americans to their shared cultural heritage through a wide range of exhibitions about art, science, and history. Smithsonian Affiliations establishes and maintains the Smithsonian’s long-term partnerships with museums, educational organizations, and cultural institutions in the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Panama. Together, SITES and Affiliations share the Smithsonian’s vast resources with millions of people outside Washington, D.C. Visit sites.si.edu and affiliations.si.edu for more information.
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The Museum of Mississippi History and the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum—Two Mississippi Museums—are located at 222 North Street in Jackson. Hours are Tuesday–Saturday, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. and Sunday, 11 a.m.–5 p.m. For more information visit the MDAH Facebook page or email info@mdah.ms.gov.
Pamela J. Merryman, a doctoral student at Southern Methodist University, has been named the 2022 Eudora Welty Fellow. Merryman will use archival holdings at the Mississippi Department of Archives and History (MDAH) to research how Eudora Welty constructed her identity in her writing.
“I am honored to have the opportunity to conduct research in the Eudora Welty archives and am grateful to those who make the Eudora Welty Research Fellowship possible,” said the 2022 Welty Fellowship recipient. “Through my research in the Welty archives, I hope to gain a deeper and broader knowledge of the personal inspiration and creative process that went into Welty’s writing of her only children’s book, The Shoe Bird. Ultimately, I seek to note how this entertaining tale of Arturo the Parrot and the bird community—who gather from all over the world to learn about the power and value of communication, love, memory, and freedom—provides insight into Welty’s other literary works that also explore these vital aspects of the human experience."
Established by MDAH and the Eudora Welty Foundation, the fellowship seeks to encourage and support research in the Eudora Welty Collection by graduate students.
“We’re grateful to the Foundation for their continued support of the fellowship,” said David Pilcher, director of the MDAH Archives and Record Services Division. “I am certain Ms. Merryman will learn a lot and make extensive use of the Welty Collection this summer.”
After receiving her BA in secondary education from Howard Payne University, Merryman completed her MA in liberal arts at Southern Methodist University where she is currently working toward her PhD. Merryman will use the $5,000 fellowship to cover travel, housing, and other expenses incurred while doing primary research at the William F. Winter Archives and History Building in Jackson.
Beginning in 1957, and over the course of more than forty years, Welty donated materials to the department, primarily literary manuscripts and photographs. At her death her remaining papers were bequeathed to MDAH and included unpublished manuscripts and 14,000 items of correspondence with family, friends, scholars, young writers, and noted writers.
MDAH offices, archives library, and Grand Village of the Natchez Indians will be closed Monday, July 4, in observance of Independence Day.
Visit www.mdah.ms.gov/explore-mississippi for more information about our one-of-a-kind museums, historical sites and cultural attractions throughout the state. Learn more about researching at archives here.
The Nissan Foundation has awarded a $50,000 grant to the Mississippi Department of Archives and History (MDAH) to support field trips to the Two Mississippi Museums.
"We are grateful to the Nissan Foundation for their support of our field trip program,” said Katie Blount, director of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History. “School children are one of our most important audiences. The foundation’s generosity will help more students experience what Governor William Winter called the state’s largest classroom.”
“We’re proud to award MDAH a grant for the unique programming it’s offering community members at a time in our history when conversations about race, ethnicity, bias, education and solutions are at the forefront,” said Chandra Vasser President of the Nissan Foundation and Nissan’s first ever Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer.
The funds will be used to defray costs such as admission, travel, and on-site lunches for students. To reserve or learn more about field trips at the Two Mississippi Museums, contact Stephanie King, field trips coordinator, at sking@mdah.ms.gov.
Museum hours are Tuesday–Saturday, 9 a.m.–5 p.m., and Sunday, 11 a.m.–5 p.m. The Museum of Mississippi History and the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum—Two Mississippi Museums—are located at 222 North Street in Jackson. For more information visit the MDAH Facebook page or email info@mdah.ms.gov.
The Nissan Foundation is awarding a total of $848,000 in grants to 33 nonprofit organizations for its 2022 grant cycle. The nonprofit recipients are located in Southern California, Tennessee, Texas, Central Mississippi, Southeast Michigan and the New York and Atlanta metro areas – all locations where Nissan has an operational presence.
As part its 30th anniversary commemoration, the Nissan Foundation has been profiling the work of many of its grantees through written and video storytelling. The anniversary year will culminate with a symposium bringing together Nissan Foundation grantees and thought leaders for dialogue around the foundation’s mission of building community by valuing cultural diversity.