History of Mississippi United States of America

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Local History Notes:

MISSISSIPPI, one of the Southern States of the American confederacy, is bounded N. by Tennessee, E. by Alabama, S. by the Gulf of Mexico and Louisiana, and W. by the Pearl and Mississippi rivers, which separate it from Louisiana and Arkansas. It lies between 30° 20' and 35° N. lat., and between 88° 12' and 91° 40' W. lon., being about 399 miles long from N. to S., and 150 in average breadth, including an area of about 47,156 square miles, or 30,179,840 acres, of which only 3,444,358 are improved.

Population: The number of inhabitants in 1800, was 8850; 40,352 in 1810; 75,448 in 1820; 136,621 in 1830; 375,651 in 1840, and 605,948 in 1850, of whom 156,287 were white males, 139,431 white females; 474 free colored males, 456 free colored females, and 154,674 male, and 154,626 female slaves. Representative population, 482,595. This population was divided into 52,107 families occupying 51,681 dwellings. Of the free population, 140,885 were born in the state, 150,229 in other states, 593 in England, 1928 in Ireland, 327 in Scotland and Wales, 79 in British America, 1064 in Germany, 440 in France, 527 in other countries, and 576 whose places of birth were unknown; making about 1 2/3 per cent. of the free population of foreign birth. In the year ending June 1st, 1850, there occurred 8711 deaths, or about 14 to every one thousand persons. In the same period, 260 paupers, of whom 12 were foreigners, received aid, at an expense of $70 for each individual. Of 108 deaf and dumb, 1 was free colored, and 26 slaves; of 217 blind, 1 was free colored, and 86 slaves; of 149 insane, 22 were slaves, and of 210 idiotic, 5 were free colored, and 64 were slaves.

Counties: Mississippi is divided into 59 counties, viz. Adams, Areire, Attala, Bolivar, Carroll, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Clairborne, Clarke, Coahoma, Copiah, Covington, De Soto, Franklin, Greene, Hancock, Harrison, Hinds, Holmes, Issaquena, Itawamba, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Jones, Kemper, Lafayette, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Leake, Lowndes, Madison, Marion, Marshall, Monroe, Neshoba, Newton, Noxubee, Oktibbeha, Panola, Perry, Pike, Pontotoc, Rankin, Scott, Simpson, Smith, Sunflower, Tallahatchie, Tippah, Tishemingo, Tunics, Warren, Washington, Wayne, Wilkinson, Winston, Yallobusha, and Yazoo. Capital, Jackson.

Cities and Towns: There are no large towns in this state: Natchez, the largest, had, in 1850, a population of about 6000: the other principal towns are Aberdeen, population, 4000; Vicksburg, 3678; Jackson, estimated at 3500; Columbus, 2614; Holly Springs, 2052; Port Gibson, 1036; and Shieldsborough, 924.

Face of the Country: The eastern and central parts of the state are a kind of tableland, descending towards the Mississippi by steps formed by two ranges of bluffs of irregular outline, sometimes approaching close to the river's brink, and overhanging it by precipices of from 100 to 200 feet in height. In other places, a wide expanse of swamp fills up the interval. One of these marshes extends from 50 miles below the mouth of the Yazoo river to Memphis, in Tennessee, with a breadth varying from a few miles to 50, and sometimes even 100 miles, occupying an area of nearly 7000 square miles. This section is liable to inundations at the period of freshets, and sometimes is covered with water to the depth of several feet. The rivers generally run in a S. W. course, showing the general slope of the country to be in that direction; a portion of the N. E., however, is drained by the Tombigbee, and the central and S. E. portions by the Pearl and Pascagoula rivers, which seek the Gulf of Mexico on a S. and S. E. direction. The northern and central parts of the state are undulating, presenting a champaign appearance. The N. E. is prairie land, extending for some distance down the Alabama boundary, when the country again becomes rolling and timbered. The S. E. of the state is low but undulating, and abounding in pine. Near the coast, the country, which farther west is swampy, becomes firm. The mineral resources of the state, so far as developed, are not extensive. Some gold has been found in Marion county, but coal and marble are not known to exist in any considerable quantity. In 1850 about $100,000 were invested in iron foundries, &c.

Rivers, Bays, &c: The western part of this state is drained by the Mississippi and its tributaries, the eastern by the tributaries of the Tombigbee and Pascagoula, and the central by the Pearl river. The Yazoo and the Big Black are the largest branches of the Mississippi from this state, and drain the N. W. portion. The Tennessee river touches the N. E. boundary of the state for about 15 miles. The Mississippi river renders this state accessible to the largest steamboats for the whole extent of its western boundary, and smaller steamboats ascend the Yazoo for 300 miles, the Big Black for 50 miles, the Pearl sometimes to Jackson, (though its navigation is much impeded by sandbars and shallows,) and the Pascagoula for a short distance. There is a chain of lakes and bays, so called, but more properly sounds, separating some low islands from the coasts. The principal of these bays, or lakes, are Lake Borgne and Pascagoula bay. Biloxi and St. Louis bays are arms of these. This state borders on the Gulf for about 60 or 70 miles, but has no good harbors.

Objects of Interest to Tourists: Mississippi has not many striking objects in her physical conformation to arrest the mere tourist, but must rely on her rich soil and utilitarian advantages principally to interest the statesman and philosopher. Not far from Natchez, at a village called Seltzertown, there is a group of mounds, the most elevated of which is about 35 feet high, with a flat area on the summit, of some 2 or 3 acres, surrounded by a rampart 2 or 3 feet high, and enclosing 6 other mounds, one of which is 30 feet in elevation, or 65 feet above the base of the large mound. Numerous relics, such as pipes, weapons, vessels, &c., have been taken from them. Another group, of smaller but similar earth-works, lies still nearer Natchez. There are several medicinal springs in this state, of much resort; among them are Cooper's Well, in Hinds county, 12 miles W. of Jackson, (the waters of which are impregnated with sulphur and iron, and regarded as beneficial in diseases of the bowels and skin;) and Lauderdale Springs, in the county of the same name, contain white sulphur and chaly-beate waters. One spring has a body of water sufficient to turn a mill. The bluffs on the western side of the state, which sometimes rise perpendicularly from the water's edge to the height of 150 or 200 feet, and then recede many miles into the interior, become very interesting objects to the voyager on the Mississippi, from their contrast to the monotonous scenery of that region.

Climate, Soil, and Productions: Mississippi approaches within a few degrees of the torrid zone, and its long summers partake of the heat of that region; but the winters, as well as those of Louisiana, have a temperature a few degrees lower than on the Atlantic in the same latitude. In the southern part of the state the season is long enough to mature the fig and the orange, while in the north the apple flourishes. The valleys of the northern and central portions of Mississippi are exceedingly fertile, but subject, in places, to the washing of sand from the less fertile upland regions during freshets. Cotton was formerly the staple of this region, but since the soil has been somewhat exhausted, lighter crops have taken its place. The prairie region of the N. E. has a rich, black, adhesive soil, impregnated with time, and yielding luxuriant crops of Indian corn and cotton. The soil in the S. E. part of the state is sandy, mostly covered with pine, interspersed with more fertile portions, producing Indian corn and small grain abundantly, and cotton and rice to some extent. Fruits flourish in this district, which is also famous for its cattle, being sometimes called the "cow country." The southern country, back from the seacoast, is sandy, and covered with pine forests, which are beginning to be turned to account in the production of turpentine, &c. But the richest and most inexhaustible soil in Mississippi is that section lying between the upland bluffs and the Mississippi, called sometimes the swamp lands. A writer in De Bow's Resources of the South and West, asserts "that the opinion that this region is unhealthy is fast giving way, and that population of the very best character is now settling there." The great drawback, however, (its liability to inundations,) still remains, though even this will probably be removed as the population becomes more dense, and further and stronger embankments are made. The great staple of the state is cotton, in the production of which it ranks third (and if we regard only population, second) of the states of the Union. The principal products are Indian corn, peas, beans, Irish and sweet potatoes, butter, beeswax, honey, and live stock; considerable wheat, rice, tobacco, wool, fruits, cheese, and some molasses, sugar, barley, buckwheat, wine, hay, grass-seeds, rye, hops, hemp, flax, and silk. In 1850 there were in Mississippi 23,960 farms, containing 3,444,358 acres of cultivated land, or about 146 acres to each farm, producing 137,990 bushels of wheat; 9606 of rye: 22,446,552 of Indian corn; 1,503,288 of oats; 1,072,757 of peas and beans; 261,482 of Irish potatoes; 4,741,795 of sweet potatoes; 2,719,856 pounds of rice; 49,960 of tobacco; 193,717,200 of cotton; 559,619 of wool; 4,346,234 of butter; 21,191 of cheese; 12,505 tons of hay; 388,000 pounds of sugar: 397,460 of beeswax and honey; live stock of the value of $19,403,602; slaughtered do. $3,636,582; products of orchards, $50,405: and market goods, $46,250.

Forest Trees: The swamps abound in a growth of black and white cypress, (the latter an excellent kind of timber,) and the southern portions with pine, a ridge of which crosses the state from Jackson to Alabama. The north is well wooded with oak and hickory. The oaks include red, white, post, and live oaks. The other timber is black walnut, locust, a dwarf species of buckeye, beech, dogwood, persimmon, and papaw. The fruits are peaches, figs, oranges, plums, cherries, grapes, and melons.

Internal improvements have made but little progress in this state. In January, 1853, there were 100 miles of railway completed, and 491 in course of construction. Brandon, Jackson, and Raymond are connected with Vicksburg, and Citronelle with Mobile, by 33 miles of the finished portion of the Ohio and Mobile railroad. Plank-roads are beginning to claim attention here as elsewhere: See Table of Railroads, APPENDIX.

Manufactures: The manufactures in this state are few. In 1850 there were 866 establishments, each producing $500 and upwards annually. Homemade manufactures the same year were produced to the value of $1,164,020. There were only 2 establishments engaged in cotton manufactures, employing $38,000 capital, and 19 male and 17 female hands, consuming raw material of the value of $21,500, and producing 171,000 pounds of yarn, worth $30,500; no woollen establishments; 8 iron foundries, &c., employing $100,000 capital, and 112 male hands, consuming raw material of the value of $50,370, and producing 924 tons of castings, worth $117,400. There were also 92 tanneries, employing $145,615 capital, consuming raw material worth $111,474, and producing leather valued at $229,407.

Commerce: The commerce of this state being mostly carried on through New Orleans, no tables of its exports or imports can be given; but the great article of export is cotton. The tonnage of Mississippi in 1852 was only 1452 3/95. No vessels are reported as being built within the state. The products of the N. W. of the state find their outlet principally at Memphis, Tennessee of the N. E., through Tombigbee river, at Mobile. A large portion of the E. and S. E. also has the same market. The pine will probably soon contribute largely to the exports of Mississippi, both in lumber and naval stores.

Education: Laws have been recently passed improving the school system of this state, but they had not in 1852 gone into efficient operation. There were in the same year three colleges, with an aggregate of 204 students, and 8450 volumes in their libraries. In 1850 there were 762 public schools, and 189 academies and other schools in Mississippi.

Religious Denominations: Of 910 churches in the state in 1850, the Baptists owned 336; Episcopalians, 13; Methodists, 406; Presbyterians, 135, and Roman Catholics, 8. The rest were owned by the Christians, Free Church, and Union Church.

Public Institutions: There is an excellent penitentiary at Jackson, and an asylum for the blind at the same place. It is in contemplation to erect a lunatic asylum.

Government, Finances, &c: The governor is elected by the people for two years, and receives $3000 salary. The senate is composed of 32, and the house of representatives of 92 members, both elected by the people, the former for four and the latter for two years. The sessions of the legislature are biennial. The judiciary consists: 1. Of a high court of errors and appeals, composed of one chief and two associate judges; 2. Of a superior court of chancery, held at Jackson, and considered in law as always open 3. Of district chancery courts; and 4. Of seven circuit courts. The judges of the court of appeals receive $3000, the chancellor $2600, and the vice chancellors $2000 per annum. The district judges are elected for four years. The assessed value of property in 1850 was $208,422,167; the public debt, (in 1852,) $7,271,707; of which $5,000,000 was contingent debt; public property, (not at present productive,) $2,000,000, and ordinary expenses, exclusive of debt and schools, about $130,000 per annum. Mississippi requires 12 months' residence to entitle a citizen to the fight of suffrage. This state sends five members to the national congress, and gives seven electoral votes for president of the United States. In January, 1853, there was in Mississippi $132,726.93 banking capital, with a circulation of $46,925, and $19,211.06 in coin.

History: Mississippi was first visited by Europeans about the year 1540, when De Soto, with 1000 followers, crossed the state on an exploring expedition from Florida. This party having suffered severely by attacks from the aborigines, no other attempt was made to establish a permanent colony till 1682, when La Salle descended the Mississippi and visited this region. He returned in two years with a party which he intended to settle in Mississippi, but meeting with misfortunes, the colony never reached its destination. The next attempt at settlement was made by Iberville, but with no successful result. The settlement at Fort Rosalie (now Natches) in 1716, by some Frenchmen under Bienville, was generally considered the first permanent colony. A general massacre of the white inhabitants by the savages took place in 1728, but, as in every other contest between the Indians and the whites, victory ultimately rested with the latter. Other conflicts in 1736, '39, and '52, though carried on with varying success, had the same result. At the peace of Paris, in 1763, Mississippi became a part of the English territory. Soon after, a portion of the French, so inhumanly driven by the English from Nova Scotia, settled in Mississippi; and in 1768 commenced an emigration from the Eastern colonies, by way of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. In 1798, Mississippi, including Alabama, was erected into a territory, and in 1817 was admitted into the Union as an independent state.

Biographies:

Anselm Joseph McLaurin, governor of Mississippi, was born in Brandon, Miss., March 26, 1848;son of Lauchlin and Ellen (Tullus) McLaurin, and grandson of Lauchlin and (McLaurin) McLaurin, and of William and Martha (London) Tullns. He was brought up on a farm, and attended the neighboring schools and the Summerville Institute until August, 1864, when he joined the Confederate army. He was again a student at the Summerville Institute in 1865-67 and then returned to the farm. He studied law in the evenings, was admitted to the bar in July, 1868, and began practice in Raleigh, Miss. He was married, Feb. 22, 1870, to Laura Ranch of Trenton, Miss. He was district attorney for the fifth district of Mississippi, 1871-76; removed to Brandon, Miss., March 19, 1876; was a representative in the state legislature in 1879; presidential elector for the state at large on the Democratic ticket in 1888; a delegate to the state constitutional convention in 1890; and U.S. senator, 1894-95, to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Senator Walthall. He was elected governor of Mississippi in November, 1895, taking his seat, Jan. 21, 1896, and serving until Jan. 16, 1900, when he was elected to the U.S. senate, for the term ending March 4, 1907.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

David Holmes, governor of Mississippi, was born in York county, Pa., March 10, 1769; son of Col. Joseph Holmes, a native of the north of Ireland, who came to America at an early age, served in the Revolution as commissary, with the rank of colonel; married a daughter of Col. David Hunter, of Berkeley county, Va., and shortly after the birth of David removed to Winchester, Va. After some years in his father's store David was admitted to the bar, and practised law in Harrisburg, Pa. He later returned to Virginia, and was a representative from that state in the 5th-10th congresses, 1797-1809. He was then appointed governor of Mississippi Territory by President Madison, serving 1809-17, and on the admission of the territory as a state, he was elected its first governor, serving 1817-19. On the resignation of Walter Leake as U.S. senator in 1820, Mr. Holmes was elected to succeed him, and after serving out the term was re-elected for a full term, to expire March 3, 1827. He resigned in 1825 to accept the governorship for a second time, and held that office, 1825-27. In 1827, broken in health, he returned to Winchester, Va., where he died Aug. 20, 1832.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

Walter Leake, governor of Mississippi, was born in Albemarle county, Virginia, about 1760. He served in the Revolutionary war, became a lawyer, and was appointed, territorial judge of Mississippi and settled in Hinds county where he also practised law. He was elected U.S. senator on the admission of the state, Dec. 10, 1817, and drew the short term expiring March 4, 1821. He resigned in 1820 to accept the appointment of judge of the U.S. circuit court and his place was filled by David Holmes He was governor of Mississippi, 1821-25, succeeding George Poindexter to that office. He died at Mt. Salus, Hinds county, Miss., Nov. 17, 1825.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

William McWillie, governor of Mississippi, was born in Kershaw districts, S.C., Nov. 17, 1795; son of Col. Adam McWillie. He was prepared for college when the war of 1812 was declared, and he joined his father's regiment of state militia as adjutant. After the declaration of peace he matriculated at South Carolina college, and was graduated in 1817. He settled in the practice of law in Camden in 1818, and purchased a plantation in Mississippi in 1835. He was married, Dec. 13, 1818, to a daughter of Joseph Cunningham, a planter of South Carolina. Sha died in April, 1827; and he married secondly in March, 1831, a daughter of Dr. Edward H. Anderson of Camden, S.C. He was elected president of the Camden bank in 1836, and served in both branches of the state legislature between 1836 and 1840. In 1845 he removed to his plantation in Madison county, Miss., and was a Democratic representative in the 31st congress, 1849-51. In 1850 he was defeated for re-election by John D. Freeman, the Anti-Compromise Democratic candidate. He was governor of Mississippi, 1858-60. He was in favor of secession and took an active part in the councils of the state. He died in Kirkwood, Madison county, Miss., March 3, 1869.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

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