Mississippi Trivia & Tidbits - Page 12

Looking for Mississippi trivia? Try our list Mississippi little know facts, tidbits and trivia.

Lumberton (pop. 2,228) is home to the world’s largest pecan nursery. The Bass Pecan Co. began in 1906 when the family patriarch planted his first tree there.

first appeared: 12/15/2002

In 1848, the state opened a school for the blind. Now called the Mississippi School for the Blind, it was the nation’s first state-supported institution for the handicapped.

first appeared: 12/8/2002

The only known recordings of legendary bluesman Robert Johnson, a Hazlehurst (pop. 4,400) native, were made in Texas. Johnson recorded his work twice—in 1936 in San Antonio and in Dallas in 1937—before his death in 1938.

first appeared: 12/1/2002

The Natchez Trace Parkway is a national highway that began more than 8,000 years ago as an American Indian route. Today, the two-lane road runs from Nashville, Tenn., to Natchez (pop. 18,464).

first appeared: 11/24/2002

Mitchell Library at Mississippi State University in Starkville (pop. 21,869) houses the state’s first United Nations Depository whereby users have access to UN documents and publications.

first appeared: 11/17/2002

In 1908, Mississippi became the first state to prohibit the sale of alcohol. It was the last state to end its prohibition—in 1966—33 years after national prohibition had ended.

first appeared: 11/10/2002

Biloxi’s Blessing of the Fleet began in 1929. Each spring, a procession of more than 30 shrimp boats files past a priest who blesses each and asks for a prosperous season.

first appeared: 11/3/2002

The Biloxi Lighthouse is one of only two remaining lighthouses on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. It is said to be one of the most photographed objects in the South.

first appeared: 10/27/2002

North Mississippi Medical Center in Tupelo (pop. 34,211) is the state’s largest hospital and the nation’s largest non-metropolitan healthcare facility.

first appeared: 10/20/2002

Paul MacLeod claims to be Elvis Presley’s biggest fan and built Graceland Too in Holly Springs (pop. 7,957) to prove it. The public shrine showcases 10 million Elvis items. MacLeod and his son, Elvis Aaron Presley MacLeod, collect every Elvis reference they can find.

first appeared: 10/13/2002

A 12-foot golden hand atop the steeple of the First Presbyterian Church in Port Gibson (pop. 1,840) points heavenward. A 17-year-old craftsman carved the original wooden hand in 1859.

first appeared: 10/6/2002

John C. Stennis was the state’s longest-serving U.S. senator, holding office from 1947 to 1989.

first appeared: 9/29/2002

Old-fashioned malts and sodas have been served since 1869 at Borroum’s Drugstore in Corinth (pop. 14,054), the state’s oldest family-operated drugstore.

first appeared: 9/22/2002

The 1880 Mississippi Lumber Co. in Vicksburg (pop. 26,407) is one of the state’s oldest.

first appeared: 9/15/2002

At Shack Up Inn on the 1852 Hopson Plantation in Clarksdale (pop. 20,645), guests pay $50 to $75 a night to sleep in an authentic sharecroppers’ shack.

first appeared: 9/8/2002

At 806 feet, Woodall Mountain is the state’s highest point. Its geographic center is nine miles northwest of Carthage (pop. 4,637).

first appeared: 9/1/2002

D’Lo (pop. 394) sent more men to fight in World War II than any other town of its size; 38 percent of its men volunteered to serve.

first appeared: 8/25/2002

A Senate resolution designated petrified wood as the state stone in 1976. The Mississippi Petrified Forest, a privately operated park and museum, is located in Flora (pop. 1,546).

first appeared: 8/18/2002

Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield was considered the country’s first African-American singer of classical music. Born in Natchez (pop. 18,464) in the early 1800s, Greenfield sang for Queen Victoria in 1854.

first appeared: 8/11/2002

The state took its name from the river flowing along its western boundary, which appropriately translates from American Indian languages to “Father of Waters.”

first appeared: 8/4/2002

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