Wednesday, June 7, 2017

Up with U.S. Geography: Mississippi

State Name:
Mississippi

Capital:
Jackson

Date of Entry:
December 10, 1817

Maps:
Map of USA. Mississippi outlined in dark ink & with
name written on it.

A close-up of Mississippi & its neighbors.

Neighbors:
Tennessee, Alabama, Louisiana, Arkansas

Water Borders:
Mississippi River, Gulf of Mexico

Total Area:
48,430 square miles

Five Largest Cities:
Jackson, Gulfport, Southaven, Hattiesburg, Biloxi

Famous Geographical Point:
Mississippi River

State Nickname:
The Magnolia State. So named for the abundance of magnolia trees, which are also their state tree. The magnolia flower is their state flower. They are apparently very proud of their magnolias.

Famous Person:
Fannie Lou Hamer, Civil Rights & voting rights activist

Book Set In/About:
The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner

This novel covers the course of 30 years and focuses on the fate of the Compsons, who are disgraced Southern aristocrats.

Movie Set In/About:
"In the Heat of the Night" (1967), directed by Norman Jewison

Set in a fictional Mississippi town, when a Northern black police detective becomes embroiled in a murder investigation, racial tensions flair.

Headline of the Day:
“Final Parts of Mississippi Budget Set During Special Session” in U.S. News & World Report.

2 comments:

Patricia said...

I've just recently become aware of Fannie Lou Hamer (via a picture book, of all things) but she did good things. The state of Mississippi is lucky to have had her. (Though I'm sure a goodly number of residents don't agree with me on that point.)

This is a state that I would not be opposed to visiting, but I'm not going to go out of my way to do so. Perhaps if I do visit, I can time it for the magnolias to be in bloom.

balyien said...

One of these days, I'd love to vacation at a little Gulf resort town, or one one of the little Gulf islands, like Dauphin Island (Alabama). I've seen them on a few HGTV shows and they look so nice.