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Mississippi: the story on HearLore | HearLore
— Ch. 1 · Echoes Of The First Peoples —
Mississippi.
~5 min read · Ch. 1 of 8
Around 9500 BC, the first human groups arrived in what is now Mississippi. These Paleo-Indians hunted megafauna that would soon vanish from the landscape. They lived as hunter-gatherers across the vast territory. Thousands of years later, complex societies emerged along the river valleys. The Woodland and Mississippian cultures built massive earthworks known as mounds. These structures expressed deep cosmological beliefs about politics and religion. A trading network stretched from the Great Lakes to the Gulf Coast. Descendant tribes like the Choctaw and Chickasaw still inhabit parts of the state today. Their ancestors constructed large earthen platforms that remain visible throughout the region.
Flags And Forts On The River
Hernando de Soto led a Spanish expedition through the northeast part of the state in 1540. French colonists established their first permanent settlement at Fort Maurepas in April 1699. Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville founded this outpost near present-day Ocean Springs on the Gulf Coast. The French named the greater territory New France while Spain claimed areas east of Mobile Bay. After the French and Indian War, Britain assumed control of the French territory under the Treaty of Paris in 1763. The lower third of Mississippi came under Spanish rule following the Peace of Paris in 1783. The United States organized the Mississippi Territory on the 7th of April 1798. European-American settlers arrived mostly from Virginia and North Carolina where exhausted soils drove them westward. By the 10th of December 1817, Mississippi became the 20th state admitted to the Union.
Cotton Kings And Enslaved Labor
By 1860, enslaved African Americans numbered 436,631 or 55% of the state's total population. Plantation owners along major rivers used free labor gained through holding enslaved people to generate wealth. Cotton prices on the international market were high during the 1850s. The state was thinly settled with population concentrated only in riverfront areas and towns. Ninety percent of the Delta bottomlands remained frontier and undeveloped before the Civil War. On the 9th of January 1861, Mississippi declared its secession from the Union as one of seven founding Confederate States. More than 80,000 Mississippians fought for the Confederate Army while around 17,000 black and 545 white men served in the Union Army. The state needed many more settlers for development after the war ended.
The White Line Campaign
Democratic whites regained control of the state legislature in 1875 after a year of expanded violence against blacks. They formed paramilitary organizations such as the Red Shirts to suppress black voting. Between 1874 and 1875, they conducted violence against blacks in at least 15 known riots in cities around the state. Estimates place the death toll at twice as many as the reported 150 blacks killed. Riots took place in Vicksburg, Clinton, Macon, and their counties where well-armed whites broke up black meetings. A new state constitution passed in 1890 specifically aimed to eliminate black political power according to Governor James K. Vardaman. It erected barriers to voter registration that effectively disenfranchised most black Mississippians and many poor whites. An estimated 100,000 black and 50,000 white men were removed from voter registration rolls over the next few years.
Freedom Summer And The Vote
In the summer of 1964 students and community organizers came to register black voters and establish Freedom Schools. Chapters of the Ku Klux Klan used violence against activists including the murders of Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner during Freedom Summer. This tragedy catalyzed Congressional passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 the following year. Teacher Robert G. Clark of Holmes County became the first African American elected to the State House since Reconstruction. He continued as the only African American in the state legislature until 1976 and was repeatedly elected into the 21st century. Registration of African-American voters increased after federal civil rights legislation ended de jure segregation in 1964 and 1965. Black candidates ran in the 1967 elections for state and local offices with the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party fielding some candidates.
Storms Over The Gulf Coast
On the 17th of August 1969, Category 5 Hurricane Camille hit the Mississippi coast killing 248 people. It caused US$1.5 billion in damage measured in 1969 dollars. On the 29th of August 2005, Hurricane Katrina caused even greater destruction across the entire Mississippi Gulf Coast from Louisiana to Alabama. Both storms killed hundreds of people and caused nearly total storm surge destruction of structures in and around Gulfport, Biloxi, and Pascagoula. The late summer and fall is the seasonal period of risk for hurricanes moving inland from the Gulf of Mexico. As in the rest of the Deep South, thunderstorms are common especially in the southern part of the state. On average, Mississippi has around 27 tornadoes annually with two of the five deadliest tornadoes in United States history occurring in the state.
Faith And The Bible Belt
By 2014, the Pew Research Center determined 83% of its population was Christian. In a separate study by the Public Religion Research Institute in 2020, 80% of the population was Christian. Public opinion polls have consistently ranked Mississippi as the most religious state in the United States. A 2009 Gallup poll found that 63% of Mississippians said they attended church weekly or almost weekly. This percentage represents the highest figure among all states while the U.S. average was 42%. Another 2008 Gallup poll found that 85% of Mississippians considered religion an important part of their daily lives. Independent black Baptist churches were established before 1800 in Virginia, Kentucky, South Carolina and Georgia and later developed in Mississippi as well.
Poverty And Health Challenges
Mississippi ranks 50th or last place among all the states for health care according to the Commonwealth Fund. The state has the highest rate of infant and neonatal deaths of any U.S. state. Age-adjusted data shows Mississippi has the highest overall death rate and the highest death rate from heart disease. For three years in a row, more than 30 percent of Mississippi's residents have been classified as obese. In 2011, Mississippi had the fewest dentists per capita in the United States. Per capita personal income in 2006 was $26,908 representing the lowest per capita personal income of any state. Approximately 70,000 adults are disabled which is 10 percent of the workforce. The state has one of the lowest workforce participation rates in the country at 56 percent.
When did the first human groups arrive in Mississippi?
The first human groups arrived in what is now Mississippi around 9500 BC. These Paleo-Indians lived as hunter-gatherers and hunted megafauna that would soon vanish from the landscape.
Who founded the first permanent French settlement in Mississippi?
Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville founded the first permanent French settlement at Fort Maurepas in April 1699 near present-day Ocean Springs on the Gulf Coast. This outpost was established by French colonists who named the greater territory New France while Spain claimed areas east of Mobile Bay.
What percentage of Mississippi's population were enslaved African Americans by 1860?
By 1860, enslaved African Americans numbered 436,631 or 55% of the state's total population. Plantation owners along major rivers used free labor gained through holding enslaved people to generate wealth during this period.
Which hurricanes caused significant destruction on the Mississippi coast in 1969 and 2005?
Category 5 Hurricane Camille hit the Mississippi coast on the 17th of August 1969 killing 248 people and causing US$1.5 billion in damage measured in 1969 dollars. Hurricane Katrina struck the entire Mississippi Gulf Coast on the 29th of August 2005 causing even greater destruction from Louisiana to Alabama.
Why is Mississippi considered the most religious state in the United States?
Public opinion polls have consistently ranked Mississippi as the most religious state in the United States with 83% of its population identified as Christian by 2014. A 2009 Gallup poll found that 63% of Mississippians said they attended church weekly or almost weekly which represents the highest figure among all states.