Learn About Mississippi
Learn about Mississippi's Natives
First Inhabitants
Discover Mississippi's history.
Early History
All about Mississippi's landforms
Geography & Landforms
Industry and economy in Mississippi
Economy
Capital:
Jackson
 Entered the Union:
12/10/1817		 Population:
2,844,658
 Area (square miles)
48,430
State Bird:
Mockingbird
 State Flower:
Magnolia
 Nickname:
Magnolia State		 Governor:
Haley Barbour
Web Links:
State Home Page
Home Page for Students
Members of Congress 		 

Places to Visit in Mississippi: (Click the links to learn more.)

Beauvoir - Biloxi
Beauvoir is the retirement estate of Confederate President Jefferson Davis, and was constructed in 1848. The property also contains the Presidential Library of Jefferson Davis, a Confederate Museum, Tomb of the Unknown Confderate Soldier, and a theatre. Beauvoir was heavily damaged by Hurricane Katrina and is currently closed for renovation and reconstruction.

Delta Blues Museum - Clarksdale
Located in an old Railroad Depot, this museum provides exhibits on the culture and people of blues music including such greats as Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson and John Lee Hooker.

Grand Village of the Natchez Indians - Natchez
This site marks the political and religious capital of the Natchez Indians of the late 17th and early 18th centuries, and features three platform burial mounds, a ceremonial plaza and artifacts excavated from the site

Vicksburg National Military Park - Vicksburg
This site commemorates one of the most decisive battles of the American Civil War, the Vicksburg Campaign. The battlefield includes over 1,000 historic markers and monuments, 20 miles of reconstructed earthworks, an antebellum home, the restored Union gunboat the USS Cairo, and the Vicksburg National Cemetery.

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Famous Citizens:

Jim Henson
Born in Greenville, Mississippi, Jim Henson began playing with puppets early in his life. His first televised puppet show came in 1954. In 1957, he made an appearance on the Tonight Show and first introduced Kermit the Frog. His biggest break came in 1969, when Public Broadcasting asked him to do the puppets for a new children’s show named Sesame Street. He later created the Muppet Show, which allowed his puppets to appear to a more adult audience, as well as making a number of movies.

 

 

James Earl Jones
James Earl Jones was born Todd Jones in 1931 in Arkabutla, Mississppi, but moved to Michigan as a young boy and was raised by his mother’s parents. Best known for his incredible voice, he had a stutter as a child, and took acting lessons to help overcome it. Although he has acted in several movies, it is as the voices of Darth Vader in Star Wars and as Mustapha in The Lion King that he may be best recognized.

 

 

Tennessee Williams
Born in Columbus, Mississippi, Thomas L. “Tennessee” Williams became of America’s best known playwrights, famous for his Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, and The Glass Menagerie.

 

 

Oprah Winfrey
Born in Kosciusko, Mississippi, Oprah Winfrey was raised on a Mississippi farm by her grandmother. By the age of 19, she had her first job as a reporter for a radio station in Nashville, and then moved on to television in Baltimore. She is best known for her Oprah Winfrey Show, which began in 1986. Today she continues her television show, and also publishes a magazine, and heads numerous philanthropic and civic activities.