In History

Mississippi was first inhabited by three major Indian tribes--the Chickasaws in the north, the Choctaws in the central and south, and Natchez Indians in the southwest along the Mississippi River. Other smaller Indian tribes include the Biloxi, the Pascagoulas, the Tunicas, Chocchumas, and the Yazoos.

  • 1540-1541: Spanish explorer Hernando De Soto is the first European to discover Mississippi and the Mississippi River.
  • 1682: Robert Cavalier de La Salle navigates the Mississippi River and claims all lands drained by the river for France.
  • 1699: Frenchman Pierre LeMoyne, Sieur D'lberville, and his brother Jean Baptiste, Sieur D'lberville, establish Fort Maurepas (present day Ocean Springs) as the first European settlement in Mississippi.
  • 1716: Fort Rosalie is founded, the initial settlement for what becomes Natchez.
  • 1763: Mississippi and other French territory are given to Great Britain after France is defeated in the French and Indian War.
  • 1781 - 1783: After the American Revolution, in which Spain declared war against the British, the Treaty of Paris gives control of the southern half of Mississippi to Spain and the United States gains possession of the northern half.
  • 1798: Spain withdraws from Mississippi. Mississippi is organized as an American territory with Winthrop Sargent, appointed by President Thomas Jefferson, as the first territorial governor.
  • 1817: On December 10, Mississippi is admitted to the Union as the twentieth state by an Act of Congress. Washington, Mississippi, near Natchez, is the first capitol. David Holmes is the first Governor.
  • 1822: The state capitol is moved to Lefleur's Bluff in the central part of the state and the City of Jackson is founded. The "Old Capitol" (now a museum) and the Governor's Mansion are built in the 1840's.
  • 1830: The Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek is signed between the Choctaws and the federal government giving almost ten million acres to Mississippi.
  • 1832: The Treaty of Pontotoc Creek cedes north Mississippi Chickasaw land to the federal government.
  • 1861: On January 9, Mississippi secedes from the Union and becomes part of the Confederate States of America.
  • 1862: The Battle of Corinth is fought on October 3 and 4, the bloodiest battle in Mississippi history. The Confederates are forced out of Corinth.
  • 1863: On July 4, Vicksburg surrenders after a long siege. The "Gibraltar of the Confederacy" falls and gives the Union control of the Mississippi River, separating Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas from the rest of the Confederacy.
  • 1864: Outnumbered Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest defeats Federal troops at the Battles of Okolona and Brice's Crossroads.
  • 1865: On May 4, Confederate General Richard Taylor surrenders his forces in Alabama, Mississippi, and East Louisiana.
  • 1867: A military government is established in Mississippi. Reconstruction begins.
  • 1870: Mississippi is readmitted to the Union. Governor James L. Alcorn gradually restores civil government. Senator Hiram Revels becomes the first Black U. S. Senator.
  • 1876: Reconstruction ends.
  • 1890: The Constitution of 1890 is adopted. This Constitution is still in use today.
  • 1903: The "New Capitol" is constructed in Jackson.
  • 1907: The boll weevil arrives and destroys most of the state's cotton crop.
  • 1922: The Legislature authorizes a system of junior colleges, the first in the nation.
  • 1927: The Mississippi River floods almost three million acres and leaves thousands homeless in the Delta.
  • 1936: Governor Hugh White establishes the Balance Agriculture with Industry (BAWI) program to support industrial and economic development.
  • 1962: James Meredith integrates the University of Mississippi and becomes the first Black Mississippian to attend one of Mississippi's segregated public colleges.
  • 1964: Congress passes the Civil Rights Act, which outlaws segregation in public places.
  • 1969: Hurricane Camille results in extensive property damage, kills 144, and injures 9,472 on the Gulf Coast.
  • 1969: Segregation ends in public schools
  • 1983: Lenore Prather becomes Mississippi's first woman Supreme Court Justice.
  • 1991: Kirk Fordice of Vicksburg is elected the first Republican Governor since Reconstruction.
  • 1995: Governor Kirk Fordice makes history as the first Governor elected to two consecutive terms in more than one hundred years.