Events

Join us for the Hurricane Katrina gallery talk at 11 a.m. on Thursday, September 11, in the Medgar and Myrlie Evers Exhibition Hall at the Two Mississippi Museums. Gulf Coast Vietnamese Narratives co-founders Jennifer Le and Emma To, alongside award-winning photographer Tim Isbell, will explore the lasting impact of Hurricane Katrina on Vietnamese communities along the Mississippi Gulf Coast through personal stories, community memory, and powerful imagery. For more information, call 601-576-6850 or email info@mdah.ms.gov.

The next meeting of the Local Government Records Committee will be held on Tuesday, July 15, 2025, at 10:30 am, on Zoom only. The meeting packet for the agenda and the zoom link can be found here. For more information, contact 601-576-6850 or email info@mdah.ms.gov.

Interested in starting your journey in genealogy? Andrew McNulty, cultural resource specialist at MDAH, will lead a beginner genealogy workshop at 10 a.m. on Saturday, August 16, at the William F. Winter Archives and History Building. This workshop will cover the study of genealogy, how to begin personal research, how to find and use open-source materials, and how to use resources in the archives. Register here. For more information, call 601-576-6850 or email info@mdah.ms.gov.

At 10 a.m. on Thursday, July 17, the state records committee will review, approve, disapprove, amend, or modify records control schedules for all state agencies, boards, and commissions. Once approved, schedules shall have the force and effect of law. Written comments must be presented no less than five (5) days before the scheduled meeting by mail or personal delivery to the attention of the Director of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History at 200 North Street, Jackson, MS 39201. This is in accordance with the information provided at https://www.mdah.ms.gov/state-government#retention Join this Mississippi State Records Committee Meeting via Zoom from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88152697450?pwd=yksdgpUBsp3a2YmXajG6NNopTuUWxh.1 Meeting ID: 881 5269 7450 Passcode: 241435 Or Telephone: Dial: USA (312) 626-6799 (Chicago) Find local numbers: https://us06web.zoom.us/u/kdO3eF1xBF

At noon Wednesday, August 20, Dr. Byron D’Andra Orey, professor of political science at Jackson State University, and Dr. Jeanne Middleton-Harriston, co-author of the original Mississippi: Conflict and Change, will discuss the updated textbook Mississippi, Conflict and Change: A New Edition as part of the History Is Lunch series. The new edition brings the history of the state up to date on contemporary politics, culture, and the economy. This program will take place in the Craig H. Neilsen Auditorium of the Two Mississippi Museums and will also stream live on the MDAH Facebook page and YouTube channel. Copies of Mississippi, Conflict and Change will be available for sale with a book signing to follow. For more information, call 601-576-6850 or email info@mdah.ms.gov.

Join us at 10 a.m. on Saturday, July 19, for Beginning Genealogy: Using Online Resources, a free workshop led by Amanda Vance, reference service specialist at MDAH. This workshop will discuss the types of records that can be found online through the archive’s holdings such as death certificate indexes, Civil War service cards, and marriage records. Participants will learn how to use digital genealogical resources such as Ancestry.com, Newspapers.com, FamilySearch.org, etc. We look forward to seeing you in the orientation room at the William F. Winter Archives and History Building. Register here. For more information, call 601-576-6850 or email info@mdah.ms.gov.

At noon Wednesday, August 6, to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, Leslie-Burl McLemore, civil rights veteran and professor emeritus of political science at Jackson State University, will be joined by historians Jeff Kolnick, history professor at Southwest Minnesota State University, and Michelle Deardorff, professor of government and department head at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, for the History Is Lunch series. This panel will explore the struggle for voting rights in Mississippi, the state’s role in the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the implications of the Shelby v. Holder decision by the United States Supreme Court in 2013 in the Craig H. Neilsen Auditorium of the Two Mississippi Museums and will also stream live on the MDAH Facebook page and YouTube channel. For more information, call 601-576-6850 or email info@mdah.ms.gov.

Join the Mississippi Arts Commission and Visit Mississippi on June 18 at 2 p.m. for the dedication of a Mississippi Writers Trail marker honoring author and historian Patti Carr Black. The ceremony will take place on the grounds of the Old Capitol Museum, followed by a reception in the museum’s chancery court. The program is free and open to the public. For more information, call 601-576-6850 or email info@mdah.ms.gov.

In honor of the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, education staff from the Two Mississippi Museums will host 15-20 minute flash tours at 10:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Wednesday, August 6. Join us to learn more about the efforts of Mississippi civil rights activists to secure federal protections for Black citizens’ right to vote. For more information, contact 601-576-6850 or email info@mdah.ms.gov.

At noon Wednesday, August 13, to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the murder of Emmett Till, a panel from the Emmett Till Interpretive Center (ETIC) consisting of Venita Halbert, community engagement coordinator; Jermarlius “Jay” Rushing, youth coordinator; Benjamin Saulsberry, director of public engagement and museum education; and Daphne Chamberlain, chief program officer, will discuss the origins of ETIC and its work in historical preservation, truth-telling, and racial reconciliation. This program will take place in the Craig H. Neilsen Auditorium of the Two Mississippi Museums and will also stream live on the MDAH Facebook page and YouTube channel. For more information, call 601-576-6850 or email info@mdah.ms.gov.