CANCELLED: The Wikipedia Edit-a-thon scheduled for September 23 has been cancelled. MDAH will work with the Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative to reschedule this program. To learn about all MDAH programs, please subscribe to our Weekly Update. For more information call 601-576-6850 or email info@mdah.ms.gov.
Just getting started in genealogical research? Come to the Beginning Genealogy Workshop presented by Andrew McNulty at 10 a.m. on Saturday, August 27, at the William F. Winter Archives and History Building. Created for individuals beginning their family history search, the program will include a quick overview of genealogy, steps participants can take home to begin their research, sample questions to ask family members to get more information to aid their search, and an overview of some of MDAH’s resources in its archival collections.
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/.
Looking to expand your volunteer knowledge and experience? Come to the Volunteer Open House that will take place from 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. on Thursday, August 11 at the Craig H. Neilsen Auditorium of the Two Mississippi Museums. Whether you volunteer regularly or would like to get started, we welcome you to come and meet our staff, discover new volunteer opportunities, and learn more about MDAH. This is a free come-and-go event; light refreshments and door prizes will be provided. For more information, contact Erin Blackledge at eblackledge@mdah.ms.gov.
Join us Sunday, August 7, at noon for the monthly edition of the Summer Music Series at the Two Mississippi Museums featuring local musician, Conner Ball. Admission to the museums is free on Sundays and includes admission to our two special exhibits: The World of Marty Stuart and The Negro Motorist Green Book.
Join us on Thursday, August 18, at 11 a.m. for a gallery talk about the Smithsonian traveling exhibit The Negro Motorist Green Book. This month's talk will feature Zakiya Summers and Timothy Summers who will share about the Summers Hotel. Opened in Jackson in 1944 by Bill Summers, the Summers Hotel was advertised in The Green Book from 1949 to 1966. Afterwards explore the exhibit and learn more about the history of Victor Green and his annual travel guide. This event is free and open to the public.
Join us for a night of country music and conversation at 6 p.m. on Thursday, September 15, at the Two Mississippi Museums. Inspired by the The World of Marty Stuart special exhibit, the program will feature country performers from Mississippi who will share their musical inspirations and favorite artists and perform a few songs.
Join us at 11 a.m. on Thursday, September 15, for a talk in The Negro Green Motorist Green Book traveling exhibit at the Two Mississippi Museums. Guests will explore the exhibit and learn more about the history of Victor Green and his annual travel guide. This month's guest is Angela Stewart who will share about Farish Street, a historic neighborhood in Jackson, Mississippi, known for Black-owned businesses. This event is free and open to the public. Visit
Join us Thursday, August 4 for a gallery talk in The World of Marty Stuart special exhibit at the Two Mississippi Museums. Guests will explore the stories of country music through the artifacts and memorabilia of Marty's collection. This month's guest is Dr. Dan Barnard, executive director of Marty Stuart's Congress of Country Music, opening soon in Philadelphia, MS. Dr. Barnard will share a little bit of history of the Congress of Country music as well as future plans. This event is free and open to the public.