 |
1540-1541
-
Hernando
De
Soto,
Spanish
explorer,
becomes
the
first
known
European
to
enter
Mississippi.
He
winters
with
the
Chickasaws
and
discovers
the
Mississippi
River
in
the
spring.
|
|
1673
-
Father
Jacques
Marquette,
a
French
missionary,
and
fur
trapper
Louis
Joliet
begin
exploration
of
the
Mississippi
River
on
May
17.
They
reach
Mississippi
in
July
and
explore
as
far
south
as
the
mouth
of
the
Arkansas
River,
near
the
present
location
of
Rosedale,
before
turning
back.
|
|
1680
-
Father
Louis
Hennepin
sees
the
Falls
of
St.
Anthony,
future
site
of
Minneapolis.
The
Mississippi
Valley
in
Minnesota
is
center
of
Dakota
culture.
|
|
1682
-
Robert
Cavalier
de
La
Salle
navigates
the
Mississippi
River
to
its
mouth
and
claims
for
France
all
lands
drained
by
the
river.
|
|
1699
-
Pierre
LeMoyne,
Sieur
D'Iberville,
and
his
brother
Jean
Baptiste,
Sieur
D'Bienville,
landed
in
what
is
now
Ocean
Springs.
They
built
Fort
Maurepas
and
established
the
first
capital
of
the
vast
French
colony
on
the
North
American
continent.
1700s
-
- French fur trading era begins.
- Ojibwe begin moving into area from Great Lakes, gradually pushing Dakota south and west
|
|
1716
-
Fort
Rosalie,
the
beginning
of
the
town
of
Natchez,
is
established.
|
|
1729
-
French
settlers
at
Fort
Rosalie
are
massacred
by
Natchez
Indians
in
an
effort
to
drive
Europeans
from
Mississippi.
|
|
1732
-
The
French
retaliate
for
the
massacre
at
Fort
Rosalie.
The
Natchez
Indians
cease
to
exist
as a
tribe.
|
|
1736
-
Bienville
battles
Chickasaw
Indians
in
present
day
Lee
County.
He
is
defeated
at
the
battle
of
Ackia.
|
|
1763-1779
-English
Dominion
|
|
1763
Mississippi,
along
with
all
other
French
territory
east
of
the
Mississippi
river,
passes
into
English
control
at
the
end
of
the
French
and
Indian
War.
|
|
1779-1798
-
Spanish
Dominion
|
|
1779
-
Bernardo
Galvez,
governor
of
Spanish
Louisiana,
captures
Natchez.
|
|
1781-1783
Under
provisions
of
the
Treaty
of
Paris,
West
Florida,
which
included
the
southern
half
of
Mississippi,
comes
under
Spanish
control.
America
gains
possession
of
Mississippi
north
of
the
32
degree
28
minute
parallel.
|
|
1797
-
Spain
yields
to
America
all
land
in
Mississippi
north
of
the
31st
parallel,
giving
America
control
of
Natchez.
|
|
1798-1817
-
Mississippi
Territory,
|
|
1798
-
- The Spanish withdrawal from Mississippi is completed.
- Mississippi is organized as an American territory, and the first territorial governor, Winthrop Sargent, is appointed by President Thomas Jefferson.
|
|
1801
-
Mississippi
advances
to
the
second
stage
of
territorial
government.
|
|
1801-1802
-
- A treaty with the Indians allows the Natchez Trace to be developed as a mail route and major road.
- Mississippi moves its territorial capital from Natchez to Washington, a small town near the Natchez Trace.
|
|
1803
-The
Louisiana
Purchase
opens
the
Mississippi
River
for
Commerce.
|
|
1805
-
By
the
Treaty
of
Mount
Dexter,
the
Choctaws
sell
4.5
million
acres
of
land
to
the
U.S.
government.
The
area
includes
the
Piney
Woods
region
of
the
state.
|
|
1805
-
Lt.
Zebulon
Pike
explores
Upper
Mississippi,
setting
up
posts
in
what
will
be
Minnesota.
|
|
1810
-
West
Florida
rebellion
gives
the
United
States
control
of
Spanish
West
Florida.
|
|
1812
-
- The War of 1812 begins.
- Mississippi gains West Florida territory east of the Pearl River and south to the Gulf of Mexico.
|
|
1814-1815
The
War
of
1812
ends.
|
|
1816
-
The
Treaty
of
Fort
Stephens
with
the
Choctaws
opens
for
settlement
the
area
around
the
Tombigbee
Prairie.
|
|
1817
-
State
of
Mississippi
- An Act of Congress on December 10 admitted Mississippi to the Union as the twentieth state.
- Indian lands in Mississippi were opened to white settlement after six major treaties with the Choctaws and the Chickasaws between 1805 and 1834.
- On January 9, 1861, Mississippi became the second state to secede from the Union. More than 80,000 Mississippians served in the Confederate States Army.
- After the fall of the Confederacy and a period of reconstruction, Mississippi was readmitted to the Union in 1870.
- The Mississippi territory is divided. The western half becomes the twentieth state, Mississippi.
|
|
1818
-
Elizabeth
Female
Academy
is
founded
in
Washington,
the
first
girls'
school
chartered
by
the
state
and
one
of
America's
first
women's
colleges.
|
|
1819
-
Fort
Snelling
established
at
confluence
of
Mississippi
and
Minnesota
rivers,
future
site
of
Twin
Cities.
|
|
1820
-
The
Treaty
of
Doak's
Stand,
the
second
Choctaw
cession.
|
|
1821
-
Mississippi's
first
public
school
is
opened
in
Columbus.
|
|
1822
-
The
state
capital
is
moved
to
Jackson.
Built
on
the
site
of
Lefleur's
Bluff,
Jackson
was
one
of
the
first
planned
cities
in
the
nation.
It
was
named
for
Major
General
Andrew
Jackson.
|
|
1826
-
Mississippi
College,
then
Hampstead
Academy,
is
established.
|
|
1830
-
- The Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek cedes all Choctaw territory east of the Mississippi River to the U.S. Government. Most of the Choctaws leave the state.
- The Treaty of Pontotoc Creek cedes north Mississippi Indian territory to the U.S. Government. The Chickasaws leave the state for Oklahoma.
- The Mississippi Constitutional Convention produces the Constitution of 1832.
|
|
1832
-
Henry
Schoolcraft
is
led
to
the
headwaters
of
the
Mississippi
by
an
Ojibwe
elder,
Ozawindib.
|
|
1837
-
First
major
commercial
logging
of
white
pine
forests
begins.
|
|
1838
-
Pig's
Eye
settlement,
forerunner
of
St.
Paul,
established
upstream
of
Fort
Snelling.
|
|
1842
-
Governor
Tilghman
M.
Tucker
becomes
the
state's
first
chief
executive
to
occupy
the
newly
completed
Governor's
Mansion,
still
used
today.
|
|
1844
-
The
University
of
Mississippi
is
established.
|
|
1848
-
State
government
assumes
operation
of a
private
school
for
the
blind.
It
becomes
the
Mississippi
School
for
the
Blind,
the
nation's
first
state-supported
institution
for
the
handicapped.
|
|
1850
-
- The U.S. Congress gives the state title to more than 3 million acres of swamp and overflow land. By this time, 310 miles of levees have been built along the banks of the Mississippi River. The Delta is drained, cleared, and becomes available for cultivation.
- The Compromise of 1850 contains slavery to the South.
|
|
1854
-
- Mississippi Institute for the Deaf and Dumb opens in Jackson.
- Henry Hughes of Port Gibson publishes Treatise on Sociology, which later earns him the title "first American sociologist."
|
|
1861
-
- Mississippi secedes from the Union on January 9.
- In July, Ship Island is captured by Union forces. The fall of Ship Island gives Union forces control of the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
|
|
1862
-
- In late April, the Battle of Shiloh gives Union forces control of the Tennessee River and opens the way to attack Corinth, a railroad center vital to the South.
- Corinth falls in May.
|
|
1863
-
The
Emancipation
Proclamation
abolishes
slavery.
|
|
1865
-
Robert
E.
Lee
surrenders
on
April
9.
The
Civil
War
ends.
|
|
1867
-
A
military
government
is
established
in
Mississippi
after
the
reconstructed
government
of
Mississippi
is
rejected
by
the
U.S.
Congress.
|
|
1868
-
Mississippi's
first
biracial
constitutional
convention
-
the
"Black
and
Tan"
Convention"
-
drafts
a
constitution
protecting
the
rights
of
freedmen
(ex-slaves)
and
punishing
ex-Confederates.
It
is
rejected
by
the
voters.
|
|
1869
-
Under
the
leadership
of
James
L.
Alcorn,
Mississippi
ratifies
a
constitution
which
does
not
punish
ex-Confederate
soldiers.
|
|
1870
-
- Mississippi is readmitted to the Union on February 23.
- Civil government is gradually restored under Governor Alcorn.
- The state's first system of public education is established.
- Senator Hiram R. Revels, a minister from Natchez, becomes the first black senator in U.S. history, and serves as Mississippi's U.S. Senator from January 1870 to March 1871.
- Using power of river at St. Anthony Falls, milling expands into major Minneapolis industry.
|
|
1871
-
Alcorn
University,
now
Alcorn
State
University,
is
organized.
|
|
1877
-
- The Mississippi State Board of Health is created through the influence of the State Medical Association.
- Jackson College, a private college for blacks, is established at Natchez.
|
|
1878
-
Agricultural
and
Technical
School
is
established.
In
1935,
it
becomes
Mississippi
State
College
and
in
1958,
Mississippi
State
University.
|
|
1884
-
The
Industrial
Institute
and
College,
today's
Mississippi
University
for
Women,
is
established.
|
|
1890
-
- A new state constitution is adopted.
- 1892 Millsaps College is opened.
|
|
1903
-
A
new
capitol
building,
constructed
at a
cost
of
$1
million,
is
dedicated
in
Jackson.
|
|
1907
-
- The boll weevil arrives in Mississippi, destroying most of the state's cotton crop.
- William H. Smith organizes the first of the state's "Com Clubs," which leads to the formation of the 4-H Clubs of America.
|
|
1908
-
Mississippi
adopts
statewide
prohibition.
|
|
1909
-
Dr.
Laurence
C.
Jones
founds
the
Piney
Woods
Country
Life
School
for
the
vocational
and
secondary
education
of
black
students.
|
|
1910
-
Mississippi
Normal
College,
now
the
University
of
Southern
Mississippi,
is
organized.
|
|
1916
-
- The Mississippi State Sanatorium for Tuberculosis is established.
- Governor Theodore Bilbo establishes the state's first Highway Commission.
|
|
1922
-
The
State
Legislature
authorizes
a
system
of
junior
colleges,
the
first
in
the
nation.
|
|
1923
-
Two
women,
Senator
Belle
Kearny
and
Representative
Nellie
Nugent
Somerville,
are
elected
to
the
State
Legislature.
|
|
1924
-
Delta
State
Teachers'
College,
now
Delta
State
University,
is
established.
|
|
1927
-
The
Mississippi
River
floods
2,722,000
acres
in
the
Delta.
Thousands
are
left
homeless.
|
|
1929
-
The
Depression
begins.
|
|
1930
-
Lock
and
dam
system
--
to
facilitate
navigation
and
control
flooding
--
authorized
by
Congress.
|
|
1932
-
- The state's first sales tax becomes effective.
- The Natchez Pilgrimage, a nationally-famous tour of that area's antebellum homes, becomes an annual event.
|
|
1936
-
The
State
Legislature
passes
an
amendment
to
balance
agriculture
with
industry
(BAWI
Program).
The
Industrial
Commission
and
the
Advertising
Commission
are
created
to
implement
the
program,
which
includes
adoption
of
the
nation's
first
industrial
revenue
bond.
|
|
1939
-
The
state's
first
oil
well
is
brought
in
near
Tinsley,
in
Yazoo
County.
|
|
1940
-
- Jackson College, having earlier moved from Natchez to Jackson, becomes a state institution.
- Lock and dam system completed
|
|
1941-1945
World
War
II
promotes
an
industrial
boom
in
the
state.
|
|
1946
-
Mississippi
Vocational
College,
now
Mississippi
Valley
State
University,
is
established.
|
|
1954
-
Brown
vs.
Board
of
Education,
the
Supreme
Court's
landmark
ruling,
lays
groundwork
for
desegregation.
|
|
1962
-
James
Meredith,
the
first
black
registrant,
enters
the
University
of
Mississippi
--
the
beginning
of
the
end
to
segregation
in
public
universities
and
colleges.
|
|
1963
-
Medgar
Evers,
NAACP
field
secretary,
is
assassinated.
|
|
1964
-
- Congress passes the Civil Rights Act, outlawing segregation in public places.
- Three civil-rights workers are murdered near Philadelphia, Miss
|
|
1965
-
Governor
Paul
B.
Johnson,
Jr.,
announces
that
the
BAWI
Program
has
achieved
its
goal.
|
|
1968
-
- Circuit Court judge 0. H. Barnett rules that Choctaw Indians are subject to their tribal laws, a reversal of an 1830's ruling that abolished tribal government.
- Robert Clark begins serving his first term in the Mississippi House as its first modern-day black member.
|
|
1969
-
- Unitary system of public education is mandated by federal courts, ending segregation in public schools.
- Hurricane Camille wreaks havoc upon Mississippi's Gulf Coast and areas inland.
|
|
1970
-
Mississippi
Authority
for
Educational
Television
is
established
and
begins
broadcasting.
|
|
1972
-
- Work begins on the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway.
- Governor William Waller's administration aggressively involves blacks and women in government through key Cabinet, Board and judicial appointments.
|
|
1976
-
- Governor Cliff Finch calls a special session of the Legislature to restructure the states savings and loan associations, averting a financial crisis.
- Governor Finch succeeds in reuniting the long- separated Loyalist and Regular factions of the Mississippi Democratic Party.
|
|
1978
-
- After 36 years of service, U.S. Senator James 0. Eastland retires.
- Sixteenth Section Lands and Lieu Lands Act transfers control of Sixteenth Section Lands from county boards of supervisors to local boards of education and requires fair-market rental value on those lands.
|
|
1979
-
- Mattie T. Consent Decree initiates procedures providing equal education for handicapped children in the states public schools.
- Devastating flood inundates the city of Jackson and many towns south along the Pearl River.
|
|
1982
-
- Governor William F. Winter calls a special legislative session, resulting in adoption of the historic Education Reform Act, pioneering nationwide school reform.
- Jackson hosts the International Ballet Competition.
|
|
1983
-
Judge
Lenore
Prather
becomes
Mississippi's
first
woman
Supreme
Court
justice.
|
|
1984
-
- Public Radio in Mississippi goes on the air.
- Governor Bill Allain implements a massive program of governmental reorganization.
|
|
1985
-
Justice
Reuben
Anderson
becomes
Mississippi's
first
black
Supreme
Court
Justice.
|
|
1986
-
- The Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway is completed.
- Yazoo City lawyer Mike Espy is elected to the U.S. House, the first black congressman from Mississippi since Reconstruction.
|
|
1987
-
- Senator John C. Stennis, dean of U.S. Senators serving 40 years, announces he will not seek reelection.
- Ray Mabus is elected governor, the nation's youngest at 39.
|
|
1988
-
A
voluntary
county
unit
system
law
is
signed
by
Governor
Mabus.
|
|
1989
-
- Fifth District congressman Larkin Smith dies in a plane crash near Hattiesburg. State Senator Gene Taylor of Bay St. Louis wins a spirited special election to succeed him.
|
|
1990
-
Mississippi
National
Guard
men
and
women
play
important
roles
in
Operation
Desert
Storm
for
America
in
the
Middle
East.
|
|
1991
-
- Mississippi becomes the nation's 21st state to allow its citizens to register to vote by mail.
- Kirk Fordice becomes Mississippi's first Republican governor since Reconstruction.
|
|
1992
-
Tornadoes
hit
Brandon
and
other
parts
of
Mississippi
killing
fifteen
and
injuring
about
300
others
|
|
1994
-
One
of
the
nation's
strongest
lobbying
reform
laws
is
passed
by
the
Mississippi
Legislature. |
|
2000
-
David
Ronald
Musgrove
becomes
Mississippi's
sixty-second
Governor.
|
