As the 20th century dawned, Mississippians’ hope for the future was often expressed in the buildings they built. There was a revival in the architecture of not only the ancient classical past, but also that of the earliest days of our nation’s history.
Studying the architecture of the communities in our state can reveal new insights into our history and culture. Using examples of a log cabin and a more ornate Federal style house, students can easily draw conclusions about differences in ways of living. This lesson will encourage further investigation of a variety of architectural styles used throughout the state’s history and a consideration of how our buildings reflect who we are and the realities of our world from one time period to another.
During his twenty-eight-year public career, Hubert Durrett Stephens was a Mississippi district attorney, a United States congressman and senator, and a member of the board of directors of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation. Nonetheless, he is little known due to his desire for privacy and his reluctance to match political adversaries in their clamor for public attention. At retirement he directed the burning of his papers. Without access to the kind of material by which a public official’s influence can best be evaluated, historians have relegated him to the sidelines.
He left no records of his political philosophy and there are few recorded instances of his oratory while on the floor of the United States Congress. Yet, Hubert D. Stephens represented Mississippians in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U. S. Senate for more than two decades.
Washington, Mississippi, provided the stage in the early 19th century for extraordinary historical events: In 1801 it became the capital of the Mississippi Territory; in 1811, Jefferson College, the only chartered educational institution prior to the statehood of Mississippi opened there; and in 1817, Mississippi’s state constitution was drafted there in a small Methodist Church, which later became part of Jefferson College.
Jefferson College, Mississippi’s first institute of higher learning, opened in 1811. The site chosen for the establishment of this now historic school was Washington, the capital of the Mississippi Territory. Over its one-hundred-and-fifty-three-year history as an institute of learning, Jefferson College struggled with lack of financial support and student enrollment. Even though the school was forced to close in 1964, Jefferson College continues its legacy of learning through its museum, buildings, and grounds.
Fannye A. Cook, the force behind the creation of the Mississippi agency known as the Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks, and its educational and research arm, the Mississippi Museum of Natural Science, was the first person to collect and catalog Mississippi wildlife, and to lead the effort to protect and restore the state’s natural environment.
Mississippi has many natural resources, and good stewardship practices can protect them. This lesson introduces students to Fannye Cook, the person responsible for many acts of wildlife conservation in Mississippi. As a pioneer conservationist and scientist in the early 20th century, Cook recognized serious conservation deficiencies in the state, formulated plans to correct the problem, clearly articulated a vision to raise the public consciousness, and worked tirelessly to establish a comprehensive state conservation program.
The scenic Natchez Trace Parkway, a unit of the National Park Service since 1938, extends from the outskirts of Nashville, Tennessee, south to Natchez, Mississippi. The Parkway, according to promotional literature, “commemorates” or “memorializes” the historic Natchez Trace, a road that connected Natchez and Nashville during the early 19th century.
At one time in Mississippi’s history, the Natchez Trace was a series of roads and trails that connected the region to areas far beyond the boundaries of Mississippi. It is a road that has always been drenched in myth and folklore. Today, the Natchez Trace Parkway is a scenic route that extends from Nashville, Tennessee, to Natchez, Mississippi.
Mississippi Studies Framework: Competencies 1, 3, 4