A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day....04-13-04....Mississippi - "Virtute et Armis"

Mama_Bear

[Mama_Bear]

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day

Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997. Over 100,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world.

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in need; and congratulate those deserving. We strive to keep our threads entertaining, fun, and pleasing to look at, and often have guest writers contribute an essay or a profile of another FReeper.

On Mondays please visit us to see photos of A FEW OF FR'S VETERANS AND ACTIVE MILITARY

If you have a suggestion, or an idea, or if there's a FReeper you would like to see featured, please drop one of us a note in FR mail.

We're having fun and hope you are!
~ Billie, Mama_Bear, dansangel, dutchess, Aquamarine ~

Please join "A Few of FR's Finest" as we make a cyber-visit to another state in this great Union of ours.

Over the past several months each "Finest" hostess has profiled her home state and I will be presenting the other states in random order. Please FReepMail me if you would like to participate in spotlighting your state. I would appreciate your input on what you would like to see highlighted.

Today we are going way down South to Dixie to celebrate the beautiful state of Mississippi.

These are the states
we have presented to date:

05-23-03 Alabama 06-27-03 Maryland 07-11-03 Vermont 07-25-03 Utah 08-05-03 Texas 08-22-03 Nevada 08-26-03 Wash DC 09-05-03 Tennessee 09-17-03 Florida 09-19-03 Minnesota 10-03-03 New Mexico

10-14-03 Georgia 10-17-03 Louisiana 10-22-03 Michigan 11-04-03 South Dakota 11-14-03 California 01-09-04 South Carolina 02-06-04 West Virginia 02-20-04 Oregon 03-09-04 Pennsylvania 03-30-04 Wyoming

As we celebrate each state,
we also salute the Fine FReepers who
proudly fly their home state's flag.

"Virtute et Armis"
- By valor and arms.










Mississippi History -
A Condensed Time Line

1540—Spaniard Hernando de Soto enters the Mississippi region
1682—René-Robert Cavelier of France claims the Mississippi region
1699—Pierre le Moyne establishes the first French colony at Old Biloxi
1716—Jean Baptiste Le Moyne founds what becomes Natchez
1719—The French bring the first black slaves into Mississippi
1763—Mississippi becomes English territory
1781—Spain claims Mississippi’s Gulf Coast
1783—Mississippi, except for the Gulf Coast, becomes United States territory
1798—The Mississippi Territory is created
1812—The Gulf Coast becomes part of the Mississippi Territory
1817—Mississippi becomes the 20^th state
1861—Mississippi secedes from the Union
1863—Union forces capture Vicksburg in the Civil War
1870—Mississippi is readmitted to the Union
1969—A federal court orders the desegregation of Mississippi’s public schools; Charles Evers becomes the first black mayor of Mississippi since Reconstruction. He was elected in Fayette.

Eight flags have
flown over the Magnolia State...



The current state flag...

The Confederate Battle Flag can still be seen in Mississippi. In 1894 it was incorporated into the state flag and the remainder of the flag being similar to the Stars and Bars except the upper bar is blue not red. When the Mississippi flag was drawn up The Battle Flag was never mentioned by name. The history of the state leaves no doubt that this was the intention. In 1861 Mississippi was the second state to join the Confederacy. During the Civil War it used the Bonnie Blue Flag. The second state flag consisted of a white background containing a magnolia tree, with the Bonnie Blue Flag in the canton. In 1817 when Mississippi became a state it also adopted a coat of arms and a seal. Both were based on a seal of the U.S.A. The arms nor the seal were used during the time Mississippi was in secession from the Union.







Mississippi is -
THE LAND OF COTTON...

During the early 1800s, cotton became Mississippi’s major crop. The industry continued to grow as the Natchez Trace connected Mississippi with Nashville, Tennessee. By 1810, the Mississippi Territory extended over all present-day Alabama, Mississippi, and parts of Florida. In 1817, Congress divided the Mississippi Territory into the state of Mississippi and the Alabama Territory. On Dec. 10, 1817, Mississippi joined the Union and became the 20th state. Its population had almost reached 60,000 people. Cotton continued to grow in importance with the invention of the cotton gin in 1793.

When Mississippi was a one-crop state before the arrival of the boll weevil in 1907, plantations thrived, and cotton was king in the fertile soil of the Yazoo-Mississippi delta. Today, though Mississippi ranks among the leading producers, cotton competes with other crops, like soybeans, and manufacturing has replaced agriculture as the economic leader. Mississippi is the nation's largest producer of upholstered furniture.


Mississippi is -
MUSIC...

The Mississippi Delta Blues.....the only true American music.

The blues as an art form has its origins in African culture. Yet, it is a uniquely American phenomenon in that it represents a merging of the similar, but diverse musical, tribal and cultural traditions typifying the long stretch of the west African coastline from Senegamabia to Angola.

The American blues, however, is more than a hybridized form of African musical traditions. It is also a distinctive and creative expression of the experiences of the suffering and pain of African slave descendants who toiled and labored as sharecroppers in the deep south, particularly the Mississippi Delta.

Mississippi's earthy concoction of emotion-filled lyrics and soulful sounds produced music legends like B.B. King and Muddy Waters. Each year, in the land of the Delta Blues, world-famous music festivals, like the Delta Blues and Heritage Festival, pay homage to this original art form - and the mighty Mississippi River just keeps on rollin'.


Mississippi is -
THE GULF COAST
and SHRIMP BOATS...

Mississippi's Gulf Coast is ranked one of the top three "up and coming" destinations in North America by the 2000 Fodor's/ASTA Annual Hot Spot Survey.

With over 200 species of fish, including mackerel, snapper, and grouper, indigenous to the Gulf of Mexico, deep-sea fishing charters, shrimping trips, and fishing in the area's many lakes and rivers are a must when visiting Mississippi's Gulf Coast. The Gulf Coast's temperate climate affords virtually year-round outdoor activities, including golfing, sailing, and motor boating. Jet skiing, windsurfing, and aqua-cycling are fun favorites of both visitors and residents. The adventuresome can't miss out on parasail rides, which offer an exhilarating panoramic view of the scenic coastline. With the wealth of festivities, some locals say that the Gulf Coast has a celebration for every crustacean.

Not to be missed is the ceremonial "Blessing of the Fleet" in Biloxi, given by a local Catholic priest, marking the beginning of the shrimp fishing season. Even though it had its origins in ancient times in Europe, the first Blessing of the Fleet in the Biloxi Bay was given in 1929, and now takes place annually in a colorful procession in the Mississippi Sound. The ceremony begins with the dropping of an evergreen wreath into the Sound in remembrance of fishermen who have been lost at sea. Then a procession of more than 30 shrimp boats files past the anchored "Blessing Boat" where the officiating priest stands, sprinkling holy water on each of the boats and giving a blessing for each one, asking a safe and prosperous fishing season.

As with each state that I present, I have had to leave much out. Mississippi is, of course, so much more than cotton, music and shrimp boats! I hope that our Mississippi FReepers will come and help us celebrate their great state by telling us more about Mississippi and why they are proud to be a Mississippian.

The following websites provided information, text,
and/or graphics for this presentation...

Blues History
Mississippi's Gulf Coast
Netstate - Mississippi
Mississippi's State Flags

I will close by adding this rather odd interesting
recipe that I found in my recent Google travels.....

Mississippi Mud

Ingredients:
1 small bottle orange juice
diet or regular coke
ice

Preparation:
Put some ice in glass. Add orange juice, top up with coke and stir. Looks like mud, tastes delicious.

(Hmmmm....not too sure about this one. LOL)

THIS WEEK'S THREADS 04-12-04...Military Monday

Opinions by our own 'King of Ping' The guy's good, folks!

Thanks, Mixer!

1) Click on the graphic to open the Calendar.
2) Once there you can click on any month and even click to the right to go into next year. Once you are in the month that you joined FR you will need to click on the number in the calendar and then an add item screen will come up.
3) In the next box enter your name in the "Calendar Text" field and then click on submit.
4) If any of the screens fail to load simply click on refresh in your browser and that will usually fix it.
5) If all else fails or simply if you want me to do this for you send me a FReepmail and I will gladly do it for you. ~Mixer

Click on the photo to view the album. To
submit your photo, please contact dansangel or .45MAN danbh59@yahoo.com
and include Freeper Photo Album in subject line.

[WVNan]

Those of you planning to visit Miss. be sure to drive the Natchaz Trace. It's a lovely drive.

[petitfour]

That's where I learned to drive on real roads. My father would take me there when I was 14/15, then he would move over and let me drive. There was so little traffic, and the speed limit was only 50mph, so he thought it was safer.

My favorite area of the Trace is between Jackson and Natchez.

[WVNan]

That's okay hon, we lived in South Jackson on Levell Woods Drive. It's strange to think that you were born there the same year as my son. Yeah, I was born in Tenn. but it's not my favorite state at all. I loved Miss., Ala, Va, and WV. My husband loves Tenn and kept trying to move me back there. I wouldn't stay. Ha.

[Mama_Bear]

Wonderful Thread, Lori. Thank you.

Thanks for the compliments and for coming by, Amy.

What is that music that you posted? Is it Jo Stafford singing "Shrimp Boats"? I can't get Windows Media Player to play it. When my computer was re-built and Windows XP re-installed I lost all of my programs, like RealPlayer. I need to download and install it. Maybe I can do that tonight. I didn't know that Windows Media Player won't recognize .ram files.

[WVNan]

I'm breaking for the President's news conference. BBL

[Mama_Bear]

I'm breaking for the President's news conference. BBL

Thanks for the heads up. I will take a break and listen in too.

[WKB]

I have one qestion. Why no mention of the "King of Rock and Roll"?

[JustAmy]

The music is Jambalaya by Jo Stafford. I couldn't find Shrimp Boats. Jambalaya is more suited to Louisiana but decided it might work anyway.

I'll try to get back later. (I think I have a poem : )

[Mama_Bear]

What a great website, petitfour. Lots to see and do in Mississippi!

I wanted to include so much more in my post, like some of the history; the battle of Vicksburg, etc., places to visit and also about some of the people who have come from Mississippi...such as ELVIS PRESELY, The King of Rock and Roll, who was born in Tupelo....but I ran out of space. There is just too much to say about your state. :-(

I depend upon people like you to come and fill in the blank spots. And you two have done a great job.

[Mama_Bear]

It IS a very lovely state, and your thread has done it proud.

What a nice compliment. Thank you.

I love the Gulf Coast. But, if you go there, watch your wallet. There are many casinos just dying to relieve you of it's contents. ;o)

I saw references to casinos on some of the Mississippi websites I visited. I would have never connected casinos with Mississippi.

I made a visit to your profile page. You did the Richard Petty Driving Experience?!? My husband has made his reservations and is going to do that at Lowe's Motor Speedway while we are in Charlotte this summer. He is so excited he can hardly stand it.

[WKB]

http://www.mississippi.gov/ms_sub_sub_template.jsp?Category_ID=38


http://mississippi.state-park.org/

[Mama_Bear]

Thank yoooooouuu!! This is so great, having these links posted. I hope that in the future people planning to visit these states will search out our archived state posts for links and information. They will find a lot of useful information.

[WVNan]

Magnolia Hall, Natchez, Miss. Cira 1858.

[WVNan]

"One thing the American people know about me. When I say something I mean it." President Bush. Amen.

[Mama_Bear]

Oh, that is beautiful. It looks so "southern".

[Mama_Bear]

"One thing the American people know about me. When I say something I mean it." President Bush. Amen.

And Amen! :-)

[Have Ruck - Will Travel]

To paraphrase a wonderful song by Alabama:

"But my home`s in Mississippi, no matter WHERE I lay my head"

GO DAWGS!!!

Ruck

[onyx]

I'd be right behind you if there was any way possible to uproot our small business and take it (and our clientele) with us.



I understand your situation.
Husband is having to sell his medical practice,
but he is of retirement age, so it's working out perfectly.

[onyx]

My grandaddy played with his band, and my mother still has the ukelele he used at that time.




WOW!
You never told me this.
I bet you sing and dance too. :)
I know you took piano lessons.

[Aquamarine]

Now you've had your 1 minute fix...get off and rest those eyes!

I'm trying! My eyes are doing a little better. :)