Mississippi History Now is an award-winning electronic publication that offers a wide variety of essays on the history of Mississippi, covering the periods from prehistory through the present. Launched in 2000 and revised in 2021, Mississippi History Now has appeal for the history lover, the student, and for the general reader. History teachers will welcome the lesson plans that accompany each essay.

The Mississippi Historical Society and Mississippi Department of Archives and History are grateful to past editors of the site: Peggy W. Jeanes (2000-2012), editor emerita; Melissa “Missy” Jones (2013-2018); and Katie Molpus (2019-2020). In addition, we are grateful to these teachers for developing lesson plans: Roxanna Arcement, Drew Gardner, Martha Hutson, Sidney Pinnen, and Karla Smith. Historical consultants who have provided guidance over the years include John Ray Skates (2000-2003), Greg O’Brien (2003-2006), Richard Damms (2006-2010), and Deanne Stephens Nuwer (2010-present).

Mississippi History Now is administered by the education staff of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, along with the Mississippi Historical Society. To contact the site, please email info@mdah.ms.gov.

The Mississippi Historical Society was organized in Jackson on November 9, 1858, under the scholarly leadership of B.L.C. Wailes, but survived less than two years. It was reorganized in 1890, and by 1898, under the editorship of Franklin L. Riley, the society had issued the first of fourteen volumes of the Publications of the Mississippi Historical Society, a notable series that was to set the tone for other distinguished society publications. In 1902 the society played a central role in establishing the Department of Archives and History, and the two organizations worked together to produce five additional volumes of the Publications of the Mississippi Historical Society between 1916 and 1925.

Since 1939, the Mississippi Historical Society has regularly published the Journal of Mississippi History.

The society became dormant but was reorganized in 1952 and has remained active since then. In 1964 the society brought back into print J.F.H. Claiborne’s landmark work Mississippi as a Province, Territory, and State. Since the publication of that classic, the society has taken an active role in producing significant books on the history of the state. In 1973 the society, in cooperation with the Department of Archives and History, the University of Mississippi, Mississippi State University, and the University and College Press, published the first comprehensive history of Mississippi in fifty years, the two-volume History of Mississippi edited by R.A. McLemore. In 1987 the society sponsored the first popular illustrated history of the state, Mississippi: An Illustrated History, written by Edward Akin.

In the 1990s the society established a major series spanning the history of Mississippi. Eight books, each covering an important subject or era, have been published to date. More are under contract. The books of the Heritage of Mississippi Series are written for a broad audience of scholars, teachers, students, and interested general readers.

In August 2000, the Society launched this online publication, Mississippi History Now, to strengthen its educational and leadership role in order to generate a broader interest in Mississippi history. Articles are archived on the site and provide a rich source of Mississippi history.