A New History Of Mississippi

Creating the first comprehensive narrative of Mississippi since the bicentennial history was published in 1976, Dennis J. Mitchell recounts the vibrant and turbulent history of a Deep South state. The author has condensed the massive scholarship produced since that time into an appealing narrative, which incorporates people missing from many previous histories including American Indians, women, African Americans, and a diversity of other minority groups. This is the story of a place and its people, history makers and ordinary citizens alike. Mississippi’s rich flora and fauna are also central to the story, which follows both natural and man-made destruction and the major efforts to restore and defend rare untouched areas. Hernando De Soto, Sieur d’Iberville, Ferdinand Claiborne, Thomas Hinds, Aaron Burr, Greenwood LeFlore, Joseph Davis, Nathan Bedford Forrest, James D. Lynch, James K. Vardaman, Mary Grace Quackenbos, Ida B. Wells, William Alexander Percy, William Faulkner, Eudora Welty, Muddy Waters, B.B. King, Elvis Presley, John Grisham, Jack Reed, William F. Winter, Jim Barksdale, Richard Howorth, Christopher Epps, and too many more to list—this book covers a vast and rich legacy. From the rise and fall of American Indian culture to the advent of Mississippi’s world-renowned literary, artistic, and scientific contributions, Mitchell vividly brings to life the individuals and institutions that have created a fascinating and diverse state.

We are especially proud to announce the publication of Mississippi: A History, the first textbook ever published specifically for use in college-level courses in Mississippi history. In his sweeping coverage of the Mississippi story--from prehistoric times to the present day-- Dr. Westley F. Busbee, Jr., deftly combines narrative and topical chapters to address major political, economic, social, and cultural developments. Having taught Mississippi history in college classes for more than thirty years, Dr. Busbee approaches this unflinching account by asking why Mississippi--with its rich natural and human resources--continues to compare unfavorably with other states in such critical areas as per capita income, adult literacy, and public health. "How and why," he asks, "did all of us who call Mississippi home get where we are? What past mistakes might we hope to correct and what innovative approaches might we take to enhance the future of the state?" The book seeks answers to these meaningful questions through a careful assimilation of information gleaned from a multitude of secondary and primary sources. It also includes original maps and tables as well as a multitude of photographs, selected sources by chapter, a Selected Bibliography of Mississippi History, a series of appendices, and a full subject index. In sum, this innovative survey provides a great new resource for all instructors of Mississippi history, a common base of information for students pursuing knowledge and meaning in the study of their state's past, and a comprehensive and engaging read for anyone interested in knowing more about the fascinating history of the Magnolia State.

The second edition of Mississippi: A History features aseries of revisions and updates to its comprehensive coverage ofMississippi state history from the time of the region’s firstinhabitants into the 21st century. Represents the only available comprehensive textbook onMississippi history specifically for use in college-levelcourses Features an engaging narrative mix of topical and chronologicalchapters Includes chapter objectives that may be used by professors andstudents Offers coverage of Mississippi’s major political,economic, social, and cultural developments Presents two entirely new chapters on important21st-century developments in Mississippi Contains expanded coverage of slavery in Mississippihistory Includes completely up-to-date chapter sources, selectedbibliography, and subject index

Although many bluesmen began leaving the Magnolia State in the early twentieth century to pursue fortune and fame up north, many others stayed home. These musicians remained rooted to the traditions of their land, which came to define a distinctive playing style unique to Mississippi. They didn't simply play the blues, they lived it. Travel through the hallowed juke joints and cotton fields with author Roger Stolle as he recounts the history of Mississippi blues and the musicians who have kept it alive. Some of these bluesmen remain to carry on this proud legacy, while others have passed on, but Hidden History of Mississippi Blues ensures none will be forgotten.

Rivers figure prominently in a nation’s historical memory, and the Volga and Mississippi have special importance in Russian and American cultures. Beginning in the pre-modern world, both rivers served as critical trade routes connecting cultures in an extensive exchange network, while also sustaining populations through their surrounding wetlands and bottomlands. In modern times, “Mother Volga” and the “Father of Waters” became integral parts of national identity, contributing to a sense of Russian and American exceptionalism. Furthermore, both rivers were drafted into service as the means to modernize the nation-state through hydropower and navigation. Despite being forced into submission for modern-day hydrological regimes, the Volga and Mississippi Rivers persist in the collective memory and continue to offer solace, recreation, and sustenance. Through their histories we derive a more nuanced view of human interaction with the environment, which adds another lens to our understanding of the past.

Maude Schuyler Clay started her color portrait series Mississippi History in 1975 when she acquired her first Rolleiflex Twin Lens Reflex camera. At the time, she was living and working in New York and paying frequent visits to her native Mississippi Delta, whose landscape and people continued to inspire her. Over the next 25 years, the project, which began as The Mississippians, evolved in part as an homage to Julia Margaret Cameron, a definitive pioneer of the art of photography. Cameron lived in Victorian England and began her photographic experiments in 1863. Clay's expressive, allegorical portraits of her friends, family and other Mississippians, as well as her artful approach to capturing the essence of light, are the driving forces behind her recollection of moments of family life in Mississippi in the 1980s and 90s.