MISSISSIPPI 



3848 



MISSISSIPPI 



MISSISSI 



1910 

 1900 

 1890 

 1880 

 1870 

 I860 

 1850 

 1840 



Population per 



, Natchez 

 First House in the State 



History. Before the advent of the white man 

 these regions were inhabited by three powerful 

 tribes of Indians the Chickasaws in the north, 

 the Choctaws in the center and the Natchez in 

 the southwest. In addition, there were some 

 other weaker tribes, such as the Yazoos in the 

 Yazoo valley the Pascagoulas and the Biloxis 

 on the borders of Mississippi Sound. The region 

 was first explored by the Spanish adventurer 

 DeSoto in 1541 (see DESoro, FERNANDO). The 

 French explorer, La Salle, took possession of the 

 country in the name of France in 1682, this 

 region being included in what was known as 

 Louisiana (see LA SALLE, RENE-ROBERT). 



The first settlement in the present state by 

 the French was at Biloxi, in 1712; the second, 

 at Fort Rosalie, now Natchez, in 1716. The 

 territory did not prosper under French rule, and 

 it was ceded to Great Britain in 1763. Imme- 

 diately immigrants arrived in considerable 

 numbers from the English colonies on the At- 

 lantic coast, and also from Scotland, and the 

 colony began to flourish. In 1781 England 



ceded the southern part, known as West 

 Florida, to Spain. By the Treaty of Paris, in 

 1783, which closed the Revolutionary War, the 

 northern boundary of West Florida was placed 

 at 31 latitude, and a long dispute between 

 Spain and the United States resulted. This 

 lasted until 1795, when Spain released its claim 

 to the territory north of that line. In 1798 the 

 territory of Mississippi was organized; this was 

 extended in 1804 to the boundary of Tennessee, 

 and in 1813 to the Gulf of Mexico. 



Progress as a State. On December 10, 1817, 

 Mississippi was formally admitted as the twen- 

 tieth state of the Union. Jackson, the capital, 

 was founded in 1821. In 1816 the Chickasaws, 

 and in 1832 the Choctaws, ceded to the United 

 States their lands, which were thrown open for 

 settlement. The state was greatly opposed to 

 the antislavery movement, and adopted the 

 Ordinance of Secession on January 9, 1861. 

 One month later Jefferson Davis of Mississippi 

 was elected President of the Confederacy. In 

 or on the borders of the state were fought the 



