Unveiling Mississippi: 46 Fascinating Facts about the Magnolia State

Mississippi! It is a state that resonates with history and culture, however problematic much of it is. As we delve into this compilation of 46 intriguing facts about Mississippi, you will uncover a trove of fascinating tales that extend beyond its well-known narratives. From music legends and culinary delights to natural wonders and iconic landmarks, Mississippi’s story is a rich mosaic that offers a deeper understanding of its past, present — and that spirit that defines its identity. Continuing our journey throughout the United States — from Alaska to Arizona and Georgia to Idaho and Iowa to Maryland — Let us delve into the varied and distinctive world of the Magnolia State.

What is Mississippi known for?

1. The Mississippi River! Beginning at Lake Itasca in Minnesota and flowing south for 2,340 miles all the way to the Mississippi River Delta in the Gulf of Mexico, the river is such an integral part of the state’s identity, influencing its history, trade, and culture.

2. The birthplace of the blues! Who knows what American popular music would sound like if the Delta blues had not made it out of Mississippi. From Charley Patton to Robert Johnson and Muddy Waters to Howlin’ Wolf and John Lee Hooker to Mississippi John Hurt and B.B. King, it would be impossible to overstate how much of the music we listen to today came from Mississippi.

3. Unfortunately, Mississippi is also known as the site of some of the more tragic Civil Rights incidents in American history, like the 1955 murder of Emmett Till in Drew, Mississippi, the 1963 assassination of Medgar Evers by the racist white supremacist coward Byron De La Beckwith in Jackson, and the 1962 race riots of the University of Mississippi in Oxford. The Mississippi Civil Rights Museum in Jackson is dedicated to documenting and presenting truth to power about the American Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi.

Early history of Mississippi facts

4. The first known white people to visit present day Mississippi was a Spanish expedition led by Hernando de Soto, way way way back in the 1540s. However, the dude was just passing through and did not actually settle in Mississippi and claim it for Spain.

5. In 1699, the French created Fort Maurepas along the Gulf of Mexico in Old Biloxi as a part of French Louisiana / New France and was designated its capital.

6. Mississippi was under Spanish rule after France lost the Seven Years War (1756-1763).

7. Following their defeat in the American Revolutionary War, Great Britain relinquished the territory to the United States as outlined in the 1783 Treaty of Paris.

8. On March 23, 1861, Mississippi decided that they would rather be racists than be part of an anti-racist country so they seceded.

9. After losing the Civil War and seeing more than a quarter million Confederate soldiers die in a vain attempt preserve slavery, Mississippi was restored to the Union on February 23, 1870, legally if not necessarily in spirit.

10. Better late than never, but it is still egregious af that Mississippi did not ratify the 13th Amendment to ban slavery until 2013. TWO THOUSAND FUCKING THIRTEEN.

What famous people are from Mississippi?

11. William Cuthbert Faulkner twice won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1955 (for A Fable) and 1963 (posthumously for The Reivers), but is probably much more well-known for writing The Sound and the Fury (1929) and As I Lay Dying (1930) that has had a profound impact in American Southern literature. He was born in New Albany, Mississippi.

12. Eric Roberts is the older brother of Julia Roberts and the father of Emma Roberts and the star of The Pope of Greenwich Village. With more than 700 credits to his name, he may be the most prolific American actor in film and television history. He was born in Biloxi, Mississippi.

13. Pop music was never quite the same after Britney Spears released …Baby One More Time in 1998. She was born McComb, Mississippi in 1981.

14. Other famous writers who have also impacted American culture beyond the books they wrote were born in Mississippi, like Richard Wright (Roxie, Mississippi), Tennessee Williams (Columbus), and Eudora Welty (Jackson).

15. Media empress Oprah Winfrey was born in Kosciusko, Mississippi in 1954 and remains one of the most influential American figures of the last one hundred years.

16. Notable baseball players that were born in Mississippi include Chet Lemon (Jackson), Ellis Burks (Vicksburg), Frank White (Greenville), Roy Oswalt (Kosciusko), Dave Parker (Grenada), and Hall of Famer Cool Papa Bell.

17. Born in Greenville, Mississippi in 1936, Jim Henson created so many of the beloved characters we know from The Muppet Show, Sesame Street, and Fraggle Rock — including some more unusual ones we may not know.

Topography & geography of Mississippi

18. The capital of Mississippi is Jackson, made as such in 1822 when it was the most populated city in the state.

19. Mississippi is the 32nd-biggest state at 48,430 total square miles.

20. The Mississippi Petrified Forest is in Flora, Mississippi and was probably formed like 36 million years ago. It was made a National Natural Landmark in 1965, and visitors rave about how it “almost seems to cast a soothing spell.”

21. It’s about 340 miles to drive across Mississippi from north to south, and 170 miles from east to west.

22. There is a Cat Island in the Mississippi Sound that was discovered by French explorers who mistook the raccoons for felines.

23. The lowest point in Mississippi is the Gulf of Mexico — exactly zero (0) feet above sea level!

24. Woodall Mountain is just 807 feet about sea level but it’s the highest-most point in the state of Mississippi.

25. Mississippi borders Alabama, and Tennessee. It also borders Louisiana and Arkansas, albeit across the Mississippi River.

Where should I visit in Mississippi?

26. The Mississippi Children’s Museum in Jackson is a dynamic and interactive educational space designed to engage children in hands-on learning experiences. Through its innovative exhibits and programs, the museum encourages exploration, creativity, and discovery, making it a vibrant destination for families and young learners.

27. The Biedenham Coca-Cola Museum in Vicksburg, Mississippi is a must-visit for any fans of the iconic brand, and it’s got a particular focus on the kind of equipment Joseph Biedenharn used to bottle the first bottles of Coke.

28. The Mississippi Museum of Art in Jackson is the largest in the state and features works by Georgia O’Keefe, Andy Warhol, Walker Evans, Paul Manship, and Cindy Sherman.

29. The Mississippi Civil Rights Museum in Jackson is dedicated to documenting and holding truth to power about the American Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi.

30. You’ll find the Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale, Mississippi opened more than 40 years ago and it’s the state’s oldest music museum. Dedicated to preserving and sharing the legacy of the blues in this particular part of Mississippi, you can also check out the guitars used by legends like B.B. King and John Lee Hooker.

31. The birthplace of Elvis Presley is in Tupelo, Mississippi, and you can visit the two-bedroom home that his father Vernon Presley built. Nearby is a statue of the King of Rock-n-Roll at 13 years old, as well as the church he attended as a childhood that informed his future music.

32. The Walter Anderson Museum of Art in Ocean Springs, Mississippi honors the life and work of the American painter Walter Inglis Anderson (1903-1965). He was also a writer and naturalist who also worked as a designer in the family pottery business, and had an artistic style characterized by its bold use of color, intricate detailing, and a sense of dynamism that captures the essence of the environments he immersed himself in.

Fun, cool, interesting & weird Mississippi facts

33. You probably owned a teddy bear or three (3) when you were young and you may even own some now. The teddy bear was actually invented in honor of President Teddy Roosevelt to note a particular hunting trip in Onward, Mississippi in 1902 when an assistant of his tied a black bear to a tree for Roosevelt’s easy capture — but Teddy refused. The story caught on, and so did teddy bears.

34. One might assume that a culturally-driven city like Los Angeles, Chicago, or New York City would be the official home of the USA International Ballet Competition, but one would be wrong. This prestigious showcase of the best ballet performers in the country is actually held in Jackson, Mississippi.

35. The patent holder for the cushioned toilet seat belongs to one David Harrison of Columbus, Mississippi and if you have ever used a toilet with a cushioned seat after someone who could not be bothered to put the seat up and end up sitting in piss juice that squeezes out onto your butt cheeks then you have the very thoughtful Mr. Harrison to thank.

36. In January 1964, Dr. James Hardy performed the very first heart transplant at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC). The patient lived for 18 days.

37. The town of Belzoni, Mississippi is sometimes considered the Catfish Capital of the World, although there are towns in Louisiana and Tennessee that say the same thing. Nevertheless, Belzoni indeed has enough catfish clout to consistency produce more farm-raised catfish than anywhere else in the United States. We’d like to recommend visiting the Catfish Museum but the good folks at Roadside America say it is closed.

What are the state symbols of Mississippi?

38. The current state Poet Laureate of Mississippi is the incomparable Catherine Pierce, named in 2021. Although the two-time Pushcart Prize winner is originally from Delaware, Catherine Pierce has made a name for herself in the Midwest poetry scene, with recognition from Literary Artist Fellowships from the Mississippi Arts Commission and the Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters Poetry Prize. Her work wrestles with existential themes of climate change and growing fascist dangers with a vulnerability of a “jeweler’s eye and an uncanny knack for embracing devastating truths and desires,” according to fellow Mississippi poet Aimee Nezhukumatathil. We should support the great poets as much as we support the great actors and great musicians and we should definitely support one of the best American poets alive by buying all their books. Danger Days (2020) is an excellent place to start.

39. Mississippi has an official dance and it’s the square dance. It also happens to be the official dance of Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, and Georgia, as well as Idaho, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, and Missouri. And Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and Oregon, as well as Tennessee and Texas. And Utah. And Virginia. And also Washington state. It’s also the official folk dance of California, New Jersey, and South Carolina. Clearly, America needs to diversify its dance card.

40. In 1974, the state of Mississippi designated the white-tailed deer as the official state land mammal. Ten (10) other states — including Arkansas and Illinois and Michigan and Nebraska and New Hampshire and Ohio and Oklahoma and Pennsylvania and South Carolina and Wisconsin — also have this lil guy as a state symbol.

41. You can find bottlenose dolphins along the Mississippi Gulf Coast and — like Florida and South Carolina — the state designated them the official state water mammal in 1974.

42. In 2021, Mississippi finally — FINALLY — updated/upgraded their state flag to something decidedly less racist after forming a Commission to Redesign the Mississippi State Flag the year before. Here it is!

43. You can find the mockingbird all over the state of Mississippi so it was only natural for them to elect them as the state bird in 1944 — just like Arkansas and Florida and Tennessee and Texas.

44. Way back more than 100 years ago in 1900, a bunch of schoolchildren voted the magnolia as the official state flower of Mississippi and then in 1952, the magnolia was vote the official state tree. You can also find the magnolia on the Mississippi quarter and the upgraded and improved Mississippi state flag. They do not call it the Magnolia State for nothing!

45. The American alligator became the official state reptile of Mississippi in 2005. The alligator’s name comes from el lagarto, which is Spanish for lizard, and this dude is also a state symbol for Florida and Louisiana.

46. Milk was elected the official beverage of Mississippi in 1984, and that is the case in 19 other states: Arkansas, Delaware, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, and of course, Wisconsin

Cover Image Credit: from Pixabay

*****This post contains affiliate links. If you use these links to buy something we may earn a commission. Thank you for reading Content Bash!*****